Rally ’round hatred for the deal

The ink on the pact reached Tuesday between Iran and six world powers is barely dry but it’s already brewed up a strange concoction of love and hate in Thursday’s Hebrew press, as an oddly unified Israel prepares to go to battle against the US-led agreement.

Thursday’s Hebrew-language papers show a definite shift from discussions of the deal and what it means to how the accord is affecting already shattered ties between Israel and the US, and specifically between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as a growing dalliance between Netanyahu and opposition head Isaac Herzog, also thanks to the accord.

Both leaders stood before cameras Wednesday to pitch why they love the deal – in Obama’s case – and why the pact is absolute bollocks – in Netanyahu’s case, and their respective cases are the roux on which Thursday’s soupy mix of news analysis are based.

Obama’s case, that Israel didn’t offer a better alternative to lifting sanctions in exchange for some oversight on Iran’s nuclear program and temporary enrichment curbs, plays on Yedioth’s front page, but that doesn’t mean the normally anti-Netanyahu paper is siding with Obama. Instead the headline “criticizing davka Israel,” employing a loaded Hebrew term that basically translates in this case to “exactly that which you wouldn’t think is appropriate,” sets the tone for the tabloid’s coverage.

“A day after the signing of the historic nuclear deal in Vienna, it seems that world leaders are treating Israel more and more like a rejected child who wasn’t invited to the party – and is doing everything to spoil it,” the paper writes in its news coverage of the day after.

Commentating in the paper, Prof. Eytan Gilboa says Netanyahu is not alone in being critical of the deal, and Obama’s press blitz is actually aimed not at Jerusalem, but at convincing a skeptical US public that the pact is like sliced bread, only better. “The average American citizen, and even those more involved, don’t understand the essence of the deal and its consequences. In the media a fierce battle is raging between supporters and detractors that is only increasing the confusion,” he writes. “The question of whether the deal is good or bad has become less relevant. The perception of the deal, and not what’s in it, will determine the reality. Very few in the region believe that it will actually put the brakes on Iran’s nuclear efforts and are acting according to that.”

While Yedioth is focused on Obama’s criticism of Israel’s criticism of the deal, Israel Hayom takes its cues from Netanyahu himself and his saber-rattling against the agreement, making a front page headline out of the prime minister’s claim that “The deal that was signed in Vienna is not the end of the story.”

The paper quotes Netanyahu at length, both his interview to American network NBC and a speech in the Knesset in honor of Zionist Revisionist leader Ze’ev Jabotinsky, including his citing of Jabotinsky’s line that “There are no friends in diplomacy, only pressure.”

Along that line, the paper reports that even as the American administration is crowing about the deal, Republican lawmakers are considering new sanctions on Iran, basing the assertion on a quote from an unnamed senator – cited in The Hill – saying “all options are on the table, including putting new economic sanctions on Iran.”

The paper fails to mention that such an idea has about as much chance of passing as Iran declaring its unending love for Israel. In the paper’s op-ed page, Minister Gila Gamliel notes that it seems the Iranians are the only one who truly understand what the deal means.

“It seems that it’s not for nothing that we saw Iranian citizens streaming into the streets of their cities two days ago and celebrating what they saw as a great victory over the West. They truly understand better than everyone who the deal benefits most,” she writes. “The US is our greatest friend, but it seems we were not considered by the Americans when the deal was being negotiated. More than that, it’s proven beyond any doubt that the Americans were ready to sign at almost any price.”

Haaretz reports that the upcoming battle Israel is planning to wage within Congress against the deal is so serious that the country may continue to push off a discussion of military aid offered by the White House as compensation for the agreement.

The paper reports that Obama asked Netanyahu to immediately begin talks over upgrading the Israel Defense Forces when the two spoke by telephone Tuesday night, the third time he made such an offer.

The first two times he turned it down “to avoid implying that Israel had come to terms with the nuclear deal,” the paper writes, citing a senior US official.

The issue is expected to be brought up again when Pentagon chief Ash Carter visits Israel next week, the paper reports.

“We’re still waiting for an Israeli answer. If Israel wants to wait until after the Congressional debate on the nuclear accord that’s fine too,” Haaretz quotes the US official saying.

Aside from the possibility of some shiny new bombs and other fun munitions, the papers report that the deal is also acting as a “rally-round-the-flag” catalyst, and may bring opposition leader Isaac Herzog and his Zionist Union faction into the coalition, giving Netanyahu his long-sought unity government.

Haaretz reports that President Reuven Rivlin is acting as a go-between for talks between the two. While negotiations have been going on for several week, the paper notes that they ramped up Tuesday after Herzog agreed to work with the government to fight the nuke deal, and Herzog has even dropped his demand that nationalist party Jewish Home be dropped as a precondition for him coming in.

“The time is ripe for a unity government, mainly following the deal with Iran. We believe Zionist Union won’t object to entering the coalition,” the paper reports a Likud source saying.

The Zionist Union denied the report, saying it was intended to pressure Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beytenu faction into joining the coalition, and Israel Hayom, where the story also appears, reports that sources close to the prime minister denied it as well.

Israel Hayom’s Haim Shine writes that unity is indeed in the air, but the country could still be a little more unified, why not?

“There are some Israelis who were excited and joyous over the signing of the deal, for instance a news anchor whose face lit up over the deal. But the feeling of satisfaction changed when Ehud Barak in an interview poured cold water on the interviewer’s celebrations and backed up the prime minister’s position,” he writes. “It’s hard to blame the newscaster. There are many politicians and analysts whose joy in criticizing Netanyahu was overtaken by a feeling of emergency coming from the complicated situation. A few opposition heads said they would stand in battle against the deal. Nuclear terror doesn’t discriminate between left and right or between Jews and Arabs. It’s just too bad that self-described experts are continually expressing their prejudices rather than the evil reality. It would be nice if they would take part in the vital public advocacy effort.”