Selected articles concerning , published weekly by Suburban Orthodox Toras Chaim’s (Baltimore) Israel Action Committee Edited by Jerry Appelbaum ( [email protected] ) | Founding editor: Sheldon J. Berman Z”L

Issue 8 50 Volume 20 , Number 2 9 Parshias Vaeschanan | Shabbos Nachamu August 1 , 20 20

Wh y the Anti - Netanyahu Protests in Israel Are Bound to Fail By Lahav Harkov jpost.com July 22, 2020 Designed to repel the swing voters. corruption demonstrations in recent months, has It’s become an almost daily occurrence: Protests in the suspicious ties to former prime minister , who middle of Tel Aviv, outside the Knesset or outside the is one of Netanyahu’s most vocal opponents. An NGO Prime Mini ster’s Residence on Jerusalem’s Balfour Street. called National Responsibility spent nearly NIS 100,000 on The angry demonstrators call for Prime protests in Marc h, Channel 13 reported at the time. The MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu’s ouster. Invariably, there’s a organization’s board consists of people with close ties to giant banner reading “crime minister.” People chant Barak – his former advisers and aides, his niece, Labor “bribery, fraud, breach of trust,” the allegations on activists who supported him, and more. Neta nyahu’s rap sheet. Small numbers of protesters clash The NGO received more than NIS 1.6 million in with journalists covering the event, others with police, donations from t he US in 2017, including NIS 144,000 finding themselves arrested. from HBRK, which Haaretz reported was partly owned by But are they getting to their target, Netanyahu, at all? Jeffrey Epstein. When asked about the Epstein Probably not. connection, National Responsibility told Haaretz they will These protests must be analyzed separately fro m give the donation to youth at risk. This is not a Left - Right protests of various industries in Israel, whether it’s issue like the Barak connection, but it’s just an easy peg for entertainment, event halls and caterers, restaurateurs and Netanyahu to employ to delegitimize the protests. others, that have been either put on ice or are operating Beyond the funding, there’s how the protesters under a cloud of uncertainty due to the coronavirus crisis. conduct themselves. Last week’s protest had a Bastille Day Anecdotally, it seems that people who have been hurt theme, and rock star Assaf Amdursky received a lot of economically in recent months are turning away from attention for imploring people to join. Among the things Netanyahu and the Likud, which has dropped several seats Amdursky said was to call to march with torches. in recent polls. The most prominent person on this front Netanyahu’s son Avner wrote on Facebook: “This is a was known Likud supporter and owner of Jerusalem’s clear call of incitement. What do you think you do with famous P inati Hummus joint, Meir Micha, complaining torches? Do you know how the storming of the Bastille that Netanyahu is trying to get himself tax breaks while his ended? With a chopped - off head and dozens killed. business is collapsing. Everyone has a right to protest (during corona times I “He used to be a god to us, Bibi,” Micha sighed to think it’s a stupid thing to do) but this is a call for pro - Netanyahu journalist Yinon Magal and anti - Netanyahu incitement.” journalist Ben Caspi t. Bastille Day is a symbol of “liberty, equality and Netanyahu and Finance Minister Israel Katz have b rotherhood,” as the Facebook invitation to the protest shown sensitivity to these laments. One can disagree with reads. But the French Revolution also descended into their responses – and, in fact, many do, including in their chaos, violence and a reign of terror. That made the own party – but Netanyahu has made it amply clear in symbol something easy for Netanyahu’s supporters to repeated public statements that he understands the current subvert. And the fact that protesters vanda lized property economic crisis is deep and needs to be dealt with and lit it on fire during the protest further delegitimized effectively. them. The anti - corruption protests, however, are inherently On Tuesday, a demonstrator perched herself, bare - ineffective. breasted, atop a sculpture of a menorah in the traffic circle Netanyahu is not going to respond positively to a outside the Knesset. Commentators on the Left mocked protest calling for his ouster, especially on grou nds that he Knesset Spe aker Yariv Levin for saying that he will try to believes are trumped - up. Netanyahu still hopes to prove in press charges against the woman for degrading symbols of court that his actions were within the bounds of the law, the state. Notably, none of the female commentators he is considered innocent until proven guilty, he built a trying to make the would - be Lady Godiva into a feminist coalition after the last election, so why should he go home cause is known to walk around topless in pu blic. We live in just beca use a few thousand angry people say so? a society. The woman was very obviously trying to be Beyond that obvious reasoning, it seems like these provocative, and she succeeded. protests are not really looking to convince anyone who Other protesters waved Palestinian flags or the red isn’t already against Netanyahu. flags of “antifa,” which is not really one organization, but As Netanyahu himself pointed out in a recent tweet, loosely tied anarchist groups and a favorite bogeyman for the “Black Flag” protest movement behind the anti - the Right, especially in the US of late. Focus o n Israel August 1, 2020 Page 2

Some of the more extreme behavior could be w aved coalitions tend to be pretty conservative, and radical left - away as a small number of people, while the rest were wing messages and connections will only make it peaceful. And perhaps this is so. But these are just a few impossible for them to convince anyone on the Right of examples. And, again, they’re just making it easy for the their cause. Right and Netanyahu to dismiss the demonstrations. They may be cosplaying as French Revolutionaries It’s as if the organizers don ’t realize that Israelis who storming the Bastille, but they have no idea how to storm supported Netanyahu or the Right that helps him build his Fortress Balfour.

