Yediot Aharonot discusses the issue of desecration of the deceased as a result of the publication of photos the Itamar murder victims. The author recalls a similar instance, in March 1954, following the murder of 12 Israelis (including the author’s aunt and uncle) on a bus from Eilat to Tel-Aviv. Then Prime Minister, Moshe Sharett, ordered that the incident be photographed. The author believes that "Even if they [the families] today support the publication of photos of their slaughtered loved ones, due to their burning pain or due to their burning political beliefs, the family members of the Itamar murders are likely to find out, on their own accord, how the ghosts of this deed will haunt them."
Ma’ariv contends that "It is impossible to take the condemnations of the Palestinian Authority leaders seriously, as long as they continue to incite and compensate every murderer with a stipend." The author warns that "The past years have been quiet. The number of attacks has fallen to something close to zero. But this is a fragile quiet. A quiet held together by an illusion."
Yisrael Hayom notes that "Ben-Gurion’s legacy is being translated today into a long list of catalyzing projects which are changing the Negev into a place that is worthwhile and possible to live in."
The Jerusalem Post criticizes what it terms the incoherent government decision to approve the building of some 500 homes in the West bank in response to the despicable massacre in Itamar, and states that “Now is the time for Netanyahu to be proactive and formulate a peace plan that protects Israel’s cardinal interests.” The editor adds: “Failing to do so leaves [the Prime Minister] approving new building projects in the territories as an inappropriate response to despicable acts of terrorism, rather than as part of a clear, coherent strategy to safeguard the sovereign Jewish nation.”
Haaretz states that MOD Barak is correct in his assessment that if Israel does not enter negotiations with the Palestinians on all the core issues, a sweeping international delegitimization campaign will push Israel “into the corner from which the old South Africa’s deterioration began," but notes that despite this lip-service to his duty, “in reality, by continuing to serve under Netanyahu, Barak is supporting a policy that he himself believes is devastating for Israel’s future.”
[Yael Gvirtz, Ben-Dror Yemini and Silvan Shalom wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot, Ma’ariv and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]