Transcript [00:01] Hello, good evening from Israel and [00:03] welcome to another Israel Insider with [00:05] me, Ashley Perry, advisor to the Middle [00:07] East forum Israel office. We we have [00:11] this annual sort of show uh at the UN [00:15] where leaders come in around the world, [00:18] the General Assembly, it's the sort of [00:19] opening of the General Assembly. And [00:22] while many have called uh the United [00:25] Nations the theater of the absurd in the [00:28] past um in the last uh day or so it's [00:31] actually become something closer to the [00:33] theater of the obsessed. It really just [00:36] does seem that Israel is just the main [00:39] talking point and sometimes even the [00:41] only foreign talking point. Obviously [00:44] every leader that comes in will talk [00:45] about what they see their challenges are [00:48] and maybe they'll talk about global [00:50] challenges but in many occasions the [00:52] only country specific [00:55] challenges or criticisms that they lay [00:59] um are against Israel. Uh we've seen it [01:03] we've always seen in the past against [01:05] you know totalitarian regimes. We see [01:08] obviously Mahmud Abbas would always [01:10] attack Israel. the Iranians will always [01:12] attack Israel, a few others, but this [01:14] year it's really the litany of even [01:17] western uh leaders. Um and it just it [01:21] just became, you know, from the obsessed [01:24] to the absurd to the outright lies. Um [01:27] the most famous of which which caused a [01:28] lot of constonation and rightly so uh in [01:31] Israel was French president Emanuel Mau [01:36] who made uh various assertions about [01:39] Israel. Uh the most remarkable one uh [01:43] not necessarily about Israel but related [01:45] to Israel obviously um that many picked [01:48] up on is that Hamas was never active in [01:51] the West Bank. That's a direct quote uh [01:53] from his speech uh which is absolutely [01:56] remarkable because it's simply not true. [01:59] I mean, Hamas have basically been active [02:01] in Judea, Samaria, the West Bank for [02:04] decades, perpetrating [02:06] dozens, if not over a hundred terrorist [02:10] attacks, uh, killing hundreds of [02:13] Israelis, [02:15] um, and wounding thousands more. In [02:18] fact, only before Yong Kipur, uh, [02:21] ironically, a French, a Jew, Israeli [02:24] French citizen was murdered as he went, [02:27] uh, to a poor mikvah near his home. Uh, [02:32] basically just looking to dip in some [02:34] water and he was murdered [02:36] by Kamas related murderer. So, it's kind [02:41] of sadly ironic that a French citizen [02:44] should be the latest victim of an [02:46] organization that the French president [02:49] said isn't even active. Um, has never [02:52] been active uh in in in that particular [02:55] area. As one can imagine, there was [02:57] tremendous push back uh from Israeli [03:00] politicians and others. And obviously, [03:03] the French foreign ministry had to walk [03:05] it back saying he didn't use the word [03:07] never active. He said never governed. [03:09] First of all, even that is not [03:12] necessarily true. While officially and [03:14] ostensibly the um Palestinian Authority [03:17] uh is in charge, um there are many areas [03:20] which are run by Hamas uh you know de [03:24] facto during many mayers who are uh [03:28] under Kamas influence, let's put it that [03:30] way, many areas and Kamas clearly [03:32] control many parts um and govern even [03:36] many parts of Judea and Samaria in the [03:38] West Bank. So we just we just see how [03:42] easy it is. Israel's become something of [03:45] the world's punching bag. Um it's an [03:47] easy hit. Uh a lot of it just plays a [03:50] domestic audiences if we see the the the [03:54] leaders who do it. Obviously in the Arab [03:55] world it's very popular. It's an easy [03:57] hit for leaders who may not be popular [04:00] or just want extra popularity. Uh but in [04:03] the west we see those with large uh [04:06] let's put it this way domestic audiences [04:08] which have a propensity towards um you [04:11] know anti-Israel sentiment sometimes uh [04:15] by extremely unpopular leaders who are [04:17] just looking for a rise in the polls but [04:19] it does seem that you know it's it's [04:21] it's open season uh on Israel at the [04:25] moment um in this uh annual sort of uh [04:28] you know uh fest and and as I said it's [04:31] become a little bit in the theater of [04:33] the obsessed. [04:36] Prime Minister Netanyahu is leaving [04:38] Israel tonight to speak uh at um at the [04:41] UN tomorrow as we heard you know we [04:45] heard Mandari during his campaigns that [04:48] he would arrest Prime Minister Netanyao [04:50] and then when not when he realized [04:52] because clearly he realized all along he [04:54] wouldn't be able to do it then he [04:56] basically said well I can't do it it's [04:57] not it's not my decision it's a federal [04:59] decision and then called for [05:00] demonstrations against uh Netanyao um [05:04] and even that Uh it will I'm sure there [05:07] will be demonstrations. Um but you know [05:10] we will see uh Prime Minister Netany [05:12] ascend the UN podium or naturally see a [05:17] relatively empty room. Maybe we'll even [05:19] see some sort of public walkout as he [05:23] ascends the podium to try and make a [05:25] point. Um but uh Prime Minister [05:28] Netanyahu himself has said that he's [05:30] going to use the speech to push back [05:32] against them the mounting pressure over [05:35] the settlements over uh settler violence [05:38] etc etc. He said that he will tell [05:40] Israel's truth and of course there will [05:43] be surprises and even he mentioned [05:46] Mandani at one point he'll push back [05:48] against the lies. Um we've seen Metinaro [05:52] pretty much on and off apart from once [05:54] or twice over the last uh what is it 17 [05:57] years [05:59] this uh stage really to try and make a [06:02] point to try and get a lot of headlines [06:05] especially with what is it 34 days until [06:08] the elections um it's very much going to [06:10] be a speech geared towards a domestic [06:13] audience uh back home as we've said in [06:16] recent weeks hasn't really had that uh [06:19] victory he sought. He hasn't had that [06:21] major peace breakthrough with Saudi [06:24] Arabia or or maybe others that he's also [06:26] sought and he's not really got that [06:28] massive endorsement from Donald Trump. [06:31] Although uh Trump did retweet um on his [06:35] Truth Social network a an article which [06:39] says that uh uh BB's block uh is ahead [06:42] in the polls. I mean, it's a relatively [06:44] singular poll, although as I said last [06:47] week that the blocks are certainly [06:48] getting closer together. Um, so what [06:51] Netanyahari is going to do is he he [06:53] understands that this will be filmed. It [06:55] will be rerun and he knows especially to [06:58] his base and even his soft base. This is [07:00] where Natinari excels. He's an excellent [07:03] speaker. We know that he's an excellent [07:05] deliverer of his speech and we also know [07:07] that he likes his props and those [07:09] usually get him a lot of attention not [07:12] just in Israel but all around the world. [07:14] They become they have been in the past [07:16] with with the car the sort of cartoon [07:19] bomb of Iran and he showed maps and I [07:22] think even Awitz plans and things like [07:24] that in the past. So he usually has some [07:27] trick up his sleeve and I'm sure [07:28] tomorrow will be no different because [07:30] you know he is fighting for his [07:31] political uh life. So I'm sure there'll [07:34] be um uh be something along those lines [07:38] and also uh he and his supporters will [07:41] make the point in the coming days after [07:43] the speech that only Nata can deliver [07:45] such a speech and early on in the [07:48] campaign he's talked uh or his people [07:51] surrogates or party talked about how the [07:53] fact that Eisen doesn't have [07:54] particularly good English and that [07:56] really is to his great disadvantage. [07:59] tomorrow he will show off his oratory [08:02] skills um to Israel and to the world and [08:05] certainly that will be used in campaign [08:07] videos again and again. Um interestingly [08:12] which certainly could be taken advantage [08:14] of by the opposition is the fact that [08:17] Netanyahu is going in where many if not [08:20] most of the world leaders are going to [08:22] be and so far he doesn't have a single [08:24] meeting. Now he is trying to get [08:26] meetings. Uh certainly could certainly [08:28] be put on the schedule by tomorrow. But [08:30] at the moment it's it's it it will be [08:32] pretty unprecedented if Israel's prime [08:35] minister goes to the UN and will not get [08:37] a sit down with anyone. Even Donald [08:39] Trump at this point has said uh because [08:42] the