Time for Pressure?; Berman Speaks Up for Peace; Mixed Messages; Protest Movement Picks Up Steam; Follow the Money
Time for Pressure? An interview by President Barack Obama with Time Magazine in which he spoke about the obstacles to his peace agenda was met with a surprising number of pundits in Israel who lamented Obama's failure to put any real pressure on Israel.
Writing in Ma'ariv, Nadav Eyal noted that Obama "is correct in the manner in which he identified the reason for the failure in renewing negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians: the domestic political situation in both entities."
Eyal sees the interview as an effort by Obama to reproach "the sides for being unable to overcome petty political considerations for the better good of their peoples. This is a serious accusation, and one may admit upfront: it is correct."
"And yet," Eyal continues, "one ought to ask what exactly has Obama done, what has his administration done, in order to realize the blissful vision presented only a year ago? The answer, put simply, is not enough... the president was incapable, or rather lacked the desire, to put his money where his mouth is, if one may use a well-known Washingtonian idiom. Did we witness the imposing of a unambiguous American peace initiative? Was a clear timetable laid out, with sticks and carrots? And how exactly has the White House gone about cracking Israeli public opinion, the center of gravity for any peace process? Does one recall Obama's dramatic appearance before the Knesset, in which he detailed his policy for the Middle East? Were there any extensive interviews granted to the Israeli media outlets in an effort to speak directly to the distrustful Israeli public? Apparently not, because such thing never occurred."
"There can be no doubt some Israelis are gleeful over the fact that Obama has despaired of us," Eyal concludes. "Soon, in just a few months, we will be able to build in every corner in Judea and Samaria, mock the notion of a peace agreement, embrace millions of Palestinians citizens into our midst, and part with the two-state solution formula. Bibi will be able to note a major achievement, Abu Mazen will tell himself that all will go well once his regime in the West Bank settles, and together we shall march proudly into stagnation, depression, occupation and the next war. Do yourselves a favor, take no joy in his despair."
Writing in Yedioth Ahronoth, veteran journalist Orly Azulai was more blunt: "Instead of condescending and complaining like a spoiled child that the efforts he invested were to no avail, Obama could have pounded on the table and done what the world expected him to do: To take the initiative, seize the recalcitrant parties by their hair and not let go until they consented."
"Every U.S. president has at his disposal an impressive array of tools, but Obama has not yet used any of them," Azulai continued. "He neither raised a diplomatic hammer nor threatened with a political ax. He did not even do the minimum that his aides promised when they entered the White House: To openly present a detailed American peace plan and apply pressure to the sides to conform to it... Obama should have presented this plan, set a strict timetable for its implementation, threatened to denounce the recalcitrant parties and marketed it at a grandiose international conference. But Obama chose the easy way out: He chose to be offended, turned up his nose and turned his back." (Yedioth Ahronoth, 1/22/10; Ma'ariv, 1/22/10; Time Magazine, 1/21/10)
Berman Speaks Up for Peace: Representative Howard Berman, Chair of the House Foreign Relations Committee, spoke plainly about the need for Israel to make peace on Sunday.
"I made my first trip to Israel as a congressman in 1983," Berman recalled. "It was then that I first began to discern the primary problem Israel would have to face if it maintained its hold on the West Bank and Gaza: Either it would eventually have to rule over a disenfranchised Palestinian majority, or - if it enfranchised the Palestinians - Israel would eventually cease to be Jewish. Call it the 'democracy/demography' problem. I knew I wanted Israel, as a Jewish homeland, to be a democracy."
Berman recounted two lessons that he's learned since then: "First, I learned that there were, indeed, many Palestinians who were prepared to accept Israel and who genuinely believed in co-existence. Second, I discovered the immense toll the occupation was taking on Israel."
He made the comments at an event sponsored by Americans for Peace Now (APN), which Berman also praised, saying "APN is among the most reliable and valuable sources of information about the peace process, especially regarding Israeli settlements in the West Bank. I can't tell you how much time I've spent in my office poring over maps with the knowledgeable and articulate policy director for APN in Washington, Lara Friedman, as well as the Jerusalem expert nonpareil Danny Seidemann, who has frequently accompanied her."
