Politico Reports: Vice President Joe Biden made an impassioned defense of the administration’s Israel and Iran policies Tuesday, acknowledging and rebutting the deep concerns that many American Jews and Israelis have about Iran’s plans to get a nuclear weapon and the lingering doubts President Barack Obama’s resolve to stop them.
But he suggested that the United States would not stand in the way of an Israeli strike against Tehran, if that time came. Read more »
The following is based on multiple Jerusalem Post Reports:
Jpost reports that “Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu called President Shimon Peres – who was on a trip to Canada – to update him on the deal he struck with Shaul Mofaz late Monday night to form a unity government. The president gave the deal his blessing, saying a national unity government is good for the nation and its well-being given the difficult challenges Israel faces.”
So far so good, but here comes the fireworks from the neutralized opposition: Read more »
The release of Jonathan Pollard, the convicted Israeli spy serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison, is “inevitable” and could take place shortly on “technical grounds,” a a prominent Jewish leader and supporter of U.S. President Obama told Haaretz. The comment, made by Jack Rosen, chairman of the Council for World Jewry, who is in Jerusalem to chair the International Conference of Mayors, came in an apparent contradiction to the Obama administration’s staunch refusal to discuss Pollard’s release… Speaking to Haaretz, Rosen, however, said: “Right now, it looks like he’ll be released in the next few years – shortly,” he said. “There are some technical reasons, I’m told, why he’ll be released. I think there’s an inevitability to that happening.” – Haaretz Via Forward
This was the shortest election season in the history of Israel. Last week Monday, amid facing problematic difficulties in operating as a stable government, and the failure to come to an agreement with the Ultra-Orthodox parties and coalition partners on a national service bill, replacing the Tal-Law, PM Netanyahu called for early Knesset elections, in order to restore government stability, and the prevent any of the smaller parties to threaten to leave and break the coalition.
Riding high in the polls, the motive to call for early elections was viewed as an attempt of Netanyahu to take advantage of his popularity and get a renewed mandate, if according to some polls Obama is elected to a second term.
To Run the Government: In order to serve as Prime Minister, you need to have a majority – sixty one of the 120 seats in the Parliament (aka Knesset). Obviously, over the past decades, no party won enough seats, so the government operates as a coalition of various parties.
The Government Until Now Comprised of 67 Seats: Bibi’s Likud 27; Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu 15; Shas 11, Barak 5, United Torah Judaism 5, Jewish Home 4.
What Could Have Been: Because the Ultra religious parties such as Shas and UTJ are not happy with Bibi’s approach to the Alternative Tal Law, they could have threatened to leave the coalition and over throw the government. On the other hand, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman actually threatened to leave if he does not get what he wants on this issue. To avoid being pulled from all sides to all sides, the PM called for early elections, and with polls showing him gaining more seats on the backs of others, he had the upper hand.
What Happened Now: Shaul Mofaz, the leader of Kadima, fearing of losing many seats and lose the chance of even become relevant in a future government, offered to join Bibi’s coalition and negotiated a deal to form a unity government. Thus, giving Netanyahu a strong NINTY FIVE seat majority – the largest coalition in Israel’s history. Now even if Shas, UTJ decide to leave the coalition, Bibi will still remain in power with a stronger and larger government, since Kadima is now on board.
What it means for Iran (and Obama): Well… Bibi is now stronger than ever.
Haaretz: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition chairman Shaul Mofaz (Kadima) came to an agreement early Tuesday morning to form a national unity government and cancel early elections, which had been scheduled for September 4. Under the agreement, Kadima will join Netanyahu’s government, in exchange for a commitment that the government will support its proposal for an alternative to the Tal Law, which allows full-time yeshiva students to defer national service.
Sources in Kadima told Haaretz that Mofaz is expected to be appointed as a minister in the government. Likud sources confirmed this, adding that they expected that Mofaz would become a minister without portfolio.
Israel National News Reports: The Obama administration “nurtures” Arab Spring rebellions, which have been promoted as democratic but so far have yielded anarchy, according to U.S. deputy national security advisor Denis McDonough.
He said the American administration views the rebellions in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Yemen as positive for democracy, arguing that “a more democratic region will ultimately be more stable for us and our friends.” McDonough estimated that a similar rebellion in Iran will be to the advantage of the United States. Read more »
Adam Kredo at Free Becon Reports: Team Obama includes a self-identified “Muslim Palestinian-American” campaign fundraiser who has a history of blasting Israel in highly charged letters and newspaper articles about the Middle East conflict.
Hala Hijazi, a Jordanian native and current San Francisco city employee, has personally secured between $100,000 to $200,000 for Obama’s reelection effort, according to Federal Election Committee filings.