scheduling diff uh difficulty is [08:44] that he will not be meeting uh Netanyahu [08:47] one is on the ground for around 24 hours [08:50] maybe less. I don't know the exact [08:52] details. Um, I'm sure that that is [08:55] probably partly because of the lack of [08:57] meetings. If there were meetings, I'm [08:59] sure he would take it. And even though [09:02] uh it would it would mean that he would [09:04] uh be there longer into the Sabbath, [09:06] that's never stopped missing in the past [09:08] and he's quite allowed to stay uh in New [09:11] York over the over the Sabbath. Um, one [09:14] thing, one other thing that he will [09:16] certainly be stepping into is a is a [09:18] major attempt led by the UK and France, [09:23] um, against Israel, uh, specifically [09:26] trying to focus on, uh, the settlements [09:29] and so-called settle violence. Um, and [09:31] it does seem like it's picking up steam. [09:34] Uh there was talk of even influencing [09:36] some members of the Trump [09:38] administration, although Secretary of [09:39] State Marco Rubio tried to uh uh lessen [09:43] those flames a little bit by saying we [09:46] do not want uh this to become a major [09:48] explosive uh story. Um but it's clear [09:51] that the um the UK and France are [09:54] leading efforts to try and isolate [09:56] Israel even further and try to uh push [09:59] the whole agenda of settlement and [10:02] settler uh violence very much onto the [10:05] uh world stage. Moving over a little bit [10:08] uh to domestic politics. We have before [10:11] every election we have uh the there is [10:14] the anability [10:16] um for um parties to come forward and [10:20] try and ban other parties uh if they [10:23] contribute certain rules if you deny [10:26] Israel as a as a as a Jewish and [10:28] democratic state if you uh support [10:30] terror etc etc. So usually that's used [10:33] by the right to try and ban the Arab [10:36] parties. It happens almost every [10:38] election. And what happens is usually [10:40] while they will get banned because the [10:42] composition of the committee itself is [10:45] made up of uh the political parties and [10:47] the Knesset and obviously the coalition [10:49] has a majority whoever they are. Um so [10:52] once again we saw uh the joint list and [10:55] Ram uh being banned or or the vote uh on [11:00] the electoral committee to ban them. But [11:03] interestingly this time we certainly saw [11:06] some something different. As I said [11:08] there was uh a very solid vote against [11:12] the joint list and RAM whereas the joint [11:15] list uh basically uh there was a very [11:18] strong majority slightly less against [11:20] Ram. Uh, one of the reasons they went [11:22] after uh the coalition is to try and [11:26] embarrass the more right-wing elements [11:28] of uh the coalition [11:30] um because the argument that the [11:32] coalition makes is that um the [11:35] opposition will not be able to form a [11:36] government without the support of of Ram [11:39] and Ram itself has tried to moderate its [11:42] image etc. even brought in someone from [11:44] Yeshid. Um uh interestingly there was a [11:48] bit of a split in the opposition. Israel [11:50] betenu basically uh voted with the [11:53] coalition probably the most right-wing [11:55] party in the opposition whereas um the [11:59] party of uh Bennett and the paid uh was [12:02] not present u but beyond that and as I [12:05] said probably those will be as they [12:07] always are overruled by the queen for [12:09] and in fact the appeals have already [12:11] been made and I would say it's 99% sure [12:14] that um the parties themselves will [12:17] overturn that uh that uh ban. But what's [12:21] interesting is that sometimes also [12:22] individuals are banned. Usually the the [12:25] sole Jewish member of the Arab list of [12:29] Kasif is um targeted because he denies [12:33] according to the petitioners uh that [12:35] Israel is a Jewish and democratic state. [12:37] But the most interesting one this time [12:39] is um Sami Abuled [12:42] who might not be a household name abroad [12:45] but he is the head of Balad uh the [12:48] nationalist party um in the joint list. [12:51] The joint list is made up of three [12:52] parties and uh Sami Abul that is number [12:56] three I believe on the joint list and he [12:58] was singled out specifically because on [13:00] October 8th 2023 he wrote in Arabic an [13:06] oped praising uh the October 7th [13:09] massacre calling it an important and [13:11] historic delay. Um when this was [13:14] basically uh when he understood what was [13:17] happening uh he tried to deny it. He [13:20] said he didn't understand the full [13:21] extent of the events which is a bit of a [13:24] weak response. So if there weren't 1,200 [13:25] people killed and what was it 300 people [13:28] taken hostage show even if it's less you [13:31] know it's a very weak argument. Um Abdul [13:34] Scheler himself because I guess he was [13:37] nervous about it or tried to find a way [13:40] out suddenly found himself ill and taken [13:43] to hospital. Interestingly, he uh tried [13:46] to testify from uh by Zoom or whatever [13:49] video conference uh from a hospital bed. [13:52] He didn't even try and hide the fact [13:54] that he was reading from prepared marks. [13:56] He held the piece of paper right up to [13:59] his face. So, it was really left in no [14:01] doubt that he was reading from prepared [14:04] marks where he tried to disavow. He said [14:06] he condemned the October 7th massacre. [14:09] He's never supported all these types of [14:11] things. Um and but the interesting thing [14:14] there's there's two very interesting [14:16] things here or a few interesting things. [14:17] First of all, as opposed to all the [14:19] others, the Democrats, the the most [14:21] left-wing Zionist party uh or the most [14:24] leftwing party except for the Arab [14:26] parties um supported uh the petition [14:30] against Arusha. Yay Golan saying his his [14:34] comments were absolutely unacceptable. [14:36] Interestingly enough, there was a [14:37] difference of opinion within the party [14:40] about that. others who said it's going [14:42] to hurt us electorally. Um I see already [14:45] there's someone who's written in the [14:46] chat. Please uh remove it or just move [14:49] it over to the Q&A and obviously please [14:52] put in your questions now. Um Yay Golan [14:56] was basically attacked by other members [14:57] of the Democrats who said it's going to [14:58] hurt them. The Democrats or formerly [15:00] merits um even Labor have traditionally [15:04] gained some support from the Arab [15:06] sector. They have prominent Arab members [15:09] of their list. So there were some who [15:11] argued that supporting this um the the [15:14] petition against Abusha could hurt them [15:17] electorally. Yay Golan said well this is [15:20] a principal position. He supported [15:22] October 7th massacre and um that's why [15:25] he should be um that's why he should be [15:28] thrown out of the upcoming election. [15:30] What was even more interesting is [15:32] usually the committee chairman is a [15:34] Supreme Court justice um who usually [15:38] doesn't vote uh usually takes a very [15:40] neutral stand on this just kind of [15:42] oversees uh the proceedings. Um but [15:45] interestingly enough uh uh Justice [15:48] Soulberg [15:49] uh for the first time I believe in 20 [15:51] years actually voted with uh those who [15:57] tried to petition against Abusha. That [15:59] is uh very very interesting because it [16:02] could actually have an effect on when um [16:06] uh basically it's taken to the Supreme [16:09] Court and even further the attorney [16:11] general Galibar Vara who was considered [16:15] you know an opponent of the coalition [16:18] also recommended um that he be uh denied [16:22] the ability to run in the upcoming [16:24] election. So interesting we have almost [16:26] wall-to-wall support not against the [16:29] parties themselves not even against Kas [16:31] but against Abushka. So it could be or [16:34] have I think for the first time um in a [16:38] while we could have an Arab member of [16:41] Kesset uh denied the ability to run uh [16:44] in the next elections. We have seen in [16:47] the past Mayor Kahana was banned from [16:49] running in the elections. Um but usually [16:52] it does not affect um the Arabs because [16:55] the Supreme Court usually takes a more [16:58] uh a wider stance on this. Tomorrow [17:00] we'll see uh petitions to try and um [17:04] deny [clears throat] [17:05] uh Otsma UI and relian scientists from [17:08] running in the Knesset. They will not [17:11] have a majority. As I said, it goes [17:13] along uh the current strength. So [17:16] there's no chance of it. But again, [17:17] these things always happen before every [17:19] election. So we're just going according [17:21] to wrote, but there does