JERUSALEM: Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant approved a plan on Tuesday to start drafting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the military, a move likely to further strain relations within Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s fractious right-wing coalition.
His government relies on two ultra-Orthodox parties that regard conscription exemptions as key to keeping their constituents in religious seminaries and out of a melting-pot army that might test their traditional customs.
Their political leaders are fiercely opposed to conscription at a time when Israel’s army is seeking to bolster its ranks amid the nine-month-old war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
After discussions with top military officials, Gallant approved their recommendations for a so-called first call-up of ultra-Orthodox men into the military over the coming month, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.
The order is for an initial screening and evaluation to determine potential recruits, it said. Initial call-ups are sent to Israelis when they are over 16 years old and they usually begin military service at the age of 18.
Israelis are bound by law to serve in the military for 24-32 months. Members of Israel’s 21 percent Arab minority are mostly exempt, though some do serve, and ultra-Orthodox Jewish seminary students have also been largely exempt for decades.
But Israel’s Supreme Court last month ruled that the state must begin drafting ultra-Orthodox Jewish seminary students into the military.
The long-time military waiver for the ultra-Orthodox has sparked protests in recent months by Israelis angry that the risk of fighting in Gaza is not being equally shared. For their part, ultra-Orthodox protesters have blocked roads under the banner “death before conscription.”
Israel’s defense minister OKs plan to start drafting ultra-Orthodox
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Israel’s defense minister OKs plan to start drafting ultra-Orthodox
- After discussions with top military officials, Gallant approved their recommendations for a so-called first call-up of ultra-Orthodox men into the military
- The order is for an initial screening and evaluation to determine potential recruits
UAE launches program to make agricultural advisory services more efficient
- Program aims to improve the skills and professional capacities of agricultural agents
DUBAI: The UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment announced a new initiative to boost the efficiency of agricultural advisory services, state news agency WAM reported on Sunday.
The program is part of the UAE’s broader efforts to enhance agricultural production and strengthen national food security.
It aims to improve the skills and professional capacities of agricultural agents, equipping them with the tools to effectively transfer technology and share modern farming techniques, thereby increasing productivity.
The program includes special training in areas such as soil and irrigation, crop and vegetable production, fruit production, pest prevention and control, and beekeeping and honey production, WAM added.
It also features lectures and workshops to enhance the skills of agricultural agents, alongside field courses that provide practical application of theoretical knowledge, improve communication skills, and boost confidence.
“The agricultural extension efficiency improvement program comes as part of our ongoing commitment to support the sustainability of national farms in the UAE aimed at reinforcing and growing the sector in the future,” said Mohammed Salman Al-Hammadi, assistant undersecretary of the food diversity sector at the ministry.
He added: “The program aims to develop a specialised path for all agricultural extension agents covering the main fields in the sector. Through this, we seek to build capacity and competency of agricultural extension, which in turn, would contribute to enhancing local agricultural production and support the transformation of national food systems into more sustainable systems.”
The program also involves developing an annual plan for agricultural guidance, which will monitor and support farmers in improving crop production and protecting crops from pests.
It will include a timetable for service operations related to trees and cultivation seasons for each crop, focusing on date palms, fruit, vegetables, fodder and honey production. Operations will also cover irrigation, fertilization, and land reclamation.
The program will also prepare technical reports and advisory visit reports to farms, including data analysis, recommendations and documentation of results to ensure continuous improvement and address farmers’ needs.
Al-Hammadi highlighted the importance of enhanced communication between agricultural agents and farmers, with plans for regular farm visits and meetings to discuss challenges. The initiative aims to improve crop yields, set clear standards and objectives for agricultural guidance programs, and ultimately enhance farmers’ satisfaction.
Jordanian Industry Ministry launches group to empower women-owned enterprises
- Women’s Empowerment Unit aims ti improve access to economic opportunities for women
AMMAN: Jordan’s Ministry of Industry, Trade and Supply on Sunday held the first meeting of a new working group aimed at empowering women-owned businesses, Jordan Press Agency reported.
The gathering included prominent female entrepreneurs, representatives from organizations focused on women’s empowerment, and officials from various industry and commerce chambers.
Dana Al-Zoubi, the ministry’s secretary-general, spoke about the importance of the working group in achieving the ministry’s objectives and highlighted the ministry’s dedication to increasing women’s participation in the economy in various sectors.
Al-Zoubi praised the efforts of the Ministerial Committee for Women’s Empowerment and the Jordanian National Committee for Women’s Affairs for tackling the challenges faced by women.