No, Israel Probably Won’t Hold Elections in November By Haviv Rettig Gur timesofisrael.com July 23, 2020 Netanyahu is bluf fing. Israeli law stipulates that if a Knesset fai ls to pass a budget, Israel is not going to an election. Unless it is, of it triggers an election. A two - year law would mean Gantz course. won’t have to find himself in the spring of 2021 It is impossible to know for sure whether the new scrambling to pass a new 2021 budget to avoid the crisis between Prime Minister and automatic triggering of an election. Gantz acknowledges Defense Minister is real, or a show put on by that a one - year budget is better policy, but is convinced Netanyahu as a negotiating ta ctic. Netanyahu plans to stymie the 2021 budget law in order to Reports leaked from Netanyahu’s own advisers on pave his exit ramp to new elections a few months before Wednesday that he’s already decided to call elections in Gantz is slated to take the prime minister’s chair. November. But there are good reasons to doubt those What better argument to convince Gantz to back that reports. one - year budget, Netanyahu must be thinking, than the For one thing, Netanyahu may lose. threat of even more imminent elections? The prospect of a Pundits are pointing to his dramatic lead in the polls. fall 2020 vote makes that spring 2021 option a lot more The latest Direct Polls survey on Wednesday gave appealing. Netanyahu’s Likud party 35 seats, almost double the The Knesset comes roaring back second - largest party, Yesh Atid, with 18. The coalition crisis that has now engulfed the Kn esset But Israeli elections aren’t won by an individual party’s is fascinating in its own right. If nothing else, it reveals showing at the ballot box, but by coalitions. Th e parties parliament’s resilience and vitality despite this Netanyahu can likely rely on for a coalition — Likud, the government’s unprecedented and concerted attempts to Haredi parties and right - wing Yamina — were projected to neutralize its powers. win just 62 seats together, a hair’s breadth above the 61 - The coalition agreement between Likud and Blue and seat minimum majority to rule, and well within the margin White was de signed to make the Knesset subservient to of error of a r esult that would leave Israel with yet another the needs of the two alternating prime ministers — to indecisive race. protect each one’s term as PM from the parliamentary And those poll numbers are accurate for this week. machinations of the other. How will Netanyahu fare in November, by the time It accomplished that by carefully constructing a election day rolls around, with the economy deeper in the political straitjacket intended to limit the parliament’s every slumps, global trade continuing to decline, hundreds of step. thousands more Israelis out of work and a death toll Yet over the past few days, Israelis have witnessed the possibly reaching into the thousands? Knesset’s Coronavirus Committee freeze, overturn or It’s an exceedingly bad time for Netanyahu to throw question numerous new restrictions imposed by the those dice. government. But it’s still an excellent moment, from the prime MK Yifat Shasha - Biton, formerly of Kulanu but n ow minister’s perspective, to t hreaten elections. of Likud, chairs that committee, and has insisted it will not Netanyahu is in a bitter running fight with Defense approve measures it cannot explain to the public. That Minister Benny Gantz over whether to pass a one - year meant reversing cabinet decisions to close restaurants state budget law for 2020 or a two - year budget through the except for deliveries and takeaway, and to shutter end of 2021. It sounds like a bureaucratic technicality, but swimming pools and gyms at the weekend — because the it has impor tant implications for Israel’s economic Health Ministry could not provide hard data showing they recovery and for Gantz’s chances of taking the prime were significant sources of contagion. minister’s chair as scheduled in November 2021. Health Minister Yuli Edelstein railed at the “childish” Finance Ministry and Bank of Israel officials back a demand, saying epidemiological surveys didn’t always offer one - year budget law, arguing that the future is too that level of detailed information. But while Netanyahu uncertain in the middle of a pandemic to make a two - year reportedly sought to oust her from her post, Shasha - Biton budget anything but an exercise in frustration and delay. held firm, overturning or freezing the cabinet closure But Gantz wants the two - year law promised him in the decisions on Monday and Tuesday. coalition agreement between Likud and Blue and White. P age 3 August 1, 2020 Focus on Israel

The Knesset had broken free of its straitjacket, sometimes to a decisive extent, the job of l egislator.” reasserted itself, and dema nded answers from a That was Menachem Begin, writing in 1952, just four government seeking to impose severe restrictions and years after the founding of the state. economically devastating closures without any serious Begin was right — but also wrong. The Knesset is the public debate. key player of Israeli politics, not necessarily because it can The Knesset’s new assertiveness was a maddening act in unison to rein in the cabinet or other state bodies, hiccup for Netanyahu’s efforts to impose closures as virus but because it is the arena and the rulebook by which the cases s urged, and a surprise to everyone else. different factions in Israeli society, represented by their And it played a role in the “Great Coronavirus Law” factions in the Knesset, play the political game. passed late Wednesday night that scaled back the Knesset’s The Knesset found its voice against the cabinet’s new oversight powers to post - hoc consideration of cabinet restriction s because MKs grasped that the public has decisions. grown wary of new measures and begun to distrust the The law bypasses Shasha - Biton by designa ting four judgment of the executive branch. Netanyahu, meanwhile, other Knesset committees that will deal with the virus has discovered over the past week that it isn’t enough to restrictions. But even there, attempts to weaken the threaten; he must control his faction’s MKs if he hopes to Knesset may end up empowering it. The law allows the have their vital cooperation when public trust wavers. cabinet to bypass one committee, but at the same time Netanyahu may want elections to rid himself of the expands the Knesset’s bandwidth and ability to more troublesome unity government, but he rightly worries that carefully track the cabinet’s actions. Four committees will the next Knesset will leave him in a worse situation instead now have coronavirus decisions on their agendas. of a better one. Who legislates? Th e Knesset has seemed weakened in recent weeks by The problem of governments attempting to railroad an overweening unity government only because the the Knesset is as old as Israeli democracy itself. coalition had a very large majority in the parliament, not As one veteran Knesset member once observed: because its fundamental structures had been weakened. As “Formally, the government is dependent on the the coalition has begun to come apart at t he seams, the parliament, a majority of whose members can replace it Knesset has reasserted itself with gusto. with another government. But in practice, the dependence It is in the Knesset, not at the cabinet table, that goes the other way. The government, which is naturall y Netanyahu must ultimately win support for his composed of the political leadership of ‘its majority’ within coronavirus response and where Gantz must ultimately the parliament, uses that majority to impose its will on the ensure that his 2021 budget, so vital to his cha nces at the parliament. The government proposes bills and its majority premiership, passes without a hitch. passes them in parliament; and if its opponents propose The feared constitutional crisis is less than it initially bills, that majo rity again ensures that any proposals found appeared. The political crisis, even after over 18 months of distasteful by the executive branch are rejected. In other deadlock, may still get worse. words, even in a parliamentary regime, the government, But at least it won’t spark a fourth election election i n the executive branch, fulfills to a great extent, and 20 months. Probably

