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1. ‘Bishara Law’ Passes First Reading
by Elad Benari
The Knesset approved on Monday the first reading of a bill that stops
payment of salary, a pension, or other state payments to a serving MK or
former MK if he is wanted for questioning for a serious crime that was
carried out during his term in office.
The bill, which was initiated by a group of MKs headed by MK Yisrael
Hasson (Kadima) and MK Yariv Levin (Likud), was approved by a majority
of 23 to 9.
It is named the “Bishara Law” after former MK Azmi Bishara, who fled
Israel after the ISA questioned him over espionage activity. He has
continued to receive money from the state of Israel despite having fled
the country after being implicated in espionage for Hizbullah.
Bishara was under investigation on suspicion of having contacted a
Hizbullah agent in the course of the Second Lebanon War and providing
information about strategic spots in Israel to fire missiles at. He was
also recorded by Shin Bet agents telling the agent what the effect of
enlarging the missiles' range beyond Haifa would have.
The bill, which was approved by the Knesset’s House Committee
last month, would also prevent payments to a serving MK or former MK if
charges have already been filed against him, or if he has been
convicted, and if he has failed to show up for questioning, or for his
trial, or for serving out the sentence. The law would apply to an
offense which is punishable by five years' imprisonment or more which
was committed while in office.
Currently, an MK can continue to receive payments from the State even
if they are wanted for questioning or for trial and have failed to show
up, as has been the case with Bishara. The initiators of the bill wrote
that “the present situation causes a distortion, and as such a norm
should be established by which public servants fulfill their commitment
under the law and are subject to law enforcement. Sanctions should be
taken against anyone, regardless of religion, race, sex, or nationality,
who is suspected of violating the law.”
MK Yisrael Hasson said: “As far as I’m concerned, submitting this bill
is one of my saddest moments as a citizen. An elected official who is a
legislator and sets public norms is suspected of an offense punishable
by 5 to 10 years in prison and decides not to make himself available for
interrogation. He continues to receive benefits from the Knesset. It's a
crazy situation, absurd and unacceptable. By what moral right do we
face the public if we behave this way and betray the people who elected
us? I'm only ashamed that I did not bring up the proposal earlier.”
Hasson added that Bishara “made cynical use of the law, contrary to
what is expected from every legislator. He should be denied any benefit
or payment from the Knesset as should any MK who behaves this way. I do
not know any country that is in conflict and pays an agent who serves
the enemy over 500 thousand NIS.”
MK Yariv Levin added that he is “determined to bring to an end the
situation under which a betrayal of the State of Israel becomes a
lucrative business which gives the traitor Azmi Bishara thousands of
shekels every month. The absurd which allows Bishara to join terrorist
organizations and assist them while receiving ongoing funding from the
State of Israel irritates every citizen who is loyal to the state and it
is up to us to put an end to this intolerable situation. It is a step
that every democracy should take against those who seek to use state
resources to destroy it.”
2. Terror Victim Group:Stop Coddling Rock Throwing Terrorist Youths
by David Lev
The allegations in a report by the leftist B'tselem organization
released Monday about alleged police abuses against Arab minors who
throw rocks at Israeli drivers dominated the Israeli media all day.
They may or may not be true, says Meir Indor, chairman of the Almagor
terror victims' organization – but the report is irrelevant. “The
criteria they use relate to the rights of criminals, but Arab
rock-throwing is not an individual crime – it's a nationalistic act of
war, and must be treated as such.”
The B'tselem report claimed that Israeli police have been abusing the
rights of Arab youths suspected of throwing rocks at Israeli drivers and
passerby in several neighborhoods of Jerusalem, especially the City of
David neighborhood (Silwan). The report claims that police forcefully
invaded the homes of several suspects, rousing them from their beds, and
prohibiting their parents from being present during their questioning
as required by Israeli law. In addition, the report said that many of
the youths had complained that police assaulted them as they were being
arrested.
“We are certainly not for the abrogation of individual rights for
criminals,” Indor told Israel National News. “But the rock throwing by
Arab youths is far more than criminal – it's nothing less than an act of
war. It's become all too common, and it's life threatening.” Indor himself was injured by a large rock thrown at him by Arab youths on the Mt. Of Olives in October.
