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Media Summary

Truss promises to consider UK embassy move to Jerusalem

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The BBC reports that an Israeli public transport firm apologised after it was revealed that 50 Palestinian workers were forced to get off one of its buses. The incident happened in an ultra-Orthodox suburb of Tel Aviv after three Jewish passengers got on and refused to travel with Arabs on board. The bus firm, Tnufa, said one of them had posed as a transport ministry official and threatened the bus driver. Under Israeli law, transport operators are not allowed to operate segregated services.

The Financial Times writes that the latest Gaza conflict has shown differing Palestinian tactics from militant groups inside the Strip. Palestinian Islamic Jihad embarked on conflict while Hamas sat on side-lines as Israeli policy of economic inducements added to their calculations.

The Times writes that archaeologists excavating an early church in Israel say they have uncovered evidence confirming their belief that it marks the birthplace of St Peter, the most prominent disciple and first leader of the Christian faith. In the Gospel according to St John, the birthplace of Simon Peter, his brother St Andrew, and a third apostle, St Philip, is given as Bethsaida – close to where Jesus is believed to have performed the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000. Three places in more modern times have been claimed to be the remnants of ancient Bethsaida. The archaeologists digging at one of them, el-Araj, which is to the northeast of Galilee, say they have found strong evidence for its claim — signs of its habitation in the 1st century AD, along with a Byzantine church.

An armed man who held a bank hostage for more than six hours in Beirut because he could not withdraw savings has been hailed a hero by the public, reports the IndependentGuardianTelegraph and BBC.  Banks in Lebanon have put tight rules on how much money people can access, amid a deep economic crisis. The suspect entered the bank with a rifle, poured petrol and demanded his money for hospital bills. His actions captured public support – with cheering crowds gathering outside and chanting: “You are a hero.” The stand-off eventually ended peacefully with no injuries, after negotiators struck an agreement allowing the suspect to receive $35,000 (£29,000) of his savings upfront, LBC channel reported.

The Independent’s Miguel Delaney explores how the upcoming and most controversial World Cup in history came to be – and the human rights concerns that plague it – as we count down 100 days to kick-off in Qatar.

In Reuters, the US State Department has accused Iran of training Russian officials in recent weeks as part of an agreement on the transfer of drones between the two countries.

Chinese president Xi Jinping expected to visit Saudi Arabia next week, according to the Guardian. The planned gala reception is in stark contrast to the low-key audience afforded Joe Biden in June, as ties between China and the kingdom grow closer.

Writing in The Times, Anthony Lord argues that John Cantile, the war photographer who was abducted ten years ago, was let down by British government officials and left to become a pariah.

The results of the Likud internal elections are heavily featured in the Israeli media this morning. Yediot Ahronot describes the final list as “mega-dramatic, a change in the Likud’s DNA” while Channel 12 News says the results “were not surprising … was it a test of loyalty to Netanyahu? Yes. Did we find his potential heirs? Not at all”. Yediot questions whether Netanyahu succeeded too early in this election campaign by forming a list that might fail to attract moderate right-wing voters. “That is exactly the challenge now facing everyone who is deliberating whether to vote for the Likud: how will they feel in Amsalem’s Likud, the man whose style of speech was once considered marginal and trivial but has now become one of the slate’s leaders?”

A new poll conducted by Maariv shows that Prime Minister Yair Lapid has benefited marginally from Operation Breaking Dawn by gains two seats for his party. However, this gain does not change the dynamic in terms of the blocs, as Benjamin Netanyahu remains on the cusp of being able to form a government. According to the poll, if elections were held today, the Likud would win 33 seats, followed by Yesh Atid on 25, Blue and White-New Hope on 10, Religious Zionist Party on 10, Shas on 9, United Torah Judaism on 7, Labour Party on 7, Joint List on 6, Yisrael Beiteinu on 5, United Arab List on 4 and Zionist Spirit on 4. The Labour Party, which held its internal election this week, also gains two seats, at the expense of Meretz, which fails to cross the passing threshold. In terms of the blocs, the Likud-Religious Zionist Party-ultra-Orthodox bloc would win 59 seats, whilst the current government would win 55 seats.

Israel Hayom reports that British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has promised to consider moving the British embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem if she is elected Tory leader and becomes prime minister in September. The Conservative Party leadership candidate –made the promise in a letter written to members of Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI). “I will ensure that we deliver on our proposed bill to end local councils bringing in Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) policies that target Israel,” she added. Rishi Sunak, Truss’ challenger for the Tory leadership, wrote in his letter to CFI: “I am proud to be a friend of Israel and … to have served in a government that has elevated the UK-Israel relationship to its strongest position in my lifetime.” He also addressed the need to combat antisemitism and the BDS movement in the UK, writing: “The divisive tactics of a small clique of left-wing activists do not represent wider society.”

Maariv also reports that officials in Israel are concerned about possible outside interference in the November elections, mainly through cyber-meddling. According to the report, Israel recently asked Russia not to meddle by any means. The request was apparently relayed by the Shin Bet to its Russian counterpart at Prime Minister Yair Lapid’s instructions. In January 2019, before the first election, the previous Shin Bet director Nadav Argaman dropped a bombshell in a speech at Tel Aviv University, warning of “activity and meddling by a foreign country liable to affect the election results”. It is believed that Argaman was talking about Russia. The Russian embassy issued a sweeping formal denial. Nonetheless, Israel made a great effort to build firewalls and defences against potential foreign meddling, whether from Russia or more hostile countries, such as Iran. It now appears that there are similar warnings this time too.