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☆ Turkey’s Central Bank Raises Rates to Near Two-Decade High
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Turkey’s central bank raised interest rates to 25 percent from 17.5 percent on Thursday, a big jump that underscored a shift by the country’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, toward a more orthodox monetary policy to control inflation that exceeded an annual rate of 80 percent last year. The size of the increase, which put the benchmark rate at its highest level since 2004, was bigger than expected, exceeding forecasts from financial analysts, who had predicted a more modest jump after July’s 2.5 percent rise. After the announcement, the Turkish lira quickly rallied, briefly rising more than 7 percent against the U.S. dollar. It was trading at 25.6 per dollar by early evening in Turkey. In a statement, the Turkish central bank said it had “decided to continue the monetary tightening process in order to establish the disinflation course as soon as possible, to anchor inflation expectations, and to control the deterioration in pricing behavior.”

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, “ Organizations: U.S . Locations: Turkish, Turkey

☆ Women’s Rights Activists Rounded Up in Iran as Protest Anniversary Nears
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Leily Nikounazar | Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In a sweeping operation ahead of an important anniversary, the Iranian authorities have detained at least 12 rights activists, all but one of them women, over the past two days, human rights groups and Iranian media have reported. Hundreds were killed in the ensuing government crackdown, including at least 44 minors, while around 20,000 Iranians were arrested, the United Nations calculated. The arrested activists were rounded up in cities across Iran’s northern Gilan Province, according to HRANA, an Iranian human rights organization. On Thursday, Iranian officials accused the 12 detainees of planning to incite “chaos and vandalism” on the upcoming anniversary of Ms. Amini’s death, the semiofficial Fars News Agency reported. According to Fars, which has close ties to the country’s security agencies, the officials also accused the activists of being funded by foreign intelligence and collaborating with Iran International, an opposition television channel based in Washington.

Persons: Amini, “, ”, Sanam Vakil, Amini’s Organizations: United Nations, Chatham House, Fars News Agency, Iran International Locations: Iran, Iran’s, Gilan Province, Iranian, East, North Africa, London, Fars, Washington

☆ Growing Segregation by Sex in Israel Raises Fears for Women’s Rights
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-12 | by ( Roni Caryn Rabin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The trains from Tel Aviv were packed one evening last month when Inbal Boxerman, a 40-year-old mother of two, was blocked by a wall of men as she tried to board. One of them told her that women were not allowed on — the car was for men only. It was a public train operated by Israel Railways, and segregated seating is illegal in the country. The men stopping her appeared to be protesters going home from a rally supporting the governing coalition, which includes extremist religious and far-right parties pushing for more sex segregation and a return to more traditional gender roles. “I said, ‘For real?’” said Ms. Boxerman, who works in marketing.

Persons: Inbal Boxerman, Boxerman, “, ’ ” Organizations: Israel Railways Locations: Tel Aviv, Israel

☆ Patrons Want Straight Answers in Crooked House Pub’s Demise
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Getting a drink in The Crooked House pub could feel intoxicating, even if you’d ordered a lemonade. As a result, the walls slouched sideways at a 16-degree angle, dizzying customers and delighting children. Buttresses and steel bars made the structure safe, but it remained charmingly askew, leading to its jokey designation as “Britain’s Wonkiest Pub.” (“Wonky” means “not straight or level” in the U.K.). In an optical illusion caused by the pub’s slant, patrons could roll marbles and coins on some of the interior’s surfaces and watch them seem to tumble uphill, as though gravity had magically reversed itself. When the building was sold to a private developer last month, patrons waited apprehensively to see what would become of the beloved local watering hole.

Persons: you’d, charmingly askew, apprehensively Locations: England’s West Midlands

☆ Verdict Expected in Latest Trial of Russian Opposition Leader Navalny
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Mr. Navalny and Western rights groups have denounced the charges against him as an attempt to silence dissent against President Vladimir V. Putin. “The sentence will be a long one,” Mr. Navalny said in a statement released by his organization on the Telegram app on Thursday before the expected verdict. The latest charges against Mr. Navalny were laid out in Moscow’s district court in late July, and the trial has been conducted in closed-door hearings at the penal colony where he is being held. Daniel Kholodny, who formerly helped run Mr. Navalny’s YouTube channel, has also been charged in the case with funding and promoting extremism. Prosecutors have asked the court to sentence Mr. Kholodny to 10 years in prison; his verdict is also expected on Friday.