Israel’s War to Stop Its Enemies from Getting Precision - Guided Missiles By Jacob Nagel and Jonathan Schanzer fdd.org July 11, 2020 Sporadic airstrikes might not always be sufficient. The strike locations are not hard to determine. The A string of credible reports suggest that Israel recently majority are in Syria, which is in a state of chaos after years targeted Iranian forces and infrastructure in Syria. of civil war and now the coronavirus crisis. Iran continues Reporters broadly describe these strikes as a continuation to exploit this chaos by deployi ng personnel and weapons of the “War Between Wars,” a campaign whereby Israel to the country, in an attempt to prepare for a conflict with erodes the capabiliti es of its enemies to forestall the next Israel. This includes Iranian military brass and Shi’ite major conflict. militias, but also advanced, lethal weapons. According to In a December interview shortly before he retired, current Chief of Staff Aviv Kocha vi, Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff the top concern (second only to Iran’s nuclear threat, revealed that Israel had destroyed thousands of military which appears to have been targeted in recent days) is targets in Syria, taking credit for very few. Open - source Iran’s provision of Precision Guided Missiles (PGMs). reports suggest that Israeli strikes have continued apace Entire rockets, but sometimes just the components since then. One high - ranking Israeli official, when asked and technology to manufacture or conve rt “dumb rockets” for the exact number, responded: Who’s counting? into “smart missiles,” are transiting by way of a “land The focus until now has been on when and where bridge” from Syria to Lebanon, where seeks to Israel strikes, and not wha t is being destroyed. But that is build a formidable PGM arsenal. The terrorist group’s now changing. leader, Hassan Nasrallah, is candid about this. Israel’s Focus o n Israel August 1, 2020 Page 4 military strike s are an effort to prevent this arsenal from Grasping the dangers, Israel is interdicting and growing. Both Hezbollah and Israel have been careful to destroying PGM materials wherever and whenever not spark another conflict, wary of an escalation that could possible. This explains Iran’s decision in 2016 to change its have devastating effects. But as Israel has warned, if modus operandi. It mostly halted the transfer of full Hezbollah acquires enough PGMs to pose a strategic missiles, electing instead to convert existing unguided threat from Lebanese soil, or acquires the capabilities to missiles into accurate ones. The regime is now transferring produce them, there will be a devastating conflict. the smaller parts (navigation, wings, command and control, The Iranian missile program started during the Iraq - and more) via Syria to Hezbollah. The terror group is Iran war (1980 – 1988), as Iranian forces and civilians came exploiting a wide array of smuggling routes from Syria to under fire from Iraqi missile salvos. Seeking similar Lebanon (air, ground, and sea) to evade Israeli interdiction. capabilities, then - speaker of the Iranian Majlis Ali Akbar Early on, the Israelis were deliberately vague about Hashemi Rafsanjani led efforts to obtain missiles from what they were targeting. But Israel has recently adopted a Libya, Syria, and North Korea. new strategy, exposing Hezbollah’ s PGM program and In 1985, Iran procured its first Scud - Bs from Libya’s explicitly calling out Iran for proliferating PGMs in the Muammar el - Qaddafi Muamma r. Iran has developed Levant. Last year, Israeli prime minister Benjamin additional capabilities with help from rogue states like Netanyahu exposed a Hezbollah PGM facility in Lebanon. China, Russia, North Korea, and Pakistan. China and That one was shuttered. However, Israeli intelligence Russia played an outsized role in helping Iran obtain officials assume tha t Iran has successfully established new missile engines, while North Korea provided Iran with facilities. whole ballistic m issile systems. Until January, the effort was led by Islamic As Iran gained a handle on technology and Revolutionary Guard Corps - Quds Force commander Maj. production, it began to export the know - how, parts, and Gen. Qassim Suleimani, who was killed by a U.S. drone sometimes the missiles themselves to allies across the strike in January. But the PGM smuggling operations Middle East. Notably, it armed proxies such as Hamas and c ontinue without him, and therefore so do the Israeli Hezbollah with a range of proj ectiles with varying strikes. With every strike, the potential for a broader capabilities, but not yet with PGMs. The goal was to conflagration grows. threaten Israel with overwhelming and potentially crippling Israel currently lacks credible partners to negotiate the waves of missile attacks. Israel, however, developed removal of Iran forces and PGMs from Syria and remarkable missile - defense systems to neutralize that Lebanon. Israel mount ed an effort to convince the threat. Russians to usher the Iranians out of Syria, explaining to Frustra ted by Israel’s technology, Iran began to export them how that would be in Moscow’s interests. Indeed, precision - guided munitions to its proxies around 2013. Israel has made it clear to Russian strongman Vladimir Some may have evasive capabilities, to outmaneuver Putin and his inner circle that so long as the PGM threat Israel’s existing missile defense systems. All have the c ontinues, and so long as Iran violates Israel’s “red lines” capability to strike within ten yards of thei r intended target. in Syria and Lebanon, strikes will continue. There will be This is lethal accuracy, representing what Israeli officials no stability in Syria, and the Russian investment there is at call a “game - changer” they vow to prevent. risk. This is a continued source of tension between Tehran Iran’s leaders understood that PGMs could be a and Moscow. “game - changer” because they offer terrorists non - state In L ebanon, tensions are also rising. The country is on actors, like Hezbollah, the mea ns to achieve air superiority the verge of a financial collapse after the country defaulted without airbases or combat aircraft. Conveying this on more than $4 billion in Eurobonds, and hyperinflation technology to proxies, however, is a significant violation of threatens. The country could plunge into chaos. The existing norms. No non - state actor had adopted the country’s leadership, corrupt as it may be, understand that doctrine, policies, and technology of PGMs, including the the last thing Lebanon needs is another war. acc ompanying intelligence and navigation capabilities. With Israeli warnings growing louder, the PGM threat Israeli officials also worry that the introduction of a PGM is likely to play a major role in the coming debate at the strategy in the region could bring about a dangerous new United Nations on lifting the Iranian arms embargo. It era of conflict. may also play a r ole in the debate about a financial bail - out The PGM program is a high priority for Iran. In a for Lebanon. But it is not inconceivable that Israel would 2018 interview in Ta snim News, Iran’s IRGC Aerospace decide to neutralize this big problem before either is Force commander, Gen. Amir - Ali Hajizadeh, recounted negotiated. The PGM crisis is nearing a decision point. how in 2009 he presented the Iranian leadership with a Brig. Gen. (Res.) Professor Nagel is a se nior visiting fellow at the plan to modernize the country’s missile program. Supreme Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and a Visiting Leader Ali Khamenei overruled his entire plan and ordered Professor at the Aerospace faculty, Technion Haifa. Mr. Schanzer is h im to focus on the development of precision - guided a senior vice president at the F DD and a former terrorism finance missiles. a nalyst at the U.S.Department of the Treasury.

