Washington - Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The United States has agreed to provide Israel with a new package of destructive weapons, according to Yedioth Ahronoth.
The package includes 3,000 new American munitions, in addition to 10,000 munitions that President Donald Trump had temporarily frozen after taking office.
This package aims to "enhance the Israeli Air Force's readiness to carry out a major operation in Gaza or Iran," according to the Hebrew newspaper.
This comes amid a complex regional and domestic situation in Israel, as Benjamin Netanyahu's government has recently faced a wave of protests within the military establishment calling for a refusal to fight and a deal with Hamas to release prisoners. According to the Brussels-based Euronews website, the protests were sparked by a petition signed by hundreds of soldiers in the Air Force, which includes elite fighters. The "contagion" later spread to the intelligence branch, paratrooper units, infantry units, and others.
In the same context, Yedioth Ahronoth reported that more than 200 soldiers, including fighters from the Navy's Shayetet 13 unit and some in compulsory service, signed a petition demanding the return of all prisoners, even if it meant stopping the war.
Despite IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir's approval of the dismissal of some reservists who signed the petition, and the Prime Minister's threat of a similar fate for anyone who refuses military service, the protests continue, increasing the uncertainty surrounding the situation.
In a related development, Israel's Kan Channel reported on Sunday that Israeli Air Force Commander Tomer Bar had made a "secret" visit to the United States in recent days, where he held meetings at the Pentagon before news of the weapons package emerged.
The timing of the release of the frozen package is of additional importance. The shadow of the Iranian-American negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program remained. Trump's resumption of his threat to resort to military force if the Islamic Republic did not sign the agreement was striking, after hours earlier describing the talks as "constructive." The White House chief emphasized that the negotiations must proceed "quickly," adding, "If we have to take very tough action, we will."