Abstract: Abstract As in many previous elections, the issues of peace and security were central to the outcome in 2009. The public's turn to the right on these issues informed their electoral decisions, giving the parties of the Right a Knesset majority. However, this does not represent a return to the ideological agenda of territorial maximalism. Rather, the ‘New Right’ is focused primarily on security concerns, which it believes should be prioritized over peace diplomacy or further unilateral withdrawals. It operates within the overall ‘neo-centrist’ consensus which solidified in 2006, namely a willingness to make extensive territorial concessions in principle, coupled with opposition in practice due to a complete lack of faith that such concessions will bring Israel peace and security. Aside from this, there was one new and worrying development in the election campaign: the incitement of tension between Israel's Jewish and Arab citizens around the issue of peace and security. Keywords: Israeli electionspeacesecuritypublic opinion Notes 1. On the centrist approach see Jonathan Rynhold, “Peace and Security in the 2006 Election,” Israel Affairs 13, no. 2 (2007): 384–400. 2. On the Disengagement see Jonathan Rynhold and Dov Waxman, “Ideological Change and Israel's Disengagement from Gaza,” Political Science Quarterly 123, no. 1 (2008): 11–38. 3. Aluf Benn and David Landau, “PM to Ha'aretz: Two-state Solution, or Israel is Finished,” Ha'aretz, November 29, 2007; Barak Ravid, “Livni: Time is Running Out for Peace Talks with Palestinians,” Ha'aretz, August 21, 2008. 4. “The War in Numbers,” Jane's Defence Weekly, August 23, 2006. 5. “Hizbullah Attacks Northern Israel and Israel's Response,” Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, July 12, 2006, http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Terrorism+from+Lebanon-+Hizbullah/Hizbullah+attack+in+northern+Israel+and+Israels+response+12-Jul-2006.htm. 6. “State Snubbed War Victim, Family Says,” Ynet, August 30, 2007. 7. “Lebanon Sees More Than 1,000 War Deaths,” Associated Press, December 28, 2006. 8. “Nasrallah Sorry for Scale of War,” BBC News, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5291420.stm. 9. Yehuda Ben-Meir, “The Israeli Body Politic Views on Key National Security Issues,” Strategic Assessment 10, no. 1 (June 2007), http://www.inss.org.il/publications.php?cat = 21&incat = &read = 11&print = 1; Ephraim Yaar and Tamar Hermann, War and Peace Index, July 2007, http://www.tau.ac.il/peace/. 10. “The Main Findings of the Winograd Partial Report on the Second Lebanon War,” Ha'aretz, April 30, 2007, http://www.cfr.org/publication/15385/winograd_commission_final_report.html. 11. JPost.com Staff, “Survey: 85 Percent of Israelis Want Peretz to Resign 69 Percent Olmert Resign,” Jerusalem Post, January 17, 2007. 12. Barak Ravid, “UNIFIL Hiding Info about Hezbollah from Security Council,” Ha'aretz, April 28, 2008; JPost.com Staff, “Barak: Hizbullah has 42,000 Missiles,” Jerusalem Post, November 24, 2008. 13. Yossi Melman, “Not a Reactor – Something Far More Vicious,” Ha'aretz, November 22, 2007. 14. Amir Oren, “This Time, the IDF Favors Syria,” Ha'aretz, November 20, 2007. 15. Herb Keinon, “Syria Talks Meant to Pressure Iran,” Jerusalem Post, November 2, 2008. 16. JPost.com staff, “Syria Refuses to Sever Ties with Iran,” Jerusalem Post, May 24, 2008; Yoav Stern and Barak Ravid, “Assad: Syria has Handed Peace Proposal to Israel, Awaiting Response,” Ha'aretz, September 4, 2008; “Livni: Syria Peace Must Involve More Than Just Eating Hummus in Damascus,” Ha'aretz, December 16, 2008. 17. “Palestinians ‘Discouraged’ by PM's Unilateralism Pledge,” Ha'aretz, May 24, 2006. 18. “Address Minister of Foreign Affairs, Zippi Livni to 8th Herzliya Conference, 22 January 2008,” http://www.herzliyaconference.org/Eng/_Articles/Article.asp?ArticleID = 2048&CategoryID = 248. 19. Aluf Benn, “Olmert Shelves Rice's Shelf Agreement,” Ha'aretz, June 24, 2007. 