She also has gone on record accusing Israel of war crimes while castigating America for providing the Jewish state critical military aid—a long-term investment that has bolstered U.S. security interests. Read more »
Usually, it is coalition members of a unity government that throw over the government and force it to call early elections. In Israel however, not only was it the Prime minister who decided to pull the plug on his own term. Instead, some members of his coalition don’t want to dissolve the Government just yet. Get this from the JTA:
A vote on dissolving the current government is scheduled for Monday The party convention comes ahead of party primaries scheduled for the second week in June. But meanwhile, coalition partner Yisrael Beiteinu called for a delay of the Knesset dissolution to allow the government to pass its bill ordering mandatory enlistment in the Israel Defense Forces for all Israeli citizens. The measure is an alternative to the Tal Law, which exempts full-time yeshiva students from mandatory army service. Read more »
Ari Berman at the Nation Vents: Romney is loath to mention Bush on the campaign trail, for obvious reasons, but today they sound like ideological soul mates on foreign policy. Listening to Romney, you’d never know that Bush left office bogged down by two unpopular wars that cost America dearly in blood and treasure. Of Romney’s forty identified foreign policy advisers, more than 70 percent worked for Bush. Many hail from the neoconservative wing of the party, were enthusiastic backers of the Iraq War and are proponents of a US or Israeli attack on Iran… If we take the candidate at his word, a Romney presidency would move toward war against Iran; closely align Washington with the Israeli right; leave troops in Afghanistan at least until 2014 and refuse to negotiate with the Taliban; reset the Obama administration’s “reset” with Russia; and pursue a Reagan-like military buildup at home.
“It’s a most serious mistake to turn the issue of defense against Iran into Israel’s biggest problem,” Shelly Yechimovitch, leader of the left-of-centre Labour party, said in a televised interview. She called Iran’s atomic program a “problem of the entire world,” adding that “the fact we take it upon ourselves to be the spearhead is an error,” in the interview on Channel 2 television. Yechimovitch backs Washington’s position that there is still time to see if economic sanctions and diplomacy can stop Iran seeking nuclear weapons, before deciding any military steps. – Reuters
“Israel has no greater friend in the world today than Canada,” declared Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird at the AJC Global Forum. “Our strong support for Israel is not about politics at home, and certainly not about winning popularity contests at the United Nations. Canada certainly has the scars to show for it,” Baird said. “It’s about values.”
The foreign minister was addressing the AJC World Leaders Plenary, attended by an audience of more than 1,500, including many ambassadors in Washington, D.C. The foreign ministers of Cyprus and Germany also spoke at that Global Forum session. – Press Release
The Commentator has this: Following the Labour mayoral candidate Ken Livingstone’s loss to Boris Johnson , the print edition of The Guardian asserted that it was Ken’s own baggage that brought him down. We couldn’t agree more, but on a scan through the article and as highlighted by various people on Twitter this morning, we found this:
“How much damage did he [Ken] inflict by failing to make peace with the Jewish political establishment…”
This could be interpreted quite innocuously at first, or conversely, be read into as The Guardian tarring the entire British political establishment as Jewish run. Read more »
The White House Reports: Thursday Night, White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew spoke at the American Jewish Committee Global Forum. There, he praised the Committee’s decades of work to build a better world at home and abroad. He also stressed the steps the President has taken to prevent a second Great Depression and create an economy built to last. And he reiterated our commitment to the unbreakable bonds between the United States and Israel.
Below are his full remarks as prepared for delivery. Read more »
In the interview Olmert gave CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that aired on Friday, Olmert said that his peace plan was supported by a majority of Israelis and that it could have been, and still can be, implemented were it not for “superior powers” in the U.S. which he would not name. Olmert told Amanpour that he was working toward a peace agreement in 2008, knowing that this would mean handing over East Jerusalem to the Palestinians. “But I had to fight against superior powers, including millions and millions of dollars that were transferred from this country (the U.S.) by figures which were from the extreme right wing, that were aimed to topple me as Prime Minister of Israel. There is no question about it.” – Haaretz Via Forward
Both presidential candidates in France who will face off in a second round of voting on Sunday said they will travel to Israel if they win.
“Yes, this trip will be part of my plans,” Socialist Francois Hollande, whom all polls predict a win, told French Jewish news website Tribunejuive.info which interviewed the two candidates. Hollande said that peace between Israel and the Palestinians should include “two neighboring and sovereign states each within its own legitimacy.”
“Even beyond the Israeli-Palestinian issue, we must be very firm with respect to Iran, whose nuclear program is a vital danger for Israel and for world peace,” he also said. He said he is “totally opposed” to the boycott of Israeli products which, he added, “is illegal and does not serve the cause of peace.” Extreme-left parties and the Greens, which are potential partners of the Socialists if Hollande wins, support such a boycott.
