Rybar Live: Situation in the Middle East, June 15-16

Mikhail Zvinchuk, head of the Russian think tank Rybar:

«The crew of the Ukrainian dry cargo ship Verbena failed to cope with the fire and left the vessel. Earlier, the dry cargo ship had given a distress signal, but the Iranian Navy frigate Jamaran, which was nearby, did not respond to it»

Adding:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the dissolution (https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/jun/17/benjamin-netanyahu-dissolves-israel-war-cabinet) of the War Cabinet - an inter-ministerial body formed on October 11, 2023 to make decisions on the military operation in the Gaza Strip.

Earlier this year, the media reported that the structure was an "arena for settling scores and discussions that lead nowhere." And when major opposition politicians Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot left the War Cabinet last week, its dissolution became a matter of time.

This, among other things, is another blow to the current Israeli authorities and personally to Benjamin Netanyahu. Now the dissatisfied forces will have another reason to accuse the ultra-Orthodox government of being unable to cope with the situation, which will be another lever of pressure on them.

At the same time, the Palestinians are predictably using the incident for media purposes, presenting the collapse of the War Cabinet as their own victory and a sign of Israel's weakness.

#Israel #Palestine

@rybar