JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday he would leave Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in place given an escalating security crisis, reversing a decision to fire the minister that triggered protests and raised alarm abroad.
He said the two had resolved their disagreement over Gallant’s public call last month for a halt to the government’s bitterly divisive judicial overhaul plan, which Gallant said had become a threat to Israel’s security.
Last week Netanyahu announced he would delay the dismissal.
“I’ve decided to put our differences behind us,” Netanyahu said at a Monday press conference. He said the two had worked closely together throughout the last two weeks.
An Italian tourist was killed and five people were wounded in a car ramming in Tel Aviv on Friday hours after two Israeli sisters and their mother were killed in a shooting attack in the occupied West Bank.
The attacks, after a night of cross-border strikes in Gaza and Lebanon, added to heightened Israeli-Palestinian tensions following Israeli police raids in Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque this week.
The tensions threatened to widen when Israel responded to a barrage of rockets by hitting targets linked to Hamas in Gaza and southern Lebanon, but the fighting entered a lull on Friday.
A Sunday opinion poll, from Israel’s Channel 13 News, showed Netanyahu’s Likud party would lose more than a third of its seats if an election were held now, and Netanyahu would fail to gain a majority with his hard-right coalition partners.
“I’m not disturbed by the poll,” Netanyahu told reporters.
The prime minister said relations with the United States, which appeared strained over the government’s planned judicial overhaul, remained “tight” and the two countries enjoyed security and intelligence cooperation.
Netanyahu’s government paused legislation on the overhaul to allow for compromise discussions with opposition parties following weeks of nationwide protests.
Israeli PM reverses course on sacking defence minister
https://arab.news/nvseb
Israeli PM reverses course on sacking defence minister
- He said the two had resolved their disagreement over Gallant’s public call last month for a halt to the government’s bitterly divisive judicial overhaul plan
North Korea’s Kim, Russian minister agree to boost military ties
- Russia also offers access to vast natural resources, such as oil and gas
Seoul: Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and agreed to boost military cooperation between the two isolated nations, Pyongyang state media said Saturday.
The United States and South Korea have accused the nuclear-armed North of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine, with experts saying Kim is eager to gain advanced technology, and battle experience for his troops, in return.
Kim, who met Belousov on Friday, blasted the recent decision by Western powers to permit Kyiv to strike inside Russia with their weapons, saying it constituted a “direct military intervention in the conflict,” according to KCNA.
“It is an exercise of the right to self-defense for Russia to take resolute action to make the hostile forces pay the price,” Kim was quoted as saying.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim signed a strategic partnership treaty in June that obligates both states to provide military assistance “without delay” in the case of an attack on the other and jointly oppose Western sanctions.
KCNA said Saturday that Belousov’s visit “would greatly contribute to bolstering up the defense capabilities of the two countries and... promoting the friendly, mutual cooperation and development of the relations between the two armies.”
Belousov, in a statement, expressed gratitude for the two countries’ deeping bonds and praised North Korea’s “absolutely independent foreign policy.”
Analysts have suggested Pyongyang could be using Ukraine as a means of realigning its foreign policy.
By sending soldiers, North Korea is positioning itself within the Russian war economy as a supplier of weapons, military support and labor — potentially even bypassing traditional ally, neighbor and main trading partner China, they say.
Russia also offers access to vast natural resources, such as oil and gas, they say.
Belousov is well-placed to help with such arrangements, Hong Min, a senior analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told AFP, calling the Russian “an economic expert without a military background.”
As Russia’s defense chief, he specializes in “long-term strategies for securing weapons and military supplies, evading sanctions, and overseeing post-war reconstruction,” Hong said.
Invariable support
Russia and North Korea have strengthened their military ties since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Both countries are under rafts of UN sanctions — the former for its nuclear weapons program and the latter for the Ukraine conflict.
Since US president-elect Donald Trump’s victory earlier this month, the Joe Biden administration has stepped up its support for Kyiv, transferring more weapons and giving Ukraine permission to fire long-range missiles onto Russian territory.
Kim said Friday that his government, army and people would “invariably support the policy of the Russian Federation to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Earlier this month, Pyongyang said it had ratified the landmark defense pact with Russia, after lawmakers in Moscow voted unanimously in favor of the deal, which Putin later signed.
South Korea and Ukraine said Wednesday they would deepen security cooperation in response to the “threat” posed by the deployment of North Korean troops, but there was no mention of potential arms shipments.
