Today’s Top Stories
1. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly considering firing Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely over critical comments she made about American Jews.
Hotovely was discussing tensions between Israel and US Jewry over peace efforts and mixed prayer at the Western Wall on i24 News when she accused American Jews who criticize Israel of “not understanding the complexities of the region,” said that they “never send their children to fight for their country,” and “don’t feel how it feels to be attacked by rockets.”
Watch the full interview and draw your own conclusions.
2. Israeli-Saudi diplomatic flirting continued as Riyadh’s ambassador France visited the Grand Synagogue of Paris. Ambassador Khalid bin Mohammed Al Angari and the Secretary General of the Muslim World League were hosted by France’s Chief Rabbi Haim Korsia and the synagogue’s rabbi, Moshe Sebbag, the Jerusalem Post reports.
In recent days, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gadi Eisenkot gave an unprecedented interview to a Saudi newspaper, and cabinet minister Yuval Steinitz disclosed covert ties between the two countries.
There's more! #Saudi Ambassador just happened to drop into a Paris synagogue. As you do, or not, because there isn't a single synagogue in #SaudiArabia https://t.co/LcJWqbwo5B
— KendoDodd (@KendoDodd) November 23, 2017
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3. Israel deported a Turkish journalist, reportedly on the grounds that he was one of the passengers aboard the Mavi Marmara. Hurriyet didn’t seek any explanation from Israel.
“I am being deported from Tel Aviv where I came to go to Jerusalem on grounds that I was a Mavi Marmara passenger,” Gümü? said in a tweet.
“The tyrant captivity in Israel is finally ending. I am now returning to Istanbul on a Turkish Airlines flight after I was kept for six hours. Moreover, I witnessed that the Mavi Marmara, which led to my deportation tonight, opened a deep wound in the heart of Zionism that will never heal,” he added.
4. Politicizing a Family Death in the New York Times: It’s incredibly cynical to turn a family death into an opportunity to bash Israel on behalf of a politicized organization such as Amnesty International.
5. Ill-Defined: Google and Oxford Dictionary’s ‘Jew’ Issues: HonestReporting prompted a correction with Google Translate, but found the problem goes deeper.
Israel and the Palestinians
• According to an Arab media report picked up by Haaretz, Mahmoud Abbas refused to take a phone call from Jared Kushner following the PA’s decision to sever ties with the US. The White House denied the report.
Meanwhile, the State Dept. said that its warning about the closure of the PLO’s Washington office was mandated by law. A few Arab American groups have offered the PLO office space if it’s shut down.
• Palestinian factions agreed to hold general election by the end of 2018. But don’t hold your breath waiting; the last time the Palestinians were set to vote, balloting was cancelled thanks to Hamas-Fatah feuding and a court ruling, providing ample opportunities for finger-pointing in all directions. The Palestinians haven’t held national elections since 2006.
• Kuwaiti writer Abdullah Al-Hadlaq called Israel a legitimate sovereign state, insisted that there’s no occupation, and even said the Jews are “a people returning to its promised land.” MEMRI (video or transcript) flagged his comments on Kuwait’s Alrai TV.
• Brussels says construction of Palestinian schools remains suspended even though a Belgian official was spotted at the inauguration of a new West Bank institution.
• US Vice President Mike Pence plans to address the Knesset during his mid-December Israel trip.
Around the World
What further exacerbates Israel’s concerns—“keeps me up at night” was how a government spymaster put it—is that if Trump is handing over Israel’s secrets to the Russians, then he just might as well be delivering them to Iran, Russia’s current regional ally . . .
“Trump betrayed us,” said a senior Israeli military official bluntly, his voice stern with reproach. “And if we can’t trust him, then we’re going to have to do what is necessary on our own if our back is up against the wall with Iran.”
• Britain’s Ministry of Defense is spending £78m on Israeli technology for Falkland Islands missile defense, reports the Daily Mail reports.
• Virginia synagogue burlary/vandalism suspect turns herself in to police.
Commentary
• Tweet of the day from journalist Michele Chabin:
One of the strangest things about living in Israel: There are #BlackFriday sales everywhere but most Israelis have never heard of #Thanksgiving (though the local store is selling turkey!). Happy Thanksgiving.
— Michele Chabin (@MicheleChabin1) November 23, 2017
• Here’s what else I’m reading today . . .
– Alex Fishman: Why Russia must take Israel’s interests in Syria into account
– Udi Dekel, Zvi Magen: Israel’s red lines on Iran’s foothold in Syria
– Herb Keinon: Israel’s concerns absent regarding Syria’s fate
– Ofir Haivry: A Saudi house of cards
– Prof. Victor Lieberman: Why was my voice silenced at the U. of Michigan?
Featured image: CC BY-NC smilla4;; Gumus via Facebook/Kemal Gumus; Trump CC BY-SA Gage Skidmore;
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