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1. Livni Slams Olmert Peace Deal
by Hana Levi Julian
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni adamantly denied allegations Friday that she had "sold" Jerusalem in negotiations with the Palestinian Authority (PA) and said she vehemently opposed such a deal.
The Kadima party chairwoman was accused by her top rival in the upcoming elections for the prime minister's seat, Likud party chairman MK Binyamin Netanyahu, of conspiring with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to offer the PA sweeping concessions that included dividing Jerusalem and internationalizing its holy sites.
Livni's spokesman firmly denied the allegations Friday afternoon, telling Israel National News, "The Minister believes that Israeli sovereignty -- religiously, nationally, culturally and strategically -- must be maintained over a united Jerusalem, including and foremost the religious sites."
The Israeli position negotiated by Livni, he said, was that "Jerusalem will be kept united."
"Minister Livni was not in the room with Prime Minister Olmert and Chairman Abbas when they had their conversation about this agreement. This is something that someone on the other side did," added her spokesman Gil Messing. "It was not the work of Minister Livni. She is against it in all terms that are possible to elaborate and she said so yesterday in the Cabinet."
It is equally clear, he warned, that even in a deal that Livni would support, Jews in Judea and Samaria would end up losing their homes. How many, he could not say. "I don't know the numbers. As many [si Jews will remain in their houses where they are right now, however, there will be a division of the land. It is untrue and unfair to say otherwise."
However, whether the plan would ultimately come to fruition will depend on the PA, he added. "It will be an agreement that will represent all of Israel's security needs, and is subject to any change of situation on the ground, including the fight against terrorism," he said, "most importantly the complete dismantling of terrorist infrastructure in the Palestinian Authority areas."
Olmert 'Peace Plan': Divide Jerusalem, Give Up Holy Sites
According to the Hebrew-language daily Yediot Acharonot, Olmert agreed to give up Jerusalem's holy sites under an international authority in a plan similar to that of the "Holy Basin" concept advanced during the administration of former U.S. President Bill Clinton.
Also under the plan, the Jewish State would transfer Arab neighborhoods in the eastern section of the capital to the PA.
Interestingly, the move was predicted by Netanyahu Wednesday morning in a keynote address by at the Jerusalem Conference at about the same time that Olmert was meeting in the capital with US Middle East envoy George Mitchell.
The plan also calls for at least 60,000 Jewish residents to be expelled from their homes in Judea and Samaria, and Israel would withdraw from most of its territory in the region, with the exception of several large populated blocs. The operation would dwarf the 2005 Disengagement from Gaza, a move which has brought one million Israelis under rocket fire from Gaza, besides leaving thousands jobless and in transitional housing to this day.
The new Arab state that would be formed within Israel's current borders would also be provided with geographic contiguity through a series of tunnels and a new highway that would be built to connect Gaza with Judea and Samaria.
However, the prime minister refused to allow the immigration of millions of Arabs and their descendants who fled their homes in the State at the behest of Israel's invading enemies during the 1948 War of Independence, a demand the PA has called the "right of return."
24-hour Media Silence: 'Private Diplomatic Conversation'
A curious cloak of silence by local and international media stifled news of the agreement for almost 24 hours after the initial report was published in the Thursday morning front-page article in Yediot Acharonot.
The paper reported that Olmert had closed on the deal with Mitchell during their meeting Wednesday and provided details about the plan.
However, by nightfall it was impossible to find a trace of the report, which had inexplicably disappeared from the media radar. An internet search revealed not one reference to the day's discussion, with the exception of a lone AFP article in a Philippine newspaper.
Olmert spokesman Mark Regev brushed off late-evening attempts by Israel National News to obtain information about the agreement. "You can ask me anything you want about it," he said," but I don't want to confirm or deny anything. It was a private diplomatic conversation," he said.
Netanyahu: Vows Not to Uproot Jews
Netanyahu lost no time in going on the offensive Friday morning, telling listeners in an interview on IDF Army Radio that he would not uproot any Jews from their homes if he is elected prime minister in the upcoming polls.
The Knesset Opposition leader also said he would not be bound by any deals concluded by the prime minister, and accused Livni of making dangerous concessions in her role as head negotiator with the Palestinian Authority.
"She said she was a partner to all the decisions made by the Kadima government," he said. "Now we see what she decided and what she conceded."
Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu, Avraham Zuroff and Yehudah Kay contributed to this report.
Comment on this story
by Hana Levi Julian
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni adamantly denied allegations Friday that she had "sold" Jerusalem in negotiations with the Palestinian Authority (PA) and said she vehemently opposed such a deal.
The Kadima party chairwoman was accused by her top rival in the upcoming elections for the prime minister's seat, Likud party chairman MK Binyamin Netanyahu, of conspiring with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to offer the PA sweeping concessions that included dividing Jerusalem and internationalizing its holy sites.
