Voters in Israel’s do-over election on Tuesday left both of the two main parties well short of a majority in the parliament, unofficial exit polls showed.

Israel Elects: Likud party projects to get 31 seats

Meet Netanyahu's main rival, the former military chief Benny Gantz, who vows to restore honour to premier's office

Israel is the country of stunning incongruity. In this segment of WION Edit look at how Israel has thrived despite constant challenges.

#WIONEDIT: What World Should Learn From Israel?

What To Expect From Israel's Upcoming Elections.

Gravitas: Israel votes on September 17

Israel elects: Bibi to return or will it be Gantz? Watch video to know more.

Israel elects: Bibi to return or will it be Gantz?

Israel elects: What to expect from the upcoming polls? Watch video to know more.

Israel elects: What to expect from the upcoming polls?

Elections are being held in Israel on Tuesday for the second time in five months. The polls will decide whether to extend&nbsp;Benjamin Netanyahu's term as the country's longest-serving Prime Minister.

On Wion Edit, we look at the political system of Israel.&nbsp;

No one party has won an outright majority in Israel's history and coalition governments have ruled the country for its 71 years.

However, unlike India - this has never tied up Israel's development agenda.&nbsp;

Israel is an advanced economy and ranks 22 on the UN Human Development Index. Furthermore, Israel has the third-largest number of NASDAQ listed companies. In fact, Israel is ranked third on this list, right after America and China.&nbsp;

Israel is also a start-up hub. Two years ago, a World Economic Forum report called Israel - "The second most innovative nation in the world."&nbsp;

For a country with a population of just eight million, Israel really knows how to punch above its weight. And they have been able to do this despite being locked in one of the world's longest-running conflicts.&nbsp;

Israel's disputes with Palestine and other Arab neighbours has been going on since 1948. But, that has not held back its development agenda. &nbsp;

The country which started out as a relatively poor nation&nbsp;has achieved all this in just 50 years.&nbsp;

Between 1973 to 1985, the inflation rate in Israel went well over 400 per cent at one point. Learning from its mistakes, Israel liberalised its economy, participated in global trade and made big bets in the technology sector.&nbsp;

Today, it is among the 25 richest nations in the world. The case of Israel could&nbsp;very well&nbsp;serve as a case study for developing nations, especially in South Asia.&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: WION Edit is the channel's take on the big events of the world) 
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Elections are being held in Israel on Tuesday for the second time in five months. The polls will decide whether to extend Benjamin Netanyahu's term as the country's longest-serving Prime Minister.

Elections are being held in Israel on Tuesday for the second time in five months. The polls will decide whether to extend Benjamin Netanyahu's term as the country's longest-serving Prime Minister. On Wion Edit, we look at the political system of Israel. No one party has won an outright majority in Israel's history and coalition governments have ruled the country for its 71 years. However, unlike India - this has never tied up Israel's development agenda. Israel is an advanced economy and ranks 22 on the UN Human Development Index. Furthermore, Israel has the third-largest number of NASDAQ listed companies. In fact, Israel is ranked third on this list, right after America and China. Israel is also a start-up hub. Two years ago, a World Economic Forum report called Israel - "The second most innovative nation in the world." For a country with a population of just eight million, Israel really knows how to punch above its weight. And they have been able to do this despite being locked in one of the world's longest-running conflicts. Israel's disputes with Palestine and other Arab neighbours has been going on since 1948. But, that has not held back its development agenda. The country which started out as a relatively poor nation has achieved all this in just 50 years. Between 1973 to 1985, the inflation rate in Israel went well over 400 per cent at one point. Learning from its mistakes, Israel liberalised its economy, participated in global trade and made big bets in the technology sector. Today, it is among the 25 richest nations in the world. The case of Israel could very well serve as a case study for developing nations, especially in South Asia. (Disclaimer: WION Edit is the channel's take on the big events of the world)

WION Edit: Developing nations have a lot to learn from Israel

By Einat Gedalya-Lavy

Israelis are heading to the polls in a unique election. The vote on September 17 is the first time Israelis will vote in two elections in the same year, after the Likud party, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, failed to form a new coalition government following the April 2019 election. It’s also exceptional in terms of female political leadership – the only woman heading a party in this election, Ayelet Shaked, is a secular woman leading an alliance of religious, right-wing parties.

Shaked, Israel’s former minister of justice, established the New Right party together with Naftali Bennett, the former minister of education, in December 2018 ahead of the April election. But the party, which includes both religious Zionist and secular members, didn’t get a high enough percentage of the vote share to win any seats in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, under the system of proportional representation.

Shaked replaced Bennett as party leader and a few months later was chosen as leader of the Yamina alliance (which means “rightwards”), comprised of three right-wing parties: The New Right, the Jewish Home and the National Union-Tkuma. According to the latest polls, Yamina is heading to become the fourth largest party in the next Knesset and could have a part to play in forming the next government.

A key question is whether having a woman who is also secular, leading such a right-wing religious alliance for the first time, will affect Israeli voting patterns.

International studies on voting for women candidates show that women tend to vote for women candidates more than men do. Still, support of women voters for women candidates such as Shaked is far from automatic. It’s conditional on many factors, particularly on the relation between the presence of prominent female candidates and the issues which their party promotes. For instance, a female candidate from the left may attract more women, since her party itself promotes issues that are considered “feminine”, such as gender equality, welfare policy and education. However, this does not necessarily mean the candidate herself is a feminist.

Gender Gap 
 
Analyses of voting patterns in Western democracies found that in the 1950s and 1960s, women voted more conservatively than men and tended rightward – something that’s been called the “traditional gender gap”. But subsequently, this pattern became less clear and consistent. Starting in the 1980s in the US and in the 1990s in parts of Europe, women began to vote for left-wing parties more than men – what’s been called the “modern gender gap”. This shift has been attributed to changes in women’s employment and education, family structure and the permeation of feminist ideas in public debates.

In Israel, unlike most Western democracies, the common wisdom among researchers and political pundits was that there were no significant differences between the voting patterns of women and men. However, in the 2009 Knesset election, research I conducted with my colleagues Hanna Herzog and Michal Shamir, revealed a gender gap of 7 per cent, where 28 per cent&nbsp;of Jewish women versus 21 per cent&nbsp;of Jewish men voted for the centre party Kadima, led by a female politician, Tzipi Livni.

This pattern held up even when considering the fact that women were more captivated by the security agenda and expressed more hawkish attitudes than men about increasing the defence budget, expressing consent to the establishment of a Palestinian state and evacuating settlements. These are views traditionally associated more with right-wing parties. In that election, Arab women also voted more than men for Balad – an Arab party, which had a woman candidate, Haneen Zoabi, with a realistic chance of making it to the Knesset – the first time an Arab party had done so.

