NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
❶ Israel hearing: The Supreme Court heard arguments Monday against the legality of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition deal with formal rival Benny Gantz, a day after it deliberated on whether the longtime leader could head a government while indicted on serious crimes. The court’s ruling, expected by the end of the week, will dictate whether Israel breaks out of its prolonged political paralysis with Netanyahu and Gantz joining forces in government, or whether the country is plunged into its fourth election in just over a year. Netanyahu has been charged with fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of scandals. He denies the accusations.
❷ Poland election: The official in charge of organizing Poland’s election said Monday he doesn’t believe it can take place Sunday as planned because the legislation to authorize an allpostal vote hasn’t been approved. Deputy Prime Minister Jacek Sasin said the government is considering moving the vote to May 17 or May 23 instead. The rightwing government wants the vote to be by mail only because of the coronavirus pandemic. Even if legislation is passed, the schedule leaves too little time for the 30 million ballots to be delivered to every eligible voter’s mailbox by Sunday, Sasin said. President Andrzej Duda leads in opinion polls.
❸ Assange case: WikiLeaks says its founder Julian Assange will have to wait at least until September before a British judge will hear a U.S. request for his extradition. Assange, who faces espionage charges over the activities of WikiLeaks, is currently in Belmarsh Prison in London and is fighting the allegations. Kristinn Hrafnsson, WikiLeaks’ editorinchief, said Monday that it was “completely unacceptable” that Assange has to spend another four months — and potentially longer — in prison. By the time any hearing begins in September, Assange will have spent a year in remand after he was dragged out of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. Assange’s lawyers have been seeking to get him released on bail over fears for his health during the coronavirus pandemic.
❹ Border tensions: South Korea said Monday it protested to North Korea over the exchange of gunfire inside their heavily fortified border that it says the North started. South Korea said several bullets fired from North Korea hit one of its guard posts on Sunday before South Korean troops fired warning shots in response. It was the first shooting inside the Demilitarized Zone in about 2½ years, but there were no known casualties on either side, according to South Korean defense officials. Defense Ministry spokeswoman Choi Hyunsoo said South Korea urged North Korea to explain the shooting and avoid similar incidents. The gunfire exchange happened two days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made a public appearance that ended a threeweek absence that prompted rumors about his health.
❺ Kazakhstan politics: President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Monday put his aide in charge of the senate, moving to tighten his grip on power in the energyrich nation. Tokayev’s move follows his decree stripping the daughter of his predecessor of the speaker’s job over the weekend. Dariga Nazarbayeva became senate speaker in March 2019 on the same day that her father, Nursultan Nazarbayev, unexpectedly resigned. Nazarbayev had led Kazakhstan first as its Communist boss and, after the 1991 Soviet collapse, as its president. His daughter, who held a succession of official jobs, was widely expected to succeed him, but Nazarbayev named Tokayev as acting president and supported his election to the presidency in June. Nazarbayev hasn’t commented on his daughter’s ouster.