Odd Times. Odd Reactions.

 

As of Dec 29^th, Israel, number 32 in the world’s list of infections, had 407,285 people infected, at 44,282 per million, with 3256 deaths, 146 people on ventilators, 354 in critical condition, and 37,509 active cases. But Israel has over 5,000 cases a day reported, nearly 6% of all those tested. By comparison, the world had 81,680,270 infections at 10,476 per million, with 1,781,776 deaths at 229 per million, with 105,801 in critical condition, and over 22 million active cases. The USA is #1 in the world with 19,901,603 cases, that's 59,952 per million, with 345,617 deaths at 1041 per million, with 28,943 critical cases and 7,774,362 active cases.

 

Israel, population 9.2 million, has so far vaccinated nearly 500,000 people using the Pfizer vaccine, the only one available as of now in Israel. The Israel Ministry of Health says that 21% of those citizens over 60 have been vaccinated. 150 HMO branches, 22 hospitals, and 11 other centers, have been vaccinating the population. Former Covid-19 czar Ronni Gimzu, head of Tel Aviv’s Ichilov hospital, has opened the hospital’s doors 24/7 to anyone who wanted to be vaccinated.

 

According to the TimesOfIsrael, Dr. Sharon Alroy-Preis, the acting head of the Health Ministry’s public health services, hailed the speed of Israel’s vaccination drive, but also noted that the vaccine is only 95% effective, and that COVID-19 could yet mutate problematically — even though the vaccines are increasingly thought to be effective against the highly contagious so-called British mutation.

 

Ynet news reported that “the Health Ministry says communities disproportionately affected by the pandemic are the least prepared to get vaccinated, while the biggest number of inoculated was recorded in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and others.” Israeli Arab and Haredi cities are reporting the least number of those vaccinated.

 

Amid all of this, starting next week, Israel will launch a massive innoculation campaign, once the medical staff and the 60+ are innoculated. Teachers are now on the list for innoculations. Then the general public. Health officials estimate that most of the country will be innoculated with both doses by the end of February. (This, while some countries, like the USA are struggling to start their innoculation program. Many in the USA reportedly blame outgoing president Trump who, according to a report in foreignpolicy.com, writing about how the Swedish government misread the Covid-19 scale, followed his advisor Scott Atlas’ advice to aim for herd immunity, as Sweden did. Sweden also refused to mandate wearing masks or closing stores and restaurants. Today, Sweden, with a population of @10 million, similar to Israel’s, has a death rate three times that of Israels.

 

One observer pointed out that not everyone who gets Covid-19 gets the VIP treatment President Trump did. Reportedly, President Trump held up the Covid-19 stimulus package until yesterday. This, according to observers, also held up the distribution of the vaccines since the package contained a budget to pay for the vaccine’s transportation.)

 

However, not everyone in Israel is happy with Israel’s rapid and successful vaccination program. Miri Mizrachi Reuveni, CEO of Maccabi, one of Israel’s largest HMOs, told Israel radio’s Reshet Bet that hospitals were receiving the vaccine instead of the HMOs who were the backbone of Israel’s health system. She said that Maccabi HMOs are now innoculating 25,000 people a day and could go up to 40,000 but no higher since Maccabi does not have access to more vaccines. As of now, an HMO member makes an appointment, gets a day and time, arrives and receives the vaccine. At the same time, the HMO’s computers reserve a second vaccine 21 days later for the person to receive the second dose. Pfizer’s vaccine comes in two doses. The first is reportedly 50% effective, but that number jumps to 95% after the second ‘booster’ shot.

 

Reuveni said that the hospitals were not the right venue for the injections since hospitals by definition were for “sick people,” whereas the HMOs were not, so the person coming for an injection to an HMO was not exposed to the same viruses and bacteria that float around a hospital. She said, “There’s a panic, now (of a shortage of vaccines) with people just showing up at the HMO and waiting in line for an innoculation. These people, who showed up without an appointment, took the injections meant for other people, depleting the supply. She also said that the hospitals were using up vaccines that should go to the outlaying towns and cities away from the center of the country.

 

Not so, said Prof Yaaron Niv, a health ministry official, on Reshet Bet radio. The first round of inoculations were for medical staff and then those over 60. The hospitals were given doses of the vaccine to inoculate their staff. Once these doses, he called them “sets,” were taken out of the freezer, where they were kept at -80 Celsius, they had to be used within two to three hours or they were useless and had to be disposed of. Each dose cost 200 shekels (@$62). He said the hospitals were giving those “sets” to people, who were waiting around the hospital in hopes of getting an innoculation, after the hospital staff had been innoculated, rather than toss the vaccines in the garbage, a waste of the vaccines and the money it cost to purchase them.

 

Health Minister Covid-19 Czar Nahum Ash told Israel radio later in the day that there was no shortage of vaccines and no cause for panic. According to the TimesOfIsrael, Health Minister Yuli Edelstein dismissed rumors that stocks of the Pfizer vaccine Israel is using were running low. “I hear all over the place rumors about a grave shortage in the vaccines,” he said. “There is no shortage, and there will be no shortage.” Channel 12 TV news reported that Israel expects to receive a total of 3.8 billion doses by Thursday, Dec 31^st.

 

 This announcement followed TV news reports, like that on Channel 12, showing lines of people over 60 outside an HMO in Tel Aviv waiting for an innoculation without an appointment. Many of them told TV reporters they’d grown tired of waiting an hour on the phone to make an appointment only to have the call disconnected. So, they simply went down to the HMO and stood in line. According to reports, the nurses at the HMOs were not always strict about appointments and anyone who showed up received an injection. One woman in her late 60’s said that she had an appointment and her 70+ year-old husband tagged along with her. She received the inoculation and so did her husband, who didn’t have an appointment. The woman said she was upset to see teenaged Yeshiva students also in line and receiving the innoculations that were meant for the elderly and those at risk.

 

At the Meuchedet health clinic in Modiin, however, the nurses wouldn’t accept anyone without an appointment. “We can’t,” said the nurse. “Because we have to know who is coming and how many doses to save for the second injection. Without people logged in through the computer we can’t do that.”

 

Israel is ostensibly in a lockdown, which will reportedly cost NIS 2.5 billion (@$80 million)a week. However the Health Ministry and the Education Ministry were at loggerheads, with the former wanting to limit the number of children in schools and the latter pushing for all children to be in school. The 

 

Education Ministry won the battle. Children from pre-school through 12^th grade all attend school. One observer said that essentially killed the lockdown. Parents didn’t have to stay home to be with their children but were free to go to work. Israel TV’s channel 12 showed footage of police patrolling popular promenades and rather than writing up fines for 500 shekels ($155) for people outside a coffee shop sipping their beverages, they simply asked the people to go home. Many small stores, who were supposed to be closed, ignored the lockdown. Restaurants are also closed except for delivery. Although Finance Minister Katz says he will allow carry out from restaurants to reopen soon. Traffic on the roads was almost as busy as normal with the police reporting only a 20% drop in traffic.

 

All of this while Israel is in the throes of another election.

 

A game of musical chairs is going on with members of the Likud and Blue and White parties, and a few other parties, said one observer. A few of Likud’s top people have left the party, like Gideon Saar who launched a his new right-wing “New Hope” party. Then came the “bombshell” when long-time Netanyahu loyalist Minister Zeev Elkin left the Likud in a surprising televised press conference saying Netanyahu was a danger to the country because he put his own personal needs, like his trial, above those of the country. Justice Minister Avi Nissenkorn abandoned Blue and White for a new center-left party being formed by Tel Aviv mayor Ron Huldai.

 

According to the latest Channel 12 TV poll, Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud party gets 28 Knesset seats, but his former Likud rival Gideon Saar’s “New Hope” party isn’t that far behind with 19. Benny Ganz’s Blue and White has slipped down to 5, if that. Blue and White won 33 seats in the March 2020 election. Many in the Blue and White party are now actively looking for a new home.

 

Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid/Telem still comes in with a respectable 15 seats, even though his number 2 Ofer Shelach left to form his own party bringing with him two members of the Yesh Atid/Telem party. Neftali Bennet’s Yamina shows up with 15. None of the parties are even close to a majority of 61 and deals will have to be made with the ultra-orthodox parties, Shaas and Degel HaTorah, each with about 8 seats. Avidgor Leiberman’s right wing Yisrael Beytenu would get five seats and so would the left-wing Meretz party.

