No unity without Arab party

Israel is in a state of war, and extreme measures are being taken in all fields of life. We feel it everywhere – the streets are empty, people are sitting at home waiting for this disaster to pass, a national emergency ordinance was approved by the cabinet.

Meanwhile, we almost forgot that only two and a half weeks ago an election was held here. The coronavirus panic earlier this week provided us with one of the weirdest shows this country has seen: new Knesset members taking oaths in small groups, with some not even being allowed to attend because they were suspected of having the virus.

While battling corona, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also battling to keep his chair. His opponent, Benny Gantz, is not making his life easier, as Blue and White holds steady as tough negotiators despite the harsh times.

A move that seemed like a

breakthrough appeared on Wednesday morning.

Gantz said in a Facebook post that “when it comes to human lives – there’s no politics, Israel comes first,” adding a screenshot of a post written by Netanyahu, which said citizens should obey the new Health Ministry restrictions.

In response, Netanyahu said in a post: “Very important! Thank you, Benny.”

The Jerusalem Post’s Gil Hoffman reported that day that sources in both Blue and White and the Likud said the parties have set Monday as a deadline to reach a coalition deal.

This is important for Israel. After more than a year of mudslinging – in which all red lines were crossed, and the Israeli political sphere reached its lowest point in history – finally, the two leaders are showing us that there is no “First Israel” and “Second Israel.” We can still find, or at least try to find, the middle ground.

This disaster, which has hit the entire world, could help Israel heal its divisions.

An emergency coalition, which might be established next week, could – and should – include the Joint List.

In this Knesset, the Joint List is the only party that has Arab members. The other parties failed to include Arabs in places on their list that were realistic spots to get into the Knesset.

The idea of having a unity government – representing the entire political spectrum and comprising all parties in the house – could bring about the best results in the fight against COVID-19.

This virus affects all parts of society. It does not care is you are religious or secular, Jewish or Muslim. In this war, Israel does not fight an Arab or a Muslim enemy. This is our chance as human beings to join hands and fight it together.

This applies not only to the big parties that lead the country but also to the Joint List itself. In an interview with the Post last month, MK Ahmad Tibi said the party would not join any government in the near future. Joint List leader Ayman Odeh said in a tweet on Wednesday that the people who “are still contemplating about forming a unity government... should forget about it.”

This is not fair to the Arab public, of which almost 90% voted for the Joint List. Its leaders should understand the significance of this crisis and transcend above other disputes.

In this once-in-a-century disaster, all of us should have representatives in the country’s leadership that makes critical decisions that affect lives.

Israel is taking drastic measures to combat the coronavirus. The Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) received a green light to monitor citizens suspected of having the virus; the court system was suspended – and with it also the beginning of the prime minister’s trial; and the Knesset was forbidden from gathering and overseeing the actions of the government.

If the country can accept these extreme steps, which by and large it has thus far, it can also accept a government with elected representatives from all parts of society, including Arabs, who comprise almost 20% of its population.

This is a unique opportunity for a historic change. We shouldn’t miss it. •

Knesset speaker mid-hearing, while sitting next to Hayut hearing the surveillance issue.

Only hours earlier on Thursday, the Movement for the Quality of Government in Israel filed a petition to get the High Court of Justice to compel Edelstein to open the Knesset to votes relating to its committees and operations after Edelstein said he would not allow them. Blue and White joined the petition and added to it a request that the court force a vote for Knesset speaker.

Sohlberg’s order said Edelstein must explain himself in writing by Sunday at 10:00 a.m., that a hearing is set for Sunday at 4:00 p.m. and that both sides agree to an interim conditional order by the court cutting through procedural niceties so that the court can rule almost immediately.

Not far from the Supreme Court, a demonstration of some 200 people, who arrived in vehicles, protested what they called “damage done to Israel’s democracy” by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Edelstein. Eight protesters were arrested. The police gave fines of NIS 5,000, which is imposed on anyone who violates Health Ministry regulations forbidding gatherings of more than 10 people due to the coronavirus pandemic. The police denied accusations that the arrests and fines were political.

Around 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, Sohlberg was sitting on a panel of justices hearing a petition to freeze Shin Bet surveillance of coronavirus-infected citizens. During the hearing, it is believed that a staff member came to Sohlberg to sign the order regarding Edelstein and that he signed while the arguments were ongoing on the Shin Bet issue.