Livni's spokesman firmly denied the allegations Friday afternoon, telling Israel National News, "The Minister believes that Israeli sovereignty -- religiously, nationally, culturally and strategically -- must be maintained over a united Jerusalem, including and foremost the religious sites."
The Israeli position negotiated by Livni, he said, was that "Jerusalem will be kept united."
"Minister Livni was not in the room with Prime Minister Olmert and Chairman Abbas when they had their conversation about this agreement. This is something that someone on the other side did," added her spokesman Gil Messing. "It was not the work of Minister Livni. She is against it in all terms that are possible to elaborate and she said so yesterday in the Cabinet."
It is equally clear, he warned, that even in a deal that Livni would support, Jews in Judea and Samaria would end up losing their homes. How many, he could not say. "I don't know the numbers. As many [si Jews will remain in their houses where they are right now, however, there will be a division of the land. It is untrue and unfair to say otherwise."
However, whether the plan would ultimately come to fruition will depend on the PA, he added. "It will be an agreement that will represent all of Israel's security needs, and is subject to any change of situation on the ground, including the fight against terrorism," he said, "most importantly the complete dismantling of terrorist infrastructure in the Palestinian Authority areas."
Olmert 'Peace Plan': Divide Jerusalem, Give Up Holy Sites
According to the Hebrew-language daily Yediot Acharonot, Olmert agreed to give up Jerusalem's holy sites under an international authority in a plan similar to that of the "Holy Basin" concept advanced during the administration of former U.S. President Bill Clinton.
Also under the plan, the Jewish State would transfer Arab neighborhoods in the eastern section of the capital to the PA.
Interestingly, the move was predicted by Netanyahu Wednesday morning in a keynote address by at the Jerusalem Conference at about the same time that Olmert was meeting in the capital with US Middle East envoy George Mitchell.
The plan also calls for at least 60,000 Jewish residents to be expelled from their homes in Judea and Samaria, and Israel would withdraw from most of its territory in the region, with the exception of several large populated blocs. The operation would dwarf the 2005 Disengagement from Gaza, a move which has brought one million Israelis under rocket fire from Gaza, besides leaving thousands jobless and in transitional housing to this day.
The new Arab state that would be formed within Israel's current borders would also be provided with geographic contiguity through a series of tunnels and a new highway that would be built to connect Gaza with Judea and Samaria.
However, the prime minister refused to allow the immigration of millions of Arabs and their descendants who fled their homes in the State at the behest of Israel's invading enemies during the 1948 War of Independence, a demand the PA has called the "right of return."
24-hour Media Silence: 'Private Diplomatic Conversation'
A curious cloak of silence by local and international media stifled news of the agreement for almost 24 hours after the initial report was published in the Thursday morning front-page article in Yediot Acharonot.
The paper reported that Olmert had closed on the deal with Mitchell during their meeting Wednesday and provided details about the plan.
However, by nightfall it was impossible to find a trace of the report, which had inexplicably disappeared from the media radar. An internet search revealed not one reference to the day's discussion, with the exception of a lone AFP article in a Philippine newspaper.
Olmert spokesman Mark Regev brushed off late-evening attempts by Israel National News to obtain information about the agreement. "You can ask me anything you want about it," he said," but I don't want to confirm or deny anything. It was a private diplomatic conversation," he said.
Netanyahu: Vows Not to Uproot Jews
Netanyahu lost no time in going on the offensive Friday morning, telling listeners in an interview on IDF Army Radio that he would not uproot any Jews from their homes if he is elected prime minister in the upcoming polls.
The Knesset Opposition leader also said he would not be bound by any deals concluded by the prime minister, and accused Livni of making dangerous concessions in her role as head negotiator with the Palestinian Authority.
"She said she was a partner to all the decisions made by the Kadima government," he said. "Now we see what she decided and what she conceded."
Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu, Avraham Zuroff and Yehudah Kay contributed to this report.
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2. Spanish Court Probes IDF Heads
by Maayana Miskin
A Spanish judge ruled Thursday to open a probe into senior Israeli officers involved in the 2002 assassination of senior Hamas terrorist Salah Shehadeh. The judge, Justice Fernando Andreu, said the assassination may have been a crime against humanity.
Andreu said the strike on Shehadeh may have been illegal due to the fact that Shehadeh's home was located in a densely populated area, and several civilians were killed in the strike. He invoked a law allowing Spain to prosecute crimes of terrorism or genocide even if they are committed beyond Spain's borders and do not involve Spanish citizens.
Among those included in the probe are former Israeli Air Force commander Dan Halutz and Minister of National Infrastructure Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, who at the time of the Shehadeh killing served as Defense Minister. Both men approved the strike.
Shehadeh was among the founders of Hamas's armed forces, and headed the armed forces in Gaza at the time of his death. He was responsible for the murder of dozens of Israelis in hundreds of terrorist attacks, including the murder of five young students in the pre-army academy in Atzmona and mortar shell attacks on Jewish towns in and near Gaza.
