The slickness of Israel's spokesmen is rooted in directions set down by the pollster Frank Luntz

Israeli spokesmen have their work cut out explaining how they have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in Gaza, most of them civilians, compared with just three civilians killed in Israel by Hamas rocket and mortar fire. But on television and radio and in newspapers, Israeli government spokesmen such as Mark Regev appear slicker and less aggressive than their predecessors, who were often visibly indifferent to how many Palestinians were killed.

There is a reason for this enhancement of the PR skills of Israeli spokesmen. Going by what they say, the playbook they are using is a professional, well-researched and confidential study on how to influence the media and public opinion in America and Europe. Written by the expert Republican pollster and political strategist Dr Frank Luntz, the study was commissioned five years ago by a group called The Israel Project, with offices in the US and Israel, for use by those "who are on the front lines of fighting the media war for Israel".

US analyst says both major political parties have links to China's Communist party amid fears over the growing influence of BeijingThe New Zealand government's relationship with China has come under the spotlight after a former CIA analyst in the US said the nation's participation in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance needs to be reconsidered.

Giving testimony to the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, Peter Mattis said Jacinda Ardern's Labour party had accepted money from donors with links to the Chinese Communist party, while former prime minister Bill English had routinely briefed a National MP who was revealed to have worked at an institution that trained Chinese spies.

"Australia and New Zealand both face substantial problems with interference by the Chinese Communist party," Mattis told the hearing.

Poland is reportedly willing to pay $2bn for permanent presence of US troops in the country. Moscow called the initiative "dangerous", saying it won't benefit European security.

The document dubbed 'Proposal for a US Permanent Presence in Poland' by the country's Defense Ministry was leaked online by local media and Politico Europe group at the weekend.

The 39-page document discusses how "extraordinarily strong" Poland-US relations throughout history have been: how Polish people were "remarkably pro-Western" during the Cold war, how they fought against communism and disliked the Soviet Union.

Roman Abramovich, the billionaire owner of Chelsea football club, has been granted Israeli citizenship and will move to Tel Aviv, an Israeli government spokesperson has said.

Abramovich had faced unusually long delays in renewing his UK visa, which had expired, sources told the Reuters news agency. The British government has declined to comment on his case.

Israel's interior ministry confirmed the offer of citizenship to a local television station on Monday.

According to the Ynet website, which belongs to Israel's biggest selling daily, Yedioth Ahronoth, Abramovich flew to Tel Aviv on Monday and received documents confirming his status as an Israeli citizen. He has reportedly bought a property in the city.

The House Memo noted the FBI's claimed use of George Papadopoulos to open the July 2016 Counterintelligence Investigation into Trump-Russia:

The Papadopoulos information triggered the opening of an FBI counterintelligence investigation in late July 2016 by FBI agent Peter Strzok.

Away from the fact that Papadopoulos appears to have been set up by multiple participants, we've always had some questions regarding the FBI's stated excuse.

1. The FBI didn't bother to interview Papadopoulos until January 27, 2017. The conversation in question took place in May 2016. The FBI knew of this conversation no later than July 2016. If the Papadopoulos information was enough to open a FBI counterintelligence investigation in July 2016, why did the FBI wait until January 2017 to even speak with Papadopoulos.
2. If the Papadopoulos information was so critical, why was there no mention of either the information or Papadopoulos in any of the three Intelligence Community Reports on Russian Election Interference.
3. Why is there no mention of Papadopoulos in the Steele Dossier. Particularly when this document was so vital to obtaining the October 21, 2016 FISA Warrant. Paul Manafort, Carter Page, Michael Cohen, Michael Flynn and Corey Lewandowski are all listed in the Steele Dossier. But no George Papadopoulos.

The last question is a good one. It may provide some answers as well.

Israel has told Russia that it will broaden its military operations against Iranian positions in Syria to include the entire country, an international Arabic newspaper reported over the weekend.

According to London-based Asharq al-Awsat, Israel has decided to expand its "red lines" in Syria and will no longer confine itself to the area near its southern border. Israel has been cited as the source of numerous air and missile strikes in the country on sites connected to Iran and its Lebanese terror proxy Hezbollah.

