Gideon Levy

We should know the opinions of the chief of staff before he is appointed, rather than having them be muddied.

People here complain about those who wish to live in a more just country, who are forced to turn to institutions of international law. Who else can they turn to?

Here they are again, the protesting officers. After their failure in the wake of the Second Lebanon War, they have returned to us on the eve of the release of the final Winograd Committee report. Now, as then, their protest is hollow.

Haaretz presented a mirror image last week on its front page: a crying toddler in Sderot and a crying toddler in Gaza, both in the arms of their fathers. The other newspapers deemed it sufficient to print pictures of the weeping in Sderot on their front pages.

A new government in Israel would herald a historic turning point. Olmert would take a risk upon himself in forming it, but what does he have to lose?

Until a determined president is inaugurated in Washington who will engage in a serious effort to bring an end to the occupation, no peace will prevail here.

Don't let the quiet fool you: It is imaginary. While all eyes are on Gaza, the impression has been created, under the aegis of a media turning a blind eye, that the West Bank is quiet.

Against pedophiles, anything goes. You can expose their face at the moment of their opprobrium, you can solicit them to commit a crime, you can convict them in front of the nation without a trial, without granting them the basic right of self-defense.

Even the lowliest shepherd knows he needs to lead the flock, without weekly surveys, without asking what the flock wants or which spin will boost the shepherd?s popularity for a moment.

Given the state of affairs in Israel, those who were horrified by these Shin Bet operations could only hope legal authorities abroad would take action to fix what our authorities have chosen to ignore.

A true social leader in Israel must be a proponent of peace. But this does not interest Yishai. A populist and a coward, he understands it is much easier to incite the weak against the Arabs and to arouse opposition to diplomatic progress.

The question of whether ending the occupation would threaten or strengthen Israel's security is irrelevant. There are not, and cannot be, any preconditions for restoring justice.

From Oslo through Camp David and on to the road map, Israel has not put an end to the settlement project, the most criminal enterprise in its history.

Without violent Palestinian resistance, life in occupying Israel is great and no one pays any attention to the need to end the occupation. No resistance - no Palestinians. No terrorism - no progress.

The stars who accompanied our lives for decades have been replaced by shooting stars who flicker for a moment. The new stars cannot possess the depth, talent and significance the Gashashim had.

The stars who accompanied our lives for decades have been replaced by shooting stars who flicker for a moment. The new stars cannot possess the depth, talent and significance the Gashashim had.

All the cards will be shown at Annapolis, and that is no small thing. The world will see and judge, Israelis will see and decide: Do we genuinely want peace?

The time has come to say this out loud: There is virtually no chance that Ron Arad is alive.

Israelis deserve to read and watch journalism by Israelis. The Italian and Swedish correspondents sent by Haaretz to Gaza are professional journalists, but the Israeli reader deserves to receive Israeli media coverage.

Our heart is impervious to the fate of other children who have been killed. Just little Mohammed continues to haunt us.

Why was it necessary to destroy the lives of 11 Palestinian families? How will demolishing their home contribute to Israel's security?

Since Washington - and perhaps Jerusalem as well - badly want the photo-op otherwise known as a "peace summit" to show off an "achievement," Abu Mazen could and should threaten to boycott the meeting to try and force some achievement on behalf of his people.

It's any man's guess what happened and, mainly, any man's guess whether such an action, if taken, was at all justified.

How long will we continue to believe that striking a population will make it more moderate? Are 40 years of bitter experience not enough to teach us that the opposite is true?

The way to stop the firing of Qassams is not through indiscriminate killing. Every launcher can be replaced.