Likud reportedly scraps election campaign highlighting Netanyahu’s close ties to Trump in wake of US-Iran deal

The Times of Israel is liveblogging Wednesday’s events as they unfold.

Australia relaxes travel warnings to Israel, other Mideast countries after US-Iran deal

Australia relaxes its travel advice for Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates after the US and Iran reached an interim deal to end the war in the Middle East.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong says the advisory has moved to “reconsider your need to travel” from “do not travel,” but adds that Australians should continue to delay non-essential travel to the Gulf states.

“While the security situation across the Middle East could deteriorate rapidly with little warning, the (government) has assessed current conditions in Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE as appropriate to move to (the lower level),” Wong says.

Asked for comment on Smotrich ‘annulment’ of Hebron agreement, US reiterates opposition to West Bank annexation

Asked for comment on Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s declared annulment of Israel’s 1997 Hebron agreement with the Palestinians, a US State Department spokesperson reiterates Washington’s opposition to Israeli annexation of the West Bank.

Smotrich claimed earlier Tuesday to have “abolished” components of the Hebron agreement that gave the Palestinian municipal council of Hebron authority over planning, zoning and construction in parts of the southern West Bank city.

In an apparent attempt at damage control, Israel’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement denying that the Hebron agreement had been canceled, insisting that the government was merely transferring specific jurisdictions pertaining to settlers and holy sites in the city following a lack of cooperation from the local Palestinian municipality.

US President Donald Trump’s administration has refrained from actively weighing in of its own volition, and his State Department in particular has largely refrained from publicly criticizing Israel.

However, the State Department did send a statement to querying reporters that hinted at displeasure with the Smotrich-led move.

“As the president has clearly stated, he does not support Israel annexing the West Bank,” reads the statement attributed to a State Department spokesperson.

“A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration’s goal to achieve peace in the region,” the statement continues. “We refer you to the Israeli government for questions on their policies in the West Bank.”

Toronto police say hired gunmen are targeting Jewish sites

Police in Toronto, Canada, say hired gunmen are targeting Jewish sites in the city.

Gunfire and arson attacks have repeatedly hit synagogues and other Jewish sites in Toronto and other Canadian cities, without causing any fatalities.

The chief of the Toronto police, Myron Demkiw, says at a press conference that young people are being recruited through encrypted messaging apps to carry out the attacks, according to The Toronto Star.

“In order to get paid, they’re required to film their attacks. Who’s paying for this? This is what we are trying to determine,” Demkiw says.

“It is clear that some of the people hiring these criminals want to create a sense of fear in our communities, including in the Jewish community,” he adds.

Last week, a Toronto police officer was shot and killed during an arrest linked to a shooting against the US consulate in Toronto in March.

The alleged mastermind behind the consulate shooting was Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, according to a criminal complaint filed in a New York court.

Al-Saadi is an Iraqi-Iranian national with deep ties to the Iranian regime who orchestrated a terror campaign against Jewish, Israeli and American targets in the US, Europe and Canada, according to US federal prosecutors.

Investigators said Al-Saadi paid attackers to target the sites and required them to film the attacks for propaganda.

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Likud reportedly scraps election campaign highlighting Netanyahu’s close ties to Trump in wake of US-Iran deal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party has canceled a planned election campaign highlighting the premier’s close ties to US President Donald Trump, after assessing that the messaging will not help Netanyahu’s chances at the upcoming election, the i24 news outlet reports.

According to the report, the decision to scrap the campaign was made several days ago as Trump finalized the terms of a deal with Iran that many in Israel find deeply undesirable.

With the deal in mind, Likud officials assessed that Netanyahu’s close ties with the US president would not bring in new voters or increase his chances at the polling booth later this year.

Trump has also been increasingly publicly critical of Netanyahu, confirming in an interview earlier this month that he called the Israeli leader “fucking crazy” during a phone call. Then, earlier this week, he reportedly told Axios that he had informed Netanyahu he has “no fucking judgment” following an Israeli strike on Beirut.