Israel General Discussion: The Return of the Rotation Government

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.thedailybeast.com/besieged-benjamin-netanyahu-blames-israels-protests-on-epstein-money

A perfect storm of grievances has enveloped Israel just as a second coronavirus lockdown appears inevitable and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seems close to losing control of his government.

Protests were held in more than 200 cities and highway junctions all across Israel on Saturday night, and on Sunday, Netanyahu said money from the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein was funding the mounting demonstrations.

<snip>

On Sunday morning, Netanyahu’s only comment about the rallies, which drew thousands in Jerusalem and in Tel Aviv, was to repeat a conspiracy theory that the Wexner Foundation, an American philanthropy, is funneling Epstein money to former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, which he is using to “organize the protests.”

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/02/thousands-demonstrate-against-netanyahu-as-israel-protests-gain-strength

Thousands of demonstrators have gathered outside the official residence of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and thronged the streets of central Jerusalem, as weeks of protests against the Israeli leader appeared to be gaining steam.

The demonstration in central Jerusalem on Saturday, along with smaller gatherings in Tel Aviv, near Netanyahu’s beach house in central Israel and at dozens of busy intersections nationwide, was one of the largest turnouts in weeks of protests.

Throughout the summer, thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets, calling for Netanyahu to resign, protesting his handling of the country’s coronavirus crisis and saying he should not remain in office while on trial for corruption charges. Though Netanyahu has tried to play down the protests, the twice-a-week gatherings show no signs of slowing.

Israeli media estimated at least 10,000 people demonstrated near the official residence in central Jerusalem.

Should we be expecting Prime Minister Gantz soon? Or will the entire government fall?

I mean, I'm not entirely sure how Netanyahu survives this...

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/08/thousands-return-streets-israel-urging-netanyahu-resign-200816021834656.html

Thousands of demonstrators have returned to the streets of Jerusalem calling for the resignation of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over allegations of corruption and his mishandling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Protesters were seen clashing with police late into the night on Saturday and early on Sunday outside the residence of the embattled prime minister, who had recently clinched a historic diplomatic deal with the United Arab Emirates.

Images from news agencies and social media showed several demonstrators being dragged by police as anti-Netanyahu protests continued for the eighth week.

According to reports, some of the protesters had also attempted to march toward the residence of Israeli President Reuven Rivlin but were prevented by police.

I guess making peace with the United Arab Emirates wasn't popular with the Israeli public?

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/09/israeli-protesters-pressure-netanyahu-200906021427474.html

Thousands of Israelis protested outside the official residence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday night and into early Sunday, pressing ahead with a monthslong campaign demanding that the embattled Israeli leader resign.

The protests, now in their 11th week, came as Israel is coping with record levels of coronavirus infections.

Demonstrators have been protesting Netanyahu's handling of the coronavirus crisis, which has led to soaring unemployment, and they say he should step down while on trial for corruption charges.

Protesters held banners reading "Revolution" and "Get out of here" and held blue-and-white Israeli flags. A sign aimed at the prime minister was projected on a building reading in Hebrew: "Enough with you."

Smaller crowds gathered on bridges and at intersections across the country, also calling for Netanyahu to step down.

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/11/politics/israel-bahrain-trump/index.html

President Donald Trump said Friday that Israel and Bahrain have agreed to the "establishment of full diplomatic relations," marking the second time in a month an Arab Gulf nation has announced new ties with the Jewish state and further reshaping alliances in the Middle East.

Unveiling the new agreement from the Oval Office, Trump cast the move as a step toward peace in the region. He has worked to broker accords between Arab nations and Israel that he hopes will lead to a broader peace deal.

"Another HISTORIC breakthrough today!" Trump tweeted.

The announcement came less than a week ahead of a White House signing ceremony between Israel and the United Arab Emirates that will bring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Emirati officials to Washington.

As a condition of that agreement, Netanyahu agreed to shelve plans for now to annex sections of the West Bank. He has not ruled out resuming the annexation in the future.

Bahrain's foreign minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khallaf will join Israel and the UAE for the signing ceremony currently scheduled for next Tuesday, according to the statement from Trump.

Who does this help more, Trump, Netanyahu, or Bahrain?