Persons: Navalny, Vladimir V, Putin, Mr, Daniel Kholodny, Kholodny Organizations: YouTube, Prosecutors, Kremlin Locations: Moscow’s

☆ What’s Behind the Coup in Niger?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After a days of uncertainty in Niger, the commander of country’s presidential guard claimed the leadership of the West African country Friday in a televised address after ousting Mohamed Bazoum, the country’s democratically elected president. Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani, who goes by the first name, Omar, said on state television Friday, “We have decided to intervene and seize our responsibilities” in asserting power over the country. What happened in Niger? Members of the country’s Presidential Guard encircled the president’s palace in Niamey on Wednesday morning and held Mr. Bazoum hostage. For hours, an anxious country waited to see whether the crisis would be resolved quietly, with little clear information about either the rebels’ identities or whether the president was safe.

Persons: Mohamed Bazoum, Abdourahmane Tchiani, Omar, “, putschists, Bazoum Organizations: Presidential Guard Locations: Niger, West, Niamey

Israel’s Supreme Court said Wednesday that it would begin in September to review a contentious new law that diminishes the court’s own role, setting the stage for a constitutional crisis and renewed social turmoil if the judges then overturn the legislation. The decision sets up a looming clash between the executive branch of government and the highest court in the land. The Supreme Court must now decide whether to reassert its dominance over Prime Minister Benjamin’s Netanyahu’s government — or it must accept the move to reduce its own power. Either conclusion is likely to provoke widespread anger, since the issue has become a proxy for a much broader battle over Israel’s character. The court’s announcement came in response to the decision on Monday, by Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition, to pass a deeply divisive bill that stops the court from overruling government decisions with the legal standard of “reasonableness.” The government said the term, never defined in a statute, was too subjective and gave unelected judges too much leeway to overrule elected lawmakers.

Persons: Benjamin’s, Netanyahu’s Locations: Israel’s

It was enacted as an amendment to one of Israel’s Basic Laws, which the justices have never previously struck down. Originally, Basic Laws, which can be passed by a simple parliamentary majority, were not necessarily superior to other laws. Then in 1992, the Knesset passed a Basic Law that guaranteed dignity and liberty. “Proportionality is a balancing test,” said Rivka Weill, another law professor at Reichman University. But if the government removed Ms. Baharav-Miara, it would “cross a red line for the court,” Professor Weill said.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Netanyahu, —, Oded, Adam Shinar, “, it’s, ”, Kim Lane Scheppele, Aharon Barak, Benjamin Netanyahu, Ronaldo Schemidt, Shinar, Rivka Weill, Weill, Gil Cohen Magen “, Aryeh Deri, Deri, Scheppele, Ronen Zvulun Organizations: Monday, Reichman University, Princeton University, ., Agence France, Princeton, Senate Locations: Israel, Israel’s, Tel Aviv, Herzliya, Jerusalem, Gali Baharav, Britain, United States

☆ Israel’s New Judicial Law Could Threaten Attorney General’s Role
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Critics of the right-wing Israeli government’s new judicial law fear it could threaten a key state watchdog: the attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara. As Israel’s chief prosecutor, Ms. Baharav-Miara is also charged with overseeing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial. The government would have to meet less challenging standards in order to withstand judicial review, they said. “If the attorney general were summarily dismissed, at least until yesterday, the primary grounds for challenging that would be that it was grossly unreasonable,” said Joshua Schoffman, a former Israeli deputy attorney general. He said the justices could still intervene in her dismissal if they found there was a conflict of interests, for example.

