In pics: Palestinians honour Al Jazeera’s slain journalist Shireen Abu Akleh

The United States said on Friday that it was "deeply concerned" after violence in Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound. The clashes at the mosque compound took place on the heels of three weeks of deadly violence in Israel and West Bank. Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli police clashed at Al-Aqsa mosque on April 15. More than 150 people were wounded in the clashes.

"We call on all sides to exercise restraint (and) avoid provocative actions and rhetoric," State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

"We urge Palestinian and Israeli officials to work cooperatively to lower tensions and ensure the safety of everyone."

As per Israeli police, dozens of masked men marched into Al-Aqsa and set off fireworks. This was followed by crowds hurling stones towards the Western Wall which is considered the holiest site where Jews can pray.

In the violence that erupted on April 15, most of the Palestinian injuries were due to rubber bullets, stun grenades and due to police baton

Al-Aqsa is third holiest site in Islam. The mosque is called Temple Mount by the Jews. This is a reference to two temples said to have stood there in antiquity.

The Al-Aqsa compound sits atop the Old City plateau of East Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war, and is known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif.

(With inputs from agencies)

The United States said on Friday that it was "deeply concerned" after violence in Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound. The clashes at the mosque compound took place on the heels of three weeks of deadly violence in Israel and West Bank.

The United States said on Friday that it was "deeply concerned" after violence in Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound. The clashes at the mosque compound took place on the heels of three weeks of deadly violence in Israel and West Bank. Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli police clashed at Al-Aqsa mosque on April 15. More than 150 people were wounded in the clashes. "We call on all sides to exercise restraint (and) avoid provocative actions and rhetoric," State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement. "We urge Palestinian and Israeli officials to work cooperatively to lower tensions and ensure the safety of everyone." As per Israeli police, dozens of masked men marched into Al-Aqsa and set off fireworks. This was followed by crowds hurling stones towards the Western Wall which is considered the holiest site where Jews can pray. In the violence that erupted on April 15, most of the Palestinian injuries were due to rubber bullets, stun grenades and due to police baton Al-Aqsa is third holiest site in Islam. The mosque is called Temple Mount by the Jews. This is a reference to two temples said to have stood there in antiquity. The Al-Aqsa compound sits atop the Old City plateau of East Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war, and is known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif. (With inputs from agencies)

US makes appeal for calm after Jerusalem violence

Israeli&nbsp;Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has put off a&nbsp;trip&nbsp;planned for later this week to&nbsp;India, his office said on Tuesday,&nbsp;after&nbsp;he tested positive for&nbsp;Covid.

"Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's&nbsp;trip&nbsp;to&nbsp;India&nbsp;has been postponed and will be rescheduled," the office said in a statement.

The three-day&nbsp;trip, organised&nbsp;after&nbsp;an invitation from&nbsp;India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had been scheduled to start on Sunday.

It had been set to mark 30 years since the two nations established diplomatic ties, Bennett's office said.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/germany-thinks-of-buying-israeli-anti-missile-system-466033">Germany thinks of buying Israeli anti-missile system Iron Dome</a>

On Monday, the prime minister's office said Bennett had tested positive for&nbsp;Covid-19 but was "feeling well and will continue his schedule as planned from his home".

It was to have been Bennett's first official&nbsp;trip&nbsp;to&nbsp;India.

Modi visited Israel in 2017 and former&nbsp;Israeli&nbsp;prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu paid a reciprocal visit a year later.

Israeli&nbsp;Defence Minister Benny Gantz, who had been scheduled to fly to&nbsp;India&nbsp;to meet his counterpart in a separate visit this week, also delayed his&nbsp;trip.

India&nbsp;has historically been a vocal supporter of the Palestinians, but it has drawn closer to Israel in recent years, in part via buying military hardware from Israel.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israel-working-with-united-states-to-prevent-nuclear-iran-foreign-minister-yair-lapid-466049">Israel working with United States to prevent nuclear Iran: Foreign Minister Yair Lapid</a>

On Monday top diplomats from Israel, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Egypt and the United States met at a landmark summit in southern Israel.

Palestinians say Arab states are betraying their cause by abandoning a decades-long policy of boycotting Israel until the&nbsp;Israeli-Palestinian conflict is resolved.

Watch |&nbsp;Israeli PM Naftali Bennett tests Covid-19 positive ahead of India trip

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Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has put off a trip planned for later this week to India, his office said on Tuesday, after he tested positive for Covid. "Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's trip to India has been postponed and will be rescheduled," the office said in a statement.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has put off a trip planned for later this week to India, his office said on Tuesday, after he tested positive for Covid. "Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's trip to India has been postponed and will be rescheduled," the office said in a statement. The three-day trip, organised after an invitation from India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had been scheduled to start on Sunday. It had been set to mark 30 years since the two nations established diplomatic ties, Bennett's office said. Also read | Germany thinks of buying Israeli anti-missile system Iron Dome On Monday, the prime minister's office said Bennett had tested positive for Covid-19 but was "feeling well and will continue his schedule as planned from his home". It was to have been Bennett's first official trip to India. Modi visited Israel in 2017 and former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu paid a reciprocal visit a year later. Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz, who had been scheduled to fly to India to meet his counterpart in a separate visit this week, also delayed his trip. India has historically been a vocal supporter of the Palestinians, but it has drawn closer to Israel in recent years, in part via buying military hardware from Israel. Also read | Israel working with United States to prevent nuclear Iran: Foreign Minister Yair Lapid On Monday top diplomats from Israel, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Egypt and the United States met at a landmark summit in southern Israel. Palestinians say Arab states are betraying their cause by abandoning a decades-long policy of boycotting Israel until the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is resolved. Watch | Israeli PM Naftali Bennett tests Covid-19 positive ahead of India trip

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett delays India trip after Covid infection

Germany is looking to buy Israeli anti-missile shield system that can also offer defence for neighbouring European Union (EU) states, said AFP citing parliamentary sources. Russia's invasion of Ukraine are prompting Berlin to ramp up its defences.

As per German newspaper Bild daily, the decision has not been finalised but Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats are in favour.

"We must better protect ourselves against the Russian threat. To do that, we need quickly an anti-missile shield for Germany," said Andreas Schwarz of the SPD, who sits on the parliamentary budget committee.

"The Israeli Arrow 3 system is a good solution," he told Bild daily, referring to the long-range missile deterrence weapon.&nbsp; 
According to Bild, the system, which costs two billion euros ($2.2 billion), could be operational from 2025.

The corresponding radar system would be installed in three sites in Germany, and their monitoring data then transmitted to a central site where soldiers will be watching for threats 24/7.

If a rocket attack is uncovered, an Arrow 3 would be sent up to intercept the missile in space, destroying it there.

The radar system is so powerful it can provide cover for Poland, Romania and the Baltic nations, said Bild.

"We can put the 'Iron Dome' over our neighbouring countries. We would then play a key role for the security of Europe," said Schwarz.&nbsp;

Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, who chairs the parliamentary defence committee, confirmed that Berlin was mulling the purchase.

"Given the threat situation and the different weapons systems that Russia has, of course you have to look at that, so in that sense it makes sense," she told Welt newspaper.

After years of under-investment in defence, Germany has announced a dramatic U-turn, shaken by Russia's assault on its neighbour.&nbsp;

Scholz on February 27 in a landmark speech said Germany would earmark a special budget of 100 billion euros to bolster its defence capabilities.

He also said Berlin will spend more than two percent of its output a year on defence, outstripping NATO's target of two percent which Germany has consistently failed to meet.

(With inputs from agencies)

Germany is looking to buy Israeli anti-missile shield system that can also offer defence for neighbouring European Union (EU) states, said AFP citing parliamentary sources.

Germany is looking to buy Israeli anti-missile shield system that can also offer defence for neighbouring European Union (EU) states, said AFP citing parliamentary sources. Russia's invasion of Ukraine are prompting Berlin to ramp up its defences. As per German newspaper Bild daily, the decision has not been finalised but Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats are in favour. "We must better protect ourselves against the Russian threat. To do that, we need quickly an anti-missile shield for Germany," said Andreas Schwarz of the SPD, who sits on the parliamentary budget committee. "The Israeli Arrow 3 system is a good solution," he told Bild daily, referring to the long-range missile deterrence weapon. According to Bild, the system, which costs two billion euros ($2.2 billion), could be operational from 2025. The corresponding radar system would be installed in three sites in Germany, and their monitoring data then transmitted to a central site where soldiers will be watching for threats 24/7. If a rocket attack is uncovered, an Arrow 3 would be sent up to intercept the missile in space, destroying it there. The radar system is so powerful it can provide cover for Poland, Romania and the Baltic nations, said Bild. "We can put the 'Iron Dome' over our neighbouring countries. We would then play a key role for the security of Europe," said Schwarz. Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, who chairs the parliamentary defence committee, confirmed that Berlin was mulling the purchase. "Given the threat situation and the different weapons systems that Russia has, of course you have to look at that, so in that sense it makes sense," she told Welt newspaper. After years of under-investment in defence, Germany has announced a dramatic U-turn, shaken by Russia's assault on its neighbour. Scholz on February 27 in a landmark speech said Germany would earmark a special budget of 100 billion euros to bolster its defence capabilities. He also said Berlin will spend more than two percent of its output a year on defence, outstripping NATO's target of two percent which Germany has consistently failed to meet. (With inputs from agencies)

Germany thinks of buying Israeli anti-missile system Iron Dome

Israel is all set to host top diplomats of the United States, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco in a “historic” two-day summit from Sunday, the foreign ministry said on Friday.

The summit is historic considering the fact that Israel and these Arab countries used to be at loggerheads with each other for decades, and how it is has been normalised post the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020, which was brokered by the US

“At the invitation of Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, this upcoming Sunday and Monday... a historic diplomatic summit will be held in Israel," it said in a statement on Friday.

A series of diplomatic meetings would be attended by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his counterparts from the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco, it said.

The United Arab Emirates forged diplomatic ties with Israel in 2020 under a series of US-brokered deals known as the Abraham Accords. Bahrain and Morocco followed suit, while Sudan also agreed to normalise ties with Israel although it has yet to finalise a deal.

Morocco even signed a memorandum of understanding on military cooperation on Friday, according to the Israeli army’s Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee.

The agreements — reached under former US president Donald Trump — broke with decades of Arab consensus that there would be no relations with Israel while the Palestinian question remains unresolved.

But the Arab countries said they were motivated by the economic benefits of ties with Israel, reports AFP.

The upcoming talks come against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a conflict that has sparked wider security concerns and sent oil and food prices soaring.

(With inputs from agencies)

Israel is all set to host top diplomats of the United States, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco in a “historic” two-day summit from Sunday, the foreign ministry said on Friday.

Israel is all set to host top diplomats of the United States, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco in a “historic” two-day summit from Sunday, the foreign ministry said on Friday. The summit is historic considering the fact that Israel and these Arab countries used to be at loggerheads with each other for decades, and how it is has been normalised post the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020, which was brokered by the US “At the invitation of Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, this upcoming Sunday and Monday... a historic diplomatic summit will be held in Israel," it said in a statement on Friday. A series of diplomatic meetings would be attended by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his counterparts from the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco, it said. The United Arab Emirates forged diplomatic ties with Israel in 2020 under a series of US-brokered deals known as the Abraham Accords. Bahrain and Morocco followed suit, while Sudan also agreed to normalise ties with Israel although it has yet to finalise a deal. Morocco even signed a memorandum of understanding on military cooperation on Friday, according to the Israeli army’s Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee. The agreements — reached under former US president Donald Trump — broke with decades of Arab consensus that there would be no relations with Israel while the Palestinian question remains unresolved. But the Arab countries said they were motivated by the economic benefits of ties with Israel, reports AFP. The upcoming talks come against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a conflict that has sparked wider security concerns and sent oil and food prices soaring. (With inputs from agencies)

Israel to host US, UEA, Bharain and Morocco diplomats for three-day ‘historic' summit

Four people were killed and several wounded in a knife attack outside a shopping mall in southern Israel city of Beersheba&nbsp;on Tuesday, according to local media reports.

The police are describing the incident as a suspected "terrorist attack".

"It appeared to be a single terrorist who went on a stabbing spree," police spokesman Eli Levy said on Tuesday on Channel 13 TV, TRT &nbsp;

"A civilian took the initiative and shot and killed him."

The stabber was identified as 34-year-old Mohammad Ghaleb Abu al-Qi’an, a former terror convict&nbsp;from the Bedouin town of Hura in the Negev, the Times of Israel newspaper reported.

&nbsp;

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Video shows the assailant who allegedly rammed and stabbed to death at least four people in Beersheba being shot by passersby.<a href="https://t.co/7cdCrMEXeU">https://t.co/7cdCrMEXeU</a> <a href="https://t.co/gmuuQKrPrn">pic.twitter.com/gmuuQKrPrn</a>
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According to police, he first stabbed a woman to death at a nearby gas station in the southern city and then rammed his vehicle into a cyclist.&nbsp;The attacker then got out&nbsp;and stabbed several people at the BIG shopping centre.

The attacker was then shot by a bus driver and another passerby.

The cyclist and two of the stabbing victims at the mall later died of their wounds.

"One woman was pronounced dead, and four patients were conveyed to Soroka Hospital, two in critical condition, and two in moderate condition," the Magen David Adom emergency response organisation.

This is the third stabbing attack this week, according to Israeli media.

On Sunday, two police officers were injured in a stabbing attack in East Jerusalem's Ras al-Amud neighbourhood.

On Saturday, a 35-year-old man was stabbed and lightly wounded on Hebron Road near the First Station in Jerusalem.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

Four people were killed and several wounded in a knife attack outside a shopping mall in southern Israel city of Beersheba on Tuesday, according to local media reports.

