Crunch Vote for Israel's 'Change' Coalition Draws Nearer

Supporters of veteran Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demonstrate in Tel Aviv against the "change" coalition that is to be put to a confidence vote in parliament next week or the week after. (AFP)
Supporters of veteran Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demonstrate in Tel Aviv against the "change" coalition that is to be put to a confidence vote in parliament next week or the week after. (AFP)
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Crunch Vote for Israel's 'Change' Coalition Draws Nearer

Supporters of veteran Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demonstrate in Tel Aviv against the "change" coalition that is to be put to a confidence vote in parliament next week or the week after. (AFP)
Supporters of veteran Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demonstrate in Tel Aviv against the "change" coalition that is to be put to a confidence vote in parliament next week or the week after. (AFP)

The speaker of the Israeli parliament will formally notify lawmakers Monday of the opposition's announcement of a coalition to unseat veteran premier Benjamin Netanyahu, his office said.

The notification will set in motion preparations for a confidence vote in the new government, which will now likely be held on Wednesday or the following Monday, Israeli media said.

The late Friday announcement by speaker Yariv Levin, a close Netanyahu ally, allays fears their right-wing Likud party could find procedural ways to block the formation of the motley coalition that would end Netanyahu's 12 consecutive years in office.

On paper, the coalition announced by opposition leader Yair Lapid just minutes before a midnight Wednesday deadline, should command a slender majority in the confidence vote.

But all eyes will be on potential defections from the disparate alliance which is united only by shared hostility to Netanyahu.

Under the agreement, Naftali Bennett of the religious nationalist Yamina party would be premier for two years, to be replaced by the centrist Lapid in 2023.

With possible jail time hanging over him in his ongoing trial on corruption charges, Netanyahu is not expected to give up without a fight.

His supporters have been working hard to win defections from lawmakers from Bennett's own Yamina party uncomfortable with their leader's alliance with Jewish leftists and Arab conservatives.

Demonstrations orchestrated by Netanyahu supporters have been held outside the home of Yamina lawmaker Nir Orbach, who has warned Bennett he may not support him in the confidence vote.

Were Orbach to vote against the deal without resigning from the party, the coalition would not have a majority.

A Friday post on Netanyahu's Facebook page said that "those who were elected on right-wing votes have to do the right thing -- to form a good, strong right-wing government".

Should last-minute defections scupper the alliance, Israel would likely have to return to the polls for its fifth election in just over two years.



Danish General Says He Is Not Losing Sleep over US Plans for Greenland

FILE - A view of a Greenland flag in the village of Igaliku in Greenland, Friday, July 5, 2024. (Ida Marie Odgaard/ Ritzau Scanpix via AP, File)
FILE - A view of a Greenland flag in the village of Igaliku in Greenland, Friday, July 5, 2024. (Ida Marie Odgaard/ Ritzau Scanpix via AP, File)
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Danish General Says He Is Not Losing Sleep over US Plans for Greenland

FILE - A view of a Greenland flag in the village of Igaliku in Greenland, Friday, July 5, 2024. (Ida Marie Odgaard/ Ritzau Scanpix via AP, File)
FILE - A view of a Greenland flag in the village of Igaliku in Greenland, Friday, July 5, 2024. (Ida Marie Odgaard/ Ritzau Scanpix via AP, File)

The head of Denmark's Arctic command said the prospect of a US takeover of Greenland was not keeping him up at night after talks with a senior US general last week but that more must be done to deter any Russian attack on the Arctic island.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested the United States might acquire Greenland, a vast semi-autonomous Danish territory on the shortest route between North America and Europe vital for the US ballistic missile warning system.

Trump has not ruled out taking the territory by force and, at a congressional hearing this month, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not deny that such contingency plans exist.

Such a scenario "is absolutely not on my mind," Soren Andersen, head of Denmark's Joint Arctic Command, told Reuters in an interview, days after what he said was his first meeting with the general overseeing US defense of the area.

"I sleep perfectly well at night," Anderson said. "Militarily, we work together, as we always have."

US General Gregory Guillot visited the US Pituffik Space Base in Greenland on June 19-20 for the first time since the US moved Greenland oversight to the Northern command from its European command, the Northern Command said on Tuesday.

Andersen's interview with Reuters on Wednesday were his first detailed comments to media since his talks with Guillot, which coincided with Danish military exercises on Greenland involving one of its largest military presences since the Cold War.

Russian and Chinese state vessels have appeared unexpectedly around Greenland in the past and the Trump administration has accused Denmark of failing to keep it safe from potential incursions. Both countries have denied any such plans.

Andersen said the threat level to Greenland had not increased this year. "We don't see Russian or Chinese state ships up here," he said.

DOG SLED PATROLS

Denmark's permanent presence consists of four ageing inspection vessels, a small surveillance plane, and dog sled patrols tasked with monitoring an area four times the size of France.

Previously focused on demonstrating its presence and civilian tasks like search and rescue, and fishing inspection, the Joint Arctic Command is now shifting more towards territorial defense, Andersen said.

"In reality, Greenland is not that difficult to defend," he said. "Relatively few points need defending, and of course, we have a plan for that. NATO has a plan for that."

As part of the military exercises this month, Denmark has deployed a frigate, F-16s, special forces and extra troops, and increased surveillance around critical infrastructure. They would leave next week when the exercises end, Andersen said, adding that he would like to repeat them in the coming months.

"To keep this area conflict-free, we have to do more, we need to have a credible deterrent," he said. "If Russia starts to change its behavior around Greenland, I have to be able to act on it."

In January, Denmark pledged over $2 billion to strengthen its Arctic defense, including new Arctic navy vessels, long-range drones, and satellite coverage. France offered to deploy troops to Greenland and EU's top military official said it made sense to station troops from EU countries there.

Around 20,000 people live in the capital Nuuk, with the rest of Greenland's 57,000 population spread across 71 towns, mostly on the west coast. The lack of infrastructure elsewhere is a deterrent in itself, Andersen said.

"If, for example, there were to be a Russian naval landing on the east coast, I think it wouldn't be long before such a military operation would turn into a rescue mission," he said.