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HAARETZ
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Poll: Most Israelis see Obama as fair, friendly toward Israel
Nearly half of respondents say gov’t must keep building in Jerusalem; PM rejects
building freeze in capital, offers concessions (Story, Page A2) :‫הוראות
לעידכון התאריך‬ By Yossi Verter U.S. President Barack ‫1. עדכון
התאריך ב-3 השטחים‬ Obama’s popularity may be declining in American
pub)F1( ‫2. בחירת כלי חץ שחור‬ lic opinion, but a sweeping majority
of Israelis think his say Netanyahu treatment of this country is File > Export :‫3.
בחירה מהתפריט‬ behaved friendly and fair, according to a Haaretz-Dialog
poll conductirresponsibly ed this week. .)‫ (זה בדרך כלל נמצא במצב
הזה‬PDF ‫4. בחירה באופציה‬ The poll also found that most Israelis
don’t believe .)iht.pdf( ‫5. החלפת הקובץ בקודם‬ politicians
who call Obama

Thai worker becomes first rocket fatality since Cast Lead
By Barak Ravid, Yanir Yagna and Amos Harel
Haaretz Correspondents and Agencies


anti-Semitic or hostile to Israel, or who say he is “striving to topple Netanyahu.”
The poll, which was conducted Tuesday and Wednesday and supervised by Professor Camil
Fuchs, comes after reports of a crisis in diplomatic relations due to Israel’s
announcement during a visit by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden that it will build 1,600
housing units in East Jerusalem. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s aides said
they had hoped the public would rally around him and see him as a victim of overly
strict treatment by the Obama administration. However, there was no significant change
in the level of public satisfaction with Netanyahu since the previous poll, conducted
six weeks earlier. Respondents’ evaluation of his suitability as premier also remained
stable. It appears the public was relatively unfazed by the Israeli and American
media frenzy over the diplomatic

say Obama is fair and friendly

Poll for Haaretz Supervised by Prof. Camil Fuchs

drama. Perhaps Israelis are too busy cleaning and shopping for Passover or looking
for cheap vacations. The survey indicates that Netanyahu emerged from the crisis
unscathed in the eyes of Israeli public opinion, but the continued construction in
Jerusalem should cause him some concern. Nearly half the respondents (48 percent)
said Israel must keep building in the capital, even at the expense of a rift with
the United States, while 41 percent said Israel must accept the American demand (and
Palestinian ultimatum) to stop building in Jerusalem until the end of the negotiations
(which haven’t begun yet). Netanyahu may conclude that at

the moment he may have some room to maneuver, but the balance between supporters
and opponents of continued construction could easily shift. A large majority believes
Netanyahu is not deliberately causing a crisis to thwart talks with the Palestinians,
as some have argued. A smaller majority does not believe Netanyahu should fire Eli
Yishai, whose Interior Ministry announced the construction during Biden’s visit.
Yishai is not particularly liked by the mainstream, but Israelis aren’t that interested
in seeing heads roll − or the coalition destabilized − over this incident. Though
the public remained composed in the face of the diplomatic fracas, poll respon-

dents are not thrilled with the prime minister’s conduct in the affair. More people
said Netanyahu’s behavior was irresponsible than said he acted responsibly. The
public seems to be treating Netanyahu harshly; after all, he didn’t plan the badly
timed announcement and he did apologize several times. So why is he seen as irresponsible
nonetheless? Perhaps the words “Netanyahu” and “conduct” are a disastrous
combination for a prime minister who lost power a decade ago because of improper
behavior. His performance in the first year of his current term is not especially
encouraging. As soon as people hear those two

words in the same sentence, they give Netanyahu an F. No matter that he didn’t
rant and rave, that he made an effort to soothe the Americans. The prime minister’s
aides waited tensely for the weekend newspaper surveys. They believed the public’s
heart would be with their man, whom they see as the underdog who was scolded though
he did no wrong. The public has not turned its back on Netanyahu, but it hasn’t
applauded his performance either. Perhaps average Israelis cannot, and do not want
to, imagine themselves living in a far worse reality than this − without the warmth
and light of an American alliance.

