NUMBER OF DAYS UNTIL THE ISRAELI ELECTION: 46
ISRAELSTREET ENDORSES NAFTALI BENNETT
NUMBER OF TERRORIST MISSILES AND MORTARS SHOT AT SOUTHERN ISRAEL SINCE THE CEASEFIRE AGREED TO BY BENJAMIN NETANYAHU ON NOVEMBER 21, 2012:
34
UPDATES 10 am Israel time Saturday:
Meshaal (both hands on the car) in his Gaza victory cavalcade yesterday alongside Haniyeh. Can someone please explain to your humble servant why Netanyahu did not object to Meshaal coming to Gaza? And why didn't Netanyahu say something about his being there?
**Khaled Meshaal, the head of Hamas, staged a triumphant entry into Gaza yesterday amidst cheering crowds and along streets festooned with Hamas flags. In a fiery speech, Meshaal said that now that Hamas has “defeated the Zionists” in the most recent hostilities, its march will now take it to Jerusalem, Ramallah (are you listening Mahmoud Abbas?), Haifa, Yaffo (read Tel Aviv), and finally to the entire nation of “Palestine” (read Israel).
Why the Netanyahu government acceded to Meshaal’s presence in Gaza is unfathomable–especially given its apparent notification to Egypt that it would not to allow entrance of the head of Islamic Jihad. And the deafening silence yesterday of every Israeli political leader concerning Meshaal’s appearance and subsequent Hamas celebrations is pathetic.
Your humble servant should have said “almost every Israeli political leader”. There was one person yesterday who unabashedly took Netanyahu to task for abnegating his responsibility–and that person was Naftali Bennett, the leader of the Jewish Home Party that this blog endorses for Prime Minister.
An incredulous Bennett had this to say: “The government must understand that there is a common thread between Khaled Mashaal’s calls to return to Yafo (Tel Aviv) and the missiles that were recently fired on Yafo. I call on the Prime Minister to stop allowing the weekly celebrations of Hamas, expressed . . . today by an historic visit of a terrorist who triumphantly comes to Gaza. One must act decisively against terrorism.”
**Egypt continues its descent into chaos with demonstrators breaking into the presidential palace compound after cutting through the barbed wire barricades placed around it by the Egyptian Army. Both anti- and pro-Morsi forces are claiming that the demonstrators killed in recent days are their “martyrs”.
Reports indicate that Morsi’s family had to be secreted out of harm’s way in ambulances while Morsi himself has hunkered down and is more closely identifying himself with his fellow Muslim Brotherhood buddies by the minute. Morsi has announced that he is determined to have the country vote on the new Islamist Egyptian constitution and has steadfastly refused to relinquish any of the dictatorial powers he has arrogated to himself.
TODAY’S BLOG:
The line-up for the upcoming Israeli elections on January 22nd is now set. 34 political parties have submitted lists of candidates and have been certified by the Israel Elections Commission.
As you look at the following list, you will immediately note that your humble servant has classified the parties ideologically. In doing so, I have attempted to follow the self-descriptions of the parties as much as possible; however, in three cases, where a party landed was a borderline call.
In your humble servant’s opinion, the Labor, Kadima, and Tzipi Livni parties are all “Left” though they describe themselves as “center” or “center-left”. For example, in Labor’s case, there are candidates high on its list such as Merav Michaeli who can only be described as “far left”. In the case of the Tzipi Livni party, Livni’s connection to Ehud Olmert and her strenuous advocacy for Olmert’s ridiculous peace plan which would have given away Jerusalem to the Palestinians and an international consortium can only be described as “left”.
Nevertheless, I think it is fair to say that the Israeli public looks at these parties as “center-left” perhaps because there is virtually no party that is really in the “center”–except for Yesh Atid which also tends to the ‘left” on many issues.
All of which brings me to another point which is how does one evaluate who is “left” and who is “right”? In my own case–and I think most Israelis do the same–I have tried to look at each party’s emphasis on social issues and each party’s characterization of the Palestinian situation.
But this quickly leads into a quagmire of sorts. For example, the Labor party of Yachimovich is primarily concerned with social issues. The Shas party is mainly concerned with social issues involving the Sephardic orthodox population. The Tzipi Livni party is mainly concerned with Tzipi Livni.
Finally three observations:
1. Israeli democracy is more alive, rambunctious, and volatile than ever–with everyone throwing his or her hat into the ring–and every minority from Israeli-Arabs to Ethiopian immigrants having its own party or parties.