"What I admire about APN is that unlike some on the left who come to their positions because they do not really care about Israel's survival and security," Berman said, "APN comes to its positions because it does care. I look forward to continuing my close relationship with APN, both when in agreement and otherwise. For many years now, APN has been an informative and creative partner in Middle East policy debates. I will continue to be intimately involved with you in that discussion, fully assured that our main objectives - a secure Israel, an independent Palestine, and a peaceful Middle East - remain the same."
"Like you," Berman noted, "I believe that a final resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will require robust U.S. engagement in the Middle East peace process." (House Foreign Affairs Committee, 1/24/10)
Mixed Messages: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rhetorical commitment to negotiating with the Palestinians over the West Bank did not stop him from talking about continued Israeli rule over settlements this weekend.
On Sunday, Netanyahu travelled to several West Bank settlements to plant trees there.
The message is clear," Netanyahu said. "We are here and will remain here. The settlement blocs are part of Israel forever. This is acceptable to the great majority of Israel's citizens and is gradually being instilled in international consciousness. Actions are important in determining psychological reality, as in the actions you take every day in building, planting and raising children."
Netanyahu told children at the event that "your children and grandchildren will grow up in the shade of this tree."
Netanyahu made the comments shortly after meeting with U.S. special envoy George Mitchell who has been leading the American charge to renew Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.
A statement by the Peace Now movement took Netanyahu's tree-planting gimmick to task: "Netanyahu and his government are continuing to plant despair in Washington, Ramallah, and Israel. Netanyahu's statements bury the possibility of renewing a genuine political process." (Yedioth Ahronoth, 1/25/10; Ynet, 1/24/10; Israel TV Channel 10, 1/24/10)
Protest Movement Picks Up Steam: A weekly protest against the take-over of homes by settlers in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah is drawing increasing attention from leaders of the Israeli peace camp.
Among those present in Friday's demonstration was Peace Now leader Yariv Oppenheimer, former Knesset Speaker Avrum Burg, and former Education Minister Yossi Sarid. Israeli police forces have been treating the peace demonstrators harshly. Eighteen people were arrested this Friday, even though earlier arrests under identical conditions were thrown out by the courts.
Peace Now's Oppenheimer told Haaretz about the momentum behind the campaign. "The protest speaks to more people than it did in the past. Now you feel like the struggle has become more fundamental, not only regarding Sheikh Jarrah but regarding the overall settlement activity in East Jerusalem," he said.
Demonstrator Avner Inbar told Ma'ariv that "we are here to defend the local residents who have fallen victim to the unending harassment of the Jewish residents."
Indeed, Palestinian resident Maissa el-Kurd spoke about the difficult conditions her family has endured in the months since his neighborhood became a focal point for settler activity: "There is no more joy here, there is no laughter, no happiness. All over the world people live, and only here we are dying. There is constant fear of the next blow, the next stone. The next eviction. I've lived here my whole life, what do they want from me?"
He also spoke about the abuse he's experienced from settlers: "One night I was with my kids in the room. Suddenly we heard screaming, it was very scary. I told my children not to move and, trembling, I went to see what was going on. Then there were knocks on the door. Then I heard things being thrown at the house and then glass breaking and a stone came in through the window. It was them again. They want for us to suffer, they want us to leave. Ever since I've been scared to go to sleep. And my children can barely study. I'm scared to leave the house." (Ma'ariv, 1/24 & 1/26/10; Haaretz, 1/24/10)
Protest Movement Picks Up Steam, Part II: In a personal op-ed he published in Haaretz, former Education Minister Yossi Sarid writes about the heavy-handed police crackdown on the demonstrators in Sheikh Jarrah:
"After I heard the version of the police I concluded that the police and we, 'the anarchists,' were at two different demonstrations. For more than three hours we stood at the outskirts of Sheikh Jarrah - not a stone was thrown, not an arm raised, not a worshiper attacked, not a settler's home broken into. But for the police's disproportionate use of force and its false arrests, as a means of punishment and score-settling, one could say the demonstration was calm and orderly...
"In my long years of demonstrating I have never seen a protest so restrained, so not in need of a permit according to any rational interpretation of the law... Since leaving active political life I have not attended demonstrations despite repeated requests... This time I could not refuse. All citizens, not just public figures, have a duty to resist. And so, on Friday afternoon the retired demonstrators came and filled the little square. The struggle in Sheikh Jarrah isn't over, it's just beginning. More Palestinian families are slated for transfer, and one cannot trust this government, the mayor of Jerusalem or even the city's judges to do the right thing." (Haaretz, 1/24/09)
Follow the Money: A large Israel Police compound, which was built in one of the most sensitive locations in the West Bank, was funded in large part by an organization closely associated with the extreme right. These are the findings of a Yedioth Ahronoth investigative story that ran on Friday.