20. Herb Keinon, “Israel Open to Arab Peace Initiative,” Jerusalem Post, March 26, 2007; Aluf Benn, “PM Seeks Talks with Saudis, Arab Moderates,” Ha'aretz, March 30, 2007. 21. “Egypt: Israel Must Accept Arab Peace Plan before Talks with PA,” Associated Press, March 14, 2007; Aluf Benn, “Arab Ministers Refuse to Amend Arab Peace Initiative,” Ha'aretz, March 24, 2007. 22. The plan does not mention the right of return explicitly, but the closing statement of the 2002 Beirut Summit called for ‘the right of return of the Palestine refugees’, Arab Summit Issues Decisions, http://www.spa.gov.sa/English/ContentPage.php?cid = 38&id = 14487. At the Annapolis Conference the Saudis also called for the ‘right of return’, “Saudis Urge Right of Return for Palestinians,” Jerusalem Post, November 28, 2007. 23. Yoav Stern, “Livni, Jordanian FM to Meet on Saudi Initiative,” Ha'aretz, April 14, 2007. 24. Truman Centre for Peace and PSR Survey Research Unit: “Joint Israeli Palestinian Poll,” December 2008, http://www.pcpsr.org/survey/polls/2008/p30ejoint.html. 25. Avi Issacharoff, “Not for Love of Israel, but Hatred of Iran,” Ha'aretz, November 28, 2007. 26. Barak Ravid, “PM: Freeze Settlements, Dismantle Outposts,” Ha'aretz, November 20, 2007; Aluf Benn, “Outposts / Status Quo is Just Fine,” Ha'aretz, January 7, 2008; Etgar Lefkovits, “Construction to Continue in Major Settlement Blocs, J'lem,” Jerusalem Post, January 10, 2008. 27. Shmuel Rosner and Aluf Benn, “PMO: Israel Won't Take In Any Palestinian Refugees,” Ha'aretz, August 14, 2008; Shahar Ilan and Barak Ravid, “Olmert: Binational State is Alternative to Peace Deal with Palestinians,” Ha'aretz, September 16, 2008; Akiva Eldar, “Report: Olmert Privately Proposed Division of Jerusalem to Arab Leaders,” Ha'aretz, January 20, 2009. 28. “Terror in Gaza: 8 Months since Hamas Takeover,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs, February 14, 2008, http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Palestinian+terror+since+2000/Terror+in+Gaza+ Two+months+since+the+Hamas+takeover+16-Aug-2007.htm; Barak Ravid, “IDF Chief: Major Military Gaza Offensive Becoming More Likely,” Ha'aretz, December 12, 2007. 29. Yaakov Katz, “Israel Sends US Videos of Egypt Helping Hamas,” Jerusalem Post, December 18, 2007. 30. Yaakov Lappin, “Iran Plotting Gaza Cease-Fire Demise,” Jerusalem Post, August 31, 2008; “Significant Erosion of the Lull Arrangement in the Gaza Strip,” Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, November 16, 2008, http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/html/hamas_e011.htm. 31. Barak Ravid, “IAF Strike Followed Months of Planning,” Ha'aretz, December 28, 2008. 32. Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, “IDF Surprises Hamas with Largest Gaza Operation since 1967; at Least 225 Killed,” Ha'aretz, December 28, 2008; Amos Harel, “Most Hamas Bases Destroyed in 4 Minutes,” Ha'aretz, December 28, 2008; Yoav Stern, “3 Hamas Officers among 230 Killed during IAF Strikes on Gaza,” Ha'aretz, December 28, 2008; Yaakov Katz, “Swarms of Locusts over Gaza,” Jerusalem Post, January 1, 2009; Yaakov Katz, “Nizar Rayyan Considered Successor of Ahmed Yassin,” Jerusalem Post, January 1, 2009. 33. Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, “Breaking Troikas and Cobbling Tahadiyeh,” Ha'aretz, February 2, 2009. 34. Barak Ravid and Shlomo Shamir, “UN Security Council Calls for Immediate Gaza Truce,” Ha'aretz, January 9, 2008; “Israel–US Memorandum Of Understanding 16 January 2008,” http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace+Process/Reference+Documents/Israel-US_Memorandum_of_Understanding_16-Jan-2009.htm; Amos Harel et al., “EU Leaders Commit to Helping Prevent Hamas from Rearming,” Ha'aretz, January 19, 2009. 35. Hanan Greenberg, “Only 250 of Gaza Fatalities were Civilians,” YNET, January 26, 2009; Yaakov Katz, “World Duped by Hamas's False Civilian Death Toll Figures,” Jerusalem Post, February 15, 2009. 