Iran: Khamenei gives the go-ahead for talks with the US. Oil prices plummet (-6.7 per cent)

In a departure from established practice, Israeli President Isaac Herzog will begin consultations on forming a new government by starting with the smaller parties. On Wednesday, the President will begin meeting with representatives of the elected parties: this is the first step in the process leading to the mandate to form a new government. In a departure from established practice, the President will first meet with representatives of the smaller parties, proceeding in ascending order according to the number of seats won. According to a statement from the President’s Office, the decision aims to explore the various options for forming a government before engaging with the larger parliamentary groups in the Knesset. The first party to meet Herzog will be ‘Religious Zionism–Zehut’, led by far-right figures Bezalel Smotrich and Moshe Feiglin; they will be followed by Arye Dery’s Shas and Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beytenu. On Thursday, the President will meet the remaining parties, including Yashar and Likud. The President’s Office has indicated that, should it prove necessary, the possibility of holding a further round of talks has not been ruled out.

The leader of Yisrael Beytenu, Avigdor Lieberman, has lifted his reservation and announced that his party will endorse Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot to form a government. Lieberman has also announced that he will support the candidacy of Yair Lapid, the number two in B’Yachad, for the post of Speaker of the Knesset. “Perhaps we will see some defectors from the Likud,” said Lieberman, responding to those who asked how, in his view, the opposition led by Eisenkot could form a government in Israel without relying on the support of Arab or Haredi parties. “We will wait; we are patient. We must take control of the Knesset. It is essential, first and foremost, to replace the Speaker of the Knesset,” Lieberman said, as quoted by The Times of Israel.

Leaders of the United List and Ra’am met for the first time since last week’s elections in Israel. The parties stated that the aim of the meeting was “to strengthen coordination and explore political cooperation between the parties for the coming period”. This was reported by Ynet.

“We’ve been kind because we haven’t knocked them out, because, you know, they wanted to talk and they just keep on talking, talking, talking. Sooner or later we’ll have to do it.” This was said by US President Donald Trump when speaking about Iran in an interview with Miranda Devine on the Pod Force One podcast. “We’ll see if a deal can be reached,” he added.

An Iranian delegation has left Doha, in Qatar, following an exchange of messages with the United States, but not because the negotiations had broken down. This was reported to Al Jazeera by a diplomat familiar with the matter. A draft proposal to end the war between the United States and Israel against Iran has been circulated to gather views, and discussions are under way regarding a follow-up meeting.

The Yashar party and its allies have condemned and expressed dismay at Sunday evening’s right-wing protest, during which demonstrators gathered outside Gadi Eisenkot’s home and shouted “traitor” at the leader, also accusing him of having killed his own son – a reference to Gal Eisenkot, who was killed in action in the Gaza Strip in December 2023. In a statement, the Yashar Party described the incident as “the direct result of a corrupt and unscrupulous political leadership that has cast aside all boundaries in its quest to remain in power”. The attack, the party states, shows “what it means to lose one’s way”. “This is the spirit emanating from Netanyahu’s office,” the statement continues, calling for his government to be replaced as soon as possible “for the sake of the State of Israel and Israeli society”.

“’I hope that diplomacy, dialogue and discussion will always prevail as the means of resolving international conflicts.’ This was how Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani commented on the risk of an escalation in the Middle East following the US mid-term elections, with the possibility of a new American attack on Iran. “We are working hard to ensure that the Strait of Hormuz is kept open and freedom of navigation is guaranteed. This is the spirit in which, a few days ago, four European countries – Italia, France, Germany and the United Kingdom – met in Istanbul with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan, precisely to achieve the objective of ensuring that diplomacy prevails in all circumstances. “I therefore continue to uphold this position: for us, diplomacy and peace are the two main objectives,” Tajani added to journalists at the Farnesina on the sidelines of the third edition of the States General of the Space Economy.

From emergency management to the creation of a new logistics system that is more flexible, diversified and therefore resilient. Eight months after the start of the war in the Persian Gulf, the region’s oil producers in the region are accelerating the construction and upgrading of infrastructure designed to permanently alter supply routes: oil pipelines, maritime terminals, storage depots and other facilities that will serve, first and foremost, to reduce dependence on transit through the Strait of Hormuz and, more generally, to offer a sufficiently wide range of solutions to better protect export flows from the impact of conflicts, attacks, piracy, as well as simple breakdowns or accidents.

The key concept is that of redundancy, which experts usually recommend to countries that import hydrocarbons (for example, to encourage them to build regasification terminals), but which is in fact also invaluable to major exporters, as the events of recent months have shown.

The Arab political parties the Joint List (11 seats) and Ra’am (8 seats) are expected to propose Gadi Eisenkot for the post of Prime Minister during consultations with Israeli President Isaac Herzog. A senior member of the Joint List reported this to the Israeli website Walla.

Arab political groups are seen as key to the formation of the new government in Israel following the election result.

Iran says it is ready to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days, rather than the seven days originally planned, if Washington accepts its conditions. This was stated by the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry. “The possibility of implementing this plan within two days is a further sign of Iran’s good faith,” said Esmail Baghai, emphasising that “the exchange of messages is continuing” through the mediators. “If Tehran’s demands were met, it would be possible to restore security in the Strait of Hormuz and relaunch the negotiation process very quickly.”

The Middle East should not become an arena for geopolitical rivalry and conflict between the major powers: this was stated by the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, during a meeting with the Sultan of Oman, Haitham bin Tariq, who is visiting China

Six Hamas militants have been killed in recent attacks in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army has announced. In two separate attacks carried out on Saturday in northern Gaza, the IDF reported, Nabil Hamad, head of a department within Hamas’s ‘recruitment apparatus’, and Mohannad Nader Mahmoud Dahdouh, commander of a sniper unit, were killed. Two further attacks carried out in northern Gaza on 22 October killed Wael Naif Fahmi Muslim, a member of Hamas’s Nukhba elite forces who had infiltrated Israel on 7 October 2023, and Arafat Kamal Muhammad Ar’air, commander of a rocket-launching unit. Earlier, the Israeli army had announced that it had killed two further members of the Nukhba forces in strikes carried out on Saturday, including one who had infiltrated the Nir Oz kibbutz during the assault on 7 October. According to the IDF, all the operatives killed had recently been planning attacks against Israeli troops and civilians and were working to restore Hamas’s operational capabilities, “in systematic violation of the ceasefire”.