Summary of editorials from the Hebrew press
Today’s issues: Polls apart, drawing the obvious conclusion about Netanyahu, intifada of the mind, and time to take the initiative.
The Jerusalem Post comments on the latest Pew Research Center survey on Israel, which was released last Tuesday, and states that “In general it is a meticulous compilation of the obvious facts of Israeli life – such as the ultra-Orthodox tend to marry the ultra-Orthodox – with the dramatic exception of exposing how many Israelis, about half, would like to expel the country’s Arab citizens.” The editor is concerned by the most startling finding Pew poll, which seems to be the willingness of so many Israelis to expel or ‘transfer’ some 20 percent of the country’s citizenry, and commends President Reuven Rivlin for “urging the nation to undergo ‘soul-searching’ over the poll’s findings of support for Arab transfer.”
Haaretz focuses on the recent intolerable spate of terrorist attacks throughout Israel, and accuses PM Benjamin Netanyahu of lacking an effective formula for achieving peace and security for Israelis. The editor attacks the prime minister’s inclination to use force to halt the attacks, and asserts: “In light of this bloody reality, the Israeli public ought to draw the obvious conclusions about Netanyahu.”
Yediot Aharonot compares the current intifada to previous ones, and remarks that in both previous intifadas, the IDF and intelligence community responded with deterrence, intelligence, and offensive military action, while “In the current intifada, there is no intelligence, no deterrence, and no targets or objectives for offensive military action.” The author contends that there is no deterrence because the methods used previously are no longer effective against young Palestinians who are not prepared to die, but rather they want to die, and argues: “This intifada is motivated by psychological, religious, and cultural factors. This is an intifada whose generator is, in short, of the mind. It must also be thwarted this way.”
Israel Hayom contends that the biggest open secret in the West Bank is the number of light weapons that Palestinians are hiding in their homes, the abundance of which has been increasing over the past year as weapons production facilities inside homes have become more prevalent, and asserts: “The multiple shooting attacks in Jerusalem this week show that the moment is approaching at which the IDF will have to change its modus operandi and take the initiative.”
[Ron Ben-Yishai and Nadav Shragai wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot and Israel Hayom, respectively. |