Shehadeh was killed in an IAF airstrike in July of 2002. Fourteen others were killed as well, including his wife and a daughter.
Several Arab Israeli and Israeli leftist organizations have attempted to put senior IDF officials on trial for the deaths of the civilians killed in the strike on Shehadeh, but such attempts have repeatedly been overruled by the High Court. Those who authorized the Shehadeh strike have faced charges abroad as well – in 2005, former IDF Chief of Staff Moshe (Boogie) Yaalon was nearly arrested in New Zealand due to similar accusations, and in 2007 an American group attempted to charge Public Security Minister Avi Dichter with war crimes.
Comment on this story
by Maayana Miskin
A Spanish judge ruled Thursday to open a probe into senior Israeli officers involved in the 2002 assassination of senior Hamas terrorist Salah Shehadeh. The judge, Justice Fernando Andreu, said the assassination may have been a crime against humanity.
Andreu said the strike on Shehadeh may have been illegal due to the fact that Shehadeh's home was located in a densely populated area, and several civilians were killed in the strike. He invoked a law allowing Spain to prosecute crimes of terrorism or genocide even if they are committed beyond Spain's borders and do not involve Spanish citizens.
Among those included in the probe are former Israeli Air Force commander Dan Halutz and Minister of National Infrastructure Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, who at the time of the Shehadeh killing served as Defense Minister. Both men approved the strike.
Shehadeh was among the founders of Hamas's armed forces, and headed the armed forces in Gaza at the time of his death. He was responsible for the murder of dozens of Israelis in hundreds of terrorist attacks, including the murder of five young students in the pre-army academy in Atzmona and mortar shell attacks on Jewish towns in and near Gaza.
Shehadeh was killed in an IAF airstrike in July of 2002. Fourteen others were killed as well, including his wife and a daughter.
Several Arab Israeli and Israeli leftist organizations have attempted to put senior IDF officials on trial for the deaths of the civilians killed in the strike on Shehadeh, but such attempts have repeatedly been overruled by the High Court. Those who authorized the Shehadeh strike have faced charges abroad as well – in 2005, former IDF Chief of Staff Moshe (Boogie) Yaalon was nearly arrested in New Zealand due to similar accusations, and in 2007 an American group attempted to charge Public Security Minister Avi Dichter with war crimes.
Comment on this story
3. Erdogan Storms Out of Davos
by Maayana Miskin
Despite an escalation in the hostile atmosphere has developed between Turkey and Israel, a weapons sale between the two nations is expected to take place as planned, according to government sources.
Host trying to calm down Erdogan.
Erdogan storms out of session.
Israel has agreed to sell Turkey several unmanned drones of both the Heron and Harpy models. Harpy model drones have been used to take out Hamas terrorists.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stormed angrily out of the World Economic Forum's Davos conference on Thursday night, torpedoing President Shimon Peres's hopes for reconciliation. The incident took place after Peres and Erdogan debated onstage.
After Erdogan, Arab League head Amr Moussa and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon harshly criticized Israel's Cast Lead operation in Gaza, Peres turned to Erdogan and told him Turkey would have done the same.
If rockets hit Istanbul, Turkey would have responded, Peres said, adding, “Do you understand the meaning of a situation where hundreds of rockets are falling a day on women and children who cannot sleep quietly, who need to sleep in shelters?... You don't understand, and I am not prepared for lies.”
Peres's statement was met with applause.
Erdogan asked to respond, and was given a short time to speak in which he termed Israel's actions “very wrong” and “not humanitarian.” He was then silenced by a moderator, leading him to leave in anger while saying, “Thank you very much. I don't think I will come back to Davos.”
Moussa supported Erdogan's actions, while other leaders expressed concern over the situation. Erdogan refused to discuss his decision to leave with reporters, while his wife accused Peres of lying.
Upon returning home to Turkey, Erdogan was greeted by thousands of enthusiastic supporters. Demonstrators flooded the airport bearing Turkish and PLO flags and shouting slogans in support of Gaza Arabs and Erdogan.
Israeli diplomats implied Thursday night that Israel might not continue to attempt to appease Erdogan, who has harshly criticized Israel since the Cast Lead operation began over a month ago. An anonymous official told foreign journalists that Israel would not “chase after the Turks.”
Comment on this story
by Maayana Miskin
Despite an escalation in the hostile atmosphere has developed between Turkey and Israel, a weapons sale between the two nations is expected to take place as planned, according to government sources.
Host trying to calm down Erdogan.
Erdogan storms out of session.
Israel has agreed to sell Turkey several unmanned drones of both the Heron and Harpy models. Harpy model drones have been used to take out Hamas terrorists.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stormed angrily out of the World Economic Forum's Davos conference on Thursday night, torpedoing President Shimon Peres's hopes for reconciliation. The incident took place after Peres and Erdogan debated onstage.
After Erdogan, Arab League head Amr Moussa and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon harshly criticized Israel's Cast Lead operation in Gaza, Peres turned to Erdogan and told him Turkey would have done the same.