Over a year after the dust settled from Operation Cast Lead, the communities surrounding
the Gaza Strip are growing concerned about another military flare-up. Yesterday morning
a Qassam rocket hit Netiv Ha’asara in the western Negev, its shrapnel taking the
life of a Thai worker employed in a moshav greenhouse. The man, whose name has not
been released, was apparently running to a fortified area set up next to the facility
when the rocket hit. Large numbers of security forces and Magen David Adom personnel
arrived at the scene, where they found the man to have no heartbeat. Dozens of his
fellow farm workers were treated for shock. “It looks like a case of bad luck,”
said Shaike Shaked, the owner of a nearby green-

house. “Our workers are very nervous, and so are we.” Ansar al-Sunna, a small
Islamist group that challenges Hamas, claimed responsibility for the rocket, launched
from the al-Atatra area of the northern Gaza Strip. Yesterday’s was the first fatality
from rocket fire since the end of Israel’s military offensive last January. Top-level
United Nations, European Union and British diplomats firmly condemned the attack.
European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, on a brief visit to the Gaza
Strip yesterday, said, “I condemn any kind of violence, we need to move forward
to get the peace process moving toward a successful resolution. “I’m extremely
shocked by the rocket attack and the tragic loss of life,” she said. “I said
when I came to Israel that part of the reason for my
See ROCKET, Page A2

Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff

Expect restraint
The tiny Islamist faction Ansar al-Sunna took responsibility for the Qassam rocket
attack that took the life of a Thai farm worker yesterday in Netiv Ha’asara. Like
Hamas, Israel has no interest in an escalation along the Gaza border. Despite the
efforts of various hard-line groups, the chances that the tempers will escalate do
not look high. A year and two months have passed since the guns fell silent in Gaza,
and Israeli intelligence bodies unanimously believe deterrence is working. Hamas
is still working to rehabilitate its military wing and tighten its hold on the Strip.
The movement is not directly responsible for a single rocket attack since the war’s
end, but in most cases has thwarted attempts from smaller, competing factions to
attack Israel. Still, in the power struggle between Hamas and those minor groups
there are varying degrees of freedom. Hamas has generally been more tolerant of
See QuiET, Page A2

The Qassam after it detonated in Netiv Ha’asara, killing one.

Eli Hershkowitz

Inside today
Driver gets 20 years in jail
Meital Aharonson was killed in Tel Aviv hit-and-run

Fido may have fetched first Frisbees in Middle East, researchers find
Study shows all breeds of dog are descended from Middle Eastern wolves
By Zafrir Rinat
The Middle East is considered the cradle of man’s civilization, but new research
points to that title being appropriate for man’s best friend as well. According
to findings reported in the journal “Nature” based on a comprehensive genetic
study, it is highly probable that today’s dogs are descended from wolves domesticated
first in the Middle East. The research team, which included Eli Geffen of Tel Aviv
University, investigated genetic samples from 912 dogs of 85 different breeds and
samples from 227 wolves from various parts of the world. An analysis of the genetic
samples revealed that almost all breeds of dog are genetically identical to Middle
Eastern wolves rather than wolves from other parts of the world, regardless of the
canine’s size or geographic origin, including the Chihuahua and the Israeli Canaan
breed. Israel is also the only country in the Middle East where there are still wolves
in the wild. The researchers have concluded that wolves were domesticated in the
Middle East likely beginning several tens of thousands of years ago. The study contrasts
an earlier report that concluded dogs were initially domesticated in China. “Dog
breeds have undergone very many changes since domestication began and therefore there
was great difficulty prior to this study in determining where they were domesticated
first,” Geffen said yesterday. He added that “what is interesting about the Middle
East is the fact that it was here that other species of animals were domesticated,
including the cat.” In another study in which Geffen was involved, it was found
that cats were apparently initially domesticated either in present-day Iraq or in
Egypt. One of the explanations for this is that the Middle East was the first place
where human beings had settled agrarian societies conducive for wild animals to become
pets. With regard to dogs, it is not clear why they arose first in this region. It
is thought that the first wolves were domesticated by nomads and shepherds, which
could have been accomplished elsewhere in the world at the time. It is possible that
the Middle East is where people first came in contact with wolves, said Geffen.

News, Page A4

A group of former refuseniks who petitioned President Shimon Peres for higher pensions.

