Something A Bit Different: An Israeli TV Review

[At first fight, it does not make sense. Who in Australia, or anywhere, else would be interested in an Israeli TV review? But such a review, being for pure local consumption as are the programs themselves may give you more of an appreciation of the local discourse than the heavy opinion pages in Haaretz or Ynetnews. Besides that, Ashri has got a good sense of humour and a good sarcastic style.

Here’s the most important extract:

The enigma deepens even further when Yoram Binur presents an interview with the senior Hamas prisoner in Eshel Prison, Yehia Sanwar, who is described as the founder of the Izzedine al-Qassem Brigades and as the person with the greatest influence on the movement’s policy. If Ehud Ya’ari was watching the report, he would have thrown a shoe at the screen, contacted Shalom Keitel, and demanded the immediate sacking of Binur. Not only was Sanwar speaking to us in fluent Hebrew, making it hard to see him as a dangerous enemy; he even sounded sane, moderate and friendly, someone you could do a deal with: “We are not able to dismantle Israel”; “We will support anything that can calm the region"; “You must understand that we will not become lovers of Zion, just as you will not become lovers of Hamas”; “Every person must accept the other”.

In terms of what Israel and its friends should do about Hamas – this tells you a lot more of what the Hamas want to tell Israelis.

Many thank to Roland Rance of Britain for translating this. LINK TO Hebrew Original

-Sol Salbe]

Something odd happened the day before yesterday in “Studio Six”. One day before the swearing-in of the new Hamasnik parliament, Dov Weisglass is preparing a spicy diet for the Palestinians, the whole country is shouting Hamas [In Hebrew it also means “screaming foul” -Sol], and what happens? No Ehud Ya’ari. Nor Roni Daniel. Nor Udi Segal. The entire team of regular analysts of the conflict, who every week report for duty and move forces around the sand table, were absent from the studio precisely at the start of a new era in the Middle East. In their place, on either side of Aharon Barnea sat Amnon Abramowitz and Amir Oren to discuss the functioning of the legal system.

By way of comparison, at the same time the weekly magazine on Channel 10 was holding a lively discussion about Hamas and is implications, with several participants. “You can’t overestimate the importance of this development”, said Ya’akov Ayalon, a statement which demonstrates the oversight on the rival channel.

So what was going on? How did Hamas suddenly disappear from the national agenda on the national broadcaster? Where is Ya’ari when you need him to warn about the impending catastrophe? Where are Daniel’s stern-faced reports of the preparation of the security forces for a big siege? Where are the patriotic battle-cries of the politicians, as expressed to “our political correspondent”? What is Channel 2 for, if not to recruit the nation to the fateful confrontation with Hamas?

The enigma deepens even further when Yoram Binur presents an interview with the senior Hamas prisoner in Eshel Prison, Yehia Sanwar, who is described as the founder of the Izzedine al-Qassem Brigades and as the person with the greatest influence on the movement’s policy. If Ehud Ya’ari was watching the report, he would have thrown a shoe at the screen, contacted Shalom Keitel, and demanded the immediate sacking of Binur. Not only was Sanwar speaking to us in fluent Hebrew, making it hard to see him as a dangerous enemy; he even sounded sane, moderate and friendly, someone you could do a deal with: “We are not able to dismantle Israel”; “We will support anything that can calm the region"; “You must understand that we will not become lovers of Zion, just as you will not become lovers of Hamas”; “Every person must accept the other”.

That is not the way to build a wall against Hamas. That is not the way to stand alongside the government. This just threatens the national consensus on the danger of Islamic terror and sows doubt around our leaders’ statements. One could even think that all of their Hamas hysteria was simply an election ploy. Where are the good old days, when it was forbidden to interview PLO members? Where is the wonderful law which made it illegal even to meet them? Why does Binur allow Sanwar to say “The Israeli media must focus its spotlights on the issue of the hudna”? Who authorised him to grant this sophisticated terrorist a prestigious platform in order to spread his dishonest propaganda?

“Studio Six” authorised it. Strange things really have been happening there lately. First, Anat Saragusti ridicules the weakness of the authorities in their clash with the Hebron settlers, and now Yoram Binur enables Hamas to express conciliatory positions which do not fit in with official Israeli policies. And strangest of all, they do not call on Ya’ari to expose the plot and to explain things properly. So either subversives have infiltrated the “Studio Six” editorial board, or the situation is a bit more complex than the politicians tell us.

ENDS

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