Persons: Israel’s, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Netanyahu, ”, Joshua Schoffman Locations: Gali Baharav, Israeli

Lawmakers, including Yariv Levin, the Justice Minister, and Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Minister of National Security, at the Knesset in Jerusalem after the vote on Monday. Israel’s nationalist right celebrated a hard-won victory Monday after seven months of struggling to advance the contentious plan to weaken Israel’s judiciary in the face of mounting opposition. Many on Israel’s right say Israel’s Supreme Court is staffed by activist judges who have tied the hands of elected leaders. Right-wing voters commonly say they “vote for the right and get the left” and blame the courts for striking down popular policies. A weakened court would allow Mr. Ben-Gvir to fulfill such campaign promises, he said.

Persons: Yariv Levin, Itamar Ben, Gvir, ”, —, Benjamin Netanyahu —, Rafi Sharbatov, Ben, Arnon Segal, Segal, “, we’ve, Bezalel Smotrich, God’s, Mr, Smotrich, Smotrich’s, Dan Odenheimer, Odenheimer, “ It’s Organizations: of National Security, West Bank, Air Force, West Locations: Jerusalem, Israel’s, Israel, West Bank, Efrat

On a day of turbulence in the streets and in the halls of power alike, Israeli lawmakers on Monday enacted a major change in law to weaken the judiciary, capping a monthslong campaign by the right-wing governing coalition that is pitting Israelis against one another with rare ferocity. Throngs of protesters outside the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament, and opposition lawmakers inside shouted that the change was a grievous blow to the rule of law, to the rights of citizens and to democracy itself. Coalition members countered that it was the judiciary that posed a threat to democracy, and said that they planned to take further steps to curb it. The measure strips Israel’s Supreme Court of the power to overturn government actions and appointments it deems “unreasonable,” a practice that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing governing coalition says has effectively given the court veto power over the will of the majority. Still on the coalition’s agenda are plans to give the government more power over the selection of Supreme Court justices, among other changes.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu’s Organizations: Coalition Locations: Israel

Long before moving into the White House, President Biden compared the relationship between the United States and Israel to that of close friends. For months, Mr. Biden refused to invite Mr. Netanyahu to Washington, which prevented at least some meetings between lower-level officials. Despite recognizing Israel, Mr. Truman refused to sell the new state offensive arms, as did his two successors. Mr. Biden’s relationship with Mr. Netanyahu has been scratchy going back years. “I don’t think the Jewish American community needs to be overly involved in this,” she said.

Persons: Long, Biden, “, ”, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Netanyahu, Nathan J, Diament, Isaac Herzog, Robert B, Harry S, Truman, —, Israel —, Israel, Dwight D, Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, George H.W, Bush, State James A, Baker, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Donald J, Trump, Mr, “ Bibi, Biden’s, Netanyahu’s, Kamala Harris, ” —, Eli Cohen, Yair Lapid, Netanyahu “, Satloff, Thomas L, Friedman, Jake Sullivan, “ It’s, ” Mr, Sullivan, Chris Coons, James E, Diana Fersko, Rabbi Fersko Organizations: Israel, Orthodox Union, American Orthodox, Democratic, Washington Institute for Near East, State, State Department, Mr, New York Times, Aspen Security, Republican, Foreign Relations, Jewish, American Jewish, American Locations: United States, Israel, Washington, American, U.S, Egypt, Suez, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Manhattan

Long before moving into the White House, President Biden compared the relationship between the United States and Israel to that of close friends. For months, Mr. Biden refused to invite Mr. Netanyahu to Washington, which prevented at least some meetings between lower-level officials. Despite recognizing Israel, Mr. Truman refused to sell the new state offensive arms, as did his two successors. Mr. Biden urged Mr. Netanyahu “not to rush” his changes and “to seek the broadest possible consensus here.”Aides insist Mr. Biden is not trying to engineer a specific outcome in an ally’s internal politics. “I don’t think the Jewish American community needs to be overly involved in this,” she said.