 

Pundits say that each election brings with it a new rising star, a “new hope” for the country. The last was Benny Gantz, who observers say was well-meaning and sincere, but also naive and a “frier” (sucker) who was skillfully manipulated by PM Netanyahu. This round it is Gideon Saar who seems poised to vacuum away Likud support from Netanyahu, seen as responsible for the poor response to the pandemic. Some observers think Saar’s party may become the new Likud.

 

Meanwhile, Israel’s high court is to consider if PM Netanyahu should be investigated for his part in the $2 billion submarine scandal that saw some of his closest confidants indicted on bribery charges. And, Hassan Nasrallah, the head of the Lebanon’s Hezbollah terrorist group has said that he has a huge stockpile of missiles that could hit Israel’s major cities with precision. Experts say that this is just Nasrallah trying to stay in the news and that he has no intention of carrying out his threat. Others say that usually, in the past, Nasrallah did what he said he was going to do.

 

Odd times. Odd reactions. History will be the judge of who made the right calls.

 

One correspondent reported a strange story. While going through his late grandfather’s effects, cleaning out his home after the grandfather had passed away, he discovered a journal from1918 and in it a mask used during that epidemic. The journal held a daily record of what life was like under that pandemic.

 

So, what will future generations find that relates to this one? Will the verdict be good or will we all be seen as having lived through a period of recklessness and folly by self-centered leaders more concerned with their own image than the good of their citizens? Time will tell. Meanwhile, experts say, don’t forget to wear a mask.

Vaccines, Policitc and a New Lockdown

 

Three main points. Israelis have started getting vaccinated against the Corona Virus. Israel’s Covid-19 numbers are on a startling rise. The Health Ministry is expected to call for a lockdown starting this weekend and lasting for between three to four weeks. And, Israel is heading to the 4th elections in two years.

Israelis in the front lines of the health sector battling Covid-19 and those over 60 are the first to get the Pfizer inoculation, administered in two doses 14-days apart. According to Health Minister Yuli Edelstein, the HMO’s telephones have been “going crazy” with Israelis wanting to make an appointment to receive the vaccine. According to the health ministry, the HMO’s are the main backbone of the Israeli health sector and the ones best suited to administer the vaccine.

The Pfizer vaccine must be administered in two doses. Once an appointment is made the HMO automatically makes an appointment for the second dose two weeks later. Israeli news sources also feature interviews with health officials assuring the public that the vaccine will probably cover the new virulent mutations that have been sweeping Britain and parts of Europe.

The vaccine comes as Israel’s Covid-19 numbers have climbed alarmingly. Israel’s infection numbers over 24-hours have passed 3,000 for the last few days. There are now 382,467 infected, with 3136 deaths, and 499 in critical condition. The infection rate is at nearly 5% and rising. Several areas that had been green for the past month have turned orange, and a few turned red. The red zones are mostly those in Israeli Arab villages, where large public weddings have been the norm. Jewish towns with mostly Orthodox populations, like Modiin Elite, as well as parts of Jerusalem have also been declared red zones because of the spike in infections.

The health ministry has mounted a TV blitz encouraging everyone to sign up for the vaccine while extolling the benefits of the shot and explaining there is no danger taking it. Even some religious leaders have come out supporting the vaccine. However skeptics wonder if the message will be accepted by the entire community. As of now, commentators point out, the ultra-orthodox community has ignored regulations to keep a social distance, witnessed by the return of men to study in crowded yeshiva study halls, as well as attending huge gatherings at weddings and funerals. According to the health ministry, this flaunting of the regulations has led to the present outbreak and need for a lockdown.

Nahum Ash, the Covid-19 czar, announced today that the lockdown may start as early as this weekend and last for nearly a month. Schools would also be closed, except for kindergartens and special needs pre-schools. Some politicians oppose closing the schools. During the lockdown, residents would be limited to a kilometer from their homes. Most political party leaders agree that a lockdown is necessary in order to quell the rise in infections. Their agreement is necessary in order to pass an order for a lockdown in the Covid-19 committee.

Israel announced normalization with Morocco this week, the fourth Arab country to agree to normalization with Israel. Many Israelis took advantage of the new diplomatic relations with Dubai to fly their for vacation only to find out that Dubai is a “red” zone and that when they return to Israel they have to go into a mandatory 10-day quarantine. Over 60,000 Israelis flew to Dubai over the last few weeks for a holiday. Even some ultra-orthodox who went there to get married. However, the US State Department on Wednesday issued a warning that no US citizens would be allowed into Israel unless they had Israeli citizenship. And those allowed to arrive had to immediately go to a Covid-19 hotel and be quarantined for 10-days.

The rise in infections comes just as the Knesset dissolved, forcing new elections, the fourth in two years. The present coalition government between PM Netanyahu’s Likud party and Benny Ganz’s Blue and White party lasted only 7 months. According to media reports, the government finally collapsed after Blue and White leader Benny Ganz, who had waged three election campaigns against Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud party, each resulting in a draw, before agreeing to join a coalition with Netanyahu in order to forestall yet another election. By joining Netanyahu, something he swore he would never do, many of his supporters lost faith in Ganz. Razi Barkai, talk show host on Israel Army radio’s Galei Tzahal, compared Gantz to Israel’s 3^rd prime minister Levi Eshkol. Barkai said Eshkol was also an ethical man who put the needs of the country before his own ambitions. It is a shame, Barkai said, to see Ganz go.

According to Chaim Ramon, the negotiator between Likud and Blue and White, speaking on Israel Radio’s Reshet Bet, on the Kalman & Leiberman talk show, the final straw was Netanyahu’s demand to limit the powers of Minister of Justice Avi Nissenkorn and control the appointment of the Israel’s new prosecuting attorney. Some of Gantz’s blue and white party members staunchly opposed this concession. Netanyahu, they believed, was trying to manipulate the legal system to keep himself out of jail.

Netanyahu is on trial for three counts of corruption. Pundits point out that Netanyahu had hoped to get enough support in the Knesset to pass a bill that would suspend his trial on three felonies until after he’d finished his term as Prime Minister. Pundits also say Netanyahu wanted to have influence over who ever was going to be appointed to prosecute him in the trial. Three Blue and White party members broke party discipline and voted against a move to postpone the dissolution of the Knesset at midnight on Dec 23^rd. The Knesset was forced to dissolve because of a law that insisted an annual budget had to be passed by that date.

A move to postpone that date was defeated by maverick Blue and White voters even though party chairman Ganz had agreed to the postponement. Ganz, according to pundits, thought that the country was in deep enough trouble fighting the Covid-19 pandemic without forcing new elections that would put the country into upheaval and cost an estimated $775 million. This, said the pundits, at a time when Israel’s unemployment had skyrocketed, stores, restaurants, places of entertainment, and bars closed, and many people struggling to even put food on the table. Ganz’s decision to join the Netanyahu government and reticence to go to new elections was caused by his self-confessed patriotism, said the observers, something that also caused Israel Army Radio’s Barkai to compare him to Levi Eshkol. One commentator said, however, that Levi Eshkol never had to face a brilliant politician like Netanyahu.

Tuesday night Netanyahu took to the airwaves, appearing live on all three Israeli TV stations, ostensibly to give a state of the country address, discuss the pandemic and the vaccine program. However, he soon hijacked the broadcast and turned it into a political speech, lambasting Ganz for driving the country to new elections, and blaming the “leftist officials” lead by Avi Nissencorn, the Justice Minister, for scuttling the negotiations that would have postponed new elections. Even the TV stations realized the speech had become part of an election campaign and broke off from the live broadcast when they could, for commercials, or for commentaries.

Recent polls indicate Netanyahu would have a tough battle in the upcoming election. Netanyahu’s popularity has fallen as the electorate blames him for mishandling the Covid-19 pandemic. A Likud party rival, Gideon Saar, recently broke off from the Likud, taking a number of veteran Likud loyalists with him, forming the “New Hope” party. Saar’s new party is expected to garner 20 seats in the new elections with the Likud at 29. Other parties in the running are Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid with 16 seats, Neftali Bennett's right-wing orthodox party with 15 and Ganz’s Blue and White at 6 seats, if indeed that party gets enough votes to even enter the Knesset. Netanyahu’s traditional partners, the ultra-orthodox parties, would not be enough to give Netanyahu the 61 seats he needed to form a government. This would lead, said observers, to another election, Israel’s fifth in a little over two years.

