Apparently nobody really knows what 'the deal' contains
Israel’s Ben-Gvir pledges to keep ‘disrupting’ Netanyahu’s coalition
In a post on X, Israel’s far-right national security minister says he will continue to undermine Netanyahu’s fragile governing coalition until he sees the full details of a ceasefire plan currently under consideration.
Ben-Gvir, who has advocated for “resettling” Gaza, has repeatedly threatened to topple Netanyahu’s government if the PM agrees to any deal to end the war before defeating Hamas.
Netanyahu, for his part, has maintained that the prospective plan would enable Israel to complete its war aims, including “eliminating Hamas”, before reaching a final ceasefire.
But it’s unclear how this scenario would play out as the deal, as outlined by Biden, stipulates a six-week ceasefire in stage one and then negotiations for a permanent ceasefire in stage two.
Israeli court upholds 35-day ban on Al Jazeera operations in Israel
An Israeli court has upheld a 35-day ban on Al Jazeera operations in Israel imposed by the government on national security grounds. Communications Minister Shlomo Karh said he hoped to extend the ban for another 45 days when it runs out on Saturday.
Israeli authorities raided a Jerusalem hotel room used by Al Jazeera as its office on May 5 and said they were shutting the operation down for the duration of the Gaza war, accusing the broadcaster of encouraging hostilities against Israel.
Al Jazeera rejected the accusations as a “dangerous and ridiculous lie” that put its journalists at risk.
Wednesday’s court ruling retroactively approved a 35-day ban until June 8. Tel Aviv District Court Judge Shai Yaniv said he had been provided with evidence, which he did not specify, of a longstanding and close relationship between the Palestinian group Hamas and Qatari-backed broadcaster Al Jazeera, accusing the channel of promoting Hamas goals.
“Freedom of expression has an special importance during time of war. However, when there is significant harm to state security, the latter consideration comes first,” he wrote.
Arab League calls for ‘immediate and permanent cessation of Israeli war on Gaza’
The Arab League has also called for the entry of humanitarian aid to the besieged coastal enclave and an immediate start to rebuilding efforts, while working on creating an independent Palestinian state.
The organisation issued its statement on the 57th anniversary of the Naksa – the 1967 Israeli occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Gaza Strip, as well as the Syrian Golan Heights and the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula.
The league said that this year’s commemoration comes “amid a destructive war by Israel on the Palestinian people, especially in Gaza, where more than 2.3 million people are ‘subjected to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, in full view of the world'”.
It noted that Israeli is still carrying out “settlement policies, killings, arrests, house demolitions, and desecration of religious sanctities in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem”.
It also condemned “Israel’s refusal to comply with international law and resolutions that demand an end to the occupation and withdrawal from all occupied Palestinian and other Arab territories, and allow the creation of an independent Palestinian state” in accordance with international resolutions and the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative.
