15 may 2019
Amid diplomatic crisis over Holocaust restitution, Marek Magierowski attacked in broad daylight near his embassy by someone shouting 'Polish' at him; assailant arrested shortly after incident
Poland's ambassador to Israel was assaulted in broad daylight on Tuesday afternoon near the Polish embassy in Tel Aviv by an assailant who apparently shouted curse words at the envoy as he struck him.
The attack comes amid the growing diplomatic tension between the two countries, as the former Soviet-backed nation refuses to pay restitution to Holocaust survivors and downplays the county’s involvement in Nazi-orchestrated atrocities.
Marek Magierowski said he was outside the embassy on Soutine Street in Tel Aviv when a man suddenly attacked him and shouted - most likely curse words in Hebrew - at the envoy. The stunned ambassador said all he could understand were the words "Polish, Polish."
Polish officials immediately filed a police complaint, while the envoy also lodged a formal complaint with the Foreign Ministry.
Meron Reuben, the chief of state protocol of the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, asked the Israel Police and the officials responsible for embassy security to prioritize the issue in order to avoid further attacks. The ambassador also said he managed to take a picture of the attacker and his vehicle as he fled.
The perpetrator was arrested by police and brought in for questioning less than an hour after the incident. The Israel Police is now investigating whether the suspect was involved in additional attacks.
The Polish ambassador praised the police for a swift response and effective cooperation throughout the ordeal.
Poland's ambassador to Israel was assaulted in broad daylight on Tuesday afternoon near the Polish embassy in Tel Aviv by an assailant who apparently shouted curse words at the envoy as he struck him.
The attack comes amid the growing diplomatic tension between the two countries, as the former Soviet-backed nation refuses to pay restitution to Holocaust survivors and downplays the county’s involvement in Nazi-orchestrated atrocities.
Marek Magierowski said he was outside the embassy on Soutine Street in Tel Aviv when a man suddenly attacked him and shouted - most likely curse words in Hebrew - at the envoy. The stunned ambassador said all he could understand were the words "Polish, Polish."
Polish officials immediately filed a police complaint, while the envoy also lodged a formal complaint with the Foreign Ministry.
Meron Reuben, the chief of state protocol of the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, asked the Israel Police and the officials responsible for embassy security to prioritize the issue in order to avoid further attacks. The ambassador also said he managed to take a picture of the attacker and his vehicle as he fled.
The perpetrator was arrested by police and brought in for questioning less than an hour after the incident. The Israel Police is now investigating whether the suspect was involved in additional attacks.
The Polish ambassador praised the police for a swift response and effective cooperation throughout the ordeal.
13 may 2019
The Polish government canceled an official visit by an Israeli delegation, on late Sunday, noting that the Israeli government made last-minute changes that suggested it would focus on the issue of the restitution of former Jewish property.
Poland's Foreign Ministry announced the cancelation on Sunday, while the Israeli delegation’s visit was scheduled for Monday to apparently discuss restitution for property seized from Jews during the Holocaust.
In a tweet, Poland's Foreign Ministry claimed that due to the Israeli government making last-minute changes to the composition of the delegation, it suggested that talks would be primarily focus on property restitution.
Polish Prime Minister, Mateusz Jakub Morawiecki, spoke during a political gathering in Poland and stressed that his country would not pay compensation for property lost in World War II and that Poland itself was a victim of the Nazi regime.
A large demonstration was held over the weekend, made up of thousands of Polish nationalists, marched to the United States embassy in Warsaw, in protest of the so-called “JUST Act,” which was signed into law in 2018 by US President Donald Trump, requiring the State Department report to Congress on the state of restitution of property seized in the Holocaust in dozens of European countries.
Demonstrators held up signs and placards, reading, “Poland has no obligations” and “We say no to the giveaway of heirless property.”
Many believe that if restitution is approved, Poland’s economy would lose up to $300 billion.
Poland was occupied by Nazis during World War II, during which the country suffered extensive material losses, and demonstrators argued that it is unfair to demand Poland to compensate Jews when Poland itself has never received adequate compensation from Germany.
Poland's Foreign Ministry announced the cancelation on Sunday, while the Israeli delegation’s visit was scheduled for Monday to apparently discuss restitution for property seized from Jews during the Holocaust.
In a tweet, Poland's Foreign Ministry claimed that due to the Israeli government making last-minute changes to the composition of the delegation, it suggested that talks would be primarily focus on property restitution.