In our follow-up studies, which analysed the gender gap in Israeli elections between 1969 to 2013, we documented a gradual transition from a traditional gender gap to a modern one in left-right political ideology and in voting. Since the mid-1990s a modern gender gap can be identified, similar to the trends found in other Western societies.

Women Voters Shift to the Left

Shamir and I have also begun analysing voter patterns in the April 2019 Israeli election. Based on the Israel National Election Study (INES), which includes 1,347 Jews and 267 Arabs, our initial findings reveal a significant gender gap of 7 per cent among Jewish respondents, where Jewish women tended to support the centre-left party bloc more than Jewish men. This is despite the fact that women-headed only two small left-wing and centrist parties – Meretz and Gesher – and were not considered realistic candidates for the premiership.

Our initial results also suggest that Jewish women tended toward the left compared to Jewish men on socioeconomic issues. They support a welfare policy more than men do. They also ranked the value of being a democratic state as the most important value to them, compared to Jewish men who ranked being a Jewish majority as the most important value to them. This may explain, at least to some extent, the gender gap in voting patterns in the April 2019 election.

The fact that a woman is now heading a right-wing alliance challenges the recent alignment of women’s interests and women’s leadership in Israeli elections – where women leaders have led centre left-wing parties. It will be interesting to see how both men and women voters react to the Yamina alliance and Shaked – who sees herself as a future prime minister.

(Einat Gedalya-Lavy is Marie Sklodowska-Curie Individual Fellow, Newcastle University)&nbsp;

(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/israel-elections-who-women-vote-for-and-how-its-shifting-123109">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)&nbsp; 
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By Einat Gedalya-Lavy Israelis are heading to the polls in a unique election. The vote on September 17 is the first time Israelis will vote in two elections in the same year, after the Likud party, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, failed to form a new coalition government following the April 2019 election.

By Einat Gedalya-Lavy Israelis are heading to the polls in a unique election. The vote on September 17 is the first time Israelis will vote in two elections in the same year, after the Likud party, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, failed to form a new coalition government following the April 2019 election. It’s also exceptional in terms of female political leadership – the only woman heading a party in this election, Ayelet Shaked, is a secular woman leading an alliance of religious, right-wing parties. Shaked, Israel’s former minister of justice, established the New Right party together with Naftali Bennett, the former minister of education, in December 2018 ahead of the April election. But the party, which includes both religious Zionist and secular members, didn’t get a high enough percentage of the vote share to win any seats in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, under the system of proportional representation. Shaked replaced Bennett as party leader and a few months later was chosen as leader of the Yamina alliance (which means “rightwards”), comprised of three right-wing parties: The New Right, the Jewish Home and the National Union-Tkuma. According to the latest polls, Yamina is heading to become the fourth largest party in the next Knesset and could have a part to play in forming the next government. A key question is whether having a woman who is also secular, leading such a right-wing religious alliance for the first time, will affect Israeli voting patterns. International studies on voting for women candidates show that women tend to vote for women candidates more than men do. Still, support of women voters for women candidates such as Shaked is far from automatic. It’s conditional on many factors, particularly on the relation between the presence of prominent female candidates and the issues which their party promotes. For instance, a female candidate from the left may attract more women, since her party itself promotes issues that are considered “feminine”, such as gender equality, welfare policy and education. However, this does not necessarily mean the candidate herself is a feminist. Gender Gap Analyses of voting patterns in Western democracies found that in the 1950s and 1960s, women voted more conservatively than men and tended rightward – something that’s been called the “traditional gender gap”. But subsequently, this pattern became less clear and consistent. Starting in the 1980s in the US and in the 1990s in parts of Europe, women began to vote for left-wing parties more than men – what’s been called the “modern gender gap”. This shift has been attributed to changes in women’s employment and education, family structure and the permeation of feminist ideas in public debates. In Israel, unlike most Western democracies, the common wisdom among researchers and political pundits was that there were no significant differences between the voting patterns of women and men. However, in the 2009 Knesset election, research I conducted with my colleagues Hanna Herzog and Michal Shamir, revealed a gender gap of 7 per cent, where 28 per cent of Jewish women versus 21 per cent of Jewish men voted for the centre party Kadima, led by a female politician, Tzipi Livni. This pattern held up even when considering the fact that women were more captivated by the security agenda and expressed more hawkish attitudes than men about increasing the defence budget, expressing consent to the establishment of a Palestinian state and evacuating settlements. These are views traditionally associated more with right-wing parties. In that election, Arab women also voted more than men for Balad – an Arab party, which had a woman candidate, Haneen Zoabi, with a realistic chance of making it to the Knesset – the first time an Arab party had done so. In our follow-up studies, which analysed the gender gap in Israeli elections between 1969 to 2013, we documented a gradual transition from a traditional gender gap to a modern one in left-right political ideology and in voting. Since the mid-1990s a modern gender gap can be identified, similar to the trends found in other Western societies. Women Voters Shift to the Left Shamir and I have also begun analysing voter patterns in the April 2019 Israeli election. Based on the Israel National Election Study (INES), which includes 1,347 Jews and 267 Arabs, our initial findings reveal a significant gender gap of 7 per cent among Jewish respondents, where Jewish women tended to support the centre-left party bloc more than Jewish men. This is despite the fact that women-headed only two small left-wing and centrist parties – Meretz and Gesher – and were not considered realistic candidates for the premiership. Our initial results also suggest that Jewish women tended toward the left compared to Jewish men on socioeconomic issues. They support a welfare policy more than men do. They also ranked the value of being a democratic state as the most important value to them, compared to Jewish men who ranked being a Jewish majority as the most important value to them. This may explain, at least to some extent, the gender gap in voting patterns in the April 2019 election. The fact that a woman is now heading a right-wing alliance challenges the recent alignment of women’s interests and women’s leadership in Israeli elections – where women leaders have led centre left-wing parties. It will be interesting to see how both men and women voters react to the Yamina alliance and Shaked – who sees herself as a future prime minister. (Einat Gedalya-Lavy is Marie Sklodowska-Curie Individual Fellow, Newcastle University) (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Israel elections: Who women vote for and how it’s shifting

Israelis will vote in a national parliamentary election on September 17, the second to be held this year. The ballot could win Netanyahu a fifth term, or end his decade-long dominance of Israeli politics. Watch this video to know more.

Israel's Netanyahu seeks record fifth term in September 17 election

In this segment of The West Asia Post, know what are Israeli settlements in the Palestinian land.

