(Israel Government Press Office)
Three papers discuss the release of the first 26 (out of 104) Palestinian prisoners:
Ma'ariv says: "Most Israelis are indifferent and are swallowing the bitter pill," and points out: "On the Palestinian side, they understand today more than ever that murder and terrorism pay." The author claims that "The willingness to release murderers…only encourages the Palestinians to present more and more demands," and concludes: "What is worse than anything is the sense that these gestures will be meaningless. Sooner or later, these negotiations/not negotiations will be broken off, mainly because Israel has already shown at the outset that it does not know how to stand up for its own."
Yediot Aharonot believes that "This is not an act that will advance the diplomatic process and build confidence between the sides," and adds: "This is useless, unnecessary and, therefore, immoral." The author speculates that "Whoever signed off on the release of the 26 Palestinian prisoners who will be released this week does not really believe in the diplomatic process," and asserts: "This is the political maneuvering of horse dealers who are trading a little construction in the territories for a few prisoners while winking at all possible coalitions…This is a cynical, tactical move designed to achieve one thing: Buy time from, or for, the American administration…so that the Americans will not blame Israel for torpedoing the Kerry initiative at the current stage."
Yisrael Hayom remarks: "It is painful for us to release 104 terrorists both because of the means they used to kill Jews indiscriminately and because one needs a special kind of personality to kill an old man sitting on a bench with a heavy object and hit him again and again. Perhaps the Palestinians should think for a moment about their exemplary national symbols – axe-murderers and those who stab children – as they remember their war? What exemplary lepers."
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Two papers discuss the government’s decision to build an additional 1200 housing units on the West Bank:
The Jerusalem Post discusses comments by Palestinian leaders who believe that the decision is an obstacle to peace and an attempt “to impose facts on the ground and destroy the idea of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.” The editor points out that the building of the new Palestinian middle-class city of Rawabi north of Ramallah “is not an obstacle to peace, just as Jewish building within existing settlement blocs to accommodate natural growth is not an obstacle,” and declares that while it might be convenient for Palestinian leaders to accuse Israel of ‘sabotaging’ talks by building in established settlements and neighborhoods, “the reality on the ground is not so simple.”
Haaretz states that “The urgency with which approval was given for plans to build hundreds of housing units in the territories, and the announcement of the construction of hundreds of new units in East Jerusalem, are not the result of the immediate need for roofs over the heads of the homeless. They seem to represent the hope for a targeted assassination of the opening of the peace talks after every other effort to stop them has failed.” The editor believes that these steps, present Israel, “as the one rejectionist of every diplomatic process,” and opines that “The government must immediately stop this double political game and overcome the conditioned reflex by which every time talks come near, it responds with real estate violence.”
[Yossi Ahimeir, Alex Fishman and Dan Margalit wrote today’s articles in Ma'ariv, Yediot Aharonot and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]