Four people were killed and several wounded in a knife attack outside a shopping mall in southern Israel city of Beersheba on Tuesday, according to local media reports. The police are describing the incident as a suspected "terrorist attack". "It appeared to be a single terrorist who went on a stabbing spree," police spokesman Eli Levy said on Tuesday on Channel 13 TV, TRT "A civilian took the initiative and shot and killed him." The stabber was identified as 34-year-old Mohammad Ghaleb Abu al-Qi’an, a former terror convict from the Bedouin town of Hura in the Negev, the Times of Israel newspaper reported. Video shows the assailant who allegedly rammed and stabbed to death at least four people in Beersheba being shot by passersby.https://t.co/7cdCrMEXeU pic.twitter.com/gmuuQKrPrn — Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 22, 2022 × (Viewer discretion advised) According to police, he first stabbed a woman to death at a nearby gas station in the southern city and then rammed his vehicle into a cyclist. The attacker then got out and stabbed several people at the BIG shopping centre. The attacker was then shot by a bus driver and another passerby. The cyclist and two of the stabbing victims at the mall later died of their wounds. "One woman was pronounced dead, and four patients were conveyed to Soroka Hospital, two in critical condition, and two in moderate condition," the Magen David Adom emergency response organisation. This is the third stabbing attack this week, according to Israeli media. On Sunday, two police officers were injured in a stabbing attack in East Jerusalem's Ras al-Amud neighbourhood. On Saturday, a 35-year-old man was stabbed and lightly wounded on Hebron Road near the First Station in Jerusalem. (With inputs from agencies)

Watch | 4 killed, several wounded in knife attack in Israel; ‘terrorist’ shot dead: Reports

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis gathered Sunday at the funeral of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, a spiritual leader in ultra-Orthodox Judaism, in one of the largest public gatherings in Israeli history. Kanievsky died Friday, aged 94.

Estimates suggested that 400,000 to 750,000 mourners attended the funeral or filled nearby streets, balconies and rooftops, hoping to get as close as possible to the rabbi’s bier. The crowds shut down not only Bnei Brak, an ultra-Orthodox enclave on the eastern edge of Tel Aviv where the rabbi lived, but also large parts of central Israel, where hundreds of schools stayed closed Sunday, the first day of the Israeli workweek, to prevent students from being stuck in traffic jams.

The estimated crowd numbers were still short of the 850,000 who were said to have attended the funeral of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, another ultra-Orthodox leader, who died in 2013.

But the size of Kanievsky’s funeral Sunday nevertheless reflected the veneration with which he was held by Israel’s ultra-Orthodox Jews — or Haredim, as the community’s members prefer to be known.

Kanievsky had no formal role, but he was widely considered a leader of the so-called Lithuanian Jews, a non-Hasidic stream of ultra-Orthodox Jewry that has roots in Eastern Europe. Lithuanian Jews form roughly a third of the 1.1 million Haredim in Israel.

As authorities tried to lessen the risk of a stampede Sunday, Israeli military rescue teams were placed on standby at a nearby stadium. Before the funeral, commentators and officials feared a repeat of a catastrophe at a religious festival in northern Israel last March, when 45 Haredi worshippers were crushed to death.

A quiet man with a wispy white beard and wrinkled skin, Kanievsky was revered for his encyclopedic knowledge of Jewish law and scripture. His family said he had read religious texts for up to 17 hours a day since the 1930s.

That relentless scholarship established his reputation as a major sage, leading hundreds of thousands of people to look to him for regular spiritual advice on both the profound and the banal. Every day hundreds of people would line up outside Kanievsky’s house to seek his guidance on matters like urgent medical and political issues and even what household appliances they should buy.

Born in 1928 in what is now Belarus, Kanievsky moved to what became Israel before World War II — making him one of the last bridges between the European Haredi communities that were decimated during the Holocaust and the new Haredi world that emerged in Israel after the establishment of the state.

Kanievsky’s illustrious family heritage also added to his prestige: His father and uncle were considered venerable religious sages, known respectively as the Steipler and the Chazon Ish, long before he rose to prominence himself.

The Israeli prime minister, Naftali Bennett, paid tribute to the rabbi in a statement before a Cabinet meeting Sunday. “The name of Rabbi Kanievsky will be remembered as an important part of the Torah history of the people of Israel,” Bennett said. “The son of the Steipler and the nephew of the Chazon Ish, he continued in their path, after the Holocaust, in the land of Israel, preserving the Torah world of the destroyed communities of Europe.”

In later life, Kanievsky was considered to hold significant influence over an Israeli political party, Degel HaTorah, which represents parts of the Haredi community in the Israeli Parliament and has played a key role in several Israeli governments over the past three decades.

During the early weeks of the coronavirus pandemic, the rabbi became a villain to many secular Israelis when he ordered his followers not to close their schools, even as infection rates rose disproportionately among the Haredim. That decision helped set off one of the biggest showdowns in Israeli history between secular and religious Jews.

But Kanievsky later reversed his stance and issued several statements encouraging his followers to adhere to coronavirus restrictions and to be vaccinated.

Kanievsky’s insular and ascetic life led to frequent questions from secular Israelis about the extent to which he understood the world on which he pronounced.

His family said he was so focused on Talmudic study that he did not know how to brew tea or the name of Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Kanievsky’s grandson and gatekeeper, Yaakov Kanievsky, said that the rabbi was solely responsible for his pronouncements and worldview.

But the rabbi’s knowledge of breaking news was nevertheless largely filtered through his grandson, who would shout brief bursts of information into Rabbi Kanievsky’s ear before carefully posing the questions to which he gave his fateful answers. Yaakov Kanievsky was also tasked with interpreting the rabbi’s sometimes inaudible responses, giving him influence over both what the rabbi knew of the world and also how he responded to it.

During a brief encounter with a New York Times reporter last year, Rabbi Kanievsky registered the journalist’s presence only after his grandson spoke loudly in his ear. Then the rabbi quickly returned to his religious texts.

(END OPTIONAL TRIM.)

The death of any Haredi leader usually prompts a debate about a successor. But in Kanievsky’s case, the question is less pressing because he is survived by another leading Lithuanian cleric, Rabbi Gershon Edelstein, 98, who was already considered to hold equal weight in the Haredi world. 
&nbsp;

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis gathered Sunday at the funeral of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, a spiritual leader in ultra-Orthodox Judaism, in one of the largest public gatherings in Israeli history.

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis gathered Sunday at the funeral of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, a spiritual leader in ultra-Orthodox Judaism, in one of the largest public gatherings in Israeli history. Kanievsky died Friday, aged 94. Estimates suggested that 400,000 to 750,000 mourners attended the funeral or filled nearby streets, balconies and rooftops, hoping to get as close as possible to the rabbi’s bier. The crowds shut down not only Bnei Brak, an ultra-Orthodox enclave on the eastern edge of Tel Aviv where the rabbi lived, but also large parts of central Israel, where hundreds of schools stayed closed Sunday, the first day of the Israeli workweek, to prevent students from being stuck in traffic jams. The estimated crowd numbers were still short of the 850,000 who were said to have attended the funeral of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, another ultra-Orthodox leader, who died in 2013. But the size of Kanievsky’s funeral Sunday nevertheless reflected the veneration with which he was held by Israel’s ultra-Orthodox Jews — or Haredim, as the community’s members prefer to be known. Kanievsky had no formal role, but he was widely considered a leader of the so-called Lithuanian Jews, a non-Hasidic stream of ultra-Orthodox Jewry that has roots in Eastern Europe. Lithuanian Jews form roughly a third of the 1.1 million Haredim in Israel. As authorities tried to lessen the risk of a stampede Sunday, Israeli military rescue teams were placed on standby at a nearby stadium. Before the funeral, commentators and officials feared a repeat of a catastrophe at a religious festival in northern Israel last March, when 45 Haredi worshippers were crushed to death. A quiet man with a wispy white beard and wrinkled skin, Kanievsky was revered for his encyclopedic knowledge of Jewish law and scripture. His family said he had read religious texts for up to 17 hours a day since the 1930s. That relentless scholarship established his reputation as a major sage, leading hundreds of thousands of people to look to him for regular spiritual advice on both the profound and the banal. Every day hundreds of people would line up outside Kanievsky’s house to seek his guidance on matters like urgent medical and political issues and even what household appliances they should buy. Born in 1928 in what is now Belarus, Kanievsky moved to what became Israel before World War II — making him one of the last bridges between the European Haredi communities that were decimated during the Holocaust and the new Haredi world that emerged in Israel after the establishment of the state. Kanievsky’s illustrious family heritage also added to his prestige: His father and uncle were considered venerable religious sages, known respectively as the Steipler and the Chazon Ish, long before he rose to prominence himself. The Israeli prime minister, Naftali Bennett, paid tribute to the rabbi in a statement before a Cabinet meeting Sunday. “The name of Rabbi Kanievsky will be remembered as an important part of the Torah history of the people of Israel,” Bennett said. “The son of the Steipler and the nephew of the Chazon Ish, he continued in their path, after the Holocaust, in the land of Israel, preserving the Torah world of the destroyed communities of Europe.” In later life, Kanievsky was considered to hold significant influence over an Israeli political party, Degel HaTorah, which represents parts of the Haredi community in the Israeli Parliament and has played a key role in several Israeli governments over the past three decades. During the early weeks of the coronavirus pandemic, the rabbi became a villain to many secular Israelis when he ordered his followers not to close their schools, even as infection rates rose disproportionately among the Haredim. That decision helped set off one of the biggest showdowns in Israeli history between secular and religious Jews. But Kanievsky later reversed his stance and issued several statements encouraging his followers to adhere to coronavirus restrictions and to be vaccinated. Kanievsky’s insular and ascetic life led to frequent questions from secular Israelis about the extent to which he understood the world on which he pronounced. His family said he was so focused on Talmudic study that he did not know how to brew tea or the name of Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. Kanievsky’s grandson and gatekeeper, Yaakov Kanievsky, said that the rabbi was solely responsible for his pronouncements and worldview. But the rabbi’s knowledge of breaking news was nevertheless largely filtered through his grandson, who would shout brief bursts of information into Rabbi Kanievsky’s ear before carefully posing the questions to which he gave his fateful answers. Yaakov Kanievsky was also tasked with interpreting the rabbi’s sometimes inaudible responses, giving him influence over both what the rabbi knew of the world and also how he responded to it. During a brief encounter with a New York Times reporter last year, Rabbi Kanievsky registered the journalist’s presence only after his grandson spoke loudly in his ear. Then the rabbi quickly returned to his religious texts. (END OPTIONAL TRIM.) The death of any Haredi leader usually prompts a debate about a successor. But in Kanievsky’s case, the question is less pressing because he is survived by another leading Lithuanian cleric, Rabbi Gershon Edelstein, 98, who was already considered to hold equal weight in the Haredi world.

Revered Jewish sage buried in one of the largest gatherings in Israel's history

&nbsp;A number of Israeli government websites went down in an apparent cyberattack as the country's cyber authority confirmed it was a DDos attack that had blocked access to government websites, and that all websites were back online. 
 
According to Haaretz, the websites of the interior, health, justice and welfare ministries had been taken offline, as was that of the Prime Minister's Office.

Also read |<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/iran-says-it-foiled-sabotage-by-an-israeli-recruited-network-at-a-nuclear-facility-462400">&nbsp;Iran says it foiled sabotage by an Israeli-recruited network at a nuclear facility</a> 
 
Earlier on Monday, a senior defence official confirmed to Haaretz that a massive cyberattack was carried out on Monday evening against Israeli government websites, and cyber security industry sources said that the operation was a wide-scale distributed denial of service (DDos) attack. 
 
A defence establishment source claims that this was the largest-ever cyber attack carried out against Israel. They believe that a state actor or large organization carried out the attack, but cannot yet determine who is behind it, the report said.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/sanctioned-oligarch-abramovichs-private-jet-in-israel-source-462166">Sanctioned oligarch Abramovich's private jet in Israel - Source</a> 
 
The defence establishment and the National Cyber Directorate have declared a state of emergency in order to study the extent of the damage, while checking strategic Israeli websites and government infrastructure, such as Israel's electric and water companies, to see whether they were also attacked.

Watch |&nbsp;Iran accuses Israel of planning sabotage on Fordow nuclear plant

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/iran-accuses-israel-of-planning-sabotage-on-fordow-nuclear-plant-462373/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The defence establishment claims that the attack hit websites using the .GOV.IL domain, which is used for all government websites save for defence-related ones. Another website that uses this domain is the government database. Despite this, some of the websites can still be accessed via smartphone.

A number of Israeli government websites went down in an apparent cyberattack as the country's cyber authority confirmed it was a DDos attack that had blocked access to government websites, and that all websites were back online.

A number of Israeli government websites went down in an apparent cyberattack as the country's cyber authority confirmed it was a DDos attack that had blocked access to government websites, and that all websites were back online. According to Haaretz, the websites of the interior, health, justice and welfare ministries had been taken offline, as was that of the Prime Minister's Office. Also read | Iran says it foiled sabotage by an Israeli-recruited network at a nuclear facility Earlier on Monday, a senior defence official confirmed to Haaretz that a massive cyberattack was carried out on Monday evening against Israeli government websites, and cyber security industry sources said that the operation was a wide-scale distributed denial of service (DDos) attack. A defence establishment source claims that this was the largest-ever cyber attack carried out against Israel. They believe that a state actor or large organization carried out the attack, but cannot yet determine who is behind it, the report said. Also read | Sanctioned oligarch Abramovich's private jet in Israel - Source The defence establishment and the National Cyber Directorate have declared a state of emergency in order to study the extent of the damage, while checking strategic Israeli websites and government infrastructure, such as Israel's electric and water companies, to see whether they were also attacked. Watch | Iran accuses Israel of planning sabotage on Fordow nuclear plant The defence establishment claims that the attack hit websites using the .GOV.IL domain, which is used for all government websites save for defence-related ones. Another website that uses this domain is the government database. Despite this, some of the websites can still be accessed via smartphone.

Israeli govt sites crash in 'largest-ever' cyberattack, National Cyber Directorate declares State of Emergency

Sanctioned&nbsp;Russian businessman Roman&nbsp;Abramovich's&nbsp;private&nbsp;plane was in&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;on Monday and due to depart later in the day, less than 24 hours after it arrived, a person with knowledge of the matter said.

The person confirmed&nbsp;Israeli media reports that&nbsp;Abramovich's&nbsp;plane landed at Tel Aviv's Ben-Gurion airport late on Sunday.

Reuters could not immediately establish whether Abramovich, who also holds&nbsp;Israeli and Portuguese citizenship, had been aboard.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/ukraine-war-ushers-in-new-era-for-us-abroad-462147">Ukraine war ushers in ‘new era’ for US abroad</a>

The billionaire, owner of Britain's Chelsea soccer club, was among seven&nbsp;oligarchs added to the British sanctions list on Thursday in a bid to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine.

A British transport ministry&nbsp;source&nbsp;said on Friday that Britain was searching out helicopters and&nbsp;jets belonging to the&nbsp;sanctioned&nbsp;oligarchs.

Abramovich has denied having close ties to Putin.

