Israel Latest: Turkel Committee on Gaza Flotilla Raid "Self-Defense for a Legal Blockade"

In the first part of its findings,  the Turkel Commission, an Israeli panel of enquiry into last May's Israeli raid on the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla, declared that commandos acted in self-defense when they boarded the lead ship, killing nine Turkish citizens. The committee said that Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip does not break international law, adding that Israel had also complied with the humanitarian conditions for such a blockade.

The official report did express some criticism of West Jerusalem, calling on officials to "examine the medical needs of the people of Gaza in order to find ways to improve the current situation" and to find ways to "focus its sanctions on Hamas while avoiding harm against the civilian population".

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Israel-Palestine Analysis: Another Dennis Ross Mission to West Jerusalem

On Thursday, Dennis Ross, a senior member of the US National Security Council, and David Hale, deputy to President Obama's envoy George Mitchell, arrived in West Jerusalem. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Israel's security needs and the maintenance of the Israel Defense Forces' qualitative advantage during negotiations with the Palestinians would be discussed with the American diplomats. 

Back in the US, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declared that Washington's position on Israeli settlements in the West Bank has not changed; however, the US is not going to support the Palestinian proposal for international condemnation of Israel's "illegal" activities in the "occupied" lands.

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Israel Snapshot: Labour Party Splits; How Will It Affect Coalition and Peace Talks?

On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his Cabinet that the Palestinian Authority was refusing to return to negotiations with Israel because of the Labor Party's threats to leave the coalition.

A day later, the story was not that Labor had left but that the party had split. Defense Minister Ehud Barak said that he would quit and,  with four of Labor's remaining 12 MKs (Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai, and members of the Knesset Shalom Simhon, Einat Wilf, and Ori Noked), form a new party called Atzmaut (Independence).

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Israel Snapshot: Netanyahu's Lesson from Tunisia --- Security, Security, and Security

On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the Israeli Cabinet about the lesson of the developments in Tunisia: "If there is one conclusion, one clear lesson that arises from all that we see around us, it is that we need to lay the foundations of security in any agreement that we make.  We cannot simply say 'We are signing a peace agreement', close our eyes and say 'We did it' because we do not know with any clarity that the peace will indeed be honored."

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Israel-Iran Analysis: Assessing Israeli Government's Latest Moves Towards Tehran

There are "moderates" who are against a military strike on Iran and "aggressors" who, at least, want the option on the table. Despite President Shimon Peres's efforts, Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, whom the premier wants to keep as close as possible, insist Iran should be presented as an "existential threat". However, Mossad, including its new head Tamir Pardo), Shin Bet, and military intelligence are maintaining distance from a war scenario, since it will be their heads off first if objectives cannot be achieved quickly. The Obama Administration is also on the side of the moderates.

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Israel-Palestine Analysis: Secret Talks in Israel But Confusion over Trip to US

On Saturday, the Israeli Prime Minister's office issued a statement that Israeli negotiator "Yitzhak Molcho and a Palestinian representative will travel to Washington next week with the aim of advancing the diplomatic process". Ramallah said they were unaware that any Palestinian official was going to the US.

On the eve of the departure to hear “new American ideas”, Palestinian top negotiator Saeb Erekat said on Tuesday that the peace talks with the Israeli government have ended and it is time for his side to make decisions. He reiterated Ramallah's position that there will be no negotiations until Israel agrees to halt all construction activities in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

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Israel Interview: Deputy Foreign Minister Ayalon's Messages for Palestine, the US, and His Own Side

Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, appeared on Rusty Mike Radio on Tuesday. Excerpts from the chat:

Settlements and Deadlock: Ayalon said that Palestinians were doing everything except sitting with Israelis for negotiations. He said that Palestinians were doing three things: making excuses and pre-conditions, threatening to use unilateral action, and exerting political power on the international level. 

As for the issue of settlements, Ayalon had a message for the US: they have never been an obstacle to peace and it was a mistake to single out this issue.

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Egypt-Israel Analysis: Cairo Pushes Against "Threats to Hamas"

Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman reportedly asked his counterpart representing the European Union, Catherine Ashton, to send a force to stop arms smuggling, to the coast of Gaza, making an Israeli blockade unnecessary. However, Ashton commented, "This is just something that Foreign Minister Lieberman raised at dinner. This is not an issue that we're discussing."

Meanwhile the EU has responded to the Palestinian demand for the recognition of a state of Palestine by saying that they will do this "when appropriate".

On another front, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was hosted by Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak on Thursday. Netanyahu asked Mubarak to put pressure on Ramallah to sit at the negotiating table while Mubarak warned Netanyahu not to use hard power in Gaza. Mubarak said Israel must reassess its policy and "initiate concrete steps to build trust with the Palestinian Authority in a way that would allow negotiations to resume", adding that Israel's threats against Hamas may be detrimental to the peace process and regional stability.

For Cairo, although the Fatah-Hamas reconciliation talks are still at an impasse, the region cannot sustain another war. Blamed for cooperating with Israel over the blockade of Gaza and criticised for building its own walls to prevent smuggling, the Egyptian Government is pursuing diplomacy to maintain its credibility.

Egypt's balancing act: no boost to Hamas but also a closed door to any prospect of a renewal, two years after the last Gaza War, of Israeli military operations.

Israel Analysis: Barak v. Netanyahu as Elections Overtake Peace Talks

With elections looming, Israel's domestic politics is heating up. Initially, most parties were turning the ultra-orthodox front of Eli Yishai (Shas) and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman (Yisrael Beiteinu) into a dartboard, but attention is now on Labour Party leader and Minister of Defense Ehud Barak.

Barak has raised the stakes by putting the current approach of his own Government on the spot. In response, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeated that the Palestinian Authority is the only party responsible for the deadlock of the peace process. 

The fight is spilling into sharp allegations in the media. The State Department denied claims that the US Administration was furious with Barak for misleading them regarding his role in the peace process, but Haaretz sources insist that Washington is still "disappointed" with Barak.

This, however, may rebound to the benefit of the Minister of Defense.  Any stigma on Barak cannot be equal to that placed upon the Netanyahu Government if there is no move, even a token one, towards a resumption of talks.

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Israel-Palestine: Still No Agreement to Discuss "Core Issues"

After Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the Palestinian Authority of "evading negotiations with Israel", the Authority's leader West Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday that Israel and the Palestinians could reach a deal within two months, as long as Netanyahu was willing to take a new approach in the peace process.

Netanyahus response brought nothing new to the table:

I am prepared to immediately sit privately for direct, continuous negotiations with Abu Mazen [Abbas] until white smoke emerges. If Abu Mazen will agree to my suggestion to directly discuss all the core issues, we will know very quickly if it is possible to reach an agreement.

Who is refusing to discuss these "core issues"?

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