Israel Update Week Ending January 14th

Two Officers Die in Friendly Fire Accident, Netanyahu and a Plea? Violence in the Negev and much more

MILITARY

Israel woke up on Thursday morning to news of a heartbreak in the IDF. Major Ofek Aharon z”l and Major Itamar Elharar z”l, two commanders in the elite Egoz unit were killed by friendly fire, suffering fatal shots discharged by fellow soldiers on patrol. Initial reports indicate the soldiers who opened fire on the officers thought the targets they killed were thieves or terrorists. When in fact, tragically, two groups from the same unit had not coordinated their patrols. The calamity took place at Nebi Mousa, located on the way from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea. 

Due to a substantial number of robberies from IDF bases, the rules of engagement against suspected thieves were recently changed to allow the opening of fire. The catastrophic outcome in this case of mistaken identity might not have occurred, if these rules had not been changed. The army has already established a committee of inquiry on the matter. 

Meanwhile, the Air Force released a preliminary report on last week’s helicopter crash, which merely states that it is not yet possible to conclude what caused the copter to crash.

2022 has not started well for the IDF. Four up-and-coming officers were killed in tragic accidents in the first two weeks.

ESPIONAGE

Five Israelis, all either immigrants from Iran, or descendants of Iranian immigrants, were arrested by the Shin Bet and charged with spying on behalf of Iran. The five allegedly provided photos of “sensitive sites” and information on security arrangements at different locations. They were also allegedly tasked with becoming friends with certain members of Knesset. 

While at some point their Iranian handler claimed to be a Jew, according to the Shin Bet, the accused suspected they were working for Iranian intelligence, but went ahead anyway. None of those charged have access to any state secrets. The information they seem to have provided is all available from open sources.

ARAB-ISRAELIS

A political crisis was ignited this week due to the planting of trees. These trees are part of JNF’s (Jewish National Fund) strategic plan to create forests in various parts of the Negev, as a way of asserting claim to the land in question. In this case, trees were planted on land already claimed by a Bedouin family, in a case that goes as far back as 1973, but remains unresolved. The Bedouin family who claims the land currently farms it. When the JNF began planting trees on the land in question, violence broke out between Bedouin demonstrators and the police. 

JNF is currently led by Avraham Duvdevani, who represents the right-wing Mizrachi party. This is the first time a religious-Zionist has led JNF. The violence in the Negev led to a temporary breakdown in the coalition, with representatives of the Ra’am party not showing up to vote at the Knesset. However, a quick political solution was reached, with the tree planting halted, and a plan for negotiations to take place in advance of any future planting. Demonstrations that included  confrontations with the police  by the Bedouin continued through Thursday night.

The fury over tree planting is, of course, part of a much larger problem that has not been resolved, and that is the future of the Bedouin of the Negev. Arab Israelis in the Galilee have done well, both economically and (not unrelated) educationally. However, the Bedouin, many of whom prefer to maintain their semi-nomadic lifestyle, have not done nearly as well, and attempts to concentrate them in a few towns have failed. It’s time to develop a comprehensive plan for the future, together with the local Bedouin leadership.

Meanwhile, the rampant violence in the Arab-Israeli community continues. Last year, there were over 100 victims of murder in the Arab-Israeli community. This past week, the fierce level of violence-hit home among all Israelis, when stray bullets struck and killed a four-year-old at an amusement park. Defense Minister Gantz paid a condolence visit to the grieving family. 

The roots of the violence within Arab-Israeli communities are complicated, but the prevalence of guns held by Arab-Israelis escalates every dispute. Moreover, the educational success of many in the community, has led to the alienation of others, i.e., those who have not succeeded, who often turn to a life of crime and violence.

LEGAL

While the trial of former Prime Minister Netanyahu continues to churn forward, over the course of the last 24 hours, there have been multiple reports of a possible plea agreement. Under the deal, the charge of bribery would be removed, and only the charge of public corruption would remain. Negotiations have been taking place between Netanyahu’s attorney and State’s Attorney General Mandelblit. 

The major stumbling block remains Mandelblit’s insistence that any acceptable agreement would need to bar Netanyahu from politics for seven years. Netanyahu had always adamantly insisted he would not seek a plea deal. Despite continued efforts by Netanyahu supporters to try to downplay Hefetz’s testimony, suggesting it was not at all compelling, that is simply not the case. Indeed, it has been reported that Netanyahu’s lawyers apprized their client that despite their best efforts to impugn Hefetz, his testimony was in fact terrible for Netanyahu. 