A flight tracking website showed a plane registered as LX-RAY flew in from Moscow on Sunday.&nbsp;Israel's N12 News said the plane had been in Turkey recently. LX-RAY has been widely reported as belonging to Abramovich.

An&nbsp;Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/palestinian-killed-after-stabbing-two-israeli-police-officers-in-jerusalem-police-say-460184">Palestinian killed after stabbing two Israeli police officers in Jerusalem, police say</a>

In a bid to prevent Russian&nbsp;oligarchs from evading foreign sanctions,&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;this month restricted the time&nbsp;private&nbsp;jets can park to no more than 24 hours.

Abramovich's&nbsp;plane was due to depart&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;later on Monday, said the&nbsp;source.

Watch |&nbsp;Day 19 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine: Capital Kyiv braces for Russian assault

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/day-19-of-the-russian-invasion-of-ukraine-capital-kyiv-braces-for-russian-assault-462085/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo">&nbsp;</div>

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo">Israel, a mediator in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, has been walking a fine line in its relations with Moscow - a main powerbroker in neighbouring Syria, where&nbsp;Israeli aircraft frequently attack Iranian-allied forces.</div>

With public sympathy for Ukraine strong in&nbsp;Israel, the country's Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem said on Thursday that it had suspended a strategic partnership with Abramovich, after Britain's move against him.

&nbsp;

Sanctioned Russian businessman Roman Abramovich's private plane was in Israel on Monday and due to depart later in the day, less than 24 hours after it arrived, a person with knowledge of the matter said.

Sanctioned Russian businessman Roman Abramovich's private plane was in Israel on Monday and due to depart later in the day, less than 24 hours after it arrived, a person with knowledge of the matter said. The person confirmed Israeli media reports that Abramovich's plane landed at Tel Aviv's Ben-Gurion airport late on Sunday. Reuters could not immediately establish whether Abramovich, who also holds Israeli and Portuguese citizenship, had been aboard. Also read | Ukraine war ushers in ‘new era’ for US abroad The billionaire, owner of Britain's Chelsea soccer club, was among seven oligarchs added to the British sanctions list on Thursday in a bid to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine. A British transport ministry source said on Friday that Britain was searching out helicopters and jets belonging to the sanctioned oligarchs. Abramovich has denied having close ties to Putin. A flight tracking website showed a plane registered as LX-RAY flew in from Moscow on Sunday. Israel's N12 News said the plane had been in Turkey recently. LX-RAY has been widely reported as belonging to Abramovich. An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Also read | Palestinian killed after stabbing two Israeli police officers in Jerusalem, police say In a bid to prevent Russian oligarchs from evading foreign sanctions, Israel this month restricted the time private jets can park to no more than 24 hours. Abramovich's plane was due to depart Israel later on Monday, said the source. Watch | Day 19 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine: Capital Kyiv braces for Russian assault Israel, a mediator in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, has been walking a fine line in its relations with Moscow - a main powerbroker in neighbouring Syria, where Israeli aircraft frequently attack Iranian-allied forces. With public sympathy for Ukraine strong in Israel, the country's Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem said on Thursday that it had suspended a strategic partnership with Abramovich, after Britain's move against him.

Sanctioned oligarch Abramovich's private jet in Israel - Source

Israeli&nbsp;police&nbsp;shot dead a&nbsp;Palestinian&nbsp;man&nbsp;after&nbsp;he stabbed&nbsp;two&nbsp;officers&nbsp;at a gate to&nbsp;Jerusalem's walled Old City on Monday, a&nbsp;police&nbsp;statement said. It was the second such incident in&nbsp;two&nbsp;days.

Police&nbsp;said the&nbsp;two&nbsp;officers&nbsp;suffered light to moderate wounds and were taken to hospital.

Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza, claimed the attacker as a member.&nbsp;It praised the&nbsp;stabbing&nbsp;attack as a response to what it called Israel's "extrajudicial killings" of&nbsp;Palestinians in&nbsp;Jerusalem&nbsp;without arresting them or putting them on trial.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/india-uae-fta-will-add-9bn-to-uaes-gdp-by-2030-says-trade-minister-thani-460159">India-UAE FTA will add $9bn to UAE's GDP by 2030, says trade minister Thani</a>

"These operations will continue as long as the occupation continues its aggression and its violations against the sacred sites in&nbsp;Jerusalem," Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said.

A video on social media showed several&nbsp;police&nbsp;officers&nbsp;shouting and pointing their guns at the man as he lay on the ground at the Cotton Merchants' Gate.

Photos distributed by&nbsp;police&nbsp;showed a bloodied knife on the ground.

The state-run&nbsp;Palestinian&nbsp;news agency Wafa identified the man as Abdulrahman Qasem from Jalazon refugee camp near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-israel-go-in-high-level-diplomatic-huddle-on-ukraine-iran-460049">US, Israel go in high-level diplomatic huddle on Ukraine, Iran</a>

On Sunday, a&nbsp;Palestinian&nbsp;man who stabbed and wounded an&nbsp;Israeli&nbsp;policeman in the Old City was&nbsp;killed&nbsp;when&nbsp;officers&nbsp;fired at him,&nbsp;police&nbsp;said.

Later that day,&nbsp;Israeli&nbsp;soldiers shot a&nbsp;Palestinian&nbsp;who threw a fire bomb at an army post outside&nbsp;Jerusalem, a military spokesman said.&nbsp;Palestinian&nbsp;officials identified him as a 16-year-old who later died of his wounds.

Israel captured East&nbsp;Jerusalem&nbsp;and the Old City, along with the West Bank and Gaza in a 1967 war.&nbsp;Palestinians seek those areas for a future state.&nbsp;Israeli-Palestinian&nbsp;peace talks collapsed in 2014.

Israeli police shot dead a Palestinian man after he stabbed two officers at a gate to Jerusalem's walled Old City on Monday, a police statement said. It was the second such incident in two days.

Israeli police shot dead a Palestinian man after he stabbed two officers at a gate to Jerusalem's walled Old City on Monday, a police statement said. It was the second such incident in two days. Police said the two officers suffered light to moderate wounds and were taken to hospital. Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza, claimed the attacker as a member. It praised the stabbing attack as a response to what it called Israel's "extrajudicial killings" of Palestinians in Jerusalem without arresting them or putting them on trial. Also read | India-UAE FTA will add $9bn to UAE's GDP by 2030, says trade minister Thani "These operations will continue as long as the occupation continues its aggression and its violations against the sacred sites in Jerusalem," Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said. A video on social media showed several police officers shouting and pointing their guns at the man as he lay on the ground at the Cotton Merchants' Gate. Photos distributed by police showed a bloodied knife on the ground. The state-run Palestinian news agency Wafa identified the man as Abdulrahman Qasem from Jalazon refugee camp near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. Also read | US, Israel go in high-level diplomatic huddle on Ukraine, Iran On Sunday, a Palestinian man who stabbed and wounded an Israeli policeman in the Old City was killed when officers fired at him, police said. Later that day, Israeli soldiers shot a Palestinian who threw a fire bomb at an army post outside Jerusalem, a military spokesman said. Palestinian officials identified him as a 16-year-old who later died of his wounds. Israel captured East Jerusalem and the Old City, along with the West Bank and Gaza in a 1967 war. Palestinians seek those areas for a future state. Israeli-Palestinian peace talks collapsed in 2014.

Palestinian killed after stabbing two Israeli police officers in Jerusalem, police say

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid met on Monday in order to discuss Russian invasion of Ukraine and possibility of a new nuclear deal with Iran.

Lapid flew to Riga, Latvia to connect with Washington's top diplomat two days after Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett travelled to Moscow for a three-hour meeting with President Vladimir Putin, hoping to find a way to end the bloodshed in Ukraine.

"The way to stop the war is to negotiate," Lapid said at the start of the meeting in a Riga hotel.

"Israel is speaking with both sides, both with Russia and Ukraine, and we're working in full coordination with our greatest ally the United States and with our European partners," he said.

Blinken thanked Israel for its effort to help find an end to the war.

On Sunday Bennett said Israel would press on with diplomatic efforts "as needed," despite Russia continuing its attack 12 days after its forces invaded Ukraine without provocation.

"Even if the chance is not great -- as soon as there is even a small opening, and we have access to all sides and the capability -- I see this as our moral obligation to make every effort," he said.

Lapid also said he would talk with Blinken about Israel's interests in the possible revival of the 2015 nuclear agreement aimed at preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

"We're united and committed to the proposition that Iran must never attain a nuclear weapon," Blinken assured his Israeli counterpart.

(With inputs from agencies)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid met on Monday in order to discuss Russian invasion of Ukraine and possibility of a new nuclear deal with Iran.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid met on Monday in order to discuss Russian invasion of Ukraine and possibility of a new nuclear deal with Iran. Lapid flew to Riga, Latvia to connect with Washington's top diplomat two days after Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett travelled to Moscow for a three-hour meeting with President Vladimir Putin, hoping to find a way to end the bloodshed in Ukraine. "The way to stop the war is to negotiate," Lapid said at the start of the meeting in a Riga hotel. "Israel is speaking with both sides, both with Russia and Ukraine, and we're working in full coordination with our greatest ally the United States and with our European partners," he said. Blinken thanked Israel for its effort to help find an end to the war. On Sunday Bennett said Israel would press on with diplomatic efforts "as needed," despite Russia continuing its attack 12 days after its forces invaded Ukraine without provocation. "Even if the chance is not great -- as soon as there is even a small opening, and we have access to all sides and the capability -- I see this as our moral obligation to make every effort," he said. Lapid also said he would talk with Blinken about Israel's interests in the possible revival of the 2015 nuclear agreement aimed at preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. "We're united and committed to the proposition that Iran must never attain a nuclear weapon," Blinken assured his Israeli counterpart. (With inputs from agencies)

US, Israel go in high-level diplomatic huddle on Ukraine, Iran

Israel will continue trying to mediate between Russia and Ukraine even if success seems unlikely, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Sunday after returning from surprise talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Ukraine has requested that Israel serve as intermediary, citing the Bennett government's good relations with both Kyiv and Moscow. Bennett's office said he spoke three times over the weekend with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Also read |<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/this-will-be-a-war-crime-ukraine-warns-russia-preparing-to-shell-port-city-odessa-459585">&nbsp;'This will be a war crime': Ukraine warns Russia preparing to shell port city Odessa</a>

In televised remarks to his cabinet, Bennett gave no details on his three-hour Kremlin meeting with Putin on Saturday, saying only that it had "the blessing and encouragement of all parties" - an allusion to the United States, among other powers. Bennett and Putin had discussed the mediation idea by phone last week.

"We will continue to assist wherever this is requested, even if the chances are not great," Bennett said. "The moment there is even a small opening, and we have the access to all sides and the capability, I see it as a moral duty to make every attempt."

Israel has condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, expressed solidarity with Kyiv and sent humanitarian aid. But Bennett has not met Ukrainian requests for military assistance and has kept channels open to Russia, with which Israel coordinates operations against Iranian deployments in Syria.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-russian-invasion-over-61000-airbnb-bookings-made-in-ukraine-in-48-hours-heres-why-459576">Amid Russian invasion, over 61,000 Airbnb bookings made in Ukraine in 48 hours. Here's why</a>

Israeli Communications Minister Yoaz Hendel said he had declined Ukrainian requests to ban nine Russian media outlets on the grounds they were propagandising.

"These (broadcasters) did not meet any kind of threshold that would necessitate their blocking. I would like to remind you that, in a democracy, blocking media channels is a very dramatic event," Hendel told reporters.

Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said Israel, which has a population of 9.2 million, was bracing for a "very, very big wave" of immigration sparked by the conflict.

Watch |&nbsp;Israel PM Bennett holds talks with Russian President Putin &amp; Ukraine President Zelensky amid crisis

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/israel-pm-bennett-holds-talks-with-russian-president-putin-ukraine-president-zelensky-amid-crisis-459455/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

This could entail taking in more than 200,000 Ukrainians who are Jewish or have Jewish family links and more than 600,000 Russians in the same categories, she said.

In what local media have cast as a bid to prevent Russian oligarchs from fleeing to Israel to evade sanctions, the Israel Airports Authority said it had received instructions not to allow private jets to park for more than 24 hours.

Israel will continue trying to mediate between Russia and Ukraine even if success seems unlikely, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Sunday after returning from surprise talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Israel will continue trying to mediate between Russia and Ukraine even if success seems unlikely, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Sunday after returning from surprise talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Ukraine has requested that Israel serve as intermediary, citing the Bennett government's good relations with both Kyiv and Moscow. Bennett's office said he spoke three times over the weekend with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Also read | 'This will be a war crime': Ukraine warns Russia preparing to shell port city Odessa In televised remarks to his cabinet, Bennett gave no details on his three-hour Kremlin meeting with Putin on Saturday, saying only that it had "the blessing and encouragement of all parties" - an allusion to the United States, among other powers. Bennett and Putin had discussed the mediation idea by phone last week. "We will continue to assist wherever this is requested, even if the chances are not great," Bennett said. "The moment there is even a small opening, and we have the access to all sides and the capability, I see it as a moral duty to make every attempt." Israel has condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, expressed solidarity with Kyiv and sent humanitarian aid. But Bennett has not met Ukrainian requests for military assistance and has kept channels open to Russia, with which Israel coordinates operations against Iranian deployments in Syria. Also read | Amid Russian invasion, over 61,000 Airbnb bookings made in Ukraine in 48 hours. Here's why Israeli Communications Minister Yoaz Hendel said he had declined Ukrainian requests to ban nine Russian media outlets on the grounds they were propagandising. "These (broadcasters) did not meet any kind of threshold that would necessitate their blocking. I would like to remind you that, in a democracy, blocking media channels is a very dramatic event," Hendel told reporters. Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said Israel, which has a population of 9.2 million, was bracing for a "very, very big wave" of immigration sparked by the conflict. Watch | Israel PM Bennett holds talks with Russian President Putin & Ukraine President Zelensky amid crisis This could entail taking in more than 200,000 Ukrainians who are Jewish or have Jewish family links and more than 600,000 Russians in the same categories, she said. In what local media have cast as a bid to prevent Russian oligarchs from fleeing to Israel to evade sanctions, the Israel Airports Authority said it had received instructions not to allow private jets to park for more than 24 hours.

Bennett says Israel will try to mediate on Ukraine even if prospect slim

Israeli&nbsp;Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Sunday that a U.S.-Iranian&nbsp;deal&nbsp;taking shape to revive&nbsp;Iran's 2015&nbsp;nuclear&nbsp;agreement with world powers is weaker than the original arrangement and&nbsp;would&nbsp;lead to a more violent&nbsp;Middle&nbsp;East.