That Sohlberg’s decision was issued while he was still at the Shin Bet hearing and did not wait until later in the day would appear to show how seriously he views the situation as being urgent.

The Shin Bet surveillance went into effect on Tuesday based on a government decision, but without a Knesset sign-off, when the Knesset Intelligence Subcommittee, headed by top Blue and White official Gabi Ashkenazi, demanded further clarifications.

Initially, Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit had said the Shin Bet surveillance would not start without a Knesset sign-off but later reversed himself, saying political delays in the Knesset’s functioning made waiting impossible and could put lives in danger.

On Tuesday, the High Court rejected an immediate intermediate freeze but agreed to hold Thursday’s hearing.

It was unclear if the High Court would rule on the Shin Bet issue separately or wait until Sunday’s petitions regarding opening the Knesset committees.

The state responded Tuesday night to the Shin Bet surveillance petition, arguing that lives were at stake. Due to the stakes, the state said it could not wait for the Knesset, but that it hoped the Knesset would start functioning again soon to provide oversight. The state said Knesset oversight was ideal, but that the coronavirus crisis was too desperate to wait. • services as a mediator.

Rivlin warned both parties not to make the Knesset “a hostage” to the ongoing talks.

“Continue the discourse between you while ensuring that the Knesset can function properly,” he said. “It is important to the citizens of Israel for the Knesset to be open, especially in a time of crisis.”

The Likud sent Blue and White a new offer on Thursday in an effort to end the stalemate over the makeup of Knesset committees.

Likud faction chairman Miki Zohar sent the offer a day after Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein refused to convene the Knesset plenum because no agreement on the committees had been reached.

According to the offer, there would be four committees, including three headed by Blue and White MKs. They would head the Arrangements Committee, Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and a new committee on the coronavirus. The Finance Committee would continue to be led by Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism).

Each committee would have a five-four advantage for Blue and White’s Center-Left political bloc over the Likud’s Center-Right bloc, except for the Arrangements Committee, which would be even.

Another option Zohar gave Blue and White was that Blue and White would also have a 5-4 advantage in the Arrangements Committee. But there would be no political legislation until a government is formed.

“We offered Blue and White a significant compromise,” Zohar said. “Now everyone will be able to tell who really wants to act on behalf of the citizens as a whole. They will know who is in favor of democracy and who is against it and just wants to use the Knesset for their personal political, vengeful needs that do not interest the public in this complex and dangerous time.”

In response, Blue and White said Thursday evening: “Zohar’s offer is unacceptable to us.” • that came to Israel is necessary and essential.”

The Mossad searched for test kits wherever possible and procured the 100,000 from two different countries, Ynet reported. Later, Al Jazeera quoted a source at Reuters who said the kits came “from one of the Gulf states” that do not recognize Israel “but coordinates with it at low level on issues related to security challenges in the region, such as Iran.”

In the last few years, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have had some contact with Israel, although ties have not been formalized.

While the original report was ambiguous about whether the Mossad had taken the test kits without permission or had obtained them by consent, the Post confirmed that the kits were provided with consent.

Part of the reason for the Mossad’s involvement in obtaining the kits was that some of the countries involved do not have diplomatic relations with Israel or have other complex reasons for wanting to sell the kits under the radar.

The Post confirmed that the Mossad’s cybersecurity team is also assisting the Health Ministry in writing special software that will be used to deal with the virus.

“This is an unusual event in which the country’s intelligence and other security agencies are working together and mobilizing to assist efforts to curb the spread of the virus,” N12 wrote in its report.

Beyond the Mossad, the Defense Ministry has been stepping up efforts to support the fight against the coronavirus. Defense Minister Naftali Bennett orchestrated the opening of two “coronavirus hotels” – one in Jerusalem and one in Tel Aviv – for people who have mild cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. In addition, he authorized the mobilization of 2,500 IDF reservists to help deal with the continued spread of the deadly virus.

The Mossad is uniquely equipped to carry out rapid global operations efficiently, tossing out all of the red tape that other agencies must cope with. The agency has been used in the past to bring to Israel large groups of Jews who are in danger throughout the world in miraculously short periods of time. •