IDF chief’s message to Biden: If necessary, Israel will act alone
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi’s speech at the annual INSS conference on Tuesday might have been in Hebrew, but what he said was aimed at speakers of both English and Farsi.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
U.S. announces restoration of relations with Palestinians
U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration announced Tuesday it was restoring relations with the Palestinians and renewing aid to Palestinian refugees, a reversal of the Trump administration’s cutoff and a key element of its new support for a two-state solution to the decades-old conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.
IDF chief warns Israel won’t accept return to Iran nuclear deal, offensive military options on table
The head of the IDF warned Tuesday that Israel would not accept a direct return to the Iran nuclear deal and the military was preparing contingency plans in case the Iranians moved closer to producing a nuclear weapon.
Israel halts all commercial flights in bid to keep virus variants at bay
Israel on Monday night shuttered Ben Gurion Airport to nearly all flights until the end of January, amid fears over fast-spreading or vaccine-resistant coronavirus variants entering the country.
Could an Israeli mutation undo Israel’s mass vaccination campaign?
Israel’s mass vaccination campaign running in parallel with an active coronavirus outbreak may lead to “evolutionary pressure” on the virus, resulting in an Israeli variant that could be resistant to or have certain advantages over the vaccine.
TV: Mossad chief to meet Biden, set out terms for overhaul of Iran nuclear deal
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to dispatch Mossad chief Yossi Cohen to Washington in the coming weeks to lay out Israel’s demands of the Biden administration for any new version of the Iran nuclear deal, Channel 12 news reported Saturday night.
Syrian media reports Israeli airstrikes near western city of Hama
Syrian state media reported Israeli airstrikes near the western city of Hama in the predawn hours of Friday morning.
Iran’s nuclear program has crossed Netanyahu’s ‘red line,’ former senior advisor
The Iranian regime has taken highly dangerous steps in recent weeks that make a military strike by Israel more likely in 2021, and thus forcing the new Biden administration to make Iran its top and most urgent foreign policy priority.
1,500-year-old inscription saying “Christ, born of Mary” discovered in Israel
Archaeologists in northern Israel have unearthed a 1,500-year-old carved inscription which says “Christ, born of Mary,” in Greek, Christian Today reports. The inscription was part of a lintel in the doorway of a Byzantine church.
IDF to hold massive exercise this summer, simulating full-scale, multi-front war
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday announced plans for a massive, month-long exercise this summer, simulating a multi-front war, in which every branch of the military will take part.
Biden’s State pick backs two-state solution, says US embassy stays in Jerusalem
US President-elect Joe Biden will not reverse Donald Trump’s landmark recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital but will seek a state for the Palestinians, Tony Blinken, his nominee for secretary of state, said Tuesday.
Syrian and Israeli officials reportedly had a Russia-brokered meeting last month
The Asharq Al Awsat Arabic international newspaper reported Sunday that Russia hosted a meeting for Syrian and Israeli officials at the Russian airbase in Hmeimim, Syria last month, Jewish Press reports. Neither Damascus nor Jerusalem has confirmed the report.
Netanyahu says Israel may need to extend lockdown, pleads with Haredim to comply
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Monday that Israel will likely need to extend its current lockdown restrictions, despite its successful vaccination campaign.
City of David recognized as ‘testament’ to US Judeo-Christian heritage
The City of David was recognized as a “testament to America’s Judeo-Christian heritage and founding principles” by the US Embassy in Jerusalem and the US Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad at a special ceremony on Monday.
Palestinian Authority to hold first elections in 15 years
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday announced that parliamentary and presidential elections will take place in the country for the first time in 15 years.
Israel is launching Covid immunity passports
Israel has been lauded for deploying what is currently the fastest Covid-19 vaccination campaign in the world.
Israeli medical company produces quick COVID test
An Israeli company has developed a test for the COVID-19 coronavirus which gives results in minutes.
US House reintroduces bill to sanction global backers of Hamas, Islamic Jihad
Bipartisan American legislation directing the US president to sanction international individuals and agencies tied to the Gaza-based Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror groups was re-introduced in the House on Thursday.
Ex-Intel Chief Yadlin: Recent Israeli Airstrikes in Syria Broader, More Deadly
Israeli airstrikes in eastern Syria early Wednesday were “extensive, deep in Syrian territory, targeting a wide variety of targets connected to Iran and its proxies,” explained Maj. Gen. (ret.) Amos Yadlin on Twitter after the attacks.
At least 57 killed in airstrikes targeting Iran-backed forces in Syria
Israel carried out a series of airstrikes in eastern Syria early Wednesday, targeting Iran-backed forces and killing at least 57 fighters and wounding many others, the Associated Press (AP) reports.