(Israel Government Press Office)
Four newspapers discuss the EU's decision to bar cooperation with Israeli entities from Judea and Samaria, the Golan Heights or eastern Jerusalem:
Ma'ariv says that the EU move was not at all unexpected, on the contrary, but adds that "Our decision-makers preferred to hide their heads deep in the quicksand of denial." The author contends that "Naftali Bennett, Danny Danon, Zeev Elkin and Liberman deserve the credit for the new EU directive," and suggests that "Europe's extreme Left should send them flowers." The paper concludes: "The Messianic Right in Israel is too provincial. It does not understand that David Cameron and Francois Hollande have voters too. What can one do, they apparently do not want to allocate money to research grants related to settlements that were established in contravention of their views. The Messianic Right does not understand that burying the possibility of two states is liable to lead to the delegitimization of the entire State of Israel and not just the settlement of Yitzhar. And mainly, it does not understand that if the process fails, this is only the beginning of the slippery slope of isolation."
Yediot Aharonot suggests that "It is a pity that Netanyahu preferred to respond with an aggressive tone that has nothing behind it," and notes: "The writing was on the wall: The professional echelons at the Foreign Ministry warned about what is liable to occur in relations with the Europeans." The author avers that "A new generation of Europeans has sprung up that expects us to initiate, to offer genuine proposals for a settlement, and to stop the remarks about anti-Semitism and that they have no right to preach morality to us," and says that "The current imbroglio with Europe requires that Netanyahu make historic decisions, not statements that more befit a department head in one of our ministries." The paper concludes: "Those who expect the world to aid us in the effort to deny Iran nuclear weapons must meet the world's expectations of different behavior in the territories.'Yitzhar in exchange for Natanz and Fordo', Iran's two nuclear development sites, is not just a creative slogan but an equation that also obligates the Israeli side."
Yisrael Hayom says that "All Israeli governments in the last 40 years knew that in the absence of an Israeli-Palestinian agreement, Ramallah would be able to recruit Europe for a boycott of settlements in Judea and Samaria, but each one hoped that the irksome event would not happen on its watch; now it has happened," and adds: "What a pity that on the Israeli Left there are those who hoped for this day and are welcoming it." The author likens the EU decision to "putting yellow stars on all settlers," and ventures that "Everyone knows that if a permanent settlement is achieved between Israel and the Palestinians one of these days, most of the settlers will sit under their vines and their fig trees in their current locations, by agreement."
Haaretz asserts: “The sanctions imposed directly on the settlements and indirectly on the State of Israel have thus been ratcheted up a notch,’ and quotes a senior official in Jerusalem who characterized the new EU directive as ‘an earthquake.’ The editor adds: “Israel can persist in its recalcitrance. The government can continue to impose more and more conditions on an agreement with the Palestinians. But the moment of truth is quickly approaching,” and concludes: “Israel’s government needs to decide if it is ready to continue to endanger the country’s future for the sake of continuing the occupation.”
==================================================
The Jerusalem Post comments on last week’s decision by Polish lawmakers to keep in place a ban on ritual slaughter, and asserts: “The Poles’ decision to ban ritual slaughter is not just wrongheaded. It is depressing testimony to their failure to internalize the lessons of their own recent history. The ban must be revoked!”
[Nadav Eyal, Shimon Shiffer and Dan Margalit wrote today’s articles in Ma'ariv, Yediot Aharonot and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]