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/10/2/israeli-tourism-minister-resigns-to-protest-netanyahu

Israel’s tourism minister has resigned from the fractious government, saying he does not have an “ounce of trust” in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accusing him of putting his personal and legal issues ahead of the response to the COVID-19 crisis.

Asaf Zamir is a member of the centrist Blue and White party, which battled Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud in three stalemated elections in under a year before forming an emergency government with it in May to combat the pandemic.

Israel went into a second nationwide lockdown last month and is now grappling with one of the worst outbreaks in the world on a per capita basis. The emergency government has been roiled by infighting and has faced widespread criticism over its confusing and often contradictory response to the pandemic.

“I can no longer sit in a government in which I don’t have an ounce of trust in the person at its head,” Zamir tweeted.

“I have unfortunately determined that the coronavirus crisis and its terrible impact is at best in second place in the list of priorities of the prime minister. Personal and legal considerations are at the top of Netanyahu’s priorities.”

Is this the end of the road for the coalition government?

[NewYorkExpress]

Apparently Netanyahu met with Mohhamed Bin Salman in Saudi Arabia recently. However, the Saudis are denying this.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Saudi Arabia over the weekend, a senior Cabinet minister told local news media, signaling a potential breakthrough for Israel as it strives for acceptance in the region.

Various Israeli news outlets and Axios, citing Israeli sources, reported Monday that Netanyahu had met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a visit with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo — the first known meeting between the crown prince and Netanyahu.

https://twitter.com/FaisalbinFarhan/status/1330858232680734723

Is peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia on the horizon?

[NewYorkExpress]

Facebook suspends Messenger page of Benjamin Netanyahu.

Facebook has deleted a post by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and suspended a chatbot linked to his account for violating the company's privacy policy.

Visitors to the Prime Minister's Facebook page, who clicked on a link about the coronavirus, received an automatic message, purporting to come from Netanyahu.

"If you have friends or family members aged 60 or over who have not yet been vaccinated, you can write a response here with their name and phone number, and I may call to convince them!" the message read.

Taking action and removing the items, Facebook said, via a spokesperson, that "under our privacy policy we do not allow content that shares or asks for people's medical information."

[NewYorkExpress]

The Israeli Supreme Court ruled that non-Orthodox Jews who have converted can become citizens.

Israel’s Supreme Court on Monday dealt a major blow to the country’s powerful Orthodox establishment, ruling that people who convert to Judaism through the Reform and Conservative movements in Israel are also Jewish and entitled to become citizens.

The landmark ruling, 15 years in the making, centered around the combustible question of who is Jewish and marked an important victory for the Reform and Conservative movements. These liberal streams of Judaism, which represent the vast majority of affiliated American Jews, have long been marginalized in Israel.

“If the state of Israel claims to be the nation-state of the Jewish world, then the state of Israel must recognize all the denominations of Judaism and imbue them with equality and respect,” said Rabbi Gilad Kariv, head of the Reform movement in Israel and a candidate with the liberal Labor Party in upcoming parliamentary elections.

Israel’s powerful ultra-Orthodox establishment has held a virtual monopoly on religious matters for Israeli Jews, overseeing life-cycle rituals like weddings and burials and using their political clout to gain influence over matters like immigration.

Monday’s ruling chipped away at that power by saying that the state must allow Jews who undergo conversions with the liberal movements in Israel to receive citizenship.

“Jews who during their stay in Israel were legally converted in a Reform or Conservative community must be recognized as Jews,” the court said in its majority decision. It said the ruling only applied to the question of citizenship, and did not delve into religious affairs.

Israel previously recognized conversions by the liberal streams conducted overseas. This ruling now applies to conversions inside Israel.

The ruling does not resolve the issues faced by people who qualify for citizenship under the so-called Law of Return but are not considered Jewish under religious law.

The Law of Return grants citizenship to anyone with at least one Jewish grandparent, while religious law requires one to have a Jewish mother. These different definitions have allowed tens of thousands of people, mostly from the Soviet Union, to immigrate to Israel, only to suffer from discrimination when seeking religious services from the state.

Monday’s ruling only directly affects about 30 people a year, such as spouses of Israeli citizens, advocates say. But both supporters and opponents of the decision suggested there was much deeper symbolism.