Israel plans take over of Gaza, US claims Houthis 'surrender' after airport bombing: Everything you need to know this Wednesday
Want to get the Morning Brief by email? Click here to sign up.Catch up on yesterday's live coverage.Wednesday, May 7, 2025.Compiled by Abbas Mahfouz. Some key things to watch today:Updates on India-Pakistan conflict, following overnight surge of violence between the two nuclear-power nations.9:30 a.m. - 12 p.m. Parliamentary sessions including by the National Economy, Industry, Trade and Planning Committee, National Education, Higher Education and Culture Committee, Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Committee, the Finance and Budget Committee and the fact-finding committee of Public Works, Transport, Energy and Water.10 a.m. Telecommunications Minister Charles Hajj toured a number of Alfa, Touch and Ogero transmission stations in southern Lebanon that were damaged by the Israeli aggression.11 a.m. Press conference by the...
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Cedar News
an hour ago
- Cedar News
Judge BLOCKS Trump administration from deporting the family of Mohamed Soliman
A Colorado federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump admin. from deporting the family of the man charged with fire-bombing 12 people at an event in support of Israeli hostages — wife and children were taken into custody by immigration authorities (following NYT report on…
Ya Libnan
5 hours ago
- Ya Libnan
Pressure mounts on Netanyahu as opposition moves to dissolve parliament
By Alexander Cornwell A member of Israel's right-wing coalition threatened to quit the cabinet on Wednesday and support an opposition motion to dissolve parliament tabled for next week, piling pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Latest opinion polls suggest that Netanyahu's coalition would lose power if an election was held today, with many voters unhappy over the continued war in Gaza prompted by the attack by Hamas militants on southern Israel in October 2023. United Torah Judaism, one of two ultra-Orthodox parties in the coalition, said it would withdraw from the government unless it secured last-minute concessions formalising an exemption for ultra-Orthodox men from military service. The opposition party Yesh Atid, led by former prime minister Yair Lapid, put forward a parliamentary vote for next week to topple the government, even as the Israeli army continues battling Hamas in the Gaza Strip. It would require the support of 61 out of the 120 members of the parliament to succeed. 'This Knesset (parliament) is finished. It has nowhere to go,' Lapid said. Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, has remained silent on the looming crisis. A spokesperson for United Torah Judaism leader Yitzhak Goldknopf told Reuters the party would vote in favour of dissolving parliament unless exemption legislation was passed. With a week until the vote, Netanyahu and his allies still have time to negotiate over an issue that has dogged the coalition for months. A source close to the government said, on condition of anonymity, that negotiations within the coalition were continuing. Netanyahu's coalition of secular right-wing and ultra-Orthodox parties holds an 8-seat majority in parliament. United Torah Judaism has 7 seats while its ally, Shas, the other ultra-Orthodox party, has 11. BETTING ON A BLUFF The coalition is sharply divided over whether young ultra-Orthodox men who are studying in religious seminaries should be exempt from mandatory military service. Failing to pass an exemption risks a walkout by ultra-Orthodox lawmakers, while approving it could trigger a protest exit by secular parties. Coalition member Ohad Tal of Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party criticized Goldknopf for threatening to trigger elections and called on the ultra-Orthodox lawmaker to resign. He urged others to negotiate a new arrangement but that a blanket exemption from military service could no longer stand. Former Knesset member Ofer Shelah said Netanyahu was likely betting the ultra-Orthodox lawmakers were bluffing, given the polls suggested they faced defeat in any early election. In March, ultra-Orthodox lawmakers threatened to bring down the government over the same issue, but time passed without any action. Resentment over the informal exemption given to religious seminary students is growing and lawmakers from the ruling coalition and opposition ranks say it is no longer tenable. Netanyahu won election in 2022 and does not have to return to the polls until 2026. Historically, few Israeli governments serve a full term. He has faced widespread criticism for failing to prevent the surprise October 2023 Hamas attack that killed roughly 1,200 people, and is facing growing calls from protesters and families of hostages still held in Gaza to end the war to secure their release. But some in his coalition say the war must continue until Hamas is eradicated. Political analysts say that the ultra-Orthodox lawmakers could simply quit the government to protest their failure to secure concessions, without toppling the ruling coalition
Al Manar
5 hours ago
- Al Manar
Pressure Mounts on Netanyahu as Opposition Moves to Dissolve
A member of Israeli right-wing coalition threatened to quit the cabinet on Wednesday and support an opposition motion to dissolve Knesset tabled for next week, piling pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Latest opinion polls suggest that Netanyahu's coalition would lose power if an election was held today, with many voters unhappy over the continued war in Gaza. United Torah Judaism, one of two ultra-Orthodox parties in the coalition, said it would withdraw from the government unless it secured last-minute concessions formalizing an exemption for ultra-Orthodox men from military service. The opposition party Yesh Atid, led by former prime minister Yair Lapid, put forward a parliamentary vote for next week to topple the government. It would require the support of 61 out of the 120 members of the parliament to succeed. 'This Knesset (parliament) is finished. It has nowhere to go,' Lapid said. A spokesperson for United Torah Judaism leader Yitzhak Goldknopf told Reuters the party would vote in favor of dissolving parliament unless exemption legislation was passed. With a week until the vote, Netanyahu and his allies still have time to negotiate over an issue that has dogged the coalition for months. A source close to the government said, on condition of anonymity, that negotiations within the coalition were continuing. Netanyahu's coalition of secular right-wing and ultra-Orthodox parties holds an 8-seat majority in parliament. United Torah Judaism has 7 seats while its ally, Shas, the other ultra-Orthodox party, has 11. The coalition is sharply divided over whether young ultra-Orthodox men who are studying in religious seminaries should be exempt from mandatory military service. Failing to pass an exemption risks a walkout by ultra-Orthodox lawmakers, while approving it could trigger a protest exit by secular parties. Coalition member Ohad Tal of Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party criticized Goldknopf for threatening to trigger elections and called on the ultra-Orthodox lawmaker to resign. He urged others to negotiate a new arrangement but that a blanket exemption from military service could no longer stand. Former Knesset member Ofer Shelah said Netanyahu was likely betting the ultra-Orthodox lawmakers were bluffing, given the polls suggested they faced defeat in any early election. In March, ultra-Orthodox lawmakers threatened to bring down the government over the same issue, but time passed without any action. Resentment over the informal exemption given to religious seminary students is growing and lawmakers from the ruling coalition and opposition ranks say it is no longer tenable. Netanyahu won election in 2022 and does not have to return to the polls until 2026. Historically, few Israeli governments serve a full term. He has faced widespread criticism for failing to prevent the surprise October 2023 Hamas attack that killed roughly 1,200 settlers, and is facing growing calls from protesters and families of hostages still held in Gaza to end the war to secure their release. But some in his coalition say the war must continue until Hamas is eradicated. Political analysts say that the ultra-Orthodox lawmakers could simply quit the government to protest their failure to secure concessions, without toppling the ruling coalition.
