Netanyahu Likely to Delay Presentation of Government
Almost two months after Israel’s election gave Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu a clear victory in Israel’s elections, the Prime Minister has yet to finalize his government. He plans to present a government with a razor-thin majority of 61 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, and the government was due to be presented to the Knesset later this week. However, Netanyahu has to first expand his cabinet over the 18 cabinet members currently mandated by law, to make sure he has enough cabinet portfolios for senior members of his Likud party as well as his coalition partners. He cleared one hurdle toward doing that today, when Israel’s Supreme Court struck down a challenge by former Finance Minister Yair Lapid against expanding the cabinet. The vote is scheduled for later today, and then Netanyahu can finalize his cabinet positions. It seems likely that he will officially present his government next week.
Houthis Accept Five-Day Truce Proposed by Saudi Arabia
Yemen’s dominant Houthi group accepted a five-day humanitarian cease-fire proposed by its rival Saudi Arabia, but said it will respond to any violations. The cease-fire proposal, which is expected to start on Tuesday, would allow food and medical supplies, which have been running low, into the country. A Saudi-led coalition has been conducting air strikes against the Houthis, who are backed by Iran, and army units loyal to ex-Presidnet Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, for more than a month. The Saudi-backed coalition said they hoped to restore the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The air strikes have killed more than 1300 people, according to human rights groups. Meanwhile, Morocco’s armed forces said that one of its F-16 fighter jets taking part in the air strikes has gone missing.
Violence in Baghdad Continues
A series of bombings in and around Baghdad killed at least 14 people, as authorities stepped up security ahead of a major Shi’ite religious event. A police officer said that in the town of Tarmiyah when a car bomber drove into a police and army checkpoint, killing five members of the security forces and wounding ten. The attacks, which have become an almost daily occurrence in Baghdad, come as tens of thousands of Shi’ites will visit the shrine of the 8th century Imam Mousa al-Kazim later this week on the anniversary of his death. The pilgrims will march to the shrine and pas through hundreds of tents that were erected to offer them free food and drink. In the past large gatherings of Shi’ites have been a target for attacks.
Arabic Signs Against Urinating in Public in Bangladesh
Authorities in Bangladesh have found a unique way to stop people from urinating in public – they are putting up signs in Arabic. Even though most Bengalis can’t even read Arabic, Muslim Bengalis consider it a sacred language and the signs seem to be working. They are being backed by a two-minute video clip which has gone viral. It shows a group of people approaching a public wall to urinate, they stop, and make a gesture of respect to the sign. Similar signs in Bengali were ineffective. But it has received harsh criticism from Fariduddin Masud, a well-known cleric, who said it was running the image of Arabic. “Nobody has the right to use the language of the Koran for such a campaign. The people of the country respect Arabic but that does not mean that we’ll tolerate the use of Arabic to stop people from urinating [at street corners],” the cleric said, according to online news portal Natunbarta.com.