Israeli lawmakers have voted to advance a bill that would dissolve parliament and pave the way for early elections. In a preliminary reading on Wednesday, 110 out of 120 lawmakers voted in favour and none against, while the rest did not cast their votes. The bill will now pass to a committee before three more parliamentary readings. If it receives final approval, a process that could take weeks, it would trigger an election within 90 days.
Israel's ruling coalition has submitted a call for an early election following continued fractures from government allies over the issue of ultra-Orthodox conscription. If the vote passes in the Knesset next week, as expected, then a general election will be held within 90 days of its passage projected for the third week of August; two months before the mandated end of the government's current term on October 27.
The president ... should give Bibi the pardon today. I don't want anything on Bibi's mind other than fighting against Iran. Tell him I am exposing him. That president better damn well give him the pardon right now - and stop using it as leverage for his own political career.
Audio of the former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak speaking to Jeffrey Epstein, the now deceased convicted sex offender, has shone a light on Israel's efforts to alter demographics by diluting the Palestinian population it occupies and also revealed ingrained racism within Jewish circles. Barak told Epstein that he had told Russian President Vladimir Putin that Israel needs one million Russian-speaking immigrants to absorb, as the authorities can be more selective and can control the quality much more effectively compared to the past.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Security Cabinet, has slammed US President Donald Trump's new peace plan, calling it "a resounding diplomatic failure." In an extensive post on X, Smotrich referenced the 2023 Hamas-led attacks that sparked the current war in Gaza, accusing Trump and Netanyahu of "turning our backs on all the lessons of October 7." He blasted the plan as "a tragedy of leadership fleeing from the truth." "In my estimation, it will also end in tears. Our children will be forced to fight in Gaza again," said Smotrich, the leader of the hardline, ultra-nationalist National Religious Party-Religious Zionism.
And yet this powerful and complex documentary, directed by Brandon Kramer (a distant relative of some of the people involved) and co-produced by Darren Aronofsky, is a reminder that the situation now can't be understood without remembering the Hamas massacre how it was calculated to provoke a rage-filled reaction that would discredit Israel internationally, what it meant and continues to mean within Israel and how the political and ideological connotations of the hostages have themselves evolved.
The killing has never stopped, while Israel is preparing for the next stage of the war to annihilate Hamas. Most Israelis are self-immunised to the horrors being endured by Palestinians in Gaza.
Evyatar David appeared in a video released by Hamas, showing signs of severe malnutrition. He expressed his despair about his future, stating, 'Today is 27 July, at 12pm, I don't know what I'm going to eat. I haven't eaten for a few days in a row.' His condition was alarming, and the video sparked outrage in Israel.
Ehud Olmert described the proposed humanitarian city on the ruins of Rafah as a concentration camp, stating that forcing Palestinians inside would constitute ethnic cleansing.
"Despite initial hesitation, Trump now appears to be following Netanyahu's lead towards a protracted war, neglecting the opportunity for diplomatic negotiations with Iran."
