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Speaking at an international summit in Greece, Defense Minister Benny Gantz recently revealed the existence of four Iranian military ships in the Red Sea.
According to Gantz, these four ships constitute the “most significant Iranian military presence in the area, in the past decade.”
Gantz continued by saying that the presence of the Islamic Republic in the Red Sea area is a threat to “international trade, energy supply, and the global economy,” as well as “peace and stability in the maritime arena.”
Israel’s defense minister also discussed Tehran’s recent testing of a satellite launcher, saying that the “test demonstrates that the Iranian regime has the capabilities to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles that may reach as far as the center of Europe.”
This expansion of Iran’s regional influence as well as concerns about its weapons development is leading to the development of closer ties between Israel and its Arab neighbors, all of whom view the Islamic Republic as a growing threat.
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One day following the US State Department’s announcement that it is likely that veteran Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh was killed in error by an Israeli soldier, State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters that the Biden Administration would like to see accountability for Abu Akleh’s death.
According to Price: “Our goal and the collective goal of the parties is to see to it that something akin to this, the killing of a journalist in a conflict zone, must not happen again. The IDF as a professional military outfit is in a position, or soon will be in a position, to consider steps to safeguard non-combatants.”
The State Department determined that Abu Akleh was likely unintentionally killed by an Israeli soldier, after experts had analyzed the bullet that killed her. However, US officials also stated that the bullet was too badly damaged to conclusively determine who fired the fatal shot.
Since Abu Akleh’s death, which occurred as she covered an Israeli operation in the terror hotspot of Jenin, members of the United States Security Coordinator team have conducted a non-criminal probe into the matter, reviewing Israeli and Palestinian investigations and also visiting the site of the gun battle.
Jerusalem asserts that it cannot determine who killed Abu Akleh while the Palestinian Authority maintains that she was deliberately killed by Israeli forces.
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Ben & Jerry’s has filed a lawsuit against its parent company, Unilever, following the latter’s decision to reach an agreement with the Israeli producer of the ice cream company that would allow for it to be sold in all Israeli communities, including those in eastern Jerusalem and the West Bank.
The lawsuit alleges that Unilever’s agreement with Avi Zinger and his company American Quality Products (AQP) breaches the terms of Unilever’s 2000 acquisition of Ben & Jerry’s.
The Vermont-based company is seeking an injunction against the agreement, as well as both damages and all the profits that Unilever will make from the deal.
Unilever’s recent agreement with AQP came in the wake of Ben & Jerry’s 2021 announcement that, beginning in 2023, it would not allow for Ben & Jerry’s to be sold in eastern Jerusalem and the West Bank, a move that was condemned in both Israel and the United States.
In response to the announcement, several states (including Texas, New York & Florida) had begun the process of divesting from Unilever.
Under the new agreement, AQP can continue to sell Ben & Jerry’s in any Israeli community but the label will only be written in Hebrew and Arabic, not English.
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Israel Defense Forces soldiers outside the community of Homesh in the Samaria region of the West Bank came under fire from a passing vehicle, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit announced on Tuesday.
Soldiers returned fire at the car as it drove away.
According to the Spokesperson’s Unit, “No IDF injuries were reported. The soldiers located bullet casings during searches of the area. Security forces are searching for the vehicle and suspects.”
In related security news, the IDF announced that it had uncovered a plot by Hamas to hack the phones of Israeli soldiers.
According to the IDF, Hamas operatives engage with Israeli soldiers on social media and then try to convince them to download a puzzle game. The game is a virus that gives the Gaza-based terrorist organization unfettered access to the soldiers’ phones.
This is the latest attempt by Hamas to infiltrate the phones of IDF soldiers, with the US-designated terror group having previously tried to engage soldiers romantically using fake social media profiles.
The cyber threat posed by Hamas and other terror organizations has led to the creation of an Israeli army monitoring center that is responsible for detecting and exposing a variety of threats against IDF soldiers and assets.
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Prime Minister Yair Lapid held talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Tuesday, during which they discussed the threat from Iran, tensions between Lebanon and Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Following their meeting, both Lapid and Macron spoke to reporters outside the Elysee Palace, with Macron vowing to fight terror and urging Lapid to seek a solution to the Palestinian issue.
In response, Lapid thanked Macron for fighting antisemitism in both France and around the world.
The Israeli premier went on to condemn Iran for hiding aspects of its nuclear program and also asserted Israel’s right to defend itself against all threats.
Lapid added: “Values are worth fighting for…Not only does democracy protect us, but we must also protect democracy.”
Lapid’s visit to France was his first international trip abroad since becoming Israel’s caretaker prime minister following the dissolution of the Knesset on June 30.
Recommended Reading
- In Highland Park’s Jewish Community, Few Are Untouched by Deadly Mass Shooting (Leslie Hirschfeld and Andrew Lapin, Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
- The Influencers Fighting for Israel on the Digital Battlefield (Gina Raphael, Jewish News Syndicate)
- The Next Frontier for Arab-Israeli Normalization (Elie Kirshenbaum, Israel Hayom)
- Via Air Mail: Israel Launches Drop-Off Points for Drones (Simona Shemer, NoCamels)
- Buckle up for the Return of the Pixies to Israel (Eliot Zimelman, Jerusalem Post)