The 2015&nbsp;deal&nbsp;limited&nbsp;Iran’s enrichment of uranium to make it harder for Tehran to develop material for&nbsp;nuclear&nbsp;weapons, in return for a lifting of international sanctions against Tehran.

But it has eroded since 2018 when then-President Donald Trump withdrew the United States and reimposed far-reaching sanctions on&nbsp;Iran.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israel-sees-iran-nuclear-deal-shortly-warns-it-may-be-weaker-naftali-bennett-454791">Israel sees Iran nuclear deal 'shortly,' warns it may be 'weaker': Naftali Bennett</a>

"The emerging&nbsp;deal, as it seems, is highly likely to create a more violent, more volatile&nbsp;Middle&nbsp;East," Bennett said in a speech in Jerusalem to Jewish American leaders.

The aim of the&nbsp;nuclear&nbsp;talks in Vienna is to return to the original bargain of lifting sanctions against&nbsp;Iran&nbsp;in exchange for restrictions on its&nbsp;nuclear&nbsp;activities that extend the time it&nbsp;would&nbsp;need to produce enough enriched uranium for an atomic bomb if it chose to.

Iran&nbsp;says&nbsp;its&nbsp;nuclear&nbsp;ambitions are peaceful.

Bennett said the biggest problem in current negotiations was the possibility of the shorter timeline - two and a half years - before&nbsp;Iran&nbsp;could freely operate advanced centrifuges, since the original timeline may not be extended.

"Israel will not accept&nbsp;Iran&nbsp;as a&nbsp;nuclear&nbsp;threshold state," he said, reiterating a long-standing position, at the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. "Israel will always maintain its freedom of action to defend itself."

Watch |&nbsp;Israel PM Naftali Bennett slams emerging Nuclear Deal

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/israel-pm-naftali-bennett-slams-emerging-nuclear-deal-454922/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

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Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Sunday that a U.S.-Iranian deal taking shape to revive Iran's 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers is weaker than the original arrangement and would lead to a more violent Middle East.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Sunday that a U.S.-Iranian deal taking shape to revive Iran's 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers is weaker than the original arrangement and would lead to a more violent Middle East. The 2015 deal limited Iran’s enrichment of uranium to make it harder for Tehran to develop material for nuclear weapons, in return for a lifting of international sanctions against Tehran. But it has eroded since 2018 when then-President Donald Trump withdrew the United States and reimposed far-reaching sanctions on Iran. Also read | Israel sees Iran nuclear deal 'shortly,' warns it may be 'weaker': Naftali Bennett "The emerging deal, as it seems, is highly likely to create a more violent, more volatile Middle East," Bennett said in a speech in Jerusalem to Jewish American leaders. The aim of the nuclear talks in Vienna is to return to the original bargain of lifting sanctions against Iran in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear activities that extend the time it would need to produce enough enriched uranium for an atomic bomb if it chose to. Iran says its nuclear ambitions are peaceful. Bennett said the biggest problem in current negotiations was the possibility of the shorter timeline - two and a half years - before Iran could freely operate advanced centrifuges, since the original timeline may not be extended. "Israel will not accept Iran as a nuclear threshold state," he said, reiterating a long-standing position, at the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. "Israel will always maintain its freedom of action to defend itself." Watch | Israel PM Naftali Bennett slams emerging Nuclear Deal

Israeli PM says revived Iran nuclear deal would mean a 'more violent' Middle East

Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on Tuesday where he discussed several pressing issues, including their common archenemy Iran, during his historic trip to the Gulf country.

Bennett said that his landmark visit to Bahrain offered a “new model” of Israeli-Arab relations, part of a goal of creating a regional “ring of alliances”.

“This was a very successful visit, warm reception, strong connection, very open atmosphere,” Bennett said at the end of his visit, 17 months after Israel and Bahrain ended decades of tensions to normalise ties.

According to the Prime Minister’s Office, the Bahraini monarch hailed the “historic day,” noting Bennett is the first Israeli premier to visit the kingdom.

“Because of [Bennett’s] determination and leadership, this was a productive and successful visit,” he was quoted as saying in a statement. “I thank you for coming here.”

Bennett’s office said his tete-a-tete with the king extended beyond the allotted time, leaving no time for their teams to meet.

The meeting comes at a time when several Western countries are holding talks in Vienna on discussing the resumption of the 2015 Iran Nuclear deal.

The talks involve Iran, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia directly, and the United States indirectly.

Israel has also sent its diplomats to Vienna even though it is not part of the negotiations.

While the presence of Israel in the talks has angered Iran, Jerusalem maintains that lifting sanctions on Tehran would enable it to fund nuclear programmes, putting the Arab and West Asian regions in jeopardy.

Israel is seeking to influence negotiations to seek tighter curbs on Tehran and more robust security arrangements.

The 2015 deal offered Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear programme, but the US unilaterally withdrew in 2018 under then-president Donald Trump and reimposed stiff economic sanctions, prompting Tehran to begin rolling back on its commitments.

(With inputs from Jodi Cohen)

Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on Tuesday where he discussed several pressing issues, including their common archenemy Iran, during his historic trip to the Gulf country.

Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on Tuesday where he discussed several pressing issues, including their common archenemy Iran, during his historic trip to the Gulf country. Bennett said that his landmark visit to Bahrain offered a “new model” of Israeli-Arab relations, part of a goal of creating a regional “ring of alliances”. “This was a very successful visit, warm reception, strong connection, very open atmosphere,” Bennett said at the end of his visit, 17 months after Israel and Bahrain ended decades of tensions to normalise ties. According to the Prime Minister’s Office, the Bahraini monarch hailed the “historic day,” noting Bennett is the first Israeli premier to visit the kingdom. “Because of [Bennett’s] determination and leadership, this was a productive and successful visit,” he was quoted as saying in a statement. “I thank you for coming here.” Bennett’s office said his tete-a-tete with the king extended beyond the allotted time, leaving no time for their teams to meet. The meeting comes at a time when several Western countries are holding talks in Vienna on discussing the resumption of the 2015 Iran Nuclear deal. The talks involve Iran, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia directly, and the United States indirectly. Israel has also sent its diplomats to Vienna even though it is not part of the negotiations. While the presence of Israel in the talks has angered Iran, Jerusalem maintains that lifting sanctions on Tehran would enable it to fund nuclear programmes, putting the Arab and West Asian regions in jeopardy. Israel is seeking to influence negotiations to seek tighter curbs on Tehran and more robust security arrangements. The 2015 deal offered Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear programme, but the US unilaterally withdrew in 2018 under then-president Donald Trump and reimposed stiff economic sanctions, prompting Tehran to begin rolling back on its commitments. (With inputs from Jodi Cohen)

Eyeing Iran, Israel PM Bennett meets Bahrain’s King as he strives to build ‘ring of alliances’

Three Israeli military commanders have been disciplined after an investigation into the death of a 78-year-old Palestinian-American man who was detained, gagged and handcuffed by Israeli soldiers in a night raid on his village last month.

An autopsy showed that the man, Omar Abdelmajed Assad, died from a stress-induced heart attack brought on by injuries sustained while he was detained for about an hour on Jan. 12 by dozens of Israeli soldiers.

The commander of the Netzah Yehuda, the Jewish ultra-Orthodox battalion which conducted the raid on the village, will be reprimanded and the platoon and company commanders will both be removed from their positions. They will not serve in commanding roles for two years, according to the military.

“The incident showed a clear lapse of moral judgment,” the Israeli military’s chief of general staff said in a statement released late Monday that summed up the conclusions of an investigation by the military’s central command. “The investigation concluded that the incident was a grave and unfortunate event, resulting from a moral failure and poor decision-making on the part of the soldiers.”

The statement, in which Assad’s full name was rendered incorrectly, said the Israeli military deeply regretted his death, but stopped short of apologizing for it.

Assad’s family and human rights groups said the punishments were too light and fit a pattern of impunity for Israelis who kill Palestinians.

“It’s not enough,” said Mohanad Assad, Assad’s 39-year-old cousin. “They need to be tried in international courts.”

The Israeli human rights organization, B’Tselem, has long dismissed Israeli military investigations into the killings of Palestinians as whitewashing.

But the Israeli military has called those allegations “ridiculous” and said it has proved repeatedly that its investigations are independent and professional.

One example of an investigation that critics say reflects a pattern of impunity was linked to the 2014 war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza, when an airstrike killed four boys playing on a beach, prompting international condemnation. An Israeli military investigation resulted in no criminal charges or disciplinary actions against those involved in airstrikes during that war, including the two that killed the boys.

Assad was driving home around 3 a.m. after a night playing cards and drinking coffee at a relative’s house when he was detained near his home in the village of Jiljilya in the occupied West Bank. Immediately after soldiers left the scene, he was found face down and unresponsive with a blindfold still on, according to witnesses and his doctor, who said he died while in Israeli custody.

Initially, the Israeli military said Assad had been alive when he was released.

The soldiers did not identify signs of distress or see anything of concern regarding Assad’s health before they left, according to the investigation, saying they believed he was sleeping. But the investigation found that the “soldiers failed in their obligations by leaving Assad lying on the floor without the required treatment and without reporting the incident back to their commanders.”

His death brought renewed scrutiny on Israel from its closest ally, the United States, which called for a thorough investigation. Assad was a U.S. citizen with children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren living in the United States. His family and several members of Congress have demanded that the United States conduct its own independent investigation.

In addition to the central command’s investigation, a separate criminal investigation by the Israeli military police is still ongoing.

Assad’s autopsy was conducted by the coroner for the Palestinian Authority, which is also conducting its own investigation into Mr. Assad’s death. The authority administers parts of the West Bank but even in Palestinian villages like Jiljilya, Israeli forces regularly carry out raids and operations aimed at thwarting attacks.

Assad’s life and death mirrored the daily perils faced by Palestinians living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank, including the fear of being detained in nighttime raids or arrested at home.

According to the investigation, soldiers were in Jiljilya that morning to thwart terrorist activities and seize weapons and as part of that operation, they stopped Assad’s vehicle. Assad refused to cooperate with their security check.

In response, he was detained with his hands bound and his mouth gagged for a short time, according to the investigation.

Dr. Islam Abu Zaher, who attempted to resuscitate Assad after the Israeli soldiers hurriedly left the village, said his face was blue and had been cut off from oxygen for 15 to 20 minutes.

The central command investigation found that soldiers did not use violence against Assad “apart from when Assad was apprehended after refusing to cooperate.”

These findings contradict a preliminary conclusion from the Palestinian investigation, which determined that he had been “severely beaten” and “subjected to harsh treatment and violence.”

The autopsy found that Assad had bruises on his head as a result of traumatic brain injuries, without concluding what may have caused those injuries. There was also internal bleeding in his eyelids from being blindfolded tightly as well as other bruises on his arms and red welts on his wrists from zip ties.

Another man who was detained by the same soldiers said that as soon as they left, he went to Assad and found him unresponsive. Abu Zaher was immediately called and tried to revive him with CPR and a defibrillator.

Assad had open-heart surgery and several stents implanted about four years ago, according to Abu Zaher. He was also being treated for obstructive pulmonary disease in recent months.

Three Israeli military commanders have been disciplined after an investigation into the death of a 78-year-old Palestinian-American man who was detained, gagged and handcuffed by Israeli soldiers in a night raid on his village last month.

Three Israeli military commanders have been disciplined after an investigation into the death of a 78-year-old Palestinian-American man who was detained, gagged and handcuffed by Israeli soldiers in a night raid on his village last month. An autopsy showed that the man, Omar Abdelmajed Assad, died from a stress-induced heart attack brought on by injuries sustained while he was detained for about an hour on Jan. 12 by dozens of Israeli soldiers. The commander of the Netzah Yehuda, the Jewish ultra-Orthodox battalion which conducted the raid on the village, will be reprimanded and the platoon and company commanders will both be removed from their positions. They will not serve in commanding roles for two years, according to the military. “The incident showed a clear lapse of moral judgment,” the Israeli military’s chief of general staff said in a statement released late Monday that summed up the conclusions of an investigation by the military’s central command. “The investigation concluded that the incident was a grave and unfortunate event, resulting from a moral failure and poor decision-making on the part of the soldiers.” The statement, in which Assad’s full name was rendered incorrectly, said the Israeli military deeply regretted his death, but stopped short of apologizing for it. Assad’s family and human rights groups said the punishments were too light and fit a pattern of impunity for Israelis who kill Palestinians. “It’s not enough,” said Mohanad Assad, Assad’s 39-year-old cousin. “They need to be tried in international courts.” The Israeli human rights organization, B’Tselem, has long dismissed Israeli military investigations into the killings of Palestinians as whitewashing. But the Israeli military has called those allegations “ridiculous” and said it has proved repeatedly that its investigations are independent and professional. One example of an investigation that critics say reflects a pattern of impunity was linked to the 2014 war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza, when an airstrike killed four boys playing on a beach, prompting international condemnation. An Israeli military investigation resulted in no criminal charges or disciplinary actions against those involved in airstrikes during that war, including the two that killed the boys. Assad was driving home around 3 a.m. after a night playing cards and drinking coffee at a relative’s house when he was detained near his home in the village of Jiljilya in the occupied West Bank. Immediately after soldiers left the scene, he was found face down and unresponsive with a blindfold still on, according to witnesses and his doctor, who said he died while in Israeli custody. Initially, the Israeli military said Assad had been alive when he was released. The soldiers did not identify signs of distress or see anything of concern regarding Assad’s health before they left, according to the investigation, saying they believed he was sleeping. But the investigation found that the “soldiers failed in their obligations by leaving Assad lying on the floor without the required treatment and without reporting the incident back to their commanders.” His death brought renewed scrutiny on Israel from its closest ally, the United States, which called for a thorough investigation. Assad was a U.S. citizen with children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren living in the United States. His family and several members of Congress have demanded that the United States conduct its own independent investigation. In addition to the central command’s investigation, a separate criminal investigation by the Israeli military police is still ongoing. Assad’s autopsy was conducted by the coroner for the Palestinian Authority, which is also conducting its own investigation into Mr. Assad’s death. The authority administers parts of the West Bank but even in Palestinian villages like Jiljilya, Israeli forces regularly carry out raids and operations aimed at thwarting attacks. Assad’s life and death mirrored the daily perils faced by Palestinians living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank, including the fear of being detained in nighttime raids or arrested at home. According to the investigation, soldiers were in Jiljilya that morning to thwart terrorist activities and seize weapons and as part of that operation, they stopped Assad’s vehicle. Assad refused to cooperate with their security check. In response, he was detained with his hands bound and his mouth gagged for a short time, according to the investigation. Dr. Islam Abu Zaher, who attempted to resuscitate Assad after the Israeli soldiers hurriedly left the village, said his face was blue and had been cut off from oxygen for 15 to 20 minutes. The central command investigation found that soldiers did not use violence against Assad “apart from when Assad was apprehended after refusing to cooperate.” These findings contradict a preliminary conclusion from the Palestinian investigation, which determined that he had been “severely beaten” and “subjected to harsh treatment and violence.” The autopsy found that Assad had bruises on his head as a result of traumatic brain injuries, without concluding what may have caused those injuries. There was also internal bleeding in his eyelids from being blindfolded tightly as well as other bruises on his arms and red welts on his wrists from zip ties. Another man who was detained by the same soldiers said that as soon as they left, he went to Assad and found him unresponsive. Abu Zaher was immediately called and tried to revive him with CPR and a defibrillator. Assad had open-heart surgery and several stents implanted about four years ago, according to Abu Zaher. He was also being treated for obstructive pulmonary disease in recent months.