One pundit pointed out that while Ganz may be like Levi Eshkol, caring more about the country than himself, the opposite could be said for Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu. Another observer said that Netanyahu’s trial was the real wild card. Should he actually have a trial, assuming he couldn’t find a political maneuver to postpone or cancel it, and be convicted, then Israel would have a new government, one not led by Netanyahu, who has been in office since 2009. Perhaps that’s why Gideon Saar named his party “New Hope.” But then, he still had to beat Netanyahu, something that has been nearly impossible up until now.

Light But No Miracles

Israel has received the first shipment of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine. On Sunday, Israel’s president Ruby Rivlin will get the vaccine at Hadassah Hospital in Ein Kerem, Jerusalem. Israel’s health ministry has mounted a concerted campaign on tv, radio, and in the newspapers encouraging Israelis to take the vaccine. Reportedly, by April 60 percent of the country will be vaccinated. Leading rabbis in Israel have told their followers to take the vaccine when it becomes available. Israel’s medical workers and those at risk, like the elderly in assisted living facilities, will be the first to receive the vaccine.

Yair Lapid, of Yesh Atid, and head of the opposition, criticized PM Netanyahu for posing with the Pfizer vaccines as if he alone was responsible for bringing the vaccine to Israel. “He’s more interested in gaining political capital than is fighting the Covid-19,” said Lapid.

This comes as Israel’s C-19 infection rate has been rising steadily. Nearly 3,000 new infections were reported in the last 24-hours, raising the percentage to nearly 4% of those tested. Israeli health authorities are talking about imposing another lockdown next week. Some Indoor malls have stated they will ignore the government’s closure.

Meanwhile, ‘street stores’ will remain open. to further confuse the situation, the government is talking about opening health studios. Pilates studios have been open for six weeks under the rubric that they provided rehab and helped prevent the virus through exercise.So far between 500 and 600 health studios have closed and some will not be able to reopen due to the debts incurred during the coronavirus closures.

2892 Israelis tested positive for C-19 in the last 24 hours. As of now, 360,630 Israelis have been infected, with 39,209 per million, 139 on breathing machines, 3014 deaths with 722 per million, while 464 critical cases were reported with 71,062 active cases.

Another possible Israeli breakthrough may help prevent C-19. According to Ynet news, “Israeli scientists find ultraviolet lights kill coronavirus. Project leader Prof. Hadas Mamane says TAU researchers discovered it is 'quite simple' to kill virus using cheap and energy efficient LED bulbs, believes technology will be available for widespread use in near future “ The research has shown that a LED bulb,, the sort used in water filtration systems, can eliminate the C-19 virus. The researchers say that the light can be installed in air-filtration systems in elevators, hospitals, supermarkets and other places and kill the C-19 virus as it is exposed to the LED light.

Politics. One pundit pointed out that Bernard Malamud once wrote, “There is no such thing as an apolitical Jew.” In Israel, said the pundit, that adage is in bold and underlined. Israel’s prime minister Netanyahu, facing the 26th week of protests against him, has pointedly ignored his alternate prime minister Benny Gantz who is the minister of defense. Netanyahu appointed a new head of the Mossad, without consulting with Gantz. New elections, according to the Times Of Israel, are inevitable. The government automatically dissolves next Dec 23rd if a budget is not passed. Analysts say there is no chance Gantz and Netanyahau will reach another compromise that will head off new elections. The fourth elections in less than 2 years. Critics say that Netanyahu is maneuvering any way he can to stay out of jail. His trial is scheduled to resume in February.

Popular politician Gideon Saar broke off from Netanyahu’s Likud last week. He has so far attracted some from the Likud and other parties and is now, according to polls, nearly even with the Likud. “Another knight in shining armor” said one pundit. “First Gantz, now Saar.” According to the pundits, Saar is yet another in a long list of politicians who appear on the horizon with talk of reforms. Most, like Gantz, streak through the skies like a meteor and disappear into the far reaches of the universe never to be heard from again. Saar, however, has been around for years and ran against Netanyahu for leadership of the Likud.
 

The government, in an effort to alleviate the harsh economic conditions, has dropped the prime rate on mortgages, saving mortgage holders nearly a hundred dollars a month. But, the dollar shekel exchange rate remains in Israel’s favor. The strong shekels is trading at 3.25 to the dollar.

Israel has been inundated with a severe winter’s rain. Some locations in Israel have received more than 100 mm within a few hours. The Knerret (Sea of Galilee) has risen nearly 4 cm.
"Hanukkah has been weird,” said one youngster. Families have been advised to stay apart. Some children keep their children away from their grandparents as a way to keep them from coming in contact with the C-19. Only a small number of Israelis are ignoring the health ministry regulations.

So far, Jews around the world have been celebrating Hanukkah, the festival of light, where oil candles burned miraculously for eight days without being refilled. These days we have the light, but Covid-19 is still with us, with no miraculous cure in sight.

Light But No Miracles

 

Israel has received the first shipment of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine. On Sunday, Israel’s president Ruby Rivlin will get the vaccine at Hadassah Hospital in Ein Kerem, Jerusalem. Israel’s health ministry has mounted a concerted campaign on tv, radio, and in the newspapers encouraging Israelis to take the vaccine. Reportedly, by April 60 percent of the country will be vaccinated. Leading rabbis in Israel have told their followers to take the vaccine when it becomes available. Israel’s medical workers and those at risk, like the elderly in assisted living facilities, will be the first to receive the vaccine.

Yair Lapid, of Yesh Atid, and head of the opposition, criticized PM Netanyahu for posing with the Pfizer vaccines as if he alone was responsible for bringing the vaccine to Israel. “He’s more interested in gaining political capital than is fighting the Covid-19,” said Lapid.

This comes as Israel’s C-19 infection rate has been rising steadily. Nearly 3,000 new infections were reported in the last 24-hours, raising the percentage to nearly 4% of those tested. Israeli health authorities are talking about imposing another lockdown next week. Some Indoor malls have stated they will ignore the government’s closure.

Meanwhile, ‘street stores’ will remain open. to further confuse the situation, the government is talking about opening health studios. Pilates studios have been open for six weeks under the rubric that they provided rehab and helped prevent the virus through exercise.So far between 500 and 600 health studios have closed and some will not be able to reopen due to the debts incurred during the coronavirus closures.

2892 Israelis tested positive for C-19 in the last 24 hours. As of now, 360,630 Israelis have been infected, with 39,209 per million, 139 intubated, 3014 deaths with 722 per million, while 464 critical cases were reported with 71,062 active cases.

Another Israeli possible Israeli breakthrough may help prevent C-19. According to Ynet news, “Israeli scientists find ultraviolet lights kill coronavirus. Project leader Prof. Hadas Mamane says TAU researchers discovered it is 'quite simple' to kill virus using cheap and energy efficient LED bulbs, believes technology will be available for widespread use in near future “ The research has shown that a LED bulb,, the sort used in water filtration systems, can eliminate the C-19 virus. The researchers say that the light can be installed in air-filtration systems in elevators, hospitals, supermarkets and other places and kill the C-19 virus as it is exposed to the LED light.

Politics. One pundit pointed out that Bernard Malamud once wrote, “There is no such thing as an apolitical Jew.” In Israel, said the pundit, that adage is in bold and underlined. Israel’s prime minister Netanyahu, facing the 26th week of protests against him, has pointedly ignored his alternate prime minister Benny Gantz who is the minister of defense. Netanyahu appointed a new head of the Mossad, without consulting with Gantz. New elections, according to the Times Of Israel, are inevitable. The government automatically dissolves next Dec 23rd if a budget is not passed. Analysts say there is no chance Gantz and Netanyahau will reach another compromise that will head off new elections. The fourth elections in less than 2 years. Critics say that Netanyahu is maneuvering any way he can to stay out of jail. His trial is scheduled to resume in February.

Popular politician Gideon Saar broke off from Netanyahu’s Likud last week. He has so far attracted some from the Likud and other parties and is now, according to polls, nearly even with the Likud in the polls. “Another knight in shining armor” said one pundit. “First Gantz, now Saar.” According to the pundits, Saar is yet another in a long list of politicians who appear on the horizon with talk of reforms. Most, like Gantz, streak through the skies like a meteor and disappear into the far reaches of the universe never to be heard from again. Saar, however, has been around for years and ran against Netanyahu for leadership of the Likud.
 

The government, in an effort to alleviate the harsh economic conditions, has dropped the prime rate on mortgages, saving mortgage holders nearly a hundred dollars a month. But, the dollar shekel exchange rate remains in Israel’s favor. The strong shekels is trading at 3.25 to the dollar.

