The Times of Israel is liveblogging Sunday’s events as they happen.
Jordan slams Israel over shortened approval process for settlement construction
The Jordanian foreign ministry slams Israel’s government for okaying a decision shortening the approval process for West Bank settlement construction.
A ministry spokesman denounces settlements as illegal under international law and as an impediment to a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.
‘Stand behind every word’: Distel Atbaryan says after heated exchange with Gamliel
Public Diplomacy Minister Galit Distel Atbaryan defends her comments against Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel at the cabinet meeting, after it was widely reported she told her “bit me, you retard.”
“Gila Gamliel was late for the cabinet meeting — as usual. Then she started to scream and shout at us because we’re all slouches and only she has solutions — as usual. And she tried to undermine and sow tension between the coalition leaders — as usual,” Distel Atbaryan claims in a tweet.
She then alleges Gamliel “blew up the meeting exactly like she blew up [the Likud] faction meeting last week by screaming and slamming the door dramatically.”
“When I told her (without yelling but definitely in a loud voice) that she’s a thorn in the coalition’s side and her conduct is pathetic, she suddenly started screeching that I was cursing her and even briefing reporters…” Distel Atbaryan adds.
“So yeah, I stand behind every word I said: Gila Gamliel is a thorn in the coalition’s side and her behavior is embarrassing (and troubling) to say the least.”
Distel Atbaryan doesn’t address calling her fellow Likud member a “retard.”
Gamliel has yet to publicly comment on the exchange.
Gallant speaks with German defense chief about Arrow 3 purchase
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant speaks with his German counterpart, Boris Pistorius, after the Bundestag approved an advance payment for the purchase of Israel’s Arrow 3 missile defense system last week.
According to a Defense Ministry readout, Gallant congratulated Pistorius over the green light given by the budget committee in the lower house of the German parliament for an initial payment of 560 million euros.
“During the conversation, the defense minister and his German counterpart discussed strengthening the security relations between the two countries and agreed to meet soon to discuss deepening cooperation,” Gallant’s office says.
Germany will pay some four billion euros ($4.3 billion) for the Arrow 3, Israel’s most advanced long-range missile defense system, meant to intercept ballistic missiles while they are still outside of the Earth’s atmosphere.
As the system was co-developed with the United States, the export process to Germany is contingent on Washington’s approval . The Defense Ministry says it is currently in talks with the American government to get the okay.
Public diplomacy minister tells fellow Likud member to ‘bite me, retard’ at cabinet meeting
Public Diplomacy Minister Galit Distel Atbaryan reportedly called Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel “a retard” during a heated exchange at today’s cabinet meeting.
Hebrew media says the shouting match began when Distel Atbaryan told Gamliel to “sit quietly” after the latter spoke up in support of Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter. Dichter was complaining that the coalition deals between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party and the far-right Otzma Yehudit faction were harming his ministerial work.
Dichter, Gamliel and Distel Atbaryan are all members of Likud.
“Excuse me, don’t get involved at all,” Gamliel retorted.
In response, Distel Atbaryan is widely quoted saying, “Bite me, you retard. No one in Likud likes you.”
Gamliel then said she wanted that in writing, whereupon Distel Atbaryran reportedly continued to berate her.
Palestinians to boycott meeting tomorrow over Israeli settlement decision
PA Civil Affairs Minister Hussein al-Sheikh says the Palestinians will boycott a planned economic meeting with Israel tomorrow over the government’s approval of a measure shortening the approval process for West Bank settlement construction.
Al-Sheikh, a top aide to PA President Mahmoud Abbas, adds in a tweet that Palestinian leaders “will study a number of other measures and decisions for implementation related to the relationship with Israel.”
The meeting of the Joint Economic Committee, which hadn’t been previously announced, would’ve been the first time it has convened since 2009.
After the decision of the #Israeli government to accelerate the stages of settlement growth in the West Bank, and to authorize its Minister of Finance, Smotrich, to ratify this. We decided to boycott the meeting of the Joint Economic Committee #JEC between the two parties, which… https://t.co/Me9egi9b3t
— حسين الشيخ Hussein AlSheikh (@HusseinSheikhpl) June 18, 2023
PM: Israel to develop Gaza offshore gas field in coordination with Egypt, PA
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces that Israel will work to develop a natural gas field off the coast of the Gaza Strip, a proposal that has been repeatedly floated for more than two decades.
A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office declares that as part of a “framework of existing efforts” between Israel, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority, the government is moving forward with developing the “Gaza Marine gas field off the coast of Gaza.”
The move is seen as a olive branch to the Palestinians and, if carried out, is expected to bring in billions of shekels to the PA. The Prime Minister’s Office says it’s pursuing the plan with an emphasis “on Palestinian economic development and maintaining security stability in the region.”
The statement says that the project is “subject to coordination between the security services and direct dialogue with Egypt, in coordination with the PA.”
Suspected IS sympathizers arrested for plotting attack on Vienna’s Pride parade
BERLIN — Austrian authorities say they’ve foiled a possible attack on Vienna’s Pride parade by three young men who allegedly sympathize with the extremist Islamic State group.
The head of Austria’s domestic intelligence service tells reporters that the suspects, aged 14, 17 and 20, were arrested before the start of the yesterday’s Pride parade, which was attended by around 300,000 people, public broadcaster ORF reported.
Omar Haijawi-Pirchner from the State Protection and Intelligence Directorate says there’s “no danger for the participants of the parade at any time.”
The intelligence service had received advance knowledge of the suspects’ alleged plans, kept them “under constant control,” and arrested them on the orders of the St. Poelten public prosecutor’s office following house searches that uncovered various evidence, including weapons, ORF reports.
The three suspects, Austrian citizens of Bosnian and Chechen origin, whose identities aren’t further revealed, had radicalized online and sympathized with the Islamic State group, Haijawi-Pirchner says.
One of the suspects was known to police, he adds.
The trio was arrested before the start of the parade by Austria’s Cobra special forces.
The organizer of the Pride parade was only informed today about the events. The organizers did not want to create panic among the participants, especially since the police raid had already taken place, according to ORF.
Ministers back bill to monitor domestic abusers after sinking similar opposition measure
The government approves an updated version of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s bill to electronically monitor domestic abusers, three months after tanking a similar proposal put forward by the opposition.
The bill would enable the court to order electronic tracking of domestic violence suspects and perpetrators after risk assessments are conducted, but only if there is a previous conviction or open indictment. However, the bill provides an exception for an urgent risk of danger in the absence of monitoring, to be determined by a judge.
Ben Gvir slammed the March opposition bill as failing to adequately protect men, and says on Sunday that his draft “will balance the vital need to fight domestic violence and prevent violence with our duty to protect against false complaints and accusations and preserve the freedom of the innocent.”
“Unlike the previous government that did not implement the law, our government will do so – but we’ll bring a more precise and better law,” he adds.
Cabinet okays measure shortening approval process to build in West Bank settlements
The government approves a resolution aimed at shortening the approval process for construction in West Bank settlements, slashing the number of a times a project must be authorized to be shovel-ready.
The measure also will hand Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who heads the far-right Religious Zionism party and is also a minister in the Defense Ministry, control over one of the two stages that will now make up the approval process.
The vote comes ahead of a planned vote next week to approve several thousand new settlement homes.
