1 sept 2015
Palestinian Christian schools in Israel stayed shut Tuesday, delaying the start of the new academic year, in a funding dispute with authorities in Israel.
The strike action affects around 33,000 pupils, mostly Muslim Palestinians, at 47 schools run primarily by the Roman Catholic church. "All the schools are closed after a call for an open-ended strike," said the spokesman for Christian schools in Israel, Botrus Mansour.
Palestinian Christian schools and Israeli authorities have been in tough talks over state funding for them and their 3,000 employees. "For a year and a half, we have been holding talks with the Israeli authorities and several figures have intervened, even the Vatican," said Mansour.
"A week ago, President Reuven Rivlin and Education Minister Naftali Bennett made very positive comments ... But we still haven't seen any serious proposal. "We've tried everything and have no option left but to go on strike," he said.
Traditionally, the schools received 65 percent of their budgets from the state, with parents paying the balance. But that figure was cut to 34 percent two years ago, sharply increasing the amount parents had to come up with. Current state financing covers only "29 percent of the overall cost of a primary school," the schools said in a statement.
"It is a matter of equality," according to Father Abdelmassih Fahim, director of schools for the Catholic church's Custody of the Holy Land. "A Jewish Israeli child has the right to 100 percent (of school costs covered by the state) while our schools don't, while our teaching is among the best in Israel."
The student population at the schools is 60 percent Palestinian Christian and 40 percent Palestinian Muslim. The schools have a history predating Israel's foundation in 1948 and are run primarily by the Roman Catholic Church.
According to Israeli official figures, 160,000 Palestinian Christians live in Israel and 14,000 in occupied East Jerusalem. The talks are taking place at a time when Palestinian Christians in Israel are under growing strains, with leaders of their communities saying they are afraid in the wake of attacks by Jewish extremists on churches and other properties.
Earlier this month, Benzi Gopstein, leader of anti-Palestinian group Lehava, allegedly called for the burning of churches at a panel held for Jewish yeshiva students, using ancient Halachic, or Jewish law, to condemn what he called Christian "idol worship."
The strike action affects around 33,000 pupils, mostly Muslim Palestinians, at 47 schools run primarily by the Roman Catholic church. "All the schools are closed after a call for an open-ended strike," said the spokesman for Christian schools in Israel, Botrus Mansour.
Palestinian Christian schools and Israeli authorities have been in tough talks over state funding for them and their 3,000 employees. "For a year and a half, we have been holding talks with the Israeli authorities and several figures have intervened, even the Vatican," said Mansour.
"A week ago, President Reuven Rivlin and Education Minister Naftali Bennett made very positive comments ... But we still haven't seen any serious proposal. "We've tried everything and have no option left but to go on strike," he said.
Traditionally, the schools received 65 percent of their budgets from the state, with parents paying the balance. But that figure was cut to 34 percent two years ago, sharply increasing the amount parents had to come up with. Current state financing covers only "29 percent of the overall cost of a primary school," the schools said in a statement.
"It is a matter of equality," according to Father Abdelmassih Fahim, director of schools for the Catholic church's Custody of the Holy Land. "A Jewish Israeli child has the right to 100 percent (of school costs covered by the state) while our schools don't, while our teaching is among the best in Israel."
The student population at the schools is 60 percent Palestinian Christian and 40 percent Palestinian Muslim. The schools have a history predating Israel's foundation in 1948 and are run primarily by the Roman Catholic Church.
According to Israeli official figures, 160,000 Palestinian Christians live in Israel and 14,000 in occupied East Jerusalem. The talks are taking place at a time when Palestinian Christians in Israel are under growing strains, with leaders of their communities saying they are afraid in the wake of attacks by Jewish extremists on churches and other properties.
Earlier this month, Benzi Gopstein, leader of anti-Palestinian group Lehava, allegedly called for the burning of churches at a panel held for Jewish yeshiva students, using ancient Halachic, or Jewish law, to condemn what he called Christian "idol worship."
The rate of the annual migration of Brazilian Jews to Israel is expected to considerably increase during the current year, according to Haaretz newspaper.
On average, somewhere between 200 and 250 Jews of Brazilian origin move to Israel every year, but this year, the number could reach 500, according to Gladis Berezowski, the director of immigrant absorption at Beit Brasil society,
Beit Brasil is a recently established non-profit group that helps new Jewish arrivals from Brazil.
Currently, the number of Brazilian Jews living in Israel is estimated at about 12,000.
On average, somewhere between 200 and 250 Jews of Brazilian origin move to Israel every year, but this year, the number could reach 500, according to Gladis Berezowski, the director of immigrant absorption at Beit Brasil society,
Beit Brasil is a recently established non-profit group that helps new Jewish arrivals from Brazil.
Currently, the number of Brazilian Jews living in Israel is estimated at about 12,000.
Israeli energy shares fell yesterday a day after Italian energy group Eni SpA announced the discovery of what is potentially the largest natural gas field in the Mediterranean off the coast of Egypt.
Israeli media described yesterday as a black day for Tel Aviv’s energy shares.
Israel’s the Marker magazine reported that the stock exchange index for oil and gas was down 7.6 per cent.
In a statement, Eni SpA said the newly discovered field could potentially hold 30 trillion cubic feet (850 billion cubic metres) of gas in an area of about 100 square kilometres (40 square miles).
“It's the largest gas discovery ever made in Egypt and in the Mediterranean Sea and could become one of the world’s largest natural-gas finds,” the firm said. The field is located at a depth of 4,757 feet (1,450 metres) in the Shorouk Block.