Israel has been inundated with a severe winter’s rain. Some locations in Israel have received more than 100 mm within a few hours. The Knerret (Sea of Galilee) has risen nearly 4 cm.
Hanukkah has been weird,” said one youngster. Families have been advised to stay apart. Some children keep their children away from their grandparents as a way to keep them from coming in contact with the C-19. Only a small number of Israelis are ignoring the health ministry regulations.

So far, Jews around the world have been celebrating Hanukkah, the festival of light, where oil candles miraculously for eight days without being refilled. These days we have the light, but Covid-19 is still with us, with no miraculous cure in sight.

Still Fighting The War

 

Israel has dropped to #32 on the world’s list of most infected. As of today, according to https://ncov2019.live/data, Israel has 336,846 confirmed infections, that’s 36,623 per million, with 2,865 deaths, at 311 per million, with 10,232 active cases. 99 on ventilators.

However, while Israel has slipped down the chart over the past month, when daily infections fell from 15% of those tested, to less than 2%, the numbers seem to be rising once again. The daily infection rate has climbed to over 1,000 over the last several days. Nachum Ash, the new C-19 czar, has warned that the coronavirus is not going away. He was quoted on Ynetnews saying, “We are still in an emergency situation.”

Prof Shuki Shamir, immunologist at Assuta hospital, and a government advisor, told Razi Barkai of Galei Tzahal Army radio that a third lockdown is inevitable. Prof Shamir pointed out that 80% of the infections come from just 20% of the population. At present, the Israeli Arab community is suffering a high rate of infection, mainly due to the disregard for the health ministry’s regulations, holding large weddings where people mingle and dance without masks.

Prof. Shamir expects a rise in infections since Israel has mixed remote learning with opening up the grade schools and high schools, has opened outdoor stores and even opened 15 selected malls around the country. Prof. Shamir said the problem wasn’t really with the schools or malls but the gatherings at weddings, and parties. When asked by Barkai if enclosed malls wouldn’t be a breeding ground for the coronavirus, Prof. Shamir responded that if the malls were well ventilated, pointing out that many malls had recently installed better ventilators, and if the malls management controlled the numbers of people in the mall at any one time, and if the customers wore masks and didn’t crowd together in the stores, then the infection rate shouldn’t rise drastically.

Barkai then pointed out the Israeli well-deserved reputation for impatience, not wanting to wait in line, wanting to be social, and in general being rowdy. He mentioned a recent TV report with video of high school students dancing without masks. Prof. Shamir said that one of those students could infect 20 in that group, and then those twenty could infect their siblings, parents and grandparents and cause a real spike in the rate of infection.

Ido Bruno, CEO of the Israel Museum told Barkai that the museum would open on a limited basis and hoped the visitors to the museum would abide by the Health Ministry’s rules. Both agreed, though, that Israelis do have the unsavory reputation of not wanting to stand in line or abide by regulations.

Israel has also opened up tourists “islands” as they called the Dead Sea resort area and the southern resort town of Eilat. One hotel in the Dead Sea had to close when ten of the employees tested positive for C-19. The hotel was evacuated and throughly disinfected before being reopened. Staff at the hotels must all undergo frequent C-19 tests. Each visitor must provide a document showing they’d been tested and were negative for C-19.

On a positive note, Israel has ordered millions of vaccines from both Moderna and Pfizer. The first batch may arrive by the end of December and be given to medical staff and those over 65. Moderna’s chief medical officer, Tal Zaks, an Israeli, said in an interview in the Jerusalem Post that he hopes by spring the world would be in a much better place.”With enough vaccines,” said Zaks, we should put an end to this pandemic as we now experience it and get back to life as quickly as possible.” Pfizer’s CEO is Albert Bourla a Jewish/Greek business executive who was raised in Thessalonika, Greece and is still active in that Jewish community.

But there are those who still think the C-19 is a big bluff created to allow the politicians to have more power and control. “It is no worse than the flu,” said H, an ironmonger in the Modiin industrial zone. Mid 50’s, medium height, short grey hair with a knit skullcap, H stood in front of his small workshop in a line of workshops, smoking a cigarette. A mask was not to be seen, neither by him, nor by his neighbor, the auto electrician who stood beside a tall stack of car batteries. “It’s all BS,” said H.

On another scientific front, Israeli scientists think they’ve found a possible cure for cancer. According to Nathan Jeffay, writing in the Times of Israel, a team at Tel Aviv university claims they’ve used “microscopic scissors’ to “pinpoint and eliminate cancerous cells.” So far the team has had success with animals and hopes to begin human trials within 2 years. “This is the first study in the world to prove that the CRISPR genome editing system, which works by cutting DNA, can effectively be used to treat cancer in an animal,” said Prof. Dan Peer, a cancer expert from Tel Aviv University, after his peer-reviewed research was published in the Science Advances journal.

“There are no side effects, and we believe that a cancer cell treated in this way will never become active again.” He added: “This technology can extend the life expectancy of cancer patients and we hope, one day, cure the disease.” Dr. Peer thought that this technology could destroy a tumor within three treatments. “This technology can physically cut the DNA in cancerous cells, and those cells will not survive.”

 

 

Dr. Peer thought that in the near future there would be personalized treatments “based on genetic messengers” not only for cancer but for various genetic diseases.”

On the security front, Israel has refused to comment on a New York Times article claiming Israel’s responsibility for the assassination of Mohsen Kakhrizadeh, the “father” of Iran’s nuclear weapons program. Kakhrizadeh was, according to Channel 12 news, “An irreplaceable source of knowledge. Channel 13 news said that Kakhrizadeh has been a target of Israel’s Mossad for several years. Kakhrizadeh, both a scientist and a brigadier general in the Islamic revolutionary guard, was gunned down as he drove with his wife through the resort town of Absard, outside of Tehran. Kakhrizadeh’s movements and personal life were so secretive even his age was not public knowledge.

According to reports in the Iranian press, a machine gun operated by remote control opened fire on Kakhrizadeh’s vehicle, followed by a car with security personnel assigned to guard him as it drove through an open stretch of road surrounded by agricultural fields. Perhaps as a diversion, a remotely controlled bomb exploded first in a truck as Kakhrizadeh drove past. The high-powered machine gun cut through the bullet-proof car. Kakhrizadeh fled the car following the explosion and was shot three times by the machine gun. Both he and his wife died in the attack. Some Iranian sources claim the machine gun was controlled by a satellite.

Iran said they would retaliate at the right time. Israeli security experts have said that Israeli embassies are now on high alert and warned that Israelis could be targets, especially as they visit the newly opened countries of UAE and Bahrain. The first flight to Bahrain took place on Dec 1 and flew over Saudi airspace.

In another attack, a convoy of Iranian weapons was attacked as it crossed from Iraq into Syria. Media reports that the Iranian commander of the operation was killed but the Iranians have not confirmed that story.

On the political front, PM Netanyahu is still witnessing protests against himself, now focused on his possible involvement in the “submarine” affair, where several of his associates are are already on trial for corruption in the purchase of billions of dollars of submarines and combat cruisers.

Also, the Israeli budget still hasn’t been passed even though the high court has demanded the government pass one. Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid party will call for a vote of no-confidence on wednesday. Blue and White’s Benny Ganz has so far not said if he would support the vote. If he does then Netanyahu’s government falls. Some pundits say Netanyahu would like that as he could try to form a government that would vote for a bill granting him immunity from prosecution. Others say he would rather wait. Should the government fall, new elections could be held as early as March 2021. This would be the fourth election in less than two years.

Over or Not

 

While all the important news outlets predicted that Joe Biden won the election and is the 46^th president elect of the United States, not only was current US President Donald Trump still declaring that he won the election, but the Republican Party’s Israel chairman sang the same tune. Marc Zell, originally from Highland Park, Illinois and a member of the well-known Zell family, said he was “Waiting for the legal process” to finish. Zell told Israel’s Channel 13 TV news that believed that there was fraud in the election process, a claim unsupported by little if any evidence, and that Trump would ultimately be declared the victor.

In 2016, when the pollsters predicted a clear victory for Hilary Clinton over Donald Trump, Zell appeared on Israel TV brandishing his laptop and told the interviewer that according to the polls the Republicans were running, Trump would win the election. He was politely ignored by the interviewer who clearly considered Zell ill-informed. The results showed Zell to be better informed than the pollsters. This has led some pundits to be cautious in declaring Biden a clear winner. “The official results will be announced in Congress in mid-December,” said one observer. “Until then, anything can happen.”