2. Most of the new parties will not garner enough votes to get into the Knesset–and most of these new parties are on the “left”. Even if each one of them only receives 500, 1000, 5000, or 10,000 votes, each one of those votes is coming at the expense of parties like Labor, Tzipi Livni, Kadima, or even perhaps Yesh Atid–all of which had hoped to lead a coalition to replace that of Netanyahu.
By contrast, there is no such problem on the “right”. There is almost no fragmentation except a small amount within the orthodox parties (and it will make no difference as to future coalition politics).
3. The extent to which Labor, Tzipi Livni, Kadima, and Yesh Atid are attacking each other is extraordinary–and extraordinarily good for Benjamin Netanyahu. Just this morning, Amir Peretz who jumped ship from Labor to Tzipi Livni two days ago has launched new attacks on Yachimovich and Labor. One would think that sometime soon these parties will focus on Netanyahu, but the longer the infighting goes on–the better it is for the “right”.
It appears that all of the “center-left” parties see the handwriting on the wall. One of the reasons that Peretz is upset with Yachimovich is that she will not rule out being in a possible coalition with Netanyahu after the elections. According to Peretz, that makes Labor “anti-peace”. However, Tzipi Livni herself came out yesterday and said that she too would not rule out being in a coalition with Netanyahu.
The fact that the center-left parties are now battling over who will enter a post-election coalition with Netanyahu instead of focusing on defeating Netanyahu speaks volumes.
This are Israeli ballots. Each ballot has the letter(s) and name of party on it. The voter chooses the ballot that has the party whose list of candidates he or she wants to vote for, places the ballot in an envelope, and puts it in a ballot box (photo Haaretz).
Herewith the lineup of political parties in the January 22, 2013 election:
On the Far Left:
Meretz. Currently has 3 seats in the Knesset–polls currently project it will win 4 seats.
Hadash. The Jewish-Arab party. Currently 4–polls project 4 again.
United Arab List/Taal/ADP. Currently 4–polls project 4 again.
Balad. (an avowedly anti-Zionist party). Currently 4–polls project 4 again.
Da’am. A new Arab workers party.
On the Left:
Covenant for the Redemption of Israel. Focused on a Palestinian state.
Green Leaf Party. Focused on legalization of marijuana and social issues.
Life of Dignity. A new party devoted to social causes.
One Future. A new party emphasizing Ethiopian rights.
The Liberal Democratic Party. A “progressive” party focusing on social issues.
Pirates. A new party self-described as “free radicals”.
New Country. A new party emphasizing democracy above religion.
Power to Influence. A party focused on lowering the cost of living.
Social Justice. A party focused on the minimum wage and national insurance.
Hope for Change. A new party focused on gender equality.
Young Green Party. A new party focused on the environment and quality of life.
Light. A new party dedicated to humanism, freedom, and equality.
Strongly Leaning to the Left:
Labor. Led by Shelly Yachimovich. Currently 8. Polls show the party winning 20 seats.
Kadima. Led by Shaul Mofaz. Currently 28. Polls show the party winning 7 seats.
The Tzipi Livni Party. A new party led by Tzipi Livni. Polls show the party winning 9 seats.
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Pensioners. A new party focusing on issues facing retirees.
Economics. A new party that seeks peace with Palestinians through business ventures.
In the Center:
Aesh Atid. A new party led by Yair Lapid. Slipped in polls after entry of Tzipi Livni–currently projected to win 8 seats.
Strongly Leaning to the Right:
United Torah Judaism (the party of the Ashkenazi orthodox). Currently 5–polls show the party winning 6 seats.
Forever (a new party that is a breakaway from United Torah Judaism).
Shas (the party of the Sephardic orthodox). Led by Eli Yishai. Currently 11–polls show the party winning 11 seats again.
Whole Nation (a new party that is a breakway from Shas). Led by Haim Amsalem.
Heritage. A new party focused on the IDF.
On the Right:
Likud Our Home (a combination of Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu). Led by Netanyahu and Lieberman. Currently with 42 seats in the Knesset. Current polls show this party taking about 37 seats.
Further to the Right:
Jewish Home and National Union. Led by Naftali Bennett. Currently have 7 seats in the Knesset. Current polls have the party at 12 seats.
Strong Israel. A new party. Led by Knesset members Arye Eldad and Michael Ben-Ari.
Not Left, Center, or Right
We Are Brothers. A new party emphasizing support of the teachings of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov.
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