J Street works to promote an open, honest and rigorous conversation about Israel. The opinions reflected in articles posted in the News Roundup do not necessarily reflect J Street’s positions, and their posting does not constitute an endorsement from J Street.
Palestinian Killed by Israeli Fire in the West Bank, Palestinian Health Ministry Says, Haaretz
A Palestinian man was killed by Israeli army fire in the village of Ya’bad near the West Bank city of Jenin, the Palestinian Health Ministry reported Wednesday. The man was reportedly killed as the IDF was encircling the home of a former Palestinian prisoner, demanding that he turn himself in. It is still unclear if the man was the individual the Israeli forces were after.
Likud Said Aiming To Pass Legislative Blitz Next Week, May Delay Government Creation, The Times of Israel
Expected incoming prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party is reportedly planning a controversial legislative blitz as early as next week to enable it to fulfill promises it has made to political allies, while it gears up to ask President Isaac Herzog for an extension of the current December 11 deadline for forming a government.
Report: Many Female Israeli Conscripts Suffer Sexual Abuse, AP
Roughly one in four women performing compulsory national service in Israel’s police force and prison service have suffered sexual abuse on the job, according to a report by Israel’s official government watchdog agency.
No Politician to Interfere in Our Decisions,’ Israeli Military Chief Warns Ben-Gvir, Haaretz
While an Israeli military investigation affirmed the 10-day jail sentence handed down to a soldier who threatened left-wing activist in Hebron, Itamar Ben-Gvir has publicly challenged the punishment, landing him in a heated dispute with IDF chief Aviv Kochavi.
Iran Committed to Thailand That It Won’t Target Israeli Tourists, Cable Says, Axios
The government of Thailand notified the Israeli government that it received a commitment from Iran not to conduct attacks against Israeli targets on Thai soil, according to an Israeli Foreign Ministry cable and two Israeli officials briefed on the matter.
Lapid: New Gov’t ‘Turning IDF Soldiers Against Their Commanders’, The Jerusalem Post
IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kohavi and outgoing Prime Minister Yair Lapid blasted the presumed incoming government led by Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday for attempting to interfere with command decisions and for turning IDF soldiers against their commanders.
Biden Should Respond Boldly to a Radical Netanyahu Government, The Washington Post
Aaron David Miller and Daniel C. Kurtzer argue, “It is important to recognize that previous crises in U.S.-Israeli relations have occurred in the context of peace negotiations. For a U.S. president to put pressure on a democratically elected Israeli government would be unprecedented and controversial. But Israel has never before embarked on such a dangerous course. Political will matters, and this is a moment for Biden to show American strength and resolve.”
Disavowing Past Restraint, Netanyahu Threatens to Burn Israel to the Ground, Haaretz
Alon Pinkas writes, “Benjamin Netanyahu was never a liberal democrat, but he wasn’t an extremist either, until his unexpected election victory in 2015 and then his 2019 indictment. Now he’s ready to tick the far-right’s grim checklist to save his own skin.”
