(Israel Government Press Office)
Two papers analyze reports that Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas may agree to a return to the negotiating table:
Yediot Aharonot asserts that both Israel and the Palestinian Authority "are preparing all of their propaganda weapons ahead of the struggle over the blame issue – who will the international community blame for the failure."
Yisrael Hayom cites Israeli sources that claim Abbas wants to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu merely so he can claim that "The Israelis are not interested in peace and then turn to the UN and squeeze out condemnations, as happened this week at UNESCO." However, the author asserts, "Israel is concerned over 'the blame game' from which the Palestinians will emerge with the upper hand because they enjoy, in advance, broad support in the global media and in Western institutions and academia."
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Two newspapers discuss the appointmentment of Prof. Jacob Frenkel to replace Prof. Stanley Fischer as governor of the Bank of Israel:
The Jerusalem Post notes that “Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s announcement that Jacob Frenkel would be returning to the post of Bank of Israel governor took many by surprise,” and opines that “While Frenkel is eminently qualified to serve again as head of our central bank, he faces an uphill struggle as he makes the transition from Wall Street to public service and attempts to gain the trust of the wider Israeli public.”
Haaretz states: “There aren’t many economists worthy of stepping into the mighty shoes of outgoing Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer, but Prof. Jacob Frenkel is one of them,” and adds: “Fischer’s tenure was very successful. It must be hoped that Frenkel’s tenure will be so as well, and that he won’t hesitate to criticize Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yair Lapid in real time when necessary.”
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Ma'ariv discusses the resignation of National Security Adviser Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Yaakov Amidror. The author says that "Amidror was supposed to be part and parcel of the Prime Minister's Bureau. He is not from the Left. He was considered part of the Right. But he had a problem. He had somewhat independent, i.e. substantive, thinking." The paper cites reports that the key issue was the decision to build in E-1, which was in reaction to the UN General Assembly decision on upgrading the status of Palestine at the UN, and adds: "One need not be the National Security Adviser to understand that this was the stupidest and most anti-national decision possible, even from the perspective of someone who believes in the Greater Land of Israel," because "Instead of criticizing Abu Mazen, whose appeal to the UN was in breach of previous agreements with Israel, Israel saw fit to turn itself into the obdurate nay-sayer. As soon as the construction was declared, criticism of the Palestinian move stopped." The author concludes: "When the Government places the future in the hands of Housing Minister Uri Ariel and Deputy Minister Danny Danon and, at the same time, gives up on Amidror, it is not just the Right that has a problem, Israel has a problem."
[Nahum Barnea, Dan Margalit and Ben-Dror Yemini wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot, Yisrael Hayom and Ma'ariv, respectively.]