Kan English

The Beersheba District Court has upheld the lower court ruling allowing the state to deport 135  members of the Hebrew Israelite community, also known as the Black Hebrews. The community say they will appeal the decision. KANs Mark Weiss spoke with Ashriel Moore, spokesperson for the Hebrew Israelite community in Israel. (Photo;Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Knesset  has passed into law a Bill canceling the application of grounds  of reasonability. The controversial measure, the first part of the government's judicial overhaul package,   removes the power of the Supreme Court to overrule government actions it considers unreasonable.  Sixty-four MKs – all the coalition lawmakers- voted in favor of the law and zero voted against it as opposition lawmakers left the Knesset in protest. Leaders of the protest movement against the judicial overhaul have vowed to continue their struggle. Kan's Mark Weiss spoke with Yiftach Golov, one of the leaders of the Brothers and Sisters in Arms organisation, which has been at the forefront  of the protests over the last seven months. (Photo:AFP)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the large sectors of Israel’s society that is absent from the social demonstrations that have been sweeping the country for the past six month are Israel’s Bedouin community. A survey conducted by the Rifman Institute found that over 80% of Israel's Bedouin population is not well-versed in Israel’s proposed judicial reform, with only 6% of respondents saying they knew about the situation on a deeper level. Israel’s roughly 300,000 Bedouins do not seem bothered by the issue that has divided the country. Only 5% of respondents said they would participate politically regarding the judicial reform bill, though 8% said they would if there was the backing of an organization behind them. Elul Rifman, head of the advising committee of the Rifman Institute, said that the survey shows that the Bedouin community of Israel was largely disconnected from the broader Israeli society. He said lack of promotion of the Bedouin society in the Negev was a barrier to the development of the region and that had to change. (p

What is happening in Israel has truly torn up society in an unprecedented way. Some, like Professor emeritus of political science at Hebrew University of Jerusalem Avraham Diskin, believe the social protests are misguided and have more to do with attempting to topple the government than opposing judicial reforms. He told reporter Arieh O’Sullivan that the schism in the country over the judicial reform may be irreversible. (photo: Miriam Alster/flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister has pacemaker implanted, delays Cabinet meeting and trips to Turkey and Cypress, Knesset begins marathon debate over first judicial reform bill, tens of thousands march to Jerusalem in protestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen had a quick two-day state visit to France this week and held three crucial meetings in Paris, one with his French counterpart Catherine Colonna, with the director of UNESCO and with Jewish leaders. Helping us decipher the foreign minister’s visit to France is Dr. Miriam Rosman, an historian and expert on Israel-French ties. (photo: MFA) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Israel and US agree to test entry policy for all US citizens here as step to full visa waiver for Israelis, Hezbullah releases close up footage of IDF chief of staff on Lebanon border, King of Morocco invites Premier Netanyahu to MoroccoSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Israel has formally recognized Morocco’s sovereignty over the territory of Western Sahara. For Morocco it was a great diplomatic achievement. For Israel it was an obvious condition for warming the diplomatic ties with the Moroccan kingdom.The United Nations and a large part of the international community still don’t recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, but nevertheless Morocco wants legitimization to its occupation of the lands and their valuable natural resources. Former Ambassador Alan Baker, the director of the Institute for Contemporary Affairs at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and a former legal adviser for the Foreign Ministry, spoke to us about the diplomatic expedience of Israel’s move. (photo: Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

South Africa has water problems. Under the auspices of the South African government and in light of the existing difficulties in the country, KKL-JNF and the Water Authority are currently holding a conference regarding water desalination, water technologies, and water conservation in South Africa. Due to economic hardships and a lack of suitable technologies, the South African government has been implementing temporary daily power outages, which have been affecting the quality of life for the residents of the large African nation. In an initiative led by the Israeli Embassy in South Africa and KKL-JNF, a delegation of professionals in the field has been sent to share their knowledge during a special conference held in South Africa. We spoke with Orna To’eg, the director of the South African desk at KKL in Israel, about where and why they have stepped in to help. (photo: courtesy) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Demonstrations against judicial reform spread with Day of National Resistance, Police arrest 20 protesters, Wage deal reachedSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Opposition present 28,000 objections to ctee discussing reasonability clause.PM condemns reservists threatening to refuse service .Former ISA agents and army docs threaten refusal.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

