Weekend long read

1) At the INSS, Pnina Sharvit Baruch and Ori Beeri analyse the recent Amnesty International report.

“The extreme report published recently by Amnesty International, which charges that Israel exercises a regime of apartheid throughout its territory, essentially denies Israel’s right to exist as the nation state of the Jewish people. This blatant bias exposes the agenda of the authors and makes it easier to rebuff the report’s charges on factual and rational grounds. However, the Amnesty report is part of a growing attempt to brand Israel in the international arena as an apartheid state. This trend must be taken seriously, and its potential implications understood.”

2) The ITIC documents Fatah and PA reactions to the recent killing of three al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terrorists.

“The reactions of Fatah and senior PA figures were exceptional in both scope and content, who mourned the dead terrorists and declared them heroes of the Palestinian people. Particularly strong were the statements and accusations voiced in the mourning tent erected in Nablus by Mahmoud Abbas, PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh, and other senior figures. Many senior PA and Fatah figures, including Mahmoud Abbas, posted pictures of the three terrorists to their social media accounts. Fatah claimed the three as movement activists.”

3) At the JCPA Alan Baker discusses ‘Area C of the “West Bank,” EU Hypocrisy, and Double Standards’.

“Being signatories as witnesses to the 1991-3 Oslo Accords between Israel and the PLO, together with the United States, Russia, Norway, and Egypt, the EU took upon itself a responsibility to encourage the parties to observe the obligations and commitments encapsulated in the Accords and ensure that they would be duly honored and followed by the parties.

By the same logic, one would expect that those witnesses, all highly involved and active stakeholders in the Middle East peace process, would meticulously ensure that they honor the agreements and refrain from any action that could undermine or frustrate them. The significance of such expectation would be that a witness would seek to assist the parties to fulfill their respective commitments pursuant to the Accords and not encourage one of the parties to violate such commitments.”

4) At the JISS, Efraim Inbar looks at Turkey’s latest ‘charm offensive’.

“Energy concerns are at the top of the Turkish agenda in its drive for rapprochement with Israel. Turkey is mainly dependent on energy imports from Russia and Iran and needs to diversify its energy sources. Therefore, Turkey wants Israel’s gas reservoirs for domestic use and export to Europe, strengthening its energy hub status.”

 

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