President Yoon Suk Yeol said earlier this month that Seoul was “not ruling out the possibility of providing weapons” to Ukraine, which would mark a major shift to a long-standing policy barring the sale of weapons to countries in active conflict.
US approves $385 mln arms sale for Taiwan
- United States is bound by law to provide Chinese-claimed Taiwan with the means to defend itself despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties
WASHINGTON. The US State Department has approved the potential sale of spare parts for F-16 jets and radars to Taiwan for an estimated $385 million, the Pentagon said on Friday, a day before Taiwan President Lai Ching-te starts a sensitive Pacific trip.
The United States is bound by law to provide Chinese-claimed Taiwan with the means to defend itself despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties between Washington and Taipei, to the constant anger of Beijing.
Democratically governed Taiwan rejects China’s claims of sovereignty.
China has been stepping up military pressure against Taiwan, including two rounds of war games this year, and security sources have told Reuters that Beijing may hold more to coincide with Lai’s tour of the Pacific, which includes stopovers in Hawaii and Guam, a US territory.
The Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said the sale consisted of $320 million in spare parts and support for F-16 fighters and Active Electronically Scanned Array Radars and related equipment.
The State Department also approved the potential sale to Taiwan of improved mobile subscriber equipment and support for an estimated $65 million, the Pentagon said. The principal contractor for the $65 million sale is General Dynamics.
Last month, the United States announced a potential $2 billion arms sale package to Taiwan, including the delivery for the first time to the island of an advanced air defense missile system battle tested in Ukraine.
Lai leaves for Hawaii on Saturday on what is officially a stopover on the way to Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau, three of the 12 countries that still to have formal diplomatic ties with Taipei. He will also stop over in Guam.
Hawaii and Guam are home to major US military bases.
China on Friday urged the United States to exercise “utmost caution” in its relations with Taiwan.
The State Department said it saw no justification for what it called a private, routine and unofficial transit by Lai to be used as a pretext for provocation.
North Korea’s Kim vows steadfast support for Russia’s war in Ukraine
- North Korea has sent more than 10,000 troops to Russia and some of them have already begun engaging in combat on the frontlines
- South Korea, the US and their partners are concerned that Russia could give North Korea advanced weapons technology in return
SEOUL, South Korea: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed his country will “invariably support” Russia’s war in Ukraine as he met Russia’s defense chief, the North’s state media reported Saturday.
A Russia military delegation led by Defense Minister Andrei Belousov arrived in North Korea on Friday, amid growing international concern about the two countries’ expanding cooperation after North Korea sent thousands of troops to Russia last month.
The official Korean Central News Agency said that Kim and Belousov reached “a satisfactory consensus” on boosting strategic partnership and defending each country’s sovereignty, security interests and international justice in the face of the rapidly-changing international security environments in a Friday meeting.
Kim said that North Korea “will invariably support the policy of the Russian Federation to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity from the imperialists’ moves for hegemony,” KCNA said.
North Korea has supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, calling it a defensive response to what both Moscow and Pyongyang call NATO’s “reckless” eastward advance and US-led moves to stamp out Russia’s position as a powerful state.
Kim slammed a US decision earlier in November to let Ukraine strike targets inside Russia with US-supplied longer-range missiles as a direct intervention in the conflict. He called recent Russian strikes on Ukraine “a timely and effective measure” demonstrate Russia’s resolve, KCNA said.
According to US, Ukrainian and South Korean assessments, North Korea has sent more than 10,000 troops to Russia and some of them have already begun engaging in combat on the frontlines. US, South Korean and others say North Korea has also shipped artillery systems, missiles and other conventional weapons to replenish Russia’s exhausted weapons inventory.
Both North Korea and Russia haven’t formally confirmed the North Korean troops’ movements, and have steadfastly denied reports of weapons shipments.
South Korea, the US and their partners are concerned that Russia could give North Korea advanced weapons technology in return, including help to build more powerful nuclear missiles.
Last week, South Korean national security adviser Shin Wonsik told a local SBS TV program that that Seoul assessed that Russia has provided air defense missile systems to North Korea. He said Russia also appeared to have given economic assistance to North Korea and various military technologies, including those needed for the North’s efforts to build a reliable space-based surveillance system.
Belousov also met North Korean Defense Minister No Kwang Chol on Friday. During a dinner banquet later the same day, Belousov said the the two countries’ strategic partnership was crucial to defend their sovereignty from aggression and the arbitrary actions of imperialists, KCNA said.