Israeli commanders disciplined in death of Palestinian-American man

It was 30 years ago that India and Israel established full diplomatic ties.

Since the upgradation of relations in 1992, defence and agriculture formed the two main pillars of the bilateral engagement between India and Israel.

In recent years, the relations have seen rapid growth across a broad spectrum of areas and the future vision of the cooperation is of a strong hi-tech partnership as befits two knowledge economies.

Notably, in 2017, the relationship was upgraded to a strategic level when Narendra Modi undertook the historic first-ever visit by an Indian PM to Israel.

Speaking to WION exclusively, the Indian Ambassador to Israel, Sanjeev Kumar Singla, underscored some of the key achievements between the two countries over the past three decades.

WION: India and Israel are celebrating 30 years of full diplomatic ties…what do you see as the key achievements between the two countries over the past 3 decades?

Singla: There are two specific achievements: Political and economic. Earlier, the ties were underplayed. But today, that's a thing of the past. The PM’s historic visit marked a turning point four and a half years ago.&nbsp;

Today, we have a strategic partnership. The relationship is on a completely different trajectory.

In the economic domain, we tried to lay the foundation for partnership, especially in agriculture, three decades ago. Today, we can build on that on a much greater scale.

WION: People often talk of shared values between the two countries – and practically every Israeli family knows someone who’s spent time in India. What do you think it is that unites Israelis and Indians, apart from a love of Indian food?

Singla: It's a question which has fascinated a lot of people. When our External Affairs Minister (S Jaishankar) was here 3-4 months back, PM Bennet asked him the same.

For Israelis, India offers that rare space where there hasn't been any anti-semitism. They have not only contributed and thrived but there has been a shared empathy for the growth of Israel&nbsp;

WION: As well as shared values, unfortunately, the two countries also share similar challenges. I’m particularly thinking about counter-terrorism. What can India and Israel learn from each other in this respect?

Singla:&nbsp;The most important lesson is the ability to work together at an operational level. That flows when you share a common outlook of zero tolerance of terrorism.&nbsp;

During the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, some Israelis were targeted and that's something which we must never let happen again. It's a universal menace which both countries must fight together.

WION: India and Israel have signed a number of cooperation agreements. What more can we expect going forwards over the coming years?

Singla: Agreements are facilitators to nudge things forward. In short&nbsp;term, we are looking to conclude our FTA, hopefully by the mid of this year.

WION: The Quad - which India, Israel, the US and UAE launched during Minister Jaishankar’s visit to Israel in 2021 – has the potential to take innovation and trade to a new level globally. What’s being planned for the Quad over the coming year?

Singla: It is still early days for Quad. Immediate idea is to identify infra projects and then involve the private sector to execute them.

We are looking forward to an in-person Quad in the next few weeks, possibly in March in Dubai where more activities and specific goals would be discussed.

WION: Finally, what do you envisage for relations between India and Israel in 30 years’ time – what’s the long-term vision?

Singla:&nbsp;Long term vision is to take the ties much more organic, especially&nbsp;in the areas of trade, tech, innovation collaboration. The idea is to take the relations to a point where the government&nbsp;does not have to act as a catalyst any longer.

It was 30 years ago that India and Israel established full diplomatic ties. Since the upgradation of relations in 1992, defence and agriculture formed the two main pillars of the bilateral engagement between India and Israel.

It was 30 years ago that India and Israel established full diplomatic ties. Since the upgradation of relations in 1992, defence and agriculture formed the two main pillars of the bilateral engagement between India and Israel. In recent years, the relations have seen rapid growth across a broad spectrum of areas and the future vision of the cooperation is of a strong hi-tech partnership as befits two knowledge economies. Notably, in 2017, the relationship was upgraded to a strategic level when Narendra Modi undertook the historic first-ever visit by an Indian PM to Israel. Speaking to WION exclusively, the Indian Ambassador to Israel, Sanjeev Kumar Singla, underscored some of the key achievements between the two countries over the past three decades. WION: India and Israel are celebrating 30 years of full diplomatic ties…what do you see as the key achievements between the two countries over the past 3 decades? Singla: There are two specific achievements: Political and economic. Earlier, the ties were underplayed. But today, that's a thing of the past. The PM’s historic visit marked a turning point four and a half years ago. Today, we have a strategic partnership. The relationship is on a completely different trajectory. In the economic domain, we tried to lay the foundation for partnership, especially in agriculture, three decades ago. Today, we can build on that on a much greater scale. WION: People often talk of shared values between the two countries – and practically every Israeli family knows someone who’s spent time in India. What do you think it is that unites Israelis and Indians, apart from a love of Indian food? Singla: It's a question which has fascinated a lot of people. When our External Affairs Minister (S Jaishankar) was here 3-4 months back, PM Bennet asked him the same. For Israelis, India offers that rare space where there hasn't been any anti-semitism. They have not only contributed and thrived but there has been a shared empathy for the growth of Israel WION: As well as shared values, unfortunately, the two countries also share similar challenges. I’m particularly thinking about counter-terrorism. What can India and Israel learn from each other in this respect? Singla: The most important lesson is the ability to work together at an operational level. That flows when you share a common outlook of zero tolerance of terrorism. During the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, some Israelis were targeted and that's something which we must never let happen again. It's a universal menace which both countries must fight together. WION: India and Israel have signed a number of cooperation agreements. What more can we expect going forwards over the coming years? Singla: Agreements are facilitators to nudge things forward. In short term, we are looking to conclude our FTA, hopefully by the mid of this year. WION: The Quad - which India, Israel, the US and UAE launched during Minister Jaishankar’s visit to Israel in 2021 – has the potential to take innovation and trade to a new level globally. What’s being planned for the Quad over the coming year? Singla: It is still early days for Quad. Immediate idea is to identify infra projects and then involve the private sector to execute them. We are looking forward to an in-person Quad in the next few weeks, possibly in March in Dubai where more activities and specific goals would be discussed. WION: Finally, what do you envisage for relations between India and Israel in 30 years’ time – what’s the long-term vision? Singla: Long term vision is to take the ties much more organic, especially in the areas of trade, tech, innovation collaboration. The idea is to take the relations to a point where the government does not have to act as a catalyst any longer.

Indian PM Modi’s historic visit to Israel 4 years ago marked a turning point: Envoy Singla

Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Sunday said that his country supported United Arab Emirates' security needs. He was visiting UAE for first time. Herzog said that Israel wanted more countries in the region to join its detente with the Arab world.

The UAE, along with Bahrain, signed US-brokered normalisation agreements with Israel, dubbed the "Abraham Accords", in 2020. The two Gulf states and Israel share concerns about Iran and its regional allies.

Isaac Herzog discussed security and bilateral relations with the UAE's de facto ruler Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

In past fortnight, Abu Dhabi has been a target of two attacks which involved missiles and drones. The attacks were claimed by Yemen based Houthi rebels. Iran supports Houthi rebels.

Israel has responded by offering security and intelligence support to the UAE against further drone attacks.

"We completely support your security requirements ... We are here together to find ways and means to bring full security to people who seek peace in our region," Herzog said during the meeting, in comments released by his office.

Sheikh Mohammed said Israel and the UAE share a "common view of the threats to regional stability and peace, particularly those posed by militias and terrorist forces".

The presidency in Israel is a largely ceremonial post. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett visited the UAE in December.

En route to the UAE President Herzog's plane flew over Saudi Arabia, which Herzog said was "a very moving moment". Riyadh has not yet followed its Gulf neighbours in normalising ties with Israel, but Israeli officials express hope this will happen.

"The Abraham Accords should be continued and more nations should join us," Herzog said.

Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas, which opposes countries normalising with Israel, said such visits "encourage the occupation to continue escalating its aggression against our Palestinian people and denial of their rights".

The heads of the Manufacturers Association of Israel and of the Israel Export Institute, travelling with Herzog, discussed a $10 billion fund set up under the Abraham Accords and how the UAE might help Israel find new Middle Eastern and Asian markets, the Association said.

President Herzog met the UAE's foreign minister and other officials, UAE news agency WAM said. He will also meet Jewish communities in the UAE, which is the region's commercial and tourism hub.

(With inputs from agencies)

Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Sunday said that his country supported United Arab Emirates' security needs. He was visiting UAE for first time. Herzog said that Israel wanted more countries in the region to join its detente with the Arab world.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Sunday said that his country supported United Arab Emirates' security needs. He was visiting UAE for first time. Herzog said that Israel wanted more countries in the region to join its detente with the Arab world. The UAE, along with Bahrain, signed US-brokered normalisation agreements with Israel, dubbed the "Abraham Accords", in 2020. The two Gulf states and Israel share concerns about Iran and its regional allies. Isaac Herzog discussed security and bilateral relations with the UAE's de facto ruler Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. In past fortnight, Abu Dhabi has been a target of two attacks which involved missiles and drones. The attacks were claimed by Yemen based Houthi rebels. Iran supports Houthi rebels. Israel has responded by offering security and intelligence support to the UAE against further drone attacks. "We completely support your security requirements ... We are here together to find ways and means to bring full security to people who seek peace in our region," Herzog said during the meeting, in comments released by his office. Sheikh Mohammed said Israel and the UAE share a "common view of the threats to regional stability and peace, particularly those posed by militias and terrorist forces". The presidency in Israel is a largely ceremonial post. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett visited the UAE in December. En route to the UAE President Herzog's plane flew over Saudi Arabia, which Herzog said was "a very moving moment". Riyadh has not yet followed its Gulf neighbours in normalising ties with Israel, but Israeli officials express hope this will happen. "The Abraham Accords should be continued and more nations should join us," Herzog said. Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas, which opposes countries normalising with Israel, said such visits "encourage the occupation to continue escalating its aggression against our Palestinian people and denial of their rights". The heads of the Manufacturers Association of Israel and of the Israel Export Institute, travelling with Herzog, discussed a $10 billion fund set up under the Abraham Accords and how the UAE might help Israel find new Middle Eastern and Asian markets, the Association said. President Herzog met the UAE's foreign minister and other officials, UAE news agency WAM said. He will also meet Jewish communities in the UAE, which is the region's commercial and tourism hub. (With inputs from agencies)

Israel president expresses support for UAE's security needs during his visit

Former deputy prime minister of Israel Natan Sharansky in an exclusive interview with Wion opined that&nbsp;western world was right to warn Russia against invading Ukraine. He maintained that Israel had good relations with both, Ukraine and Russia.

Natan Sharansky was the figurehead of the worldwide human rights campaign to free Jews from Soviet Russia. At the time, Jews there weren’t allowed to practise Jewish life – or to emigrate.

Having spent 9 years in prison for his activism, Sharansky himself was finally freed in 1986.

He immediately moved to Israel, where he went on to become a minister in 5 different governments, including serving as deputy prime minister.

Our correspondent, Jodie Cohen, brings you this exclusive interview for WION…

Wion: Natan Sharansky, you went from the depths of a Soviet prison to becoming Deputy Prime Minister of Israel, and winning numerous awards across your lifetime. With the world currently facing difficult times because of the pandemic, what do you think gave you such resilience?

Sharansky: In Soviet Union, there was a totalitarian regime which wanted to deprive people of any independence. The way to do it was to deprive people of their identities. So I grew up having no freedom and no identity. Being Jewish, (there was) nothing Jewish in our lives. No holiday, no tradition or religion or language, nothing. There was a lot of anti-semitism. And (there was) no freedom.&nbsp;

And then Israel secured victories against Arab regimes. You learn a lot in underground movements about this unique history, the people and the country, and you want to be part of it. The discovery of things bigger than yourself gives you strength to start speaking publicly and to fight for your rights. And that's how I became official spokesperson of two movements, Jewish movement and human rights movement.

When you get arrested, (you get) this feeling of yourself being part of a very important historical struggle, and that your people are together with you. And then somehow you make yourself feel that the struggle of your people depends on you saying 'no' to KGB. That's what gives you strength. And ofcourse KGB tried to convince me that everything was lost and nobody was ready to fight for you. And then you convince yourself that your people continue to struggle.

So it's mainly a struggle of your imagination against their lies and feeling that your life is more meaningful than simply your survival. Your identity and your freedom are very important.

Wion: You spent about half your time in prison in solitary confinement. With Christmas approaching, and people all over the world having to isolate because of COVID-19, what tips do you have for people finding it hard to cope in quarantine?

Sharansky: First of all, We are in a big struggle for the health of humanity and each of us has a role. We can deliver the victory together. So realising that there is sense, there is meaning (to all of this) helps.

Secondly, try to keep your sense of humour. I always enjoyed laughing at my prison guards showing them absurdity of their regime by making jokes about Soviet leaders. They couldn't even laugh because they were afraid to laugh.&nbsp;

As long as you can laugh when it is funny, you are free. So internet has lot of jokes about our situation. Enjoy the jokes.

Thirdly, don't make plans which don't depend on you. For example, don't say something like when all of this is over I will go to America. It doesn't depend on you, whether you can or cannot go. Then you feel even more depressed. Make plans that depend on you.

For example, say I will learn a new language next month. I will read books which I wanted to read but didn't have time. This depends on you.

