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Israel Launches ‘Firm Hand,’ Says Not Related to Iran

Halevi and Kurilla meet at the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate. Photo: Israeli military
Halevi and Kurilla meet at the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate. Photo: Israeli military
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Israel Launches ‘Firm Hand,’ Says Not Related to Iran

Halevi and Kurilla meet at the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate. Photo: Israeli military
Halevi and Kurilla meet at the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate. Photo: Israeli military

The Israeli army has launched ‘Firm Hand,’ a large-scale two-week drill across the country, simulating a potential multi-front war.

According to the military, the drill was pre-planned and did not stem from any recent security assessments or tension with Iran.

General Michael "Erik" Kurilla , Commander of US Central Command, arrived in Israel on Tuesday for a three-day visit as part of a wider tour of the region.

Kurilla arrived a day after the Israeli army kicked off the military exercises, which he was set to observe.

He started off his visit at Unit 504, the HUMINT (human intelligence) unit of the Israeli army’s Intelligence Directorate (J2), where he was briefed on the unit's latest operations, as well as plans for the future.

Israeli army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi led an operational panel during which the commanders discussed cooperation between the military and the US Armed Forces and the strengthening of joint operational capabilities.

The ‘Firm Hand’ exercise will simulate a multi-front conflict in the air, at sea, on land and in the fields of cybersecurity.

The exercise will test the Israeli military's ability to prepare for a prolonged campaign on multiple fronts.

A military source said the drill would include the Air Force conducting simulated “strategic” strikes deep in enemy territory in an all-out war scenario, and the Navy carrying out mock offensive and defensive actions.

The Israeli army said troops from the standing and reserve army, from nearly all units, would participate in the exercise.

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WTO Chief Okonjo-Iweala Reinstated for Second Term as Trade Wars Loom

World Trade Organization chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (AFP)
World Trade Organization chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (AFP)
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WTO Chief Okonjo-Iweala Reinstated for Second Term as Trade Wars Loom

World Trade Organization chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (AFP)
World Trade Organization chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (AFP)

World Trade Organization chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was reappointed for a second term at a special meeting on Friday, the trade watchdog said, meaning her tenure will coincide with US President-elect Donald Trump's second administration.
Analysts expect the road ahead for the three-decade-old WTO will be challenging, likely characterised by trade wars with Trump, who returns to the White House on Jan. 20, threatening hefty tariffs on goods from Mexico, Canada and China.
Okonjo-Iweala, a former Nigerian finance minister who made history in 2021 by becoming the WTO's first female and first African director-general, announced in September that she would run again, aiming to complete “unfinished business.”
No other candidates ran against her and all of the WTO's 166 members agreed by consensus to a proposal to reappoint her.
Trade sources said the meeting created a means of fast-tracking her appointment process to avoid any risk of it being blocked by Trump, whose teams and allies have criticised both Okonjo-Iweala and the WTO in the past.
In 2020, his administration gave its support to a rival candidate and sought to block her first term. She secured US backing only when President Joe Biden succeeded Trump in the White House in January 2021.
President Joe Biden on Thursday warned against damaging relations with Canada and Mexico, after Donald Trump threatened to slap tariffs on both US neighbors when he takes office in January.
“I think it's a counterproductive thing to do,” Biden told reporters when asked about his successor's plan.
“The last thing we need to do is begin to screw up those relationships. I think we got them in a good place,” he said during a visit to a fire department in Nantucket, Massachusetts, where he is spending his last Thanksgiving holiday as president.
Trump sent jitters through global markets on Monday when he announced on social media that one of his first presidential actions would be to impose 25-percent tariffs on Mexico and Canada -- which share a free trade pact with the United States -- and add a 10-percent tariff on China.
Pledging that tariffs would only be removed from the US neighbors when illegal immigration and drug trafficking stop, he reaffirmed his intent to use trade as a cudgel against allies and rivals alike.
After expressing opposition to Trump's threats in a letter, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke by phone with the Republican president-elect on Wednesday.
Trump claimed that Sheinbaum had agreed to “stop migration through Mexico, and into the United States, effectively closing our Southern Border.”
When asked about the dispute at her daily press conference on Thursday, Sheinbaum said: “I can assure you... that we would never -- we would not be capable -- of proposing that we were going to close the border.”
Biden on Thursday also talked about the importance of maintaining a working relationship with China.
“We've set up a hotline between President Xi and myself, as well as our military, a direct line,” Biden said, adding he was "confident" that his Chinese counterpart “doesn't want to make a mistake.”
“I'm not saying that he is our best buddy, but he understands what's at stake.”