Removal of West Bank Outpost Tests Israel’s New Coalition 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a weekly Cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, on January 15, 2023. (Reuters)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a weekly Cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, on January 15, 2023. (Reuters)
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Removal of West Bank Outpost Tests Israel’s New Coalition 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a weekly Cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, on January 15, 2023. (Reuters)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a weekly Cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, on January 15, 2023. (Reuters)

Israeli authorities on Friday dismantled a small settler outpost in the occupied West Bank, a day after it was erected, in a major test to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new ruling coalition. 

Footage broadcast by Israeli media showed troops removing the outpost of Or Chaim without any violence. The action, however, triggered a dispute between the ultranationalist wing of Israel’s new government and its partner, Netanyahu’s Likud party. 

Netanyahu’s new coalition has set as one of its priorities the expanding of settlements. While Israeli authorities differentiate between settlements and unauthorized outposts, the international community overwhelmingly views all settlements as illegal and obstacles to peace. 

Or Chaim, named after the late religious Zionist leader Rabbi Chaim Druckman, was built by five settler families on Thursday near the Palestinian city of Nablus in northern West Bank. 

Defense Minister Yoav Galant ordered the outpost evacuated but Bezalel Smotrich — head of the ultranationalist Religious Zionism party and a Cabinet minister with jurisdiction over some Israeli activities in the West Bank — said this went against his directive on Friday morning to postpone any actions on the new outpost pending further discussions. 

Under the terms that formed Netanyahu’s coalition, Smotrich was appointed minister in the defense ministry responsible for Israeli activities in the West Bank. He is also the finance minister. 

Netanyahu’s office said the prime minister will hold discussions on the issue next week. The office released a statement Friday from Netanyahu, saying he backed settlement building, “but only when it is done legally and is coordinated in advance with the prime minister and security officials, which was not done in this case.” 

The standoff comes a day after US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders amid the Biden administration’s unease over Netanyahu’s government pledges to rapidly expand West Bank settlement building. 

Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war and has built more than 130 authorized settlements there, many of which resemble small towns, with apartment blocks, shopping malls and industrial zones. The Palestinians want the West Bank to form the main part of their future state. 



Grundberg Hopes ‘Gaza Truce’ Will Revive the Peace Process in Yemen

Hans Grundberg, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen, briefs on Wednesday the Security Council on the situation in Yemen (UN)
Hans Grundberg, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen, briefs on Wednesday the Security Council on the situation in Yemen (UN)
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Grundberg Hopes ‘Gaza Truce’ Will Revive the Peace Process in Yemen

Hans Grundberg, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen, briefs on Wednesday the Security Council on the situation in Yemen (UN)
Hans Grundberg, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen, briefs on Wednesday the Security Council on the situation in Yemen (UN)

Hans Grundberg, the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, warned on Wednesday from the alarming escalation in Yemen that would have devastating humanitarian consequences for the Yemeni people.

In a briefing to the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East, Grundberg said a ceasefire in Gaza signals hope that a return to the peace process could materialize between the Yemeni government and Houthis.

The envoy’s briefing came after his talks with Yemeni, regional and international stakeholders across the region, during visits to Muscat, Sanaa, Tehran, and Riyadh to intensify engagements for a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

Grundberg has lately kicked off efforts to secure the release of all arbitrarily detained personnel from the United Nations, national and international organizations, diplomatic missions, and the private sector.

In his briefing, the envoy expressed concern over reports of a new wave of arbitrary detentions, which further exacerbates the suffering of families and undermines trust.

Grundberg mentioned the Houthi attacks on the ships in the Red Sea and said they hindered the prospects of peace.

He added that a ceasefire in Gaza signals hope that an opportunity to de-escalate could materialize.

The envoy said the escalating cycle of strikes and counterstrikes has hindered the prospects of peace and destabilized Yemen's economy, adding that the relative stability and improved security conditions for civilians that have existed since the 2022 truce could be lost.

In contrast to Grundberg's hopes for a revival of the peace process, many Yemenis fear the Houthis would ignite a new war against the Yemeni government, exploiting the popular sympathy with Palestine that has enabled the group to recruit tens of thousands over the past year.

In this regard, Grundberg said, “I am concerned that parties may reassess their options for peace and make miscalculations based on flawed assumptions.”

Escalation and Detainees

In his briefing, the envoy mentioned the damage caused by the Houthi attacks and the Israeli and Western strikes in Yemen.

“Recent Israeli airstrikes have damaged critical civilian infrastructure, including the port of Hodeidah and Sanaa International Airport,” he said, adding that the damage to the port and tugboats impacts the ability to unload humanitarian aid.

Grundberg said during his meetings in Sanaa, he again urged Houthis to immediately and unconditionally release all arbitrarily detained personnel from the United Nations, national and international organizations, diplomatic missions, and the private sector.

He further called on the Houthis to release the Galaxy Leader vessel and its 25-member crew, which have been unlawfully detained for over a year now.
He urged all parties to urgently take concrete steps towards achieving a nationwide ceasefire agreement in Yemen.

Elsewhere, Grundberg spoke about his office’s engagement in extensive dialogues with Yemeni parties at the technical level on economic and military issues.

“In our discussions, we explored how collaboration between the parties could unlock critical peace dividends. These include the unification of the central bank, the resumption of fossil fuel exports, and the full payment of public sector salaries,” he said.

Yemeni, US Statements

During Grundberg’s briefing, the representative of the United States, Dorothy Shea, said, “The time has come to respond to the growing global threats by holding Iran to account for enabling the Houthis long-range missile attacks on international shipping and Israel.”

She said the Houthis have expanded their campaign of detaining innocent Yemenis, targeting more former embassy staff simply trying to do their jobs.

She stressed the need to deprive the Houthis of illicit revenues that sustain their attacks and recognize the growing relationship between the Houthis and other terrorist groups like al-Shabaab.

Meanwhile, Abdullah Ali Fadhel Al-Saadi, Permanent Representative of Yemen to the United Nations, addresses the Security Council meeting on the situation in his country.

“The humanitarian and economic situation in Yemen is intolerable,” he said, adding that the government is eager to engage with all efforts to reach a political settlement.

Al-Saadi also called on the Security Council to assume its responsibilities and implement its decisions that end the Houthi coup based on agreed international references.