The West Asia Post: The controversial Israeli settlements

Israel heading for election yet again next week on 17th Sept. Watch this video to know more.

Israel heading for election yet again next week on 17th Sept

Things Didn't Go As Planned For Benjamin Netanyahu At A Recent Campaign Rally Ahead Of Israel's Closely-Fought Elections.

Gravitas: Israel Polls: It's Going Down To The Wire

Pakistan-Israel Ties: What Triggered This Intense Speculation.

Gravitas: Will Pakistan Recognise Israel?

Report Sparks Intense Speculation In Pakistan On Possible Ties With Israel.

Gravitas: Is Pakistan Preparing To Recognise Israel?

Charting The Resilience Of India-Israel Relationship.

Gravitas: Impact of Pakistan-Israel Ties on India

Israeli Prime Minister <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/netanyahu-fights-for-political-life-a-week-before-israel-votes-248659">Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party </a>was found Thursday to have violated Facebook's hate-speech policy after a post from his account saying Arabs "want to destroy us all".

Israeli media reported that the post which said Israeli Arabs "want to destroy us all -- women, children and men" appeared on Netanyahu's official Facebook page and was subsequently removed by Likud.

"After careful review of the Likud campaign’s bot activities, we found a violation of our hate speech policy," a Facebook statement said, referring to an automated chat function.

"We also found that the bot was misusing the platform in the time period allowed to contact people. As a result, we temporarily suspended the bot for 24 hours. Should there be any additional violations, we will continue to take appropriate action."

A Likud spokesman told AFP that the freeze went into effect Thursday morning and would not affect the party's online election campaign.

Netanyahu, who is fighting an election battle for his political survival, said the message had nothing to do with him.

Watch —&nbsp;Israel Polls: It's Going Down To The Wire

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-israel-polls-its-going-down-to-the-wire-249090/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

"It wasn't me. It was one of the workers at our election headquarters," he told Israeli public radio. "That mistake was fixed quickly."

"Think logically: Do you think I would really write such a thing?"

"I have friends in Arab countries and I have respect for human beings regardless of whether they are Jewish or Arab, Muslim or Christian."

Netanyahu has long faced accusations from critics that he has demonised Israel's 1.4 million Arab citizens with his political rhetoric.

With the September 17 vote looming, he and Likud drew outrage from opposition parties with a push for last-minute legislation that would allow party officials to bring cameras to polling stations.

His critics labelled it a naked attempt to depress turnout among Israel's Arab population, as it could intimidate many into staying away.

Netanyahu has used similar tactics in the past, including warning on election day in 2015 that Israeli Arabs were voting in "droves", a comment for which he later apologised.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party was found Thursday to have violated Facebook's hate-speech policy after a post from his account saying Arabs "want to destroy us all".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party was found Thursday to have violated Facebook's hate-speech policy after a post from his account saying Arabs "want to destroy us all". Israeli media reported that the post which said Israeli Arabs "want to destroy us all -- women, children and men" appeared on Netanyahu's official Facebook page and was subsequently removed by Likud. "After careful review of the Likud campaign’s bot activities, we found a violation of our hate speech policy," a Facebook statement said, referring to an automated chat function. "We also found that the bot was misusing the platform in the time period allowed to contact people. As a result, we temporarily suspended the bot for 24 hours. Should there be any additional violations, we will continue to take appropriate action." A Likud spokesman told AFP that the freeze went into effect Thursday morning and would not affect the party's online election campaign. Netanyahu, who is fighting an election battle for his political survival, said the message had nothing to do with him. Watch — Israel Polls: It's Going Down To The Wire "It wasn't me. It was one of the workers at our election headquarters," he told Israeli public radio. "That mistake was fixed quickly." "Think logically: Do you think I would really write such a thing?" "I have friends in Arab countries and I have respect for human beings regardless of whether they are Jewish or Arab, Muslim or Christian." Netanyahu has long faced accusations from critics that he has demonised Israel's 1.4 million Arab citizens with his political rhetoric. With the September 17 vote looming, he and Likud drew outrage from opposition parties with a push for last-minute legislation that would allow party officials to bring cameras to polling stations. His critics labelled it a naked attempt to depress turnout among Israel's Arab population, as it could intimidate many into staying away. Netanyahu has used similar tactics in the past, including warning on election day in 2015 that Israeli Arabs were voting in "droves", a comment for which he later apologised.

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bot gets Facebook 'hate speech' suspension

Israeli PM, Netanyahu said If he wins the elections he will annex Jordon valley. Know about the latest updates from Daniele Pagani, Bureau Chief, West Asia

Today Tonight: Netanyahu vows to annex West Bank Parts

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday he planned to annex the Jordan Valley, a large swathe of the occupied West Bank, if he wins a closely contested election just a week away. Watch this video to know more.

Israeli PM Netanyahu vows to annex Jordan Valley if re-elected

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday he planned to annex the Jordan Valley, a large swathe of the occupied West Bank if he wins a closely contested election just a week away. WION speaks to Daniele Pagani, West Asia bureau chief for more on this.

WION Dispatch: Netanyahu's big pre-election pledge

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday he planned to annex the Jordan Valley, a large swathe of the occupied West Bank if he wins a closely contested election just a week away. Watch this video to know: What is Israeli settlement & why does it matter for Netanyahu's re-elections?

What is Israeli settlement & why does it matter for Netanyahu's re-elections?

Benjamin Netanyahu's big pre-election pledge

The Israeli army targeted Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip overnight in response to a drone attack from the Palestinian enclave, the military said.

The Israeli strikes late Saturday came after two days of cross-border exchanges of fire in which two Palestinian teenagers were killed.

An Egyptian delegation meanwhile arrived in the Gaza Strip on Sunday as part of efforts to keep alive a fragile truce between Hamas and Israel, a Hamas source said.

The truce was negotiated by Egyptian and UN officials with aid from Qatar to end several severe flare-ups of violence in recent months.

Following a Saturday drone attack, Israeli fighter jets and a drone "struck a number of Hamas military targets, including offensive naval equipment and two military compounds," the army said.

It said it "holds Hamas responsible for all that transpires in the Gaza Strip and emanates from it."

A security source in Gaza said Israeli "warplanes raided four positions" of the Al-Qassam Brigades, the Hamas military wing, in central and northern Gaza, causing damage but "no injuries."

According to the army, a drone launched from southern Gaza had crossed into Israeli airspace, dropped "what seems to be an explosive device" near the security fence and damaged a military vehicle before returning to Gaza.

An Israeli aircraft targeted the squad that launched the drone, but there were no injuries in that raid.