“Today, when one of these youths is arrested, he is legally permitted
to basically sit in an interrogation room and make fun of police,” Indor
said. “The youth is required by law to have his father present, so of
course no headway is made in the interrogation. And besides, the youths
have a whole array of liberal and leftist organizations, like B'tselem,
at the ready to defend them, regardless of what they have done.”
In that sense, said Indor, B'tselem is working against Israel's
interests – and, rather than be permitted to continue harming Israel's
security by defending terrorists, the organization should be brought up
on charges of treason. “B'tselem has a huge budget, much of it supplied
from abroad. Police know who these people are, but are powerless to stop
them.
“We plan to introduce legislation that will change the law and
reclassify these kinds of attacks as terror incidents, that will subject
these youths to stiffer penalties, and especially to a different
process, other than the normal one that applies to criminals,” Indor
said. “In a society that suffers from terrorism as Israel does, we
accept that it is reasonable for people to stand in line at the mall and
be checked by a security agent. In the same way, it should be
reasonable to expect that the individual rights of terrorists – no
matter how young they are – be suspended to ensure the safety of
society.”
3. Holbrooke Dies at 69; He Exposed State Dept. Anti-Semitism
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Richard Holbrooke, a key U.S. diplomat in Afghanistan who two years ago
praised President Harry Truman for recognizing Israel despite State
Department opposition, died at the age of 69.
Holbrooke collapsed at the State Department on Friday, and he died
after doctors operated on a torn aorta for more than 20 hours. He was
most noted as chief negotiator at the Dayton Peace Accords, which ended
the war in Bosnia.
As President Obama’s special representative for Afghanistan and
Pakistan, his death “leaves the administration with a substantial hole
to fill [and] is a significant blow to the Obama administration just
days before it is scheduled to announce the latest review of U.S. policy
in Afghanistan,” the London Guardian wrote.
Besides working for U.S. President Barack Obama, Holbrooke also was the
American ambassador to the United Nations during the government of
President Bill Clinton, who said that Holbrooke "saved lives, secured
peace and restored hope for countless people around the world".
Born to a mother whose family was Jewish, he grew up an atheist but an
idealist. He was not prominently involved in American-Israeli relations,
but in a column in the Washington Post two years ago, he wrote that
President Truman should be admired for having recognized Israel as a
state in 1948.
His article also shed light on the deep animosity of the State
Department towards Israel that has plagued Israeli governments ever
since.
“In the celebrations next week surrounding Israel's 60th anniversary,
it should not be forgotten that there was an epic struggle in Washington
over how to respond to Israel's declaration of independence on May 14,
1948,” Holbrooke wrote.
“The British planned to leave Palestine at midnight on May 14. At that
moment, the Jewish Agency, led by David Ben-Gurion, would proclaim the
new (and still unnamed) Jewish state. The neighboring Arab states warned
that fighting, which had already begun, would erupt into full-scale war
at that moment.
"The Jewish Agency proposed partitioning Palestine into two parts --
one Jewish, one Arab. But the State and Defense departments backed the
British plan to turn Palestine over to the United Nations. In March,
Truman {pictured) privately promised Chaim Weizmann, the future
president of Israel, that he would support partition -- only to learn
the next day that the American ambassador to the United Nations had
voted for U.N. trusteeship. Enraged, Truman wrote a private note on his
calendar, ‘The State Dept. pulled the rug from under me today. The first
I know about it is what I read in the newspapers! Isn't that hell? I'm
now in the position of a liar and double-crosser. I've never felt so low
in my life. . . .’
“To overrule State would mean Truman taking on Marshall, whom he regarded as ‘the greatest living American.’
"Beneath the surface lay unspoken but real anti-Semitism on the part of
some (but not all) policymakers. The position of those opposing
recognition was simple -- oil, numbers and history. ‘There are thirty
million Arabs on one side and about 600,000 Jews on the other,’ Defense
Secretary Forrestal told [Clark] Clifford. ‘Why don't you face up to the
realities?’
