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Bypassing the factions

Hezbollah's show of strength in Lebanon, its continuing clashes around Mount Lebanon and the fact that it has brought its country to the brink of civil war can no longer be considered just "an internal Lebanese matter," as Syria likes to claim. Even though Lebanon's government uses harsh rhetoric against Hezbollah, terming its actions a coup and even ordering the army to take steps to impose order, there is no choice but to acknowledge that this government does not in fact control Lebanon. It is dependent on the whims of Hassan Nasrallah, who is driven by personal and sectarian motives - as well, of course, as being Iran's representative in Lebanon. As such, he constitutes an especially grave threat to Israel. ...

Bush should stay home

If George Bush were a true friend of Israel, he would seize the investigation against Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as an excuse to stay home tomorrow. Unless he has a rabbit in his hat, this will be the third time in the past half year that the U.S. president shows the Palestinians and the entire Arab world that they are wasting their time by trying to end the occupation by peaceful means. Not only have matters not improved since he troubled dozens of leaders from around the world to come to Annapolis in late November, 2007; since then, the occupation has been progressing, while the vision of two states has been receding. The number of new buildings erected in the settlements in the last few months rivals only the number of roadblocks that have been added since Bush last visited Jerusalem, in January. ...

Mr. Suspect's government

Zach Chen, a captain (res.) in the Military Advocate General's Office, is very busy this week. The Israel Defense Forces asked for his legal-operational advice in an exercise for one of its divisions, a unit whose best-known commander was Ariel Sharon. Military lawyers give guidance to commanders so that they avoid doing anything that violates the rules of war. Only after he finishes his army duties will he be free to return to his client, Morris Talansky, the cash machine of Sharon's successor. ...

Narrow-mindedness and discrimination

It seems that the last thing the legal system needs right now is another condemnation, in addition to all the blows the system is absorbing thanks to those responsible for its welfare, like the justice minister. Nonetheless, it unfortunately sometimes turns out that there simply is no choice, and despite the justified concern for the dignity of the court, it is necessary to protest the statements and approach of Dr. Gershon German, a family court judge. ...

Cancel the primaries

Even if it is still unknown at this point whether Ehud Olmert committed any crime by allegedly receiving money from businessman Morris Talansky, one thing is clear: the need for candidates in Israeli party primaries to raise massive amounts of money requires them to seek connections to the very wealthy, and this casts a heavy shadow on their public integrity. To preserve Israel's democracy, the primary system must be abolished, and new ways of electing candidates for the Knesset and party leaderships must be devised. ...

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