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was equally cautious. He delayed sending congratulations to Biden for nearly 12 hours following the news announcements of Biden’s victory. Pundits think Netanyahu was trying not to upset Trump, who was still president, and could still give Israel a few last-minute gifts, like approving the sale of advanced F-22 stealth fighters to Israel. Even Netanyahu’s congratulatory Tweet to Biden and Harris was less than enthusiastic. “Joe we’ve had along warm personal relationship for nearly 40 years and I know you are a great friend of Israel.”

But Netanyahu also covered his bases, according to one analyst, by sending President Trump a message shortly after that to Biden thanking Trump “for the friendship you have shown the State of Israel and me personally, for recognizing Jerusalem and the Golan, for standing up to Iran, for the historic peace accords and for bringing the American-Israeli alliance to unprecedented heights.”

However, two former US Ambassadors to Israel, both Democrats, thought the election results were clearly final. Dan Shapiro, US Ambassador to Israel from 2011 until 2017, now a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, said Trump had “no chance” of winning the election and despite the legal maneuvering by the Trump team, thought the results would not be reversed. He thought that the Trump administration was “chaos” and Biden would bring calming moderation back to the White House.

Daniel Kurtzer, US Ambassador to Israel from 2001-2005, speaking on Israel Radio’s Galei Zahal Army Radio, dismissed Republican legal challenges to the election. “This just seems to be a stalling technique without any merit.” Kurtzer did think, however, that the US and Israel would disagree on Iran. He thought the Obama administration’s approach to Iran was quite effective. “During the three years when it was in effect, the Iranian (nuclear) program was stopped dead in its tracks, and then it restarted after the Trump administration pulled out of the deal. So my guess is that the Biden administration will want to find a way to go back in.”

According to Israel’s Ynetnews, the Biden approach to Iran will be in two phases. The first after Biden takes office, the second after the Iranian presidential elections in June. In the first, the US will want the Iranians to freeze the development and distribution of ballistic missiles, like those going to Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, to stop meddling in the Middle East, and to halt nuclear military activity. In the second, the US will lift the onerous sanctions imposed by the Trump administration.

Ynet also reported that Israel’s security officials believe a good deal to curtail Iran’s distribution of ballistic missiles and a halt to the development of nuclear weapons would be preferable to an armed conflict with Hezbollah.

When asked about US Jewish involvement in Israel, former ambassador Shapiro said that young American Jews weren’t interested in Israel. To underline his point, when asked about the election results, J., a young American now working as a teacher of English in primary schools in Israel, under a Jewish agency program, said that today’s young Jews want more active representatives, like the progressives in the Democratic camp. “Young Jews today aren’t interested in moderate Democrats.” J is also saddled with a huge student loan debt that is frozen as long as she stays in Israel. Perhaps, said one observer, President Biden will do something to relieve those student loans that most have trouble repaying.

However, J’s views are not unusual. Many young Jews, from solid Jewish families who firmly back Israel, have taken to protesting against groups like Birthright, the program that brings young Jews to Israel on a free fact-finding trip, and even show up at airports with placards shaming those who are boarding the plane to Israel. These same progressive activists also support BDS and the “progressives” in the Democratic party. This election, those young Jews voted for Biden, because, pundits say, this was the only choice to prevent the USA from enduring four more years of Trump.

The question now is if President Trump will leave the White House once Joe Biden is to take up residence. Most analysts expect he will go peacefully, albeit reluctantly. What these analysts also expect is that Trump will do whatever is necessary to undermine the Biden presidency, including the continued claim that the election was stolen from him by crooked Democrats. “He loves the limelight,” said one analyst. “He’ll do whatever he can to stay in it. Including making outrageous statements that keep him in the news. He may keep this up for four years if he can.”

And finally, a Baruch Dayan Emet, (Blessed is the True Judge)  for Rabbi Lord Jonathan Saks, philosopher, writer, and spiritual leader who served as Chief Rabbi of Britain from 1991-2013. Rabbi Saks was knighted by Queen Elizabeth in 2005. He was made a Lord in 2009. Prince Charles said Rabbi Saks was “a light unto this nation.” Rabbi Saks was 72 and passed away after a short battle with cancer. May he rest in peace.

Breakthroughs and the Ticking Clock

 

Israel has developed a new and faster test for Covid-19 using the PCR standard, cutting the time from nasal swab, considered the most accurate test, to results from seven hours to two hours, according to a statement by Israel’s Health Minister Yuli Edelstein.

Israel’s infection rate has dropped from a high of nearly 15% of those tested to just over 3%, Israel has also slid down the list from #24 in worldwide infections to #29. The USA is still number one in the world, followed by India, Brazil, Russia, France, Spain, Argentina, Colombia, United Kingdom, Mexico, that make up the top 10.

Still, Israel is bracing for an upswing in the virus. According to media reports, the Health Ministry has seen a slight rise in infections and suspects this may come from young school children. The Health Ministry is weighing requiring preschool and kindergarten children to wear masks. As of Sunday, Israeli schools, grades 1-4 have reopened, as well as houses of worship, beauty salons, and bed and breakfast getaways. Small stores have still not reopened. One source said that Israel has succeeded in taking down the percentage of infections through a country-wide lockdown. But at the same time the lockdown also paralyzed Israel’s economy.
 

While the infection rate has dropped in the ultra-Orthodox community, there are still red zones. Ultra-Orthodox rabbis have been more willing to warn their followers of the deadly dangers of Covid-19. Still, some ultra-Orthodox still insist on having weddings and not always following the rules. The Arab community has seen a spike in infections resulting in six Arab towns , mostly in Israel’s north, declared red-zones and locked down. Only one Israeli town is still in lockdown, Hazor Hagalil, in Israel’s north. 

The Cornona committee today approved an increase in fines, up to 10,000 shekels from 5,000 shekels for businesses and educational institutions, like those ultra-Orthodox schools, who ignore the regulations, and a fourfold fine for those holding large gatherings, like weddings. The fine is now 20,000 shekels (@$6,000) up from 5,000 shekels (@$1,500).
Israeli media reported today that the first few patients to receive Israel’s experimental Covid-19 vaccine were released from the hospital. “I’m feel great,” said Segev Harel, who was discharged following a 24-hour observation period. He said he hopes Israel “will bring the vaccine to the whole world.”

According to Ynet news Hebrew edition, a number of companies are racing to bring a Covid-19 vaccine to market, Israel’s Institute for Biological Research, funded by Israel’s Ministry of Defense, is one of those in the race. The IIBR is in the process of producing 11 million doses of the vaccine that will be given to the public once the phase three trials are finished. Phase one was done on small animals and rodents, phase to on pigs, who share many human physiological traits, and now phase three, the human trials. Once the first few volunteers are given a clean bill of health 30,000 Israeli volunteers will then be injected with the vaccine, some will receive a placebo.

The IIBR vaccine, VSV-G ,is based on VSV, that causes illness in animals. According to an article in Ynetnews, “To produce the vaccine, scientists modify the VSV-G protein found in the VSV virus, which serves as a viral platform. This protein of the engineered virus is known to be a significant factor in the destructive ability of the virus in the body. Thus, the virus becomes a kind of "skeleton" that can serve as a carrier of other virus particles that will make the body "think" that it is a real virus, produce antibodies against it that will be stored in the body, and attack the real virus in case of infection.”

Other companies in the race to find the vaccine, who are already in phase three trials, rely on different methods. Johnson & Johnson have developed a vaccine using their vast experience in fighting the Ebola plague.  Pfizer, another American pharmaceutical giant, has joined up with the German company BioNTech to produce a virus that attacks the RNA of the virus. This vaccine was given in two doses, and, according to the article,  from the results so far, very high levels of antibodies and T-cells against the corona virus have been found in the vaccinated. In the third phase, which is now coming to an end, 30,000 subjects also participated, and recently they were joined by 12-year-old children who volunteered to receive it.
 

Moderna, another American company, also developed a vaccine based on the RNA that requires two separate injections. Moderna has invested nearly $500 million to develop the vaccine and hired 150 employees to develop it. Moderna has will also finish phase three trials this week and expects FDA approval of the vaccine by February 2021. However, both the Moderna and Pfizer mRNA vaccines require they be stored at -80 C, not so easy in many countries where normal refrigeration is only 4 C.
 

Another leader is AstraZeneca. While initial tests resulted in volunteers suffering side effects, treatment with paracetamol relieved the symptoms that cleared up in a few days. Interim results have shown that a single dose of the vaccine is sufficient to induce an immune response, which is maintained over time in more than 90% of the vaccinated. It has also been shown that giving a vaccine and a booster  improves these results even more, and inspires a more significant and long-lasting response. Millions of doses of the vaccine have already been produced and will soon be distributed, starting with the UK.
 

