The ongoing riff between the Israeli Defense/Intelligence community and the Netanyahu ‘War’ cabinet IS festering….
The IDF and Intel people want a cease-fire ….
The poiliticans want to keep going on a goal that everyone except them KNOW is impossible …
Presidential candidate Harris has pledge to KEEP support for Israel while asking for some relief solution for the conditions in Gaza….
An Israeli security cabinet meeting about the hostage-release and Gaza ceasefire deal erupted on Thursday night and turned into an unprecedented shouting match between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant, Israeli officials said.
Why it matters: The confrontation exposed the ongoing — and intensifying — political rift and personal animosity between Netanyahu and Gallant.
- But it also showed the deep disagreement between Netanyahu and the vast majority of Israel’s defense establishment and intelligence community about what Israel’s strategy in Gaza should be almost a year after the Oct. 7 attacks.
Driving the news: The cabinet meeting took place amid ongoing negotiations between Israel and Hamas — mediated by the U.S., Qatar and Egypt — on a deal to release hostages held by Hamas and establish a ceasefire in Gaza.
- Gallant presented at the cabinet meeting the case for moving forward toward a deal as soon as possible, Israeli officials said.
- The officials said the defense minister said the deal is not merely about the release of the hostages, but it is also a “strategic juncture” for Israel.
- If the Israeli government chooses the path the leads to a deal, it could decrease regional tensions with Iran and Hezbollah and allow Israel Defense Forces to regroup, rearm, rethink its strategy and shift its focus from Gaza to other regional threats, Gallant said.
- But if Israel chooses not to go for a deal, it would leave the IDF bogged down in Gaza while exacerbating tensions across the Middle East that could lead to a regional war while the IDF’s focus is elsewhere….
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The Israeli military said it had finished a monthlong operation in the Khan Younis and Deir al Balah areas of Gaza, which had forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of Palestinians. The military, which has described the offensive as an effort to target Hamas infrastructure and fighters, said in a statement Friday that it had killed more than 250 militants, destroyed tunnels spanning nearly four miles and recovered the bodies of six hostages. The statement did not specify whether troops were leaving those areas of southern and central Gaza, but said that Israeli forces were preparing “for the continuation of operations” in the territory.
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An oil spill about two miles long has been detected in the Red Sea, according to a letter from the Greek ministry of maritime affairs to the United Nations agency for shipping. The letter, which was sent on Thursday and published online Friday, said the spill matched the location of the Sounion, a Greek oil tanker that was targeted by the Houthi militia in Yemen as it passed through the Red Sea last week. The crew of the ship has been rescued, but the vessel remains at sea, on fire, and appears to be leaking, prompting concerns of a potential environmental disaster. The Iran-backed Houthis have been targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea in allegiance with Hamas since the war in Gaza began last year.
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Vice President Kamala Harris said she would continue President Biden’s policies with regard to the war in Gaza. Speaking to CNN on Thursday in her first major interview as the Democratic presidential nominee, Ms. Harris emphasized the need for a cease-fire deal but responded “no” when asked whether she would withhold U.S. weapons shipments to Israel. “I’m unequivocal and unwavering in my commitment to Israel’s defense, and its ability to defend itself, and that’s not going to change,” she said.
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Israel told the United States it blamed “a communications error” between military units for an episode in which Israeli troops fired at a World Food Program vehicle, Robert Wood, a U.S. representative to the United Nations, told a U.N. Security Council meeting on Thursday. “We have urged them to immediately rectify the issues within their system that allowed this to happen,” Mr. Wood said. The World Food Program said this week that it was suspending staff movement in the Gaza Strip because of the shooting on Tuesday, noting that it was a marked car that had obtained the necessary security clearances. No staff members were hurt in the shooting, it said….
Update….
Israel and Hamas are reportedly reviewing a draft agreement for the hostage-prisoner exchange component of ceasefire talks after working group-level negotiations over the exchange.
US and international health officials confirmed on August 29 that Israel has agreed to implement a temporary humanitarian pause in the Gaza Strip to vaccinate children against polio.