Following the success of the love initiative between Israelis and Iranians on Facebook, it’s time for a face to face meeting. Israelis and Iranians attending a number of meetings in Berlin the last few weeks, due to produce a first joint demonstration on Saturday. The purpose of this demonstration is to protest against the voices calling for war, the sanctions imposed on Iran, and in support for a nuclear demilitarization of the Middle East. The organizers are eight Iranians and 13 Israelis, amongst them left-wing activists Itay Naor and Dana Rothschild. The meetings were not photographed because of concerns for the welfare of the families of the Iranian activists. For this reason, they also use aliases on Facebook. – Haaretz Via Forward
Israel on Thursday received its fourth German-made submarine capable of launching nuclear warheads, expanding a fleet that experts say could be used in an attack on Iran. Defense Minister Ehud Barak said that the submarine would increase Israel’s capabilities and strength “in the face of the growing regional challenges.” The Dolphin-type military submarine is one of six Israel has ordered from Germany, which subsidizes the submarines. Each submarine costs half a billion dollars. The sub was presented to Israeli officials in Hamburg, Germany, on Thursday and is expected to arrive in Israel in 2013, following final tests. – AP
A meeting in Cairo between representatives of Hamas and Fatah did not bring a Palestinian national unity government any closer. Khaled Mashaal, chief of Hamas, and senior Fatah official Azzam al-Ahmed concluded a meeting on Wednesday night that “produced nothing new,” the French news agency AFP reported, citing an anonymous Palestinian official. The meeting comes nearly two months after the two sides reached agreement in Doha on February 6 to form an interim government headed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Wednesday’s meeting was also attended by Egyptian officials. – JTA
Turx of Ami Magazine Writes: I asked Dr. Paul how he reacts to being branded as anti-Semitic, and then inquired if he had any message to the Jewish people to assuage their fears that some of his policies would lead to anti-Semitism. However, it seems my use of the phrase “Jewish people” was a poor choice. “I don’t see people as belonging to groups,” he responded. “Your liberty, his liberty, her liberty—it’s all the same. You can run your life and your programs and your religious beliefs with no government interference. Everyone should have liberty, and you should not be denied anything because you belong to a group. And you should never get special things because you belong to a group. Read more »
The Jewish Week Reports: It’s no secret that President Barack Obama and Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu have an icy relationship. So when it took Obama three days to extend condolences on the death of Netanyahu’s father, it raised some eyebrows.
In an exchange on Twitter with other users, The Republican Jewish Coalition quipped “seems like he took his time about it” and asked “3 days doesn’t seem like a curiously languid pace to you?” Read more »
Dahaf Poll for “Knesset Channel 99″ broadcast on May 2, 2012. If elections were held today who would you vote for? Current Knesset seats in [brackets] Read more »
On Wednesday morning, the White House issued a readout of Obama’s condolence call to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from Air Force One, writes Natasha Mozgovaya from Haaretz. But, notes Mozgovaya, Mitt Romney was one of the first to issue a statement after the passing of Netanyahu’s father… Some voices in the Jewish community wondered in the past few days whether Obama would do the same… On Twitter, the Republican Jewish Coalition asked Wednesday: Obama also took three days to get around to it when it was [Turkish President] Erdogan who was bereaved, right?
In defense of Obama, according to Jewish Shiva laws non-family members are not suppose to give condolences until three days after the passing of the person. Perhaps Obama was sensitive to Jewish customs… But then again, close friends reach out to one another sooner than three days after a death in the family…
Jon Alterman Writes: Politics in Israel has always been a contact sport, but rather than battle to win over the center, an increasing number of political battles are conducted entirely on the fringes. Small religious parties seek greater social spending for their constituents, while a party representing secular Russian Jews focuses on undermining a law exempting ultra-Orthodox Israelis from military service.
In election after election, the major parties’ share of the vote diminishes, leading to weak coalitions that are ideologically incoherent and that are forced to dole out Cabinet posts and largesse to their members to stay in power. Governments become tentative and fragile. The problems call for decisiveness, but the politicians rarely feel they can afford to be. Read more »
Both Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon said in published comments on Wednesday that policy toward Iran will be based solely on strategic interests. Israel believes Iran is developing a nuclear bomb and has repeatedly hinted that it might attack Iranian nuclear facilities in the coming months. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signaled this week that he may call parliamentary elections a year ahead of schedule — casting additional uncertainty over any Israeli military plans. – AP Via ABC
Israel’s military launched a new system this week to monitor information on the Internet, the chief military censor said on Tuesday. Col. Sima Vaknin-Gil said that the new system will monitor visual and textual information on social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, on blogs and on traditional news sites. Speaking at the Digit 2012 conference at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya, Vaknin-Gil explained that the new system will examine information using key words labeled in advance. The system will be able to monitor information that was previously difficult to reach. “I think that you can’t try to catch everything,” she said, “because that will make the censor lose its relevance, and furthermore – its morality.” – Haaretz Via Forward