High-ranking legal officials in the security establishment said that they were concerned about the ramifications of the judicial overhaul and said that reducing the application of grounds of reasonability was liable to damage the legal defense enjoyed by IDF officers against criminal prosecution at The Hague. At present IDF soldiers are immune from prosecution thanks to a section that states that citizens from a country that investigates and prosecutes people suspected of war crimes cannot be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court at the Hague. The possibility that this may change has prompted some reservists in key combat  units  to consider refusing call- up orders. KAN's Mark Weiss spoke with Nick Kaufman, a defense counsel at the International Court in the Hague and a former UN prosecutor  and asked him how the government’s judicial overhaul could impact the possibility of prosecuting Israeli troops at the ICC. (Photo:Reuters)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Military officials are worried about possible widespread refusal to serve if the government perseveres with its plans to pass legislation that would restrict the application of grounds of reasonability amid powerful popular protests.    Many IDF reservists have met with their units’ commanders in the past number of days to discuss the issue. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said in a conversation with reservists during a military exercise, “Anyone who issues calls not to report for reserve service as a protest is directly hurting the IDF. If we don’t train today, the military’s fitness will be damaged.” KAN's Mark Weiss spoke with Itamar Ya’ar , former deputy head of the National Security Council, and a member of Commanders for Israel’s Security, a non-partisan movement of retired senior members of the defense establishment. (Photo:IDF)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Israeli seriously wounded in Tekoa junction shooting. PM released from Sheba hospital. Govt pushes ahead with scrapping  reasonability clause.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Food, and feasts from the Middle Bronze Age through biblical times. That’s the theme of a new exhibition at the Israel Museum. It’s called Feasts and it examines how historical banquets were used by ancient rulers for fortify their reign or by others to consolidate whatever religion or ideology was prevalent at the times. It’s also no secret that culinary diplomacy was and still is widely popular. Nurit Goshen, curator of Chalcolithic and Bronze Age archaeology, put together ancient artifacts to create a lavish display that offers visitors a peek into how the consumption of food (and beer) took place then and is still relevant today. She spoke with reporter Arieh O’Sullivan. (photo: Elie Posner) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Israeli Arabs arguably might be the first to be adversely impacted if the reforms go through and yet, they have avoided any active or mass involvement and that is noteworthy.The INSS, the Institute for National Security Studies, an independent think tank affiliated with Tel Aviv University, looked into this and recently published a paper on the matter. One of its authors is Prof. Mohammed Wattad, dean of the law school at Tzfat Academic College and senior researcher at INSS. He told reporter Arieh O’Sullivan that Israeli Arabs were alienated from the hegemonic, very Blue and White, flag-waving Zionistic character of the demonstrations. They also felt a waning sense of impact and generally had a low level of participation in any demonstrations. (photo: Gili Yaari/flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

UN patrolling frontier with Lebanon after IDF thwarted attempt by Hizbullah members to damage security fence, Defense Minister Gallant in strategic visit to Azerbaijan, police say they solved a 20-year-old murder case with new forensicsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The coalition is pushing ahead with its controversial judicial overhaul despite Tuesday's nationwide Day of Disruption by opponents  who claim the move will undermine Israeli democracy. The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee convened on Wednesday to continue  preparing the grounds of reasonability bill for its second and third readings in the Knesset plenum.  Mordechai Kremnitzer is a Senior Fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute  and a Professor of Law Emeritus at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University. KAN's Mark Weiss asked him why cancelling the reasonableness clause was so problematic. (Avshalom Sasoni/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Palestinian President Abbas visits Jenin. 120 protestors arrested during Tuesday's Day of Disruption. Knesset votes for 2nd representative on Judges Selection Ctee. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While Israel and Poland have reached agreement on the resumption of high school youth visits to the concentration camps and other places in Poland to learn about the Nazi Holocaust, there is one group of people who have opted to be left out: the Ultra Orthodox. A group of Haredi women have created a unique virtual reality film that can help educate these audiences and all about the Holocaust. It’s called “Triumph of the Spirit.” Filmed in Krakow, Auschwitz and Birkenau and guided by a renowned Holocaust scholar, the visual jourey uses pictures, music and eerie 360 degree film to reach the viewers. Miriam Cohen, one of three ultra-Orthodox women behind the endeavor believes it was miraculous that they were able to use the Corona pandemic as an opportunity to film at the death camp. She told reporter Arieh O’Sullivan that the film is now available in English. (photo: courtesy) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.