By JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A former U.S. Navy analyst who served 30 years in prison for spying on behalf of Israel emigrated there on Wednesday to a warm but low-key welcome by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.Jonathan Pollard’s case put a rare strain on U.S.-Israel ties for decades. His predawn arrival, aboard a private jet, was not announced in advance - suggesting a bid to limit publicity.Netanyahu met Pollard, 66, and his wife Esther as they disembarked, video disseminated by the prime minister’s office showed. After they kissed the tarmac, the Israeli leader said a Hebrew prayer of...…By JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A former U.S. Navy analyst who served 30 years in prison for spying on behalf of Israel emigrated there on Wednesday to a warm but low-key welcome by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.Jonathan Pollard’s case put a rare strain on U.S.-Israel ties for decades. His predawn arrival, aboard a private jet, was not announced in advance - suggesting a bid to limit publicity.Netanyahu met Pollard, 66, and his wife Esther as they disembarked, video disseminated by the prime minister’s office showed. After they kissed the tarmac, the Israeli leader said a Hebrew prayer of...WW…

By , JERUSALEM/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Israel said on Friday it will not oppose U.S. sales of “specific weapons systems” to the United Arab Emirates, in an apparent reference to the F-35 warplanes sought by Abu Dhabi.Slideshow Under a principle of preserving Israel’s “qualitative military edge”, the United States consults with it on proposed sales of advanced arms to other countries in the region.Israel has reiterated a need to maintain its military superiority even since forging official ties with the UAE and its fellow Gulf Arab state Bahrain under deals brokered by U.S. President Donald...…By , JERUSALEM/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Israel said on Friday it will not oppose U.S. sales of “specific weapons systems” to the United Arab Emirates, in an apparent reference to the F-35 warplanes sought by Abu Dhabi.Slideshow Under a principle of preserving Israel’s “qualitative military edge”, the United States consults with it on proposed sales of advanced arms to other countries in the region.Israel has reiterated a need to maintain its military superiority even since forging official ties with the UAE and its fellow Gulf Arab state Bahrain under deals brokered by U.S. President Donald...WW…

By , JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli lawmakers voted to dissolve parliament on Thursday, paving the way for a new election after veteran Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to form a government before a midnight deadline.Netanyahu preferred a new ballot, set for Sept. 17, to the alternative, under which President Reuven Rivlin could have asked another politician to try and form a ruling coalition.But the need to go to the polls again so soon after a closely contested April 9 election in which Netanyahu had claimed victory, showed a new weakness in a leader who has been in power for the...…By , JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli lawmakers voted to dissolve parliament on Thursday, paving the way for a new election after veteran Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to form a government before a midnight deadline.Netanyahu preferred a new ballot, set for Sept. 17, to the alternative, under which President Reuven Rivlin could have asked another politician to try and form a ruling coalition.But the need to go to the polls again so soon after a closely contested April 9 election in which Netanyahu had claimed victory, showed a new weakness in a leader who has been in power for the...WW…

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comJERUSALEM, April 18 (Reuters) - Israelis went about barefaced on Sunday after the order to wear masks outdoors was rescinded in another step towards relative normality thanks to the country’s mass-vaccination against COVID-19.With about 81% of citizens or residents over 16 - the age group eligible for the Pfizer/BioNTech , vaccine in Israel - having received both doses, contagions and hospitalisations are down sharply.But entry by foreigners is still limited and non-immune Israelis who return from abroad must self-isolate, due to concern...…Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comJERUSALEM, April 18 (Reuters) - Israelis went about barefaced on Sunday after the order to wear masks outdoors was rescinded in another step towards relative normality thanks to the country’s mass-vaccination against COVID-19.With about 81% of citizens or residents over 16 - the age group eligible for the Pfizer/BioNTech , vaccine in Israel - having received both doses, contagions and hospitalisations are down sharply.But entry by foreigners is still limited and non-immune Israelis who return from abroad must self-isolate, due to concern...WW…

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks during a joint statement with India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh (not pictured) following their meeting in New Delhi, India, March 20, 2021. REUTERS/Adnan AbidiRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comJERUSALEM, April 11 (Reuters) - Israel’s defence minister pledged on Sunday to cooperate with the United States on Iran, voicing hope that Israeli security would be safeguarded under any renewed Iranian nuclear deal that Washington reaches."Israel views the United States as a full partner across all operational theatres, not the...…U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks during a joint statement with India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh (not pictured) following their meeting in New Delhi, India, March 20, 2021. REUTERS/Adnan AbidiRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comJERUSALEM, April 11 (Reuters) - Israel’s defence minister pledged on Sunday to cooperate with the United States on Iran, voicing hope that Israeli security would be safeguarded under any renewed Iranian nuclear deal that Washington reaches."Israel views the United States as a full partner across all operational theatres, not the...WW…