If the estimates are correct, the Zohr gas field would be significantly larger than Israel’s biggest field Leviathan, which is approximately 621 billion cubic metres.
In response to Eni’s announcement, Israel’s Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said that the discovery of the gas field in Egypt's territorial waters should act as a wake-up call for Israel to finalise an agreement on its own sizable reserves in the Mediterranean Sea.
“The discovery of the huge gas field in Egypt is a painful reminder that while Israel wastes time with the final approval for the gas road map, and delays the processes, the world is changing before our eyes, including ramifications for Israeli export options,” Steinitz told Army Radio.
“We must approve the gas road map and strengthen the Israeli gas industry,” he said referring to a cabinet-backed deal to develop Israel’s Tamar and Leviathan reserves.
Avi Bar-Eli, an analyst at Israel’s Haaretz newspaper, said the discovery could harm the chances to develop Israel’s own Leviathan field on time, due to the fact that Egypt was supposed to be a major customer for the gas.
However, Member of the Knesset Shelly Yachimovich of the Zionist Union, who opposes Israeli gas companies and the government’s actions, said the discoveries prove that advancing Israel’s gas outline is not an issue of national security.
“It turns out that Egypt does not need our gas, and the government must now require the creation of a logical and sane outline, without fictitious panic and imaginary security explanations,” Yachimovich said.
Israeli media described yesterday as a black day for Tel Aviv’s energy shares.
Israel’s the Marker magazine reported that the stock exchange index for oil and gas was down 7.6 per cent.
In a statement, Eni SpA said the newly discovered field could potentially hold 30 trillion cubic feet (850 billion cubic metres) of gas in an area of about 100 square kilometres (40 square miles).
“It's the largest gas discovery ever made in Egypt and in the Mediterranean Sea and could become one of the world’s largest natural-gas finds,” the firm said. The field is located at a depth of 4,757 feet (1,450 metres) in the Shorouk Block.
If the estimates are correct, the Zohr gas field would be significantly larger than Israel’s biggest field Leviathan, which is approximately 621 billion cubic metres.
In response to Eni’s announcement, Israel’s Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said that the discovery of the gas field in Egypt's territorial waters should act as a wake-up call for Israel to finalise an agreement on its own sizable reserves in the Mediterranean Sea.
“The discovery of the huge gas field in Egypt is a painful reminder that while Israel wastes time with the final approval for the gas road map, and delays the processes, the world is changing before our eyes, including ramifications for Israeli export options,” Steinitz told Army Radio.
“We must approve the gas road map and strengthen the Israeli gas industry,” he said referring to a cabinet-backed deal to develop Israel’s Tamar and Leviathan reserves.
Avi Bar-Eli, an analyst at Israel’s Haaretz newspaper, said the discovery could harm the chances to develop Israel’s own Leviathan field on time, due to the fact that Egypt was supposed to be a major customer for the gas.
However, Member of the Knesset Shelly Yachimovich of the Zionist Union, who opposes Israeli gas companies and the government’s actions, said the discoveries prove that advancing Israel’s gas outline is not an issue of national security.
“It turns out that Egypt does not need our gas, and the government must now require the creation of a logical and sane outline, without fictitious panic and imaginary security explanations,” Yachimovich said.
Netanyahu and Renzi shake hands at Palazzo Vecchio in Florence
PM eats at Enoteca Pinchiorri at invitation of Italian premier, but PMO says he 'did not eat forbidden foods.'
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced criticism on Tuesday from ultra-Orthodox politicians for having eaten in a non-kosher restaurant serving rabbit, escargot and lobster during a recent trip to Italy.
An ultra-Orthodox news website quoted officials from the United Torah Judaism alliance, part of Netanyahu's coalition, as saying that eating in a non-kosher restaurant was unacceptable for a prime minister of the Jewish state.
It said he had eaten over the weekend at Enoteca Pinchiorri, a restaurant Michelin calls one of Florence's "temples of gourmet dining."
United Torah Judaism holds seven seats in the Knesset, where Netanyahu's coalition has only a one-seat majority following the March elections.
An official in the Prime Minister's Office confirmed that Netanyahu "was invited to a restaurant by the Italian prime minister (Matteo Renzi), but he did not eat forbidden foods."
"This is also the procedure he always follows during his trips abroad," the official said.
The Kikar Hashabbat site quoted officials from United Torah Judaism as saying that the prime minister should have acted with more sensitivity.
It is not the first time Netanyahu has faced scrutiny over a restaurant visit.
Last year, the same website criticized him for eating in a non-kosher restaurant in New York with Sheldon Adelson, the American billionaire who owns Israel Hayom, a free daily that has supported Netanyahu.
Jewish dietary law bars consumption of certain foods such as pork and shellfish, and also prohibits the mixing of meat and dairy products.
Rabbits are considered unclean because they do not have cloven hooves, while anything that crawls on its belly is prohibited. Animals must be slaughtered ritually under the supervision of a rabbi.
PM eats at Enoteca Pinchiorri at invitation of Italian premier, but PMO says he 'did not eat forbidden foods.'
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced criticism on Tuesday from ultra-Orthodox politicians for having eaten in a non-kosher restaurant serving rabbit, escargot and lobster during a recent trip to Italy.
An ultra-Orthodox news website quoted officials from the United Torah Judaism alliance, part of Netanyahu's coalition, as saying that eating in a non-kosher restaurant was unacceptable for a prime minister of the Jewish state.
It said he had eaten over the weekend at Enoteca Pinchiorri, a restaurant Michelin calls one of Florence's "temples of gourmet dining."