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The New Iran - China Pact Is Aimed at Reducing U.S. Influence By Ofira Seliktar and Farhad Rezaei besacenter.org July 21, 2020 It expands Chinese power while undermining to the US, whose Fifth Fleet is headq uartered in nearby American sanctions. Bahrain. A powerful Chinese presence there would brush On June 23, 2020, the Iranian government announced away decades of American strategic domination of the the Iran - China 25 Year Comprehensive Partnership. Gulf and swaths of the Indian Ocean. According to a leaked draft of the 18 - page agreement, it For the Iranians, who are operating under the severe amounts to an unprecedented economic, military, and pressure of American sanctions, the dea l is a lifeline. The technolo gical collaboration between the two states. agreement states that both countries are determined to Relations between Beijing and Tehran, which date back to implement it “in the face of pressure from a third Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s “Pivot to the country,” an unmistakable reference to the US. Implied in East“ policy, have blossomed under Chinese President Xi this phraseology is a Chinese threat to work against the Jinping, who is pushing China’s ambitious Belt and Road harsh sanction s imposed by the Trump administration. Initiative (BRI). According to Ch ina, the BRI aims to The Kayhan newspaper, a mouthpiece for Ayatollah create a huge unified market in Asia, the Middle East, and Khamenei, was quick to point out that China is big and Africa through massive investment in infrastructure, strong enough to withstand American bullying. However, education, and technology. Critics view the BRI as a thinly several analysts have asserted that the tough language — disguised effort to achieve Chinese strategic and economic ind eed, perhaps even the entire agreement — is more of a domi nation over a large swath of the globe. PR exercise, a “declaration of intent” by both countries to Iran would serve as a regional hub for the BRI, giving defy the US. These analysts note that many of the China extraordinary leeway across a wide range of hundred - plus projects China has undertaken to construct economic activity. This includes petrochemical production, may never come to fruition. renewable energy, civilian nuclear energy, high - spee d But some I ranian critics, including Ahmadinejad, railways, highways, subways, airports, and maritime believe the Tehran government has sold out Iran’s connections. Among the projects mentioned is a railroad sovereignty to the Chinese. A little - noticed clause in the system that would link the eastern and western network of Document seems to bolster this claim. The paragraph railroads as well as development of the Makran coastline states that China will “pay attention” (tovajoh nemayad) to on the Oman Sea, which is Iran’ s outlet to the Indian the way Iran spends the proceeds from oil sales. Moreover, Ocean. In the first stage, China has committed itself to China expects Iran to use its oil receipts in an “optimal develop the port of Jask, build industrial cities, and way” (estefadeye behineh) — a vague phrase, but one with a develop tourism in the Makran region. Beijing has clear message. promised to create three free trade zones — in Maku, China does not want Iran to spend its newly acquired Abadan, and the Gulf island of Kish — as a boost to the money on t he revolutionary export projects so beloved by local economy. the late Quds Force chief Qassem Soleimani. President A section of the draft agreement reveals an Hassan Rouhani and FM Muhammad Javad Zarif, who exceptionally high level of military cooperation between negotiated the agreement and are both known for their the two countries. This includes, among other things, dislike of the Revolutionary Guards, might have signa led shared development of defense industries, intelligen ce to the Chinese that they should safeguard their investment sharing, and joint military maneuvers. Earlier reports by limiting the use of the oil proceeds. indicate that China and Iran have been working on a large Whatever its source, the “optimal way” clause points arms deal timed to coincide with the ending of the UN to a larger implication of the 25 Year Partnership. Stability Security Council arms embargo. is essential if China is to profit fr om its $400 billion According to sources, China has promised to invest up investment, and Beijing is willing to put pressure on Iran t o $400 billion over the duration of the agreement. In to abstain from its foreign policy adventures. return, Iran would provide China with regular oil It is not clear whether the Revolutionary Guards would deliveries, allegedly at a considerable discount. The oblige, however. The 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of agreement also obliges Iran to use China’s fifth - generation Action (JCPOA) is a c ase in point. The signatories telecommunication technology and inter net platforms. “expressed hope that the agreement would result in peace The benefits of this arrangement to China are clear. and stability in the region and the world” — but the Guards Beijing would accomplish its strategic shift to the Indo - used the resources that became available after the lifting of Pacific region. China has already built a string of logistical sanctions to create the Shiite Liberation Army in Syria, station ports along the Indian Ocean to Djibouti and the prop up the Houthis who are fighting a Saudi - led coalition Suez Canal. Dominating Iran would give China a side in Yemen, and develop a new generation of missiles and presence in the Gulf, notably through the port of Jask, drones to create further mischief in the Middle East. China which is just outside the Straits of Hormuz. Most of the Visit suburbanorthodox.org for the current issue. world’s oil transits through that passage. Jask is also critical Focus o n Israel August 1, 2020 Page 6

will not necessarily be able to stop the Guards from and Farhad Rezaei is a professor of International Relations at York repeating such effort s. University in Toronto. They recently co - authored Ir an, Revolution, Mr. Seliktar is Professor Emerita at Gratz College, Pennsylvania and Proxy Wars .

Israel Does n’t Need the Palestinian Authority By Yossi Kuperwasser jcpa.org July 23, 2020 What happens if Mahmoud Abbas makes good on his rel atively not very significant, and secondly, the Palestinian threats? Authority will have difficulty continuing the struggle Palestinian officials have recently threatened that if against Israel with the tools at its disposal, compared to Israel applies sovereignty in parts of the those if the PA continued control of its territory. territories of Judea a nd Samaria, they will stop the The Basic Premise of this Anal ysis Is: Palestinian Authority from operating or even cause the PA In the Palestinian system, there is a continuous tension to fall apart and dissolve itself. This study examines the between the commitment to the national struggle, which significance of these threats’ actualization, regardless of the aims to liberate all of Palestine from Zionism (first by likelihood of this scenario, which has so fa r been very low. establishing a Palestinian state in the 1967 territories, This is because the very existence of the Palestinian which will serve as the basis for completing the conquest), Authority has been the most significant achievement of the and the desire to improve the quality of life of the Palestinian national movement, and the collapse of the PA Palestinians. The PLO and the PA, and of course the more could lead to a Hamas takeover of the Palestinian political radical organizations such as Hamas, give clear priority to system i n all the territories. In addition, the PA has the national struggle, while also providing ne cessary responsibility for the Palestinian population under its attention to the quality of life. Hence, their readiness to control, and the disintegration of the PA could harm its uphold the status quo, which is based in their view of a source of income for its many officials and leaders, who modus vivendi, whereby Israel is willing to accept are the primary beneficiaries of the PA ’s revenue, Palestinian efforts to promote the national struggle, while The Israeli move to extend sovereignty has caused still taking care of Palestinian quality of life, in order to great frustration among Palestinian leadership and could mitigate Palestinian violence. The Palestinians have turned lead the PA to take extreme steps. This study represents a Israel’s addictive commitment to preserving this modus contingency study of various Palestinian options. It should vivendi to leverage threats against Israel and extract be emphasized that even if the Palestinian Authority economic benefits from it, which are used to advance the should decide to take such measures, it is more likely that Palestinian fight against Zionism. The success of if it ceases to function, but it will not totally disintegrate. In Palestinian threats is evident in Israel’s failure to doing so, the PA can also try to renounce all its civil implement its own laws to freeze funds used to pay obligations, compelling Israel to oste nsibly bear the cost of terrorists’ salaries, its failure to take action against the PA its actions, while at the same time continue to act as the for its appeal to the In ternational Criminal Court or for its political representative for the Palestinians for legal, incitement and hate indoctrination, as well as allowing political, economic, religious, educational, or security Qatari money to flow into Gaza. matters. Following Operation Defensive Shield in 2002, This Israeli weakness derived from the addiction to and after the establishment of the Palestinian Unity the existence of a functioning Palestinian Authority and Government, Israel faced a similar situation that had many PA security cooperati on is the background to the common elements in today’s situation. It resorted to Palestinian threats that the PA will cease to function or managing its relations with the Palestinians through even exist. The PA figures that Israel will panic and Palestinian mayors and provincial governor s. reconsider its intention to apply sovereignty. It seems that In general, the critical scenario to consider is that some elements of Israel’s security establishment have b een Israel, as a controlling force in the Judea and Samaria intensifying this feeling for Israeli decision - makers for region, will assume responsibility for the territories that are years. currently under PA control in Areas A and B. It is assumed Facing the Palestinians who prioritize the Palestinian that this will be a transitional stage until Israel finds a struggle even if it means harming the quality of life (who, Palestinian entity to assume responsibility for the area and in this context, oppose normalization with Israel, refuse to its residents, as Israel has no intention to rule the accept tax money collected for them by Israel, and reject Palestinians. the quality of life offered by the American peace plan, all The main conclusion from the following analysis is in order to send this message) there are quite a few that even if the preferred option fo r Israel is to continue to Palestinians who believe that the chances of success of the maintain a functioning Palestinian Authority, some of the national struggle are so low at this point that Palestinian alternatives, including one where Israel will retain its priorities should be changed to improving quality of life. responsibility for the territory over time, are not much This does not mean that they are necessarily less worse. First, the direct financial burden involved is committed to the long - term goals of the Palestinian Page 7 August 1, 2020 Focus on Israel