The story shows that millions of Shekels used to build the Judea and Samaria police headquarters, at a controversial location on the E-1 corridor that leads from Jerusalem to the settlement of Maale Adumim, came from two right-wing organizations: the Bukhara Community Trust and the Shalem Foundation.
The Shalem Foundation, according to the story, is a subsidiary of Elad, an Israeli non-profit that is closely associated with extremist settlers and is heavily funded by donations from American Jews. Elad, according to the story, formed the Shalem Foundation because funding the police station directly would have violated Elad's mission statement, which confines its activity to Jerusalem.
Funding from the Bukhara Community Trust was part of a legal deal between the Israel Police and the Jewish Bukharan community of Jerusalem, which owned the building that served as the old Judea and Samaria Police headquarters in the Arab neighborhood of Ras al-Amoud. In 2008, the headquarters moved to the controversial site at E-1. At the time, the Israeli government argued in court that the building is funded partly by state funds and partly by compensations from the Bukharan community. Yedioth Ahronoth's probe shows, however, that much of the funding, if not most of it - millions of Shekels - came from the Shalem Foundation. The Foundation also bought the lucrative piece of real estate that served as the old police headquarters in Ras al-Amoud, on the slopes of the Mount of Olives, to build a residential housing project for Jews.
Israeli government agencies involved in the construction of the police compound on E-1 told Yedioth Ahronoth that they had no knowledge of the involvement of the Elad subsidiary in the deal.
In reaction to the report, Israel's Peace Now movement sent a letter to Israel's attorney general, demanding an investigation into possible wrongdoing. "The State chooses to surrender to the extreme right and loses control over what is happening on the ground," said Peace Now Secretary General Yariv Oppenheimer. The State apparently received a gift from a private organization with clear political interests, Oppenheimer pointed out. "It is hard to believe that after the deal was carried out, the police could act objectively and assertively when the law is violated" by the extreme right, he said. (Yedioth Ahronoth, 1/22/10)
Writing in Ma'ariv, Nadav Eyal noted that Obama "is correct in the manner in which he identified the reason for the failure in renewing negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians: the domestic political situation in both entities."
Eyal sees the interview as an effort by Obama to reproach "the sides for being unable to overcome petty political considerations for the better good of their peoples. This is a serious accusation, and one may admit upfront: it is correct."
"And yet," Eyal continues, "one ought to ask what exactly has Obama done, what has his administration done, in order to realize the blissful vision presented only a year ago? The answer, put simply, is not enough... the president was incapable, or rather lacked the desire, to put his money where his mouth is, if one may use a well-known Washingtonian idiom. Did we witness the imposing of a unambiguous American peace initiative? Was a clear timetable laid out, with sticks and carrots? And how exactly has the White House gone about cracking Israeli public opinion, the center of gravity for any peace process? Does one recall Obama's dramatic appearance before the Knesset, in which he detailed his policy for the Middle East? Were there any extensive interviews granted to the Israeli media outlets in an effort to speak directly to the distrustful Israeli public? Apparently not, because such thing never occurred."
"There can be no doubt some Israelis are gleeful over the fact that Obama has despaired of us," Eyal concludes. "Soon, in just a few months, we will be able to build in every corner in Judea and Samaria, mock the notion of a peace agreement, embrace millions of Palestinians citizens into our midst, and part with the two-state solution formula. Bibi will be able to note a major achievement, Abu Mazen will tell himself that all will go well once his regime in the West Bank settles, and together we shall march proudly into stagnation, depression, occupation and the next war. Do yourselves a favor, take no joy in his despair."
Writing in Yedioth Ahronoth, veteran journalist Orly Azulai was more blunt: "Instead of condescending and complaining like a spoiled child that the efforts he invested were to no avail, Obama could have pounded on the table and done what the world expected him to do: To take the initiative, seize the recalcitrant parties by their hair and not let go until they consented."