On Friday, two Palestinian teenagers were killed by Israeli fire during clashes on the Gaza border, while another 46 sustained bullet wounds, according to Gaza's health ministry.

The Israeli army said thousands of Palestinians took part in "especially violent" demonstrations along the border, with some throwing "firebombs and explosive devices" at soldiers.

Hours later, Palestinian militants fired five rockets at southern Israel, hitting open fields, and Israel attacked Hamas positions in response, according to the army.

Also Saturday, Israeli forces apprehended four infiltrators from Gaza, three of them aged just 13.

Palestinians have been holding regular mass protests along the fortified border since March 2018.

The protesters have called on Israel to end its crippling siege of the coastal enclave and demanded the right to return to lands their families fled during the war that accompanied the creation of Israel in 1948.

Israel says any such return would mean its end as a Jewish state and accuses Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas of using the protests as cover for attacks.

Israel and Hamas have fought three wars since 2008.

There have been concerns about a possible violent escalation in the run-up to Israel's September 17 general election.

The Israeli army targeted Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip overnight in response to a drone attack from the Palestinian enclave, the military said. The Israeli strikes late Saturday came after two days of cross-border exchanges of fire in which two Palestinian teenagers were killed.

The Israeli army targeted Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip overnight in response to a drone attack from the Palestinian enclave, the military said. The Israeli strikes late Saturday came after two days of cross-border exchanges of fire in which two Palestinian teenagers were killed. An Egyptian delegation meanwhile arrived in the Gaza Strip on Sunday as part of efforts to keep alive a fragile truce between Hamas and Israel, a Hamas source said. The truce was negotiated by Egyptian and UN officials with aid from Qatar to end several severe flare-ups of violence in recent months. Following a Saturday drone attack, Israeli fighter jets and a drone "struck a number of Hamas military targets, including offensive naval equipment and two military compounds," the army said. It said it "holds Hamas responsible for all that transpires in the Gaza Strip and emanates from it." A security source in Gaza said Israeli "warplanes raided four positions" of the Al-Qassam Brigades, the Hamas military wing, in central and northern Gaza, causing damage but "no injuries." According to the army, a drone launched from southern Gaza had crossed into Israeli airspace, dropped "what seems to be an explosive device" near the security fence and damaged a military vehicle before returning to Gaza. An Israeli aircraft targeted the squad that launched the drone, but there were no injuries in that raid. On Friday, two Palestinian teenagers were killed by Israeli fire during clashes on the Gaza border, while another 46 sustained bullet wounds, according to Gaza's health ministry. The Israeli army said thousands of Palestinians took part in "especially violent" demonstrations along the border, with some throwing "firebombs and explosive devices" at soldiers. Hours later, Palestinian militants fired five rockets at southern Israel, hitting open fields, and Israel attacked Hamas positions in response, according to the army. Also Saturday, Israeli forces apprehended four infiltrators from Gaza, three of them aged just 13. Palestinians have been holding regular mass protests along the fortified border since March 2018. The protesters have called on Israel to end its crippling siege of the coastal enclave and demanded the right to return to lands their families fled during the war that accompanied the creation of Israel in 1948. Israel says any such return would mean its end as a Jewish state and accuses Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas of using the protests as cover for attacks. Israel and Hamas have fought three wars since 2008. There have been concerns about a possible violent escalation in the run-up to Israel's September 17 general election.

Israel attacks Gaza targets following drone raid

WION Exclusively speaks to DR. Uzi Rubin who is a Science Expert from Israel.

WION Exclusive | In conversation with DR. Uzi Rubin, Science Expert from Israel

Tensions Escalate At Israel-Lebanon Border

Gravitas: Weeks before Polls, Israel pounds Lebanon

A controversial former security official and Abu Dhabi-based political operator, Mohammed Dahlan, has lurked for several years in the shadows of Palestinian politics. Now, he could emerge as a monkey wrench in an attempt to pave the way for US President Donald J Trump’s much-maligned ‘deal of the century’ to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

President Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the Palestine Authority, and Hamas, the Islamist group that controls the Gaza Strip, have condemned the proposed, yet to be published deal and boycotted a conference in Bahrain in June organised by Jared Kushner, Trump’s negotiator and son-in-law, that focussed on economic aspects of the proposal.

The Palestinian boycott followed Abbas’ earlier rejection of the United States as a mediator in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict after the Trump administration recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, cut off funding and closed down the Palestinian representation in Washington. Trump has since recognised the occupied Syrian Golan Heights as part of Israel.

Kushner unveiled at the conference, attended by government officials and businessmen from the Gulf, the United States, Europe and Asia, a $50 billion investment plan, $28 billion of which would be earmarked for the creation of Palestinian jobs and reduction of poverty.

The Trump administration has said it would release political details of the peace plan only after the September 17 Israeli election so that it does not become an issue in what appears to be a tight electoral race between prime minister Benyamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud and former military chief Benny Gantz’s Blue and White.

Saudi and United Arab Emirates crown princes, Mohammed bin Salman and Mohammed bin Zayed, have quietly sought to support the US peace effort that in Kushner’s words will deviate from the 2002 Arab peace plan by not calling for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Dahlan, who is believed to be close to the UAE’s Prince Mohammed as well as former Israeli defence minister Avigdor Lieberman, has played an important role in that effort, particularly with regard to UAE efforts to clip Hamas’ wings.

Dahlan went into exile in the UAE in 2007 after Hamas defeated his US-backed efforts to thwart the group’s control in Gaza. US President George W Bush described Dahlan at the time as “our boy.”

Dahlan has since been indicted by Abbas’ Palestine Authority on corruption charges.

In his latest move, Dahlan is reported to be considering the establishment of a long muted political party, a move that would enjoy UAE and Egyptian support but could divide his following in Gaza.

Some of Dahlan’s supporters in the Democratic Reform Current that remains part of Abbas’ Al Fatah movement, argued in the past that a party would further fragment the Palestinian political landscape.

The revived talk of a party appears to be fuelled by Israel’s facilitation of hundreds of millions of US dollars in Qatari support for Gaza’s health and education services as well as reconstruction.

Qatar, with its close ties to various Islamist movements, has long supported Hamas, while Prince Mohammed’s visceral opposition to any expression of political Islam has pitted the UAE against the movement.

The two states’ diametrically opposed views of political Islam lie at the core of the rift in the Gulf with the UAE alongside Saudi Arabia leading a more than two-year-old diplomatic and economic boycott of Qatar.

The revived talk follows a failed 2017 effort to negotiate Dahlan’s return to Gaza in talks between Hamas, representatives of Egyptian intelligence, and the Palestinian politician.