United Torah Judaism holds seven seats in the Knesset, where Netanyahu's coalition has only a one-seat majority following the March elections.
An official in the Prime Minister's Office confirmed that Netanyahu "was invited to a restaurant by the Italian prime minister (Matteo Renzi), but he did not eat forbidden foods."
"This is also the procedure he always follows during his trips abroad," the official said.
The Kikar Hashabbat site quoted officials from United Torah Judaism as saying that the prime minister should have acted with more sensitivity.
It is not the first time Netanyahu has faced scrutiny over a restaurant visit.
Last year, the same website criticized him for eating in a non-kosher restaurant in New York with Sheldon Adelson, the American billionaire who owns Israel Hayom, a free daily that has supported Netanyahu.
Jewish dietary law bars consumption of certain foods such as pork and shellfish, and also prohibits the mixing of meat and dairy products.
Rabbits are considered unclean because they do not have cloven hooves, while anything that crawls on its belly is prohibited. Animals must be slaughtered ritually under the supervision of a rabbi.
28 aug 2015
Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein (right) and Brig. Gen. (Res.) Gal Hirsch
Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein has received information regarding police chief nominee's possible dubious security-related business dealings with Kazakhstan and Georgia, which may serve the case for invalidation of his nomination.
Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein is examining information received by police regarding Brig. Gen. (Res.) Gal Hirsch, recently nominated as Israel police chief, and the possibility that Hirsch broke the law by engaging in money laundering.
Weinstein's office received the police complaints last night about two security-related business deals that a company that Hirsch headed made with Kazakhstan and Georgia. In 2008 Israel passed a law prohibiting bribery of any public servants in the whole world during business transactions, primarily security industry-related transactions.
A high-level police official said yesterday, "We are aware that in security-related deals in the Third World there are deviations from western norms. Obviously if Hirsch deviated he cannot serve as police chief."
The Police Investigations and Intelligence Division had received information and complaints regarding foreign arms deals in which Hirsch was involved in 2008. The information has yet to be verified.
Major General Menachem Yitzhaki, head of the police investigations and intelligence division, updated the attorney general upon the announcement of Hirsch's nomination. However, police sources have emphasized that caution must be practiced with regard to the information as at least a part of it comes from interested parties.
If the nomination is approved, Hirsch will have to go through a painstaking review of his business deals, as well as signing a conflict of interest clause which would completely disengage him and his associates from the aforementioned security dealings and profits.
The Attorney General aims to present an opinion to the government prior to a vote on Hirsch's appointment, the bottom line being whether it will be possible to defend Hirsch in the event of a petition to the High Court of Justice, or if the appointment raises significant legal difficulties. An official within the Ministry of Public Security estimated that Weinstein ultimately will not invalidate the appointment.
The attorney general's opinion will focus on a number of levels including whether the nomination process was done according to the rules; if Hirsch engaged in illegal conduct during his lifetime, in acquiring his wealth, and in his IDF service; and whether he broke the law in his private business dealings.
The documents and information on Hirsch's private business include information provided by Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan, which contain an overview of his activities as the Galilee Division Commander during the Second Lebanon War.
As commander of the Galilee Division, he was held responsible for the event that sparked the fighting - the abduction of reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev. After the war, the commission of inquiry headed by Maj.-Gen. (res.) Doron Almog established that Hirsch was responsible for several failures that allowed Hezbollah to carry out their ambush plan on the Lebanese border.
In light of what was defined as "a professional, profound and fundamental failure on the command level," Almog recommended to discontinue Hirsch's command position and to not promote him in the IDF, and his conclusions were adopted.
Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein has received information regarding police chief nominee's possible dubious security-related business dealings with Kazakhstan and Georgia, which may serve the case for invalidation of his nomination.
Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein is examining information received by police regarding Brig. Gen. (Res.) Gal Hirsch, recently nominated as Israel police chief, and the possibility that Hirsch broke the law by engaging in money laundering.
Weinstein's office received the police complaints last night about two security-related business deals that a company that Hirsch headed made with Kazakhstan and Georgia. In 2008 Israel passed a law prohibiting bribery of any public servants in the whole world during business transactions, primarily security industry-related transactions.
A high-level police official said yesterday, "We are aware that in security-related deals in the Third World there are deviations from western norms. Obviously if Hirsch deviated he cannot serve as police chief."
The Police Investigations and Intelligence Division had received information and complaints regarding foreign arms deals in which Hirsch was involved in 2008. The information has yet to be verified.
Major General Menachem Yitzhaki, head of the police investigations and intelligence division, updated the attorney general upon the announcement of Hirsch's nomination. However, police sources have emphasized that caution must be practiced with regard to the information as at least a part of it comes from interested parties.
If the nomination is approved, Hirsch will have to go through a painstaking review of his business deals, as well as signing a conflict of interest clause which would completely disengage him and his associates from the aforementioned security dealings and profits.
The Attorney General aims to present an opinion to the government prior to a vote on Hirsch's appointment, the bottom line being whether it will be possible to defend Hirsch in the event of a petition to the High Court of Justice, or if the appointment raises significant legal difficulties. An official within the Ministry of Public Security estimated that Weinstein ultimately will not invalidate the appointment.
The attorney general's opinion will focus on a number of levels including whether the nomination process was done according to the rules; if Hirsch engaged in illegal conduct during his lifetime, in acquiring his wealth, and in his IDF service; and whether he broke the law in his private business dealings.
The documents and information on Hirsch's private business include information provided by Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan, which contain an overview of his activities as the Galilee Division Commander during the Second Lebanon War.