Moreover, Mandelblit completes his tenure as Attorney General at the end of the January. Netanyahu believes his chance to close the best deal will most likely take place while Mandelblit (who served as Cabinet Secretary under Netanyahu) is still Attorney General. Whether or not Netanyahu will accept the offered agreement remains an open question.

If a plea deal is signed, and Netanyahu leaves politics, the current government will be in trouble — since it is animus toward Netanyahu, more than anything else, that is holding this government together. However, I will leave commentary on those implications for another day.

Finally, this week saw the start of a super strange trial in Tel Aviv. Former Prime Minister Netanyahu has accused Former Prime Minister Olmert of libel, for claiming on TV that Netanyahu, and his family were mentally disturbed. As I explained on my TV appearance here:,

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Israel’s libel laws are different from those in the US, where public officials cannot claim libel. In addition, in Israel, the burden of the proof is on the defendant, upon whom it is incumbent to prove the truth of his claim, and not on those charging libel, to prove the claim raised as false.

COVID–19

Israel’s daily Covid-19 infection number continues to climb, with close to 40,000-50,000 reported cases each day. Since Israelis are no longer required to take the official Covid-detection tests, the number of daily infections here is undoubtedly much higher, as people forgo reporting the results of home tests. Although the number of seriously ill Covid patients has risen, thankfully, so far, it has done so at a much slower rate. 

There are currently 306 seriously ill patients more than tripling the number from two weeks ago. Still, this figure remains much lower than the highs last year. The success of early, widespread vaccinations, and a weaker Omicron variant, have been responsible for the fewer seriously ill patients, so far. However, the number of those being infected with Covid has increased four-fold in the last week, and hospitalizations lag at least one week behind the initial infection. So at the moment, we can only hope hospitalizations will remain low.

The impact of the virus can be clearly felt on the streets of Tel Aviv, with less traffic, empty restaurants, and fewer people coming to work in Tel Aviv’s office towers. Approximately 10% of the Knesset currently has Covid, including Minister of Foreign Affairs Yair Lapid and Housing Minister Ze’ev Elkin. Nevertheless, people are still going to concerts and other large gatherings, as if the pandemic has ended.

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

Bank of Israel has made a significant policy change. After years of pressuring the government to limit the foreign debt and deficit size, it has now recommended increasing the national debt and the deficit, if that money is invested in infrastructure and education. Bank of Israel stated that unless Israel makes those investments, it will never close the gap between it and more economically successful OECD countries. However, the Finance Ministry is reportedly skeptical of the proposal, expressing fear the government will ultimately spend the additional money on salaries and Defense, instead.

Israel’s housing market continues to be red hot. Prices rose over 10% last year, on average, and the value of mortgages written by Israeli banks broke all records during the last quarter of 2021. Another record was set in November, when 6,000 new apartments were sold, an achievement for any given month.

Today, GrayMatters Health, developer of digital self-neuromodulation therapeutics for mental disorders, announced the successful closing of its $10 million Series-A financing round. Otsuka Medical Devices Co., Ltd. was the lead investor in this round. In addition to its investment, OMD obtained certain rights with regard to Prism in Japan, and other countries in Asia. Additional investors in the Series-A round included Joy Ventures, J-Ventures, and J-Impact, as well as, existing GMH investors Marius Nacht, and Joyance Ventures, who also participated in the round.     

Calon Cardio-Technology Ltd. and Leviticus-Cardio Ltd. announced the joint development and testing of a wireless, fully implantable, long-term blood pump. Severe heart failure is the most life-threatening medical condition, in all age groups, across the globe. Implantable heart pumps, known as Ventricular Assist Devices (or VADs), have improved long-term survival sustainably. However, due to the need to tether an external power source using a cable exiting the body through the abdomen, these devices have not yet been entirely accepted as mainstream therapy.

Now, for the first time globally, a compact, fully implantable VAD (FiVAD) has been successfully implemented, by combining the Calon Cardio MiniVAD™ with the versatile, fully implantable wireless energy recharging system of Leviticus Cardio. Completion of a 60-day in-vivo pre-clinical study of this FiVAD has successfully validated the integration of these two innovative technologies.

Medical tech firm MeMed received a $93 million investment to decode the body’s immune responses. The company has now raised $200 million. In addition, the company recently received FDA approval for its blood test that can distinguish between viral and bacterial infections.

Smart Shooter has released a drone with a built-in machine gun, created to destroy enemy drones. Smart Shooter can hit drones at 120 meters, on the first shot.