Russia’s Gamlia’s “Sputnik 5” vaccine has been tested extensively on those at risk, like medical workers, with no side-effects. Russia hopes to vaccinate the entire Russian population by early 2021. Chinese firms like Consivo have been running phase three trials on soldiers who volunteered, as well as on subjects in countries like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Russia. Another Chinese company, Sinoparm, have already inoculated over 500,000 residents 18 and over as well as thousands in the UAE.  
 

Israel’s Covid-19 Czar, Ronni Gamzu, has finished his term and has returned to run Tel Aviv’s Ichilov hospital. He was replaced Nov 1 by Nachman Ash, a former chief medical officer of the IDF and head of the medicine division of health fund Maccabi Health Services. According to the Globes website, Ash has been critical of Israel’s slowness in imposing a second lockdown saying ‘lockdown skeptics distort science.’ According to Globes, “The first challenge that Ash will have to meet is to influence Israel's plan for exiting lockdown, a plan that has so far not been fully discussed and approved even though steps have begun to reopen the economy.” Globes also wrote that, “Ash has a wealth of experience in medicine but is not familiar with the innards of the Ministry of Health, the internal politics, and the delicate relationship with the politicians.” That could be a problem for Ash, who reportedly has a “pleasant demeanor.” Pundits point out that in Israel during Covid-19 politics frequently became more important than fighting the virus.
 

Israel observed the 25 anniversary of the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin last week. A reminder of how dangerous a split in the society can become. With the US election only hours away, Israel’s papers have been awash with reports of how many Israelis support President Trump. According to the Jerusalem Post, 65%-20% with 10% undecided, the majority mainly among the orthodox and settler populations. However, the feeling among non-orthodox is similar to that of the American Jewish community, that Biden is the better choice. Should Trump loose the presidency, will he go peacefully, or will the US face a split similar to that Israel faced before Rabin’s assassination?  The outcome is as yet unclear. And the clock is ticking.
 

Submarines, Russian Hackers and C-19

 

The lockdown in Israel has partially ended, but the infection rate is expected to rise. There is no longer any restrictions on travel of more than half-a-mile from home, or allowing visitors into the house. Skeptics think one of the reasons for the sharp drop in the infection rate is that the ultra-Orthodox have decided not to be tested for Covid-19. Israel’s infection rate has dropped down below 3 % of those tested, with under 1,000 new cases within 24-hours, down from nearly 15,000 two weeks ago.

The corona cabinet also decided to allow business travelers from “green” countries to enter Israel without proof they were not carrying the virus nor requiring them to be in quarantine.

Speaking to Ynet news, Corona czar Prof. Ronnie Gamzu said today that the rate would rise again unless the citizenry take charge of their own lives, wear masks, keep a social distance and keep their hands clean. He also encouraged everyone to take the Covid-19 test if they want the lockdown lifted. He said that Israel could test up to 70,000 cases a day but so far only 20,000 a day have shown up. He said the lack of testing “is noticeable not only in the Haredi sector, disproportionately affected by the pandemic, but within the general population as well.”

Gamzu said that people “do not understand that eliminating coronavirus means finding a sick person who is seemingly healthy...just let me find them.” This would help isolate the sick and contain the spread of the virus.

Gamzu also recommended the reopening of barber shops, beauty salons and alternative medicine next week. Finance Minister Yisrael Katz also called for the opening of street shops and beauty salons on Nov 1. However, Gamzu said, “We want to be careful because I do not want to bring Israel back to where it was at the end of the first wave.”

Another opinion piece in Ynet saw the worrisome widening divide within Israel. “The majority must rise up against the Haredi minority. The leaders of the Haredi community have rewritten the rules of the game pretending to be the persecuted when they are the persecutors.”

A potentially toxic issue is still the sale of USA’s F-35 jet fighters to the UAE. Some thought the sale was dangerous since the planes could ultimately wind up in the hands of Israel’s enemies. Haaretz thought that Netanyahu had run up again against Blue and White’s Benny Gantz, Israel’s minister of defense, over the controversial sale of the jet fighters. Netanyahu, Gantz said, had not informed him of the impending sale of the F-35 fighter jets to the UAE in exchange for a normalization agreement. Netanyahu, in a press conference on Saturday night, called Gantz’s accusations “baseless.” Netanyahu said he’d agreed not to object to the sale only after the deal was signed, but others say he’d agreed in advance. According to Haaretz, Netanyahu was looking “increasingly rudderless,” since his decision about the F-35s and the submarine affair, a $3.2 billion sale of submarines and patrol boats by Germany’s Thyssenkrupp company to Israel, that was “still in the water.”

Israel’s High Court is to hear a motion that the vote in Israel’s Knesset that approved a parliamentary committee to investigate the submarine affair should not have been overturned by Speaker of the Knesset Yariv Levine, a Netanyahu supporter. Levine overturned the vote to form an investigative committee over a technicality. The high court has yet to rule if the initial vote was legal, although the Knesset’s attorney ruled that it was.

Also, in Netanyahu’s televised press conference Saturday night, the PM said he would not tolerate any group ignoring the regulations and that harsh fines would be handed down to those who ignored the rules. However, other reports showed that the Haredi schools had reopened and other than receiving a few fines their schools stayed open in spite of the rules. A TV report on Channel 12 showed 92-yr-old Rabbi Kanievsky hunched over a Talmud with an aide whispering in his ear. The commentator said that the Rabbi probably didn’t grasp the issues and was only asked something like, “should the schools be open so the kids can study Torah or should they be closed.” The rabbi, said the commentator, of course said, “open.” The rabbi is himself still recovering from the Covid-19 virus.

Prime Minister Netanyahu’s prime time press conference coincidentally broke into the Saturday night news coverage of the thousands of anti-Netanyahu protesters gathered near the prime minister’s residence on Balfour street as well as in hundreds of locations around Israel, all calling for the prime minister to resign. Netanyahu began his press conference with the headline news that Israel had reached an agreement with Sudan to begin talks on normalization. Netanyahu said this would lead to a peace agreement with a nation that had long been Israel’s enemy. According to observers, the first steps would be Israelis exporting drip irrigation technology to Sudan, a country that relies largely on agriculture and was doing poorly economically. Critics said that there was a long way to go before Sudan and Israel signed any agreements. Leaders of some of Sudan’s political parties have objected to any deals with Israel as have Sudan’s Islamic groups. Haaretz reported that “Israel Sudan normalization deal is more cause for caution that celebration.”

On the Army Radio’s Rino Tsror talk show, Giora Iland, formerly Head of the IDF's Planning Directorate (J5) and later Israel's National Security Advisor, said that Sudan agreed to stop enmity and agreed to start discussing agriculture and other things. Iland said that Sudan has only made a statement of intentions, nothing more. He pointed out that the present government of Sudan is transitional. “This is not a peace agreement like that with the UAE or normalization like with Bahrain. He said, “Lots of politicians talk about what’s going on but don’t know what’s going on and a few who don’t talk know a lot.” He said after the US elections there will be a different picture.

In the USA, President Trump made much of the Sudan Israeli talks and said other nations would soon follow. He hinted that Saudi Arabia would be one of them. But Dr. Nachman Shai, former Knesset Member and cabinet minister, now teaching at Duke University, said in an opinion piece in Ynet news, that these are only distractions from the real issue. That a Biden win will “mean a dramatic shift” for Israel. He wrote that Israel has been ignoring the US Jewish community and instead been supporting the Republican party. “Israel will have to go hat in hand” to the US Jewish community to get any support. He wrote that “The need for immediate achievements comes at the expense of any sort of long term vision.” He added, “Close association with Trump, the Republican Party, the evangelicals and their fervent supports...comes at the expense of similar ties to the democratic party and the diverse elements within it including the academic elite, workers’ unions, ethnic minorities and of course the Jewish community.”

Sands casino owner billionaire Sheldon Adelson, one of Netanyahu’s biggest supporters in the USA’s Jewish community, and a major Trump donor, appeared in a new HBO documentary, “The Perfect Weapon,” about cyber-warfare. According to the documentary, based on the book by NY Times reporter David Sanger, Adelson inadvertently began the cyber war when he told a televised talk at New York’s Yeshiva University in 2013 that the US should drop a nuclear bomb in the Iranian desert to display toughness in nuclear negotiations, “but without hurting a soul.”