"Every U.S. president has at his disposal an impressive array of tools, but Obama has not yet used any of them," Azulai continued. "He neither raised a diplomatic hammer nor threatened with a political ax. He did not even do the minimum that his aides promised when they entered the White House: To openly present a detailed American peace plan and apply pressure to the sides to conform to it... Obama should have presented this plan, set a strict timetable for its implementation, threatened to denounce the recalcitrant parties and marketed it at a grandiose international conference. But Obama chose the easy way out: He chose to be offended, turned up his nose and turned his back." (Yedioth Ahronoth, 1/22/10; Ma'ariv, 1/22/10; Time Magazine, 1/21/10)
Berman Speaks Up for Peace: Representative Howard Berman, Chair of the House Foreign Relations Committee, spoke plainly about the need for Israel to make peace on Sunday.
"I made my first trip to Israel as a congressman in 1983," Berman recalled. "It was then that I first began to discern the primary problem Israel would have to face if it maintained its hold on the West Bank and Gaza: Either it would eventually have to rule over a disenfranchised Palestinian majority, or - if it enfranchised the Palestinians - Israel would eventually cease to be Jewish. Call it the 'democracy/demography' problem. I knew I wanted Israel, as a Jewish homeland, to be a democracy."
Berman recounted two lessons that he's learned since then: "First, I learned that there were, indeed, many Palestinians who were prepared to accept Israel and who genuinely believed in co-existence. Second, I discovered the immense toll the occupation was taking on Israel."
He made the comments at an event sponsored by Americans for Peace Now (APN), which Berman also praised, saying "APN is among the most reliable and valuable sources of information about the peace process, especially regarding Israeli settlements in the West Bank. I can't tell you how much time I've spent in my office poring over maps with the knowledgeable and articulate policy director for APN in Washington, Lara Friedman, as well as the Jerusalem expert nonpareil Danny Seidemann, who has frequently accompanied her."
"What I admire about APN is that unlike some on the left who come to their positions because they do not really care about Israel's survival and security," Berman said, "APN comes to its positions because it does care. I look forward to continuing my close relationship with APN, both when in agreement and otherwise. For many years now, APN has been an informative and creative partner in Middle East policy debates. I will continue to be intimately involved with you in that discussion, fully assured that our main objectives - a secure Israel, an independent Palestine, and a peaceful Middle East - remain the same."
"Like you," Berman noted, "I believe that a final resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will require robust U.S. engagement in the Middle East peace process." (House Foreign Affairs Committee, 1/24/10)
Mixed Messages: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rhetorical commitment to negotiating with the Palestinians over the West Bank did not stop him from talking about continued Israeli rule over settlements this weekend.
On Sunday, Netanyahu travelled to several West Bank settlements to plant trees there.
The message is clear," Netanyahu said. "We are here and will remain here. The settlement blocs are part of Israel forever. This is acceptable to the great majority of Israel's citizens and is gradually being instilled in international consciousness. Actions are important in determining psychological reality, as in the actions you take every day in building, planting and raising children."
Netanyahu told children at the event that "your children and grandchildren will grow up in the shade of this tree."
Netanyahu made the comments shortly after meeting with U.S. special envoy George Mitchell who has been leading the American charge to renew Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.
A statement by the Peace Now movement took Netanyahu's tree-planting gimmick to task: "Netanyahu and his government are continuing to plant despair in Washington, Ramallah, and Israel. Netanyahu's statements bury the possibility of renewing a genuine political process." (Yedioth Ahronoth, 1/25/10; Ynet, 1/24/10; Israel TV Channel 10, 1/24/10)
Protest Movement Picks Up Steam: A weekly protest against the take-over of homes by settlers in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah is drawing increasing attention from leaders of the Israeli peace camp.
Among those present in Friday's demonstration was Peace Now leader Yariv Oppenheimer, former Knesset Speaker Avrum Burg, and former Education Minister Yossi Sarid. Israeli police forces have been treating the peace demonstrators harshly. Eighteen people were arrested this Friday, even though earlier arrests under identical conditions were thrown out by the courts.
Peace Now's Oppenheimer told Haaretz about the momentum behind the campaign. "The protest speaks to more people than it did in the past. Now you feel like the struggle has become more fundamental, not only regarding Sheikh Jarrah but regarding the overall settlement activity in East Jerusalem," he said.
Demonstrator Avner Inbar told Ma'ariv that "we are here to defend the local residents who have fallen victim to the unending harassment of the Jewish residents."
