AUSTRALIA/ISRAEL REVIEW VOLUME 45 No. 5 MAY 2020 AUSTRALIA/ISRAEL & JEWISH AFFAIRS COUNCIL ISRAEL HAS A GOVERNMENT AT LAST But can the complex Netanyahu-Gantz “national emergency” government deal hold? ISRAELI TECH VERSUS JAKARTA UNDER A CASE FOR MORAL ANOTHER COVID-19 PRESSURE CLARITY CONTAGION The politics of pandem- The intersection The conspiracy theory “Start-Up Nation” innovation and the ic for Indonesia’s young between anti- epidemic continues to fight against coronavirus .................. PAGE 20 democracy .......PAGE 23 Zionism and spread ............ PAGE 26 antisemitism ..PAGE 31 NAME OF SECTION WITH COMPLIMENTS AND BEST WISHES FROM GANDEL GROUP CHADSTONE SHOPPING CENTRE 1341 DANDENONG ROAD CHADSTONE VIC 3148 TEL: (03) 8564 1222 FAX: (03) 8564 1333 WITH COMPLIMENTS 2 AIR – May 2020 AUSTRALIA/ISRAEL VOLUME 45 No. 5 REVIEW MAY 2020 EDITOR’S NOTE NAME OF SECTION his AIR edition analyses the breakthrough in Israeli politics, whereby, after more than ON THE COVER Ta year of deadlock, incumbent PM Binyamin Netanyahu and Blue and White party Israeli Prime Minister leader Benny Gantz have signed an agreement to form a “national emergency” govern- Binyamin Netanyahu and ment, leading to a unity government in six months. Blue and White party leader Amotz Asa-el looks at the convoluted arrangements that Netanyahu and Gantz have Benny Gantz at a memorial agreed on, and their prospects for success, while Jonathan Tobin argues that, contrary to ceremony marking 24 years the claims of his critics, Netanyahu will be pleased to lead a centrist government. In ad- since the assassination of dition, David Makovsky and Stephen Daisley offer contrasting analyses of a controversial former Israeli Prime Minister provision in the Gantz-Netanyahu agreement for Israel to annex parts of the West Bank, Yitzhak Rabin, in the Knesset on November 10, as per the Trump Administration’s peace plan. 2019. (Photo: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90) Also featured this month is a detailed report from Ahron Shapiro and Naomi Levin on how Israeli high-tech is ramping up to confront the coronavirus crisis, while famous American legal academic Alan Dershowitz dis- sects the intersection between anti-Zionism and antisemitism. And don’t miss academic Zachary Abuza on the political implications of Indonesia’s COVID-19 emergency, Oved Lobel on the continuing conspiracy theory epidemic accompanying the medical pandemic, and top analyst Jonathan Spyer on how the Islamic State’s “ghost caliphate” is gearing up to exploit the current global coronavirus crisis. We would welcome any feedback you have at [email protected]. Tzvi Fleischer CONTENTS FEATURE STORIES REGULAR COLUMNS A GOVERNMENT FROM THE EDITORIAL CHAIRMAN AT LAST COLIN RUBENSTEIN ....................................................................... PAGE 4 ................................................. PAGE 5 BY AMOTZ ASA-EL WORD FOR WORD Calling it an Emergency Govern- SCRIBBLINGS ment, this coalition will focus on TZVI FLEISCHER ............................................................................ PAGE 6 combatting coronavirus ....................................................... PAGE 12 DECONSTRUCTION ZONE ISRAEL’S NEW CENTRIST GOVERNMENT RICKI HOLLANDER ......................................................................... PAGE 7 BY JONATHAN TOBIN ................................................................... PAGE 15 ASIA WATCH “APPLYING SOVEREIGNTY” IN THE WEST BANK MICHAEL SHANNON ...................................................................... PAGE 8 BY DAVID MAKOVSKY .................................................................. PAGE 16 AIR NEW ZEALAND IS THE TRUMP PLAN BACK ON TRACK? MIRIAM BELL ................................................................................ PAGE 9 BY STEPHEN DAISLEY .................................................................. PAGE 18 BEHIND THE NEWS .............................................. PAGE 10 ISRAELI TECH VERSUS COVID-19 Start-Up Nation innovation in the fight against the virus STRANGER THAN FICTION ........................ PAGE 11 BY AHRON SHAPIRO & NAOMI LEVIN .......................................... PAGE 20 NOTED AND QUOTED ..................................... PAGE 35 COVID-19 AND INDONESIAN DEMOCRACY ...................................................... PAGE 36 BY ZACHARY ABUZA .................................................................... PAGE 23 IN PARLIAMENT THE GHOST CALIPHATE MEDIA MICROSCOPE ALLON LEE ................................................................................... PAGE 39 BY JONATHAN SPYER .................................................................. PAGE 25 CONSPIRACY BUG CONTINUES TO SPREAD THE LAST WORD BY OVED LOBEL ........................................................................... PAGE 26 JEREMY JONES ........................................................................... PAGE 40 A SHEIKH’S TRAVELS BY RAN PORAT ............................................................................. PAGE 28 HOW TO USE OUR INTERACTIVE EDITION BIBLIO FILE: THE ‘ORIGINAL GRUDGE’ THEORY • Tap/click to return to the Contents page BY LYN JULIUS ............................................................................. PAGE 30 • All listed articles link to their page. ESSAY: THE CASE FOR MORAL CLARITY • Best viewed in your desktop browser or the Books (iOS) or Anti-Zionism, Antisemitism and legitimate criticism of Israel equivalent e-book reader app in portrait mode. BY ALAN DERSHOWITZ ................................................................. PAGE 31 3 AIR – May 2020 Australia/Israel Review A journal of analysis and opinion published by the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) Editorial Chairman EDITORIAL Dr COLIN RUBENSTEIN AM Editor-in-Chief Dr TZVI FLEISCHER Senior Contributing Editor AT LAST, A POLITICAL JEREMY JONES AM Staff Writers ALLON LEE, JAMIE HYAMS, AHRON BREAKTHROUGH SHAPIRO, SHARYN MITTELMAN, NAOMI LEVIN, OVED LOBEL, JUDY MAYNARD Publishing Manager fter three elections, Israel finally has a government. Following weeks of tense nego- MICHAEL SHANNON Correspondents Atiations between Israel’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Blue and White’s ISRAEL: AMOTZ ASA-EL Benny Gantz, they finally agreed to form a national emergency and unity government EUROPE: DOUGLAS DAVIS NEW ZEALAND: MIRIAM BELL to address Israel’s immense challenges – especially the coronavirus crisis and its crush- National Editorial Board ing impact on the economy. KEITH BEVILLE, RABBI RALPH GENENDE OAM, GARY HERZ, MIRIAM In the first six months, “the government will act as an emergency government” fo- LASKY, STEVE LIEBLICH, RABBI JOHN cussed on “dealing with the coronavirus crisis in all its aspects.” It will then transition to LEVI AM, Hon. HOWARD NATHAN AM, IAN WALLER SC a longer-lived national unity government, which will give it time to seriously address Israel’s other strategic challenges, including especially threats from Iran and its proxies in AIJAC Syria, Lebanon and Gaza. National Chairman While Gantz had long promised during the election campaign that he would not sit MARK LEIBLER AC in government alongside Netanyahu while the latter remains under criminal indictment, NSW Chairman PAUL RUBENSTEIN the challenges confronting Israel at the current time led him to compromise rather than Executive Director send Israelis to a fourth election amid a pandemic. As Gantz argued, “these are not normal Dr COLIN RUBENSTEIN AM Director of International & times and they call for unusual decisions.” Community Affairs Certainly, the pragmatism and patriotism of both Netanyahu and Gantz demonstrated JEREMY JONES AM Senior Policy Analysts that the spirit of democratic compromise and service to the national interest is still alive AHRON SHAPIRO, JAMIE HYAMS, and well in Israel. Israel desperately needs the stable government they seem likely to pro- ALLON LEE, NAOMI LEVIN, SHARYN MITTELMAN vide after the unfortunate political impasse the country has experienced over the last year, Policy Analysts with no duly-elected government in Israel since December 2018, and no ability to pass a OVED LOBEL, JUDY MAYNARD Associate Director of Public Affairs national budget to fund the range of services required – especially crippling amid the cur- JOEL BURNIE rent medical crisis. National Media & Public Affairs Officer The 14-page Gantz-Netanyahu deal is unquestionably complex. Netanyahu will serve ARIEL ZOHAR as PM for the first 18 months while Gantz serves as PM for the subsequent 18 months. Events Coordinator HELEN BRUSTMAN OAM While Netanyahu is PM, Gantz will serve as Defence Minister and “Alternate Prime Administration Minister”, a new position to be created by legislation. Netanyahu will be “Alternate Prime MELBOURNE: ROSEMARY SANDLER, RENA LANGBERG Minister” when Gantz becomes PM. SYDNEY: LOUISE DE MESQUITA The agreement would also split a record 36 ministers evenly between blocs led by Israel Liaison PETER ADLER Likud and Blue and White respectively, with both parties being criticised for creating such Founding Chairmen a bloated and expensive cabinet at a time of national austerity. Yet most Israelis would ISADOR MAGID AM (OBM) ROBERT ZABLUD (OBM) doubtless agree that, despite this expense, it is best to avoid a fourth election campaign HEAD OFFICE amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Level 1, 22 Albert Road, South Melbourne, VIC 3205, Australia Blue and White and Likud will be joined in government by several smaller parties, Telephone: (03) 9681 6660 Fax: (03) 9681 6650 making a robust