As commander of the Galilee Division, he was held responsible for the event that sparked the fighting - the abduction of reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev. After the war, the commission of inquiry headed by Maj.-Gen. (res.) Doron Almog established that Hirsch was responsible for several failures that allowed Hezbollah to carry out their ambush plan on the Lebanese border.
In light of what was defined as "a professional, profound and fundamental failure on the command level," Almog recommended to discontinue Hirsch's command position and to not promote him in the IDF, and his conclusions were adopted.
26 aug 2015
Jerusalem's secular community is making headway in the longstanding conflict with Orthodox communities over the freedom to open establishments on Shabbat.
Crowds of angry ultra-Orthodox Jewish men, wearing long beards, black and white garb and large black hats, protested in the streets of Jerusalem earlier this month against a new cinema opening its doors on the Sabbath.
The demonstration was meant to be a show of strength in a long-running dispute over the role of strict Jewish law in the cultural life of Jerusalem. But in many ways, it was also a sign of desperation after a series of gains by the city's secular community in recent years.
"No one's saying we're giving up," said Shmuel Poppenheim, an unofficial spokesman for the ultra-Orthodox community. But, he conceded, "We know it's a lost cause. ... We know that we can't stage a war" over every new establishment open on the Sabbath. Despite Jerusalem's image as a city that grinds to a halt on the Sabbath, which runs from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, more than 200 cafes, restaurants, bars, cinemas, museums, cultural institutions and other entertainment centers now stay open in non-religious Jewish areas of the city.
That is a major shift over the last 30 years from a time when only a handful of establishments stayed open and a law forbade cinemas from operating on the Sabbath. The "Yes Planet" cinema that drew the recent protests was the second major destination to open with Sabbath hours in the past two years, after a former train station reopened as a commercial center in 2013.
These initiatives have contributed to the most notable shift in secular-religious relations since the early 1990s, said Shahar Ilan of Hiddush, a group that advocates for religious equality. For decades ultra-Orthodox communities have flexed their political muscle, sometimes violently, to keep workplaces, businesses and government institutions in Jerusalem's Jewish neighborhoods shut down for the Sabbath.
While most Jewish Israelis are secular, Israel's founding fathers gave Judaism a formal place in the country's affairs, and Orthodox rabbis strictly govern religious events such as weddings, divorces and burials for the Jewish population. The ultra-Orthodox also are perennial kingmakers in Israeli coalition politics, though they make up only about 10 percent of the country's population.
Their influence is especially pronounced in Jerusalem, where their numbers are proportionally much larger than the national average. Jerusalem is split almost evenly into thirds between secular and modern Orthodox residents, Muslim Palestinians and ultra-Orthodox Jews who live in insular enclaves. Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox communities also traditionally have held significant power in the municipal government.
They are bolstered by laws and unwritten agreements that grant them certain protections, such as barriers to prevent cars from driving through religious areas on the Sabbath, said Menachem Friedman, a professor of Judaism at Bar Ilan University.
Attempts to change Jerusalem's delicate balance have prompted violent backlashes from the ultra-Orthodox, who have blocked roads, clashed with police and sent tens of thousands of activists into the streets on their rabbis' orders.
But Friedman said that contrary to the popular perception, the traditional power of the ultra-Orthodox is waning in areas where they are not a demographic majority due to changing geographic and economic pressures. Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox communities are often poor and depend on government handouts because men traditionally study in religious seminaries rather than work.
With the cost of living in Jerusalem on the rise, younger members of the communities are increasingly moving out, while public support for their substantial financial aid is waning, Friedman said. This month's protests over the Yes Planet cinema complex were therefore more "symbolic" opposition rather than a real concerted fight, Friedman said.
The cinema is located in Abu Tor, a mixed Jewish-Arab neighborhood far from the city's ultra-Orthodox areas. On the first night of protests on Aug. 14, several thousand ultra-Orthodox rioted in West Jerusalem, breaking windows and prompting police arrests. But the following evening, just a few hundred demonstrators bothered to show up.
It was a vivid contrast to weekly riots that rocked the city in 2009 when City Hall allowed a parking lot near Jerusalem's Old City to open on the Sabbath to serve tourists. The train station-turned-mall known as "First Station," meanwhile, has remained open on the Sabbath without any protests for more than two years now.
The battle is far from over. A week after Yes Planet opened, the municipality ordered eight minimarkets in Jerusalem's city center that now operate on weekends to close. City councilman Ofer Berkovitz, a vocal secular activist, accused Mayor Nir Barkat of making the move to compensate for the new cinema -- a charge the mayor denies.
In another recent case, political pressure prevented a popular cafe chain from opening a new branch in Jerusalem's Independence Park, which is government property. Since a restaurant cannot receive a kosher license if it is open on the Sabbath, Israel's official licensing body threatened to revoke Landwer Cafe's certificate nationwide if the new branch opened on the Sabbath, Berkovitz said.
The same owner opened a coffee shop under a different name that operates on the Sabbath. The municipality also has refused to allow another cinema complex, Cinema City, to open on the Sabbath because it is built on property leased by the city. Berkovitz and other city council members appealed to the Supreme Court but lost. Barkat said in an email statement that "there is no change in the law or the status quo which has been accepted throughout the years in Jerusalem according to which cinemas, places of entertainment and restaurants operate on the Sabbath and there is no trade or public transportation."
Rabbi Uri Regev of Hiddush said the city has an "inconsistent" policy when it comes to regulating Sabbath activities. "There is no status quo," Regev said, saying these policies remain in flux and are "not divinely inspired."