Indeed, Palestinian resident Maissa el-Kurd spoke about the difficult conditions her family has endured in the months since his neighborhood became a focal point for settler activity: "There is no more joy here, there is no laughter, no happiness. All over the world people live, and only here we are dying. There is constant fear of the next blow, the next stone. The next eviction. I've lived here my whole life, what do they want from me?"
He also spoke about the abuse he's experienced from settlers: "One night I was with my kids in the room. Suddenly we heard screaming, it was very scary. I told my children not to move and, trembling, I went to see what was going on. Then there were knocks on the door. Then I heard things being thrown at the house and then glass breaking and a stone came in through the window. It was them again. They want for us to suffer, they want us to leave. Ever since I've been scared to go to sleep. And my children can barely study. I'm scared to leave the house." (Ma'ariv, 1/24 & 1/26/10; Haaretz, 1/24/10)
Protest Movement Picks Up Steam, Part II: In a personal op-ed he published in Haaretz, former Education Minister Yossi Sarid writes about the heavy-handed police crackdown on the demonstrators in Sheikh Jarrah:
"After I heard the version of the police I concluded that the police and we, 'the anarchists,' were at two different demonstrations. For more than three hours we stood at the outskirts of Sheikh Jarrah - not a stone was thrown, not an arm raised, not a worshiper attacked, not a settler's home broken into. But for the police's disproportionate use of force and its false arrests, as a means of punishment and score-settling, one could say the demonstration was calm and orderly...
"In my long years of demonstrating I have never seen a protest so restrained, so not in need of a permit according to any rational interpretation of the law... Since leaving active political life I have not attended demonstrations despite repeated requests... This time I could not refuse. All citizens, not just public figures, have a duty to resist. And so, on Friday afternoon the retired demonstrators came and filled the little square. The struggle in Sheikh Jarrah isn't over, it's just beginning. More Palestinian families are slated for transfer, and one cannot trust this government, the mayor of Jerusalem or even the city's judges to do the right thing." (Haaretz, 1/24/09)
Follow the Money: A large Israel Police compound, which was built in one of the most sensitive locations in the West Bank, was funded in large part by an organization closely associated with the extreme right. These are the findings of a Yedioth Ahronoth investigative story that ran on Friday.
The story shows that millions of Shekels used to build the Judea and Samaria police headquarters, at a controversial location on the E-1 corridor that leads from Jerusalem to the settlement of Maale Adumim, came from two right-wing organizations: the Bukhara Community Trust and the Shalem Foundation.
The Shalem Foundation, according to the story, is a subsidiary of Elad, an Israeli non-profit that is closely associated with extremist settlers and is heavily funded by donations from American Jews. Elad, according to the story, formed the Shalem Foundation because funding the police station directly would have violated Elad's mission statement, which confines its activity to Jerusalem.
Funding from the Bukhara Community Trust was part of a legal deal between the Israel Police and the Jewish Bukharan community of Jerusalem, which owned the building that served as the old Judea and Samaria Police headquarters in the Arab neighborhood of Ras al-Amoud. In 2008, the headquarters moved to the controversial site at E-1. At the time, the Israeli government argued in court that the building is funded partly by state funds and partly by compensations from the Bukharan community. Yedioth Ahronoth's probe shows, however, that much of the funding, if not most of it - millions of Shekels - came from the Shalem Foundation. The Foundation also bought the lucrative piece of real estate that served as the old police headquarters in Ras al-Amoud, on the slopes of the Mount of Olives, to build a residential housing project for Jews.
Israeli government agencies involved in the construction of the police compound on E-1 told Yedioth Ahronoth that they had no knowledge of the involvement of the Elad subsidiary in the deal.
In reaction to the report, Israel's Peace Now movement sent a letter to Israel's attorney general, demanding an investigation into possible wrongdoing. "The State chooses to surrender to the extreme right and loses control over what is happening on the ground," said Peace Now Secretary General Yariv Oppenheimer. The State apparently received a gift from a private organization with clear political interests, Oppenheimer pointed out. "It is hard to believe that after the deal was carried out, the police could act objectively and assertively when the law is violated" by the extreme right, he said. (Yedioth Ahronoth, 1/22/10)
Tweet
Email a friend
feed
twitter
facebook
Leave a comment