Israel Hume
Amnon Lord
5/18/2023
The Americans hate the cancellation of the disengagement law and Galant’s signature on the new status of the land in northern Samaria, just as they hate almost everything in the current Netanyahu government. But the difference at this stage of 75 years of statehood is that for Israel, or for the government of Israel, it hardly matters. The Biden administration, with this friendly president, passionately committed to Zionism, is hostile, and is doing almost everything it can to harm Israel’s policy in the region.
The withdrawal of the Americans from the region leaves the land for the Chinese, the Russians and the Iranians. As a result, the entire Abraham Accords system was damaged. However, the issue of northern Samaria is linked to the abject failure of the Israeli left and the American administrations regarding the issue of Jerusalem. Ehud Barak, the angry face of the “protest,” was the first to put Jerusalem on the table. He conducted negotiations at Camp David, centered on cuts across the length, breadth and depth of the Old City and the Temple Mount. The results were awesome. The Palestinians embarked on the second intifada, and Jerusalem became a point of contention in Israeli public life. Since Camp David in 2000, the left has disavowed Jerusalem and ceased to see it as the “eternal capital of Israel” and instead as an “obstacle to peace.”
On the other hand, the hated Benjamin Netanyahu came and proved the unity of Jerusalem through the United States’ recognition of the city as the capital of Israel, which was not until 2018. The one who prevented the Americans from moving the embassy was the outcast President Donald Trump. As for the Biden administration, everything it does stems in part from a desire to liquidate all of Trump’s achievements and plans in the Middle East.
And now the Netanyahu government, with the dominant presence of Ben Gvir, Smotrich, Struck and Goldknow — all stars of Biderman’s caricature — has come to confirm another unbearable thing: The process of withdrawal that began in Oslo and gained impetus in the disengagement is not only halted – it is subject to reversal. The wheel can be turned back. Restoring the yeshiva in Homesh is a strategic roadmap. This is a strong message for the Palestinians.
Five months in power has proven, on the national issue and in the war, that it has muscles. In sum, Defense Secretary Gallant’s incomplete signature is nothing more than a criminal matter, and after the legislation, this should have happened even in light of the American opposition. One could think that introducing Smotrich’s foot into the Ministry of Defense came precisely for these purposes. But rightly, he does not have any powers towards the commander of the central region.
It serves as a lesson for the future: The change in the Ministry of Defense’s internal organization, within the framework of which the civil administration was transferred to Smotrich, was superfluous and damaged the security apparatus. On the agenda: Demanding the appointment of the chief military rabbi by the Chief Rabbinate. This has become a breaking of the chain of command in the Israeli army, which is liable to create a dangerous and redundant crisis. It should be hoped that this issue will be removed from the agenda.
