Selected articles concerning Israel, 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 9 3 Volume 2 1 , Number 2 5 Parshias Pinchas | Shabbos Mevarchim July 3 , 2021 Testing Bennett: An in - depth intervi ew with A. Pe'er, Hamodia's military correspondent. By Gavriel Meir Hamodia Prime Weekly/hamodia.com June 23, 2021 Iran, Arab countries and terror groups will be testing given control of Gaza, together with Yehudah and the new Prime Minister. They know he's not Bibi the Shomron, which Netanyahu objected to. stubborn one or Bibi the strong rig ht - winger, but the When it comes to the Palestinians, the Eiden leader of a government that depends on Arab MKs for administration feels it has a better chance of making its survival. progress with Bennett and Yair Lapid, whose coa lition What are the pressing security and diplomatic depends on left - wing parties like Meretz and Labor and, challenges facing Prime Minister Naftali Bennett? mainly, on the Arabs. Bibi wasn't prepared to make the Topping the list is Iran, on many different levels. kind of concessions required by the various U.S. peace There's Iran vis - a - vis the United States and the initiatives. This government is seen as , being much less question of whether the nuclear resistant. deal will be renewed. There's Iran as it relates to its Foreign Minister Yair Lapid has spoken of efforts to expand its hold on the Middle East, and its improving ties with the Democ rats in the U.S. attempt to establish a military presence close to Israel's Congress. Is that realistic? borders. And there's Iran i n the context of Hezbollah, Yes. Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. It has also i has influence in It's important to understand that Israel - U.S. ties aren't Gaza. limited to the Israeli government's relation ship with the And of course, there's the nuclear threat. White House. It includes the Democrats, the Republicans, Iran is officially claiming to be enriching uranium of and the Jewish community. For instance, the Reform and up to 64% purity, which means it is a hop, skip and a jump Conservatives in the United ' States were dancing with joy from b eing able to make a small bomb or two. Whether at the formation of the new government. they intend to use them against Israel, orto preserve and They feel close to the new Diaspora affairs minister, strengthen the Shiite hold on Iran, in the face of challenges Nachman Shai, who spent many years in the United States from various rebel groups, is an open question. and who had very go od ties with non - Orthodox elements Of course, such a development would make it very there. difficult for Israel to bomb Iranian nuclear reactors J Street, as well as others who felt that Israel had without causing a catastrophe that no one wants to see. become "too Orthodox," are thrilled about the new But there are military steps that could be taken to ensure government. that Iran is left with just those one or two bombs, and So what does that mean for the Chareidi - religious without the ability to build a nuclear arsenal. public in Israel? The immediate question is what to do about the It means we're in for a very rough time. There are Iranian threat now, while it's still at 64% enrich ment. The already plans for the Kosel, and for changing conversion Americans say Israel mustn't bomb, as they believe it is procedures. You have someone like Avigdor Liberman, possible to reach a new, improved agreement that will turn the finance minister, who for years has been saying that the c lock back on Iran's program, to the 10% levels of the any Rav should be able to conduct conversions. Obama years. The deal will require Iran to hand over its Bennett has spoken of reforming the kashrus system, stores of 64% enriched uranium to international agencies. opening it up to competition. If today, the Rabbanut will The Bennett - Lapid government has been saying not give kashrus certification to a restaurant that is open that it will be less confrontational than Binyamin on Shabbos, since it can't be trusted, Bennett argues that Netanyahu was in dealing with the United States, kashrus and Shabbos observance are two unrelat ed issues. insofar as Iran and other matters. Would that be in If a place is found to be kosher, it should get a certificate Israel's best interest? even if it opens on Shabbos. It's a matter of opinion. Some say you have to stand Is there concern that Hamas is testing Bennett, firm in dealing with Washington, others argue that it's best and that's what's behind the recent violence? to be ac commodating, to the extent possible. One thing's Definitely. But not just Hamas. All of the Arab for sure: The Americans were very, very happy about the countries an d terror groups are testing him, to see how new government. Bibi was a tough nut for them to crack. much they can get away with. The Americans also see Bennett as "one of them." Everything that happened last week regarding He was born in the United States, he speaks English at Yerusha layim - with Hamas threatening to fire missiles on home with his family, who are American citizens. the cap ital if the flag march was held - was a way of testing Bibi blocked a number of initiatives that the U.S. Ben nett. Hamas was trying to see if he would fold and would have liked to advance. For instance, the two state how he would react to the incendiary balloons. solution. The U.S. also wanted Mahmoud Abbas to be Similarly, Iran and Arab countries and terror groups Foc us o n Is rael July 3, 2021 Page 2 will be testing the new government. They know it's not It's possible that these countries will take advantage of Bibi the stubborn one, or Bibi the strong right - winger, but the change of government in Israel to slip out of some of a govern ment that depends on Arab MKs for its survival. their commitments. Recently, even under B ibi, some Diplomatically, there are two more important points complained that they weren't getting as much as they'd that will pose a challenge for the new government: Russia expected under the agreement. and China. Ties with Egypt and Jordan, which have the largest Netanyahu developed a very special, close relationship borders with Israel, are also sensitive. The king of J or dan is with Russian President Vladimir Putin which made it pos always on the verge of an explosion, whether over Har sible for Israel to launch major strikes in Syria and Habayis or water rights. This will be challenging for else where, even in areas controlled by the Russian air Bennett, who is saddled with a coalition that includes force. The question is whether Benn ett will succeed in extreme leftists and Arabs. This will tie his hands in his estab lishing the kind of close ties that will allow for a dealings with Hezbollah, Gaza, and the Arab world in contin ued high level of cooperation. general. The subject of China is very delicate. The Chinese are Finally, what a bout the budget? Does the defense looking to expand all over the world, including in Israel, establishment feel it can count on the Bennett and this is not being we ll - received by the United States in government to allocate it the resources it needs? general, and the Biden administration in particular. No. In fact, it's concerned that the budget is mainly in The Chinese will be looking to see to what extent the hands of someone who bears a grudge against the Isra el will award it major infrastructure contracts, like defense establis hment. When he was defense minister, he ports. Israel has to walk a fine line here. It doesn't wa nt to felt that the generals left him out of the decision - making upset Washington, but it can't afford to cut off ties with a and that this forced him to quit. There is concern that he'll world power like China, which may someday be the want to settle scores. world's superpower. Besides, the government made lots of costly coalition Bibi invested a lot of effort in advancing relations with commitments. The Arabs got something in the area of NIS moderate Arab states, contributing greatly to the four 40 billion to NIS 45 billion. That has come at someone's treati es signed under the Abraham Accords. He also expense. worked to advance ties with Saudi Arabia and others. What happens when opposition declares the government to be illegitimate? By Susan Hattis Rolef commentarymagazine.com June 27, 2021 The prospective government was referred to by its Halacha, and the Arabs – a s tate defined as “the state of all opponents as based on fraud, dangerous to Israel’s its citizens.” If either of these communities will be security, “Left,” incoherent and therefore illegitimate. alienated to the point of deciding to break the rules of the In the beginning o f December 2019, I published an game, Israel’s liberal democratic regime will be greatly article in The Jerusalem Post with the title “The Knesset’s weakened. legitimation function – a temporary breakdown?” The Since I wrote my previous article on the subject conduct of the new opposition these days, following the several changes have taken place, which somewhat changes formation of the new government led by Naftali Bennett, the political balance within the system.