Yom Chamishee
Thursday
26 Elul 5782
September 22 2022
The Quote of the Day
“Netanyahu’s statement is a terrible irresponsibility. It is a violation of the Israeli government’s negotiations, a violation of our security, political, and economic interests.”
PM Yair Lapid responding to a video released by former PM Netanyahu yesterday
In that video, Netanyahu pointed out precisely the same fact that your humble servant has repeated in this blog, namely that production at the Karish (Shark) natural gas platform was postponed because of a craven response by our government to the threats of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Netanyahu’s statement is absolutely responsible. The main person violating Israel’s “security, political, and economic interests” is Yair Lapid. See Today’s Blog below.
The News on the Israeli Street
A follow up to the gruesome murder in Holon . . .
The 84-year-old woman bludgeoned to death was Shulamit Rachel Ovadia the mother of three and grandmother of many. She was also the primary health provider for her husband.
The Palestinian terrorist who murdered her was found dead at a construction site in Tel Aviv yesterday; he apparently hung himself.
It now turns out that the terrorist was investigated by the police last week after arousing the suspicion of a municipal inspector who gave his name to Shin Bet. However, for unknown reasons, Shin Bet ordered him released.
Shulamit Rachel Ovadia paid the price for this incompetence and “Defense” Minister Gantz’s concessions to the PLO with her life.
Consumer frenzy . . .
Hundreds of people have been waiting all night for at the Sharona complex in Tel Aviv for the chance to buy a iPhone 14. Click here to see the crowd.
Meanwhile, just across the way at the Azrieli Mall, hundreds of teenagers rioted as they tried to get into a Nike store.
TODAY’S BLOG
No Mandate From The Knesset Or The Israeli People
Let’s begin by reviewing the facts.
Prime Minister Yair Lapid has no mandate from the Knesset and no mandate from the Israeli people.
He became Prime Minister of Israel after the Coalition government fell apart back in June. He simply took over from PM Naftali Bennett (who similarly had no mandates) because of a previous agreement that he would take over in the case that the government fell.
Thus, Yair Lapid is the head of a transitional caretaker government which is meant to administer Israel’s daily affairs until a new government is sworn in after the November 1 election.
But what has happened is that Lapid has gone off the deep end.
He is on the verge of signing Israel’s name to an agreement which will relinquish maritime territory to Lebanon–a move that has aroused bitter opposition because it ignores the Basic Law that was passed in 2014 that demands that no territorial changes be made without a national referendum. Whether that Law will stop Lapid will soon be decided by the Israel Supreme Court.
Tonight at around 9 pm Israel time, Lapid is set to address the United Nations. Purporting to speak for Israel, he will outline his vision of the future with the Palestinians. That vision will express support for a two-state solution–in other words, Lapid will expressly call for a Palestinian state. He will apparently state that such a state cannot be established without security guarantees for Israel–but the guarantees Lapid envision are currently unknown.
You may recall that when then-PM Netanyahu famously stated support for a Palestinian state in his 2009 address at Bar Ilan University, he made it clear that Israel would not relinquish Area C of Judea and Samaria, the Jordan Valley, or any part of Jerusalem. He also demanded that the PLO be disarmed.
Lapid’s press team ludicrously stated today that Lapid feels that it is important to make this two-state declaration in the midst of the current election campaign so that Israeli voters will know exactly where he stands and what his vision is.
Of course, he could have made the same announcement from his office in Jerusalem instead of from the podium at the United Nations, but that obviously would not have had the same impact. By doing so at the U.N., Lapid is obviously trying to tie Israel’s hands concerning future “negotiations” with the PLO.
After the speech, the whole world will feel free to exert all the pressure it wants on us.
And the Palestinians will ramp up terror attacks against Israelis.
As the Almagor Terror Victims Association pointed out today: “Past experience shows that actions such as [Lapid’s declaration] only cause an increase in the number of attacks and victims. Since the Oslo Accords, Israel has paid twice as many victims over a parallel period that preceded the agreement.”
Ironically, we have many of those who abandoned “the right” by joining the Coalition government such as Naftali Bennett, Ayelet Shaked, and Gideon Sa’ar denouncing Lapid’s upcoming speech. Shaked commented today: Lapid has “no public legitimacy to entangle Israel with statements that cause damage to the country.” Nevertheless, she, Saar, and Bennett all remain in the transition government.
A student from Malawi, who had worked with an Israeli health volunteer in his country battling AIDS, came up to us as we walked down the street in the UC-Davis Picnic Day Parade and wanted to carry the Israeli flag.