The Iranians responded by launching a carefully planned cyber attack against Adelson’s Sands casinos requiring a $40 million fix. According to the documentary the cyber war was on, with the USA and Israel joining forces to attack Iran’s centrifuges that produce fissionable nuclear material. Then the Russians began their own attacks including those in 2016 when they tried to, and perhaps succeeded, in

influencing the USA election that put Trump in the presidency. And will probably try to disrupt the voting in the current election by hacking into computers counting votes or even changing names of voters so that when they appear at the poles to vote, or vote by mail, the votes will be invalid because the name on the ballots or presented to the election officials are different than those held by the voter.

A recent New York Times article says that Russia is still actively hacking nuclear plants and power grids. The article cites a hacking group called “Dragonfly” or “Energetic Bear,” a group traced to “a unit of Russia’s Federal Security Service, or F.S.B., targeting states and counties.” According to the Times, “Cybersecurity officials watched with growing alarm in September as Russian state hackers started prowling around dozens of American state and local government computer systems just two months before the election.” In the HBO documentary, Joe Biden told the camera, “Putin knows who I am and he doesn’t like me.”

The HBO documentary also mentions Russia and China hacking laboratories that were developing Covid-19 vaccines. With so many enemies, Israel needs to keep ahead of the curve to keep

up a level of preparedness should the various peace initiatives not prove to be enough. Iran has consistently tried to break into Israel’s security establishment’s computers. So far, at least the experts hope, the Iranians have been unsuccessful.

Right or Wrong?

 

On Sunday, Israel eased some restrictions from the lockdown imposed a month ago after infection rates hit nearly 9,000 over a 24 hour period, a rate of 15% Covid-19 positive test results. However, with the lockdown, the infection rate has fallen precipitously to less than a 5% positive infection rate.

Israel now has 302,832 people infected with Covid-19, that’s 32,925 per million, with 2,190 deaths, or 238 per million. The USA, by comparison, has 8,342,665 infected, or 25,160 per million, with 224,282 deaths at 676 per million.

Israel’s pre-schools and kindergartens have reopened. Travel restrictions for only up to 1 kilometer from home have been lifted entirely. Airports have also reopened. Also, the restriction against having guests in your home, or in synagogues, have been removed, but still limited to ten indoors and 20 outdoors. Restaurants are still closed but carry out is now permitted, not only deliveries. However, most schools have remained closed with classes only on Zoom. The government’s Covid-19 Czar Ronni Gamzu said on TV last night that people still had to remain vigilant, wear masks, keep social distance, and observe proper hygiene.

Razi Barkai, on his Galei Tzahal army radio show, criticized Prof. Arnon Afeck, who is on the government Covid-19 committee, for caving into political pressure by Haredi parties by allowing pre-schools and kindergartens to also open in the “hot” spots, or Red zones.

While most Haredi rabbis have come out in favor of the health ministry restrictions, including the closing of schools, yeshivot and limiting synagogue attendance, Rav Chaim Kanievsky, the 92 year old leader of the non-Hassidic “Litai” Ashkenazi community, told his followers to send their children to school in direct contravention to the government guidelines. According to Channel 12 TV news, the rabbi said that he’d asked for a date when the yeshiva students could return to study and received no reply so he acted on his own. This move set off a tidal wave of commentary across the media. Rav Kanievsky also ignored PM Netanyahu who warned him not to open the Haredi schools. Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox elementary schools with tens of thousands of students opened Sunday morning in open defiance of government restrictions. According to the Times of Israel, several politicians, including two government ministers, called for any institution that flouted the rules to lose its public funding.

Afeck said that Rabbi Kanievsky has called on his students to observe the regulations when they return to school. Sari Rot, of Modiin Elite, told Barkai that families live 12 to 13 persons in an apartment and when they’re locked in they spread the virus among themselves even if they observe the health regulations.

Some Haredi yeshiva students interviewed thought they had achieved a ‘herd immunity’ rate since most of the students had been infected and were thus immune. But Razi Barkai asked on Israel Army radio’s Galei Tzhal, what happens when these students go home on the weekends, or to visit their families, or hang out in town drinking coffee, as they are wont to do. Or just to go to the local grocery store for supplies or cigarettes? They spread the virus. On that topic, Haaretz thought “Netanyahu caved to the ultra-orthodox paving the way for a third lockdown.”

A lengthy article in Haaretz contained interviews with 16 leading Israeli physicians and hospital heads. The conclusions were, 1.) We have to learn to live with Covid-19. It will be with us for a least a year. 2.) On a scale of 1 – 10 where was Covid-19? Most said around 4. 3.) All thought a lockdown was a mistake. “And the policy for dealing with it is fundamentally wrong.” Prof. Asher Alhayani, former CEO of Meuhedet HMO said, “Even before the first lockdown, I said, ‘Friends, it won’t help, more people will die from the lockdown than from the coronavirus.” He said it helped at first but “the virus is here, and we have no idea when a vaccine will arrive.” He said poverty caused by the lockdown also kills. And creates heightened anxiety. And that every time the lockdown is lifted the numbers of infected skyrocket. He stressed a logical and practical approach.

Almost all those interviewed thought that politics were now determining how the pandemic was fought. Dr. Ariella Levkovich, and infectious disease specialist said, “...the decision makers’ behavior is characterized by cowardice and a lack of creativity. You can’t force nine million people to be locked in their homes like dogs in a kennel.” She thought that if the Haredi community was trying to achieve ‘herd immunity’ than they should be separated from the rest of the general population while this experiment goes on.

Dr. Shmuel Rochberger, specialist in internal medicine said, “What most worried me has been the unanimous agreement. The senior Health Ministry staff all spoke in the same voice. Today, I understand that the person setting policy and silencing every other voice is the prime minister. He’s not allowing any dialogue, and I say that with pain. I supported Netanyahu. I persuaded others to vote for him. Today, I am deeply ashamed of that.” Prof. Nadav Davidovitch, director, Ben-Gurion University School of Public Health, Beer Sheva, said, “The lockdown is an admission of failure. Prof. Gamzu has said so explicitly. It was a political decision.” Davidovitch said, “It’s time we found a way to live with the virus. If we follow the rules, avoid gatherings and adjust our activities wisely and effectively, by moving some of them into the open air for example, we will be able to reduce infection dramatically.” Dr. Gili Ofer-Bialer, of Maccabi HMO said, “Reality shows that this is a disease we’re going to have to live with.”

The restrictions on protests was also lifted. Saturday night saw thousands gathered outside Prime Minister Netanyahu’s residence, and tens of thousands protesting around the country, calling for the prime minister to step down. One unsubstantiated statistic put the number at over 200,000 nationwide.

A number of protesters were arrested. Some of the protesters were hit with pepper spray, bottles and eggs. According to the media, since the protests began months ago only one counter-protester has been arrested, while scores of anti-Netanyahu protestors have been arrested and issued fines. Netanyahu has been indicted on three felonies.

Amos Gilad, former head of Israel’s military intelligence, thought that Netanyahu should also be investigated for involvement in the $3.2 billion submarine affair. Gilad said he was personally informed of the purchase of the submarines without the necessary three bids required by law. The purchase was made, anyway, without bids, and the contract was awarded to the German ThyssenKrupp AG company. Two of those involved in the purchase, both close to Netanyahu, have been indicted for bribery and receiving kickbacks. “These things don’t happen without the commander knowing what’s going on,” said Gilad. He thought a police investigation, not one run by the defense ministry, should be opened into Netanyahu’s part in the affair. He worried that some in the defense ministry may have been involved in the scandal and would try to cover up the facts.

Critics say that Netanyahu’s attacks on the legal system and protests against him, coupled with the destabilizing effects of the virus, are major causes for deep polarizing atmosphere that has settled over Israel and fear the violence may yet turn deadly. Netanyahu’s popularity is slipping quickly. One protester outside Balfour street said he was a liberal, but would even vote for the right-wing Yamina party’s Neftali Bennett if that would mean Netanyahu was out of office. “As long as we get someone honest, I don’t care who it is.”

In the USA, Rupert Murdoch of the Fox News empire, has said that President Trump would lose the election because of the way he handled the Covid-19 pandemic. In Israel, Netanyahu’s handling of the pandemic has cost him support even among those who once voted for him. Pundits wonder if both Netanyahu and Trump are looking at their last days in power. But pundits have been wrong before.

Hang Onto Your Hats

 

A few things.

1.) Is Trump faking this infection? Michael Moore, the filmmaker, ranted a conspiracy theory on Facebook that Trump was faking the infection to help him in the polls. Now that he has “beaten” C-19 and shown it “wasn’t so bad,” he can justify not wearing a mask, and be a superhero to his followers. Trump declared himself “drug free,” and is going back on the campaign trail.

