Israel headlines

Israel headlines tell a story. They tell you the news. But sometimes, they reveal some underlying truths.  

Return to this blog every Tuesday and Friday after 8 am ET. You’ll see a personalized sampling of headlines from Israel’s press.

 The headlines will be arranged by topic. Those topics will give you a sense of what Israelis have been reading.

You’ll also see something else: a look at what these stories might reveal about realities in the Middle East—and, perhaps, your own back yard.

Here is a selection of Israel headlines for October 29 –October 31, 2013. Note that repeated headlines reflect how different newspapers covered the same story.

 

Arab attitudes towards Jews

-Arab MK: Israel Must Submit to Arab Demands or Disappear

-PA Takes Issue with Israel's Demand for Security

-PA Arabs Throw Molotov Cocktail at Bus in Gush Etzion

--PA To Award Monthly Stipend for "Honored Life"

 

Israel and the United Nations

 -UN's Falk Seeks Int'l Court Decision on Israeli 'Occupation'

-UN Ambassador Complains About Abbas's Incitement

-Israel files UN complaint over PA praise of terrorist

-Israel to UNHRC: "Israel's Unfair Treatment Must Come to an End"

-Ban: Releasing Murderers is Good, Building is Bad

 

The Reputation of the United States

-'US would Never Free Terrorists'

-Area 51 used to test Soviet jets loaned to U.S. by Israel

-Major drug tunnel found on U.S.-Mexico border

-Obama Pushing Lawmakers to Hold Off on New Iran Sanctions

-Report: US 'eavesdropped on Vatican'

-NSA: We Didn't Eavesdrop on the Vatican

-US has spying unit on roof of its Tel Aviv embassy’

-US spy agency's defense: Europeans did it too

-China demands US explain spying allegations linked to Australian missions

World terrorism

-Report: Terrorists to Set New Record in 2013

-Kenya: Five More Arrested in Mall Terror Attack

-Tunisia: Terrorists Target Popular Tourist Sites

 

Life in Israel

-Unemployment down in Q3

-September new home sales up 30%

-SodaStream still sees 30% revenue, profit growth

-Uruguay wants Israel to help it become high-tech nation

-Mazor Robotics raising $41m on Nasdaq

-Israel 39th in 'Prosperity Index'

 

Other news

-Israeli Group Sues Anti-Israel Australian College Prof.

 

There are several hidden stories underlying these headlines. First, Arab aggression isn’t new. What many do not know, however, is that the recently-released murderers are not only hailed as Arab heroes, they will also be given a stipend (from the PA) of 4,000 NIS (shekel) a month--to honour their service to the Palestinian cause.

The average PA wage is app. 4,000NIS a month—and unemployment in the PA is high. Kill a Jew and you may no longer have to work.

That's a good deal for a PA Arab.

Disclosures about US spying on allies—and the Vatican—do not help America’s already-damaged image. Smadar Bat Adam has written in Israel Hayom (“America’s double standards”, October 29, 2013), that US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psalki defended US eavesdropping by acknowledging that the US is "collecting information because we need it and not just because we can…[and we] will continue to gather the information necessary to protect the American people.”

America, in other words, finds its spying both defensible and appropriate, not punishable. For Ms Bat Adam, this is a startling defense because it is exactly what Jonathan Pollard did some 26+ years ago. Like the US today, Mr Pollard confessed his spy activities. His actions were the same as the US’s: he was working to protect his people--Israel.

It seems that the US does as Pollard did. It now defends its actions as appropriate. But it refuses to give Pollard the same consideration.

For writer Bat Adam, that’s a double standard. For others, it’s hypocrisy.

Life in Israel, meanwhile, continues to baffle Israel-haters. House sales are up, unemployment is down. Israel placed 39^th of 142 nations in a British ‘Prosperity Index.’ Israeli stocks are active on the American NASDAQ exchange. In fact, only the US and China have more stocks listed on the NASDAQ. For a country Israel’s size, that’s extraordinary.

Finally, there’s a story about Shurat HaDin, an Israeli civil rights organization that has become a world leader combating terrorist organizations. It fights anti-Israel terrorism through lawsuits. It seeks to bankrupt terror organizations.

Shurat HaDin has won hundreds of millions of dollars for its clients. It now attacks the Boycott, Discrimination and Sanctions (BDS) movement. It has brought a lawsuit in Australia against a University Professor who has supported BDS on his campus. The lawsuit alleges that his support of BDS contravenes Australia’s racial discrimination act.

The University has already announced that it will not help the Professor pay for his legal defense; he will have to pay for that himself.

Here’s hoping that Shurat HaDin wins its case.

There are other stories here. There are other stories in Israel’s media. They all start the same way, with a headline. But if you look closely, you might see something more.

You might see the truth.