Israel and Middle East News Update

Monday, August 9

Headlines: ● Bennett Implores Arab Citizens to Get Vaccinated ● East Jerusalem’s Atarot Plan to Be Debated in December ● Bahraini Senior Official Lambasts Iran Nuclear Deal ● Bennett: Lebanon Responsible for Attacks, Hezbollah or Not ● Raisi Hosts Hamas, PIJ, PFLP, Hezbollah Leaders ● Hulata Meets With Egyptian Intelligence Chief in Cairo ● Bennett Names Michael Herzog as Israeli Ambassador to US ● UN Science Panel to Issue Key Report on Climate Change

Commentary: ● Yedioth Ahronoth: “Opportunity for Diplomacy’’ - By Giora Eiland

● Yedioth Ahronoth: “Outsiders, Once Again’’ - By Afif Abu Much

S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace 1725 I St NW Suite 300, Washington, DC 20006 The Hon. Robert Wexler, President News Excerpts August 9, 2021 I24 News Bennett Implores Arab Citizens to Get Vaccinated Prime Minister called on the ’s Arab community to go and get themselves vaccinated as he, the coronavirus cabinet and health officials worry about the delta variant, which is causing infections, hospitalizations, and deaths to spike in the country. "Dear citizens of Israel, members of the Arab community, I address a special and important request to you. Your lives and the lives of your family members are very important to me," the prime minister said. He maintained that the delta variant was engulfing the entire world, causing severe illness and increasing death. Bennett called on young people who have not been vaccinated at all to go and get the shots as soon as possible, to "help save the lives of their loved ones," he concluded. Bennett warned Israel's Jewish population that the upcoming High Holy Days, which are a time for families to get together, could be the subject of a fourth national lockdown if there is not a higher uptake of the coronavirus vaccine. Dig Deeper ‘‘Arab Minister Issawi Frej: Arab-Israelis Are Faking COVID Documentation’’ (Arutz Sheva)

Jerusalem Post East Jerusalem’s Atarot Plan to Be Debated in December A Jerusalem municipal committee is set to debate a controversial plan to build 9,000 homes, mostly designated for Jewish residents, at the site of the former Atarot Airport on December 6. The 1,243- dunam project will also include a commercial center. Its placement last week on the Jerusalem District Planning and Building Committee’s schedule marks the first movement on the project since plans were completed last December. Palestinians and international officials fear that this project, along with three others in the Jerusalem region, will make Palestinian contiguity in the area unfeasible and harm the chance of reaching a two-state resolution to the conflict based on the pre- 1967 lines. The other three projects are the east Jerusalem Jewish neighborhood of Har Homa, plans to build a new Jewish neighborhood in Givat Hamatos and the E1 project near Ma’aleh Adumim.

Ynet News Bahraini Senior Official Lambasts Iran Nuclear Deal Visiting Israel, a senior Bahraini diplomat slammed the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, saying it only helped to create chaos across the Middle East. Bahrain’s Undersecretary for International Relations Sheikh Abdullah bin Ahmad al-Khalifa said Bahrain had hoped the accord, known officially as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), “would open up a new page for Iran and the region. In a press briefing held in Jerusalem, Khalifa said that Iranian aggression in the region persists. Khalifa noted that Bahrain recognizes Iran's repeated attempts to intervene in the kingdom's internal affairs through support of extremists and involvement in smuggling of arms, explosives and drugs, risking the country's security and stability while killing dozens of civilians and security personnel and injuring thousands more in internal clashes. 2 Associated Press Bennett: Lebanon Responsible for Attacks, Hezbollah or Not Prime Minister Bennett said he holds the Lebanese government responsible for rocket fire launched from its territory, whether the Hezbollah militant group launched the weapons or not. Bennett’s comments came days after one of the heaviest flareups in violence between Israel and Hezbollah in several years and indicated Israel could expand its response if the rocket fire continues. “The country of Lebanon and the army of Lebanon have to take responsibility (for) what happens in its backyard,” Bennett told his Cabinet. Over several days last week, militants in Lebanon launched a barrage of rockets into Israel, drawing rare Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon. Hezbollah fired additional rockets toward Israel, and Israel responded with heavy artillery shelling. “It is less important to us if it’s a Palestinian organization that fired, independent rebels, the state of Israel won’t accept shooting on its land,” Bennett said. Israel estimates Hezbollah possesses over 130,000 rockets and missiles capable of striking anywhere in the country.

