Yediot Aharonot discusses the arson at the mosque in Tuba Zangaria and asserts that, "The mosque arson and the increasing number of ‘price tag’ incidents must lead the Prime Minister, Defense Minister and others to the conclusion that they must act as strongly and as brutally as possible against the people that are liable to lead us to the edge of disaster." The author urges that the use of administrative detention orders be considered and says that, "If Benjamin Netanyahu, Ehud Barak and their colleagues in government, the security establishment, the ISA and the Israel Police don’t wake up and take strong action, they will find ‘price tag’ people outside their homes and offices."
Ma’ariv discusses the state of Israeli-German relations and contends that the statement on renewed construction in Gilo was a slap in the face to German Chancellor Angela Merkel after her efforts to blunt the Palestinian initiative at the UN. The author, a former Israeli Ambassador to Germany, fears that support for Israel among the German public may erode as a result.
Yisrael Hayom believes that the Obama administration "has decided to disengage – at least until after November 2012 – from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as far as raising new diplomatic initiatives and leading the negotiations are concerned." The author avers that, "The fact that the US is entering election season obliges the 44th President, whose position among the Jewish public has been gradually eroding over the past two years, to make an effort to minimize the electoral damage that awaits him in this area." However, the paper is concerned lest the American stepping back from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, along with the projected withdrawal of US forces from Iraq, will lead to a vacuum that some other actor might be tempted to fill.
Haaretz comments on the end of this summer’s popular protest movement: "As things look now, the greatest popular protest movement in Israel’s history, which aspired to bring about a profound social revolution, is gradually becoming no more than a consumer revolt against dairy concern Tnuva. The government must approve both the spirit and the language of the Trajtenberg report as soon as possible. The ministers who oppose it for various reasons, including narrow political considerations, should be aware that they are sabotaging the achievements of the protest that was praised by almost all of them. On the other hand, the protest leaders must quickly return to vigorous activity, so that all their work won’t have been in vain."
The Jerusalem Post comments on the failure to bring the Trajtenberg recommendations to a vote at this week’s Cabinet meeting: "None of the ministers offered criticism with real substance that justified a delay in passing the Trajtenberg recommendations. Like the leaders of this summer’s socioeconomic protests, the ministers who voiced their unschooled opposition to Trajtenberg seemed to be less concerned with articulating realistic economic reforms and more interested in tapping into the populist energies of an Israeli society yearning for a fairer more efficient socioeconomic climate. Sadly, the successful passage of the Trajtenberg recommendations – which would go a long way towards righting many of the wrongs in our economy – can no longer be taken for granted. In their zeal to appeal to what they believe to be popular opinion, our lawmakers are performing a real disservice to the same public they claim to represent."
[Eitan Haber, Avi Primor and Avraham Ben-Zvi wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot, Ma’ariv and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]
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