Attack on synagogue in Jerusalem raises tensions; Japanese PM Shinzo Abe calls for early elections; Hong Kong police begin to clear protest sites; 40 mafia suspects arrested in Northern Italy; state of emergency called in Ferguson, Missouri; and more
Top of the Agenda
Synagogue Attack Heightens Israel Tensions
Two Palestinian men stormed a synagogue (NYT) in Jerusalem and killed four rabbis on Tuesday. Israeli police killed the attackers in a shoot-out at the scene. The Popular Liberation Front in Palestine claimed responsibility for the attack, and Hamas praised the "operation." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the attack was incited by Hamas and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and vowed to respond "with a heavy hand (FT)." The attack is the latest in a series of clashes in Jerusalem.
Analysis
"With a model for emulation like the murderous maniacs of ISIS, and the excuse of increasing Israeli involvement in the situation at the Temple Mount—the conflict with the Palestinians in Jerusalem has been taking on a religious aspect; and the new wave of terrorism is taking on the trappings of a religious war," writes Amos Harel in Haaretz.
"To most Israelis and many Palestinians, a one-state solution is no solution at all. It seems like the by-product of left-leaning desperation or right-leaning triumphalism. Even many of those who know that a two-state peace settlement is far from imminent believe that a binational state represents not a promise of democracy and coexistence but a blueprint for sectarian strife," writes David Remnick in the New Yorker.
"It seems that the fuse has been lit. If Israeli and Palestinian leaders don’t work together and put it out, the Holy Land may join the rest of the Middle East exploding in flames," writes Creede Newton for the Daily Beast.
PACIFIC RIM
Abe Calls Early Elections
A day after Japan's economy fell into recession, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced the dissolution of the lower house and called for snap elections (Japan Times) to be held December 14. He also delayed a consumption tax hike and is set to announce stimulus funds (Yomiuri Shimbun) totaling $17 billion.
Japan is doing the right thing by delaying the tax hike to avoid fiscal contraction, writes CFR's Robert Kahn.
HONG KONG: Police, acting on a court injunction, moved to clear protest sites (SCMP) in downtown Hong Kong on Tuesday. Protesters have been calling since September for a greater voice in the selection of candidates for Hong Kong's top leader in elections slated for 2017.
This CFR Issue Guide provides background and analysis on the Hong Kong protests.
ELSEWHERE:
Forty Mafia suspects arrested in Northern Italy
State of emergency called in Ferguson, Missouri over race conflict
This is an excerpt of the CFR.org Daily News Brief. The full version is available on CFR.org