seem to be uh [17:24] something different happening this year [17:27] uh regarding uh Sammy Abul Shredded. [17:30] Finally, there was a bit of a a bomb [17:32] drop today by political bold, let's put [17:35] it that way, by [17:38] chair of Victoria. Um usually he likes [17:41] to come out with uh what some might call [17:43] maverick ideas and today was no [17:46] different. during an interview um he was [17:50] asked about the future of Judea and [17:52] Samaria the West Bank and he said that [17:56] he believes that um obviously Hamas [17:58] cannot run it he believes that the PA [18:01] should be absolutely analled there's no [18:03] way they're morally bankrupt they're [18:05] bankrupt um so the only ones who can [18:08] come in is Jordan the Jordanian army can [18:10] administer area A and B he did initially [18:13] say B and C but uh that was he missed He [18:17] misspoke. That was a slip of the tongue. [18:19] But what he meant was area A, which is [18:22] under full Palestinian control, um, [18:24] administrative and military, [18:27] um, and B, which is under Palestinian [18:30] administrative, uh, but Israeli military [18:33] control, and C is obviously, uh, under [18:35] full Israeli control where most of the, [18:37] uh, settlements are. Um so the fact that [18:40] he put that out is you know caused uh [18:43] caused quite a quite a stir and really [18:46] did give um Prime Minister Netanyahu an [18:49] opportunity to attack his you know to a [18:51] certain extent nemesis former you know [18:54] very close ally now you know visual [18:59] opponent um it was a very strange thing [19:02] uh to say politically especially a month [19:03] before the election I can't imagine it [19:05] gets much politically [19:09] uh him much politically. Um but it [19:11] certainly does get the conversation uh [19:14] back to Leman where he's kind of been [19:16] overshadowed in the last two months by [19:18] Eisenot and Bennett. Interestingly, [19:21] Saturday night um there is supposed to [19:24] be a meeting of all the um opposition [19:27] heads. That hasn't happened since last [19:28] November. And last November there was no [19:31] picture because um Bennett did not want [19:33] to be seen in the same picture as Yolan. [19:36] We'll see if there's a picture that [19:37] comes out of that. But the idea is to [19:39] coordinate messaging, not to attack each [19:41] other because at the moment the [19:44] opposition the the agenda points around [19:47] the opposition is is just sort of [19:49] procedural. Who's going to order the [19:50] block? Who's going to nominate who for [19:52] being prime minister? Who will stick [19:54] with them? And what happens if there's a [19:55] minority government? Will they invite [19:57] RA? Will they not? Will they rely on uh [19:59] maybe the other party as well to help [20:02] them form a minority government? These [20:04] are all procedural issues and they're [20:06] really preventing uh the opposition [20:08] block from uh from gaining momentum. Uh [20:12] whereas the uh the the current coalition [20:14] has if anything gained momentum over the [20:17] last few weeks. They're going to try and [20:19] see if they can find a way forward to [20:21] stem that momentum of the opposition and [20:24] try and take back uh themselves because [20:26] at this point it really is and every [20:28] vote matters, every seat matters. Uh at [20:31] the moment, according to pretty much [20:33] every poll I've seen, every serious [20:34] poll, neither side has a an obvious pass [20:38] uh to government. So, we'll have to keep [20:39] an eye on that. And with that, I'm going [20:41] to go to your questions. [20:44] [clears throat] [20:45] Um if the sup Hillbrand asks, if the [20:47] Supreme Court upholds the CEC Central [20:50] elections committee banning of the [20:52] joint, how do you see that impact on the [20:54] election results? I mean, I I I won't [20:57] entertain the question because I I I [21:00] would put a lot of money on it not [21:01] happening. It happens before every [21:04] single election. It's it's almost a [21:06] game. Um I don't see it happening. [21:09] There's no way that there's no way that [21:10] they'll uh ban one, let alone two. Um so [21:14] I don't I just don't see that happening. [21:16] I can't imagine uh a I I I'm almost [21:20] certain that both lists will be able to [21:21] run again. Whether Sami Abu Shra can run [21:26] that certainly is in doubt and I [21:28] wouldn't put too much money on that um [21:31] being overturned at the Supreme Court [21:33] because there certainly is a very solid [21:35] case but certainly I do not see the [21:37] parties being banned. [21:40] Um, [21:43] okay. Robert asked, "What do the Israeli [21:46] polls say about Niner's popularity [21:48] compared to the others who want to be [21:50] prime minister and two-state solution [21:52] what Israel should do about Iran?" I [21:54] don't know. Well, I can tell you the [21:55] first the answer to the first. For quite [21:57] a number of months now, um, NetO's [22:01] lagged in a direct in a direct poll and [22:04] people have said, "Who do you think is [22:05] more suitable to be prime minister?" [22:07] They always like to ask these questions. [22:08] Um and Netanyao against Eisenkot, [22:11] Netanyao against Bennett, Natino. [22:13] Previously it was against but now he's [22:16] not running. He's number two on [22:18] Bennett's list. And even Lieberman um [22:21] the one who definitely is coming out [22:23] more popular um is Eisenot. Sometimes it [22:27] narrows, sometimes it grows, but there's [22:30] been consistent over the last few months [22:32] um that Eisenot is considered more [22:34] popular in a one-on-one race. Obviously [22:36] that's not that's not the rate Israeli [22:38] politics work and you don't vote for [22:40] prime minister but it's clear that Eisen [22:43] on the whole is more popular uh Janet [22:46] whereas all the others are less popular [22:49] Bennett I think is a few points behind [22:51] and Leeman quite a few points uh behind [22:54] that two-state solution uh is pretty [22:58] much not on the agenda it's not an issue [23:02] uh in the elections I haven't seen it [23:04] pulled anywhere I don't see a single [23:06] party, not even the Democrats have put [23:09] it front and center. Perhaps they've got [23:10] it almost certainly I believe they do [23:13] somewhere in their manifesto in the [23:15] constitution and their vision. Um but [23:18] even they understand it's it it's not an [23:20] issue. The Israeli public doesn't have [23:22] an appetite uh for the issue at the [23:25] moment, especially after October 7th. Uh [23:28] so it's really not an issue and I [23:29] haven't seen it pulled uh anywhere. I I [23:31] I did see I I did see I think the [23:33] Israeli Democracy Institute asked it. [23:36] No, no polls of you know of any [23:39] electoral uh uh concern, but the Israel [23:42] Democracy Institute, I do believe that [23:44] they pulled it recently and I think [23:46] there was maybe around a third a third [23:49] of uh Israeli voters still support it. I [23:53] think it's even less amongst [23:54] Palestinians. So, it's not a electoral [23:56] issue and it's certainly not a popular [23:58] issue and as as I've made clear uh in [24:01] recent weeks, the uh the leaders are all [24:03] reading the same polls and they're [24:05] understanding it's not an issue to run [24:06] on even for the far left at this point. [24:09] What Israel should do about Iran? I [24:11] think there's wallto-wall support uh [24:13] that Iran remains a threat. Um what that [24:17] looks like uh hasn't really been poll [24:20] but certainly Israelis of all stripes of [24:22] all ideologies understand that uh Iran [24:25] is an existential threat. [24:29] Um [24:30] and Palik asked if Israel goes through a [24:33] second round of elections when will they [24:35] take place could they be delayed [24:37] indefinitely further war breaks out [24:39] second round? I mean there there's a [24:42] there's a there's a timetable after the [24:43] elections just to go through it quickly [24:45] after the elections we wait a couple of [24:47] days for the final results and then when [24:50] the final results are in uh they're [24:52] given to the president uh all of the uh [24:56] heads of the parties are invited by the [24:58] president to say who they will nominate [25:00] as the prime minister. Based on that, [25:03] the president will invite um the lead [25:06] that he believes has the best chance of [25:07] forming a government uh to try and do [25:10] so. I think if I remember correctly, he [25:13] has 20 or she has it can be by the way [25:16] any member of Ken. It doesn't even have [25:17] to be uh a leader of a party, but [25:19] obviously it will be. They have 28 days [25:22] to try and form a government. That's for [25:24] uh uh coalition negotiations. And then [25:27] they have