The deal would have involved Hamas sharing power with Dahlan in exchange for a loosening of the Israeli-Egyptian economic stranglehold on the impoverished Gaza Strip at a time that Abbas was refusing to pay salaries of Gazan civil servants and Israel was reducing electricity supplies in a bid to force Hamas’ hand.

The talk of Dahlan making a political move comes against the backdrop of a broader, sustained UAE-Saudi effort to facilitate the US peace plan, despite the two states’ official insistence that East Jerusalem should be the capital of an independent Palestinian state, and counter manoeuvring in Palestine by Qatar and its, ally Turkey.&nbsp;

Saudi Arabia and the UAE sought to weaken Turkish efforts to exploit opposition to Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem to bolster its claim to leadership of the Muslim world and weaken Jordan’s role as the custodian of the Haram esh-Sharif in the city that is home to the Al Aqsa mosque, Islam’s third most holy site.

Speaking earlier this year to an Arab media outlet believed to be close to Qatar, Kamal Khatib, an Israeli Palestinian Islamist leader, asserted that Dahlan, working through local businessmen, had unsuccessfully tried to acquire real estate adjacent to the holy site, known to Jews as the Temple Mount where Judaism’s two ancient temples once stood.

With approximately half of its population of Palestinian descent, Jordan has walked a tight rope balancing its reluctance to endorse the Trump administration’s approach to Israeli-Palestinian peace-making with its complex ties to the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Unlike Jordan, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are not shackled by Palestinian demographics but need to tread carefully in supporting an initiative that is widely believed to be designed to deprive Palestinians of independent statehood because of domestic public sentiment and fears that it would backfire and strengthen Hamas.

A formal re-entry into Palestinian politics by Dahlan could help resolve the UAE and Saudi dilemma that is accentuated by concern that too much pressure on Abbas to reverse his rejection of US mediation could boost Hamas with its ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Said one Gulf official: “We are trying to strike a delicate balance. The key in doing so is to strengthen moderates, not extremists,” The official’s codeword for Hamas and other Islamists. 
 
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL) 
&nbsp;

A controversial former security official and Abu Dhabi-based political operator, Mohammed Dahlan, has lurked for several years in the shadows of Palestinian politics.

A controversial former security official and Abu Dhabi-based political operator, Mohammed Dahlan, has lurked for several years in the shadows of Palestinian politics. Now, he could emerge as a monkey wrench in an attempt to pave the way for US President Donald J Trump’s much-maligned ‘deal of the century’ to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. President Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the Palestine Authority, and Hamas, the Islamist group that controls the Gaza Strip, have condemned the proposed, yet to be published deal and boycotted a conference in Bahrain in June organised by Jared Kushner, Trump’s negotiator and son-in-law, that focussed on economic aspects of the proposal. The Palestinian boycott followed Abbas’ earlier rejection of the United States as a mediator in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict after the Trump administration recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, cut off funding and closed down the Palestinian representation in Washington. Trump has since recognised the occupied Syrian Golan Heights as part of Israel. Kushner unveiled at the conference, attended by government officials and businessmen from the Gulf, the United States, Europe and Asia, a $50 billion investment plan, $28 billion of which would be earmarked for the creation of Palestinian jobs and reduction of poverty. The Trump administration has said it would release political details of the peace plan only after the September 17 Israeli election so that it does not become an issue in what appears to be a tight electoral race between prime minister Benyamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud and former military chief Benny Gantz’s Blue and White. Saudi and United Arab Emirates crown princes, Mohammed bin Salman and Mohammed bin Zayed, have quietly sought to support the US peace effort that in Kushner’s words will deviate from the 2002 Arab peace plan by not calling for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Dahlan, who is believed to be close to the UAE’s Prince Mohammed as well as former Israeli defence minister Avigdor Lieberman, has played an important role in that effort, particularly with regard to UAE efforts to clip Hamas’ wings. Dahlan went into exile in the UAE in 2007 after Hamas defeated his US-backed efforts to thwart the group’s control in Gaza. US President George W Bush described Dahlan at the time as “our boy.” Dahlan has since been indicted by Abbas’ Palestine Authority on corruption charges. In his latest move, Dahlan is reported to be considering the establishment of a long muted political party, a move that would enjoy UAE and Egyptian support but could divide his following in Gaza. Some of Dahlan’s supporters in the Democratic Reform Current that remains part of Abbas’ Al Fatah movement, argued in the past that a party would further fragment the Palestinian political landscape. The revived talk of a party appears to be fuelled by Israel’s facilitation of hundreds of millions of US dollars in Qatari support for Gaza’s health and education services as well as reconstruction. Qatar, with its close ties to various Islamist movements, has long supported Hamas, while Prince Mohammed’s visceral opposition to any expression of political Islam has pitted the UAE against the movement. The two states’ diametrically opposed views of political Islam lie at the core of the rift in the Gulf with the UAE alongside Saudi Arabia leading a more than two-year-old diplomatic and economic boycott of Qatar. The revived talk follows a failed 2017 effort to negotiate Dahlan’s return to Gaza in talks between Hamas, representatives of Egyptian intelligence, and the Palestinian politician. The deal would have involved Hamas sharing power with Dahlan in exchange for a loosening of the Israeli-Egyptian economic stranglehold on the impoverished Gaza Strip at a time that Abbas was refusing to pay salaries of Gazan civil servants and Israel was reducing electricity supplies in a bid to force Hamas’ hand. The talk of Dahlan making a political move comes against the backdrop of a broader, sustained UAE-Saudi effort to facilitate the US peace plan, despite the two states’ official insistence that East Jerusalem should be the capital of an independent Palestinian state, and counter manoeuvring in Palestine by Qatar and its, ally Turkey. Saudi Arabia and the UAE sought to weaken Turkish efforts to exploit opposition to Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem to bolster its claim to leadership of the Muslim world and weaken Jordan’s role as the custodian of the Haram esh-Sharif in the city that is home to the Al Aqsa mosque, Islam’s third most holy site. Speaking earlier this year to an Arab media outlet believed to be close to Qatar, Kamal Khatib, an Israeli Palestinian Islamist leader, asserted that Dahlan, working through local businessmen, had unsuccessfully tried to acquire real estate adjacent to the holy site, known to Jews as the Temple Mount where Judaism’s two ancient temples once stood. With approximately half of its population of Palestinian descent, Jordan has walked a tight rope balancing its reluctance to endorse the Trump administration’s approach to Israeli-Palestinian peace-making with its complex ties to the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Unlike Jordan, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are not shackled by Palestinian demographics but need to tread carefully in supporting an initiative that is widely believed to be designed to deprive Palestinians of independent statehood because of domestic public sentiment and fears that it would backfire and strengthen Hamas. A formal re-entry into Palestinian politics by Dahlan could help resolve the UAE and Saudi dilemma that is accentuated by concern that too much pressure on Abbas to reverse his rejection of US mediation could boost Hamas with its ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. Said one Gulf official: “We are trying to strike a delicate balance. The key in doing so is to strengthen moderates, not extremists,” The official’s codeword for Hamas and other Islamists. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

UAE backs Donld Trump's 'Deal of the century' to resolve Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Tensions escalating at Israel-Lebanon border. Terror group Hezbollah attack Israel border village. Hezbollah terrorist group also launched the anti-tank missiles at Israel army base. Watch this video to know more.