Analysts say that with the polls favoring Presidential candidate Joe Biden by as much as 10 points, it seems that President Trump needs all the help he can get to win the upcoming election.

2.) Another observer asked “When President Trump told the Proud Boys to “Stand by and Stay Ready” was he talking about using them when he lost the election to riot in the streets as the election was contested?

When the President asked William Barr, the attorney general, to change the rules that prohibited investigations into election fraud before an election?”

According to the NY Times, “For decades, federal prosecutors have been told not to mount election fraud investigations in the final months before an election for fear they could depress voter turnout or erode confidence in the results. Now, the Justice Department has lifted that prohibition weeks before the presidential election. The move comes as President Trump and Attorney General William P. Barr have promoted a false narrative that voter fraud is rampant, potentially undermining Americans’ faith in the election.”

3.) In Israel, PM Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu has slipped 40% in the polls over the last few months. Likud now, according to a Channel 12 TV poll, shows Netanyahu’s Likud party with only 26 seats while Yamina party’s Neftali Bennett, once a Netanyahu loyalist, is now his arch-rival. Bennett’s Yamina, with 23 seats in the polls is breathing down Netanyahu’s neck. Bennett’s votes, pundits say, were mostly taken from Blue and White. Analysts say Bennett may swing more to the center and merge his Yamina party with Likud while dumping far-right MK Smotritch from Yamina.

Avraham Rabinovitz, political commentator on Channel 12 news said that Blue and White, that tied Netanyahu in three previous elections, is now down to just 9 seats, and has to start being more proactive.“ And … about Gantz and Ashkenazi: what happened to them is exactly, but exactly what was predicted to happen to them.” (that they were shut out by Netanyahu, ignored, and marginalized) “This survey, might still benefit them. This poll and other polls should be a wake-up call for Gantz and Ashkenazi – but they seem to be sleeping so deeply that it is unlikely they will wake up.” Rabinovitz also said that Yair Lapid of Yesh Atid may lose more votes to Yamina. ”

Channel 12 tv’s poll figures show that the public’s opinion of how Netanyahu handled the Covid-19 pandemic is dismal. 64 % of those polled thought he did a bad job. 

According to Rabinovitz, “the public understands that the corona crisis is being managed with a narrow personal prism, with a personal political prism.” In other words, Netanyahu is worried more about his trial, where he is scheduled to begin appearing in court on Jan 1, 2020 for three felonies, than with fighting the corona-19 pandemic. However, legal maneuvering has kept moving the opening court sessions farther and farther away. Netanyahu’s attorney’s are trying to get the Jan 1, 2021 date moved to at least the spring.

Analysts in Israel also ask what the American public thinks of Trumps performance?

According to the Pew Research Center’s September poll, 57% thought Trump was projecting the wrong message. A CNN poll published yesterday said the disapproval of Trump’s handling of the overall coronavirus outbreak reached 60 percent in the poll, while 37 percent approved.

4.) New elections in Israel? Pundits agree that Netanyahu does not want new elections now, not with his popularity lagging. And the sharks circling to take him out. Finance Minister Israel Katz, of the Likud party, publicly disagreed with Bibi, something previously unheard in the Likud hierarchy.

According to Rabinovitz, “It is very interesting what Gideon Saar, Israel Katz and Nir Barkat think at the moment, all those who thought they were Netanyahu’s successors – and it turns out to them that the one who may and may replace him is Naftali Bennett.”

Other observers say that Netanyahu may soon have a rebellion in his ranks. “But who knows?” they ask. “He’s one of the wiliest politicians to ever appear on the Israei scene.”

5. Some observers say that Defense Minister Gantz and Foreign Minister Ashkenazi, of Blue and White, may heed Rabinovitz’s call and wake from their deep slumber Ashkenazi has said that he believes what he and Gantz are doing is “biting the bullet,” keeping the government stable in a time of crises, which they, (both Gantz and Ashkenazi are former Army Chiefs of Staff,) consider their patriotic duty.

Still, they may oppose Netanyahu’s request to extend the budget deadline, again. It now stands as the end of December. If no new budget is passed by then, and another extension denied, then new elections will automatically be called. But will Gantz and Ashkenazi decide that opposing Bibi is the most patriotic thing they can do now? Pundits, in a wait and see mode, speculate that if the Blue and White party leaders stand up and oppose Netanyahu’s request for a budget extension, then there will be new elections, soon. As of now the analysts say March or June.

6.) Key point. The economy is going down the tubes. How long can business be frozen in place? According to the Jerusalem Post, by September 20, 2020, “The number of unemployed people in Israel passed 900,000.”

The Azrieli Modiin Mall was a veritable ghost town on Wednesday. Almost all the stores were closed. Only the bank and post office were open, with lines of people in masks, socially distanced, waiting their number to be called to enter the facility. A few take away restaurants.

Azrieli Mall, Modiin, Israel

were open. Businesses need income to pay the taxes that fuel the government. With the current regulations, experts say, the economy will slowly grind to a halt.

7.) Lockdown and protests. Israel entered a lockdown with only essential businesses open, travel limited to 1 km from home, and, over the Succot holiday, a rule against having visitors in the succah. Or at home. The lockdown seems to have some effect. The infection rate has fallen from a high of over 13% to a little over 9%. Still, Israel has the 6^th highest deaths per capita in the world.

Protesters are forbidden to travel farther than a kilometer from home to attend a protest. Still, protests have sprung up in Tel Aviv and elsewhere that were broken up by the police. One protester in his twenties in Tel Aviv said he was unemployed, had no money, and was protesting so the government would do something about him and others like him. Protests continued Saturday night with thousands of anti-Netanyahu protester at hundred of locations around the country.

7.) “The Haredim in Israel and in NYC are going nuts,” said one commentator. “Small groups seem to steer the conversation.” In Israel the Peleg Yerushalmi, the ultra-conservative ultra-orthodox group, refuses to listen to Haredi leaders like Rav Chaim Kanievsky, now hospitalized in serious condition with Covid-19. Aryeh Deri, Sephardi Shaas party leader told Channel 13 tv news that a fringe of protesters was not listening to the leaders who were clear in saying, wear masks, keep a distance, and pray outdoors not in synagogues. Still, in Haredi neighborhoods in Jerusalem, and places like Modiin Elite, the Haredi protesters ignore pleas to keep a social distance and stay out of enclosed places, like synagogues. The infection rate in the Haredi community in Israel is three times that in a non-Haredi community.

“Today we’re dealing with the Haredim instead of Corona,” said Moshe Shlonsky on Galei Zahal’s Army radio.

8.) Haredim in the USA.

Scenes of Haredim dancing in the streets without masks, or wearing masks with Trump’s name on them, were splashed across Israeli TV and media. Some protests were in Boro Park, led by Heshy Tischler, whose apparent agenda is to get elected to the city council it seems.

One protester said the police crackdown was aimed at Haredim because it was known they support Trump for president. The Haredi organization Agudas Yisrael is protesting the move to limit the number of worshipers in synagogues.

The infection rate in the Haredi community in the USA is three to five times that in the non-religious communities. In the Haredi town of Kyrias Yoel the Covid-19 infection rate is reportedly 28% of the total population whereas statewide the infection rate is only 1%. Some of the protesters told reporters that if Black Lives Matter protests could go on, why couldn’t they pray inside synagogues on the Succot holiday?

A similar refrain was heard in Israel regarding the protests on Balfour street against Prime Minister Netanyahu when complaining Haredim could not attend prayers inside the synagogues.

Analysts see that, as the crises goes on, a divide is widening in the USA between the Haredi community and the communities at large.

In Israel, said one analyst, the police and army can deal with the Haredim. Not a new thing. But the resentment aginst the Haredim is growing dangerously.

But in the USA? That’s even more worrisome.”

Another said that while those Haredim in Boro Park are legitimate American citizens, how well will they take the to the police using an iron fist, as both Governor Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio have warned?

Even if these Haredim in Boro Park don’t wear those Trump facemasks, analysts ask, how much support will they get from the non-Haredi Jewish population? Or the non-religious Jewish population? One pundit said that “Here’s where it gets dicey, will their eschewing the health regulations create a massive antisemitic backlash, even if they do wear Trump facemasks? A few Proud Boys raiding Boro Park could create a wave of such attacks, especially if the virus is placed squarely on the shoulders of the Haredim.”

9.) Hang onto your hats.