“On May 12, Truman held a meeting in the Oval Office to decide the
issue. Marshall and his universally respected deputy, Robert Lovett,
made the case for delaying recognition -- and ‘delay’ really meant
‘deny.’ Truman asked his young aide, Clark Clifford, to present the case
for immediate recognition.
“In the next two days, Clifford looked for ways to get Marshall to
accept recognition. Lovett, although still opposed to recognition,
finally talked a reluctant Marshall into remaining silent if Truman
acted. With only a few hours left until midnight in Tel Aviv, Clifford
told the Jewish Agency to request immediate recognition of the new
state, which still lacked a name. Truman announced recognition at 6:11
p.m. on May 14 -- 11 minutes after Ben-Gurion's declaration of
independence in Tel Aviv. So rapidly was this done that in the official
announcement, the typed words "Jewish State" are crossed out, replaced
in Clifford's handwriting with "State of Israel." Thus the United States
became the first nation to recognize Israel, as Truman and Clifford
wanted.”
Holbrooke added that despite the arguments and political
considerations, “Israel was going to come into existence whether or not
Washington recognized it. But without American support from the very
beginning, Israel's survival would have been at even greater risk….
Truman's decision, although opposed by almost the entire foreign policy
establishment, was the right one -- and despite complicated consequences
that continue to this day, it is a decision all Americans should
recognize and admire.”
4. Arab Barbarism: Slain Rabbi's Tombstone Defaced for Yarzeit
by Gil Ronen
In an act that Jewish officials are terming "barbarian," unknown Arabs
defaced a memorial stone for Rabbi Meir Chai just in time for the
memorial ceremony marking a year since his murder by terrorists.
Rabbi Chai of Shavei Shomron, married and a father of seven, was shot dead in his car as
he drove home to celebrate his 12-year-old son Elyasaf's birthday. He
was a kindergarten teacher by profession. The memorial stands by the
side of the road at the place in which he was murdered.
Three senior officials in the Palestinian Authority gunned him down
from a passing car. The officials were close to the so-called "moderate
leadership" of the PA that includes Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and "Prime
Minister" Salam Fayyad. They were subsequently killed by the IDF.
The memorial service for Rabbi Chai is scheduled for 3:00 PM Tuesday at the Mount of Olives.
Elisheva Chai, Rabbi Meir's widow, said: "The Father of Orphans and
Judge of Widows will get revenge upon the heartless wicked ones who hurt
our feelings in this way. But I can promise you that acts of this kind
will not break us. We celebrated Elyasaf's Bar Mitzvah last night, and
we will continue to rejoice, live and build the Land of Israel - not in
sadness but in joy, as proud Jews."
"Only barbarians can do horrible things like this," Samaria local
authority head Gershon Mesika said Tuesday. "People who can
pathologically desecrate a memorial for a murdered man are not worthy of
being called humans."
5. PM: Regional Firefighting Force Could Become a Force for Peace
by David Lev
In the wake of the Carmel forest fire, Prime Minister Binyamin
Netanyahu is seeking to set up a regional firefighting force – a
development that could have positive implications for Israel beyond
greater efficiency at fighting fires, says MK Ayoub Kara, who is also
Deputy Minister for Regional Development in the Galilee, an advocate for
regional cooperation – especially with Turkey, which, he says, proved
that it could work with Israel effectively on emergencies during the
fire. “We saw how the Turks stood side by side with us, and such
cooperation can continue,” Kara said.
Last week, Netanyahu spoke with several regional leaders, including the
Prime Ministers of Greece, Russia, and Cyprus, King Abdullah of Jordan,
and PA chief Mahmoud Abbas, on the idea of pooling resources to deal
with natural disasters such as forest fires. “By using our combined
efforts we can prepare and effectively respond to natural disasters much
more efficiently,” Netanyahu said in a statement. “The cooperation that
we saw in fighting the Carmel fire gives hope to all those seeing
peace,” Netanyahu said, adding that he was sure that Turkey would want
to be a part of the force as well. Netanyahu, speaking to the leaders,
suggested setting up a meeting in Athens on getting the force off the
ground.
