Today’s Top Stories
1. The Palestinian Authority froze contacts with the US over the Trump administration’s decision to “close down” the offices of the PLO mission in Washington, Palestinian sources confirmed to the Jerusalem Post and AFP. The Washington office isn’t exactly shuttered just yet.
“What is the use of holding any meetings with them when they close our office? Our meetings begin from our office, and the arrangements are there,” Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Malki told AFP . . .
US President Donald Trump now has a 90-day window to decide whether “the Palestinians have entered into direct, meaningful negotiations with Israel” — in which case he can waive the requirement to shutter the office.
2. Hezbollah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah admits group smuggled advanced weapons to Gaza. Nasrallah said weapons “transferred” included Russian-made Kornet anti-tank missiles. But talk about burying the lede. Here’s Reuters‘ headline:
3. Iran’s putting the “finishing touches” on its land bridge to the Golan, reports Jonathan Spyer:
Abu Kamal is the last link in the much-discussed Iranian “land bridge” from the Iraq-Iran border to the Mediterranean Sea and the border with Israel.
Control of the border crossing at al-Qaim/Abu Kamal and of the roads leading west from it will enable the Iran-led regional alliance to transport fighters and weaponry in both directions, according to choice. It will mean that in a future confrontation with Hezbollah, Israel could see its enemies reinforced by supplies and volunteers from among other Iranian clients, in precisely the way that took place with such effect in the Syrian war.
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4. HR Book Review: Beyond the Green Line: Vivid thoughts of an Israeli soldier serving his new country during the Second Intifada while seeking meaning and self-identity.
5. Israel’s Economy Grows and #BDSfail: Israel’s economic data came out and guess what? The campaign to destroy Israel through economic boycotts is not only unfair, misleading and wrong, but it’s also failing.
Israel and the Palestinians
• In an interview on Israeli radio, cabinet minister Yuval Steinitz confirmed covert Israeli-Saudi ties. Steinitz didn’t elaborate. Officials in Jerusalem and Riyadh refused to comment.
“It’s the other side that is interested in keeping the ties quiet. With us, usually, there is no problem, but we respect the other side’s wish, when ties are developing, whether it’s with Saudi Arabia or with other Arab countries or other Muslim countries, and there is much more … (but) we keep it secret.”
• An IDF patrol along the Israel-Egypt border came under fire on Monday morning, injuring one soldier.
The IDF suspects that the gunfire was “spillover” from internal fighting between Egyptian forces and a Sinai-based Islamic State affiliate, but was investigating whether it may have been a deliberate attack, the army said.
• Israeli media aired unprecedented footage of Syrian mothers crossing into Israel with their sick children seeking medical treatment. Several mothers expressed deep appreciation for Israel’s assistance and said many more Syrians want to come. The Times of Israel summed up the full footage which is in Hebrew.
Speaking to the TV reporter, one Syrian mother said that, in the past, “Israel was thought of as the enemy… Now that you are helping us, most [on the Syrian side of the Golan] are with you. They love Israel. They see the true face… the reality.”
So who do they think of as “the enemy now?” the reporter asked.
“All of them: Islamic State, Hezbollah, Bashar [Assad]. They’re all the same,” answered one of the mothers.
• The army rescued three Israelis after Palestinians torched their car in Nablus on Tuesday night. It’s not clear why the three entered Nablus; it’s illegal for Israelis to enter PA-controlled Area A of the West Bank. More at the Times of Israel.
• The Saudis are facing a conundrum over possible Israeli participation in the World Chess Championship, due to be held in Riyadh next month. The Media Line explains:
If Saudi Arabia approves the visas, however, it will place itself in an awkward position regarding normalization with Israel. On the other hand, if the Saudis reject the Israeli delegation, it might lose the right to host further matches and the International Chess Federation confirmed it would not pay the tournament prizes, estimated to be millions of dollars.
The Israeli participation in the championship is based on an invitation received from the World Chess Federation.
• Seeking international help for their son’s freedom, the parents of Avera Mengistu, an Israeli held captive by Hamas, met with officials at the the United Nations and the White House, prompting Foreign Policy to ask if the Trump administration help.
