„Israeli leaders have a long tradition of visiting Washington. President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu have known each other for a long, long time. I expect the prime minister will visit at some point,“White House national security spokesman John Kirby said told reporters in May.
Netanyahu‘s visit to the American capital would also coincide with a push by the Biden Administration to push through a normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Speaking to Israel’s public broadcasting station Kan, Amiram Levin, former head of the Israeli army’s Northern Command, said that “there hasn’t been a democracy there in 57 years, there is total apartheid.” According to Levin, “the IDF, which is forced to exert sovereignty there, is rotting from the inside. It’s standing by, looking at the settler rioters and is beginning to be a partner to war crimes. These are deep processes.”
When asked to elaborate on the specific “processes,” Levin invoked Nazi Germany. “It’s hard for us to say it, but it’s the truth. Walk around Hebron, look at the streets. Streets where Arabs are no longer allowed to go on, only Jews. That’s exactly what happened there, in that dark country.”
Levin, who at various times headed the IDF Northern Command, commanded the elite Sayeret Matkal unit and served as deputy director of the Mossad spy agency, accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of wanting to hand the country over to criminals.
“Bibi wants to give the keys to the country to a group of awful ministers, some of whom are convicted criminals and draft dodgers, to ministers who encourage massacring Palestinians subject to our rule, to a racist minister who loots the state budget and blocks funds for Arabs, just because they are Arabs. To a justice minister who wants one branch of government and no independent judiciary,”
At the main Kaplan Street protest in Tel Aviv, former Israeli General, Amiram Levin called on defense leaders to stand up to Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who “are trying to drag you into war crimes.”
“If the terrible moment comes when you will be required to decide between the court and a government of criminals – Choose democracy! We will all stand behind you, fearlessly and unreservedly,” said Levin.
The primary challenge for Ukrainian forces is the continued difficulty of breaking through Russia’s multi-layered defensive lines in the eastern and southern parts of the country, which are marked by tens of thousands of mines and vast networks of trenches. Ukrainian forces have incurred staggering losses there, leading Ukrainian commanders to hold back some units to regroup and reduce casualties.
“Russians have a number of defensive lines and they [Ukrainian forces] haven’t really gone through the first line,” said a senior Western diplomat.
(August 10, 2023)
In Smila, a small city in central Ukraine, baker Alla Blyzniuk, 42, said she sells sweets for funeral receptions daily as parents prepare to bury their children killed on the front hundreds of miles away. (…)
Blyzniuk also lives in fear that her husband or two sons of fighting age will be mobilized. She has already noticed that far fewer men walk the streets of her city than before. Ukraine does not disclose its military casualty counts, but everyone shares stories, she said, of new soldiers at the front lasting just two to three days.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukraine “attempted to conduct a terrorist strike on the Crimean Bridge using a guided air-defense S-200 missile converted into a strike version” around 1pm Moscow time on August 12.
(12 May 2023)
Manufacturer MBDA says the Storm Shadow has a range of more than 150 miles, giving Kyiv the ability to strike behind the Russian front line.
Britain is understood to have received assurances that the missiles will only be used defensively against targets in Ukrainian territory being occupied by Vladimir Putin’s forces.
The Government has not provided detail on the number of missiles to be provided to Kyiv.
(May 11, 2023)
Wallace told lawmakers in the House of Commons that Britain is donating Storm Shadow missiles, which have a range of more than 155 miles. He didn‘t say how many are being sent. (…)
The missiles give Ukraine capacity to strike well behind the front lines, including in Russia-occupied Crimea. U.K. media reported that Ukraine has pledged not to use the missiles to attack Russia itself. (…)
He said U.K. officials would not comment publicly on whether Britain had placed any limitations on the missiles‘ use.
(Aug 8, 2023)
Analysts have been suggesting ATACMS would soon appear in U.S. Defense Department military aid packages, after the U.K. announced in May it was sending its long-range Storm Shadow, or SCALP, missiles.
ATACMS have a slightly longer range than the Storm Shadow, althoug there is some debate among experts about the true range of the air-launched cruise missiles.
(Aug 8, 2023)
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is facing mounting pressure to supply Ukraine with cruise missiles to enhance its counteroffensive against Russian forces.