The cease-fire between Israel and the PIJ over Gaza, which took effect at 11:30 p.m. local time (4:30 p.m. ET) on Sunday, appeared to be being observed almost 24 hours later. The conflict has left at least 44 militants and civilians dead in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Fifteen of the dead were children. Israel insists that most of those killed were militants and that several civilians were killed by misfired rockets fired by militants. Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, has expressed support for the PIJ’s actions. But it did not bring its much larger and more powerful missile arsenal into the equation, while the Israeli military made it clear from the start that it was solely focused on PIJ targets.
This prevented the conflict from escalating into a larger, more dangerous confrontation closer to what happened during the 11-day war in May 2021.
So why not get involved? According to analysts and Israeli officials, one of the reasons is the fact that only 15 months have passed since the 2021 conflict, which caused significant damage and death in Gaza. Palestinians there are still rebuilding their homes and Hamas is rebuilding its arsenal.
The Israeli government also believes that its economic stimulus campaign – increasing the number of permits given to Gazans to cross into Israel for work – has been successful.
Israel and Egypt have imposed a closure on Gaza since 2007, restricting access to the territory by land, air and sea, including strict restrictions on the movement of residents and the flow of goods.
If rockets are fired, Israel closes the border and the thousands of Gazans with permits cannot work in Israel or receive wages.
On Monday, a senior Israeli diplomatic official said Hamas was “an enemy, not a partner … but there is cooperation that we can do, primarily through Egypt, to improve the situation in Gaza.”
Hamas will expect to be rewarded for its restraint.
Lapid’s first major security test
The weekend conflict was also the first major military test for interim Prime Minister Yair Lapid. Unlike his predecessor Naftali Bennett, Lapid is not known for his military combat experience. But like US President Joe Biden’s visit last month, it was another moment for Lapid to look like a real prime minister — images Lapid likely hopes Israelis will remember as they go to vote in November.
The conflict also led to another breakthrough, albeit on a slightly smaller scale: former prime minister, now opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu met with Lapid on Sunday to receive a security briefing on the operation. It was his first security briefing since leaving office – although by law it should be standard practice. Until this weekend, Netanyahu boycotted the meetings.
After the meeting, Netanyahu said he supported the operation and gave “full support to the government, the IDF and the security forces.”
Parts of Gaza are once again in ruins and the mourning for the lives lost continues, but for ordinary Israelis and Gazans, the conflict has not brought about a significant change in the political situation on the ground.
The digest
Russia’s envoy to Iran nuclear talks says they are ‘moving in right direction’
Ambassador Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s chief negotiator in Vienna for talks aimed at reviving the Iran nuclear deal, told the media on Sunday: “I cannot guarantee [anything]but the impression is that we are moving in the right direction.” He said there were “minimal” outstanding issues, “only 3 [or] 4.”
- Background: Tehran has increased uranium enrichment at a pace not seen since the signing of the nuclear deal in 2015. Former US President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018. In June, Iran turned off surveillance cameras used by the International Atomic Energy Agency for monitoring the activity in the key nuclear facilities in the country. Sunday marked the fourth day of this latest round – the ninth – of talks on Iran’s nuclear program.
- Why it matters: The talks broke down earlier this year because of Tehran’s insistence that the US remove the Revolutionary Guards from its list of terrorist organizations, which the US has refused to do. However, the US has sent a special envoy for Iran, Rob Malley, to Vienna for the new round of talks, and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said last Monday that the US was “ready to move forward based on what was agreed”, but it was unclear whether Iran was ready to the same.
Putin and Erdogan agreed to begin partial payment in rubles for Russian gas
Bilateral talks in Sochi between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan included an agreement to pay Russia in rubles for partial gas supplies. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said the two presidents had reached agreements to create a financial banking bloc “to enable commercial companies, Russian citizens, to pay during tourist trips and exchange money.”
- Background: Russia is trying to force its customers to pay for energy in rubles. President Vladimir Putin signed a decree in March requiring buyers of natural gas from “hostile countries” to have accounts at Gazprombank – Russia’s third-largest bank – and to settle contracts in rubles.
- Why it matters: Russia is on a mission to prove it’s not as isolated as the US would like it to be. The tightening of relations between Putin and Erdogan could provide Russia with ways to ease the pressure of Western sanctions on the country. The ruble fell to a record low as a result of the invasion, but is the world’s best-performing currency this year, according to Reuters. The central bank has implemented policies to prevent investors and companies from selling the currency and other measures to force them to buy it.
The Iranian city reached 53 degrees Celsius, the hottest temperature in the world this year
Abadan, Iran, had a high temperature of 53.0° C (127.4° F) on Friday – the highest temperature recorded anywhere in the world in 2022, according to weather historian Maximiliano Herrera.
- Background: Many places in Iran, Iraq and Kuwait exceeded 50 degrees Celsius on Friday. Temperatures were expected to drop closer to average after the weekend, with highs in the mid to upper 40s. The highest temperature ever recorded in the world was 56.7° C (134.1° F) in Death Valley, California on July 10, 1913.
- Why it matters: Heat of this caliber raises serious concerns about heat-related illnesses, especially for those without access to water and proper shelter, and is likely to strengthen the case for action on climate change.
What’s trending
Kuwait: #Increasing_salaries_is_public_demand
Citizens of one of the richest Arab countries are demanding higher wages.
Kuwaitis have taken to Twitter to express their frustration with the country’s economic situation, blaming corruption and greed for alleged pay inequality.
Kuwaiti nationals are a minority in the country of 4.2 million, making up just 30% of the population, according to the World Population Survey. Most rely on government jobs to make ends meet.
“It is unthinkable that a rich country like Kuwait has a small population and the strongest currency in the world [wouldn’t raise wages]” tweeted Mohammed Al Huwaisheel. “The demands of the people must be met without conditions.”
Many Kuwaitis take government jobs – where pay can be up to 28% higher than in the private sector – because they either lack the skills needed to work in the private sector or because some of these jobs are considered mundane, according to Middle East institute. Because of the benefits offered in government jobs, the private sector finds it difficult to attract Kuwaitis. According to the International Monetary Fund, public wages and benefits account for a third of the government’s budget. The government earmarked $72 billion in spending in its latest budget.
The World Bank warned in December that government wages were unsustainable, saying that if the situation continued, the country’s financial reserves would be depleted. The nation has made the least progress among the oil-rich Gulf Arab states to reform its wages and has even increased hiring, it said.
Another hashtag on Twitter called for the government to write off citizens’ debts, which is not without precedent. After the Gulf War ended in 1991, the government wrote off almost all consumer debt.
By Mohammed Abdelbari
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