Tag Archives: Knesset

Despite its many undoubted merits, democracy has one glaring detriment. There is never a dictator to blame for the fate that befalls the people. They alone are responsible for whatever befalls them. Israel is now hurtling towards its third national election within a year. Not Force Majeure  This was not …

I have made no secret of it: the current election campaign has not exactly been an enlightening period for Israel. For many of us, this has been a source of great sadness. Our nation is capable of better – of a more elevated campaign. There has been too much back-biting, …

Israel turned into the Middle Eastern version of Italy tonight as Binyamin Netanyahu failed to form a coalition, and the Knesset voted to dissolve itself – a mere 7 weeks or so after the last elections. As far as I understand (and I may be wrong in which case please …

Today – Thursday – is Yom Hashoah, or as it is referred to, Holocaust Remembrance Day for the Martyrs and the Heroes.  The heroes should never be forgotten. In Israel, the Holocaust is commemorated on a different day on the calendar than elsewhere in the world, and it imparts a …

Thirty-seven years ago, during the First Lebanon war, Israeli troops engaged in a fierce and bloody battle with Syrian and affiliated PLO units at Sultan Yacoub near the Syrian border. Tank Commander Sgt. First Class Zachary Baumel (pictured) went missing, along with Zvi Feldman and Yehuda Katz. The three were …

“Say It Proud!” It’s about time! Actually, past time. MK Avi Dichter (Likud), chair of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, has been promoting a version of this bill for years now. But the situation has shifted, making success not only possible now but very likely. The bill – …

Consider the following remarkable facts regarding Israel’s parliamentary history: 1) For 20 of the 28 years between 1977 (when Likud first won the elections on a platform of “Greater Israel”) and 2005 (when a Likud government withdrew unilaterally from Gaza in stark contradiction to its electoral pledges), the Israeli government …

The question of the response by the JCCV  to the recent visit of former Knesset member Moishe Feiglin to Australia has been raised a number of times in the Australian Jewish News, but some of the key issues involved remain to be discussed. The Jewish Community Council of Victoria (JCCV) …

Now that I will have time again, after a hiatus of some several days, I want to resume my postings. (Actually, I’ve missed writing.) I will touch certain bases here, and return to consider many others later. Please do know that Sunday is the holiday of Shavuot here (and Monday …

Summary: In considering the arguments that Palestinian Arabs and Israeli Jews each make for Jerusalem as their capital, only one party makes a truly compelling case. Jerusalem has long been considered the thorniest issue in the Israeli-Palestinians Question. In 1947, when the United Nations put forward a plan to partition the …

Many is the time that I have alluded to this Campaign, and to Israel’s legal rights in Judea, Samaria, and all of Jerusalem. Today I will move further in explaining the Campaign.  This is for your edification, and in the hopes that you will choose to be involved. Please make …

The chances of a right wing victory in tomorrow’s election suddenly seemed far greater after last night’s rally in Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square. After a very frustratingly lackadaisical campaign – with an incredibly negative tone, and with polls showing the left ahead – a bubble of hope welled up. Some …

This is a posting of utmost seriousness, my friends, about a subject that is both weighty and complex. I will do my best to clarify. We’re not looking at an election that is “simply” a contest between two candidates with somewhat different opinions and styles: We are talking about radical …

I comment every year at this time about the difference between the way the secular new year and the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah) are celebrated.  In the Jewish tradition it is a time for prayer and introspection. This year in particular, I think, the difference is marked.  For the …

From the desk of Dr. Ron Weiser AM. Many commentators have placed the blame for the seeming leadership paralysis in Israel on “the system”. As we all know, there is no such thing as a democratic system that always operates smoothly and easily. Israel is not alone in this, indeed …

It’s official.  Last night the Knesset voted – 93 in favor, no votes against and no abstentions – to disband itself.  We are in a campaign period.  A huge amount of jockeying is now taking place with regard to possible mergers of parties, timing of the Likud primary (which Netanyahu …

It’s a long time since I have had a positive – even tentatively positive – sense of the political scene here in Israel. But here we are now, in a time of real turmoil, which nonetheless has within it the promise of something better than the unfortunate situation we’ve been …

On the personal level there is something quite surreal about this year. When I am in Israel, the situation is quiet, when I leave, it’s like another world…………….. Visiting Israel in June immediately after the 3 boys were kidnapped in Gush Etzion, whilst there was a mood of shock and …

This phrase is usually identified as an “old Chinese curse,” while in fact it is neither old nor Chinese in origin.  What it is, clearly, is ironic, which is why I am using it:  Our “interesting” times are often overwhelming – filled with turmoil and confusion.  Oi! Could we do …

Both the rule of law and democratic governance in Israel are being jeopardized by the very body purported to be its most committed guardian: the judiciary. In Israel, the negative impact of the judicialization of politics on the Supreme Court’s legitimacy is already beginning to show its mark. Over the …