Outcome still up in air, officials start counting 450,000 absentee ballots
The Central Elections Committee on Wednesday night began counting some 450,000 absentee ballots, and said it hoped to conclude the tally by Friday morning.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
IDF accidentally reveals location of secret bases online
In an apparent blunder of operational security, the IDF Home Front Command published the location of secret IDF bases, Haaretz revealed Tuesday.
Israel’s Prime Minister Wins Election
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received a chance to stay in power for a six-term despite facing corruption allegations as his party held the lead in elections, projections showed.
Mideast quartet discusses reviving Israel, Palestinian peace talks
The Middle East quartet of mediators – the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations – discussed on Tuesday reviving “meaningful negotiations” between Israel and the Palestinians with the aim of a two-state solution.
Israelis go to vote yet again tomorrow in fourth election in two years
Israelis will head to the polls for the fourth time in under two years on Tuesday, hoping to end the political stalemate that began in December 2018 when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu initiated the first election.
IAI completes test of new defense missile with 150 km. range
The Israel Aerospace Industries defense contractor said on Monday it had successfully completed live fire trials of a new long range defense missile.
Sa’ar says open to power-sharing deal with Lapid or Bennett
New Hope party chief Gideon Sa’ar on Monday refused to rule out joining a government led by Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, keeping the door open to a coalition to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that includes right-wing, centrist and left-wing parties.
‘Life-saving’ nose spray that kills 99.9% of viruses begins production in Israel
A nasal spray that will be marketed as capable of killing 99.9 percent of virus particles has started rolling off production lines in an Israeli factory.
Poll: Pro-Netanyahu bloc has 51 seats without Yamina
A final election poll published on Channel 12 News on Friday evening finds that the right and the Likud continue to gain strength, but Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu still does not have the required 61 seats which will allow him to form a government.
Israeli scientists grow fully formed mouse fetuses outside the womb
Israeli scientists are claiming a major breakthrough as they have been able to take mouse embryos from their mothers and grow them outside the womb into fetuses with fully formed organs, the Times of Israel (ToI) reported Wednesday. Prof. Jacob Hanna of the Weizmann Institute of Science said this development “could be relevant to humans.”
US and Israel to establish joint team for sharing information on Iran
The US and Israel have decided to establish a new joint team for sharing intelligence about Iran’s nuclear program, the Times of Israel (ToI) reports. The decision to set up a team was made at a meeting led by US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and his Israeli counterpart Meir Ben-Shabbat last week, ToI reports.
Knesset approves electronic bracelet for citizens returning from abroad
The Knesset on Wednesday approved a COVID-19 bill that requires Israelis returning from abroad to choose either to wear an electronic bracelet that ensures they isolate at home or be quarantined in a hotel, the Jerusalem Post reports. According to the government, such measures are necessary to reopen Israel’s borders, at least to citizens.
Syria says Israel targeted Damascus area in airstrikes
Syria’s official SANA news agency said Tuesday evening that Israel carried out airstrikes on targets in the Damascus area and southern Syria, Israel National News (INN) reports. In its report, SANA said Syria’s air defense systems had been activated due to “Israeli aggression,” and that several missiles had been intercepted.
Viability of Jewish life in Europe is threatened
The Chief Rabbi of Moscow warned this week that Jewish life in Europe is once again under serious threat due, among other things, to the intolerance of ritual slaughter and male circumcision practices that are central to Jewish religious expression. Writing in the Times of Israel, Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt attested: “There is almost no value in remembering the past if a country and its politicians don’t allow its Jewish population to live their life in the present.”
New Dead Sea Scroll Fragments of Biblical Prophets Revealed after Daring Rescue Operation
The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced on Tuesday that it has recovered dozens of fragments of a biblical scroll for the first time in about 60 years in what was described as a “complex and challenging national archaeological operation.”
Israel May Begin Welcoming Vaccinated Tourists Next Month
After a year of virtually no tourism, Israel may begin to allow vaccinated tourists into the country as early as April, The Jerusalem Post reports.
Israel Pursuing Four More Peace Deals, Bibi Says
Israel is pursuing four more peace deals with countries in the region and elsewhere, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday.
Netanyahu vows to authorize illegal West Bank settler outposts if elected to form government
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to authorize illegal West Bank settler outposts if the upcoming March 23 election enables him to form a right-wing government, the Jerusalem Post reports. The PM made his election pledge Sunday as he visited the Givat Harel outpost in the West Bank’s Binyamin region.
Israeli group files lawsuit with International Criminal Court: Israel vaccination campaign involves “crimes against humanity”
The International Criminal Court is considering a lawsuit filed by a group of Israeli lawyers and doctors who believe Israel’s warp-speed COVID-19 vaccination campaign is a “medical experiment” that violates the Nuremberg Code and constitutes crimes against humanity, All Israel News reports.
Abbas pulls out the stops to neutralize rival Mohammed Dahlan
The Palestinian political arena is riotous and raging following the decision of Nasser al-Kidwa, a senior Fatah figure and the nephew of Yasser Arafat, to establish an independent list that will run in the Palestinian parliamentary elections, separate from the official list of the Fatah movement. Al-Kidwa’s list will also support the candidacy of Marwan Barghouti, one of PA leader Mahmoud Abbas’s bitter political opponents, in the presidential elections, purportedly to be held in July 2021.