Tensions escalating at Israel-Lebanon border, Israelis near borders asked to stay inside home

By David Mednicoff

While the connection of Jews to Israel is frequently in the news, the changing nature of Jewish and Israeli links to Arab countries is a story that has shown up less frequently.

Yet that change is significant and noteworthy.

A new synagogue recently open in Dubai, the first in decades.

Jared Kushner, an observant Jew and a top adviser to his father-in-law, President Donald Trump, is close friends with the acting ruler of Saudi Arabia.

The foreign minister of Bahrain, a Gulf Arab country, gave an interview to Israeli media, highlighting the important role that Israel has in the contemporary Middle East.

This is a shift in official Arab postures towards Jews and Israel.

Since Israeli independence in 1948, the country’s presence in the region and dominion over Palestinian Arabs have fostered four major wars with Arab neighbouring countries. Israel has only slowly achieved formal peace and diplomatic relations with Egypt, in 1979, and Jordan in 1994.

Why do more Arab states suddenly seem much warmer toward Israel, and, perhaps, by extension, to Jews and Judaism more generally?

There is both a simple and a complex answer here. The simple answer is Iran. The more complex one is that Israel, Arab states and the US have found increasing common priorities of national security and strong authority.

A brief history of Arab-Israeli relations

From the advent of Islam into the 20th century, Jewish communities existed and often thrived across the Arab world.

The founding of the state of Israel changed this quickly. Viewed by most Arabs as an unjust post-colonial incursion of Europeans into a newly decolonised Middle East, Israel found itself attacked when its statehood began. It didn’t help that the emerging country’s military forces, and Arab leaders as well, pushed many Palestinian Arabs to leave their homes for other Arab states.

Given Arab states’ hostility to Israel, Jews in these countries mostly fled to Europe, Israel and the U.S. The influence of strong regional Arab identity and support for Palestinian Arabs in a charged Cold War global climate encouraged further Arab-Israeli wars in 1956, 1967 and 1973.

The 1967 war gave Israel direct control of Palestinian territories, further angering Arab leaders. In 1973, Arab oil producers used the “oil weapon,” stopping oil sales to the US&nbsp;to pressure it to decrease its consistent support of Israel.

To be sure, the depth of Arab enmity towards Israel varied by country. Complex, cooperative links have nevertheless existed unofficially, such as economic ties between Arab Gulf states and Israel.

Still, after Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, it took another 15 years until a second Arab state, Jordan, established diplomatic relations with Israel. While Israel’s peace treaties with both Egypt and Jordan have remained intact for decades, relations have been mostly chilly, and no other Arab state has followed their lead.

Changing times and Saudi power

Now there are growing signs of at least informal relations between Israel and many other Arab states.

The driver for much of this is Saudi Arabia, and its enmity toward Iran.

In recent years, the Saudi government has attempted to become the Arab world’s major power by using its economic clout, in a reaction to its own and neighbouring states’ insecurity in the wake of the 2011 uprisings around the Arab world.

As part of this strategy, the Saudi government has intensified its long-term enmity toward Iran. Since its 1979 Islamic Revolution, Iran has been a vocal political force for Shi’i Islam, the major form of Islam distinct from Sunni Islam. Sunni Islam is the majority form of Islam which most Arabs embrace and the Saudis aspire to lead.

Under its crown prince and actual day-to-day ruler, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia has pursued its efforts to be the dominant Sunni Arab power more aggressively. This includes its military engagement in Yemen, where it has tried with limited success to eradicate local Shi’i forces that have some ties to Iran.

Forceful Saudi foreign policy under Salman has also included isolating rival Qatar, allying closely with Egypt’s military ruler Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and increasing its already huge advanced weapons purchases.

All of this is meant to both cement Saudi influence and cripple Iran. But the Saudi strategy has had mixed success.

The war in Yemen has bogged down, forcing Saudi ally, the United Arab Emirates, to pull back. Salman faces blowback from civil rights advocates for increasing Saudi crackdowns on political dissidents.

His limited success has given Salman all the more reason to stress alliances with like-minded rulers in the region. In addition to stalwart allies the UAE and Egypt, this definitely includes Israel. Indeed, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Salman rival one another in their public enmity toward Iran.

New security alliance

Saudi Arabia’s increasing efforts to be the dominant Arab power in the Middle East are part of another trend in the region: the consolidation of states that focus on security at the expense of democratic rights.

The lesson many Arab governments seem to have drawn from 2011’s Arab Spring unrest is that dissent, and even open political expression, can mushroom into political collapse and chaos. Determined to avoid the political challenge, most Arab political systems have amplified their already strong investment in internal security and cracked down on political speech.

At the same time, many Arab societies, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, have made efforts to be more open to social diversity. There has been modest progress in gender rights in Saudi Arabia and increased tolerance of religious pluralism in Dubai, for example.

Strong security, limited official acceptance of political dissent and social pluralism also help align electoral democracies under stress with non-democratic governments. This is a current trend evident in the closeness of leaders like Trump and more repressive rulers like Vladimir Putin of Russia or Viktor Orban of Hungary.

It is no less of a trend in the Middle East. The approach of boosting military and police power and decreasing tolerance towards political opposition brings countries like Saudi Arabia and Israel naturally together.

Indeed, if Arab governments stress security to stave off fears of political uprising, they are likely to see Palestinians with little power under direct or indirect Israeli control as a problem to sidestep, rather than a priority to resolve.

In short, the threat of Iran and the prevalence of anti-democratic politics is solidifying a long-standing political affinity, and a growing behind-the-scenes alliance, between Israel, Saudi Arabia and Saudi Arabia’s Arab allies.

Arab-Israeli increasing collaboration may be good news for some Jews wishing to be more secure as visitors or residents in Arab countries. Yet the news is likely less good for people hoping for greater political rights for Palestinians, Yemenis and other beleaguered populations in the Middle East.

