Israeli Likud and Blue and White parties are nearing an agreement to form an emergency unity government after Netanyahu rival Benny Gantz relinquished his former refusal to work with the beleaguered Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday tightened the national stay-at-home policy aimed at containing the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, announcing the guidelines he had introduced earlier this week would now be enforced by police under emergency orders.
Israel announced Wednesday that it was barring all foreigners from entering the country to curb the spread of COVID-19.
The Israel Defense Forces on Tuesday accused the Hezbollah terror group and the Syrian army of being behind an attempted sniping attack against Israeli soldiers in the Golan Heights earlier this month, which was thwarted by an Israeli strike on the suspects’ car.
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin will task Blue and White leader Benny Gantz with forming the next government, after the leftist former IDF chief gained a majority of seats in the Knesset with unexpected support.
Islamic religious authorities have closed the Al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock as a precautionary measure against the spread of the coronavirus. However, outdoor prayers will still be permitted outside the two shrines housed in Jerusalem.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a meeting at his office in Jerusalem late on Saturday afternoon to discuss further, more stringent measures Israel may take to halt the coronavirus pandemic.
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.
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.
Israel has imposed quarantine conditions on all incoming flights in a move that the Finance Ministry predicts will cost the country $1.4 billion.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed Sunday that his party’s internal polling showed he was a stone’s throw away from a Knesset majority that would allow the formation of a right-wing government.
Israeli defense minister Naftali Bennett virtually announced a new war with Hamas in Gaza Tuesday, a day after the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terror group launched 80 rockets and mortars into Israel.