In prison, it was very important to not make plans about your survival. Your survival doesn't depend on you. But make plans to stand and say no to KGB and think that you will be a free person on the last moment of your life.

So make plans for which you can take full responsibility, and then deliver.&nbsp;

Wion: Hundreds of thousands of people marched united in Washington to stand up for Jews from Soviet Russia. Today in the US, Israel and across the world, politics is increasingly polariseD. What lessons can be learned from the unity of the campaign to free Soviet Jews?

Sharansky: That campaign was extremely powerful. They marched not just to free Soviet Jews but also to bring down the iron curtain. The Soviet Union couldn't survive, it fell apart. So it was a victory against the most powerful totalitarian regime in the world. And this was possible because us, a small group of dissidents in the Soviet Union were supported by Jews from different walks of life and also other people who were interested in (supporting) human rights.

They marched with Martin Luther King and then they fought for our human rights. We also received support from those interested in freedom of those teaching Judaism. People from left to right (in the political spectrum) could understand why it was in their interest to press Soviet Union on the issue of human rights. So it was really very important that there was a common ground.&nbsp;

The problem today is that even in the most obvious battles like battle against anti-Semitism, the confrontation between the left and the right that left is ready to see anto-Semitism among the right but not among themselves.

(Fight against) Hatred towards other religions and anti-Semitism must unite us all, left and right, and we all have to fight these prejudices in our own camps. This is quite a challenge, how to overcome political differences and unite ourselves for fight for freedom.

Wion: In 2018, you won the Israel Prize for your contributions to the State of Israel in the fields of Immigration and Absorption. This included setting up a political party to help integrate the 1 million Soviet Jews who moved to Israel. What can you tell us from your experience about the best way to integrate immigrants into society?

Sharansky: First of all, Israel is really a unique country because usually a country creates diaspora. In case of Israel, diaspora created Israel. They created their own state which existed two thousand years ago. So these are the people who came from very different diasporas.

Secondly, our victory over the territorial regime of Soviet Union brought the unique fact that 1 million Jews came from Soviet Union to Israel. Israel at the time was a country of 6 million people. It was a big change. It was very cometitive. People who became professionals, elite in a country of 200 million people, they came to a small country. So suddenly, number of doctors doubled (there were) engineers, 10 times more musicians and so on. So it was difficult.

But what was critical was that we understood we had to give voice to new immigrants. That's why we created a party of new immigrants. We entered the Knesset. Many immigrants were not well conversant in Hebrew, but they worked in government, municipalities are were taking decisions along with rest of country. That proved to be the best way of integration.

And if you look now, one generation later, (you can see) unbelievable example of successful integration. They are very comfortable in all walks of society.

Wion: Moving to Israel now. You became Deputy Prime Minister just after the Camp David peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down - in hindsight, why do you think they broke down? In your books on democracy, you’ve argued that there can never be peace until there are ‘real democratic institutions in Palestinian society’. Do you see signs for optimism today?

Sharansky: Well, I definitely see signs of optimism today. And they think that we lost a lot of time trying to build peace process through Oslo agreement. At that moment in 1993 when we signed the Oslo agreement, everybody was happy to see the picture of Yitzhak Rabin, Yasser Arafat and Bill Clinton. Two weeks after this I wrote my first article against this. Why? Because our prime minister said that it was very good that Yasser Arafat was a dictator. Without free press, human rights organisations, supreme court, he will defeat terrorism of Hamas.

I wrote in my article that as dictators, these people would need us as their enemies....For Yasser Arafat there will be no other enemy but us. So we have to be insistent that Yasser Arafat has free press, human rights organisations and supreme court (in Palestine). What happened in Oslo brought Yasser Arafat from Tunis to Palestine and it told Palestinians that he was their leader. And he destroyed all beginnings of (establishment of) human rights.

And that's why I was very critical. I never believed that this type of process of creating our own, or encouraging our own (principles) among Palestinians would bring peace.

I am more optimistic now. Because Abraham Accords between Israel and number of countries are based on people-to-people connections. Public opinion in Egypt continues to be extremely hostile to Israel. Same in Jordan. (But) The leaders are encouraging contact between people, businesses, cultures. It inevitably will also include Palestinians.

And then when those Palestinian leaders who will choose to recognise how important it is to use this, to build their own civil institutions, to build joint ventures with Israelis, they will become leaders of future Palestinian state which will make peace with us. Only the state in which people and leaders are interested to make peace can be our partner. So yes I am much more optimistic than I was before.

Wion: As a human rights activist, you’ve won numerous awards including, in 2006, the US Presidential Medal of Freedom. Israel often faces criticism for its human rights record. In your opinion, is this criticism fair?

Sharansky: Israel, like every democratic country, should be open to criticism. Israel has a challenge of constantly fighting for its right to exist and also uphold human rights. For example, how to minimise casualties among civilians while fighting terror. Israel surely has this challenge and has more and more reasons to think about it. And as one who has been trying to solve this problem from all sides, I can say that we have this problem and we are dealing with this at least as good if not better than all other democratic countries.

Criticism is ok. But when criticism turns into demonisation of Israel, denying right of Israel to exist, applying double standards, that is anti-Semitism.&nbsp;

Unfortunately, people in the free world, without realising are helping those who want to destroy us by agreeing with all sorts of extreme demonisation. For example, I hear some respectable western leader who says that I was in a refugee camp of Palestinians. This is the Auschwitz of today.

This is typical demonisation.

What does a refugee camp have to do with Auschwitz? Anyone who was in Auschwitz knows what a hell it was. It has nothing to do with poor neighbourhoods of Palestinians.

This is one of millions of examples of demonisation of Israel. These are clear double standards.

China is erasing whole cultures in Tibet and that of Uyghurs. Awful things are happening in Chechenya or in Africa.&nbsp;

Amid all this, the only conflict that becomes symbol of human rights (violations) is that between Israel and Palestinians. These are clear double standards.

Wion: You were a child chess prodigy, and even beat the world chess champion in 1996! There is another Israeli who is also known to be a master strategist, and that is former PM, Benjamin Netanyahu. A) Would he beat you at chess? And B) Do you think he’ll be able to manoevre his way to becoming prime minister again?

 
Sharansky: First of all, Bibi (Benjamin Netanyahu) is not a bad chess player. He once drew with me and I don't know which other Israeli politician can do that.

He is not oustanding, but by the standards of politicians, he is a good chess player.

As to the political chess, Netanyahu is a friend. When I was in prison, he was a young diplomat in Washington. He was very inventive in giving ideas about how our struggle against the Soviet Union can be amplified.

And then when I was in government, I could see how he fought for an open Israeli economy, for removal of old socialist restrictions. And at the same time. For 20 years he was a fierce voice, sometimes a lonely one, against Iran.&nbsp;

When such a person stays in power for so many years, it appears somehow that for the future of the country this person should stay in power. But let's not bet about democracy let's not bet over a person.

So I do reach out to my friend Netanyahu to strengthen his heritage. (But I don't want him to be complacent).

Today's political situation is unstable because we have a government that has the majority of 1 vote in the Knesset. This makes it very difficult to take any serious decision. There needs to be effort from both sides to build a government that will have a much broader platform.

Wion: Moving to geopolitics. You were born in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic of the Soviet Union…today there is great tension between the Ukraine and Russia. Israel has just celebrated 30 years of ties with the Ukraine, and it also has ties with Russia. How can it continue to balance relations with both Ukraine and Russia going forward?

Sharansky: First of all, we have good relations with both Russia and Ukraine. There is no KGB today controlling minds of the people, there are no&nbsp;Gulags with millions of people dying there.

Having said this, I feel sorry that President Putin, who has very good relations with Israel, is restricting democracy and freedom in Russia.

Russia's annexation of Crimea was a violation of Helsinki agreement that said that borders will not change by way of war. I think this is very unfortunate.

I think the free world is right in warning Russia against invading Ukraine. At the same time I understand the difficulty of Israeli leaders who have to lead war against Iran and Iran's presence in Syria.

Unfortunately, Syrian airspace and territory is controlled by Russia. Giving away control in Syria, doing nothing when Syria was using chemical weapons and allowing strong Russian presence in Syria was a mistake from President Obama.

As a result, when we have to fight Iranian presence in Syria, we have to co-ordinate with Russia. So our leaders, when they are critical of Russia, they have to be cautious in choosing their tone, words and actions

Wion: You’re currently chairman of the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy – with the pandemic there has been a new trend of Covid-related anti-Semitism. What can you tell us about this, and what is being done to counter it?

Sharansky: This is something very new, anti-Semitism and Covid. It is continuation of same policy of anti-Semites for 3000 years. Jews were presented as symbol of the evil, so everything bad was connected with Jews. (It was said that) Jews were responsible for Capitalism and they were also responsible for Marxism. They were held responsible for establishing regimes and destroying regimes.

Today we see two types of accusations. First is, Jews are making money through Covid pandemic. Second is, Jews helped China to keep Covid a secret. Jews didn't tell the world because they wanted to do business using pandemic. All of this is nonsense. But when some absolute nonsense is repeated many times on the internet, more and more people start believing it.

Only way to fight this is through a fight against demonisation of Jewish people and of Jewish state on all fronts simultaneously, on the left, on the right, religious, secular, everywhere.

After all, we are Jews and we are very proud of it.&nbsp;

I was very happy when I received the Genesis Prize. I donated the prize amount, one million dollars for fight against Covid. Many Jewish people and organisations are doing excellent work in this field.&nbsp;

Wion: You most recently served as Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, which seeks to unite and educate Jews across the world…This is seen as a unifying role, and of course there is one other major unifying role in Israel, and that is the president. Would you like to become President of Israel one day?

Sharansky: I am very happy and lucky that I got the opportunity to lead the struggle for Soviet Jews, the struggle to bring down the iron cutrain, the struggle for integration of Soviet Jews and many other good opportunities. But everybody has to know where he can contribute. It is great, the position of president of Israel is noble. But (there are) many speeches, many performances and many receptions every day, I don't think I can be good in it.

Former deputy prime minister of Israel Natan Sharansky in an exclusive interview with Wion opined that western world was right to warn Russia against invading Ukraine.

