Demonstrators gathered in Jerusalem in front of the parliament and the residence of Benjamin Netanyahu, calling in particular for early elections. Thousands of Israelis demonstrated on Monday June 17 against the Prime Minister’s government, whom they criticize for its conduct of the war in Gaza, as well as its inability to negotiate the release of hostages still held in the Palestinian territory. Similar protests have brought together tens of thousands of people in Tel Aviv, Israel’s largest city, in recent weeks. Follow our live stream.
An American envoy to Israel for de-escalation with Lebanon. A US envoy arrived in Israel on Monday to press for de-escalation with Lebanon. Israel and Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, have exchanged cross-border fire almost daily since the Palestinian Islamist movement’s attack on Israel on October 7, which sparked the war in the Gaza Strip. The US president’s special envoy, Amos Hochstein, met Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Monday, days after Secretary of State Antony Blinken affirmed, during a tour of the Middle East, that a ceasefire in Gaza was the best way to end the violence between Hezbollah and Israel.
Benjamin Netanyahu dissolves the war cabinet. A spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister’s office confirmed the dissolution of the war cabinet created after the October 7 attack. This decision comes eight days after the resignation of centrist Benny Gantz, who was one of the pillars of the enlarged government formed following the Hamas raid in Israel. Israeli media reported earlier Monday that Benjamin Netanyahu announced the dissolution of this restricted group during a security cabinet meeting on Sunday. Follow our live stream.
Joe Biden is campaigning for a ceasefire in Gaza. The American president defended the ceasefire plan supported by his country in Gaza on Sunday in a message to Muslims for Eid al-Adha. This plan provides, in a first phase, a six-week ceasefire accompanied by an Israeli withdrawal from densely populated areas of the Gaza Strip, the release of certain hostages and the release of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. The United States is pressing Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas to formally accept the project, approved by the UN Security Council on June 10. Israel has not officially made its position known, while Hamas has demanded “amendments” to the plan, according to a source close to the discussions.
Relative calm in Gaza. The Gaza Strip experienced a day of relative calm on Sunday, after the Israeli army announced a pause in its operations along a road in the south of the Palestinian territory, where the UN fears widespread famine, to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid. On the first day of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, the territory bombarded by the Israeli army for more than eight months experienced a day “almost calm compared to previous days”declared Civil Defense spokesperson Mohamed Basal.