Persons: Long, Biden, “, ”, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Netanyahu, Nathan J, Diament, Isaac Herzog, Robert B, Harry S, Truman, —, Israel —, Israel, Dwight D, Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, George H.W, Bush, State James A, Baker, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Donald J, Trump, Mr, “ Bibi, Biden’s, Netanyahu’s, Kamala Harris, ” —, Eli Cohen, Yair Lapid, Netanyahu “, Satloff, Thomas L, Friedman, . Biden, Jake Sullivan, “ It’s, ” Mr, Sullivan, Chris Coons, James E, Diana Fersko, Rabbi Fersko Organizations: Israel, Orthodox Union, American Orthodox, Democratic, Washington Institute for Near East, State, State Department, Mr, New York Times, Aspen Security, Republican, Foreign Relations, Jewish, American Jewish, American Locations: United States, Israel, Washington, American, U.S, Egypt, Suez, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Manhattan

Israelis marching toward Jerusalem on Saturday in protest of plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to overhaul the judicial system. Adding to the uncertainty Sunday, Mr. Netanyahu was taken to the hospital to have a pacemaker implanted during a procedure in which he would be placed under sedation, his office said. “The proper balance between the authorities has been disturbed over the past decades,” Mr. Netanyahu said in a speech Thursday. “The fear is that our country won’t look like it looks today,” Ms. Holzman said of the judicial overhaul plan. Similar mass protests in March prompted the government to suspend, at least for now, other planned judicial changes.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu’s, ”, Ilana Holzman, “, Holzman, Menahem Kahana, Benjamin Netanyahu, Shin, Netanyahu, ” Mr, Gil Cohen, Navot Silberstein, Silberstein, Ms Organizations: Agence France, Histadrut, Air Force Locations: Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Israel, Shoresh .

☆ Israel’s Military Says It Has Withdrawn From West Bank City After Deadly Raid
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Isabel Kershner | Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Israel’s military said on Wednesday that it had withdrawn from the West Bank city of Jenin after a large-scale incursion that killed at least 12 Palestinians, left one Israeli soldier dead and led thousands to flee their homes. Even as Palestinian militant groups celebrated the retreat of Israeli troops — initially confirmed by Israeli and Palestinian officials — sirens blared in Israeli towns near the Gaza Strip after five missiles were fired from the Palestinian enclave, the Israeli military said. No injuries were immediately reported, and the military said Israel’s air-defense system had intercepted all five. Hamas is the Palestinian militant faction that controls Gaza. Israel’s chief military spokesman said on Wednesday morning that the operation in Jenin, focused on the refugee camp in the city, was over.

Persons: —, ”, Daniel Hagari Organizations: West Bank, Twitter, Kan News Locations: Jenin, Gaza, Palestinian

At least 13 Palestinians were killed in targeted Israeli bombings in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, according to officials. The airstrikes are the latest round of violence in one of the deadliest periods in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in years. Photo: Yasser Qudih/Zuma PressGAZA CITY—Palestinian militants fired hundreds of rockets from Gaza toward southern and central Israel, and Israel’s military targeted militants in the enclave on Wednesday, as both sides said they were preparing for wider conflict. A group of Gaza militants that includes the enclave’s rulers Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, both designated by the U.S. as terror groups, took responsibility for the rocket fire. The militants said they had retaliated for Israeli airstrikes on Tuesday that killed senior Islamic Jihad commanders and civilians in the Gaza Strip.

☆ Israeli Strikes Kill Senior Militants, Civilians in Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Dov Lieber | Aaron Boxerman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

At least 13 Palestinians were killed in targeted Israeli bombings in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, according to officials. The airstrikes are the latest round of violence in one of the deadliest periods in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in years. Photo: Yasser Qudih/Zuma PressTEL AVIV—Israeli airstrikes killed three Palestinian militant commanders and several civilians in a surprise attack in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday morning, the Israeli military and Palestinian officials said, threatening a new round of escalating violence. The Israeli military said it was targeting senior leaders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a U.S.-designated terrorist group that Israel blames for recent cross-border rocket fire, coordinating militant activities in the occupied West Bank and acquiring money and guns. The Israeli military called the strikes part of a new operation against Islamic Jihad, adding to its yearlong operation against Palestinian militants in the West Bank.