If rockets hit Istanbul, Turkey would have responded, Peres said, adding, “Do you understand the meaning of a situation where hundreds of rockets are falling a day on women and children who cannot sleep quietly, who need to sleep in shelters?... You don't understand, and I am not prepared for lies.”
Peres's statement was met with applause.
Erdogan asked to respond, and was given a short time to speak in which he termed Israel's actions “very wrong” and “not humanitarian.” He was then silenced by a moderator, leading him to leave in anger while saying, “Thank you very much. I don't think I will come back to Davos.”
Moussa supported Erdogan's actions, while other leaders expressed concern over the situation. Erdogan refused to discuss his decision to leave with reporters, while his wife accused Peres of lying.
Upon returning home to Turkey, Erdogan was greeted by thousands of enthusiastic supporters. Demonstrators flooded the airport bearing Turkish and PLO flags and shouting slogans in support of Gaza Arabs and Erdogan.
Israeli diplomats implied Thursday night that Israel might not continue to attempt to appease Erdogan, who has harshly criticized Israel since the Cast Lead operation began over a month ago. An anonymous official told foreign journalists that Israel would not “chase after the Turks.”
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4. 'Open Borders Prevent Smuggling'
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
Following a meeting with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Thursday, newly-appointed American Middle East envoy George Mitchell called for open crossings into Gaza and greater Fatah involvement there.
Talking to reporters after his discussions with Fatah leader Abbas and other PA officials, Mitchell said, "To be successful in preventing the illicit traffic of arms into Gaza, there must be a mechanism to allow the flow of legal goods. And that should be with the participation of the [Fatah-control Palestinian Authority."
Fatah is the faction currently heading the Judea and Samaria half of the Authority, while the more jihadist Hamas controls the Gaza half of the PA. Hamas initially took legislative power in a landslide in PA-wide elections, and later carried out a successful coup in Gaza in order to obtain absolute control there.
The U.S. envoy further called for "a sustainable and durable ceasefire" between Hamas and Israel. Mitchell added that he had expressed to Abbas President Barack Obama's "deep concern over the killing of the Palestinians and the humanitarian situation in Gaza." The President is also committed to a Palestinian State and "lasting peace", according to Mitchell.
While Abbas did not address the media following his meeting with Mitchell, senior PA representative Saeb Erekat told journalists that the PA chairman discussed "humanitarian aid to Gaza, the importance of the truce, opening the crossings and lifting the blockade of Gaza." Abbas also claimed that "continued construction of Israeli settlements, creating facts on the ground... and construction of the wall are an attempt to separate the West Bank from the Gaza Strip," according to Erekat. He added that Israel's Operation Cast Lead in Gaza harmed the chances for peace in the region.
Touching on another matter, Erekat said that Abbas told Mitchell of his eagerness to form a unified regime with Hamas. Due to the American boycott of Hamas, which it officially recognizes as a terrorist entity, Mitchell is not going to visit Gaza during his current Middle Eastern tour.
Mitchell met with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Wednesday, after meetings in Egypt. He also met with IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi. On Friday, Mitchell is scheduled to meet with Knesset opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu.
Comment on this story
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
Following a meeting with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Thursday, newly-appointed American Middle East envoy George Mitchell called for open crossings into Gaza and greater Fatah involvement there.
Talking to reporters after his discussions with Fatah leader Abbas and other PA officials, Mitchell said, "To be successful in preventing the illicit traffic of arms into Gaza, there must be a mechanism to allow the flow of legal goods. And that should be with the participation of the [Fatah-control Palestinian Authority."
Fatah is the faction currently heading the Judea and Samaria half of the Authority, while the more jihadist Hamas controls the Gaza half of the PA. Hamas initially took legislative power in a landslide in PA-wide elections, and later carried out a successful coup in Gaza in order to obtain absolute control there.
The U.S. envoy further called for "a sustainable and durable ceasefire" between Hamas and Israel. Mitchell added that he had expressed to Abbas President Barack Obama's "deep concern over the killing of the Palestinians and the humanitarian situation in Gaza." The President is also committed to a Palestinian State and "lasting peace", according to Mitchell.
While Abbas did not address the media following his meeting with Mitchell, senior PA representative Saeb Erekat told journalists that the PA chairman discussed "humanitarian aid to Gaza, the importance of the truce, opening the crossings and lifting the blockade of Gaza." Abbas also claimed that "continued construction of Israeli settlements, creating facts on the ground... and construction of the wall are an attempt to separate the West Bank from the Gaza Strip," according to Erekat. He added that Israel's Operation Cast Lead in Gaza harmed the chances for peace in the region.
Touching on another matter, Erekat said that Abbas told Mitchell of his eagerness to form a unified regime with Hamas. Due to the American boycott of Hamas, which it officially recognizes as a terrorist entity, Mitchell is not going to visit Gaza during his current Middle Eastern tour.