36. Matthew Levitt, Hamas (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2006), 172–9; Yaakov Katz, “Iran Influence over Hamas is Growing,” Jerusalem Post, December 15, 2008; Ronen Bergman, The Secret War with Iran (New York: Free Press, 2007), 282–3, 375–7; Yaakov Lappin, “Rehovot, Rishon May Be in Rocket Range,” Jerusalem Post, January 5, 2009. 37. Ethan Bronner, “Just How Far Did They Go, Those Words against Israel?,” New York Times, June 11, 2006. 38. Yossi Melman, “How Israel Managed to Hinder Iran Nuclear Plans,” Ha'aretz, November 30, 2008. 39. David Sanger, “US Rejected Aid for Israeli Raid on Iranian Nuclear Site,” New York Times, January 11, 2009; Tim McGirk and Aaron J. Klein, “Israel's Debate Over an Iran Strike,” Time, July 24, 2009; Ephraim Kam, “The Devaluation of the National Intelligence Estimate of the Iranian Threat,” INSS Insight, no. 50 (2008). 40. Yaar and Hermann, War and Peace Index, March 2008, April 2008, June 2007, December 2007, http://www.tau.ac.il/peace/. 41. Yaar and Hermann War and Peace Index, October 2006, July 2007, November 2007, March 2008, April 2008. 42. Truman PSR – Joint Survey Research Unit, Joint Israeli Palestinian Poll, December 2008, http://www.pcpsr.org/survey/polls/2008/p30ejoint.html; see also Yaar and Hermann, War and Peace Index, April 2008, July 2008; Poll conducted by Teleseker published in Ma'ariv, November 21, 2007. 43. Yaar and Hermann, War and Peace Index, April 2008, June 2008; Dahaf poll published in Yediot Ahronot, April 25, 2008. 44. JPost.com Staff, “Israelis Opposed to Further Withdrawals,” Jerusalem Post, March 19, 2008; Yaar and Hermann, Peace Index, June 2006; Poll carried out by Teleseker, published in Ma'ariv, July 26, 2007. 45. Lydia Saad, “Israelis, Palestinians in Accord on Peace Benefits,” GALLUP, December 12, 2007, http://www.gallup.com/poll/103198/Israelis-Palestinians-Accord-Peace-Benefits.aspx; Yaar and Hermann, War and Peace Index, March 2008, April 2008, January 2007, August 2006. 46. For example, Maya Sela, “Amos Oz: Hamas Responsible for Outbreak of Gaza Violence,” Ha'aretz, December 30, 2008; Roni Singer-Heruti, “Leftist Meretz Issues Rare Call for Military Action against Hamas,” Ha'aretz, December 25, 2008. 47. Aluf Benn, “Diskin Hints Settlers could Resort to Assassination to Thwart Withdrawals,” Ha'aretz, November 3, 2008. 48. Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, “IDF Declares Hebron Area Closed Military Zone After Settler Rampage,” Ha'aretz, December 4, 2008. 49. Jonathan Lis, “Wave of Protests Sweeps Arab Towns,” Ha'aretz, December 29, 2008; Yaakov Lappin, “Sakhnin: Over 10,000 Protest Gaza Operation,” Jerusalem Post, January 3, 2009; Yaar and Hermann, War and Peace Index, December 2008. Similarly only 17% of Israeli Arabs viewed the 2006 Lebanon war as just, compared to 93% of Jewish Israelis, Yaar and Hermann, War and Peace Index, July 2006. 50. Yaar and Hermann, War and Peace Index, August 2006, September 2006. 51. 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Yoav Stern, “Arab Rights Group Seeks ‘Supranational Regime’ in all of Historic Palestine,” Ha'aretz, December 20, 2007; Dov Waxman and Ilan Peleg, “Neither Ethnocracy nor Bi-Nationalism: In Search of the Middle Ground,” Israel Studies Forum 23, no. 2 (2008): 55–73. 63. Mazal Mualem, “Netanyahu: I'm Not Bound by Olmert Pledges,” Ha'aretz, January 30, 2009. 64. Roni Sofer, “Livni Says Not Bound by Olmert's Political Statements,” YNET, November 11, 2008, http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3621209,00.html; Gil Hoffman, “Livni Denies Involvement in Reported Concessions to Palestinians,” Jerusalem Post, January 29, 2009; Mualem, “Netanyahu: I'm Not Bound by Olmert Pledges”; Mazal Mualem, “Likud Fears Last-Minute Loss to Kadima,” Ha'aretz, February 8, 2009. 65. Gil Hoffman, “Labor, Kadima: Bibi Can't be Obama's Counterpart,” Jerusalem Post, November 5, 2008; Mazal Mualem, “Livni: Netanyahu Will Cause Rift with US,” Ha'aretz, January 25, 2009. 66. 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Publication Year: 2010
Publication Date: 2010-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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