Kara, who was instrumental in bringing a Turkish contingent to help
fight the Carmel fire, agrees that the regional force could pave the way
to better relations between all countries in the region. “Even at the
height of the tension between Israel and Turkey, I never though that the
last word on our relationship with Ankara had been said. The fire gives
us an opportunity to go back to our previous good relations. I have no
doubt Israel and Turkey can work things out,” and participation in the
regional firefighting source will increase good relations between all
nations in the region, he said.
The high cost of each country maintaining enough firefighting airplanes
and other state-of-the-art equipment for major fires when the distances
between them are so small makes the plan practical as well.
The idea of a multinational force for fighting fires was also raised by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman during a tour of ambassadors to the carmel area Monday.
6. Secular Jews Tour a Foreign Culture: Hareidi Jews
by Gil Ronen
A new internal tourism initiative brings groups of secular Jews to
hareidi-religious neighborhoods and homes, smashing stereotypes and
creating new bonds among Jewish groups that drifted apart over
centuries.
The tours are conducted as part of a project called "Yerushalyim Shel
Ma'ala" - a Talmudic term that means "the Higher Jerusalem" and refers
to the reflection of Jerusalem in the spiritual world. In a time of
extreme anti-hareidi incitement by the Israeli press, it allows secular
Jews to see hareidi life from up close, on the personal level. The tours
are largely a Chabad initiative and focus on hassidic communities in
Jerusalem.
Tourists expect to see a closed society that disrespects its women, but
see something altogether different, as they meet with and get to know
both men and women whom they would otherwise never have spoken to.
The secular tourists get to experience a "tisch" - a festive gathering
of a hassidic rebbe and his disciples - go to synagogues, enter
bakeries, and are guests at hassidic homes. Project manager Ayelet Oren
told Arutz Sheva's Hebrew-language news service that there was a "very
meaningful" wave of tours during the Chanukah holiday.
Most of the tourists are secular, but not all. Some groups are private,
while others are organized: high schools, kibbutzim, Haifa University
employees and the governmental firm in charge of Culture, Youth and
Sports Clubs (matnasim) have also taken the tours.
How do families react to their homes being turned into virtual museums?
Oren said that many families see welcoming the visitors as a true
calling. "There are some families that receive groups every evening." In
order to overcome resistance from their children, she added, the
hareidi parents "explain the purpose of the visits to the children, and
tell them these are our brothers, and things work out."
Secular resistance is overcome by touting the visits as a unique
opportunity to meet people, and by saying that "some Jewish treasures
belong to everyone."
"When the approach is one of love for Israel, that we are all one, when
one approaches it humbly, things are accepted," Oren explained.
Hassidim from dynasties other than Chabad also take part in the
initiative. At present, the visits focus on neighborhoods like Mekor
Baruch, Shaarei Chesed, Ramat Shlomo and others. Mea She'arim is still
off limits.
The local residents could have been expected to react negatively to the
sight of secular groups in their streets, but refrain from doing so
when they see that the group is guided by a hareidi Jew. "We also ask
them to come in modest dress. While we do not specify what modest means,
they understand. We ask them to give respect and it works."
Female tourists also meet with female hareidi artists and discover a side of hareidi life they did know existed for women.
"In the end, all of the meetings end with an exchange of telephone
numbers and a strengthening of the bond between the two sides," Oren
said.
Hassidic Jewish dynasties immigrated into Israel from Europe and are
largely insulated fom other groups. Secular Jews have lived apart from
religious Jews since the "Enlightenment" movement began in Europe. The
tours can be seen as a first attempt in centuries to bridge the gaps
between the communities, made possible by the fact that both live
together in the Land of Israel.
7. Hundreds Come Out to Remember the Young Kahanes
by Elad Benari
Ten years after they were murdered by Arab terrorists, Rabbi Binyamin
Ze’ev Kahane and his wife Talya were remembered on Monday evening in a
special memorial in Jerusalem.
Hundreds of family members, friends and supporters gathered at the
Heichal David Hall in Jerusalem to tell stories about them and to recall
the teachings of Rabbi Kahane.
Activist Baruch Marzel, who is a family friend, told Israel National
News that while the Kahanes may have been murdered, “their way and their
legacy is continuing and gaining strength.” Marzel recalled that “25
years ago Rabbi [Meir] Kahane (father of Rabbi Binyamin) was
disqualified for saying that land should not be sold or rented to Arabs.