people, as formulated by the PLO. The vast majority are billion shekels, about 9.2 billion shekels were earmarked committed to it . However, they believe the price the for expenditures that Israel will not need to pay (for Palestinian people pay for prioritizing the national struggle i nstance, 1.3 billion as payments to terrorists and their is unjustified. families; 426 million shekels for the PLO budget; 256 On the opposite side, many Palestinians believe that million shekels for the budget of the president; 3.6 billion failure of the national struggle stems from the PA’s shekels for the Interior Ministry budget, which includes moderation and Abbas’ use of restr ained methods, namely the security forces budget; 106 million shekels for the the “popular resistance” (which includes terror without the Ministry of Jerusalem; 312 million shekels for the Ministry use of explosives and firearms) and political struggle. For of Foreign Affairs and its embassies; 305 million shekels in them, the success of the struggle requires increased use of debt payments; and 1.6 billion shekels for pensions, etc.). armed struggle/jihad. For those pushing for alternativ es to The remaining budget, about 7.3 billion shekel s, can be the PA policies, the PA’s dissolution or a freeze of its almost entirely covered by the taxes that Israel collects for activities will prove the virtue of their cause and encourage the PA from the wages of Palestinians employed in Israel them to continue in their path. and on the goods imported to the PA through Israel. For the pragmatists who favor prioritizing quality of (Control of the education budget raises again the question life at this stage, the dismantling of the PA or the cessation of the curriculu m, namely whether Israel will supplement of its activity will signal the loss of primacy of the the curriculum dictated by the PA, or will it act to change Palestinian struggle and of the view that the commitment the curriculum.) to Oslo as a framework (while continuously violating the Obviously, in addition to these direct expenditures, agreements) is an effective way of promoting the national Israel will have significant expenditures, at least in the first aspirations of the Palestinians. In this new reality, which few months, due to t he need to deal with security risks. At also reflects a new paradigm in Israeli policy, Palestinians this stage, it is difficult to estimate the extent of these of this view, those who came to the economic conference expenditures by the IDF. The Chief Financial Officer will in Manama and expressed a desire to promote economic have to assess the extent of reinforcements required, the cooperation with Israel, may present themselves as an duration of the reinforcements, and the costs involved. alternative with the support of some pragmatic Arab This assessment should take into account the fact that in states. They will not be able to do so immediately, but only any case, the IDF is operating forces now in all areas of after some time has passed. It is doubtful that there is any the Palestinian territories, and that applying sovereignty point in pushing them, but under a proper strategy, with does not in itself require changes to the existing military attentiv eness to their belief, they can achieve public order (beyond what is required due to concerns over legitimacy that may eventually make them a viable increased protest and terrorism and the PA’s failure to act). alternative to the civil administration and later, perhaps, The total dismantling of the PA will require Israel to take also to assume domestic security responsibilities. care of internal security as well, which, to some extent, In addition, because Palestinian national consci ousness increases the burden on Israe l. is based to a considerable extent on clan and regional In any case, these sums are far less than the tens of consciousness, local power factors can be considered as a billions of shekels, which opponents of applying component of civilian control in the various spheres (in a sovereignty claim as the potential cost in an attempt to refined format of Dr. Mordechai Kedar’s Emirates warn Israeli decision - makers, as Israel will not apply its proposal1). Under these new circumstances, one might sovereignty over the PA’s territories and not even over the expect to see the way to fresh thinking about solutions to Area C lands designated for the Palestinians under the the Israeli - Palestinian conflict that would be in line with Trump plan. Israel will not have to pay national social Israel’s security needs and with justified Palestinian insurance and pensions on an Israeli scale to two and a aspirations. half - million residents of these areas. Alternative A – Israel controls the entire territory On the other hand, it is difficult to estimate the over time. indirect economic cost of applying sovereignty to the In this alternative, Israel takes over all the security and Israeli economy, considering the probable intensification civilian powers of the PA. It will have to deal, at least in of violence and terrorism and the possible punitive the first phase, with attacks and rioting that will require a measures that will be taken by some European countries significant concentration of forces, while at the sa me time, and the increased activity of the boycott movement against the IDF will have to activate a civil administration to carry Israel. It is also hard to estimate the additional cost of out basic civil service tasks. applying sovereignty due to the economic and health Contrary to the frequently heard claims, Israel’s direct implications of Covid - 19 both on Israel and on the financial expenditures required for providing civil services Palestinians. for Palestinians are not that signif icant. According to the Alternative B – The Palestinian Authority returns last annual budget released by the Palestinian Authority, to function after a certain period. the 2018 budget, out of the total expenditure of about 16.5 It is likely that after a short period of time during Focus o n Israel August 1, 2020 Page 8