☆ Israeli Strikes Kill 13 in Gaza, Including Three Top Militants
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Dov Lieber | Aaron Boxerman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

At least 13 Palestinians were killed in targeted Israeli bombings in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, according to officials. The airstrikes are the latest round of violence in one of the deadliest periods in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in years. Photo: Yasser Qudih/Zuma PressTEL AVIV—The Israeli military said it killed three Palestinian militant commanders Tuesday in targeted bombings in the Gaza Strip that Palestinian officials said left 13 people dead, threatening a new round of escalating violence. The Israeli military said it was targeting senior leaders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a U.S.-designated terrorist group that Israel blames for recent cross-border rocket fire, coordinating militant activities in the occupied West Bank and acquiring money and guns. The Israeli military called the strikes part of a new operation against Islamic Jihad, adding to its yearlong operation against Palestinian militants in the West Bank.

☆ Israeli Airstrikes Kill Three Palestinian Commanders in Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Dov Lieber | Aaron Boxerman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Israeli military said the airstrikes were part of a new operation against senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad commanders. Photo: mohammed abed/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesTEL AVIV—Three Palestinian militant commanders were killed Tuesday in targeted Israeli bombings in the Gaza Strip that left a total of at least 12 dead and 20 injured, including civilians, said Israeli military and Palestinian health officials. The Israeli military said the airstrikes on the Palestinian enclave were part of a new operation against senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad commanders who it blames for recent rocket fire into Israel, coordinating militant activities in the occupied West Bank and acquiring money and guns.

☆ Kevin McCarthy Says He Will Invite Israel’s Netanyahu if Biden Won’t
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy addresses the Israeli legislature in Jerusalem. Photo: abir sultan/ShutterstockJERUSALEM—House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Monday that he would invite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Congress if President Biden doesn’t invite him to the White House, amid tensions between the Israeli leader’s right-wing government and the Democratic administration. Mr. McCarthy (R., Calif.) told reporters that he expects Mr. Biden to invite the Israeli premier “especially because of Israel’s 75th anniversary,” which the country celebrated last week. Mr. McCarthy added that he had already invited Israeli President Isaac Herzog to address Congress this summer.

Brokering a reconciliation deal between Palestinian factions is a longer-term goal for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, Saudi officials say. Senior Saudi officials were planning to meet with leaders of the Palestinian militant and political group Hamas on Sunday to discuss renewing diplomatic ties which have been cool since 2007, part of a diplomacy spree led by Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman that has seen Riyadh move closer to Iran. Re-establishing ties between Iran-backed Hamas, which is a U.S. designated terrorist group, and the Saudi kingdom would mark a setback for efforts by the U.S. and Israel to establish a military alliance between Israel and other Sunni-majority countries against Iran and its allies. They also complicate Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ’s goal of normalizing relations with Riyadh, with opposition to Iran as their primary shared interest.

☆ Israel and Palestinian Militants in Gaza, Lebanon Exchange Fire
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | Dion Nissenbaum | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

JERUSALEM—Israel called up reserve soldiers, moving additional troops and firepower to its northern and southern borders after carrying out strikes early Friday in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, as the United Nations and others tried to prevent the situation from deteriorating. Israeli jet fighters carried out airstrikes in Gaza and Lebanon targeting Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that rules Gaza, which Israel said was one of the groups responsible for a major rocket barrage from Lebanon on Thursday. The militant rocket fire and Israeli strikes had mostly died down, but the situation remained tense on Friday afternoon.

☆ Israel Hit by Rocket Barrage From Lebanon
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

JERUSALEM—Dozens of rockets were fired from Lebanon into northern Israel Thursday in one of the largest such attacks in years, sparking fears of a broader conflict between Israel and its neighbors during a period of tension over one of Jerusalem’s holiest sites. Air-raid sirens wailed in towns across northern Israel packed with visitors celebrating the Passover festival, sending scores of Israelis running to bomb shelters. Most of the rockets were shot down by Israeli aerial defense or landed in open areas. At least one person was lightly hurt by shrapnel, Israeli first responders said.

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