(Government Press Office)
Haaretz approves of Minister of Justice Daniel Friedmann's plan to name a governmental commission of inquiry to probe the law enforcement authorities' handling of the Haim Ramon investigation, despite the objection of Attorney General Menachem Mazuz. A previous enquiry found that the investigation was handled "with extreme negligence", a fact, the editor feels, that should keep any fair-minded individual with no ties to the defendant awake at night. The importance of the investigation, and its consequences for many defendants at the mercy of state prosecutors, means it is necessary for the minister to exercise his powers in this case.
The Jerusalem Post talks of the dire situation facing the Israeli Water Authority resulting from four years of scant rainfall. Never in the state's 60 years have Israel's water resources been as compromised, and the editor urges the public, especially, the agriculture sector, to utilize existing methods of water conservation while adhering to strict water conservation
guidelines.
Ma'ariv derides "extreme left-wing," organizations that support the idea of the return of Palestinian refugees to Israel, and asserts that the idea, "would lead us toward a Bosnian-style river of blood". The editors believe that "Philanthropists the world over are buying the laundered words, behind which lays an unequivocal agenda – the elimination of the Jewish state".
Yediot Aharonot discusses a possible pre-emptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities and hopes that Israeli planners take into account the likelihood that Hezbollah, Syria and Hamas would then launch massive missile and rocket attacks, including – possibly – chemical weapons.
[Eitan Haber and Gadi Taube wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot and Ma'ariv, respectively.]