She also reviewed the ministry’s major accomplishments in 2023 and the first half of the current year, as well as ongoing plans and strategies.
Al-Zoubi acknowledged the role of the newly established Women’s Empowerment Unit in improving access to economic opportunities for women.
Participants at the meeting discussed the working group’s goals, which include consulting on future strategies for women’s empowerment, addressing the challenges women encounter, expanding access to opportunities and resources for women-owned businesses, and creating a supportive business environment.
The group agreed that the WEU would draft a work charter outlining the group’s objectives, structure, meeting frequency and responsibilities.
Members were encouraged to provide feedback on the charter and suggest additional topics for discussion. The proposal to form special technical teams to focus on improving women’s access to economic opportunities was well received, with several suggestions made for future areas of focus.
US moves in Middle East are defensive, aimed at reducing tensions -White House
- US says move is not a prediction, it is prudent planning
WASHINGTON: The United States is telling its citizens to leave Lebanon and is deploying more military might in the Middle East as preventative and defensive measures, Jonathan Finer, White House National Security Council deputy adviser, said on Sunday.
“Our goal is de-escalation, our goal is deterrence, our goal is defense of Israel,” Finer said in an interview with CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
Regional tensions have soared following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ top leader, in Tehran on Wednesday, a day after an Israeli strike in Beirut killed Fuad Shukr, a senior military commander from the Lebanese group Hezbollah, which like Hamas is backed by Iran.
Suspected missile attack by Yemen’s Houthis hits container ship in first attack in 2 weeks
- The Houthis have offered no explanation for the two-week pause in their attacks on shipping through the Red Sea corridor
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: A suspected missile attack by Yemen’s Houthi struck a container ship traveling through the Gulf of Aden, authorities said Sunday, likely the first assault by the group since Israeli airstrikes targeted them.
The Houthis have offered no explanation for the two-week pause in their attacks on shipping through the Red Sea corridor, which have seen similar slowdowns since the assaults began in November over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
But the resumption comes after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran, the Houthis’ main benefactor, amid renewed concerns over the war breaking out into a regional conflict.
The attack on Saturday happened some 225 kilometers (140 miles) southeast of Aden in a stretch of the Gulf of Aden that has seen numerous Houthi attacks previously.
A security official on the vessel said a missile struck the vessel, but “no fires, water ingress or oil leaks have been observed,” according to a statement from the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center, a clearinghouse for information on attacks in the Mideast. The UKMTO did not immediately identify the vessel hit.
The private security firm Ambrey also reported the attack. Details reported by the two organizations suggested the vessel targeted was the Liberian-flagged container ship Groton, which had left Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates bound for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Groton’s Greek managers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Houthis did not immediately claim the attack Saturday. However, it can take the militia hours or even days before they acknowledge an assault.
The militia have targeted more than 70 vessels by firing missiles and drones in their campaign that have killed four sailors. They have seized one vessel and sunk two in the time since. Other missiles and drones have been either intercepted by a US-led coalition in the Red Sea or splashed down before reaching their targets.
The Houthis maintain that their attacks target ships linked to Israel, the United States or Britain as part of the militia’s campaign they say seeks to force an end to the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the war — including some bound for Iran.
The Houthis also have launched drones and missiles toward Israel, including an attack July 19 that killed one person and wounded 10 others in Tel Aviv. Israel responded the next day with airstrikes on the Houthi-held port city of Hodeida that hit fuel depots and electrical stations, killing and wounding a number of people, the Houthis say.
In the time since, there has not been a reported attack on shipping through the Red Sea corridor, which links Asia and the Middle East onto Europe through the Suez Canal. Since November, Houthi attacks have disrupted the $1 trillion flow of goods passing through the region annually while also sparking the most-intense combat the US Navy has seen since World War II.
The killing of Haniyeh in Tehran has sparked concerns of a new escalation in the Israel-Hamas war. Already, the US military says it will move a fighter jet squadron to the Middle East and keep an aircraft carrier in the region.
The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group will enter the Middle East to replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group, which is in the Gulf of Oman. Other ships are in the Mediterranean Sea with a Marine detachment if regional evacuations become necessary.
Meanwhile Saturday, the US military’s Central Command said its forces destroyed a Houthi missile and launcher in Yemen.
Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, which killed 1,200 people and saw 250 others taken hostage, sparked the war. In the time since, Israel has killed at least 39,550 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and 590 in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Palestinian health officials say.
