In a shocking reversal, Israeli Prime Minister strikes a coalition deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, head of the conservative Likud party, agreed to a deal early Tuesday morning with Shaul Mofaz, head of the opposition Kadima party to form a coalition government, calling off early elections. The surprise reversal came just hours after Netanyahu proposed the early dissolution of the Knesset, and advanced elections for September 4. With early elections, Netanyahu aimed to avoid the instability of a year of campaigning if elections were to occur at the end of the Knesset’s term in October 2013. But the move to bring the centrist party into the government will put a more moderate face on what has proved to be an increasingly conservative and "hawkish" coalition. Netanyahu and Mofaz discussed four priorities for the new unity government, including replacing the Tal Law, developing a "responsible budget," changing the government’s structure, and forwarding the peace process. Netanyahu’s coalition had been split over the Tal Law, which was set to expire on August 1, that exempts ultra-Orthodox Jews from compulsory military service. Israeli President Shimon Peres praised the deal and Netanyahu said "A broad national unity government is good for the security, for the economy, for the people of Israel." However, the decision has not come without criticism.

Syria

Voter turnout on Monday was low for the second round of voting in Syria’s parliamentary elections. Reports from Syrian state television claimed high turnout in Damascus and that 137 people voted in one polling station in the first three hours. However, Reuters reported only three voters in a 40 minute period. According to the opposition, who believes the voting was a sham, there was almost no sign of an election in battle-torn cities like Homs and Hama. U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said that polling under current conditions in Syria "borders on ludicrous." Violence continued throughout the day as clashes were reported in Homs. Three people were reported killed in Deir el-Zour, near the Iraqi border. Meanwhile, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the only humanitarian organization permitted to work in Syria, has requested an additional $27 million in funding to address increasing humanitarian needs. The ICRC made a statement on Tuesday arguing that the intensity of violence in localized areas in Homs and the northwestern Idlib province qualify as civil war.

Headlines  

• The U.S., cooperating with international intelligence agencies, has disrupted a plot by a member of Yemen’s al Qaeda affiliate to detonate an explosive similar to the failed 2009 "underwear bomb."
• At least 20 Yemeni soldiers were killed in attacks on two army posts by suspected al Qaeda linked militants a day after a top al Qaeda leader was killed by a U.S. air raid.
• Interpol has issued an international "Red Notice" seeking the arrest of Iraqi Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi who has been accused of "guiding and financing terrorist attacks."
• Leading Palestinian peace negotiator Saeb Erekat remains in care after suffering a heart attack.

‘Formation of Israeli unity cabinet shows Netanyahu blinked first, again’ (Aluf Benn, Haaretz)

"In the dead-of-night deal he reached with Kadima chief Shaul Mofaz, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acted exactly according to a pattern of behavior established in his current term: avoiding risks at all costs. Netanyahu preferred the 18 months of certainty a unity government provides over going to an elections, despite polls that predicted an easy win.Netanyahu hates taking chances. He’ll always prefer playing it safe and avoiding uncertain situations. As far as he’s concerned, the results speak to his favor. Fact is, he’s still in power, and will stay there for a long time heading an unbreakable coalition, with Tzipi Livni who used to assault him in her Knesset speeches for his "survival policy," sitting at her Tel Aviv home.Now, Netanyahu is at his most comfortable. Instead of been dependant on the mood swings of Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and the Likud’s right-wing representatives, he has a coalition with two wings, between which he can maneuver. At times he’ll break right, at others left, all according to the needs of the moment. He can throw a bone to Lieberman and then to Mofaz; build a settlement and evacuate illegal structures. At times he’ll indicate that war with Iran is near and at others he’ll give U.S. President Barack Obama’s diplomatic overtures a chance. No politician can dream up of a more perfect situation."

‘Schmoozing Egypt’ (Steve Cook, Council on Foreign Relations)

"Over the course of the past ten or fifteen years, Egyptian politics was portrayed as essentially a two-dimensional struggle between the regime and the Muslim Brotherhood. This was certainly true, but this picture obscured the ideological richness and dynamism of Egyptian politics. To be sure, the Brothers were and still are a major factor, but the political ferment of the past decade is more closely associated with labor, the Left, old-school Egyptian nationalists and, importantly, liberal activists, including bloggers and journalists, who were at the forefront of social and political critiques of the late Mubarak period. In many ways, these groups spoke out about issues that the Brotherhood-fearing the wrath of the regime and wanting to ensure its longevity-never dared to tread…Egyptians have never been able to agree on a narrative about their country. They have never been able to answer critical questions-about what kind of government they want, what kind of society they want, the relationship between religion and state, what Egypt stands for, what its place is in the region and the world beyond-in a way that makes sense to a vast majority of Egyptians. As a result, the political and social arenas remain very much contested."

‘Syria’s crisis: weapons vs negotiations’ (Mariano Aguirre, OpenDemocracy)

"The inevitable failure of the effort to deliver weapons and secure protected zones would require an aerial military intervention that would be more complicated than in Libya and could cost many civilian lives. The Syrian government would retain the support of sections of the people and of its strong, cohesive army (especially in its upper echelons), plus access to anti-air defence systems. The conditions in Libya (civilian deaths, and the proliferation of post-Gaddafi militias) raise serious questions over the effectiveness of using air-strikes to protect civilians and support militias (and in Syria it is calculated that more than 100 separate, uncoordinated groups are operating)… The temptation of force displaces political negotiations and non-violent strategies. The former United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan, now the UN and Arab League special envoy charged with negotiating an end to the Syrian crisis, is facing two linked problems: the Syrian president feels strong enough to survive, and part of the opposition and the international community say that it is impossible to negotiate with him."  

–By Jennifer Parker and Mary Casey