Válogatás az Izraeli lapok vezércikkeiből angolul

The Jerusalem Post contends:  “As we remember and mourn the loved ones we have lost, we should be proud of Israel’s unique character.” The editor states that “The centrality of Remembrance Day in Israeli society is in large part tied to the importance we all place on the family and the tremendous loss incurred when a family member is lost. Centrality of family also explains the tremendous emphasis Jewish culture places on the sanctity of life,” and concludes: “There is no other country in the world that has succeeded so well in combining the best of liberalism – which encourages freedom, individuality and creativity – with strong ties to tradition – which imparts a commitment to family, self-sacrifice and a respect for the sanctity of life.”

Yisrael Hayom comments on Israel’s unique form of mourning for the fallen in the nation’s wars, and declares: “Tonight, for an entire day, Israel will lower its head and mourn its finest children, Jewish and non-Jewish, who paid with their lives.”  Noting there is no such form of mourning anywhere else in the world, the author states: “Individuals commune with and commemorate their personal loved ones while Israelis outside their families look on with genuine pain, feeling as though they are, in fact, a part of the family,” and concludes that while there may be those who wish to change, shift, add or subtract from this process, “there is nothing more real, more painful, or that tugs harder at the heart than the primal pain.”

———————————————————————

Haaretz quotes a recent Health Ministry document that points to a causal connection between incidence of cancer and air pollution in the Haifa Bay area that has sparked fear and anger among area residents, and asserts that municipal efforts to improve air quality require “a systemic response based on good judgment and appropriate scientific groundwork.” The editor declares that “It is essential to ensure that additional industrial activity in this area won’t turn Haifa into a repository for carcinogenic materials,” and calls on the Environmental Protection Ministry to take the steps necessary “to help Haifa and the north to flourish. Otherwise, the city will continue to be shrouded in fear of dangerous pollution.”

Yediot Aharonot discusses Israel’s strong criticism of the Western position regarding the Iranian nuclear issue in light of the Russian decision to sell the S-300 missile system to Iran, and asserts: “The Russian interest to put down roots in Damascus alongside Iran and the Russian ambition to restore its image as a key power in our region – both in the Arabian Peninsula and in Iraq – require Israel not only to raise its alertness and use discretion vis-à-vis Russia, but also to remember that when it considers and implements moves which are interpreted as a preparation for separating itself from Washington.” The author adds that attacking the West, and the US in particular, “contradicts Israel’s most important strategic interest on the international level,” and reminds government decision makers that in the 1930s Russia addressed the growing Nazi threat that is compared today to the Iranian danger not by trying to appease but by signing a pact with Germany.