Polish Prime Minister, Mateusz Jakub Morawiecki, spoke during a political gathering in Poland and stressed that his country would not pay compensation for property lost in World War II and that Poland itself was a victim of the Nazi regime.
A large demonstration was held over the weekend, made up of thousands of Polish nationalists, marched to the United States embassy in Warsaw, in protest of the so-called “JUST Act,” which was signed into law in 2018 by US President Donald Trump, requiring the State Department report to Congress on the state of restitution of property seized in the Holocaust in dozens of European countries.
Demonstrators held up signs and placards, reading, “Poland has no obligations” and “We say no to the giveaway of heirless property.”
Many believe that if restitution is approved, Poland’s economy would lose up to $300 billion.
Poland was occupied by Nazis during World War II, during which the country suffered extensive material losses, and demonstrators argued that it is unfair to demand Poland to compensate Jews when Poland itself has never received adequate compensation from Germany.
12 may 2019
Religious parties set to demand exclusive rights to new neighborhoods of existing cities that will be separate from the rest of the urban area, but will still enjoy all the municipal features of those locations
The ultra-Orthodox parties are focused on the Housing Ministry and control of Israel's Land Authority as part of negotiations to join Benjamin Netanyahu's new coalition, indicating they will make new neighborhoods already being planned exclusive to the ultra-Orthodox community.
According to religious MKs, outgoing Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon's policy for subsidized housing, resulted in a shortage of homes for the ultra-Orthodox community, as it allowed all sectors of the population to benefit from reduced housing costs.
The ultra-Orthodox prefer to live in separate areas where they are not exposed to a non-religious population. However, cities and communities built exclusively for ultra-Orthodox residents, many of whom do not work and therefore do not pay taxes, are considered among the poorest in the country.
The ultra-Orthodox parties are focused on the Housing Ministry and control of Israel's Land Authority as part of negotiations to join Benjamin Netanyahu's new coalition, indicating they will make new neighborhoods already being planned exclusive to the ultra-Orthodox community.
According to religious MKs, outgoing Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon's policy for subsidized housing, resulted in a shortage of homes for the ultra-Orthodox community, as it allowed all sectors of the population to benefit from reduced housing costs.
The ultra-Orthodox prefer to live in separate areas where they are not exposed to a non-religious population. However, cities and communities built exclusively for ultra-Orthodox residents, many of whom do not work and therefore do not pay taxes, are considered among the poorest in the country.
Two large residential neighborhoods being planned in Kiryat Gat and Yavneh, cities south of Tel Aviv, are to be built east of the existing city zone, separated from the city centers and other neighborhoods but still reliant on municipal services.
Planning commission meetings are currently held behind closed doors because residents are expected to resist separate areas for a large ultra-Orthodox influx, fearing it will ultimately result in a change to the character of their towns.
Outgoing Interior Minister Aryeh Deri made his party's intentions known before the last elections. The United Torah Judaism party declined to comment.
Planning commission meetings are currently held behind closed doors because residents are expected to resist separate areas for a large ultra-Orthodox influx, fearing it will ultimately result in a change to the character of their towns.
Outgoing Interior Minister Aryeh Deri made his party's intentions known before the last elections. The United Torah Judaism party declined to comment.
4 may 2019
Trump and Kushner in Saudi Arabia
Ahead of elections, PM Netanyahu vowed to annex settlements; Arab officials believe the plan is likely to be decidedly pro-Israel since the Trump administration has taken a tough line toward Palestinians, cutting off aid and shuttering the PLO's office in Washington
White House senior adviser Jared Kushner said on Thursday he hopes Israel will take a hard look at President Donald Trump's upcoming Middle East peace proposal before proceeding with any plan to annex West Bank settlements.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had vowed in the waning days of a re-election campaign he won on April 9 to annex Israeli settlements in the West Bank, in a move that would be bound to trigger condemnation from the Palestinians and the Arab world and complicate the U.S. peace effort.
Kushner, speaking at a dinner of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said the Middle East peace proposal he has been putting together was close to release and that Israel and the Palestinians should wait to see it before making any unilateral moves.
He said the issue would be discussed with the Israeli government when Netanyahu forms a governing coalition.
"I hope both sides will take a real look at it, the Israeli side and the Palestinian side, before any unilateral steps are made," Kushner said, adding he had not discussed the issue of settlement annexation with Netanyahu.
Kushner and Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt have spent the past two years developing the peace proposal in the hopes it will provide a framework for a renewed dialogue between the Israelis and Palestinians.