Guy Raivitz

Hundreds of Soviet refuseniks to receive increased pensions
By Dana Weiler-Polak
Some 300 former Soviet refuseniks now living in Israel will receive increased pension
benefits in recognition of their efforts to move here despite persecution, an interministerial
committee announced this week. Many of the immigrants are living in poverty, making
the increased funding particularly significant. The Immigrant Absorption Ministry
is calling on Russian-speaking immigrants to submit an application for the benefits.
To be eligible for the benefits, the immigrants must be Israeli citizens living in
Israel who were refused an exit visa. They must have immigrated by 1990 and been
at least 35 years old at the time, and they must have been engaged in “Zionist
activity” for about a decade. The changes comes “out of a sense of respect and
gratitude on the part of the State of Israel,” the interministerial committee that
set the criteria said this week. Soviet Jews who applied to leave the Soviet Union
were frequently publicly ostracized and dismissed from their jobs. Many immigrated
to Israel at a relatively advanced age. They were deprived of their Soviet pensions
and were frequently either not entitled to an Israeli pension or received reduced
pensions. In January the Knesset Committee for Immigration, Absorption and Diaspora
Affairs decided to appoint an interministerial committee headed by Immigrant Absorption
Minister Sofa Landver to develop criteria for receiving increased pension payments.
Former refusenik Aharon Gurevich, who fought for the increased pension benefits,
was 50 when he arrived in Israel 22 years ago. “I am very pleased with the progress
on the subject,” he said. “However, to my regret, we woke up [to the issue] late,
since many of us are over 80, and their situation is not easy.” “Now we understand
that things here don’t move quickly when the government and institutions are like
a concrete wall,” said Gurevich. He called the assurances that he had previously
received on the issue “an effort to calm us down and move us aside, and it was
very hard for us. Now we have the first real step that proves that things are progressing.”
Gurevich applied to Soviet authorities for an exit visa at age 35, but was refused
the right to emigrate for 15 years, during which time he was active in the Soviet
Jewish aliyah movement. He immigrated to Israel in 1988. “Even when we were refused
[visas], we didn’t stay idle, but taught Hebrew and Judaism,” he said, adding
that many Jews knew little of their heritage. Gurevich had been a computer expert
in the Soviet Union. He found a job in Israel working in a computer store, where
he earned just NIS 4,000 a month. “I worked for a private individual, and I didn’t
realize that you don’t receive a pension [here] automatically, as you do in Russia,”
he said. Since retiring, Gurevich and his wife have been subsisting on old-age benefits
of NIS 2,400 a month as well as an additional monthly income of NIS 850.

Teva gets even bigger
Pharma giant buys German firm

TheMarker, Page A10

The Canaan Dog. May not have gone far from home.

David Bachar

PA wants permanent panel to monitor Goldstone findings
By Barak Ravid
The Palestinian Authority is acting to set up a standing committee to monitor implementation
of the Goldstone report on a permanent basis, and to assess the credibility of Israeli
investigations into allegations from the Goldstone report. In a move that has angered
Israel, the PA has submitted a draft resolution proposal regarding this committee
to the UN Human Rights Council, which is meeting in Geneva next Monday to discuss
the Goldstone report’s implementation. “The Foreign Ministry is studying the
Palestinian draft. We don’t want to discuss it,” Foreign Ministry deputy director
general for media and public relations, Yigal Caspi, told Haaretz. The ministry has
instructed all officials involved in thwarting the Palestinian initiative to say
nothing about it, officials said. The proposal, drafted by the Palestinian UNHRC
delegate and representatives of the Arab League and Organization of the Islamic Conference,
which was obtained by Haaretz, says the committee would also oversee the Israeli
inquiries into the military operation in December 2008-January 2009 to ensure their
reliability. The 47-strong UNHRC consists mainly of third world, Arab or non-aligned
member states. Israel wants to preserve the coalition it has put together against
the Goldstone report, including the United States and a few other Western states.
The proposal, drafted on March 15, says the UNHRC “decides to establish a Committee
of Independent Experts in international humanitarian and human rights laws to monitor
and assess any domestic, legal or other proceedings undertaken by both Israel and
the Palestinian side,” in order to implement the Goldstone report and UN General
Assembly resolutions on this matter. The committee’s supervision and examination
will focus on the “independence, effectiveness, genuineness of
See MONiTOR, Page A2

Unchained memories
Former POW tells secrets of survival

Haaretz Magazine