Former deputy prime minister of Israel Natan Sharansky in an exclusive interview with Wion opined that western world was right to warn Russia against invading Ukraine. He maintained that Israel had good relations with both, Ukraine and Russia. Natan Sharansky was the figurehead of the worldwide human rights campaign to free Jews from Soviet Russia. At the time, Jews there weren’t allowed to practise Jewish life – or to emigrate. Having spent 9 years in prison for his activism, Sharansky himself was finally freed in 1986. He immediately moved to Israel, where he went on to become a minister in 5 different governments, including serving as deputy prime minister. Our correspondent, Jodie Cohen, brings you this exclusive interview for WION… Wion: Natan Sharansky, you went from the depths of a Soviet prison to becoming Deputy Prime Minister of Israel, and winning numerous awards across your lifetime. With the world currently facing difficult times because of the pandemic, what do you think gave you such resilience? Sharansky: In Soviet Union, there was a totalitarian regime which wanted to deprive people of any independence. The way to do it was to deprive people of their identities. So I grew up having no freedom and no identity. Being Jewish, (there was) nothing Jewish in our lives. No holiday, no tradition or religion or language, nothing. There was a lot of anti-semitism. And (there was) no freedom. And then Israel secured victories against Arab regimes. You learn a lot in underground movements about this unique history, the people and the country, and you want to be part of it. The discovery of things bigger than yourself gives you strength to start speaking publicly and to fight for your rights. And that's how I became official spokesperson of two movements, Jewish movement and human rights movement. When you get arrested, (you get) this feeling of yourself being part of a very important historical struggle, and that your people are together with you. And then somehow you make yourself feel that the struggle of your people depends on you saying 'no' to KGB. That's what gives you strength. And ofcourse KGB tried to convince me that everything was lost and nobody was ready to fight for you. And then you convince yourself that your people continue to struggle. So it's mainly a struggle of your imagination against their lies and feeling that your life is more meaningful than simply your survival. Your identity and your freedom are very important. Wion: You spent about half your time in prison in solitary confinement. With Christmas approaching, and people all over the world having to isolate because of COVID-19, what tips do you have for people finding it hard to cope in quarantine? Sharansky: First of all, We are in a big struggle for the health of humanity and each of us has a role. We can deliver the victory together. So realising that there is sense, there is meaning (to all of this) helps. Secondly, try to keep your sense of humour. I always enjoyed laughing at my prison guards showing them absurdity of their regime by making jokes about Soviet leaders. They couldn't even laugh because they were afraid to laugh. As long as you can laugh when it is funny, you are free. So internet has lot of jokes about our situation. Enjoy the jokes. Thirdly, don't make plans which don't depend on you. For example, don't say something like when all of this is over I will go to America. It doesn't depend on you, whether you can or cannot go. Then you feel even more depressed. Make plans that depend on you. For example, say I will learn a new language next month. I will read books which I wanted to read but didn't have time. This depends on you. In prison, it was very important to not make plans about your survival. Your survival doesn't depend on you. But make plans to stand and say no to KGB and think that you will be a free person on the last moment of your life. So make plans for which you can take full responsibility, and then deliver. Wion: Hundreds of thousands of people marched united in Washington to stand up for Jews from Soviet Russia. Today in the US, Israel and across the world, politics is increasingly polariseD. What lessons can be learned from the unity of the campaign to free Soviet Jews? Sharansky: That campaign was extremely powerful. They marched not just to free Soviet Jews but also to bring down the iron curtain. The Soviet Union couldn't survive, it fell apart. So it was a victory against the most powerful totalitarian regime in the world. And this was possible because us, a small group of dissidents in the Soviet Union were supported by Jews from different walks of life and also other people who were interested in (supporting) human rights. They marched with Martin Luther King and then they fought for our human rights. We also received support from those interested in freedom of those teaching Judaism. People from left to right (in the political spectrum) could understand why it was in their interest to press Soviet Union on the issue of human rights. So it was really very important that there was a common ground. The problem today is that even in the most obvious battles like battle against anti-Semitism, the confrontation between the left and the right that left is ready to see anto-Semitism among the right but not among themselves. (Fight against) Hatred towards other religions and anti-Semitism must unite us all, left and right, and we all have to fight these prejudices in our own camps. This is quite a challenge, how to overcome political differences and unite ourselves for fight for freedom. Wion: In 2018, you won the Israel Prize for your contributions to the State of Israel in the fields of Immigration and Absorption. This included setting up a political party to help integrate the 1 million Soviet Jews who moved to Israel. What can you tell us from your experience about the best way to integrate immigrants into society? Sharansky: First of all, Israel is really a unique country because usually a country creates diaspora. In case of Israel, diaspora created Israel. They created their own state which existed two thousand years ago. So these are the people who came from very different diasporas. Secondly, our victory over the territorial regime of Soviet Union brought the unique fact that 1 million Jews came from Soviet Union to Israel. Israel at the time was a country of 6 million people. It was a big change. It was very cometitive. People who became professionals, elite in a country of 200 million people, they came to a small country. So suddenly, number of doctors doubled (there were) engineers, 10 times more musicians and so on. So it was difficult. But what was critical was that we understood we had to give voice to new immigrants. That's why we created a party of new immigrants. We entered the Knesset. Many immigrants were not well conversant in Hebrew, but they worked in government, municipalities are were taking decisions along with rest of country. That proved to be the best way of integration. And if you look now, one generation later, (you can see) unbelievable example of successful integration. They are very comfortable in all walks of society. Wion: Moving to Israel now. You became Deputy Prime Minister just after the Camp David peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down - in hindsight, why do you think they broke down? In your books on democracy, you’ve argued that there can never be peace until there are ‘real democratic institutions in Palestinian society’. Do you see signs for optimism today? Sharansky: Well, I definitely see signs of optimism today. And they think that we lost a lot of time trying to build peace process through Oslo agreement. At that moment in 1993 when we signed the Oslo agreement, everybody was happy to see the picture of Yitzhak Rabin, Yasser Arafat and Bill Clinton. Two weeks after this I wrote my first article against this. Why? Because our prime minister said that it was very good that Yasser Arafat was a dictator. Without free press, human rights organisations, supreme court, he will defeat terrorism of Hamas. I wrote in my article that as dictators, these people would need us as their enemies....For Yasser Arafat there will be no other enemy but us. So we have to be insistent that Yasser Arafat has free press, human rights organisations and supreme court (in Palestine). What happened in Oslo brought Yasser Arafat from Tunis to Palestine and it told Palestinians that he was their leader. And he destroyed all beginnings of (establishment of) human rights. And that's why I was very critical. I never believed that this type of process of creating our own, or encouraging our own (principles) among Palestinians would bring peace. I am more optimistic now. Because Abraham Accords between Israel and number of countries are based on people-to-people connections. Public opinion in Egypt continues to be extremely hostile to Israel. Same in Jordan. (But) The leaders are encouraging contact between people, businesses, cultures. It inevitably will also include Palestinians. And then when those Palestinian leaders who will choose to recognise how important it is to use this, to build their own civil institutions, to build joint ventures with Israelis, they will become leaders of future Palestinian state which will make peace with us. Only the state in which people and leaders are interested to make peace can be our partner. So yes I am much more optimistic than I was before. Wion: As a human rights activist, you’ve won numerous awards including, in 2006, the US Presidential Medal of Freedom. Israel often faces criticism for its human rights record. In your opinion, is this criticism fair? Sharansky: Israel, like every democratic country, should be open to criticism. Israel has a challenge of constantly fighting for its right to exist and also uphold human rights. For example, how to minimise casualties among civilians while fighting terror. Israel surely has this challenge and has more and more reasons to think about it. And as one who has been trying to solve this problem from all sides, I can say that we have this problem and we are dealing with this at least as good if not better than all other democratic countries. Criticism is ok. But when criticism turns into demonisation of Israel, denying right of Israel to exist, applying double standards, that is anti-Semitism. Unfortunately, people in the free world, without realising are helping those who want to destroy us by agreeing with all sorts of extreme demonisation. For example, I hear some respectable western leader who says that I was in a refugee camp of Palestinians. This is the Auschwitz of today. This is typical demonisation. What does a refugee camp have to do with Auschwitz? Anyone who was in Auschwitz knows what a hell it was. It has nothing to do with poor neighbourhoods of Palestinians. This is one of millions of examples of demonisation of Israel. These are clear double standards. China is erasing whole cultures in Tibet and that of Uyghurs. Awful things are happening in Chechenya or in Africa. Amid all this, the only conflict that becomes symbol of human rights (violations) is that between Israel and Palestinians. These are clear double standards. Wion: You were a child chess prodigy, and even beat the world chess champion in 1996! There is another Israeli who is also known to be a master strategist, and that is former PM, Benjamin Netanyahu. A) Would he beat you at chess? And B) Do you think he’ll be able to manoevre his way to becoming prime minister again? Sharansky: First of all, Bibi (Benjamin Netanyahu) is not a bad chess player. He once drew with me and I don't know which other Israeli politician can do that. He is not oustanding, but by the standards of politicians, he is a good chess player. As to the political chess, Netanyahu is a friend. When I was in prison, he was a young diplomat in Washington. He was very inventive in giving ideas about how our struggle against the Soviet Union can be amplified. And then when I was in government, I could see how he fought for an open Israeli economy, for removal of old socialist restrictions. And at the same time. For 20 years he was a fierce voice, sometimes a lonely one, against Iran. When such a person stays in power for so many years, it appears somehow that for the future of the country this person should stay in power. But let's not bet about democracy let's not bet over a person. So I do reach out to my friend Netanyahu to strengthen his heritage. (But I don't want him to be complacent). Today's political situation is unstable because we have a government that has the majority of 1 vote in the Knesset. This makes it very difficult to take any serious decision. There needs to be effort from both sides to build a government that will have a much broader platform. Wion: Moving to geopolitics. You were born in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic of the Soviet Union…today there is great tension between the Ukraine and Russia. Israel has just celebrated 30 years of ties with the Ukraine, and it also has ties with Russia. How can it continue to balance relations with both Ukraine and Russia going forward? Sharansky: First of all, we have good relations with both Russia and Ukraine. There is no KGB today controlling minds of the people, there are no Gulags with millions of people dying there. Having said this, I feel sorry that President Putin, who has very good relations with Israel, is restricting democracy and freedom in Russia. Russia's annexation of Crimea was a violation of Helsinki agreement that said that borders will not change by way of war. I think this is very unfortunate. I think the free world is right in warning Russia against invading Ukraine. At the same time I understand the difficulty of Israeli leaders who have to lead war against Iran and Iran's presence in Syria. Unfortunately, Syrian airspace and territory is controlled by Russia. Giving away control in Syria, doing nothing when Syria was using chemical weapons and allowing strong Russian presence in Syria was a mistake from President Obama. As a result, when we have to fight Iranian presence in Syria, we have to co-ordinate with Russia. So our leaders, when they are critical of Russia, they have to be cautious in choosing their tone, words and actions Wion: You’re currently chairman of the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy – with the pandemic there has been a new trend of Covid-related anti-Semitism. What can you tell us about this, and what is being done to counter it? Sharansky: This is something very new, anti-Semitism and Covid. It is continuation of same policy of anti-Semites for 3000 years. Jews were presented as symbol of the evil, so everything bad was connected with Jews. (It was said that) Jews were responsible for Capitalism and they were also responsible for Marxism. They were held responsible for establishing regimes and destroying regimes. Today we see two types of accusations. First is, Jews are making money through Covid pandemic. Second is, Jews helped China to keep Covid a secret. Jews didn't tell the world because they wanted to do business using pandemic. All of this is nonsense. But when some absolute nonsense is repeated many times on the internet, more and more people start believing it. Only way to fight this is through a fight against demonisation of Jewish people and of Jewish state on all fronts simultaneously, on the left, on the right, religious, secular, everywhere. After all, we are Jews and we are very proud of it. I was very happy when I received the Genesis Prize. I donated the prize amount, one million dollars for fight against Covid. Many Jewish people and organisations are doing excellent work in this field. Wion: You most recently served as Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, which seeks to unite and educate Jews across the world…This is seen as a unifying role, and of course there is one other major unifying role in Israel, and that is the president. Would you like to become President of Israel one day? Sharansky: I am very happy and lucky that I got the opportunity to lead the struggle for Soviet Jews, the struggle to bring down the iron cutrain, the struggle for integration of Soviet Jews and many other good opportunities. But everybody has to know where he can contribute. It is great, the position of president of Israel is noble. But (there are) many speeches, many performances and many receptions every day, I don't think I can be good in it.

World is right to warn Russia over Ukraine issue: Former deputy PM of Israel

The Israeli Health Ministry said that people over 60 who received a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine are thrice as more resistant to serious illness as those who have been vaccinated three times.

Additionally, the ministry also stated that people over 60 who received the fourth dose of the vaccine, or the second booster, were twice as resistant to infection as those in the same age group who received three shots of the vaccine.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/booster-shots-are-instrumental-in-fighting-omicron-cdc-data-show-446586">Booster shots are instrumental in fighting Omicron, CDC data show</a>

The Sheba medical centre in Israel published a preliminary study on Monday that found that the fourth shot increases antibodies even higher than the third, although not to the point where it can completely protect against the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

Earlier this month, Israel began offering a fourth dose of the Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine to over-60-year-olds as Omicron swept the country.

The moves came around one year after the country began a massive vaccination drive on the back of a data-sharing accord with US pharmaceutical firm Pfizer.

Also read |&nbsp;​​​​​​​<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/naftali-bennett-says-israeli-study-finds-fourth-covid-19-vaccine-dose-boosts-antibodies-five-fold-442256">Naftali Bennett says Israeli study finds fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose boosts antibodies five-fold</a>

400,000 people over the age of 60 who received a second booster and 600,000 people in the same age group who received the third booster more than four months ago were compared in this study conducted by the ministry with several major Israeli universities and the Sheba centre.

Earlier,&nbsp;Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has claimed that a new study has found that the fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose boosts antibodies five-fold.

As elsewhere, Israel has seen a spike in COVID-19 cases due to Omicron, but no one has died from the variant.

(With inputs from agencies)

The Israeli Health Ministry said that people over 60 who received a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine are thrice as more resistant to serious illness as those who have been vaccinated three times.

The Israeli Health Ministry said that people over 60 who received a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine are thrice as more resistant to serious illness as those who have been vaccinated three times. Additionally, the ministry also stated that people over 60 who received the fourth dose of the vaccine, or the second booster, were twice as resistant to infection as those in the same age group who received three shots of the vaccine. Also read | Booster shots are instrumental in fighting Omicron, CDC data show The Sheba medical centre in Israel published a preliminary study on Monday that found that the fourth shot increases antibodies even higher than the third, although not to the point where it can completely protect against the highly transmissible Omicron variant. Earlier this month, Israel began offering a fourth dose of the Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine to over-60-year-olds as Omicron swept the country. The moves came around one year after the country began a massive vaccination drive on the back of a data-sharing accord with US pharmaceutical firm Pfizer. Also read | Naftali Bennett says Israeli study finds fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose boosts antibodies five-fold 400,000 people over the age of 60 who received a second booster and 600,000 people in the same age group who received the third booster more than four months ago were compared in this study conducted by the ministry with several major Israeli universities and the Sheba centre. Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has claimed that a new study has found that the fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose boosts antibodies five-fold. As elsewhere, Israel has seen a spike in COVID-19 cases due to Omicron, but no one has died from the variant. (With inputs from agencies)

A fourth covid vaccination increases resistance to serious illness three-fold in over-60s: Israel

Israel's justice minister on Wednesday said that a full investigation would be carried out into allegations that Pegasus spyware was used to spy on Israeli citizens, including those who protested against former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Pegasus, a surveillance product made by the Israeli firm NSO that can turn a mobile phone into a pocket spying device, has remained a source of global controversy following revelations last year it was used to spy on journalists and dissidents worldwide.&nbsp;

Business daily Cakcalist has alleged that Pegasus was also used by police in Israel to snoop on Israeli citizens who were at the forefront of anti-Netanyahu protests last year. The daily alleges that other Israeli citizens were also spied upon.

Israeli police have firmly denied the report.&nbsp;

Public Security Minister Omar Barlev, a Netanyahu critic who took office as part of a new government that ousted him in June, offered a more nuanced defence.&nbsp;

There was "no practice of wire-tapping or hacking devices by police without a judge's approval", he said.

Israeli security forces have wide leeway to conduct surveillance within Israel with judicial approval.&nbsp;

But Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler, an expert at the Israel Democracy Institute think-tank, told AFP "you can't really ask for a court order authorising&nbsp;Pegasus" because Israeli law does not currently permit such invasive surveillance of its citizens.

"It is now clear that the current Protection of Privacy Law is not equipped to cope with today’s reality," she said.&nbsp;

'Balance'?&nbsp;

The justice ministry and State Comptroller's office both said they were looking into the Calcalist reports.&nbsp;

The Privacy Protection Authority, a division of the ministry, said use of Pegasus to monitor Israeli citizens" would constitute a "serious violation of privacy", announcing its investigation.

State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman said Tuesday he would expand his ongoing investigation into law enforcement's use of surveillance technology to include the latest Pegasus allegations.&nbsp;

He would in particular probe "the balance" between the "usefulness" of surveillance tools in investigations and "violations of the right to privacy". 
Justice Minister Gideon Saar, another Netanyahu rival, told parliament Wednesday that he fully backed the probes.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

Israel's justice minister on Wednesday said that a full investigation would be carried out into allegations that Pegasus spyware was used to spy on Israeli citizens, including those who protested against former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel's justice minister on Wednesday said that a full investigation would be carried out into allegations that Pegasus spyware was used to spy on Israeli citizens, including those who protested against former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Pegasus, a surveillance product made by the Israeli firm NSO that can turn a mobile phone into a pocket spying device, has remained a source of global controversy following revelations last year it was used to spy on journalists and dissidents worldwide. Business daily Cakcalist has alleged that Pegasus was also used by police in Israel to snoop on Israeli citizens who were at the forefront of anti-Netanyahu protests last year. The daily alleges that other Israeli citizens were also spied upon. Israeli police have firmly denied the report. Public Security Minister Omar Barlev, a Netanyahu critic who took office as part of a new government that ousted him in June, offered a more nuanced defence. There was "no practice of wire-tapping or hacking devices by police without a judge's approval", he said. Israeli security forces have wide leeway to conduct surveillance within Israel with judicial approval. But Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler, an expert at the Israel Democracy Institute think-tank, told AFP "you can't really ask for a court order authorising Pegasus" because Israeli law does not currently permit such invasive surveillance of its citizens. "It is now clear that the current Protection of Privacy Law is not equipped to cope with today’s reality," she said. 'Balance'? The justice ministry and State Comptroller's office both said they were looking into the Calcalist reports. The Privacy Protection Authority, a division of the ministry, said use of Pegasus to monitor Israeli citizens" would constitute a "serious violation of privacy", announcing its investigation. State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman said Tuesday he would expand his ongoing investigation into law enforcement's use of surveillance technology to include the latest Pegasus allegations. He would in particular probe "the balance" between the "usefulness" of surveillance tools in investigations and "violations of the right to privacy". Justice Minister Gideon Saar, another Netanyahu rival, told parliament Wednesday that he fully backed the probes. (With inputs from agencies)

Israel to probe allegations of Pegasus spyware use against own citizens

Hamas said that Israeli troops attacked its naval commandos with a dolphin operative wearing specialised combat gear.