the ability to ask for another [25:29] 14. they always do because everyone [25:31] knows that they have it. So, everyone [25:32] will hold out that a little bit longer. [25:35] If they're not able to do uh at the end [25:38] of what is it 42 days, uh the president [25:41] has the ability to then offer uh then uh [25:44] someone else to form a government and [25:47] again I think they get pretty much the [25:49] same amount of time. Um although as [25:51] we've seen before uh the co if uh a [25:56] party has the the uh requisite number of [25:58] votes to dissolve that kesset which [26:01] don't forget the knesset uh will be uh [26:04] called before government. So a kesset [26:07] then can dissolve itself and go to new [26:10] elections even during this process. So [26:12] we we're we're probably talking about [26:14] months. Um could it be delayed [26:16] indefinitely if further war breaks up? [26:18] Obviously, if the war affects the home [26:21] front, if it's far away, uh perhaps not. [26:24] And if there's not attacks on on Israel, [26:27] in theory, could still hold elections. [26:29] Obviously, it will be more difficult. Um [26:32] but, uh we'll have to see about that. Um [26:36] Steven Wilstein asked, "Does our [26:38] violence against settlers exceed sex [26:40] violence?" Yes, statistically it does. [26:42] Um does it get as many headlines? [26:44] Absolutely not. Um but as someone laid [26:47] out earlier today, especially after [26:49] another uh Arab terrorist attack, this [26:52] time uh on a on a checkpoint uh near [26:56] Modiin and u the person who is now [26:59] fighting for their life is actually the [27:01] son of Ambassador Yila [27:04] um who already lost a son. I think it [27:07] was in November 2023 in the early part [27:09] of the war. But now another son is [27:12] fighting for his life. Ambassador [27:14] Lighter who was obviously meant to be [27:16] very much part of um Netanyahu's retinue [27:20] in over the next day or so in in New [27:23] York has had to race back to Israel to [27:25] be by his son's side as he fights for [27:28] his life in Jerusalem. So these attacks [27:31] happen all the time. Probably if he [27:33] wasn't the son of the ambassador, it [27:34] wouldn't make headlines anywhere outside [27:36] of Israel. Unfortunately, [27:39] um it's almost a daily occurrence and [27:41] that's why uh the chief of staff, the [27:43] IDF chief of staff moved another [27:46] division to Jed Jude Samaria because [27:48] there is an uptick in violence and uh [27:51] while settler violence we can't deny [27:53] that it happens. We can't deny that it's [27:55] it was growing now. It seems to have [27:57] actually taken a dip over the last uh [27:59] month. What we do know and what we have [28:02] seen statistically, it's many many times [28:05] more likely that an a Palestinian will [28:08] attack an Israeli than an Israeli will [28:10] attack uh a Palestinian. Um as Jack [28:14] Wermanman says, well, I just said, son [28:16] of ambassador to US Nitera is seriously [28:20] injured in the car raming attack and and [28:22] he says best thoughts and wishes are [28:25] with him. Absolutely. Uh I think we can [28:28] all uh agree with those uh sentiments. [28:31] Um one last question Lansburg I guess [28:35] referring to what I said about Leman. [28:37] Would Jordan want the proposed role? I [28:39] would think not. First of all, I think [28:42] in theory they would love it ahead to [28:44] get control back of the West Bank. But [28:46] in practice they know it's a fool's [28:48] errand. It's a uh it would just be a [28:51] disaster for them. Uh they would you [28:54] know how would they get involved? uh [28:57] they defend uh Palestinian terrorists if [28:59] an Israeli was hunting them. I mean it's [29:02] uh it's it's a very complex uh concept [29:06] and I'm I don't see it happening uh [29:09] regardless of uh the fact that it rose [29:12] today and I don't think Jordan even [29:14] though it would love uh to a certain [29:16] extent in theory very much in theory to [29:20] have some sort of role um in Jude and [29:23] Samaria they know practically on the [29:25] ground it it would be a disaster for [29:27] him. So I don't I don't think they'll be [29:30] taking uh Israel up on that anytime [29:32] soon. And with that, I'd like to thank [29:34] you again for your questions and [29:36] participation and I look forward to [29:38] seeing you next week. Good good luck [29:41] from Israel.
