Today’s Top Stories
1. Angered over its guidelines for labeling settlement products, Israel suspended diplomatic contact with the European Union. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is re-assessing the EU’s role in the Mideast peace process. Despite the suspension, Israel will continue its relations with individual European states.
Meanwhile, The Media Line discussed the labeling regime, peace efforts, and European terror concerns with the EU’s envoy to Israel, Ambassador Lars Faaborg-Andersen.
2. Two of three defendants — both minors – were convicted for burning Mohammad Khdeir to death. Lawyers for the lead defendant, Yosef Haim Ben-David, managed to delay the third verdict pending an assessment of his sanity.
Khdeir, a 16-year-old Palestinian from eastern Jerusalem, was burned to death two days after the bodies of three Israeli teenagers kidnapped by Hamas were found.
3. Israel sentenced a Lebanese-born Swedish national to 18 months in prison for spying for Hezbollah.
4. “Jerusalem’s Streets Run Red With Blood”: Daily Mail’s Shocking Headline Fail: The side with the higher body count is not the victim.
5. Watchdog of the Week: Exposing CNN’s “Palestina” Map: Lorne Brown’s action is a real example of how both individuals and thousands of us together can make a real impact on the media as well as getting others to get involved.
Israel and the Intifada
• Today’s top incremental story: In their first face-to-face encounter in five years, Netanyahu and Abbas shook hands at the Paris climate change conference.
• Israeli customs agent saves Gazan’s life at border crossing
• Israel marks exodus of Jews from Arab countries.
• HonestReporting was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Maurice Ostroff. A highly respected member of Israel’s South African expat community, his thoughtful and measured insights made him one of Israel’s finest grassroots advocates, whether writing in the Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel or his memorable takedown of CNN’s God’s Warriors program for HonestReporting in 2007.
Maurice will be remembered as a genuinely lovely and engaging man who will be missed by all who had the privilege to know him.
Around the World
• Israeli journalist Zvika Klein, of Makor Rishon and nrg, filmed Parisians reacting to a slanted headline about the City of Light’s recent terror attack. Algemeiner explains what were they really looking at:
The format of the headline – purposely fabricated by nrg as an experiment — emulated that of certain international media outlets’ coverage of recent terror attacks against Israelis, creating the impression that terrorists are victims as well . . .
Klein said the aim of the video is twofold: “To make journalists more accurate and accountable; and to show that terror suffered elsewhere in the world is the same terror that we suffer from in Israel.”
• Citing security concerns, Israeli government urges educators to avoid school trips and exchange programs with Europe.
The advisory makes specific mention of France and Germany due to the particular threat of violence there, but it does not apply to the high school tours in Poland, including visits to former concentration camps, as those have dedicated security details.
• After the Paris attacks and Brussels raids, Belgium’s Jews consider new exodus.
“A few years ago it was the pensioners going, who wanted the Israeli sun,” said Mrs Dan, the manager of a Jewish radio station for 25 years. “Now it is young people with children who sell their houses and leave everything. They are scared.”
• Daily Telegraph: The UK-based Co-operative Bank shut down the Palestine Solidarity Campaign’s accounts amid fears PSC may be sponsoring terrorism. Labor Party chairman Jeremy Corbyn’s has been dragged into the story because he’s a PSC patron.
In a statement, the bank said that due to the “high risk” locations in which PSC operates and send funds to, it had to carry out “advanced due diligence checks” on their accounts to ensure that funds do not “inadvertently fund illegal or other proscribed activities”.
The statement concluded that it was “not possible to complete these checks to our satisfaction and the decision to close a number of accounts, including the PSC and some of its affiliates, is an inevitable result of this process”.
Commentary/Analysis
• Here’s what else I’m reading today . . .
– Jonathan D. Halevi: ‘Spontaneous’ intifada orchestrated by Palestinian leadership
– Raphael Ahren: The battle over EU settlement labeling has just begun
– Moshe Arens: EU labeling: No way to help Palestinians
– Mick Davis: How Israel is feeding BDS
– Edy Cohen: Jewish Nakba can no longer be ignored
– Alex Benjamin: Israel helps EU deal with new reality
Image: CC BY-NC flickr/Heidi Schachtschneider; EU CC BY flickr/bob; London Facebook/Palestine Solidarity Campaign;
For more, see yesterday’s Israel Daily News Stream and join the IDNS on Facebook.
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