which the PA will not function, it will still continue to exist seize power, possibly with Abbas’ cooperation. In this and even maintain its security mechanisms to prevent c ontext, these contenders may try to restart the PA and be Hamas taking contro l of the territory. Pressure will be prepared to secretly coordinate their activities with Israel exerted on the PA both domestically and from abroad, to improve their standing in the succession struggle. from Europe and from some U.S. Democrats, and from Alternative E – Hamas will try to take over the the pragmatic Arab states, to resume its activities. area and fill the void. Whatever the outcome of the U.S. elections, the This is, of course, a problematic alternative in many Palestinian Au thority is likely to return to its full functions. ways (such as increasing terrorist attacks and unifying Gaza Be it because it has to reconcile the harsh reality of another with Judea and Samaria under extremist leadership). Yet, four years with a Trump government trying to advance a this scenario should not be ignored. Despite the joint peace plan disapproved by the Palestinians, or efforts of the PA and Israel to restrict its activities, Hamas alternatively, out of willingness to coo perate with the still has the political and operational infrastructure and Biden administration that promises Palestinians a return to broad public support within the territories, and in the their old tactics of granting them the veto power over any event of the disintegration of the PA, it can certainly try to change in the legal status in the territories. This means that seize power, presenting the view of its armed struggle in any case, even if the PA stops its own operations but i s against Israel as a preferable alternative to the ex - not completely disbanded, its suspension of operations authority’s approach. The advantage of such a move is would only last for a short term. that, following this, the Palestinian Authority may reverse Alternative C – Gradual transfer of control over its decision to disband and seek assistance from Israel in the territory to local Palestinian leadership. restoring the status quo. If the PA disintegrates, the resulting vacuum of power Conc lusion: Alternatives to the PA as It Is Today may, over time , be filled by alternative leadership, which Do Exist prioritizes quality of life as a more important goal for the In conclusion, while continuing the prevailing time - being than the national struggle against Zionism, situation is the preferred alternative, Israel can deal with while not completely giving up on this goal. Initially, this the other alternatives. Some options present the possibility logic may enable collaboration wit h the mayors who are of alternative leadership that m ay emerge, inside or outside committed to the quality of life of the population they are the PA, which may lead to a different view of Israeli - entrusted with, and later this cooperation may expand and Palestinian relations and raise new opportunities. If the PA take place with clan leaders, merchants, businessmen, and responds to Israel’s extension of sovereignty with an labor leaders, many of whom are in favor of this concept. interruption of its operations, rather than a complete C ooperation with mayors can begin immediately, while the dis solution, then it seems that after a few months, the PA development of alternative leadership may occur only after could return to its activities, including a renewal of the a time, in order to gain public confidence. The Palestinian security cooperation, which serves the PA no less than it public has been exposed for years and will continue to be serves Israel. exposed to continuous b rainwashing, which places the In any case, Israel does not have to be hostage to the national struggle as a priority. Thus, there will be a need PA and make t he PA’s existence and its functioning central for the continuous promotion of these alternative elements of Israeli security, especially as long as the PA governing options and it is reasonable to expect harsh adheres to the Palestinian narrative that ultimately calls for opposition to it. the destruction of Zionism and negates any arrangement Alternative D – Different PA actors will as sume recognizing Israel as the nation - state of the Jewish people. powers in the succession struggle following Abbas . At the same time, the Authority encourages terrorism by The bankruptcy of Mahmoud Abbas, which will paying salaries to terrorists and their families and incites probably result in the dismantling of the PA (and perhaps hatred against Israel both domestically and on the Arab even with its more limited cessation of operations, though and international stages. It should be clear that no much less likely), may accelerate the s truggle for power Pa lestinian is going to accept any unilateral Israeli move among those who claim PA leadership when its aging regarding the legal status of any territory, even if some may leader steps down. Another possibility, especially if be willing to assume responsibility for the daily needs of President Trump wins the U.S. election, should not be the Palestinian population and to lead the Palestinians in overlooked, whereby Abbas announces his retirement and their attempt to pr omote their national interests. admits his failure to ad vance Palestinian national goals. Brig. - Gen. (res.) Kuperwasser is Director of the Project on Regional Either way, the “War of Succession” may bring some Middle East Developments at the Jerusalem Center. He was contenders (e.g., Maj. Gen. Majed Faraj, head of the formerly Director General of the Israel Ministry of Strategic Affairs Palestinian Preventive Security, or Jibril Rajoub), to try to and head of the Research Div ision of IDF Military Intelligence.

