"As the occupying power, Israel is responsible for the health of all the people under its control. It is outrageous that Netanyahu would use spare vaccines to reward his foreign allies while so many Palestinians in the occupied territories are still waiting."

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders

Yossi Alpher is an independent security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

Netanyahu in a Nutshell (February 22, 2021)

Q. In a nutshell? For example...

A. For example, the issue on the US-Israel agenda with the most explosive potential: Iran.

Last week, President Biden finally phoned PM Netanyahu. This was Biden’s first conversation with a Middle East leader since his inauguration, but it took place a month after Biden took office. This delay on Biden’s part was widely noticed in both Jerusalem and Washington and was understood to draw on a reservoir of Democratic resentment at Netanyahu’s highly partisan pro-Trump, pro-Republican behavior in recent years.

Q. Still, Netanyahu is also playing to his own religious-nationalist base. And he seems to be dominating the news cycle...

A. Yes, but it doesn’t seem to be helping him electorally to rally a 61-mandate majority. Last week he gave a rare, jovial half-hour interview on prime time to Israel’s leading TV news show. He completely dominated star interviewer Yonit Levi, telling endless bald-faced lies without being challenged. For example, Netanyahu claimed to Levi that “We have a budget”, when for two years he has prevented enactment of a state budget. And he claimed racist-Kahanist extremist Itamar Ben-Gvir, whom Netanyahu helped form a party list likely to enter the next Knesset, could for reasons of principle never be a minister in his next government when clearly Netanyahu, if he wins, will be electorally indebted to Ben-Gvir.

Q. And what about the strange case of the young ex-Haredi woman who crossed the Golan border to Syria?

A. She crossed a few weeks ago, of her own free will, after posting “If you don’t climb the mountain you won’t know what is waiting beyond it”. She had tried in the past to cross illegally into the Gaza Strip and Jordan. She has spent time with West Bank Palestinians, terming them “not cousins but brothers”. The 22-year-old had left her Haredi family in Modi’in Ilit, a Haredi town in the West Bank, abandoned orthodox Judaism, and become something of a free spirit with an urge for adventure. 

Q. Is there a bottom line here that links all these Netanyahu publicity stunts to Biden and Iran?

A. Indeed there is. One way or another, Netanyahu’s close relationship with Putin obviously was of prime importance here. But this is where we encounter the ultimate anomaly that brings us back to the Netanyahu-Biden relationship. Israel needs Russia’s good will in order to continue attacking Iranian forces and weaponry in Syria, where Moscow has a large military and political presence. Hence, if Putin cynically asks Israel to finance the covid vaccination of the leadership of a country (Syria) with which it is still technically at war, Netanyahu complies. 

TODAY - Thursday, February 25, 12:00 pm (Eastern)

Webinar: Israel's Left and the Upcoming Elections

Israeli citizens will go to the polls in a month to elect a new Knesset. It’s the fourth round in two years, but it’s not déjà vu. There are several new developments. One of them is Merav Michaeli’s fresh leadership at the Labor Party. As the newly elected chair of a party, Michaeli is working to revive it and remake it as a relevant, powerful force in Israeli politics.

 

What do these elections mean for Israel’s left? What alliances is Israel’s Zionist left willing to create to deny Benjamin Netanyahu another term in office? Can Israeli-Palestinian peace be on the electoral agenda when the elections are first and foremost a referendum on Netanyahu? What are the prospects of a stronger alliance between Israel’s Zionist left and the Arab minority?

PeaceCast Episode #172: Prosecuting the Occupation? with Michael Sfard

The international Criminal Court (ICC) recently ruled that it has jurisdiction over the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip — territories under Israeli occupation since 1967. This opens the path for the ICC to launch formal investigations against war crimes suspects, whether Israelis or Palestinians.

 

What does the ICC’s decision mean for Israel? How is it going to conduct investigations? Are charges against individual Israelis imminent? What is the nature of the judicial procedure? Is the threat of ICC proceedings likely to influencing the conduct of the IDF in the occupied territories, or the Israeli government’s West Bank settlement policy? Is it likely to encourage Israel to engage diplomatically with the Palestinians?

 

Today starts the holiday of Purim, the Jewish holiday of masquerades and whimsy. For the past year or so, Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu has been masquerading as a peacemaker, normalizing relations with Arab countries that were never in a state of war with Israel, while actively undermining prospects for future peace with the Palestinians. Israel’s Peace Now movement prepared this Purim depiction of Netanyahu, lambasting him as the “Peace for Peace” dove. We wish you a happy Purim. We wish us and our Israeli friends a leader who will pursue real peace with Israel’s Palestinian neighbors.

APN to Sec. Mayorkas: Revoke Trump Order Marking Settlement Products "Made in Israel"

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