CENTCOM Commander Meets with Kochavi in Tel Aviv

A general view shows part of Tel Aviv, Israel June 12, 2022. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg
A general view shows part of Tel Aviv, Israel June 12, 2022. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg
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CENTCOM Commander Meets with Kochavi in Tel Aviv

A general view shows part of Tel Aviv, Israel June 12, 2022. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg
A general view shows part of Tel Aviv, Israel June 12, 2022. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg

CENTCOM Commander General Michael Kurilla met on Sunday with Israeli army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi in Tel Aviv where the two sides mainly discussed Israel's aerial defense and joint operational threats and challenges.

An Israeli army spokesperson said this is Kurilla's second visit to Israel since taking up his position as CENTCOM commander two months ago.

“This visit is a complimentary meeting following the strategic-operational forum between the two nation's militaries last month and will focus on Israel's aerial defense array," the spokesperson said.

He added that the strategic-operational forum meeting had deeply tackled the joint security threats and challenges that face both armies in the Middle East and the possibility of a joint war.

The meeting also focused on joint action plans for a multi-front war and to expand military cooperation.

The spokesperson then linked Kurilla’s visit to Kochavi’s visit to Morocco on Monday, in the first trip by an Israeli military commander to the North African nation.

“This visit is in addition to recent meetings and cooperation between the two countries, as part of the advancement of military-security cooperation between the State of Israel and the Kingdom of Morocco,” the Israeli military said in a statement.

Kochavi is travelling with the military’s international cooperation commander, Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, and the head of the Intelligence Research Division, Brig. Gen. Amit Saar.

He will meet with senior Moroccan military officials.



Tunisians Vote in Election, with Main Rival to Saied in Prison

A voter casts her ballot at a polling station during the presidential election in Tunis, Tunisia October 6, 2024. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi
A voter casts her ballot at a polling station during the presidential election in Tunis, Tunisia October 6, 2024. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi
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Tunisians Vote in Election, with Main Rival to Saied in Prison

A voter casts her ballot at a polling station during the presidential election in Tunis, Tunisia October 6, 2024. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi
A voter casts her ballot at a polling station during the presidential election in Tunis, Tunisia October 6, 2024. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi

Tunisians began voting on Sunday in an election in which President Kais Saied is seeking a second term, with his main rival suddenly jailed last month and the other candidate heading a minor political party.
Sunday's election pits Saied against two rivals: his former ally turned critic, Chaab Party leader Zouhair Maghzaoui, and Ayachi Zammel, who had been seen as posing a big threat to Saied until he was jailed last month.
Senior figures from the biggest parties, which largely oppose Saied, have been imprisoned on various charges over the past year and those parties have not publicly backed any of the three candidates on Sunday's ballot. Other opponents have been barred from running.
Polls close at 6 p.m. (1700 GMT) and results are expected in the next two days. Political tensions have risen since an electoral commission named by Saied disqualified three prominent candidates last month, amid protests by opposition and civil society groups. Lawmakers loyal to Saied then approved a law last week stripping the administrative court of authority over election disputes. This Court is widely seen as the country's last independent judicial body, after Saied dissolved the Supreme Judicial Council and dismissed dozens of judges in 2022.
Saied, elected in 2019, seized most powers in 2021 when he dissolved the elected parliament and rewrote the constitution, a move the opposition described as a coup.