Crowds of angry ultra-Orthodox Jewish men, wearing long beards, black and white garb and large black hats, protested in the streets of Jerusalem earlier this month against a new cinema opening its doors on the Sabbath.
The demonstration was meant to be a show of strength in a long-running dispute over the role of strict Jewish law in the cultural life of Jerusalem. But in many ways, it was also a sign of desperation after a series of gains by the city's secular community in recent years.
"No one's saying we're giving up," said Shmuel Poppenheim, an unofficial spokesman for the ultra-Orthodox community. But, he conceded, "We know it's a lost cause. ... We know that we can't stage a war" over every new establishment open on the Sabbath. Despite Jerusalem's image as a city that grinds to a halt on the Sabbath, which runs from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, more than 200 cafes, restaurants, bars, cinemas, museums, cultural institutions and other entertainment centers now stay open in non-religious Jewish areas of the city.
That is a major shift over the last 30 years from a time when only a handful of establishments stayed open and a law forbade cinemas from operating on the Sabbath. The "Yes Planet" cinema that drew the recent protests was the second major destination to open with Sabbath hours in the past two years, after a former train station reopened as a commercial center in 2013.
These initiatives have contributed to the most notable shift in secular-religious relations since the early 1990s, said Shahar Ilan of Hiddush, a group that advocates for religious equality. For decades ultra-Orthodox communities have flexed their political muscle, sometimes violently, to keep workplaces, businesses and government institutions in Jerusalem's Jewish neighborhoods shut down for the Sabbath.
While most Jewish Israelis are secular, Israel's founding fathers gave Judaism a formal place in the country's affairs, and Orthodox rabbis strictly govern religious events such as weddings, divorces and burials for the Jewish population. The ultra-Orthodox also are perennial kingmakers in Israeli coalition politics, though they make up only about 10 percent of the country's population.
Their influence is especially pronounced in Jerusalem, where their numbers are proportionally much larger than the national average. Jerusalem is split almost evenly into thirds between secular and modern Orthodox residents, Muslim Palestinians and ultra-Orthodox Jews who live in insular enclaves. Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox communities also traditionally have held significant power in the municipal government.
They are bolstered by laws and unwritten agreements that grant them certain protections, such as barriers to prevent cars from driving through religious areas on the Sabbath, said Menachem Friedman, a professor of Judaism at Bar Ilan University.
Attempts to change Jerusalem's delicate balance have prompted violent backlashes from the ultra-Orthodox, who have blocked roads, clashed with police and sent tens of thousands of activists into the streets on their rabbis' orders.
But Friedman said that contrary to the popular perception, the traditional power of the ultra-Orthodox is waning in areas where they are not a demographic majority due to changing geographic and economic pressures. Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox communities are often poor and depend on government handouts because men traditionally study in religious seminaries rather than work.
With the cost of living in Jerusalem on the rise, younger members of the communities are increasingly moving out, while public support for their substantial financial aid is waning, Friedman said. This month's protests over the Yes Planet cinema complex were therefore more "symbolic" opposition rather than a real concerted fight, Friedman said.
The cinema is located in Abu Tor, a mixed Jewish-Arab neighborhood far from the city's ultra-Orthodox areas. On the first night of protests on Aug. 14, several thousand ultra-Orthodox rioted in West Jerusalem, breaking windows and prompting police arrests. But the following evening, just a few hundred demonstrators bothered to show up.
It was a vivid contrast to weekly riots that rocked the city in 2009 when City Hall allowed a parking lot near Jerusalem's Old City to open on the Sabbath to serve tourists. The train station-turned-mall known as "First Station," meanwhile, has remained open on the Sabbath without any protests for more than two years now.
The battle is far from over. A week after Yes Planet opened, the municipality ordered eight minimarkets in Jerusalem's city center that now operate on weekends to close. City councilman Ofer Berkovitz, a vocal secular activist, accused Mayor Nir Barkat of making the move to compensate for the new cinema -- a charge the mayor denies.
In another recent case, political pressure prevented a popular cafe chain from opening a new branch in Jerusalem's Independence Park, which is government property. Since a restaurant cannot receive a kosher license if it is open on the Sabbath, Israel's official licensing body threatened to revoke Landwer Cafe's certificate nationwide if the new branch opened on the Sabbath, Berkovitz said.
The same owner opened a coffee shop under a different name that operates on the Sabbath. The municipality also has refused to allow another cinema complex, Cinema City, to open on the Sabbath because it is built on property leased by the city. Berkovitz and other city council members appealed to the Supreme Court but lost. Barkat said in an email statement that "there is no change in the law or the status quo which has been accepted throughout the years in Jerusalem according to which cinemas, places of entertainment and restaurants operate on the Sabbath and there is no trade or public transportation."
Rabbi Uri Regev of Hiddush said the city has an "inconsistent" policy when it comes to regulating Sabbath activities. "There is no status quo," Regev said, saying these policies remain in flux and are "not divinely inspired."
Brigadier General Gal Hirsch and the Regev Goldwasser abduction
Gal Hirsch's appointment as police chief sparked fury among parents who lost sons during Second Lebanon War; former MK Maj.-Gen. (res.) Elazar Stern: 'This is a sad day for Israel.'
The decision to appoint Brig.-Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch to replace Yohanan Danino as Police Commissioner has led to a lot of anger, disappointment and mostly surprise among parents who lost their sons during the Second Lebanon War.
"It doesn't make sense for someone who failed in his job to get a kick up the ladder.