Page 9 August 1, 2020 Focus on Israel

The Anti - Israel Movement Was Ground Zero for Cancel Culture By Matti Friedman tabletmag.com July 27, 2020 Religious zeal, directed at the Jews. somehow be reduced to zero percent from the current T his year many people have discovered that liberal life high of 0.01 percent. and institutions in the West are in the grip of something The rigors of reporting were abandoned for the simple resembling a new religion. Anyone following the doings of pleasures of the sermon. the past few months won’t need a recap of the attempted The key credo, however, was that recognizing “cancellations” of scholars and scientists for heresies, the complexity was desirable only within the tenets of the purge of editors for running the wrong op - ed, or the belief system. Outside of those tenets, complexity was not excommunication of J.K. Row ling. just unwelcome but wrong. That is, you could discuss how Adherents of the thought system vaguely described as evil the Israelis are, or Republicans, or “nationalists” from “woke” believe themselves to be fighting evil in the name India or France, or oil companies, or anyone on the of justice. They share a hierarchy of good, a lingo, purity approved list of wrongdoers — but not suggest they might tests, and a stark division of the world into friend and foe, be right, or their opponents mistaken. The rigor s of all of which borr ow heavily from religious modes of reporting, in other words, were abandoned for the simple thought. But one of the most obvious signs that religion is pleasures of the sermon. in play, and not merely empirical observation or political I’m lucky enough to have grown up with traditional criticism, is the way this ideology has focused and religion, and I’ve experienced religious behavior from amplified the condemnation of Jews. moderate to extreme. What I was seeing in the mainstream All of this ha s made me think differently about my press was a move from rational observation into a kind of experience as a reporter in Israel a decade ago, and moral judgment that I knew from other parts of my life. particularly about an essay I wrote in 2014 for Tablet, The guiding idea was no longer to understand what was which was one of the first publications to pick up on these going on; there was nothing to understand. We knew who trends. That essay, “An Insider’s Guide to the Mos t was right and who was wrong, and it rem ained only to Important Story on Earth,” and a second one that anathematize the bad guys so far into disrepute that even appeared in The Atlantic, described the replacement of the act of trying to understand them would be a kind of journalism here by activism, the subjugation of objective sin. description to higher ideological truth, and the To achieve this effect, the news narrative in Israel was manufacture of politically driven morality plays in the guise constructed, without undue difficulty, with tricks of of news. I took this to be a problem related to, and storytelling and framing: pretending the conflict is one perhaps limited to, perceptions of Jewish people and of between Israelis and Palestinians and not a much broader Israel. Middle Eastern war; pretending the Palestinian national From the vantage point of 2020, that understanding movement merely wants a state beside Israel; dismissing was far too narrow. To pull a metaphor from this strange Israeli attempts to solve the conflict on reasonable terms; moment: I th ought I’d seen the outbreak, when I was erasing the actions of Israel’s opponents so Israel’s own really just hanging out in the wet market. The Israel story actions and fears seem irrational or duplicitous; and was just a formative stage in the evolution of a more suggesting the Jewish instinct for self - preservation in the ambitious set of ideas. Israel was an early target for Middle East is “right wing” while the Islamist war against adherents of the movement for social justice, b ut it wasn’t Jews or the Iranian drive for regional hegemony are just that. It was a place to manufacture a mobilizing somehow about “human rights.” The ideology not only mythology. puts forward its own explanation for things but rules out Upon gaining admission to the tribe of Western any other explanation. If you point out that none of this is journalists in Jerusalem in 2006, I found that it wasn’t true, you’re whitewashing oppression and will be tarred as enough — or necessary, or sometimes even desirable — to a racist, as I eventually was, joining a list that was less be knowledgeable about the region or to speak its illustrious at the time than it is now. languages. The important thing was adopting a creed, one Today all of this seems almost wearily familiar from which seemed strange to me then but is widely familiar “cancel culture.” But it wasn’t widely familiar a decade ago, now. This outlook included a dim view of America; because in many ways I srael was patient zero. The sympathy for all international organizations; an aversion to successful creation and promotion of the Israel story ferve nt Christianity and a healthy respect for fervent Islam; transformed a real country into something so dangerous a considerate attitude toward despotic regimes from China and disruptive to the desired order that it had to be to Iran, which are not “the problem”; the idea that the canceled — an aspiration that has actually become a staple moral high ground has something to do with skin color; of polit ics on the left, and is now aired in the press as if it the belief that while groups l ike Hezbollah, Hamas, and were completely rational. It’s the same thinking behind the the Muslim Brotherhood might sometimes go too far, they idea that an op - ed by a right - wing senator is too dangerous do have a point; and the idea that the world would to be published in a newspaper of record, or that it’s probably be improved if Jewish sovereignty could necessary to pulp books i n which a human being of one Focus o n Israel August 1, 2020 Page 10 ethnic background imagines how the world might appear never completely removed from the old ones. Indeed, the to a human being from another. The creation of the unique power of the Israel story is the way it takes the malevolent “Israel” of the news, and the subsequent push central preoccupation of the new tho ught system — the to render an entire country beyond the pale, created a inequality of white Western power versus nonwhite Third pattern th at has been replicated against targets ranging World innocence — and projects it onto a setting already from nonconforming biologists to the author of books loaded with religious resonance. If you’re looking for a about teenage wizards. Of course the list of heretics is parable about human inequality, places called Jerusalem or growing, as such lists always do. are potent in ways that can’t be rivaled by Western ideologies generally include a parable about Xinjiang or Laayoune, or Minneapolis. villainous J ews. Because this is a set of ideas that sees itself A good illustration of this merger came in the form of as a political critique, the parable doesn’t come, as past a speech given to a convention of the Episcopal church in versions have, from Scripture (in the case of Christianity), 2018 by a Massachusetts bishop who described atrocities or from economic theory (as it did in Marxism), or she clai med to have personally witnessed in Israel. She pseudo - scientific racial doctrin es (National Socialism). It described the murder of an innocent 15 - year - old comes from the news — specifically, from the mythology Palestinian by Jewish soldiers — “they shot him in the back that I saw being constructed as a reporter a decade ago. A four times, he fell on the ground and they shot him strange antagonism to something called “Israel” came up if another six” — and the aggressive handcuffing by sol diers you went to a Women’s March against Donald Trump in of a 3 - year - old Palestinian boy whose ball rolled off the New Y ork, or protested violence against African Temple Mount. Americans in Ferguson, Missouri, or joined the Dyke It later turned out that the bishop hadn’t seen any such March in Chicago, or presented an academic paper at the thing, and she apologized profusely. But in a religious American Studies Association. It appears in the platform mindset, the question isn’t whether a story happened. The of Black Lives Matter from 2016, in left - wing po litics in questio n is whether a story can mobilize believers to Britain and France, and in gender studies courses at achieve good. If the answer is yes, the story is “true.” California colleges. This kind of thinking has now bled into newsrooms These diverse applications are unique, if not entirely and university departments, precisely the bodies that are unprecedented, for a news story. But they make sense if supposed to be engaged in observation and re asoned we understand the Israel story as a kind of sacred template debate. If important parts of the press and the academy are t hat can be used to explain many different situations. A beginning to sound like ministries, it’s happening at a time good example became visible this spring in the wake of the when religion and quasi - religion are on the rise protests that followed the killing of George Floyd by everywhere — not just on the progressive left but also on police in Minneapolis: the myth that Israel trains American the right, and not only in the West. Some of these trends police officers in the same methods of brutality that killed are evident in Israel, too. As we speak, as if to symbolize Floyd, and which are deployed more generally against the moment, the Hagia Sophia is being changed from a people of color. This conspiracy theory has been public museum back into a mosque — though in Istanbul, promoted as factual by (among many others) senior at least, the conversion is being done in the open. journalists, members of the British Labour Party, and, in Mr. Friedman is the author, most recently, of Spies of No Country: early July, by the biggest Lutheran denomination in Secret Lives at the Birth of Israel, and is a New York Times op - ed America. contributor. That last detail supports the idea that new religions are

‘Buddy’ Korn: Jewish activist, journalist, mentor, mensch By Moshe Phillips jns.org July 17 , 2020 He was a different kind of leader: He loved the editor in Florida and Philadelphia, he began his work battleground of ideas, but struggled mightily to show de fending Israel in the media, and at the same time respect for his adversaries. grooming a generation of mission - driven journalists for Bertram (Benyamin) “Buddy” Korn, a Jewish activist, the Jewish community. journalist, and community organizer, passed away on July 5 His work as a pro - Israel grassroots organizer and at the age of 6 4 shortly after contracting COVID - 19. His community - builder took on a myriad of forms: He contributions to the Jewish community were vast, and it volunteered in CAMERA’s D. C. office before helping was more often behind the scenes than not that we guide its relaunch as a national organization (in addition to benefited from his work without knowing it. his leadership of CAMERA’s Philadelphia office). Later, Korn’s passing should not occur without examination he worked with various organizations as a paid of his unpa ralleled influences on the Jewish community professional, board member and adviser. Zionist and that he loved so dearly. As one of the founders of the religious orga nizations, and Holocaust - educational efforts, Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in benefited from his hard work. America (CAMERA), and later as a Jewish newspaper He loved music and radio from his days as a jazz - show Page 11 August 1, 2020 Focus on Israel host on campus radio. His good nature, humor and But Reform Judaism was not to be Buddy’s home; he penetrating insight was a fixture in Philadelphia — first on was active in both Chabad and Young Israel The Jewish Expone nt’s program that he created when he congregations. was that newspaper’s editor from 1994 to 1997, and years Buddy’s four children were a ke y focus of his life. He later when he launched Jewish Independent Talk Radio was exceedingly proud of the fact that three of them made and hosted such guests as Bill Kristol. aliyah, and that two of his sons served in the Israel After leaving the Exponent, he stayed busy speaking, Defense Forces. He loved and supported his children in organizing, editing and writing as he had done since his every way. And he never failed to have time for or his wife, days with CAMERA. He organized a group called Jews for Nava , and felt deeply blessed to recently welcome his first Sarah and was part of an effor t to support a possible run grandchild. for Sarah Palin for president. He edited several books for Pirkei Avot (“The Ethics of Our Fathers”) states that investigative journalist Aaron Klein and wrote the forward “the world stands on three things: Torah, the service of G - to one as well. d and deeds of kindness.” Buddy inculcated these tenets to His personal story is just as interesting as his his children, a s well as to the many journalists and professional one. communal leaders he mentored over the years. As film critic and talk - s how host Michael Medved Those areas all came naturally to him it seemed to wrote in his autobiography, Right Turns, and David those around him; it was part of his soul. What’s more is Horowitz in his memoirs, Radical Son, Buddy spoke to that he saw all three as part of a larger, holistic effort audiences about his journey from being on the radical left nece ssary in convening community. and secular to being observant and a political conservative. Buddy was a different kind of Jewish leader: He loved As The N ew York Sun website reported, “He was the son the battleground of ideas, but struggled mightily to show of a Reform rabbi [Bertram W. Korn Sr.], who had, as a respect for his adversaries and shunned the spotlight he so rear admiral of the United States Navy, risen to become richly deserved. the first Jewish chaplain of any branch to accede to flag So, please, take a moment and learn some Torah, say a rank. As a young man, the rabbi’s son was more into Mao prayer, do a kind thing in his memory. Consider joining than Moses. For a period Korn lived in India. Eventually, the larger fight to advocate for Israel and the necessarily though, he came home and, soon enough, began his move simultaneous struggle to help unify the Jewish community. to the right.” Unity does not mean we have to all agree, but rather, that Buddy was animated by an immense respect for his we put aside our differences, and learn to love and respect father’s love of the Jewish community, American each other in order to make the Jewish community a patriotism and w riting. His father’s groundbreaking welcoming place for all Jews. history, American Jewry and the Civil War, was something M r. Phillips is national director of Herut North America’s U.S. Buddy often spoke of. division. More in formation is available at: www.herutna.org.

