Summary of editorials from the Izraeli Hebrew press
BreuerPress
All five newspapers discuss the controversy over Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Hebrew remark in Davos that he would not evacuate any Israeli from his home and later remarks attributed to an official in the Prime Minister’s office to the effect that settlers who decline to be evacuated could live in a future Palestinian state:
Ma’ariv says: „If Abu Mazen was smart enough, he would simply say ‘OK’ and watch how the Israeli egg begins to cook over the (justified) nightmare scenarios regarding the fate of the settlers at Yitzhar one minute after the IDF leaves. One minute? Three seconds.” The author asserts that Jewish Home leader Naftali „Bennett knows that Netanyahu is bluffing, he knows him well and understands that no Israeli prime minister would leave Israeli communities under Palestinian sovereignty. The result would not be a commission of inquiry, but a criminal trial,” and says that Bennett chose to respond anyway in order not to miss „a Facebook opportunity.” The paper concludes: „Truth be told, it is good that there are no real negotiations with the Palestinians. With poker players like these, it could end with a state from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea – a Palestinian state.”
Yediot Aharonot believes that „There are theories that cannot be realized, but which nevertheless manage to take hold of an entire nation. Take the idea of leaving Jewish communities in a Palestinian state. Nobody intends for this to happen, nobody knows how it would work and yet the political argument has taken on a life of its own.” The author notes that Israeli Arabs and residents of eastern Jerusalem have also voiced strong opposition to ideas that would place them under Palestinian sovereignty and suggests: „What Israeli Arabs, the residents of eastern Jerusalem and the settlers have in common is a lack of confidence in a Palestinian state. Nobody wants to live there, not even in theory. It is hard to blame them.”
Yisrael Hayom says that as angry as Prime Minister Netanyahu reportedly is at Naftali Bennett, „It is doubtful whether he has any interest now in wrecking the coalition,” and adds: „The last thing that Bennett wants now is to bolt. However, statements such as these against the Prime Minister, just to placate some rabbis in his party, will only advance the possibility of his dismissal.”
The Jerusalem Post points out: “The question is whether the two-state solution will remain feasible even if Israel is forced to evacuate tens of thousands of settlers – many of whom include the most ideologically opposed to territorial compromise – while the majority remains in large settlement blocs that will be annexed to Israel,” and adds: “Ensuring a strong Jewish majority dictates the need to support a two-state solution.” The editor opines: “If the Palestinians were truly interested in peace, they should be able to absorb a Jewish minority. If, on the other hand, the Palestinians are unwilling to integrate Jews, perhaps they are truly not interested in peace,” and concludes: “Under the circumstances, it will be no easy matter to convince a majority of Israelis that the price of a two-state solution is worth it.”
Haaretz criticizes PM Netanyahu for obfuscating Israeli policy and attempting to push the Palestinians to cut off negotiations, and asserts: “The Israeli public, like the Palestinians and the international community, should be able to know what the prime minister’s true position is.” The editor concludes: “If he cannot or does not want to conduct negotiations sincerely and seriously, he should say so now because even a late shattering of an illusion could extract a high security and economic cost.”