The Palestinians have refused to talk to the U.S. side since Trump decided to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel.
The Palestinians want to establish a state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, all territory Israel captured in 1967.
Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka, is expected to unveil his proposals in June after the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.
"What we will be able to put together is a solution that we believe is a good starting point for the political issues and then an outline for what can be done to help these people start living a better life," Kushner said.
"I was given the assignment of trying to find a solution between the two sides and I think what we'll put forward is a framework that I think is realistic ... it's executable and it's something that I do think will lead to both sides being much better off," Kushner said.
Political, economic components
Kushner has begun to take a more public role in the Trump administration since he emerged unscathed from U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe into whether the Trump presidential campaign in 2016 colluded with Russia.
Trump has relied heavily on the 38-year-old Kushner, who helped develop prison reform legislation and a new U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal and is also working on a U.S. immigration proposal.
The Middle East proposal, which has been delayed for a variety of reasons over the past 18 months, has two major components. It has a political piece that addresses core issues such as the status of Jerusalem, and an economic part that aims to help the Palestinians strengthen their economy.
Kushner has said the proposal is not an effort to impose U.S. will on the region. He has not said whether it calls for a two-state solution, a goal of past peace efforts.
On Thursday night, he called on critics to hold their fire until they are able to see the plan in its entirety.
Palestinians have voiced skepticism about the effort led by Trump's son-in-law, who was a real estate developer before joining his father-in-law as a senior White House adviser.
Arab officials and analysts believe the plan is likely to be decidedly pro-Israel since the Trump administration has taken a tough line toward Palestinians, cutting off aid and ordering the PLO's office in Washington shut.
Greenblatt has said U.S. negotiators expect Israelis and Palestinians will both be critical of some parts of the plan.
Ahead of elections, PM Netanyahu vowed to annex settlements; Arab officials believe the plan is likely to be decidedly pro-Israel since the Trump administration has taken a tough line toward Palestinians, cutting off aid and shuttering the PLO's office in Washington
White House senior adviser Jared Kushner said on Thursday he hopes Israel will take a hard look at President Donald Trump's upcoming Middle East peace proposal before proceeding with any plan to annex West Bank settlements.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had vowed in the waning days of a re-election campaign he won on April 9 to annex Israeli settlements in the West Bank, in a move that would be bound to trigger condemnation from the Palestinians and the Arab world and complicate the U.S. peace effort.
Kushner, speaking at a dinner of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said the Middle East peace proposal he has been putting together was close to release and that Israel and the Palestinians should wait to see it before making any unilateral moves.
He said the issue would be discussed with the Israeli government when Netanyahu forms a governing coalition.
"I hope both sides will take a real look at it, the Israeli side and the Palestinian side, before any unilateral steps are made," Kushner said, adding he had not discussed the issue of settlement annexation with Netanyahu.
Kushner and Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt have spent the past two years developing the peace proposal in the hopes it will provide a framework for a renewed dialogue between the Israelis and Palestinians.
The Palestinians have refused to talk to the U.S. side since Trump decided to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel.
The Palestinians want to establish a state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, all territory Israel captured in 1967.
Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka, is expected to unveil his proposals in June after the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.
"What we will be able to put together is a solution that we believe is a good starting point for the political issues and then an outline for what can be done to help these people start living a better life," Kushner said.
"I was given the assignment of trying to find a solution between the two sides and I think what we'll put forward is a framework that I think is realistic ... it's executable and it's something that I do think will lead to both sides being much better off," Kushner said.
Political, economic components
Kushner has begun to take a more public role in the Trump administration since he emerged unscathed from U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe into whether the Trump presidential campaign in 2016 colluded with Russia.
Trump has relied heavily on the 38-year-old Kushner, who helped develop prison reform legislation and a new U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal and is also working on a U.S. immigration proposal.
The Middle East proposal, which has been delayed for a variety of reasons over the past 18 months, has two major components. It has a political piece that addresses core issues such as the status of Jerusalem, and an economic part that aims to help the Palestinians strengthen their economy.
Kushner has said the proposal is not an effort to impose U.S. will on the region. He has not said whether it calls for a two-state solution, a goal of past peace efforts.
On Thursday night, he called on critics to hold their fire until they are able to see the plan in its entirety.
Palestinians have voiced skepticism about the effort led by Trump's son-in-law, who was a real estate developer before joining his father-in-law as a senior White House adviser.
Arab officials and analysts believe the plan is likely to be decidedly pro-Israel since the Trump administration has taken a tough line toward Palestinians, cutting off aid and ordering the PLO's office in Washington shut.