Mitchell met with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Wednesday, after meetings in Egypt. He also met with IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi. On Friday, Mitchell is scheduled to meet with Knesset opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu.
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5. Kadima Official: Battle is Lost
by Hana Levi Julian and Gil Ronen
A senior member of the ruling Kadima party was quoted as saying Friday that the dovish camp's situation in the election “appears bad, and in fact, the battle appears to be lost,” according to a report in News1.
“The renewed attacks by terror organizations in Gaza are pushing voters to the Right bloc,” he said, “especially to Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu.”
Meanwhile, the senior source said, the “aftershocks” from Operation Cast Lead are now hitting the Labor Party and its leader, Defense Minister Ehud Barak. Arabs with Israeli citizenship, many of whom voted for Zionist parties in previous elections, are threatening not to vote for Labor and Kadima because they see them as responsible for the deaths of Arabs in Gaza. This further weakens the “center-Left” bloc.
Senior members of Labor are reportedly no longer seriously talking about the possibility of either winning the election or coming in second. The real struggle, reports News1, is to get one Knesset seat more than Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beiteinu, “so that Labor can enter a coalition led by Likud's Binyamin Netanyahu “from a position of strength.”
Poll shows Kadima Spiraling Downward
A new poll published Thursday by the Voice of Israel government broadcast authority found that the Kadima party is continuing to drop in popularity.
If elections were held today, the current coalition leader would only win 20 mandates in the next Knesset, according to the survey, putting the Likud party in the driver's seat with 29 mandates instead.
The Russian immigrant Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel is Our Home) party is tied with the Labor party in the poll, with both earning 16 mandates each. The Sephardic Shas party received 11 mandates, followed by United Torah Judaism, which received 7 mandates.
The left-wing Meretz party received 4 mandates. The National Union and Jewish Home parties were also tied, with 3 mandates each. The Arab parties Hadash, Ta’al Re’em and Balad all received 3 mandates as well. The Pensioners party received enough votes for 2 mandates.
A Haaretz-Dialog poll published earlier in the day claimed that "Kadima has only three Knesset seats less than Likud." The survey was carried out Tuesday and Wednesday under the supervision of Professor Camil Fuchs of Tel Aviv University's Department of Statistics and Operations Research. Dialog noted that Yisrael Beiteinu had expanded the influence of the right wing to 65 Knesset seats. Leftist parties have only garnered 53 seats.
According to the Haaretz-Dialog poll, Yisrael Beiteinu has surpassed the Labor party, winning 15 seats over Labor's 14 mandates. The Shas Sephardic religious party won 10 seats in the survey, and Ichud HaLeumi (National Union) and Habayit HaYehudi (Jewish Home) together received seven mandates.
As did the Voice of Israel poll, Dialog gave the Pensioners' Party two seats in the next Knesset. Meretz won five seats.
However, 22 percent of the respondents in the survey said they were still undecided as to where they would cast their votes in the election.
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by Hana Levi Julian and Gil Ronen
A senior member of the ruling Kadima party was quoted as saying Friday that the dovish camp's situation in the election “appears bad, and in fact, the battle appears to be lost,” according to a report in News1.
“The renewed attacks by terror organizations in Gaza are pushing voters to the Right bloc,” he said, “especially to Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu.”
Meanwhile, the senior source said, the “aftershocks” from Operation Cast Lead are now hitting the Labor Party and its leader, Defense Minister Ehud Barak. Arabs with Israeli citizenship, many of whom voted for Zionist parties in previous elections, are threatening not to vote for Labor and Kadima because they see them as responsible for the deaths of Arabs in Gaza. This further weakens the “center-Left” bloc.
Senior members of Labor are reportedly no longer seriously talking about the possibility of either winning the election or coming in second. The real struggle, reports News1, is to get one Knesset seat more than Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beiteinu, “so that Labor can enter a coalition led by Likud's Binyamin Netanyahu “from a position of strength.”
Poll shows Kadima Spiraling Downward
A new poll published Thursday by the Voice of Israel government broadcast authority found that the Kadima party is continuing to drop in popularity.
If elections were held today, the current coalition leader would only win 20 mandates in the next Knesset, according to the survey, putting the Likud party in the driver's seat with 29 mandates instead.
The Russian immigrant Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel is Our Home) party is tied with the Labor party in the poll, with both earning 16 mandates each. The Sephardic Shas party received 11 mandates, followed by United Torah Judaism, which received 7 mandates.
The left-wing Meretz party received 4 mandates. The National Union and Jewish Home parties were also tied, with 3 mandates each. The Arab parties Hadash, Ta’al Re’em and Balad all received 3 mandates as well. The Pensioners party received enough votes for 2 mandates.
A Haaretz-Dialog poll published earlier in the day claimed that "Kadima has only three Knesset seats less than Likud." The survey was carried out Tuesday and Wednesday under the supervision of Professor Camil Fuchs of Tel Aviv University's Department of Statistics and Operations Research. Dialog noted that Yisrael Beiteinu had expanded the influence of the right wing to 65 Knesset seats. Leftist parties have only garnered 53 seats.
