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Netanyahu ignores Iran's scientific, educational advances

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised himself for security achievements, but neglected to address the worrying decline in Israeli research and higher education.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) and Education Minister Naftali Bennett with pupils during a visit at the "Tamra HaEmek" elementary school on the first day of the school year, in the Arab Israeli town of Tamra, Israel September 1, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - S1AETYTKZEAA
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Addressing the opening of the Knesset winter session Oct. 15, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted of the “fantastic decade” Israel had experienced under his stewardship. He spoke of a decade of progress and economic growth, of stability and security, of building and prosperity. “Each and every developed state would have been blessed by what we have done,” he told the lawmakers. And then, of course, there was the inevitable mention of Iran — “We will keep pushing it back with all our might.”

It was perhaps no coincidence that the enviable Israeli scientific and educational achievements slipped Netanyahu’s mind on this occasion. Addressing these achievements would have forced him to compare Israel’s standing in these fields with that of its far and close-by Middle East neighbors. A few days ago, Netanyahu accused a social activist of “boring us” with her complaint about the poor quality of health services in outlying areas. Was Netanyahu perhaps concerned now that mentioning the balance of power between Israel and Iran on these critical strategic issues would bore the public?

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