European country cancels deal with Rafael due to court ruling
Globes presents a daily brief review of interesting news from the global media about Israel. In this issue: an administrative court in Italy ordered the cancellation of a Rafael radar deal, a New York Magazine commentator claims Donald Trump has no path to victory against Iran and the question is only how he will choose to lose, and in Berlin, a lawsuit was filed against a restaurant that refused to serve hummus to an Israeli.
Against the backdrop of the constantly developing security situation, the lens of the global media reveals unique perspectives on what is happening in the country. From analyses by international experts and interpretations from a different angle to small stories from Israel that go unnoticed — every day we will present you with a short daily review of what is written in the global media about Israel, to try and decipher how things from here look overseas.
The articles we present in this section are taken from major newspapers around the world and do not necessarily reflect the worldview of Globes.
1. Rome cancels radar deal with Rafael following a ruling
An administrative court in Italy determined this week that a deal to install Israeli-made radar at Fiumicino Airport in Rome, among other things for the purpose of detecting UAVs, will be cancelled. Instead, the airport management must sign a new deal with the Italian company ELT; this was reported this morning, Thursday, by the Italian newspaper "Il Messaggero".
According to the report, a supreme administrative court determined that the deal previously signed with "Rafael" and another company will be suspended, and the airport management has only about two months to replace the system with one of Italian manufacture. The reasoning for the move is that the radar in question possesses "military" capabilities, and therefore should have followed other procedures in its procurement. Experts appointed by the court defined it as such. The decision overturns a previous ruling by a lower court about two years ago.
In Italy, there are fears that the decision will have political interpretations due to the sensitivity of military procurement from Israel during this period. "This is a dramatic turn of events that could create a new situation, diplomatically, because two companies connected to the Israeli military and industrial system are effectively being expelled from Italy," it was written. The decision also determines that the entire procurement process will now be examined by the prosecution in Rome, for fear of irregularities.
Source: "Il Messaggero", by Francesco Bachis.
2. In the US, they think Trump needs to choose how to lose the war with Iran
US President Donald Trump has no possibility of victory in Iran, and he must only decide in what way the US will lose the campaign; this is the conclusion of a commentary published today on the "New York Magazine" website. "Trump wants and needs to end the war, but he cannot win it. The American public, his base, his party, the markets, the Persian Gulf states, and almost every other country (except perhaps Israel) all want the war to end and the strait to be reopened as soon as possible," it was written.
The Iranian strategy to threaten the ongoing global energy supply has proven to be a "winning policy," while the US has failed to defeat the Iranian regime from the air and is not interested in invading the country by land.
The question now, according to the magazine, is what agreement will end the war, and the character of the American president dictates the answer. "Trump has always shied away from admitting a mistake or a loss. He is frustrated by the failures so far, angry at the failure of the negotiations, and is trying impatiently to bring about something he can sell as a victory." But according to the situation on the ground, "the best that American negotiators can bring is a promise of free movement in Hormuz (in exchange for payment) and voluntary restrictions on uranium enrichment, similar to the 2015 nuclear deal."
Iran has leverage over the US and perhaps the easiest solution is to "throw money at the problem" and guarantee payments to Iran in exchange for keeping movement in Hormuz free. "In any case, this is no longer a question of whether Trump will lose the war, but how."
Source: "New York Magazine", by Jonah Shepp.
3. Berlin: Lawsuit against a restaurant that refused to serve hummus to an Israeli
Against the backdrop of growing hostility toward Israelis and violent antisemitic incidents against Jews in Berlin, there is now an effort to fight the phenomenon through legal means. According to the Berlin newspaper "TAZ", this effort includes a lawsuit recently filed in a local court in Berlin against a local restaurant, which allegedly refused to serve hummus to an Israeli diner because he pronounced the 'chet' and pronounced the name of the dip as they do in Israel. "We don't pronounce the 'chet' here and we call it 'hummus'," a restaurant employee allegedly told the diner, and refused to accept his order.
An NGO named Ofek, which represents victims of antisemitic and anti-Israel incidents, filed a lawsuit in court claiming discrimination on a racist and antisemitic basis. The incident occurred at a restaurant in the Prenzlauer Berg district last February. According to the frustrated diner, the employee also made gestures intended to remove him from the place and pointed to the exit door. The organization stated that it is simultaneously handling seven similar cases of denial of service to Israelis and Jews.
In the past, a court in Berlin awarded compensation worth about a thousand euros against a gym that refused to open a membership to a client of Romani descent.
Source: TAZ, by Uta Schleiermacher.