By TEL AVIV (Reuters) - The 2011 party in central Israel turned grim when a woman was cornered by two men in a side-room. Then her girlfriends, worried about her absence, turned up. The assailants fled.Slideshow It was a strength-in-numbers moment that inspired one of the friends, Neta Schreiber, to develop SafeUp, an app that allows women who feel threatened or unsafe to summon help from other subscribers.Launched on Sunday in Tel Aviv, at whose municipal technology lab it was developed, SafeUp could provide ideas for bigger cities like London, where the March 3 abduction and murder of...…By TEL AVIV (Reuters) - The 2011 party in central Israel turned grim when a woman was cornered by two men in a side-room. Then her girlfriends, worried about her absence, turned up. The assailants fled.Slideshow It was a strength-in-numbers moment that inspired one of the friends, Neta Schreiber, to develop SafeUp, an app that allows women who feel threatened or unsafe to summon help from other subscribers.Launched on Sunday in Tel Aviv, at whose municipal technology lab it was developed, SafeUp could provide ideas for bigger cities like London, where the March 3 abduction and murder of...WW…

By JERUSALEM (Reuters) - COVID-19 curbs have curtailed celebrations of the Jewish costume festival of Purim, with Israeli police preventing parties and some rabbis urging people not to drink too much so social distancing is maintained.Drawn from the biblical Book of Esther’s account of how the Jews were spared genocide in ancient Persia, Purim is commemorated with the wearing of all kinds of fancy dress costumes, donating food for feasts - and drinking to excess.But this year, Israel, which began emerging from its third national lockdown on Feb. 21, reimposed night curfews for the long...…By JERUSALEM (Reuters) - COVID-19 curbs have curtailed celebrations of the Jewish costume festival of Purim, with Israeli police preventing parties and some rabbis urging people not to drink too much so social distancing is maintained.Drawn from the biblical Book of Esther’s account of how the Jews were spared genocide in ancient Persia, Purim is commemorated with the wearing of all kinds of fancy dress costumes, donating food for feasts - and drinking to excess.But this year, Israel, which began emerging from its third national lockdown on Feb. 21, reimposed night curfews for the long...WW…

By JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel plans to open up some hotels, gyms and other leisure facilities in two weeks to those documented as being immune to COVID-19, Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said on Wednesday, in a possible harbinger of a wider emergence from the pandemic.Slideshow Having administered Pfizer Inc vaccines to almost 40% of its 9 million population, Israel saw first signs of managing to outpace highly contagious virus variants, he added.Israel has said it would issue an official app allowing users to link up to their Health Ministry files and show if they have been vaccinated...…By JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel plans to open up some hotels, gyms and other leisure facilities in two weeks to those documented as being immune to COVID-19, Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said on Wednesday, in a possible harbinger of a wider emergence from the pandemic.Slideshow Having administered Pfizer Inc vaccines to almost 40% of its 9 million population, Israel saw first signs of managing to outpace highly contagious virus variants, he added.Israel has said it would issue an official app allowing users to link up to their Health Ministry files and show if they have been vaccinated...WW…

By JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel extended a national lockdown on Sunday as coronavirus variants offset its vaccination drive and officials predicted a delay in a turnaround from the health and economic crisis.Highlighting Israel’s challenges in enforcing restrictions, thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews attended the Jerusalem funerals of two prominent rabbis on Sunday, drawing criticism from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition partners.Netanyahu has promoted a speedy vaccination of Israel’s most vulnerable cohorts - around 24% of 9 million citizens - and the lockdown as dual pathways...…By JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel extended a national lockdown on Sunday as coronavirus variants offset its vaccination drive and officials predicted a delay in a turnaround from the health and economic crisis.Highlighting Israel’s challenges in enforcing restrictions, thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews attended the Jerusalem funerals of two prominent rabbis on Sunday, drawing criticism from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition partners.Netanyahu has promoted a speedy vaccination of Israel’s most vulnerable cohorts - around 24% of 9 million citizens - and the lockdown as dual pathways...WW…

By , JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday became the first serving Israeli prime minister to go on trial, proclaiming his innocence in the corridor before walking into court to face charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust.The trial came a week after Israel’s longest-serving leader was sworn in to a record fifth term, demonstrating his knack for survival by securing an unexpected power-sharing deal with his main opponent after three inconclusive elections in a year. He says the cases against him are a left-wing plot to unseat him.Netanyahu, 70, was indicted in November in...…By , JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday became the first serving Israeli prime minister to go on trial, proclaiming his innocence in the corridor before walking into court to face charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust.The trial came a week after Israel’s longest-serving leader was sworn in to a record fifth term, demonstrating his knack for survival by securing an unexpected power-sharing deal with his main opponent after three inconclusive elections in a year. He says the cases against him are a left-wing plot to unseat him.Netanyahu, 70, was indicted in November in...WW…