Top cop pop shots

The UK parliament voted to urge the British government to recognize Palestine, but the Hebrew media didn’t get too worked up about it. Only Yedioth Ahronoth mentions it on its front page, though this may be due in part to how late the vote was — after midnight, Israel-time.

Instead, Yedioth leads with the spat between Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch and Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino over how the next commissioner should be chosen. This makes sense — after all, the story broke after Danino’s interview with Yedioth.

Former Jerusalem District police commissioner Aryeh Amit writes in Yedioth that he agrees with Danino that the next chief should come from within the police ranks. “It’s his right and even his responsibility to present his professional opinion, even when it doesn’t match that of the internal security minister, if he thinks the minister is making a serious mistake.”

Amit notes that bringing in someone from outside the police force has been tried before, in order to “save the police” with an IDF general. It hasn’t worked, he says.

Haaretz also gives the story prominent billing with a picture of Aharonovitch above the fold on the front page. Yaniv Kubovich decries the dismal image of the police in the eyes of Israelis, and says that the spat is not about what is best for the Israeli public. “The fight between the two is primarily over credit and honor, and when there is not much room for pride, and the organization goes from one shock to another and from one embarrassing episode to another, then every ounce of credit counts, and therefore the war between the two only gets stronger.”

The infighting is also featured on Israel Hayom’s front page, though its main headline is about rioting on the Temple Mount.

Dror Eidar attacks Israel’s policy in dealing with the violence at the holy site. “Whoever rules the Mount, rules this land,” he writes. “If Jews can’t go up peacefully to the Temple Mount, then Muslims shouldn’t be able to go up. Israel Police can also enforce total quiet on the Temple Mount. Dozens of rioters are not a reason for closing the mountain. It is absolutely possible to bust into the mosque and take control of the groups of thugs who have closed themselves up inside. If the Muslims are not respecting their house of prayer and are turning it into a fortress, then why do we have to honor it?”

Eidar says if the police aren’t taking an aggressive enough stance on the Temple Mount, or against those who attack the Jerusalem light rail, then Aharonovitch must demand action.

“It is the Sukkot holiday today. Our forefathers used to fill the streets of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount during the holiday, to pray for the peace of the world and a rainy winter. We must remove the shame from upon our nation and cancel the absurdity that which says Jews cannot even mumble words of prayer in the place about which it is said, ‘Because My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations.”

The Milky way out of here

In the wake of the Hebrew press’s fascination with Israelis who have moved to Berlin, largely for economic reasons (including the low price of Milky puddings), Yedioth’s Yonatan Yavin examines the debate over prices, economic opportunity, and Zionism. Israel cannot survive if its best and brightest leave for greener pastures, he says. “The question is, of course, are those who leave indeed the cream of the Milky or the dregs? There are obviously societal leaders over whose departure Zionism weeps, but it seems that we are mostly dealing with those who are looking for an easier life than what Israel offers, and see their homeland as a terrible service provider which is failing in its basic tasks.”

Yavin also assails the Israeli media for failing to examine the claims about the standard of living with enough rigor. “Embarrassingly, the media, across the board, is playing along instead of seriously investigating the harsh claims having to do with our basic welfare… A shame. This could have been the Israeli media’s finest hour, an opportunity to win back the people.”

And yet, surprisingly, according to Haaretz, emigration from Israel is at 40-year low, and is lower than for the average OECD country. The Central Bureau of Statistics found that in 2011, 15,900 Israelis left, but these were mostly immigrants who returned to their countries of birth, or Israelis born abroad.

A leading Israeli demographer says that at the end of 2012, there were only 3,065 Israelis living in Berlin, not exactly a mass exodus. “The battle of the Milky points to the mood, but is not really backed up by facts,” he says. “The phenomenon exists, but there is a big gap between its expression in the public dialogue and reality.”

Still, there are worrying signs. Most Israeli emigres are well-educated, giving them more opportunities abroad. In such a small country, the trend could have an impact on the economy, the report says.