On December 26, a meeting of the working group for planning the activities of a new lobby dedicated to legalizing neighborhood councils in Israeli cities for 2025 was held in the Knesset, hosted by Likud MK Amit Ha-Levi.
The initiative for establishing this lobby was spearheaded by the Dor Moriah Analytical Center (source) and aims to legalize neighborhood councils as a means of promoting local self-organization in Israeli cities.
During the meeting, plans were discussed for drafting legislation and launching pilot projects in selected cities. Over the next year, in collaboration with activists from Haifa, Petah Tikva, and Jerusalem, the following objectives are set:
- Identify key issues within the selected neighborhoods.
- Develop targeted proposals to address these challenges.
- Showcase effective lobbying strategies for securing municipal budget support.
Regional Threat Analysis
Dor Moriah also focuses on studying social divides in Israel and advancing the vision of the country as a leader in a regional economic cluster rooted in the Abraham Accords.
Their experts closely monitor developments in the Middle East, including the strengthening of a Sunni axis of resistance led by Turkey and Qatar, which is replacing the previously dominant Shiite axis.
Discussions at the meeting highlighted threats posed by this Sunni axis, which Turkey is building against Israel, Gulf monarchies, Russia, Iran, and China. The recent statement by the son of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, declaring that Turkey’s next target is Jerusalem, leaves little doubt about Ankara’s intentions under the so-called "Turkish Mahdi."
Note should also be taken that Syria is forming a 300,000-strong army that will be armed and trained by Turkish intelligence services and military. Instead of political officers, the Muslim Brotherhood will likely fill these roles.
Erdogan has already declared that all Kurdish armed formations must be eliminated. Turkey considers the Kurdish YPG militia — the main component of the U.S.-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) — as an offshoot of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
Supporting Syrian Kurds
Dor Moriah experts called on Amit Ha-Levi to advocate for stronger Israeli support for Kurdish aspirations for statehood, at least in a de facto capacity.
Ha-Levi emphasized his long-standing public support for Kurdish independence. He noted that, in the current geopolitical context, aiding the Kurds is of paramount importance. He pledged to raise the issue of providing maximum military, political, and humanitarian assistance to the Kurds at the highest levels in the Knesset and the Israeli government.
International Reactions
Interestingly, the notion of a need to confront Turkey is being voiced both in the United States and Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has publicly stated that the Kurds have a right to statehood. Meanwhile, an American research institute has controversially declared:
“We need to be ready to kill Turks.”
It would be ironic if Turkey becomes the connecting link between the United States, Israel, Russia, and other Middle Eastern players who are threatened by the Sunni resistance axis bearing the names of the Muslim Brotherhood and Recep Erdogan.
Igor Kaminnik
Chairman of the Board Dor Moriah Association
https://dor-moriah.org.il/
This article was written in cooperation with Dor Moriah Association