Greenblatt has said U.S. negotiators expect Israelis and Palestinians will both be critical of some parts of the plan.
2 may 2019
Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamed has described Israel as a terrorist nation and the root cause of instability in the world.
Addressing youths at Al Sharq Annual Conference 2019 in Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian leader stressed that the time had come for the international community to stand together and end Israel’s occupation of Palestine.
“Apartheid, genocide, crimes against humanity, crimes of aggression and all the evil that mankind can inflict on others can be compiled in Palestine — courtesy of the barbaric, arrogant, terrorist nation called Israel.”
“Until and unless the international community is committed to finding a solution to bring an end to the occupation of the land belonging to the Palestinians, the region and the rest of the world will not have much of a chance for stability and order,” he said in his keynote address before opening the conference, held the first time in Malaysia.
His remarks received overwhelming applause from the participants.
Mahathir also said the senseless murder of innocent people continued in the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq by the US-led coalition in 2001 and 2003 which had seen more tumult than stability in the region before the Arab Springs came about.
“Nations like Syria, Libya and Yemen today provide images of a human tragedy while the rest of the world watch helplessly.”
“Their sufferings did not originate from internal strife but rather interference and interventions from external powers which obviously were doing it out of self-interest, disguised under the veil of democracy and human rights,” he said.
The premier underlined that ancient civilizations or rather these cradles of civilization were pummeled to pulp by present day powers that have styled themselves as the leaders of modern-day civilization.
“There is nothing civilized in their actions or behavior. The only thing they can showcase is technology capable of producing weaponry that are extremely efficient in maiming, killing and murdering people by the thousands,” he stressed.
Addressing youths at Al Sharq Annual Conference 2019 in Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian leader stressed that the time had come for the international community to stand together and end Israel’s occupation of Palestine.
“Apartheid, genocide, crimes against humanity, crimes of aggression and all the evil that mankind can inflict on others can be compiled in Palestine — courtesy of the barbaric, arrogant, terrorist nation called Israel.”
“Until and unless the international community is committed to finding a solution to bring an end to the occupation of the land belonging to the Palestinians, the region and the rest of the world will not have much of a chance for stability and order,” he said in his keynote address before opening the conference, held the first time in Malaysia.
His remarks received overwhelming applause from the participants.
Mahathir also said the senseless murder of innocent people continued in the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq by the US-led coalition in 2001 and 2003 which had seen more tumult than stability in the region before the Arab Springs came about.
“Nations like Syria, Libya and Yemen today provide images of a human tragedy while the rest of the world watch helplessly.”
“Their sufferings did not originate from internal strife but rather interference and interventions from external powers which obviously were doing it out of self-interest, disguised under the veil of democracy and human rights,” he said.
The premier underlined that ancient civilizations or rather these cradles of civilization were pummeled to pulp by present day powers that have styled themselves as the leaders of modern-day civilization.
“There is nothing civilized in their actions or behavior. The only thing they can showcase is technology capable of producing weaponry that are extremely efficient in maiming, killing and murdering people by the thousands,” he stressed.
29 apr 2019
Israeli channel 11 revealed, on Sunday, that the Israeli Finance Ministry, prior to the elections,had transferred NIS 660 million to Palestinian banks as an attempt to impose a fait accompli on the Palestinian Authority to accept the incomplete tax revenues.
In February, Israel decided to cut the sum of money which it collects on behalf of and passes to the PA, who distributes it, in salaries to employees and prisoner families.
The PA refused to accept the funds because Israel deducted the money allocated to families of the slain and prisoners, whom it calls terrorists.
The channel warned that the PA could be heading towards a collapse in economy, adding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Minister of Finance Moshe Kahlon, to discuss ways to persuade the PA to accept the deductions.
PNN further notes that the cuts lead to a financial crisis, where the PA decided to pay its employees half of the salary and to reduce expenses, saying that Israel was waging a financial war by deducting money that is originally for the PA.
In February, Israel decided to cut the sum of money which it collects on behalf of and passes to the PA, who distributes it, in salaries to employees and prisoner families.
The PA refused to accept the funds because Israel deducted the money allocated to families of the slain and prisoners, whom it calls terrorists.
The channel warned that the PA could be heading towards a collapse in economy, adding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Minister of Finance Moshe Kahlon, to discuss ways to persuade the PA to accept the deductions.
