In his first interview with the foreign media since he was chosen to head Israel’s next government, the Likud chair told The Washington Post: “I think there is broad agreement inside Israel and outside that the Palestinians should have the ability to govern their lives but not to threaten ours.”

Netanyahu further said he would continue peace talks with the Palestinians, while at the same time advancing “the economic development that has begun” in the Palestinian Authority. Prime Minister-designate added: “I personally intend to take charge of a government committee that will regularly address the needs of the Palestinian economy in the West Bank.

You can read Netanyahu’s interview here.

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Here’s a thoughtful piece by Meron Benvenisti in Haaretz.  In his work, he suggests that the situation in the West Bank is worth contemplating, even if it doesn’t make the newspapers all the time.

The accepted dictum is that the situation in the occupied territories interests Israelis only when something violent takes place there and when the events fit with the standard narrative about the settlers, the roadblocks and the injustices of the occupation. The truth of this maxim is proven again in that change for the better in the security situation and the economy and the general atmosphere in the West Bank merits very little interest and negligible reporting.

So what’s the best way forward?  Benvenisti doesn’t fully answer that question.  But he does say there is potential for progress; we just need to keep our eyes open.

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Over the past two days, we’ve been following a lively debate on Twitter surrounding the recent reports that suggest Israel is expanding settlements in the West Bank town of Efrat. David Saranga, Consul for Media and Public Affairs and the Israeli Consulate in New York said, “Any plans to build in the West Bank must be authorized by the Israeli Prime Minister.” Despite recent news reports, “no such authorization has been given to Efrat.”

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According to a BBC report, a large stockpile of unexploded weapons has vanished in Gaza.  Last known whereabouts: A storehouse under Hamas watch.

The story: Some of the weaponry used by Israel in last month’s Operation “Cast Lead” failed to explode as it should have.  This live ordnance is extremely dangerous, and special UN teams have been working to collect the shells and destroy them safely.  In the interim, as the materiel was being collected and the dispolsal coordinated with Israel, the shells were placed in a storehouse guarded by Hamas members.

So what happened to these weapons?  Likely Hamas commandeered them for their own purposes.  Meanwhile, the UN is demanding the materiel be returned in order to avoid a catastrophe.

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Last month, we pointed out that Hamas was working quite actively to quash dissent against its activities in the Gaza Strip.  At the time, we could only cite a few sources.  Now, however, Amnesty International has published a report on the subject that presents the matter in greater detail.  You can read the full media advisory here (be aware that it does describe scenes of violence).

An excerpt:

The targets of Hamas’ deadly campaign include former detainees accused of “collaborating” with the Israeli army who escaped from Gaza’s Central Prison when it was bombed by Israeli forces on 28 December 2008, as well as former members of the Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces and other activists of PA President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah party.

The campaign began shortly after the beginning of the three-week Israeli military offensive against the Gaza Strip on 27 December 2008 and continued after a ceasefire took effect on 18 January 2009.

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Iran’s nuclear program has been the subject of public discourse for some time, but the results of international pressure have been slow in coming.  Last week’s Washington Times features an op-ed piece discussing the urgent need for results on the diplomatic front against Iran.  The issue, he notes, should not concern only Israel and other Middle East countries:

A military nuclear capability underwriting Iran’s support of terror in the region will threaten moderate Arab countries and enable Iran to project its power in a more dangerous way as well as expand its footprint in the region.

Remember, of course, that Iran acts through a number of proxies (see Hamas and Hizbullah, for some examples) who would also benefit from Iran’s increased strength.  Suffice it to say, a stronger Iran will not bring peace to the region.

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Reports from Cyprus now indicate there was good reason for stopping the Iranian ship Monchegorsk that had been detained in a Cypriot port.  According to a Reuters report, the boat carried illicit materials that could have been used for weapons production.

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JPost reports today on a new weapon developed by terrorists in Gaza: the medicine grenade (with photos).  Apparently,

The
medicine bottles were filled with explosives, holes were drilled in the caps, and fuses were installed. Once Hamas fighters lit the fuses, they had several seconds to throw the grenades at soldiers. The IDF also found small explosive devices that used medical syringes to hold their fuses.

It appears, therefore, that Hamas and other terrorist groups are intent on building their weapons cache from anything remotely useful.  (First we saw them use pipes and concrete, then the people of Gaza, now humanitarian aid.)

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European customers looking for Valentine’s Day flowers will have the option of buying flowers from Gaza. At the request of the Dutch government, Israel has approved and will facilitate the export of 25,000 carnations from Gaza to the European market. The flowers were shipped this morning (Thursday, 12 February 2009) via the Kerem Shalom cargo terminal and are scheduled to arrive in Europe by Valentine’s Day.

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Israelis went to the polls yesterday to elect the 18th Knesset, and the results are still being tallied.  The election process is never a simple one, and the closeness of this race just makes it harder to understand.  In this  post, we’ll try to make this complex procedure just a bit simpler.

The Knesset:

• The Knesset is Israel’s unicameral (i.e. one chamber) legislature.  It has 120 seats.
• A full term in the Knesset is four years.  However, early elections may be called by a decision of either the Prime Minister or the Knesset itself.
• Any Israeli citizen age 21 or above may be elected to the Knesset.

Voting:

• Any Israeli citizen age 18 and above may vote.
• Voters cast their ballots for party lists, not specific candidates.  These lists are prepared by each party in accordance with their internal rules.
• As a rule, absentee voting is not allowed in Israel.  However, there are a few exceptions: Hospital patients, soldiers, and overseas representatives of the State of Israel (e.g. diplomats) may vote absentee.

Counting the Votes:

• To enter the Knesset, a party must receive a certain percentage of the vote (currently 2%).
• Any party that passes that threshold will be represented in the Knesset (which is why there are a number of parties with very few seats in the Knesset).
• Parties are allotted a number of Knesset seats based on the proportion of votes they receive.  (This is a complicated process, further details can be provided.)
• The people who fill these seats are taken in order from each party’s list (see above).

Forming a Government:

• The President of Israel officially names a Knesset member as Prime Minister-designate and charges him/her with forming a government.
• To date, this person has always been the leader of the party with the largest number of Knesset seats (though it need not be).
• The designated Prime Minister then has 28 days (which can be extended to 42 days) to form a government.
• The government requires the support of a majority of the members of Knesset (MKs), i.e. 61, to take power.  Since no party has ever gotten 61 Knesset seats, governments have always been made up of a coalition of parties.  While a narrow coalition (as few parties as possible) may be easier to manage from within, a broader coalition (many diverse parties) will gain support from many different consitutencies; there are thus good reasons for both strategies.
• The government takes power when the Prime Minister presents his/her government to the Knesset and 61 MKs vote to support the proposed government.  At that point, all parties without representation in the governing coalition are said to be in the opposition.
• If the initial Prime Minister-designate is unable to form a coalition, the President may ask another Knesset member to form a government.

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