Israel News

Already buffeted by political gridlock and facing a shuttering of key industries over the coronavirus threat, Israelis were informed on Thursday they should brace themselves for yet another storm — a literal one this time.

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin will task Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White rival Benny Gantz with forming the next government Sunday, as lawmakers across the political spectrum are calling for an emergency government to deal with the novel coronavirus.

An effective Israeli-developed vaccine for coronavirus is on track to be ready for testing within “a few weeks,” though it won’t be available for months because of the lengthy and sometimes bureaucratic testing and approval process, a member of the development team said Tuesday.

The chairman of the Arab-majority Joint List, Ayman Odeh, has named his key demands for supporting a Blue and White-led minority government.

Jerusalem District Court on Tuesday rejected Benjamin Netanyahu’s request to delay his corruption trial on the grounds that his defense team has not received all of the relevant material from the prosecution.

The Israeli Ministry of Strategic Affairs and Public Diplomacy responded in February to a UN ‘blacklist’ of Israeli companies highlighted for supposed human rights abuses with an expose detailing the terror-links of the groups that lobbied for the list’s creation.

Israel has imposed quarantine conditions on all incoming flights in a move that the Finance Ministry predicts will cost the country $1.4 billion.

The US Army said it was curbing its plans to adopt the Iron Dome missile defense system due to concerns about its compatibility with existing US technologies, scrapping its plans to buy two more batteries and explore long-term integration of the Israel-developed system.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that the coronavirus was a pandemic more severe than any disease outbreak in the past century, as a senior official said Israel was likely hours away from placing restrictions on flights arriving from some parts of the United States.

The novel coronavirus spreading across the world is already at a ‘pandemic’ stage, a top Israeli health official said Thursday, though world health authorities have held off from declaring a global outbreak.

A full 68 hours after the polling stations closed and exit polls predicted a surge for Likud and its right-wing bloc, the Central Elections Committee on Thursday confirmed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s party as the largest after Monday’s general election, with final results giving it 36 seats to rival Blue and White’s 33.

As votes cast in so-called double envelopes in the Knesset elections were being tallied, the Central Election Committee updated the count Wednesday morning, giving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party and the centrist rival Blue and White led by Benny Gantz an extra seat apiece, leaving the premier’s bloc of right-wing supporters at 58 seats.

The Israel Defense Forces called off a major air defense exercise with the United States on Wednesday night, a day after it launched, following stricter safety restrictions issued by the Health Ministry aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

Damascus said early Thursday that Israel was carrying out airstrikes in central and southern Syria and that its air defenses had engaged the missiles.

With 92% of the vote counted Tuesday from unprecedented third elections in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing bloc were slated to beat rival Benny Gantz and the Blue and White party with 59 seats in the 120-member Knesset.

President Reuven Rivlin is set to task a candidate with forming a government on or before March 17, the same day Likud party leader Benjamin Netanyahu’s criminal trial begins.

Smashing worries about voter fatigue and virus fears, authorities said Monday that Israelis were streaming to the polls in higher numbers than have been seen in years.

Benjamin Netanyahu claimed victory in the Israel’s elections on Monday night, despite exit polls pointing to his right-wing bloc being below the 61-MK target he needs to form a government.

Three major exit polls in Israel showed Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Likud poised to win 36 to 37 seats as elections concluded Monday, far outstripping the 32 to 33 seats predicted for left-wing rival Benny Gantz and the Blue and White party.

As part of an agreement with the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the IDF Coordination of Government Activities in the territories (COGAT), Israel allowed the entry of cattle and other goods into the Palestinian territories, according to a COGAT press release.