According to the Haaretz-Dialog poll, Yisrael Beiteinu has surpassed the Labor party, winning 15 seats over Labor's 14 mandates. The Shas Sephardic religious party won 10 seats in the survey, and Ichud HaLeumi (National Union) and Habayit HaYehudi (Jewish Home) together received seven mandates.
As did the Voice of Israel poll, Dialog gave the Pensioners' Party two seats in the next Knesset. Meretz won five seats.
However, 22 percent of the respondents in the survey said they were still undecided as to where they would cast their votes in the election.
Comment on this story
6. 'I Slept in Your Gaza Home'
by IsraelNN Staff
Hello,
While the world watches the ruins in Gaza, you return to your home which remains standing. However, I am sure that it is clear to you that someone was in your home while you were away.
I am that someone.
I spent long hours imagining how you would react when you walked into your home. How you would feel when you understood that IDF soldiers had slept on your mattresses and used your blankets to keep warm.
I knew that it would make you angry and sad and that you would feel this violation of the most intimate areas of your life by those defined as your enemies, with stinging humiliation. I am convinced that you hate me with unbridled hatred, and you do not have even the tiniest desire to hear what I have to say. At the same time, it is important for me to say the following in the hope that there is even the minutest chance that you will hear me.
I spent many days in your home. You and your family's presence was felt in every corner. I saw your family portraits on the wall, and I thought of my family. I saw your wife's perfume bottles on the bureau, and I thought of my wife. I saw your children's toys and their English language schoolbooks. I saw your personal computer and how you set up the modem and wireless phone next to the screen, just as I do.
I wanted you to know that despite the immense disorder you found in your house that was created during a search for explosives and tunnels (which were indeed found in other homes), we did our best to treat your possessions with respect. When I moved the computer table, I disconnected the cables and lay them down neatly on the floor, as I would do with my own computer. I even covered the computer from dust with a piece of cloth. I tried to put back the clothes that fell when we moved the closet although not the same as
you would have done, but at least in such a way that nothing would get lost.
I know that the devastation, the bullet holes in your walls and the destruction of those homes near you place my descriptions in a ridiculous light. Still, I need you to understand me, us, and hope that you will channel your anger and criticism to the right places.
I decided to write you this letter specifically because I stayed in your home.
I can surmise that you are intelligent and educated and there are those in your household that are university students. Your children learn English, and you are connected to the Internet. You are not ignorant; you know what is going on around you.
Therefore, I am sure you know that Kassam rockets were launched from your neighborhood into Israeli towns and cities.
How could you see these weekly launches and not think that one day we would say "enough"?! Did you ever consider that it is perhaps wrong to launch rockets at innocent civilians trying to lead a normal life, much like you? How long did you think we would sit back without reacting?
I can hear you saying "it's not me, it's Hamas". My intuition tells me you are not their most avid supporter. If you look closely at the sad reality in which your people live, and you do not try to deceive yourself or make excuses about "occupation", you must certainly reach the conclusion that the Hamas is your real enemy.
The reality is so simple, even a seven-year-old can understand: Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip, removing military bases and its citizens from Gush Katif. Nonetheless, we continued to provide you with electricity, water, and goods (and this I know very well as during my reserve duty I guarded the border crossings more than once, and witnessed hundreds of trucks full of goods entering a blockade-free Gaza every day).
Despite all this, for reasons that cannot be understood and with a lack of any rational logic, Hamas launched missiles on Israeli towns. For three years we clenched our teeth and restrained ourselves. In the end, we could not take it anymore and entered the Gaza Strip, into your neighborhood, in order to remove those who want to kill us. A reality that is painful but very easy to explain.
As soon as you agree with me that Hamas is your enemy and because of them, your people are miserable, you will also understand that the change must come from within. I am acutely aware of the fact that what I say is easier to write than to do, but I do not see any other way. You, who are connected to the world and concerned about your children's education, must lead, together with your friends, a civil uprising against Hamas.
I swear to you, that if the citizens of Gaza were busy paving roads, building schools, opening factories and cultural institutions instead of dwelling in self-pity, arms smuggling and nurturing a hatred to your Israeli neighbors, your homes would not be in ruins right now. If your leaders were not corrupt and motivated by hatred, your home would not have been harmed. If someone would have stood up and shouted that there is no point in launching missiles on innocent civilians, I would not have to stand in your kitchen as a soldier.
You don't have money, you tell me? You have more than you can imagine.
Even before Hamas took control of Gaza, during the time of Yasser Arafat, millions if not billions of dollars donated by the world community to the Palestinians was used for purchasing arms or taken directly to your leaders' bank accounts. Gulf States, the Emirates - your brothers, your flesh and blood, are some of the richest nations in the world. If there was even a small feeling of solidarity between Arab nations, if these nations had but the smallest interest in reconstructing the Palestinian people – your situation would be very different.