In June, Kim and Putin signed a treaty requiring both countries to provide immediate military assistance if either is attacked. It’s considered the two countries’ biggest defense deal since the end of the Cold War.
Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the 2034 World Cup has received the highest-ever rating: FIFA
- Last October, a FIFA delegation arrived in the Kingdom to review the details of the bid and inspect the facilities to be used in the games
- As stated in the bid, games will be played in 15 stadiums distributed across Riyadh, Jeddah, Alkhobar, Abha, and Neom, plus ten other hosting sites
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the FIFA World Cup™ 2034 has received a rating of 419.8 out of 500, the highest technical rating ever given by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) to a file submitted to host the event, the federation has said.
FIFA’s announcement came ahead of the federation’s general assembly on December 11 to decide which countries would host the 2030 and 2034 World Cups, the Saudi Press Agency reported early Saturday.
On July 29, a Saudi delegation led by Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki bin Faisal, minister of sport and president of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee, and Yasser Al-Misehal, Saudi Arabian Football Federation president, officially submitted the Kingdom’s bid book to FIFA to host the FIFA World Cup 2034™ at a ceremony hosted in Paris, France.
Last October, a FIFA delegation arrived in the Kingdom to review the details of the bid. As proposed, 48 teams will be participating at venues in one country for the first time in history.
The delegation visited the cities proposed to host the tournament, inspected the sports projects and facilities included in the bid, and reviewed other upcoming preparations.
Commenting on the FIFA announcement, Sports Minister Prince Abdulaziz said the unlimited attention, empowerment and support received from King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, contributing to the bid gaining the confidence of the international community.
SAFF President Yasser Al-Misehal stressed that “through the bid file, we are committed to providing an exceptional experience for all participants in the tournament, whether teams or participating delegations, and certainly for fans and football lovers around the world.”
Hammad Al-Balawi, head of the Bid File Unit, said “the Kingdom’s bid file offers five host cities with diverse cultural and urban character that help fans and football lovers explore unique cultures and experiences in different regions of the Kingdom.”
In addition, he said, ten other hosting sites that “contribute to enhancing the experience of the participating teams through training camps and modern sports facilities, in addition to providing high accessibility between cities.”
As stated in the Kingdom’s bid, games will be played in 15 stadiums distributed across Riyadh, Jeddah, Alkhobar, Abha, and Neom, in addition to the ten other hosting sites across the Kingdom.
Blast at Kosovo canal feeding key power plants a ‘terrorist attack’, says prime minister
- “The attack was carried out by professionals. We believe it comes from gangs directed by Serbia,” says Prime Minister Albin Kurti
- Animosity between ethnic Albanian-majority Kosovo and Serbia has persisted since the end of the war between Serbian forces and ethnic Albanian insurgents in the late 1990s
PRISTINA: An explosion on Friday damaged a canal supplying water to Kosovo’s two main coal-fired power plants, Prime Minister Albin Kurti said, blaming a “terrorist attack” by neighboring Serbia.
“This is a criminal and terrorist attack aimed at damaging our critical infrastructure,” Kurti told a press conference late Friday.
“The attack was carried out by professionals. We believe it comes from gangs directed by Serbia,” he added without providing any evidence.
The blast occurred near the town of Zubin Potok in the country’s troubled north, damaging a canal supplying water to cooling systems at two power plants that generate most of Kosovo’s electricity.
Kurti gave no details about the extent of the damage, but said if it was not repaired part of Kosovo could be without electricity as soon as Saturday morning.
Pictures from the scene published by local media showed water leaking heavily from one side of the reinforced canal, which runs from the Serb-majority north of Kosovo to the capital Pristina and also supplies drinking water.
The United States strongly condemned the “attack on critical infrastructure in Kosovo,” the US embassy in Pristina said in a statement on Facebook.
“We are monitoring the situation closely... and have offered our full support to the government of Kosovo to ensure that those responsible for this criminal attack are identified and held accountable.”
Animosity between ethnic Albanian-majority Kosovo and Serbia has persisted since the end of the war between Serbian forces and ethnic Albanian insurgents in the late 1990s.
Kosovo declared independence in 2008, a move that Serbia has refused to acknowledge.
Kurti’s government has for months sought to dismantle a parallel system of social services and political offices backed by Belgrade to serve Kosovo’s Serbs.
Friday’s attack came after a series of violent incidents in northern Kosovo, including the hurling of hand grenades at a municipal building and a police station earlier this week.
AFP has contacted the Serbian government for comment.
