(TIP) Secretary of State John Kerry announced last week that Israel and the Palestinian Authority had “established a basis” for returning to peace talks, after months in which Israeli officials had been calling on their Palestinian counterparts to return to negotiations without preconditions but had been rebuffed. Kerry traveled to the West Bank Friday to meet with top Palestinian officials, including President Mahmoud Abbas, a day after Palestinian factions rejected his peace initiative. The announcement took some analysts by surprise, inasmuch as Palestinian negotiators had as late as last night demanded that Israel make a number of concessions in advance in order to restart talks, including accepting the country’s 1948 armistice lines as a basis for negotiations. Israeli officials insist that position would functionally allow the Palestinians to pocket two decades of Israeli concessions and start from scratch, destroying confidence necessary for future negotiations. The Palestinian position had already triggered open tension with the State Department.
U.S. Backtracks on Morsi’s ‘Democratic’ Election
(TIP) The U.S. State Department has made it clear that Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi’s government “wasn’t a democratic rule” and that the mass protests prompting Morsi’s ouster by Egypt’s military—the largest such protests in the history of humanity—involved “22 million people…making clear that democracy is not just about simply winning the vote at the ballot box.” Washington’s acknowledgement comes as the U.S. recommitted to delivering four F-16 fighter jets to Cairo—part of an order of 20 planes expected to be completed by the end of the year as part of a $1.5 billion military aid package. Egypt’s interim government welcomed the position, emphasizing that it “reflect[s] understanding and realization…about the political developments that Egypt is witnessing.” Meanwhile various Gulf nations moved to assist the interim government in stabilizing Egypt’s reeling economy, which new revelations indicate was substantially worse than the Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood-linked government had been willing to acknowledge. A New York Times report cataloged a $12 billion cash inflow from Gulf nations into Egypt in recent weeks, including $4 billion from Kuwait. Egypt’s economy already slipped to Great Depression levels, as Morsi’s efforts to appease his base and institutionalize Islam cost Cairo critically needed assistance from Europe and international institutions.
Congress, Administration Spar Over Israeli Visas
The AP reports that Israel’s entry into the 37-nation U.S. Visa Waiver Program is the most controversial element in a pair of broader U.S.-Israel bills dealing with everything from improving cyber-security to enhancing economic cooperation. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen is hoping to get the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s approval before Congress’ August recess. A version by Sen. Barbara Boxer is picking up support in the Senate. Both would create a new category of U.S. ally—“major strategic partner”—designating Israel as the only such nation. And they would call for the inclusion of Israel on a list of countries whose citizens can visit the United States for up to 90 days without a visa, granted they register electronically before boarding a flight. The administration and some lawmakers are concerned the legislation doesn’t do enough to eliminate Israeli discrimination against Palestinians and Arab-Americans seeking to enter its borders. They also say Israel still fails to meet other legal requirements for the program.
Saudi Airlines Discriminates Against Israelis in U.S.
New York Post reports Saudi Arabian Airlines discriminates against Israeli citizens by refusing to fly them from U.S. airports—even when passengers are simply looking to transfer in Saudi Arabia to another country.The airline’s web site asks for citizenship to book a ticket but has no option for anyone holding an Israeli passport.”Israeli citizens are being discriminated against right here at JFK. It’s not only illegal; it’s an affront to who we are,” said New York City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who is demanding an end to the practice.U.S. Federal law says an “air carrier or foreign air carrier may not subject a person in air transportation to discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex or ancestry.”
Carbon Copy of Original Schindler’s List for Sale on E-Bay
(AFP) An original copy of the list of Jews Oskar Schindler saved from the Holocaust is up for sale on eBay, with the starting bid set at $3 million dollars, a Los Angeles auctioneer Gary Zimet told Agence France Presse last week. The 14-page typewritten list, bearing the names of 801 men, originated with the German industrialist’s right-hand man Itzhak Stern. “Stern’s nephew (in Israel) sold it roughly three years ago to the current owner, who bought it as an investment,” said Zimet, who declined to give details about the seller. “This exceedingly rare original Schindler’s List is the only one ever on the market,” the eBay listing states. Others are in museums in Israel and the United States. The auction is set to end on July 28 at 6:00 pm Los Angeles time (July 29 0100 GMT). Interested bidders are asked to provide information so they can be pre-screened.
First Jewish ‘Hackathon’ in Silicon Valley and Tel Aviv
(JNS.org) Tel Aviv and California’s Silicon Valley simultaneously held the first Jewish-themed “hackathon,” called Friday Night Hack, from July 19-20. More than 120 hackers participated in the 24-hour event, meant to show how open data can be used collaboratively and transparently. Supported by the Schusterman Philanthropic Network and Israel-based Hasadna, The Public Knowledge Workshop, and hosted in California in partnership with the innovation committee of the San Francisco Jewish Community Federation—developers, designers, programmers, coders, and other software-development experts will work together to build applications for public use intended to strengthen Jewish communities in Israel and around the world.
