Tel Aviv Diary August 12, 2022
Gaza Operation, Likud and Labor Primaries,El Al Makes Money, Restaurant Review and More
LAST WEEK’S OPERATION IN GAZA
Minutes after I published last week’s Tel Aviv diary, much of what I wrote about Gaza — and the arrest of the Islamic Jihad leader — was proven at least partially wrong. On Friday afternoon, Israel carried out a surprise, precision strike to eliminate part of the Islamic Jihad leadership in Gaza. It did turn out that the initial decision to arrest the leader of the Islamic Jihad in the West Bank was made without fully anticipating the consequences. However, once it became clear Islamic Jihad was planning to use an anti-tank missile to attack an Israeli vehicle, there was no choice but to impose a lockdown on Israeli residents near Gaza until plans could be made to take the offensive — which is what happened.
By opening one of the crossings into Gaza a few minutes before the attack, the IDF was able to achieve total tactical advantage. For the first time, following a two and a half-day encounter, the IDF can say an engagement with Gaza was an unqualified success. Most of the leadership of the Islamic Jihad was eliminated. At the same time, Iron Dome reached a success rate of better than 95%, resulting in no serious casualties on the Israeli side.
In contrast, almost all the casualties suffered by non-combatants in Gaza resulted from misfires of the Islamic Jihad. Needless to say, this does not take away from the fact that, once again, innocent people have died. Today, in an unprecedented move, Ha’aretz published the names and photos of all of the children who were killed. The fact that Hamas stayed out of the clashes and acted as the “adult in charge” opened the possibility for Israel to reach a longer-term agreement with them. Egypt played a crucial role in negotiating the end of the fighting.
There remains something strange about living someplace where your home could be under missile attack at any given time. At this point, for those of us living in Tel Aviv, the occasional sirens, missile launches, and intercept blasts are mostly an inconvenience. Most subscribe to the realization that Iron Dome provides near 100% defense, at least from an attack initiated out of Gaza. Looking out my window, from the seat where I write these diary entries, I can see the Israel Air Force Headquarters (located just two blocks away) — which makes my abode both very close to what is no doubt the prime target of our enemies, and at the same time, the most defended location. Now, two days later, it's as if this latest Gaza operation never happened.
Israelis overwhelmingly see the most recent Gaza operation as a success. Will that achievement help Lapid and/or Gantz in the upcoming election? It's too early to say. However, I believe it will — at least on the margins. This military triumph will make a Likud attack on Lapid's lack of military experience more difficult. Moreover, the fact that Lapid and Gantz worked well together resonates with most Israelis.
Additionally, Israel did not hold back from taking further action to combat terror originating from the West Bank. On Monday night/Tuesday morning, in a joint operation of the Police, Shabak, and the IDF, an attempt was made to arrest Ibrahamal-Nabulsim, wanted for the orchestration of several terror attacks. Ibrahamal-Nabulsim refused to surrender, and after an intense fight, both he and another man were killed in the operation. Several other Palestinian fighters were wounded. Israel's only casualty was a veteran army dog named “Zili.”
POLITICS
Both Labor and Likud held party primaries this week. The Labor party conducted its primary first, in which a list of young people not widely known, were elected. Number one on the Labor list (after Party Chair Michaeli) is MK Na’ama Lazimi, who is a Mizrachi, social activist from a development town in the north. After Lazimi, is Reform Rabbi Gilad Kariv, whose actions in the last Knesset impressed Labor members and earned him third place. Efrat Rayten, Ram Shefa, and Emilie Moatti are next on the Labor list, followed by Yaya Fink. Rounding out the remainder of the top 10 seats on the list are MK Ibtisam Mara'ana-Menuhin and Public Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev (the only Labor Party candidate with security experience), and Mehereta Baruch-Ron. After the results were announced, I received a text from an organization I did not recognize, asserting the list “did not reflect Rabin's Labor Party”. That is, of course, true. The average age of the Labor Party members likely to serve in the next Knesset is 46; with six of the top ten spots held by women.
The Likud held its primary on Wednesday. The result … whoever most loudly roared their support for Netanyahu, along with whoever bellowed their calls to bring down the justice system and end the Netanyahu trial, came in near the top of the Likud list. Conversely, any who dared criticize Netanyahu plummeted to an unrealistic position on the Party list. The parallels between Trump and Netanyahu appear to have gotten even stronger. It should be noted that in the top ten of the Likud Knesset candidate list, there is only one woman — Miri Regev (#9).
AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT…
I had a very pleasant conversation with Dr. Jerome Segal this week. Segal announced he is running for President of the United States, because President Joe Biden is not doing enough to solve our conflict with the Palestinians. I accepted the interview, because I was genuinely curious what would make an American Jew run for President based on this reason — meaning, why would he care so much? I know why I care, but why does he? I never really got a good answer to that query. Suffice it to say, Segal has been peripherally involved in Middle East diplomacy for over 40 years, serving as one of the intermediaries to the PLO before Oslo.
What I enjoyed most about our conversation was his optimism. Here was a man, about ten years older than me, convinced he could bring about monumental change. His latest plan involves solving the refugee problem. First, get buy-in from the Palestinians on a plan that would result in the restoration of approximately 50 villages that had been destroyed; potentially allowing 300,000 refugees to return.
Segal is correct, in that, the only way to solve our conflict is to deal with the refugee problem. However, after talking to this supremely optimistic man for over an hour, I remain as pessimistic as ever that there will be a solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict in my lifetime. If he was a Palestinian leader of substance making these assertions, I might be more optimistic — but not so much, when articulated by an extremely well-intentioned graduate of Bronx Science, who lives in Washington, DC. Nevertheless, I do wish him well.
FAMILY FUN
Overnight, the City of Tel Aviv hosted its annual “Camping in the Park” happening for young children. This event takes place every year in Dubnov Park. The city provides entertainment and food, parents bring tents and their children.
BUSINESS
El Al reported revenue of $516 million this quarter, up 112% from last year — and a rise of 12% from 2019, before the pandemic hit. El Al also reported profit of $100 million, mainly from a tax benefit. El Al came to an agreement with its pilots in early July, ending months of last-minute cancellations. In addition, El Al is taking its fleet of 777-ER planes out of mothballs, to meet increased demand. In related good news, on Thursday it was reported that within a week, El Al hopes to reach an agreement with Oman on overflight rights, which will then allow the airline to fly to South East Asia faster, and for less money.
WeWork plans to open a new building on Nachalat Binyamin in Tel Aviv, investing NIS 24 million to open the facility. WeWork has a 90% occupancy in Israel, which is 10% higher than its 80% worldwide average — with 9 facilities in Tel Aviv, and 14 in the country as a whole.
Wix announced it expects to lay off workers, just one month after stating the company would not lay off workers.
With the Nasdaq suddenly rebounding, the state of Israel’s high-tech sector remains I flux. Nevertheless, at the moment, demand for workers remains very high, despite the layoffs.
A LITTLE PIECE OF HISTORY - THE PORT
The Tel Aviv port was built in 1936, in response to the Arab riots taking place, which made using the Jaffa Port impractical. The entire harbor was completed on February 23, 1938. However, after World War II broke out, the British took over the new port for military use. Once the State was declared in 1948, the Tel Aviv port became a central entry point for the weapons that helped Israel win its Independence war. After the war, the Tel Aviv port remained in use, competing with the far larger Haifa Port.
The Tel Aviv port was officially closed in 1965, when the Ashdod Port was opened. The area subsequently became run down, with workshops operating by day, and prostitutes circulating by night. Beginning in 2002, major work began to redevelop the buildings in the Tel Aviv port area, and by 2008 a new boardwalk was in place. Soon the port became a Mecca for restaurants and shopping. The “Namal” (Tel Aviv port) has become one of the major tourist attractions in Tel Aviv.
A TASTE OF TEL AVIV — by Tali Schulman
MANSURA
Located on the boarder of Tel Aviv and Yafo, on a small street off of Salame, you will find Mansura. Initially opened by two sous-chefs from Shila (one of the first and longest running Chef restaurants in Tel Aviv), Mansura highlights the best ingredients Israel has to offer — i.e. plenty of fish, veggies, and just the right amount of meat. Consistently one of my favorite restaurants in the city, I have never been disappointed by a single dish on their menu. My favorite is the lamb neck pasta, but I love every fish dish on the menu … and this is not a place to skip dessert, specifically, the bread pudding. Trust me you won’t regret it!
For more restaurant recommendations find me on Instagram @talischulman all my food adventures are saved in my highlights!