PNN further notes that the cuts lead to a financial crisis, where the PA decided to pay its employees half of the salary and to reduce expenses, saying that Israel was waging a financial war by deducting money that is originally for the PA.
15 apr 2019
Activists from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party wore some 1,200 hidden cameras at polling stations in Arab towns across the country during Israel’s national election on Tuesday.
Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel sent an urgent letter [pdf] to senior Israeli legal officials on Thursday, 11 April 2019, calling for a criminal investigation into the Likud party’s planting of thousands of hidden cameras in Israeli polling stations.
Multiple media reports indicated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party – the apparent election victors – deployed party activists with as many as 1,200 hidden cameras to polling stations in Arab communities during Tuesday’s national parliamentary election.
Numerous videos from polling stations in Arab communities across Israel testify to harm to voters and a disturbance of the voting process as a result of the cameras.
On late Thursday afternoon, Adalah sent a letter to Israeli Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, State Prosecutor Shai Nitzan, and Police Northern District Commander Alon Asour, calling on them to open a criminal investigation into the affair, due to suspicions of election interference and invasion of voter privacy.
In one video, shot in a polling station in the Palestinian Arab city of Umm al-Fahm in northern Israel, a member of the Likud Party was seen wearing carrying a pen camera on his shirt collar. Poll supervisors from other parties demanded he reveal what was in the pen; he refused and then asked they step outside. Police eventually intervened and voting at the station was halted during the incident.
Another video, also filmed in Umm al-Fahm, shows a Likud committee member with a camera. When asked by the other members of the polling station why he was carrying a camera and taking pictures, he replied that he was employed by the Likud party. Voting was also halted during this incident.
Media reports documenting the use of hidden cameras were brought to the attention of the Central Elections Committee (CEC) by the Hadash-Ta’al party. CEC Chairman Justice Melcer issued instructions calling for the return of the cameras and equipment to their owners, imposed a ban on photography at polling stations except in exceptional cases.
Article 119 of Israel’s Knesset Elections Law designates election interference a criminal offense. Melcer’s response, however, did not address the criminal aspects of Tuesday’s actions.
Adalah Deputy General Director Attorney Sawsan Zaher wrote in the letter:
“There is no doubt that the placement of cameras had an adverse effect on voters’ trust and impinged upon their privacy. The planting of cameras at polling stations deterred voters from exercising their right to vote… [This] led to disruptions during the voting process and influenced the manner in which elections must be free and confidential.”
Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel sent an urgent letter [pdf] to senior Israeli legal officials on Thursday, 11 April 2019, calling for a criminal investigation into the Likud party’s planting of thousands of hidden cameras in Israeli polling stations.
Multiple media reports indicated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party – the apparent election victors – deployed party activists with as many as 1,200 hidden cameras to polling stations in Arab communities during Tuesday’s national parliamentary election.
Numerous videos from polling stations in Arab communities across Israel testify to harm to voters and a disturbance of the voting process as a result of the cameras.
On late Thursday afternoon, Adalah sent a letter to Israeli Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, State Prosecutor Shai Nitzan, and Police Northern District Commander Alon Asour, calling on them to open a criminal investigation into the affair, due to suspicions of election interference and invasion of voter privacy.
In one video, shot in a polling station in the Palestinian Arab city of Umm al-Fahm in northern Israel, a member of the Likud Party was seen wearing carrying a pen camera on his shirt collar. Poll supervisors from other parties demanded he reveal what was in the pen; he refused and then asked they step outside. Police eventually intervened and voting at the station was halted during the incident.
Another video, also filmed in Umm al-Fahm, shows a Likud committee member with a camera. When asked by the other members of the polling station why he was carrying a camera and taking pictures, he replied that he was employed by the Likud party. Voting was also halted during this incident.
Media reports documenting the use of hidden cameras were brought to the attention of the Central Elections Committee (CEC) by the Hadash-Ta’al party. CEC Chairman Justice Melcer issued instructions calling for the return of the cameras and equipment to their owners, imposed a ban on photography at polling stations except in exceptional cases.
Article 119 of Israel’s Knesset Elections Law designates election interference a criminal offense. Melcer’s response, however, did not address the criminal aspects of Tuesday’s actions.
Adalah Deputy General Director Attorney Sawsan Zaher wrote in the letter:
“There is no doubt that the placement of cameras had an adverse effect on voters’ trust and impinged upon their privacy. The planting of cameras at polling stations deterred voters from exercising their right to vote… [This] led to disruptions during the voting process and influenced the manner in which elections must be free and confidential.”