According to a report by Al-Quds, Israeli security forces deployed a dolphin to chase Hamas frogman commandos off the Gaza Strip's coast on Monday.

An Al-Qassam Brigades naval commando spokesperson said in a video that Hamas naval operatives were driven into the water by a dolphin outfitted with a gadget capable of killing the terrorist group's frogmen during an unspecified operation.&nbsp; 
 
<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/gaza-violence-how-is-hamas-growing-its-arsenal-of-rockets-to-strike-israel-386324">Pictures | Gaza violence: How is Hamas growing its arsenal of rockets to strike Israel?</a>

"Killer Zionist dolphins exist, according to a &nbsp;Hamas publication," tweeted Joe Truzman, research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Long War Journal.

"Abu Hamza explains that a member of Hamas' Frogman unit who was killed by Israel during the May conflict found the killer dolphin. The device the alleged killer dolphin was wearing is shown in the publication."

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Killer Zionist dolphins exist, according to a Hamas publication. Abu Hamza explains that a member of Hamas' Frogman unit who was killed by Israel during the May conflict found the killer dolphin. The device the alleged killer dolphin was wearing is shown in the publication. <a href="https://t.co/gvAyynO3YT">pic.twitter.com/gvAyynO3YT</a>
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeTruzman/status/1480630102345936901?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2022</a></blockquote>
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The type and function of the underwater attacker's device were not revealed, but Al-Quds claimed to have information from sources about another battle cetacean event in August 2015 involving a remote control, a camera, and a weapon capable of firing harpoon-like missiles.

The Al-Quds sources said that Hamas had captured an Israeli dolphin agent in 2015, but they did not say what happened to the military mereswine, which could still be held captive.

The sea mammal was allegedly "stripped of its will" and transformed into a "murderer" by Israeli authorities, according to the BBC.&nbsp;

Previous reports of deadly Israeli dolphins and other militaristic marine animals have become memetic on social media, as evidenced by the popular satirical Mossad Twitter account's tagline: "We install lasers on aquatic animals and other satirical hijinks."

Hamas' latest claim that Israel has hidden soldiers has been widely mocked online.

Some Twitter users wondered if the dolphin was equipped with laser guns, alluding to villains in the comedy film Austin Powers who demand sharks with lasers connected to their heads.&nbsp;

WATCH | Gravitas: Hamas claims 'Killer Zionist Dolphin' killed their commando

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(With inputs from agencies)

Hamas said that Israeli troops attacked its naval commandos with a dolphin operative wearing specialised combat gear. According to a report by Al-Quds, Israeli security forces deployed a dolphin to chase Hamas frogman commandos off the Gaza Strip's coast on Monday.

Hamas said that Israeli troops attacked its naval commandos with a dolphin operative wearing specialised combat gear. According to a report by Al-Quds, Israeli security forces deployed a dolphin to chase Hamas frogman commandos off the Gaza Strip's coast on Monday. An Al-Qassam Brigades naval commando spokesperson said in a video that Hamas naval operatives were driven into the water by a dolphin outfitted with a gadget capable of killing the terrorist group's frogmen during an unspecified operation. Pictures | Gaza violence: How is Hamas growing its arsenal of rockets to strike Israel? "Killer Zionist dolphins exist, according to a Hamas publication," tweeted Joe Truzman, research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Long War Journal. "Abu Hamza explains that a member of Hamas' Frogman unit who was killed by Israel during the May conflict found the killer dolphin. The device the alleged killer dolphin was wearing is shown in the publication." Killer Zionist dolphins exist, according to a Hamas publication. Abu Hamza explains that a member of Hamas' Frogman unit who was killed by Israel during the May conflict found the killer dolphin. The device the alleged killer dolphin was wearing is shown in the publication. pic.twitter.com/gvAyynO3YT — Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) January 10, 2022 × The type and function of the underwater attacker's device were not revealed, but Al-Quds claimed to have information from sources about another battle cetacean event in August 2015 involving a remote control, a camera, and a weapon capable of firing harpoon-like missiles. The Al-Quds sources said that Hamas had captured an Israeli dolphin agent in 2015, but they did not say what happened to the military mereswine, which could still be held captive. The sea mammal was allegedly "stripped of its will" and transformed into a "murderer" by Israeli authorities, according to the BBC. Previous reports of deadly Israeli dolphins and other militaristic marine animals have become memetic on social media, as evidenced by the popular satirical Mossad Twitter account's tagline: "We install lasers on aquatic animals and other satirical hijinks." Hamas' latest claim that Israel has hidden soldiers has been widely mocked online. Some Twitter users wondered if the dolphin was equipped with laser guns, alluding to villains in the comedy film Austin Powers who demand sharks with lasers connected to their heads. WATCH | Gravitas: Hamas claims 'Killer Zionist Dolphin' killed their commando × (With inputs from agencies)

Israel's Mossad trained 'killer dolphins' to attack fighters: Hamas

According to reports, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is set to device clear code of conduct rules for soldiers on social media.

The country's defence forces will set up a "task force" comprising of members of the military and social media experts to determine social media guidelines for soldiers.

The move is aimed at setting rules for on-duty personnel active on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and other social media platforms, reports said.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/emma-watsons-pro-palestine-post-draws-criticism-from-israel-minister-442372">Also Read:&nbsp;Emma Watson's pro-Palestine post draws criticism from Israel minister</a>

Currently, IDF soldiers are barred from posting their photos on social media with their uniforms including those of military sites and bases.

The timeline for the new rules is still unclear as the IDF begins the task of setting new rules for its personnel in the digital space.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/all-women-combat-platoon-on-cards-in-israel-says-report-442173">Also Read:&nbsp;All-women combat platoon on cards in Israel, says report</a>

Reports claim the new rules are not aimed at curtailing the freedom of the soldiers but will be designed to streamline&nbsp;operations with the view to ensure national security.

Reports claim the army has already begun consultations with experts to formulate the new plan with the initiative currently in its initial stage.&nbsp;

(With inputs from Agencies)

According to reports, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is set to device clear code of conduct rules for soldiers on social media. The country's defence forces will set up a "task force" comprising of members of the military and social media experts to determine social media guidelines for soldiers.

According to reports, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is set to device clear code of conduct rules for soldiers on social media. The country's defence forces will set up a "task force" comprising of members of the military and social media experts to determine social media guidelines for soldiers. The move is aimed at setting rules for on-duty personnel active on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and other social media platforms, reports said. Also Read: Emma Watson's pro-Palestine post draws criticism from Israel minister Currently, IDF soldiers are barred from posting their photos on social media with their uniforms including those of military sites and bases. The timeline for the new rules is still unclear as the IDF begins the task of setting new rules for its personnel in the digital space. Also Read: All-women combat platoon on cards in Israel, says report Reports claim the new rules are not aimed at curtailing the freedom of the soldiers but will be designed to streamline operations with the view to ensure national security. Reports claim the army has already begun consultations with experts to formulate the new plan with the initiative currently in its initial stage. (With inputs from Agencies)

Israel's defence force to create guidelines for soldiers on social media

Upholding a Supreme Court ruling, Israel has decided to allow same-sex couples and single men from becoming parents through surrogacy within the country.

The court in July last year had declared void some parts of a surrogacy law that prevented gay couples from having children through a surrogate in Israel.

That move came after the court ruled in 2020 that the law, which had expanded access to single women but excluded gay couples, “disproportionately harmed the right to equality and the right to parenthood” and was unlawful.&nbsp;

Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday, health minister Nitzan Horowitz called it a “historic day for the LGBTQ struggle in Israel,” saying that the move will enable “future fathers, gay couples and essentially every person in Israel equal access to surrogacy in Israel.”

Horowitz, who is the second openly gay Knesset member, said, “This is an exciting day for me, as a gay minister who is well aware of the exclusion and discrimination against us over the years. It’s my personal struggle too.”

“Today we put an end to injustice and discrimination. Everyone has the right to parenthood,” he said. He stressed that transgender people were also included in the relaxed rules.

The new rules will come into effect on January 11.

With the development, the minister said, Israel would join the “small group of countries that have ended discrimination against LGBT people to have the right to parenthood.”

“We have become one of the most advanced countries in the world in this area,” he added.

In Israel, surrogacy is currently open to heterosexual married couples and to single women who have a genetic connection to the baby.

(With inputs from agencies)

Upholding a Supreme Court ruling, Israel has decided to allow same-sex couples and single men from becoming parents through surrogacy within the country. The court in July last year had declared void some parts of a surrogacy law that prevented gay couples from having children through a surrogate in Israel.

Upholding a Supreme Court ruling, Israel has decided to allow same-sex couples and single men from becoming parents through surrogacy within the country. The court in July last year had declared void some parts of a surrogacy law that prevented gay couples from having children through a surrogate in Israel. That move came after the court ruled in 2020 that the law, which had expanded access to single women but excluded gay couples, “disproportionately harmed the right to equality and the right to parenthood” and was unlawful. Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday, health minister Nitzan Horowitz called it a “historic day for the LGBTQ struggle in Israel,” saying that the move will enable “future fathers, gay couples and essentially every person in Israel equal access to surrogacy in Israel.” Horowitz, who is the second openly gay Knesset member, said, “This is an exciting day for me, as a gay minister who is well aware of the exclusion and discrimination against us over the years. It’s my personal struggle too.” “Today we put an end to injustice and discrimination. Everyone has the right to parenthood,” he said. He stressed that transgender people were also included in the relaxed rules. The new rules will come into effect on January 11. With the development, the minister said, Israel would join the “small group of countries that have ended discrimination against LGBT people to have the right to parenthood.” “We have become one of the most advanced countries in the world in this area,” he added. In Israel, surrogacy is currently open to heterosexual married couples and to single women who have a genetic connection to the baby. (With inputs from agencies)

'Historic day’: Same-sex couples, single men can now opt for surrogacy from next week in Israel

Israel's top health official said on Sunday that a surge of Omicron infections in the country may help the country develop herd immunity. His comment came as daily cases in Israel are climbing. b

The highly transmissible Omicron variant has brought a surge in coronavirus cases across the globe. Worldwide infections have hit a record high, with an average of just over a million cases detected a day between Dec. 24 and 30, according to Reuters data. Deaths, however, have not risen in kind, bringing hope the new variant is less lethal.

Israel has managed to stave off Omicron to some degree till late December but infection rates are now gaining pace. It is expected that daily cases would reach record highs in coming three weeks.

Nachman Ash, Director General of Israel's health ministry said that this may result in herd immunity.

"The cost will be a great many infections," Ash told 103FM Radio. "The numbers will have to be very high in order to reach herd immunity. This is possible but we don't want to reach it by means of infections, we want it to happen as a result of many people vaccinating," he said.

Herd immunity is the point at which a population is protected from a virus, either through vaccination or by people having developed antibodies by contracting the disease.

Around 60% of Israel's 9.4 million population are fully vaccinated - almost all with Pfizer /BioNTech'S vaccine - according to the health ministry, which means they have either received three doses or have had their second dose recently. But hundreds of thousands of those eligible for a third inoculation have so far not taken it.

Around 1.3 million coronavirus cases have been documented in Israel since the start of the pandemic. But between two to four million people may well be infected by the end of January when the Omicron wave could subside, according to Eran Segal, data scientist at the Weizmann Institute of Science and an adviser to the government.

Head of the health ministry's coronavirus taskforce, Salman Zarka, said herd immunity was far from guaranteed.

"We have to be very cautious with this particularly in light of our experience over the past two years in which we saw people who have recovered (from coronavirus) be re-infected," Zarka told Ynet TV.

Over the past ten days, daily infections have more than quadrupled. Severe cases have also climbed but at a far lower rate, rising from about 80 to around 100.

(With inputs from agencies)

Israel's top health official said on Sunday that a surge of Omicron infections in the country may help the country develop herd immunity. His comment came as daily cases in Israel are climbing.

Israel's top health official said on Sunday that a surge of Omicron infections in the country may help the country develop herd immunity. His comment came as daily cases in Israel are climbing. b The highly transmissible Omicron variant has brought a surge in coronavirus cases across the globe. Worldwide infections have hit a record high, with an average of just over a million cases detected a day between Dec. 24 and 30, according to Reuters data. Deaths, however, have not risen in kind, bringing hope the new variant is less lethal. Israel has managed to stave off Omicron to some degree till late December but infection rates are now gaining pace. It is expected that daily cases would reach record highs in coming three weeks. Nachman Ash, Director General of Israel's health ministry said that this may result in herd immunity. "The cost will be a great many infections," Ash told 103FM Radio. "The numbers will have to be very high in order to reach herd immunity. This is possible but we don't want to reach it by means of infections, we want it to happen as a result of many people vaccinating," he said. Herd immunity is the point at which a population is protected from a virus, either through vaccination or by people having developed antibodies by contracting the disease. Around 60% of Israel's 9.4 million population are fully vaccinated - almost all with Pfizer /BioNTech'S vaccine - according to the health ministry, which means they have either received three doses or have had their second dose recently. But hundreds of thousands of those eligible for a third inoculation have so far not taken it. Around 1.3 million coronavirus cases have been documented in Israel since the start of the pandemic. But between two to four million people may well be infected by the end of January when the Omicron wave could subside, according to Eran Segal, data scientist at the Weizmann Institute of Science and an adviser to the government. Head of the health ministry's coronavirus taskforce, Salman Zarka, said herd immunity was far from guaranteed. "We have to be very cautious with this particularly in light of our experience over the past two years in which we saw people who have recovered (from coronavirus) be re-infected," Zarka told Ynet TV. Over the past ten days, daily infections have more than quadrupled. Severe cases have also climbed but at a far lower rate, rising from about 80 to around 100. (With inputs from agencies)

Increase in Omicron cases may help Israel gain herd immunity: Health official

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