(01-10-2024, 06:16 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: Iran’s leadership said deeply shaken, divided over response to Nasrallah’s killing
Conservatives want direct retaliation, while moderates — including president — prefer to avoid all-out war, as Supreme Leader Khamenei defers to proxies, officials tell NY Times.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/irans-lead...st_popular&utm_source=website&utm_medium=article_end&utm_content=2
Netanyahu rides wave of euphoria over assassinations as his political fortunes turn around. Mon September 30, 2024. On October 7, Israeli PM’s Benjamin Netanyahu’s self-styled image as “Mister Security” seemed irrevocably shattered by deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. Jewish homeland & leader had failed to protect people. How could he possibly survive?
The polls told us as much. He had formed an extremist coalition govt in November 2022 back by the 32 seats his Likud party secured in 120-seat Knesset. After Hamas’ attack, a string of opinion polls suggested elections held, Likud would get just 17 seats, putting the govt’s long-term survival in jeopardy.
Nearly a year later, Netanyahu has staged a remarkable turnaround. Likud would still struggle to form a govt were elections held today, a brutal campaign of airstrikes in Lebanon, assassinations across Middle East in recent weeks buoyed the prime minister to heights unimaginable immediate aftermath of Hamas’ attacks almost a year ago.
A poll released Sunday by Israel’s Channel 12 showed Likud would win 25 seats were elections to be held today, making it the largest party. Netanyahu enjoys 38% support, according survey.
“The regional confrontations are good for Netanyahu,” veteran pollster analyst Dahlia Scheindlin told CNN. “They seem quite clearly to be contributing factor to his recovery.”
Israel’s aggressive military maneuvers against its enemies, she said, have helped restored a sense of agency and strength destroyed by Hamas’ October 7 attack. War in Gaza is popular in Israel, but it brings with it complex questions around long-term occupation, relations with Palestinians, and most importantly for Israelis, the fact that 101 hostages are still held there. People attend a protest against the government and to show support for the remaining hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel on September 21.
People attend a protest against govt to show support for the remaining hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel on September 21. Amir Cohen/Reuters
Israel’s military attacks elsewhere are seen at home as more black & white. “It’s clear enemies of Israel,” she said, referring to those whom Israel says it is targeting. “There’s no ambiguity around this question of occupation, et cetera.”:The aggressive military campaign began in April, when an airstrike on Iran’s embassy complex in Syria killed top commander in Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards. Israel did not comment but that was followed by a July airstrike on Beirut that killed Hezbollah’s most senior military official, Fu’ad Shukr. The next day, an explosion in a Tehran government guest house killed Hamas’ political leader, Ismail Haniyeh.
Relentless bombing campaign
Earlier this month pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah in Lebanon exploded across the country, killing dozens and maiming thousands – marking a new phase in that conflict, which began when Hezbollah attacked Israel on October 8, in solidarity with Hamas and the Palestinians in Gaza. Around 60,000 civilians have since been forced from their northern Israeli homes by Hezbollah’s rocket attacks.
Israel has for weeks now operated a relentless bombing campaign across Lebanon against Hezbollah’s infrastructure and leadership. Massive airstrikes in southern Beirut have killed a string of Hezbollah leaders, including its elusive and powerful secretary-general, Hassan Nasrallah, as well as more than 1,000 people in Lebanon. It has also forced about 20% of the population – about 1 million people – from their homes, according to aid agencies and the Lebanese government.
A photo taken on September 18, 2024, in Beirut's southern suburbs shows the remains of exploded pagers on display at an undisclosed location. Hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded across Lebanon on September 17, killing at least nine people and wounding around 2,800 in blasts the Iran-backed militant group blamed on Israel. “I would like to congratulate the political echelon, led by the prime minister & minister who made the decision on the action in Lebanon,” Gantz said on Sunday. “Better late than never.”
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/09/30/middl...index.html