Failure in senior positions is intolerable," said Moshe Muskal, the father of fallen soldier Refanel Muskal, a fighter in the Egoz Unit who was killed in the Second Lebanon War. Moshe Nisan from Ma'aleh Adumim, whose son Yinon was killed on the last day of the Second Lebanon War when an anti-tank missile hit his tank, is furious over Hirsch's appointment: "My son was killed because of him. He's the main official I can blame - there may have been other commanders after him and under him, but he gave the order to go in (to Lebanon) in daylight, against the procedures, and because of that my son was killed.
"This appointment has opened up old wounds and is breaking our heart. I don't understand this conduct, this man is unsuitable to take on a senior position in the police."
Nisan said he was shocked when he heard of the appointment. "I had tears in my eyes. Just hearing that name makes me furious with pain. This won't pass quietly. It takes me back. They won't let us rest, they keep reopening our wounds. This government doesn't see us. We gave our sons and they don't even think about us," he said. Nisan said he and other bereaved families are planning to protest against the appointment.
"I spoke to my good friend Haim Tzemach yesterday, whose son Oz was killed with Yinon in the same tank, and I told him we must act and protest wherever necessary across the country. We will act to stop this appointment," he said. "This appointment is inappropriate, this man in unsuitable to be in such a senior role in the police. I don't have a problem with bringing people in from the outside, but not people who failed. This man failed in the abduction (of Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser), he failed in the war... he doesn't know how to function under pressure and cannot deal with senior positions."
Haim Tzemach, meanwhile, warned that the appointment would be detrimental to the State of Israel. "If I were to judge him on his ethics, he would receive a failing grade. How can someone who failed be appointed? This is a disgrace to the state. Netanyahu is legitimizing injustice." Tzemach telephoned retired Supreme Court judge Jacob Turkel and asked him to review the appointment again. "Just as I spoke with the Winograd Commission, which I said was biased and misleading, I spoke with Turkel and told him not to be a rubber stamp and check the appointment thoroughly and take into account public sentiments. In Gal Hirsch's case, he failed when it came to the results."
He noted that he would also act to prevent the appointment: "He is not suitable. If a person fails in protecting and acting and in the test of war, he cannot be 'bounced' up so that he is responsible for me, my grandchildren and my family. He cannot be trusted. I would like Turkel to review this in depth and I would like to appear before the commission. He asked to send a letter .This shows that it is a rubber stamp and will probably be approved."
David and Revital Einhorn, whose son Yehonatan was also killed in the Second Lebanon War, were also angry about the decision.
"The public has been deceived, this appointment was underhanded opportunism. Hirsch should not be in any public office because of what he did. The message this sends out is that in Israel, you can commit injustice - and you'll end up being forgiven and promoted. They count on our short memory spans and saying 'that's fine, so what if 121 bereaved families object.' It's a part of this government's disrespect to those in grief," they said.
Elipaz Baluah, who lost his son Nadav in the Battle of Maroun al-Ras, was also angry about the appointment. "It's very improper. What is he getting a reward for? What are they compensating him for? If he was unworthy of receiving a major-general's position, why is he getting a lieutenant-general's position?"
But there were other voices heard. "Apparently no one wanted to jump into a sick person's bed. I would give him a chance," said Hezi Segev, the father of Nimrod, a tank commander who was killed in the Second Lebanon War. "To his credit, he took responsibility for the death of my son. There was clearly a screw-up and poor judgment."
However, Zvi Regev the father of Eldad, whose abduction and that of Ehud Goldwasser's sparked the war, preferred not to give his opinion: "There are no bad feelings in my heart for the man."
Regev told Army Radio this morning that he was disappointed with Hirsch's appointment as police chief. "He commanded the Second Lebanon War and there were very serious losses, including my son," he said. "I have a feeling that they simply do not take the bereaved parents into account when making decisions… I can not decide if he will be the next police chief, but I see him as responsible for the abduction of my son and Ehud Goldwasser. It is bizarre how the state functions."
Along with the criticism, Regev says that he met Hirsch several times: "Maybe he did some soul-searching, maybe he learned from his terrible mistakes. During my meetings with him, I discovered a man who knows his business, he explained what occurred there. He has been successful in commanding people, I do not want to express an opinion. I'm resigned to my pain and continue to live with it."
Even politicians voiced harsh criticism of the appointment. Former MK Maj.-Gen. (res.) Elazar Stern said: "I congratulate Gal Hirsch on his appointment but it is a sad day for Israel. What this appointment really means is that there are no major generals in the police force that fit the position. The appointment is irresponsible and degrades many people. I would say the same thing about any brigadier general appointed. I hope someone will come to his senses and realize that it is not easy to learn about an organization so big and complex as the Israel Police. The bottom line is this is a sad day, and not only for the police force."
MK Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Mickey Levy, who knows the police force well, expressed his bitter disappointment: "It would have been right to choose one of the current major generals to be police chief. Unfortunately, Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan decided not to select talented people with many years of experience in the force, and chose someone who does not know the Israel Police at all; and this at a time when the force has been undergoing difficult upheavals and is now expected to deal with another blow - the retirement of its senior command leadership."
Gal Hirsch's appointment as police chief sparked fury among parents who lost sons during Second Lebanon War; former MK Maj.-Gen. (res.) Elazar Stern: 'This is a sad day for Israel.'
The decision to appoint Brig.-Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch to replace Yohanan Danino as Police Commissioner has led to a lot of anger, disappointment and mostly surprise among parents who lost their sons during the Second Lebanon War.
"It doesn't make sense for someone who failed in his job to get a kick up the ladder.