You must be familiar with Singapore. The land mass there is not much larger than the Gaza Strip and it is considered to be the second most populated country in the world. Yet, Singapore is a successful, prospering, and well-managed country. Why not the same for you?
My friend, I would like to call you by name, but I will not do so publicly. I want you to know that I am 100% at peace with what my country did, what my army did, and what I did. However, I feel your pain. I am sorry for the destruction you are finding in your neighborhood at this moment. On a personal level, I did what I could to minimize the damage to your home as much as possible.
In my opinion, we have a lot more in common than you might imagine. I am a civilian, not a soldier, and in my private life I have nothing to do with the military. However, I have an obligation to leave my home, put on a uniform, and protect my family every time we are attacked. I have no desire to be in your home wearing a uniform again and I would be more than happy to sit with you as a guest on your beautiful balcony, drinking sweet tea seasoned with the sage growing in your garden.
The only person who could make that dream a reality is you. Take responsibility for yourself, your family, your people, and start to take control of your destiny. How? I do not know. Maybe there is something to be learned from the Jewish people who rose up from the most destructive human tragedy of the 20th century, and instead of sinking into self-pity, built a flourishing and prospering country. It is possible, and it is in your hands. I am ready to be there to provide a shoulder of support and help to you.
But only you can move the wheels of history.
Regards,
Yishai, (Reserve Soldier)
The above was a letter that was originally published in the Hebrew-language daily newspaper Ma'ariv, and translated into English by the Independent Media Review and Analysis (IMRA).
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by IsraelNN Staff
Hello,
While the world watches the ruins in Gaza, you return to your home which remains standing. However, I am sure that it is clear to you that someone was in your home while you were away.
I am that someone.
I spent long hours imagining how you would react when you walked into your home. How you would feel when you understood that IDF soldiers had slept on your mattresses and used your blankets to keep warm.
I knew that it would make you angry and sad and that you would feel this violation of the most intimate areas of your life by those defined as your enemies, with stinging humiliation. I am convinced that you hate me with unbridled hatred, and you do not have even the tiniest desire to hear what I have to say. At the same time, it is important for me to say the following in the hope that there is even the minutest chance that you will hear me.
I spent many days in your home. You and your family's presence was felt in every corner. I saw your family portraits on the wall, and I thought of my family. I saw your wife's perfume bottles on the bureau, and I thought of my wife. I saw your children's toys and their English language schoolbooks. I saw your personal computer and how you set up the modem and wireless phone next to the screen, just as I do.
I wanted you to know that despite the immense disorder you found in your house that was created during a search for explosives and tunnels (which were indeed found in other homes), we did our best to treat your possessions with respect. When I moved the computer table, I disconnected the cables and lay them down neatly on the floor, as I would do with my own computer. I even covered the computer from dust with a piece of cloth. I tried to put back the clothes that fell when we moved the closet although not the same as
you would have done, but at least in such a way that nothing would get lost.
I know that the devastation, the bullet holes in your walls and the destruction of those homes near you place my descriptions in a ridiculous light. Still, I need you to understand me, us, and hope that you will channel your anger and criticism to the right places.
I decided to write you this letter specifically because I stayed in your home.
I can surmise that you are intelligent and educated and there are those in your household that are university students. Your children learn English, and you are connected to the Internet. You are not ignorant; you know what is going on around you.
Therefore, I am sure you know that Kassam rockets were launched from your neighborhood into Israeli towns and cities.
How could you see these weekly launches and not think that one day we would say "enough"?! Did you ever consider that it is perhaps wrong to launch rockets at innocent civilians trying to lead a normal life, much like you? How long did you think we would sit back without reacting?
I can hear you saying "it's not me, it's Hamas". My intuition tells me you are not their most avid supporter. If you look closely at the sad reality in which your people live, and you do not try to deceive yourself or make excuses about "occupation", you must certainly reach the conclusion that the Hamas is your real enemy.
The reality is so simple, even a seven-year-old can understand: Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip, removing military bases and its citizens from Gush Katif. Nonetheless, we continued to provide you with electricity, water, and goods (and this I know very well as during my reserve duty I guarded the border crossings more than once, and witnessed hundreds of trucks full of goods entering a blockade-free Gaza every day).
Despite all this, for reasons that cannot be understood and with a lack of any rational logic, Hamas launched missiles on Israeli towns. For three years we clenched our teeth and restrained ourselves. In the end, we could not take it anymore and entered the Gaza Strip, into your neighborhood, in order to remove those who want to kill us. A reality that is painful but very easy to explain.
As soon as you agree with me that Hamas is your enemy and because of them, your people are miserable, you will also understand that the change must come from within. I am acutely aware of the fact that what I say is easier to write than to do, but I do not see any other way. You, who are connected to the world and concerned about your children's education, must lead, together with your friends, a civil uprising against Hamas.