• This is satire, and you have permission to laugh.
Mideast Matters
• The Pentagon says it’s staying in Syria even though Islamic State appears defeated. According to US Defense Secretary James Mattis:
The intention, he said, is to prevent the appearance of “ISIS 2.0.”
Meanwhile, the Wall St. Journal (click via Twitter) reports that the US is looking to bolster Saudi Arabia’s missile defense to deter Iran and its proxies.
Around the World
• The New York Post reports that a kids’ book called ‘P is for Palestine’ is stirring up outrage among moms.
Her book, which features colorful illustrations of Palestinian families, associates each letter of the English alphabet with Palestinian culture: “A is for Arabic, my tongue, a language that’s the 4th biggest ever sung!”
But some of the phrases and illustrations are clearly anti-Israel.
“I is for Intifada, Arabic for rising up for what is right, if you are a kid or grownup!” It shows a child on her father’s back standing before barbed wire and flashing peace signs.
From the new kid's book: "P is for Palestine"
and then no one can figure out what Palestinian children become terrorists.
(Intifada these days specifically refers to violent uprisings) pic.twitter.com/k08a80jAcx— Ari Krauss (@AriKrauss) November 19, 2017
• Rutgers University president: Rash of campus anti-Semitism is protected by the First Amendment.
• France’s Socialist Party is moving to oust a lawmaker for tweeting an image of President Emmanuel Macron widely denounced as anti-Semitic.
Gérard Filoche’s account last week showed Macron wearing a Nazi-like armband with a dollar sign and three well-known European Jews – the French economist Jacques Attali, entrepreneur Patrick Drahi and the British banking magnate Jacob Rothschild — in the background, towering over the earth, while flanked by an Israeli and American flag.
• BBC radio personality Reggie Yates apologized for an anti-Semitic comment. Earlier this month, in a podcast about today’s musicians, Yates said, “They’re independent, they’re not managed by some random fat Jewish guy from north west London, they’re managed by their brethren.”
Commentary/Analysis
• Plenty of commentary on the shifting sands of Mideast politics.
– Ron Ben-Yishai: The old agreement that will keep Iran away from Israeli border
– Dr. Mordechai Kedar: The 10 commandments of Israeli negotiations with Saudi Arabia
– Amos Harel: Israel may demand Iran leave Syria, but Russia sets the rules of the game
– Yonah Jeremy Bob: It’s a new world — where Israel shares intelligence with the Saudis
– Alex Fishman: IDF chief’s Saudi interview: A gesture from Riyadh
– Prof. Hillel Frisch: The desperate Saudi bid to prepare the state for all-out war
– Benny Avni: It’s not the Saudis destroying Lebanon — it’s Iran
– Josh Rogin: Preparing for Iran’s next move in Syria
– Bassam Tawil: Palestinians: If you do not give us everything, we cannot trust you
– Charles Bybelezer: Sadat’s visit, the peace process and the future of Israel-Arab relations
– Zev Chafets: Needed for Middle East peace: Another Anwar Sadat
– Smadar Perry: As Israel marks 40 years since Sadat’s visit, Egyptians refuse to join the party
– Yehuda Yaakov: Remembering Sadat’s legacy
– Dr. Martin Kramer: Sadat and Begin – the peacemakers
• Here’s what else I’m reading today . . .
– Ben-Dror Yemini: When you get money from pro-BDS bodies, you become part of BDS
– Daniel Seaman: In the coverage of a minor scandal, British media exhibit major anti-Semitism
– Jean Patrick Grumberg: When was the “Palestinian people” created? Google has the answer.
– Simone Rodan-Benzaquen: Muslim anti-Semitism threatens France’s democracy
– New York Post (staff-ed): The New School’s fake panel ‘to combat anti-Semitism’
Featured image: CC0 Pixabay; Syrian mother via Mako; chess CC BY-SA Edith Soto; Sadat visit via Government Press Office;
For more, see yesterday’s Israel Daily News Stream and join the IDNS on Facebook.
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