News: Former PM Blair steps down as the Quartet Envoy in the Middle East. (Reuters/New York Times/AFP/JTA/The National) Pres. Rivlin challenges a longstanding taboo on talks with Hamas, saying he favors dialogue with everybody. (AFP/Ha’aretz/Times of Israel) FM Fabius says he will visit the region in order to try pushing the French proposal for the relaunch of peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. (Times of Israel/Reuters/Jerusalem Post) EU Foreign Policy Chief Mogherini says violence is inevitable without peace talks. (Times of Israel/AFP) Palestinians refuse to back down on a threatened vote to suspend Israel from FIFA after talks with Pres. Blatter. (AFP/Times of Israel) Hamas criticizes the “politicized and biased” Amnesty International report. (Times of Israel/Jerusalem Post) A Swedish company was reportedly used to cover up the sale and transfer of a West Bank church compound to settlers funded by an American millionaire. (Ma’an) Christian schools in Israel accuse the government of cutting their funding as a pressure tactic to get them join the Israeli public school system. (AP) Israeli authorities leave posters in a town in occupied East Jerusalem notifying owners that the property is needed for urgent military purposes. (Ma’an) Sen. Graham vows “violent pushback” to protect Israel in the UN. (Ha’aretz) A new website is publicizing the identities of pro-Palestinian student activists to prevent them from getting jobs after they graduate from college. (Ha’aretz) ISIS posts photographs online which it said were taken in Palmyra and appeared to show its ancient ruins unharmed. (Reuters) The leader of the Nusra Front says his group was focused on capturing Damascus. (Reuters/AP) A campaign led by Shi'ite paramilitaries to drive ISIS from Iraq's Sunni heartland was rebranded after criticism that the name chosen for the push was overtly sectarian. (Reuters) Def. Sec. Carter is seeking ways to improve and speed up the program to train and equip Iraqi forces. (AP) The World Health Organization says 8.6 million people, or about a third of the country’s population, are in “urgent need of medical help.” (New York Times) Saudi Arabia designates two senior officials of Hezbollah as terrorists. (Reuters) France warns it is ready to block a final deal between Iran and the P5+1 unless Tehran provided inspectors access to all installations, including military sites. (Reuters/New York Times) The Obama administration's lead nuclear negotiator Sherman is leaving her post this summer. (AP/New York Times/Ha’aretz) Sec. Kerry will address AJC’s annual Washington conference just weeks before a deadline on an Iran nuclear deal. (JTA) Commentary: The National says in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, innocent Gazans are caught in the crossfire. (The National) Akiva Eldar says PM Netanyahu “zig-zags” on the two-state solution. (Al-Monitor) Ha’aretz says both the Israeli army and Shin Bet are in favor of issuing more work permits for the people of Gaza. (Ha’aretz) Ron Ben-Yishai says the recent rocket fire challenges Israeli and Hamas leaderships. (Ynet) Ben Sales looks at how the FIFA corruption scandal can affect Israel. (JTA) Michael Young writes about the possible consequences of Pres. Obama's failures in Syria while chasing a deal with Iran. (The National) Phillip Smyth says the Syrian regime is gearing up for a counteroffensive that relies on Iran’s money and Shiite foreign fighters to push back against ISIS. (Foreign Policy) Joyce Karam says Hezbollah must change its goals and scope of its mission in Syria if it wants to spare itself from turning this into a quagmire. (Al Arabiya) John McLaughlin explains how ISIS could win. (Washington Post) Faisal Al Yafai says America already tried imperialism in the Middle East – and it failed. (The National) Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor says Lebanon should restore presidential power. (Al Arabiya) The Forward looks at the disgraceful imprisonment of Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian in Iran. (The Forward) |