I swear to you, that if the citizens of Gaza were busy paving roads, building schools, opening factories and cultural institutions instead of dwelling in self-pity, arms smuggling and nurturing a hatred to your Israeli neighbors, your homes would not be in ruins right now. If your leaders were not corrupt and motivated by hatred, your home would not have been harmed. If someone would have stood up and shouted that there is no point in launching missiles on innocent civilians, I would not have to stand in your kitchen as a soldier.
You don't have money, you tell me? You have more than you can imagine.
Even before Hamas took control of Gaza, during the time of Yasser Arafat, millions if not billions of dollars donated by the world community to the Palestinians was used for purchasing arms or taken directly to your leaders' bank accounts. Gulf States, the Emirates - your brothers, your flesh and blood, are some of the richest nations in the world. If there was even a small feeling of solidarity between Arab nations, if these nations had but the smallest interest in reconstructing the Palestinian people – your situation would be very different.
You must be familiar with Singapore. The land mass there is not much larger than the Gaza Strip and it is considered to be the second most populated country in the world. Yet, Singapore is a successful, prospering, and well-managed country. Why not the same for you?
My friend, I would like to call you by name, but I will not do so publicly. I want you to know that I am 100% at peace with what my country did, what my army did, and what I did. However, I feel your pain. I am sorry for the destruction you are finding in your neighborhood at this moment. On a personal level, I did what I could to minimize the damage to your home as much as possible.
In my opinion, we have a lot more in common than you might imagine. I am a civilian, not a soldier, and in my private life I have nothing to do with the military. However, I have an obligation to leave my home, put on a uniform, and protect my family every time we are attacked. I have no desire to be in your home wearing a uniform again and I would be more than happy to sit with you as a guest on your beautiful balcony, drinking sweet tea seasoned with the sage growing in your garden.
The only person who could make that dream a reality is you. Take responsibility for yourself, your family, your people, and start to take control of your destiny. How? I do not know. Maybe there is something to be learned from the Jewish people who rose up from the most destructive human tragedy of the 20th century, and instead of sinking into self-pity, built a flourishing and prospering country. It is possible, and it is in your hands. I am ready to be there to provide a shoulder of support and help to you.
But only you can move the wheels of history.
Regards,
Yishai, (Reserve Soldier)
The above was a letter that was originally published in the Hebrew-language daily newspaper Ma'ariv, and translated into English by the Independent Media Review and Analysis (IMRA).
Comment on this story
7. 'We've Got to Climb the Ladder'
by IsraelNN staff
Oil magnate and philanthropist Guma Aguiar, the chairman of this year's Jerusalem Conference, spoke Thursday at the Aliya (Immigration) session. Aguiar told the crowd of his journey from Christianity to Judaism and his introduction to Nefesh b'Nefesh, the aliya organization that has brought 18,000 new immigrants from the United States, Canada and Britain in recent years.
Can't see video? Click here.
Aguiar compared aliya to ascending a ladder, and asked, “What is the true meaning of aliyah? ... There's a ladder... so what's the top of the ladder? What's the ultimate dream?”
The ultimate goal is the Temple, Aguiar said. “The Temple Mount! Nobody else wants to talk about it...” Aliyah must include an understanding of that goal, he said, adding that throughout history Jews have associated the word “aliya” with the Temple, which they longed to see. “You think they were dreaming of coming back here and going and praying at the bottom of the Kotel? I'm sorry. But they weren't!”
Aguiar used his own story to illustrate the point. “After I sold the company, I could have chosen to go to Beverly Hills, or to Aspen, or to Paris—why did I come to Jerusalem?” He asked. “This is another step in the ultimate ladder... we've got to climb the ladder as a Jewish nation. As a Jewish nation we have to get this in our consciousness.”
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by IsraelNN staff
Oil magnate and philanthropist Guma Aguiar, the chairman of this year's Jerusalem Conference, spoke Thursday at the Aliya (Immigration) session. Aguiar told the crowd of his journey from Christianity to Judaism and his introduction to Nefesh b'Nefesh, the aliya organization that has brought 18,000 new immigrants from the United States, Canada and Britain in recent years.
Can't see video? Click here.
Aguiar compared aliya to ascending a ladder, and asked, “What is the true meaning of aliyah? ... There's a ladder... so what's the top of the ladder? What's the ultimate dream?”
The ultimate goal is the Temple, Aguiar said. “The Temple Mount! Nobody else wants to talk about it...” Aliyah must include an understanding of that goal, he said, adding that throughout history Jews have associated the word “aliya” with the Temple, which they longed to see. “You think they were dreaming of coming back here and going and praying at the bottom of the Kotel? I'm sorry. But they weren't!”
Aguiar used his own story to illustrate the point. “After I sold the company, I could have chosen to go to Beverly Hills, or to Aspen, or to Paris—why did I come to Jerusalem?” He asked. “This is another step in the ultimate ladder... we've got to climb the ladder as a Jewish nation. As a Jewish nation we have to get this in our consciousness.”
Comment on this story
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