Today, hundreds of rabbis are signing a petition that Rabbi Kahane
started.”
Noam Federman, who was a close friend of Rabbi Binyamin Kahane, said:
“He was a teacher, a guide, and a friend. He was endlessly devoted to
the people of Israel, had a unique writing ability and a unique ability
to counter the Arab enemy and the leftists who are plotting against the
state and are endangering it.”
Itamar Ben Gvir said: “Today, ten years after the murder of Rabbi
Binyamin and Talya Kahane, while many MKs and public figures in Israel
understand that there is a problem, that if there’s no loyalty there
can’t be citizenship, that people like Tibi and Zoabi should be thrown
out of the Knesset, it’s time to apologize to the Kahane family. It’s
time that the Israeli establishment recognizes the huge mistake it made.
It’s time to recognize and cherish the devotion of these holy people
who fought for the Land of Israel and for the people of Israel.”
Also speaking at the memorial was Rabbi Yitzchak Shapira, head of the
Od Yosef Chai yeshiva in Yitzhar and author of the book Torat Hamelech,
and MK Dr. Michael Ben-Ari (National Union). Popular Israeli singer
Ariel Zilber also took part in the evening and performed Jewish and
Israeli music. Rabbi Kahane’s students read Torah thoughts written in
his memory.
Rabbi Binyamin Ze’ev and Talya Kahane were killed in December of 2000
when Arab terrorists fired at their vehicle south of the Samarian
community of Ofra, as they were driving from Jerusalem to their home in
Kfar Tapuach.
Yekutiel Ben Yaakov, a close friend of Rabbi Kahane who organized
Monday’s event, noted that more and more people attend the memorial each
year. “This is actually the first gathering we’ve held in Jerusalem and
we’ve organized it because many youths called us and demanded that we
organize an event in memory of Rabbi Binyamin Kahane, because they want
to know who was this great man who lived among us but whom they did not
get to know,” he told Israel National News.
“Our job, as those who knew Rabbi Binyamin, is to do the best we can to
spread his messages and writings,” said Ben Yaakov and added: “Ten
years later, I have not yet begun to digest this loss, this pain and
sorrow. I haven’t yet begun mourning him. That is how great the loss
is.”
8. No Apology to Turkey, Says Netanyahu
by Chana Ya'ar
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu reiterated at a Likud faction meeting
on Monday that Israel would not apologize to Turkey over the deaths of
nine terror activists aboard the Mavi Marmara flotilla vessel on May 31.
Meanwhile, a Knesset committee of parliamentary faction leaders, headed
by Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, approved a motion to hold a full
plenum hearing regarding Ankara’s demand.
Netanyahu was responding to a question from MK Danny Danon (Likud)
about media rumors that Israel would express regret over the incident in
which the terror activists, eight of whom were Turkish nationals,
attacked IDF commandos when they boarded the ship to guide it to the
port of Ashdod.
The Turkish-sponsored vessel was one of six in a flotilla that had attempted to break Israel’s maritime blockade of Gaza.
Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Recep Erdogan demanded after the
incident that Israel apologize and compensate the families of the dead.
In recent days, there were rumors the Jewish State was reconsidering its
refusal to do so, and might also be willing to pay a sum in
compensation to the families of the slain terror activists.
“It is inconceivable that the State of Israel will compensate
terrorists who harmed navy commandos,” said Danon. “Such compensation is
tantamount to surrendering to terror and will create the motivation for
future attacks. I am certain the government’s answer to the motion will
be that Israel has no intention of compensating these terrorists.”
Netanyahu denied the rumors, but noted that the “relationship with Turkey is important.” The prime minister added, “They must recognize the fact that we did not act out of malice, but in self-defense.”
Israeli and Turkish officials met a week ago in Geneva in an effort to
find a way out of the diplomatic quagmire in which the two nations
currently find themselves. Turkey sent two firefighting aircraft to
assist the Jewish State in response to an appeal by Netanyahu to the
international community for assistance when a wildfire struck the northern region more than a week ago, leaving 43 dead and ravaging some 12,500 acres of forest land.
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