Bedouin vill age tests new solar - powered wastewater treatment system By Brian Blum israel21c.org July 28 , 2020 Arava Institute’s portable, self - operating wastewater from where it is p umped into a series of treatment mini treatment plant doesn’t need to be connected to containers. Inside those containers, bacteria, fungi and the national sewer system. algae remove the contaminants. The resulting treated water Up to 70 percent of the wastewater in th e world is is not fit for drinking but can be used safely for agriculture. untreated. That’s a problem, both for the communities Israel has long been a leader in processing wastewater without sewer systems and for neighboring communities for agricultural uses. that suffer from contaminated groundwater leaking from “It goes back to the 1970s and sends a strong message cesspits. to the world that wastewater has value and should not be Villagers in Umm Batin, a Bedouin village in Israel’s ju st disposed of,” Lipchin tells ISRAEL21c. “It can be Negev desert, don ’t want to dump their dirty water into treated and re - used as a way to offset water scarcity and to the ground. But they’re lacking the millions of shekels it become less reliant on fresh water. That’s becoming even would cost to build a modern sewer system. more important given the unpredictability of climate Clive Lipchin from Israel’s Arava Institute for change.” Environmental Studies has developed a portable, cost - Raw sewage kills effective solut ion: a solar - powered, self - operating Smal l Bedouin villages – as well as those in the wastewater mini treatment plant that doesn’t need to be Palestinian Authority territories – have not benefited from connected to the national sewer system. Israel’s wastewater expertise. In Lipchin’s system, the wastewater flows from Lipchin hopes his invention will change that – first household toilets, kitchens and sinks into a septic tank locally and then for the world. The need is great; raw Focus o n Israel August 1, 2020 Page 12 sewage is estimated to kill 1.7 million people a year, almost “Michigan is on the Great Lakes, so we had cross - half of them children. boundary work b etween the US and Canada and between “Most of the world lives like the Bedouin,” Lipchin US states,” he explains. notes. “We definitely have plans to go beyond the Middle He joined the Arava Institute — an affiliate of Jewish East.” National Fund - USA — in 2003 as the lead researcher for a Lipchin’s proof - of - concept system is t reating the European Union project on the sustainable management sewage water for one household of seven to 10 individuals of the Dead Sea. Following a NATO - sponsored science - in Umm Batin. for - security conference held at Kibbutz Ein Gedi, Lipchin The village is divided into 10 neighborhoods, so published a book, The Jordan River and Dead Sea Basin: ultimately, if enough of these systems were installed, they Cooperation Amid Conflict. could process all the village’s wastewater “without the Water doesn’t understand borders, Lipchin points out, need f or an expensive and technically problematic sewage and you can’t address the dire ecological issues facing the network.” Dead Sea only from the Israeli side. The system works 24/7, storing its solar - generated The same is true with wastewater on the western side power in a battery. The mini plant operates autonomously of the Jordan River. “Israel shares all our fresh and is managed remotely via a mobile app. If there’s a g roundwater with the Palestinians,” he explains. “We need problem – say, a broken pump – an operator receives an to manage this bilaterally, whether it’s the mountain alert. aquifer system in the West Bank or the coastal aquifer Operators don’t need to be on site. If the system were system that runs along the Mediterranean in Israel and the installed in rural Africa, for example, messages could pop .” up “on the phone of a trained engineer in Nairobi, not in If wastewater is being dumped into the ground the village itself. Then the engineer would drive do wn,” untreated in a village near Hebron, for example, it will seep Lipchin explains. into the water systems of nearby Israeli communities. Transboundary water management A decentralized approach Lipchin wouldn’t say how much each installation The problem is that the two communities don’t always would cost, but it would clearly be beyond the abilities of talk to each other. Moreover, t hey have different political the villagers – and beyond government’s as well if perspectives around land use and ownership. deployed on a large scale. Lipchin takes a decentralized approach in helping “We’d be look ing for grants from development and communities get more water for agriculture.“We work at a aid agencies,” he says. very local level. Oftentimes, communities never considered Another model: charging farmers a small fee for not having to go through a high - level approval process or receiving agricultural water. “This is being done already negotiation.” over the world. Water services are not free. Otherwise Ultimately, Lipchin sees his work as a building block you’re a charity. And that’s not s ustainable.” to “promote good relations between people that can As director of the Center for Transboundary Water provide public support for a peace process. Once people Management at the Arava Institute Lipchin develops understand that they can see their liv es changed through infrastructure projects and facilitates communication cooperation, they see the other side very differently. It around water issues between Israel and Jordan and Israel builds advocates for partnerships.” and the Palestinian Authority. Is he optimistic that something as mundane as Originally from South Africa, Lipchin got interested in wastewater management can make a difference? “I transboundary water work while doing his doctorate at the wouldn’t be doing this if I was not optimistic,” he says. School of Natural Resources and Environment at the The Umm Batin project is funded by a grant from the University of Michigan. JNF USA Water Task Force. JNF USA is a strategic partner for the Arava Institute.

Current issue also available at suburbanorthodox.org . If you see something, send som ething” – editor