An example of distinctively Israeli, stone-blind hypocrisy.  There seems to be a bit of a double standard in this country on the subject of BDS. For instance, we're all supposed to be sneering in triumph over Alicia Keys' decision to resist calls to cancel her Tel Aviv concert next month. No sane Israeli can support a boycott of this country, can he? Over what, the occupation? Out of the question. But at the same time, no sane Israeli is supposed to oppose the UN sanctions on Iran, unless of course he thinks they're too lenient or that they're delaying the bombing…

Instead of a budget that slashes money for important environmental projects, an Israeli “Green New Deal” will bring hope for economic growth and advance the wellbeing of all echelons of society. By Mossi Raz A threefold crisis has developed in Israel in recent years. The most prominent crisis, most often featured in the media, is economic: manifested mainly in the state budget’s shortfalls. Israel is facing a budget deficit caused by a decline in the state’s income from direct taxation, a just method in theory, but not when implemented through Netanyahu’s misguided policy of reducing corporate tax payments, as a…

John Kerry: Hey, Abu! Abu! Over here! Come here a sec! Abu Mazen: What? Kerry: Come here a sec, we wanna take a pic. Abu Mazen: For what? Shimon Peres: Just do it. Kerry: Whaddya mean ‘for what’? Cuz we’re here! All three of us! Abu Mazen: So? Peres: Just do it. Kerry: Come on! Let’s do the three-way shake! Abu Mazen: But why? We haven’t agreed on anything. FIRST you do the agreement, THEN you do the shake thingy! Peres: Just do it. Kerry: Just come here already! There... good. Now give me your hand. And give Shimon your…

When Israel remembers the Holocaust, why does it think only of Jews? History has proven time and again that the Jews are not unique for having suffered genocidal policies. The many debates about preventing such tragedies have so far not helped populations that suffered mass killings and expulsions, with intent to destroy them for their national, religious or ethnic identity - even in recent decades. Therefore the politicization of the Armenian genocide in Israel in the context of Israel-Turkey relations, described with great eloquence by Akiva Eldar in al-Monitor, is not only wrong; it calls into question whether Israel is…

Today is not only a day of sadness for fallen Israeli soldiers, it's also one of public declarations that all those bloody conflicts were righteous and necessary - just like the current ones and those that lie ahead.  Maybe in another country, a country that goes to war once in a generation or longer, Memorial Day can be a day strictly of sadness for the soldiers who were killed, and can even be a day to look back and ask: Was that war, or the one before it, really necessary? Did some of these soldiers we're mourning, did this family's…

Despite her direct responsibility for two wars which took the lives of 2,000 civilians, and her uncompromising, hawkish positions during negotiations with the Palestinians, Tzipi Livni is still considered an acceptable choice for the Israeli 'peace camp.' It is time for the public to stop believing the lies.  By Idan Landau On November 27, 2012, Tzipi Livni announced that she will be running for the upcoming elections as part of the newly-foundd Hatnua party, which presents itself as a diplomatic alternative to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The party seeks to promote the peace processs wth Palestinian Authority and supports two…

The recent controversy over remarks made by President Peres regarding negotiations with Palestinians exposes how the 'center-left' pays lip service to the two-state solution, while still preferring a one-state solution with Jewish supremacy. During the current election campaign, two of the most popular party leaders identified with the center-left have done almost everything in their power to avoid saying anything left-sounding on the Palestinian topic. Yair Lapid, leader (and personification) of Yesh Atid, and Shelly Yechimovitch, head of the Labor party, have often tried to position themselves to the right of this issue (Yachimovitch saying nice things about settlements, Lapid opposing…

Netanyahu didn't invent the E-1 dealbreaker that's got the world so mad at him; it goes back to Rabin and reflects overwhelming Israeli opinion. Except for right wingers, people look at the outrage over Bibi's revival of the E-1 plan, which would connect Jerusalem and the eastward Ma'aleh Adumim settlement with thousands of new homes, and say: Well, that's Bibi for you, picking fights for no good reason. Who needs more settlement construction? But if you ask them - "them" meaning all but the left-wing fringe among Israeli Jews and the country's supporters abroad - whether they're willing to give…

Netanyahu called them a bluff, but Peres, Barak, Olmert and Livni called them 'brave.' With luck, they could be a catalyst for shaking things up around here.   To Israelis who genuinely support the two-state solution, Mahmoud Abbas' interview on Channel 2 last Friday was remarkably far-reaching and courageous, especially what he said about the right of return. Referring to Safed, the Galilee town his family and other Palestinian residents fled during the 1948 war, he said in English: It is my right to see it, but not to live there. This enraged Palestinians; thousands of Gazans protested and burned…

The rhetoric of Israel’s prime minister and defense minister stands at odds with what seems like a growing recognition that Israel will not attack the Iranian nuclear facilities on its own. There is an absolute consensus in the Israeli security establishment that striking the Iranian nuclear facilities now, without the support or the approval of the United States, is complete madness. Despite a massive campaign on this issue, the public is still split – with a slight majority for those opposing the war - and so is the political system. Under these conditions, which haven’t really changed in the last…

An uprising within the Israeli establishment is preventing an insane war from being started. In how many other countries could such a thing happen? This is a proud moment for Israel's democracy. People don't realize what a miracle is taking place in this country. A revolt by the Israeli military/intelligence establishment and Israel's best reporters, helped along by President Shimon Peres and ultimately enabled by the Obama administration, is stopping an insane war from being launched by Israel's two ideologically insane political leaders, a war they've been planning for years. The eight-member inner cabinet, or "octet," which in recent weeks has been reported to be split evenly between pro-war and anti-war ministers, has now tilted…

Is Mofaz following Begin's example from 1967 – and will he be vindicated with a war with Iran? Let's begin with the positive sides of the Netanyahu-Mofaz deal. The weak joke named Yair Lapid won't last 18 more months, so the danger the Israeli public will once more waste precious votes on a seasonal feel-good party is lessened. Lapid whined about the deal this morning (Hebrew), though one can hardly understand why. Lapid said before that he would join any  future government, and denounced former Kadima leader Tzipi Livni for not joining Netanyahu's. So why the bee in his bonnet?…

The Americans are convinced Pollard - who spied on behalf of Israel in the 1980's - didn't act alone, and have made it clear that if Israel gives up the other name(s), he can go free. It's been a mystery for many years why Jonathan Pollard is still in prison, why U.S. president after president refuses to pardon him. The reason in the minds of his hardcore right-wing supporters, those who see him as a Jewish hero, is anti-Israeli/anti-Semitic feeling high up in Washington, which is too stupid and rotten a claim to bother refuting. No, it has to be an American belief that freeing Pollard could do further damage to U.S. security, because…