Times of Israel Raisi Hosts Hamas, PIJ, PFLP, Hezbollah Leaders Newly inaugurated Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi met with the leaders of several Palestinian terror groups during his first full day in office, using the opportunity to pledge allegiance to the cause of Palestine. “Palestine has been and always will be the number one issue of the Muslim world,” Raisi told Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, according to the official Iranian state Fars news site. “We’ve never had and will never have any doubt about this policy.” In a separate meeting with Palestinian Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ziad Nakhaleh, Raisi said the Iran would “always defend the rights of oppressed people.” He also voiced the same message during a sit-down with Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine leader Talal Naji. All three terror group leaders were in Iran to attend Raisi’s swearing-in ceremony. While the event was scaled back due to coronavirus concerns, key Iranian allies managed to make the trip. Dig Deeper ‘‘With World Watching, Raisi’s Cabinet Will Indicate Where He’s Taking Iran’’ (Times of Israel)

I24 News Hulata Meets With Egyptian Intelligence Chief in Cairo Incoming National Security Chief (NSC) chief reportedly made a surprise trip to Cairo to meet with Egypt's head of intelligence Abbas Kamel, according to Walla. Eyal Hulata traveled to Egypt with outgoing NSC head Meir Ben-Shabbat with the main topic of conversation between the three of them the fragile Egyptian-brokered ceasefire that brought to an end 11 days of fierce fighting during the Israel Defense Force's (IDF) Operation Guardian of the Walls in May. The meeting comes at a delicate time, with Hamas threatening to reignite hostilities over a number of potential issues; the eviction of families from Sheikh Jarrah and the problems associated with getting promised Qatari humanitarian aid into the Strip, being foremost among them. Israel has determined that it will no longer permit suitcases full of cash to be delivered to the coastal enclave, the argument being that more often than not, the cash ends up in the hands of Hamas operatives and its military wing, rather than the Strip's poor and needy.

3 Al-Monitor Bennett Names Michael Herzog as Israeli Ambassador to US Prime Minister Bennett has tapped former Palestinian-Israeli peace negotiator Michael Herzog as the country’s next ambassador to the United States, the prime minister’s office said. Bennett named Herzog “in light of his rich, years-long experience in the security and diplomatic fields, and his deep familiarity with the strategic challenges Israel is facing, foremost the Iranian nuclear threat.” Herzog, a 69-year-old retired brigadier general who served for nearly four decades in the Israel Defense Forces, is the brother of President Isaac Herzog and son of former President Chaim Herzog. He is currently an Israel-based fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy think tank. Herzog has held a number of senior positions within Israel’s Defense Ministry. He also participated in Israeli- Palestinian peace talks under multiple administrations, and most recently worked on a back-channel negotiating team under Prime Minister between 2013 and 2014. Bennett’s office said that Herzog will continue to serve in the ambassador position when Lapid becomes prime minister in August 2023, as outlined in the coalition government’s rotation deal.

Times of Israel UN Science Panel to Issue Key Report on Climate Change As heart-stopping images of fires and floods dominate news cycles worldwide, the UN’s climate science panel will unveil its much-anticipated projections for temperature and sea-level rises less than three months before a crucial climate summit in Scotland. After two weeks of virtual negotiations, 195 nations approved the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) comprehensive assessment of past and future warming in the form of a “summary for policymakers.” The text — vetted and approved line by line, word by word — is likely to paint a grim picture of accelerating climate change and dire threats on the horizon. On the heels of deadly floods in India, China and northern Europe as well as asphalt-melting heatwaves in North America and southern Europe, the IPCC’s report is the first so-called assessment report since 2014. Both the world and the science have changed a lot since then. While the underlying IPCC report is purely scientific, the summary for policymakers is negotiated by national representatives, and therefore subject to competing priorities. Dig Deeper ‘‘UN Report: Earth Warming Likely to Pass Limit Set by Leaders’’ (Associated Press)

4 Yedioth Ahronoth – August 9, 2021 Opportunity for Diplomacy By Giora Eiland ● There are two aspects to the recent events on the northern border. The first is tactical: rockets have been fired at Israel six times in the past three months. Five times the rocket fire has been carried out by Palestinian factions, and the most recent time by Hizbullah. Israel must not reconcile itself to this new-old situation; that’s why we had our fighter jets attack for the first time since 2013 with a goal of doing damage —albeit light damage, but damage that would be noticed—to roads in the area where the rockets were fired from. Presumably, next time Israel’s response will be more serious. ● At the same time as these low-level exchanges, inside Lebanon there is a more important fight going on: The fight for the country’s future. For 20 years a two-sided coalition has ruled Lebanon: The wealthy, corrupt Sunni- Christian elite on one side, Hizbullah on the other. Both are responsible for Lebanon’s severe economic decline, which has placed the country on the cusp of a severe humanitarian crisis with shortages of fuel, electricity, medicine and food that is growing more serious by the day. Israel’s dilemma is in the need to choose between three options: To allow Lebanon to implode, which could ultimately weaken Hizbullah; to capitalize on the rocket fire to launch a furious reprisal in all areas of Lebanon, which could ignite the anger of ordinary Lebanese against the organization; joining calls from inside Lebanon for the West to provide emergency economic aid while taking care that Western countries like France and the United States condition their assistance not only on financial reforms but also on reining in Hizbullah’s military capability. ● That could be accomplished by finally implementing UN Resolution 1701 calling for distancing Hizbullah infrastructure from the Israeli border or annulling the precise missile program. The third option is more correct and less dangerous. It could succeed if we do three things: One, if we differentiate between PR and diplomacy. The goal of PR is to convince people that we are right and that our enemies are evil; this is only minimally effective. Diplomacy, on the other hand, means enlisting a third party to craft an initiative that would serve its needs as well as ours. In this context it would be ridiculous to continue to demand [the international community] recognize Hizbullah as a terror organization. Actually, the opposite would be the correct path: We should reinforce the message that Hizbullah is a formal part of Lebanon’s governmental structure. In addition, we must raise the issue to the top of the agenda. ● Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is supposed to meet with US President Joe Biden. Traditionally, that meeting would focus on Iran’s nuclear program and on the Israel- Palestinian conflict. These issues cannot lead to any Israeli-American agreement about operations collaboration—but it could for Lebanon. That’s where efforts should be focused. Similarly, we must continue to strengthen the message that the Third Lebanon War, should it break out, will not be between Israel and Hizbullah but between Israel and the State of Lebanon.