Foreign nationals told to leave Lebanon
- France, Canada and Jordan were among the latest governments to issue calls for their citizens to leave Lebanon
- Several Western airlines have suspended flights to the region
BEIRUT: Urgent calls for foreign nationals to leave Lebanon grew on Sunday with France warning of “a highly volatile” situation as Iran and its allies ready their response to high-profile killings blamed on Israel.
Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah movement, which has traded near-daily fire with Israeli forces since the Gaza war broke out in October, announced its fighters had fired a barrage of rockets at Israel’s north overnight.
The Israeli military said 30 projectiles were launched from Lebanon, with most of them intercepted.
With Israel on high alert anticipating major military action from Tehran-aligned armed groups including Hezbollah and Hamas, medics and police said two people were killed on Sunday in a stabbing attack in a Tel Aviv suburb.
The assailant, a Palestinian from the occupied West Bank, was “neutralized” by police and taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Israeli forces meanwhile kept bombarding the Gaza Strip, witnesses and officials in the besieged Hamas-ruled territory said, with no end in sight to the nearly 10-month Israeli agression on Gaza.
France, Canada and Jordan were among the latest governments to issue calls for their citizens to leave Lebanon.
“In a highly volatile security context,” French nationals were “urgently asked” to avoid traveling to Lebanon, and those already in the country “to make their arrangements now to leave... as soon as possible,” the foreign ministry in Paris said.
The United States and Britain have issued similar warnings.
Several Western airlines have suspended flights to the region.
On Sunday Qatar Airways said that “in light of recent developments in Lebanon,” the Doha-Beirut route “will operate exclusively during daylight hours” at least until Monday.
The killing Wednesday of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, hours after the Israeli assassination of Hezbollah’s military chief in Beirut, has triggered vows of vengeance from Iran and the so-called “axis of resistance” of Tehran-backed armed groups.
Israel, accused by Hamas, Iran and others of carrying out the attack that killed Haniyeh, has not directly commented on it.
Israel’s agression on the Gaza strip has killed at least 39,550 people, according to the territory’s health ministry.
Haniyeh, Hamas’s political chief, was the group’s lead negotiator in efforts to end the war.
His killing raised questions about the continued viability of efforts by Qatari, Egyptian and US mediators to broker a truce and exchange of hostages and prisoners.
On the ground in Gaza, fighting continued on Sunday.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said eight bodies had been recovered from a residential building in north Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp after an Israeli air strike.
Medics at central Gaza’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital said at least five people were killed and 16 wounded in an Israeli drone strike on tents housing displaced Palestinians at the medical complex, with a separate attack on a house nearby in the same area killing three.
On Saturday, an Israeli strike on a school turned displacement shelter killed at least 17 people, the civil defense agency said. Israel claims the facility was used by militants.
An AFP correspondent reported Israeli air strikes and artillery shelling early Sunday in and around Gaza City, while witnesses said there was more shelling, gunfire and at least two air strikes on the territory’s south.
The Israeli military said its air forces had struck “approximately 50 terror targets throughout the Gaza Strip” in the past 24 hours.
Israeli ally the United States said it would move warships and fighter jets to the region to protect US personnel and defend Israel.
Analysts have told AFP that a joint but measured action from Iran and its allies was likely, while Tehran said it expects Hezbollah to hit deeper inside Israel and no longer be confined to military targets.
US President Joe Biden, asked by reporters if he thought Iran would stand down, said: “I hope so. I don’t know.”
On Sunday, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi will visit Tehran to meet his Iranian counterpart, his ministry said.
Haniyeh’s killing “has brought the Middle East to its moment of greatest peril in years,” the International Crisis Group (ICG) think tank said in a report issued on Saturday.
“The risk of a spiralling conflagration is high,” with the potential for a miscalculation that would trigger a war “without constraints... likely greater now than it was in April,” it added.
On April 13, Iran launched its first ever direct attack on Israeli soil, firing a barrage of drones and missiles — most of which were intercepted — after a strike killed Revolutionary Guards at Tehran’s consulate in Damascus.
The ICG said that securing “a long overdue ceasefire” in Gaza was “the best way of meaningfully reducing tensions in the region.”
Hamas officials but also some analysts as well as protesters in Israel have accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of prolonging the war to safeguard his ruling hard-right coalition.
On Sunday, Netanyahu told his cabinet he was “making every effort” to return the hostages and was prepared “to go a long way” to do so.