Failure in senior positions is intolerable," said Moshe Muskal, the father of fallen soldier Refanel Muskal, a fighter in the Egoz Unit who was killed in the Second Lebanon War. Moshe Nisan from Ma'aleh Adumim, whose son Yinon was killed on the last day of the Second Lebanon War when an anti-tank missile hit his tank, is furious over Hirsch's appointment: "My son was killed because of him. He's the main official I can blame - there may have been other commanders after him and under him, but he gave the order to go in (to Lebanon) in daylight, against the procedures, and because of that my son was killed.
"This appointment has opened up old wounds and is breaking our heart. I don't understand this conduct, this man is unsuitable to take on a senior position in the police."
Nisan said he was shocked when he heard of the appointment. "I had tears in my eyes. Just hearing that name makes me furious with pain. This won't pass quietly. It takes me back. They won't let us rest, they keep reopening our wounds. This government doesn't see us. We gave our sons and they don't even think about us," he said. Nisan said he and other bereaved families are planning to protest against the appointment.
"I spoke to my good friend Haim Tzemach yesterday, whose son Oz was killed with Yinon in the same tank, and I told him we must act and protest wherever necessary across the country. We will act to stop this appointment," he said. "This appointment is inappropriate, this man in unsuitable to be in such a senior role in the police. I don't have a problem with bringing people in from the outside, but not people who failed. This man failed in the abduction (of Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser), he failed in the war... he doesn't know how to function under pressure and cannot deal with senior positions."
Haim Tzemach, meanwhile, warned that the appointment would be detrimental to the State of Israel. "If I were to judge him on his ethics, he would receive a failing grade. How can someone who failed be appointed? This is a disgrace to the state. Netanyahu is legitimizing injustice." Tzemach telephoned retired Supreme Court judge Jacob Turkel and asked him to review the appointment again. "Just as I spoke with the Winograd Commission, which I said was biased and misleading, I spoke with Turkel and told him not to be a rubber stamp and check the appointment thoroughly and take into account public sentiments. In Gal Hirsch's case, he failed when it came to the results."
He noted that he would also act to prevent the appointment: "He is not suitable. If a person fails in protecting and acting and in the test of war, he cannot be 'bounced' up so that he is responsible for me, my grandchildren and my family. He cannot be trusted. I would like Turkel to review this in depth and I would like to appear before the commission. He asked to send a letter .This shows that it is a rubber stamp and will probably be approved."
David and Revital Einhorn, whose son Yehonatan was also killed in the Second Lebanon War, were also angry about the decision.
"The public has been deceived, this appointment was underhanded opportunism. Hirsch should not be in any public office because of what he did. The message this sends out is that in Israel, you can commit injustice - and you'll end up being forgiven and promoted. They count on our short memory spans and saying 'that's fine, so what if 121 bereaved families object.' It's a part of this government's disrespect to those in grief," they said.
Elipaz Baluah, who lost his son Nadav in the Battle of Maroun al-Ras, was also angry about the appointment. "It's very improper. What is he getting a reward for? What are they compensating him for? If he was unworthy of receiving a major-general's position, why is he getting a lieutenant-general's position?"
But there were other voices heard. "Apparently no one wanted to jump into a sick person's bed. I would give him a chance," said Hezi Segev, the father of Nimrod, a tank commander who was killed in the Second Lebanon War. "To his credit, he took responsibility for the death of my son. There was clearly a screw-up and poor judgment."
However, Zvi Regev the father of Eldad, whose abduction and that of Ehud Goldwasser's sparked the war, preferred not to give his opinion: "There are no bad feelings in my heart for the man."
Regev told Army Radio this morning that he was disappointed with Hirsch's appointment as police chief. "He commanded the Second Lebanon War and there were very serious losses, including my son," he said. "I have a feeling that they simply do not take the bereaved parents into account when making decisions… I can not decide if he will be the next police chief, but I see him as responsible for the abduction of my son and Ehud Goldwasser. It is bizarre how the state functions."
Along with the criticism, Regev says that he met Hirsch several times: "Maybe he did some soul-searching, maybe he learned from his terrible mistakes. During my meetings with him, I discovered a man who knows his business, he explained what occurred there. He has been successful in commanding people, I do not want to express an opinion. I'm resigned to my pain and continue to live with it."
Even politicians voiced harsh criticism of the appointment. Former MK Maj.-Gen. (res.) Elazar Stern said: "I congratulate Gal Hirsch on his appointment but it is a sad day for Israel. What this appointment really means is that there are no major generals in the police force that fit the position. The appointment is irresponsible and degrades many people. I would say the same thing about any brigadier general appointed. I hope someone will come to his senses and realize that it is not easy to learn about an organization so big and complex as the Israel Police. The bottom line is this is a sad day, and not only for the police force."
MK Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Mickey Levy, who knows the police force well, expressed his bitter disappointment: "It would have been right to choose one of the current major generals to be police chief. Unfortunately, Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan decided not to select talented people with many years of experience in the force, and chose someone who does not know the Israel Police at all; and this at a time when the force has been undergoing difficult upheavals and is now expected to deal with another blow - the retirement of its senior command leadership."
Public security minister praises former IDF commander, dismissing criticism from high-ranked police officers: 'Hirsch knows the police from his previous roles. Let us not forget that in Israel, the police operates differently than in other countries because terrorism and rioting are main part of police operations.'
Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan on Wednesday defended his decision to appoint Brig.-Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch as the new police commissioner amid rising criticism of the appointment from both inside and outside the Israel Police.
"My responsibility is to look for the person who, as I see it, has the biggest chance to make changes," Erdan said at the Ynet studio on Wednesday morning. "I heard from objective individuals who said he (Hirsch) acted properly and professionally (during the Second Lebanon War), and the problem was higher up the ladder with policies ect. - I will surely not disqualify a commander like that," Erdan continued. "I don't look at the rank, but at the person, his qualities and experience."