Along with Russia, Iran is a primary ally of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, who has waged a brutal civil war against opponents of his regime since 2011. Hezbollah has been heavily involved in the fighting.


Israel has repeatedly stated that it will not allow Iran to entrench itself in Syria so as to threaten the Jewish state's northern border. It has also acted to prevent the shipment of advanced weapons to Hezbollah.

The latest such strike occurred in the early hours of Friday morning, when Israel reportedly struck a military airbase in Homs, Syria. Twenty-one people, including nine Iranians, were reportedly killed.

In a little-noticed interview in April, former Australian diplomat Alexander Downer spoke publicly for the first time about his barroom conversation with President Donald Trump's campaign adviser that would serve as a catalyst for the FBI's collusion investigation.

Downer, the former high commissioner to the U.K., said he asked another Australian diplomat to contact the Trump aide, George Papadopoulos, for the meeting, which occurred around May 10, 2016, at London's Kensington Wine Room.

Over drinks, Papadopoulos mentioned Russians had information on Hillary Clinton that could prove damaging, Downer told The Australian in an April 28 interview.

There was no indication in the short exchange with Papadopoulos that Trump was aware of the damaging information, Downer also said.

"By the way, nothing [Papadopoulos] said in that conversation indicated Trump himself had been conspiring with the Russians to collect information on Hillary Clinton. It was just that this guy, [Papadopoulos], clearly knew that the Russians did have material on Hillary Clinton - but whether Trump knew or not?" Downer explained.

"He didn't say Trump knew or that Trump was in any way involved in this. He said it was about Russians and Hillary Clinton; it wasn't about Trump," Downer told The Australian.

U.S. threats to crush Iran and North Korea may yet work, but as of now neither Tehran nor Pyongyang appears to be intimidated.

Repeated references by NSC adviser John Bolton and Vice President Mike Pence to the "Libya model" for denuclearization of North Korea just helped sink the Singapore summit of President Trump and Kim Jong Un. To North Korea, the Libya model means the overthrow and murder of Libya strongman Col. Gadhafi, after he surrendered his WMD.

Wednesday, North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui exploded at Pence's invocation of Libya:

"Vice-President Pence has made unbridled and impudent remarks that North Korea might end like Libya ... I cannot suppress my surprise at such ignorant and stupid remarks. Whether the U.S. will meet us at a meeting room or encounter us at nuclear-to-nuclear showdown is entirely dependent upon the decision and behavior of the United States."

Yesterday, Trump canceled the Singapore summit.

Earlier this week at the Heritage Foundation, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo laid out our Plan B for Iran in a speech that called to mind Prussian Field Marshal Karl Von Moltke.

Italy's PM-designate Giuseppe Conte said he's given up on attempts to form a government after President Sergio Mattarella rejected his candidacy for economy minister. The country may now face a new election by the end of 2018.

"President [Mattarella] has received Prof. Giuseppe Conte .... who returned the mandate given to him on May 23 to form the government. The president has thanked him for his effort in fulfilling this task," Ugo Zampetti, an official within the presidential administration, told RAI. After the talk, Mattarella said that he was going to make a decision on the new parliamentary vote in the country in the coming hours.

Conte confirmed his failure to form "the government of change" in Italy, saying: "I can assure you that I did my utmost to try to fulfill this task."

Mattarella told the media that he "agreed to all the ministers except the finance minister" proposed by the coalition. "I asked for a figure, who would mean not risking an exit from the euro," he explained.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella has appointed IMF official Carlo Cottarelli as the interim prime minister tasked with forming a new government. The PM said elections will be held no later than August unless he wins the confidence of parliament.

President Mattarella announced his choice Monday, having diluted the deal between two Eurosceptic parties who had collective majority in the March elections and had since dedicated themselves to forming a new government.

The newly-appointed PM Cottarelli vowed to establish a new government "very quickly" to take the country through this period before fresh elections are held in the fall of 2018 or early next year.

"I'll present myself to parliament with a program which - if it wins the backing of parliament - would include the approval of the 2019 budget. Then parliament would be dissolved with elections at the beginning of 2019," Cottarelli said shortly after being named interim prime minister.