Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today announced the Trump administration’s latest assault on prospects for Israeli-Palestinian peace. In renouncing a 1978 letter by the State Department’s legal advisor and stating that “settlements are not per se illegal under international law,” the Trump administration is giving a green light to further settlement expansion and even to formal Israeli annexation of the West Bank.

Already, the effective endorsement of settlements by Trump’s “peace” team (including by former Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt who has referred to settlements as “neighborhoods and cities”) has led to a surge in settlement activity, as documented by APN’s Israeli sister-organization Peace Now.

Yossi Alpher is an independent security analyst. He is the former director of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv University, a former senior official with the Mossad, and a former IDF intelligence officer. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

My name is Orly Halpern and I edit and write News Nosh, the daily review in English of the Hebrew media.

As a journalist who has reported on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for many years, I know how helpful being able to read the local media is, the news items, the Op-Eds and the analysis, in order to get a fuller picture of what is happening on the ground and to get a pulse from the commentators. That requires not only knowledge of the local languages, but also time, a limited commodity for all.

Eight years ago, APN approached me while I was on maternity leave and asked me if I would be interested in writing a daily review of the four main Hebrew newspapers, with a focus on the the conflict, settlers, Arab-Israelis, diplomacy and security. I was thrilled at the opportunity to continue working in the news and at the same time stay at home with my child.

And so began News Nosh.

APN's daily news review from Israel

Thursday November 14, 2019

Quote of the day:

"They parted together from the world, and when they ascended to heaven the guard at the door did not ask for IDs, because they are all equal before God. The sky is open to anyone. So should people’s hearts."
--Shlomo Vishinsky, father of an Israeli soldier who was killed alongside his Arab-Israeli comrade-in-arms in Gaza in 2004, calls on Israelis to consider Arab citizens and Arab MKs as equals members of Israeli society.*

You Must Be Kidding: 

"They sanctify the terrorists' war crimes!"
--Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said in Knesset about Arab MKs who expressed opposition to Israeli military actions in Gaza that killed innocent civilians and which were meant, they said, to rescue Netanyahu from his legal woes.**

Breaking News:

Capping 48-hour surge in violence, Gaza cease-fire reached, started at 5:30 AM, sirens still heard in Gaza border communities
Israel 'achieved its objectives,' official claims. 32 Palestinians die in Israeli strikes. Rocket alert sirens ring out minutes after Islamic Jihad confirms cease-fire. Islamic Jihad said it made a list of conditions: "An end to targeted killings in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, an end to attacks on civilians during the (weekly Friday Gaza fence) March of Return protests and a commitment to abide by (existing) agreements pertaining to Gaza." (Haaretz, Ynet, Israel Hayom)

IDF concludes Operation 'Black Belt': 25 eliminations [killings], 450 rocket launches
IDF spokesman: "We took advantage of a window of opportunity in Gaza in relation to the Iranian arena." About 60% of the rocket launches from Gaza were launched into open space and about 90% were intercepted. (Maariv)

APN's daily news review from Israel

Wednesday November 13, 2019

Quote of the day:

"The question is what will happen the next time the Qatari money fails to come in time or the events on the (Gaza border) fence get out of control, now that we no longer have Baha to blame."
--Middle East commentator Shimrit Meir writes in Yedioth that the Palestinian Islamic Jihad brigade commander Israel assassinated was a convenient target.*

You Must Be Kidding: 

"Those who succeed in a labeling campaign know that next step will prevent Hamas's defeat."
--Yedioth's BDS commentator Ben-Dror Yemini writes that the European Union decision to oblige EU countries to label settlement products gives Hamas support to shoot rockets at Israel.**

Breaking News: 

Rocket fire from Gaza resumes after a quiet night; IDF Strikes in Gaza
220 rockets fired since Tuesday morning, 90 percent intercepted, army says ■ 19 Palestinians killed, 69 wounded in Israeli strikes ■ Commando unit deployed to secure border communities from possible infiltration. (Haaretz and Ynet)

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APN's 2019 Study Tour, which runs from November 5-13 -- includes visits to Jordan's capital Amman and Petra, Israel, and the West Bank.

See pictures, and for live tweeting, go to the feed of APN's Ori Nir.