Erstellt am: 16. 8. 2011 - 15:04 Uhr

A protest against the price of cottage cheese

Reality Check: Israel’s new social movement and Turkey's failed attempts to mediate an end to the crackdown on protests in Syria.

Cottage Cheese?

There’s one thing that binds most Israelis together in a cohesive society and that is the collective need for security. But as any peace deal with the Palestinians appears to be on the back burner, Israelis now have the chance to turn their attention to other pressing matters. At the start of the summer demonstrations sprang up against the hiked price of cottage cheese as people noticed the price of essential foods in the supermarkets was rising dramatically. Students and young people took up the initiative and broadened things out to protests against the costs of living in general.

Rothschild Avenue

Tel Aviv is the most expensive city to live in the Middle East, and the most affluent street in Tel Aviv is Rothschild Avenue. It's named after the banking family that arguably amassed the largest fortune in history. Ironically, this is the place protesters have chosen for a tent city from which they are voicíng their anger at the government’s lack of interest in the plight of ordinary Israelis whose fears about rising prices and access to housing are falling on deaf ears. According to our correspondent in Israel, Matt Rees, the tent city has a kind of hippy 60s feel to it, with street musicians playing late into the night. He describes it as an urban Woodstock & there’s a great feeling of togetherness, as people protest against the shortage of adequate housing and lack of money to help young Israelis get into the job market.

The settlements

Protesters cite the billions that are spent on settlements. Huge funds are directed to building settlements in the West Bank, as well as the infrastructure such as roads, and bridges needed to connect these communities to other parts of Israel. It is essentially a matter of politics, but some people are questioning the logic of the financial support for the settlements and ask why some of this money can’t be used to subsidize the cost of housing for ordinary Israelis in cities like Tel Aviv.

The yeshivas

You’ll find plenty of ill-feeling from the protesters towards the mammoth sums channeled into the ultra-Orthodox yeshivas. These are the religious schools, which cater for teaching boys and men who spend their hours studying texts from the Torah. The 80,000 students at the yeshivas don’t have to go into the army or pay taxes, and they have become a separate society within Israel. Secular and mainstream religious people say the Yeshivas are surviving on handouts from the government without contributing to the state. Additionally, new housing that becomes available is often channeled to ultra-orthodox families who frequently have a large number of children. If you are a single student trying to make ends meet, access to housing is extremely limited.

The tycoons

Protesters also talk about the generations of Israeli Prime Ministers who have nurtured tycoons and their cronies with tax breaks, often at the expense of the middle class and the poor. Protesters describe a mafia control of their country, reminiscent of somewhere like Sicily. A small group of families run most of the large companies in Israel and control the commerce, and the government does nothing to prevent their monopolies over certain products. As competition is low, people feel that prices are being kept artificially high and the ordinary Israelis are the ones who suffer.

Also on Reality Check:

Turkey gives up on Syria

Turkey is talking about "unspecified consequences" if Syria does not stop its military action against anti-regime protesters. Our correspondent in Istanbul, Jonathan Head, describes the delicate diplomatic line Turkey has been walking, and the frustration being felt both in the government and on the streets at the lack of progress.

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