Summary of editorials from the Izraeli Hebrew press
BreuerPress
Three papers discuss various issues regarding ultra-orthodox conscription into the IDF, including last Thursday’s demonstrations by an ultra-orthodox group that is strongly opposed to any compromise or accommodation regarding the conscription:
Ma’ariv says that those who demonstrated last Thursday „showed an impressive turnout, organizational and operational ability, a well-thought-out deployment of forces, and not bad intelligence against police forces that did not prepare themselves in advance,” and adds: „In short, these young ultra-orthodox men showed us that they could be not bad IDF officers and soldiers.” The author views last Thursday’s events as part of an internal struggle for power and influence within the Ashkenazi ultra-orthodox world.
Yediot Aharonot suggests: „Today, what is undermining the walls of the ultra-orthodox ghetto is neither Yaakov Peri’s version of the conscription law or Ayelet Shaked’s, but a plastic gadget 12-13 centimeters long, 6-7 centimeters wide, a finger’s breadth thick weighing between 100-150 grams. It’s called a smartphone.” The author asserts that „It wouldn’t hurt to remember what started it all: The need to bring the ultra-orthodox into the labor force. Conscription into the IDF is designed to be a means, not an end. This new law will not be tested by the number of conscripts but by its contribution to the economy. The IDF or iPhones, national service or Samsung, the main thing is that the walls come down. The responsibility of the law, however problematic it is, is to accelerate this process.”
Haaretz believes that “Israel’s policy of not drafting Haredim puts religion above all else,” and states that ‘“equal sharing of the burden,”’ the key promise of Finance Minister Yair Lapid and Economy Minister Naftali Bennett when they entered the Netanyahu government, was, in fact, “a false promise.” The editor notes that while “Bennett managed to obtain preferential conditions for his voters in the religious-Zionist community,” Lapid “has not fought the discrimination against his voters,” and concludes: “Lapid will be remembered as the one who agreed to place religion above all else.”
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Yisrael Hayom discusses the Sochi Winter Olympics. The author remarks: „Let’s focus on one mishap that has become an Internet hit: The bathroom with two toilets without any partition between them. Alongside the chuckle, this could also serve as a not bad metaphor for Putin’s Russia. True, Russia’s stock has greatly increased in the past three years but this has been accompanied by a decline in pluralism, individual rights and other liberal values.”
The Jerusalem Post comments on the extremely high salaries of senior staff members and other questionable financial practices at the Hadassah hospital (HMO) in Jerusalem, which caused it to rake up an alarming NIS 1.3 billion deficit and states: “If HMO were funded by the state – and especially if it were run by private business interests based inside Israel – it seems likely that the sort of waste at HMO that has come to light in recent days would never have been tolerated.” The editor notes, however, that “HMO has now entered a difficult period. The time has come for HMO to make the necessary streamlining and reforms needed to keep its budget in order,” and adds: “It is unfortunate that the situation had to reach crisis proportions before significant steps could be implemented.”
