Az izraeli lapok vezércikkeiből angolul

The Jerusalem Post discusses the ongoing elections in Argentina, and expresses the hope that the pragmatic former mayor of Buenos Aires, Mauricio Macri, will replace President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner as Argentina’s next president, which the editor states, “will be good for Argentina and good for the Jews.” The editor welcomes Macri’s pro-business orientation, which the country desperately needs after Kirchner’s populist policies have ruined Argentina’s economy, and declares: “Macri has a chance of changing the course of Argentina, a country with tremendous potential that has suffered over the years from bad political leadership.”

Haaretz criticizes PM Netanyahu’s decision to set up a separation wall in the heart of Jerusalem and to rescind the residency rights of tens of thousands of Palestinians living in neighborhoods beyond the separation wall yet within the area annexed to Jerusalem. The editor notes that “At first glance, Netanyahu would seem to deserve praise for recognizing the fact that Jerusalem can no longer pretend to be a unified city, and that it must be divided,” but adds: “The tactic of revoking Palestinian residency, if it happens at all as opposed to being just media spin, is meant to forge a reality that the right dreams about: a unified Jerusalem without Palestinian residents; annexed territory without an Arab population.” The editor contends that Netanyahu’s move makes it clear that Israel no longer has any need for international recogn ition of the city’s unification, and asserts: “Jerusalem will not be a unified city, rather a purely Jewish city. Indeed, there will be Arabs in it, but they will lack basic human and civil rights. We must not agree to this dangerous and anti-democratic vision.”

Yediot Aharonot marks the 20th anniversary of the assassination of former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, and states: “We couldn’t imagine, we didn’t know, we didn’t internalize the extent of hatred towards him among a certain part of the population. It was our fault.”

Israel Hayom comments on the nature and scope of deterrence Israel can generate during the current wave of terrorism, and notes the High Court’s decision to suspend the razing of terrorists’ homes, which “has undermined the immediate, deterrent link between the crime of terrorism and its punishment.” The author points out that as a countermeasure to the High Court’s hesitation, the Palestinian leadership has been encouraging the murder of Jews as a legitimate way of fighting the occupation, and asserts: “For this reason, the government’s decision to raze terrorists’ homes and to revoke their families’ citizenship or residency status is a moral way to create deterrence that is perfectly acceptable within Palestinian society itself.”