(David Mednicoff is Chair, Department of Judaic and Near Eastern Studies, and Associate Professor of Middle Eastern Studies and Public Policy, University of Massachusetts Amherst) 
 
(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-increasing-arab-israeli-closeness-matters-119691">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

By David Mednicoff While the connection of Jews to Israel is frequently in the news, the changing nature of Jewish and Israeli links to Arab countries is a story that has shown up less frequently.

By David Mednicoff While the connection of Jews to Israel is frequently in the news, the changing nature of Jewish and Israeli links to Arab countries is a story that has shown up less frequently. Yet that change is significant and noteworthy. A new synagogue recently open in Dubai, the first in decades. Jared Kushner, an observant Jew and a top adviser to his father-in-law, President Donald Trump, is close friends with the acting ruler of Saudi Arabia. The foreign minister of Bahrain, a Gulf Arab country, gave an interview to Israeli media, highlighting the important role that Israel has in the contemporary Middle East. This is a shift in official Arab postures towards Jews and Israel. Since Israeli independence in 1948, the country’s presence in the region and dominion over Palestinian Arabs have fostered four major wars with Arab neighbouring countries. Israel has only slowly achieved formal peace and diplomatic relations with Egypt, in 1979, and Jordan in 1994. Why do more Arab states suddenly seem much warmer toward Israel, and, perhaps, by extension, to Jews and Judaism more generally? There is both a simple and a complex answer here. The simple answer is Iran. The more complex one is that Israel, Arab states and the US have found increasing common priorities of national security and strong authority. A brief history of Arab-Israeli relations From the advent of Islam into the 20th century, Jewish communities existed and often thrived across the Arab world. The founding of the state of Israel changed this quickly. Viewed by most Arabs as an unjust post-colonial incursion of Europeans into a newly decolonised Middle East, Israel found itself attacked when its statehood began. It didn’t help that the emerging country’s military forces, and Arab leaders as well, pushed many Palestinian Arabs to leave their homes for other Arab states. Given Arab states’ hostility to Israel, Jews in these countries mostly fled to Europe, Israel and the U.S. The influence of strong regional Arab identity and support for Palestinian Arabs in a charged Cold War global climate encouraged further Arab-Israeli wars in 1956, 1967 and 1973. The 1967 war gave Israel direct control of Palestinian territories, further angering Arab leaders. In 1973, Arab oil producers used the “oil weapon,” stopping oil sales to the US to pressure it to decrease its consistent support of Israel. To be sure, the depth of Arab enmity towards Israel varied by country. Complex, cooperative links have nevertheless existed unofficially, such as economic ties between Arab Gulf states and Israel. Still, after Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, it took another 15 years until a second Arab state, Jordan, established diplomatic relations with Israel. While Israel’s peace treaties with both Egypt and Jordan have remained intact for decades, relations have been mostly chilly, and no other Arab state has followed their lead. Changing times and Saudi power Now there are growing signs of at least informal relations between Israel and many other Arab states. The driver for much of this is Saudi Arabia, and its enmity toward Iran. In recent years, the Saudi government has attempted to become the Arab world’s major power by using its economic clout, in a reaction to its own and neighbouring states’ insecurity in the wake of the 2011 uprisings around the Arab world. As part of this strategy, the Saudi government has intensified its long-term enmity toward Iran. Since its 1979 Islamic Revolution, Iran has been a vocal political force for Shi’i Islam, the major form of Islam distinct from Sunni Islam. Sunni Islam is the majority form of Islam which most Arabs embrace and the Saudis aspire to lead. Under its crown prince and actual day-to-day ruler, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia has pursued its efforts to be the dominant Sunni Arab power more aggressively. This includes its military engagement in Yemen, where it has tried with limited success to eradicate local Shi’i forces that have some ties to Iran. Forceful Saudi foreign policy under Salman has also included isolating rival Qatar, allying closely with Egypt’s military ruler Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and increasing its already huge advanced weapons purchases. All of this is meant to both cement Saudi influence and cripple Iran. But the Saudi strategy has had mixed success. The war in Yemen has bogged down, forcing Saudi ally, the United Arab Emirates, to pull back. Salman faces blowback from civil rights advocates for increasing Saudi crackdowns on political dissidents. His limited success has given Salman all the more reason to stress alliances with like-minded rulers in the region. In addition to stalwart allies the UAE and Egypt, this definitely includes Israel. Indeed, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Salman rival one another in their public enmity toward Iran. New security alliance Saudi Arabia’s increasing efforts to be the dominant Arab power in the Middle East are part of another trend in the region: the consolidation of states that focus on security at the expense of democratic rights. The lesson many Arab governments seem to have drawn from 2011’s Arab Spring unrest is that dissent, and even open political expression, can mushroom into political collapse and chaos. Determined to avoid the political challenge, most Arab political systems have amplified their already strong investment in internal security and cracked down on political speech. At the same time, many Arab societies, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, have made efforts to be more open to social diversity. There has been modest progress in gender rights in Saudi Arabia and increased tolerance of religious pluralism in Dubai, for example. Strong security, limited official acceptance of political dissent and social pluralism also help align electoral democracies under stress with non-democratic governments. This is a current trend evident in the closeness of leaders like Trump and more repressive rulers like Vladimir Putin of Russia or Viktor Orban of Hungary. It is no less of a trend in the Middle East. The approach of boosting military and police power and decreasing tolerance towards political opposition brings countries like Saudi Arabia and Israel naturally together. Indeed, if Arab governments stress security to stave off fears of political uprising, they are likely to see Palestinians with little power under direct or indirect Israeli control as a problem to sidestep, rather than a priority to resolve. In short, the threat of Iran and the prevalence of anti-democratic politics is solidifying a long-standing political affinity, and a growing behind-the-scenes alliance, between Israel, Saudi Arabia and Saudi Arabia’s Arab allies. Arab-Israeli increasing collaboration may be good news for some Jews wishing to be more secure as visitors or residents in Arab countries. Yet the news is likely less good for people hoping for greater political rights for Palestinians, Yemenis and other beleaguered populations in the Middle East. (David Mednicoff is Chair, Department of Judaic and Near Eastern Studies, and Associate Professor of Middle Eastern Studies and Public Policy, University of Massachusetts Amherst) (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Why increasing Arab-Israeli closeness matter

High-Tech Training For Soldiers In Israel

Gravitas: Israel is using virtual reality to train soldiers

Explosions hit two police checkpoints in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, killing three officers and wounding several other Palestinians, the Hamas-run interior ministry said, declaring a state of emergency after the blasts.