Dismissing criticism from inside the police that it would be better to appoint someone from within police ranks, the public security minister claimed that "Hirsch knows the police from his previous roles. He commanded operations in which the police took part, and let us not forget that in Israel, the police operates differently than in other countries because the issues of terrorism and rioting are a main field of operations."
Erdan said that since his release from the IDF, Hirsch has worked with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and intelligence agencies, and that "he would bring these abilities and knowledge to the Israel Police. I believe he will upgrade the police's abilities and introduce what's missing in it today."
Erdan dismissed claims that appointing someone from outside police ranks is a vote of no confidence in the Israel Police.
"The Israel Police is made of worthy people, and each of them could be a commissioner. But eventually I can only choose one and I need to assess who has the biggest chance to make a change. I thought the model of bringing a commander from outside is the most appropriate at this time. Whether that will continue being true in the future - I'm not sure."
The appointment was also harshly criticized by bereaved families of soldiers killed during the Second Lebanon War, who view Hirsch as responsible for the death of their sons. "I won't argue with bereaved families and will always bow my head to them," Erdan said. "I heard from Winograd, Eisenkot and Ya'alon, who valued Hirsh as a division commander who, unfortunately, did not receive any backing from (then-IDF chief) Halutz at the time. I was convinced a great injustice was done to him. I shouldn't disqualify him because of that injustice."
Hirsch's conduct came under scrutiny by the government-appointed Winograd Commission investigating the failures of the Second Lebanon War, as well as an internal army investigative commission headed by Maj.-Gen. (res.) Doron Almog. "There was one report by Maj.-Gen. (res.) Doron Almog, that was harsh, but at the hearing with the chief of staff and in the Winograd report, things seemed completely different," Erdan said. "So I don't think he's controversial. I won't rule out a brave fighter like that because of an injustice done to him in the past. I shouldn't perpetuate the injustice done to Hirsch. He has all of the qualities to bring out-of-the-box thinking to the table."
Erdan said his meetings with Hirsch convinced him that Hirsch was the right man for the job. "I noticed he had a great hunger to succeed and devote himself to the mission. It was one of the things that impressed me immensely and convinced me he was right for the job," he said.
The Likud minister refused, however, to elaborate on his conversation with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the appointment. "I think it is the prime minister's right and perhaps even his duty to get to know and study candidates for such an important role like the police commissioner. And still, the prime minister didn't know Hirsch before. I take responsibility for the appointment, I brought him in," he said.
Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan on Wednesday defended his decision to appoint Brig.-Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch as the new police commissioner amid rising criticism of the appointment from both inside and outside the Israel Police.
"My responsibility is to look for the person who, as I see it, has the biggest chance to make changes," Erdan said at the Ynet studio on Wednesday morning. "I heard from objective individuals who said he (Hirsch) acted properly and professionally (during the Second Lebanon War), and the problem was higher up the ladder with policies ect. - I will surely not disqualify a commander like that," Erdan continued. "I don't look at the rank, but at the person, his qualities and experience."
Dismissing criticism from inside the police that it would be better to appoint someone from within police ranks, the public security minister claimed that "Hirsch knows the police from his previous roles. He commanded operations in which the police took part, and let us not forget that in Israel, the police operates differently than in other countries because the issues of terrorism and rioting are a main field of operations."
Erdan said that since his release from the IDF, Hirsch has worked with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and intelligence agencies, and that "he would bring these abilities and knowledge to the Israel Police. I believe he will upgrade the police's abilities and introduce what's missing in it today."
Erdan dismissed claims that appointing someone from outside police ranks is a vote of no confidence in the Israel Police.
"The Israel Police is made of worthy people, and each of them could be a commissioner. But eventually I can only choose one and I need to assess who has the biggest chance to make a change. I thought the model of bringing a commander from outside is the most appropriate at this time. Whether that will continue being true in the future - I'm not sure."
The appointment was also harshly criticized by bereaved families of soldiers killed during the Second Lebanon War, who view Hirsch as responsible for the death of their sons. "I won't argue with bereaved families and will always bow my head to them," Erdan said. "I heard from Winograd, Eisenkot and Ya'alon, who valued Hirsh as a division commander who, unfortunately, did not receive any backing from (then-IDF chief) Halutz at the time. I was convinced a great injustice was done to him. I shouldn't disqualify him because of that injustice."
Hirsch's conduct came under scrutiny by the government-appointed Winograd Commission investigating the failures of the Second Lebanon War, as well as an internal army investigative commission headed by Maj.-Gen. (res.) Doron Almog. "There was one report by Maj.-Gen. (res.) Doron Almog, that was harsh, but at the hearing with the chief of staff and in the Winograd report, things seemed completely different," Erdan said. "So I don't think he's controversial. I won't rule out a brave fighter like that because of an injustice done to him in the past. I shouldn't perpetuate the injustice done to Hirsch. He has all of the qualities to bring out-of-the-box thinking to the table."
Erdan said his meetings with Hirsch convinced him that Hirsch was the right man for the job. "I noticed he had a great hunger to succeed and devote himself to the mission. It was one of the things that impressed me immensely and convinced me he was right for the job," he said.
The Likud minister refused, however, to elaborate on his conversation with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the appointment. "I think it is the prime minister's right and perhaps even his duty to get to know and study candidates for such an important role like the police commissioner. And still, the prime minister didn't know Hirsch before. I take responsibility for the appointment, I brought him in," he said.