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FEBRUARY 10, 2022 | The Jewish Home
understanding (MoU), amid increasing threats from Iran. Middle Eastern countries are understanding that the U.S. now has its interests elsewhere and that they must work together against Iran.
After signing the MoU, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said, “We must strengthen the ‘moderate camp,’ and there is such a thing. Our formal relations allow us to come in and work together against shared threats. We are only in our first year of the Abraham Accords; in the coming decade, there will be significant developments.” Speaking to reporters, Gantz noted, “This is the first time that a defense minister is coming for an official visit openly, and the truth is that they are the ones doing this in a significant, high-profile way. We signed a security cooperation agreement, which is another milestone in
the hugely important process of the Abraham Accords, which we have been ushering through for more than a year. “I want to thank the king for the hospitality and the courageous decision to hold the visit publicly. This decision to go openly is a significant decision. It is a step that has been ripening for a long time. There have been relationships between the [two countries’] defense establishments for many years, and it is a historic moment to make them official, formal and public.” He added, “Bahrain stands on its own as a country that we want and need to develop a relationship with, in all aspects, civilian and military. Formalizing our cooperation allows us to create forums and workgroups that will provide an answer for the operational needs of the two countries. Bahrain isn’t the ‘annex’ of any country — the connection with it is important and significant. “From now on there will be increased talks and presence in terms of cooperation and defense industries here, and we will find solutions and assist, which will be appropriate for the Bahrainis’ security needs. This is precisely the point of this
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agreement — that we can sit together, create workgroups and find concrete solutions.” Israel has normalized relations with several Arab countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Sudan, and Morocco. During Gantz’s trip to Bahrain, he met with the country’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, and Defense Minister Abdullah Bin Hassan Al Nuaimi.
A New Attorney General
Gali Baharav-Miara is now the attorney general of Israel. The 62-yearold former Tel Aviv district attorney for civil affairs took her post on Tuesday, following unanimous cabinet confirmation of her appointment. She is the first woman to take up the top justice role. Outgoing attorney general Avichai Mandelblit stepped down upon completion of his six-year term on January 31, and State Attorney Amit Aisman had been filling in. Baharav-Miara enters office amid spiking confusion and outrage over alleged illicit police use of spyware against both suspects and non-suspects, including persons of interest in the trial of former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and a decline in public trust in the justice system. “I intend to put the issue of public trust in the legal system at the top of my priorities,” she said at a welcoming ceremony in Jerusalem. “In recent days, there has been a worrying decline in public confidence in public legal advice and law enforcement systems… Various reasons for this come to mind, including the impact of external events and attacks on the judiciary and law enforcement. But it is wrong to attribute the decline in public confidence in the attorney general solely to external parties.” Commenting on the spyware allegations, Baharav-Miara said that “naturally, one of the first issues I will address is the allegations about the
measures used by the Israel Police.” Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar was the force behind Baharav-Miara’s appointment. Sa’ar has expressed his intention to split the role of the attorney general, who currently serves as both legal adviser to the government and as the state’s chief prosecutor, meaning the same person can be tasked both with overseeing the prosecution of members of the government and with defending their moves — a situation some argue creates a conflict of interest. Mandelblit had opposed such a split, but Baharav-Miara is reportedly amenable to it. In his remarks, the justice minister described the role of the attorney general as “the most difficult and challenging in the public service.” He wished Baharav-Miara success, calling her a “consummate professional” with decades of experience in public legal service, and in particular representing the state in the courts. The new attorney general will have several high-profile cases to deal with. These include the whereabouts of state gifts given to Benjamin Netanyahu that the former premier was ordered to return, a gift of $20,000 that an Australian billionaire gave to ex-Mossad chief Yossi Cohen, and the alleged harassment of state’s witness Shlomo Filber by two Netanyahu aides. She will also have to determine whether and how to proceed with negotiations on a plea bargain for Netanyahu, who is on trial in three graft cases and whose lawyers negotiated with Mandelblit, reportedly coming close to a deal, in recent weeks.
Spirit and Frontier to Merge
Low-cost U.S. carriers Frontier Airlines and Spirit Airlines announced plans on Monday to merge, in a move which would create the fifth-largest U.S. airline by revenue passenger miles.
