A country at war on three fronts opened its polling stations this morning, on the date the law set for them. Other people have been working to that date as well. A UN commission made sure its report came out the day before, and a European diplomat has promised sanctions for the day after. Israel just kept the appointment.
Flash Brief: The Day in 90 Seconds or Less
Iran: The Mossad and Shin Bet chiefs reportedly backed a move on Iran before the vote, and Zamir resisted. See The War Today.
Nablus and Hebron: The army opens a several-day operation around Nablus as Israelis vote, and the government keeps it searching Hebron. See The War Today.
Hezbollah: Hezbollah rearms on tens of millions in Iranian cash, and the IDF says it killed a Hamas engineering commander. See The War Today.
The vote: Polls close at ten tonight for the 26th Knesset, and a reliable count isn't expected before Wednesday afternoon. See Inside Israel.
United Torah Judaism: A recording has MK Yaakov Tessler saying the party joins no government without a yeshiva exemption law. See Inside Israel.
The commission: A UN inquiry whose own commissioner said it never checked its civilian count files new charges against Israel. See Israel and the World.
Brazil: Lula wins Brazil's runoff, which keeps Latin America's biggest country out of the region's turn toward Israel. See Israel and the World.
Toronto: About a dozen shootings at Toronto synagogues, a school, and Jewish businesses appear to have been paid for by Iran. See Briefly Noted.
The BBC: The BBC pays Lucie Kon, an Oscar-winning Jewish producer, more than £400,000 to settle and admits nothing. See Israel and the World.
Classiq: Intel buys Tel Aviv's Classiq for $2.3 billion, the biggest quantum-computing deal anywhere. See Briefly Noted.
Saudi Arabia: American officials now need the embassy's sign-off to use a Saudi airport, and 86 percent of Riyadh's flights were cancelled this month. See Developments to Watch.
Most of the arguments running today are about what has to come first. United Torah Judaism wants its exemption law before there's a government to pass it. Both ceasefires put disarmament first, and in practice leave the IDF to collect it one engineer at a time. Even the count runs in an order, and the ballots of the reservists and evacuees who've carried this war get opened last.
The full brief — The War Today, Inside Israel, Israel and the World, Briefly Noted, and Developments to Watch — is on mitzpe.org for members. Membership comes through the Atlanta Israel Coalition.
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Also from Mitzpe:
The War With No Off Switch · Israel Brief
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