5 ● Given the fact that no one in the world wants to see Lebanon destroyed—not the Lebanese, not Hizbullah, not Saudi Arabia, not France and not the United States—anyone who is interested in preventing the destruction of Lebanon would do well to rein in Hizbullah. This message has been recorded among Lebanese leaders, mainly among the younger generation, which is less given to being swept away by Hizbullah’s spirit of resistance. They understand that Hizbullah presents itself as the protector of Lebanon, but in actual fact the organization is a threat to Lebanon’s continued existence. The best way to ensure quiet in the north would be via a diplomatic effort head by others, together with real deterrence vis-à-vis the Lebanese state, not vis-à-vis Hizbullah.

6 Yedioth Ahronoth – August 9, 2021 Outsiders, Once Again By Afif Abu Much ● “You invited me to Belfort Street four times!” shouted MK Mansour Abbas at Opposition Chairman Binyamin Netanyahu in the plenum during the debate on the state budget. Abbas was responding to Netanyahu‘s claim that the budget passed by the government was intended to pacify him [Abbas]. Netanyahu, that man with impressive rhetorical abilities, appeared taken aback and even humiliated by Abbas’ outburst, and Netanyahu mumbled and was not quite sure how to respond. In recent days an ugly campaign has begun on social media sites under the title “Abbas tax.” Some members and Netanyahu mouthpieces in the media have been repeating that phrase nonstop, claiming that the government is moving towards investing billions of shekels in the Arab sector. ● The Likud has taken pains to present every investment in the neglected Arab community that has suffered from discrimination for decades as a new burden that the citizens of this country will have to pay for. Incidentally, when Netanyahu-led governments imposed taxes on Arab citizens and invested that money in establishing Jewish settlements on both sides of the Green Line—was that, too, presented as a sort of new tax? Permit me first of all to say that the phrase “Abbas tax” is nothing short of an anti-Semitic statement that targets Arab citizens. Just imagine what would happen in the United States or in Europe [if a politician were] to come out against budgets intended for Jewish communities and were presented as a “tax” in the name of a Jewish Congressperson or parliamentarian. ● What would the reactions in Israel be to that? Undoubtedly the word anti- Semitic would take a starring role, and the very same Netanyahu—who himself gave a stamp of approval to having Abbas join the governing coalition—would run to Twitter with tweets in Hebrew and English against that country and the accursed phrase. And so the question must be asked: what is the problem with investing in Arab citizens? Why is something that should be a matter of simple routine in any normal country be viewed as the accomplishment of one party or another, instead of a perfectly normal step for the government to take? Should it not be absolutely obvious that the state should act for the benefit of its citizens and invest in security, infrastructure, education, healthcare and more for all its citizens? Perhaps the answer is to be found in the hidden and open messages that have suggested for many years that Arab citizens are outsiders and not equals. [This message has come across via] anti-Arab legislation as well as by their exclusion from virtually all positions of influence in this country. ● Would any of them, for example, care to explain why there is not even one Arab director- general in a governmental ministry? It is no less saddening to see most of the media fall completely silent when Likud members shout nonstop their gross lie that this is a tax the state is imposing in order to invest in the Arab sector. Their silence takes me back two years to Netanyahu‘s campaign against the Arab community that “Gantz will build a government with the Arabs,” God forbid. 7 ● To say nothing of Gantz’s campaign to avoid Arab citizens when his advisers told him they could deliver him the premiership; or Lapid, who has made sure to keep Arab citizens off his party’s list ever since he first got into politics. Has any one of them been challenged and been required to explain themselves? Would the silence have continued were the subject women instead of Arabs? Probably not. Ultimately, all this leads us to the place we have become accustomed to being: Arabs citizens in Israel are second- class citizens.

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