Such attacks on Hamas, which has the most powerful armed apparatus in the enclave, were rare.

Interior ministry spokesman, Eyad Al-Bozom, said security forces were making progress in their pursuit of those behind the explosions, but he did not disclose further details.

"The sinful hands that carried out this crime will not escape punishment," said Bozom.

A spokesman for the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israeli-aircraft-strikes-gaza-after-palestinian-mortar-fire-246069">Israeli military</a> said he knew of no involvement by Israel in the back-to-back incidents in Gaza city at a time of simmering cross-border confrontations with Hamas, the Palestinian enclave's ruling Islamists.

The first blast destroyed a motorcycle as it passed a police checkpoint, witnesses said. Two police officers were killed and a third Palestinian wounded. It was not immediately clear if the riders were among the casualties.

The second explosion, less than an hour later, killed one officer and wounded several people at a police checkpoint elsewhere in the city, the interior ministry said. The ministry declared a state of emergency throughout Gaza, putting security forces on alert.

Hamas, which took over Gaza in a 2007 civil war with the forces of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, has at times faced internal opposition from more stringent Islamist militants aligned with al Qaeda or Islamic State.

Explosions hit two police checkpoints in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, killing three officers and wounding several other Palestinians, the Hamas-run interior ministry said, declaring a state of emergency after the blasts.

Explosions hit two police checkpoints in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, killing three officers and wounding several other Palestinians, the Hamas-run interior ministry said, declaring a state of emergency after the blasts. Such attacks on Hamas, which has the most powerful armed apparatus in the enclave, were rare. Interior ministry spokesman, Eyad Al-Bozom, said security forces were making progress in their pursuit of those behind the explosions, but he did not disclose further details. "The sinful hands that carried out this crime will not escape punishment," said Bozom. A spokesman for the Israeli military said he knew of no involvement by Israel in the back-to-back incidents in Gaza city at a time of simmering cross-border confrontations with Hamas, the Palestinian enclave's ruling Islamists. The first blast destroyed a motorcycle as it passed a police checkpoint, witnesses said. Two police officers were killed and a third Palestinian wounded. It was not immediately clear if the riders were among the casualties. The second explosion, less than an hour later, killed one officer and wounded several people at a police checkpoint elsewhere in the city, the interior ministry said. The ministry declared a state of emergency throughout Gaza, putting security forces on alert. Hamas, which took over Gaza in a 2007 civil war with the forces of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, has at times faced internal opposition from more stringent Islamist militants aligned with al Qaeda or Islamic State.

Explosions hit Gaza police checkpoints, three dead: Officials

Daniele Pagani speaks on Israel Extends Anti-Iran operations

Daniele Pagani on Israel Extends Anti-Iran operations

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/benjamin-netanyahu-hints-israel-behind-attacks-on-iran-backed-militia-depots-in-iraq-244973">Israel&nbsp;</a>said on Monday it was cutting by half the amount of&nbsp;fuel&nbsp;it supplies to&nbsp;Gaza's only power plant, in response to&nbsp;rocket&nbsp;attacks from the Palestinian territory.

Three&nbsp;rockets were fired from the Hamas Islamist-run enclave at southern&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;on Sunday and two were intercepted by the Iron Dome anti-missile system, the military said.&nbsp;

There was no claim of responsibility. After&nbsp;the&nbsp;attack,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israel-says-air-strike-in-syria-sent-no-immunity-message-to-iran-245618">Israel&nbsp;launched an airstrike</a> against what the military described as a Hamas military compound.

No casualties were reported on either side of the volatile border.

In a statement, COGAT, a unit in the Defence Ministry that coordinates civilian issues with Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and the&nbsp;Gaza&nbsp;Strip, said "cutting the amount of diesel in half will significantly reduce" the plant's output.

It said the measure, "following the firing of&nbsp;rockets ... and the continued violation of stability and security" will be in effect until further notice. 
Gaza&nbsp;has long suffered from a shortage of electricity and chronic blackouts.

&nbsp;A new power line from&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;has been proposed to alleviate the situation.

Mohammad Thabet, the spokesman for the&nbsp;Gaza&nbsp;power company, described the&nbsp;Israeli decision as collective punishment.

"We already are in a crisis and now the&nbsp;Israeli decision will make it worse. It will have a grave impact on the lives of 2 million people and vital services such as hospitals," Thabet told Reuters.

Currently, residents get six hours of electricity followed by 12 hours of blackout.

Thabet said the&nbsp;fuel&nbsp;cuts would decrease power time to only four-hour periods.

In a series of border confrontations in recent weeks,&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;said it killed at least eight Palestinian militants who tried to infiltrate its territory.

Israeli and Egyptian blockades have brought the&nbsp;Gazan economy to the brink of collapse.

Recent foreign aid cuts and sanctions by the Palestinian Authority, Hamas’s rival in the West Bank, have worsened the situation. 
&nbsp;

Israel said on Monday it was cutting by half the amount of fuel it supplies to Gaza's only power plant, in response to rocket attacks from the Palestinian territory.

Israel said on Monday it was cutting by half the amount of fuel it supplies to Gaza's only power plant, in response to rocket attacks from the Palestinian territory. Three rockets were fired from the Hamas Islamist-run enclave at southern Israel on Sunday and two were intercepted by the Iron Dome anti-missile system, the military said. There was no claim of responsibility. After the attack, Israel launched an airstrike against what the military described as a Hamas military compound. No casualties were reported on either side of the volatile border. In a statement, COGAT, a unit in the Defence Ministry that coordinates civilian issues with Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip, said "cutting the amount of diesel in half will significantly reduce" the plant's output. It said the measure, "following the firing of rockets ... and the continued violation of stability and security" will be in effect until further notice. Gaza has long suffered from a shortage of electricity and chronic blackouts. A new power line from Israel has been proposed to alleviate the situation. Mohammad Thabet, the spokesman for the Gaza power company, described the Israeli decision as collective punishment. "We already are in a crisis and now the Israeli decision will make it worse. It will have a grave impact on the lives of 2 million people and vital services such as hospitals," Thabet told Reuters. Currently, residents get six hours of electricity followed by 12 hours of blackout. Thabet said the fuel cuts would decrease power time to only four-hour periods. In a series of border confrontations in recent weeks, Israel said it killed at least eight Palestinian militants who tried to infiltrate its territory. Israeli and Egyptian blockades have brought the Gazan economy to the brink of collapse. Recent foreign aid cuts and sanctions by the Palestinian Authority, Hamas’s rival in the West Bank, have worsened the situation.

Israel reduces Gaza fuel supply after rocket attack

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