Israel

Protests Erupt After Israeli Soldier Who Shot Downed Palestinian Gets 18-Month Sentence

TEL AVIV (JTA) — An Israeli soldier who shot a downed Palestinian terrorist was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Elor Azaria, 20, who was convicted last month in an Israeli court of manslaughter, was sentenced on Tuesday by a panel of three judges at the Israel Defense Forces headquarters in Tel Aviv. The judges also…

Isaac Herzog Held Unity Talks After Netanyahu’s Secret Summit With Arab Leaders

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israeli opposition leader Isaac Herzog said he entered into negotiations to join a unity government a year ago on the basis of a secret regional peace initiative bring negotiated at the time. Herzog, head of the Zionist Union, told American Jewish leaders on Monday that he demanded a total freeze on settlement…

IKEA Apologizes For Ultra-Orthodox Catalogue With No Women

Swedish furniture giant IKEA has apologized for publishing a catalogue for Israel’s haredi Orthodox community that does not include any photos of women. A spokeswoman in IKEA’s headquarters in Sweden told Israeli and international media outlets that the catalogue was produced by its Israel branch, which has three stores, and that it is “not something…

Netanyahu Scuttled Secret 2016 Peace Push With Arab Leaders

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined a peace proposal presented by then-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at a secret summit in 2016 with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi in Aqaba, Jordan, according to a Haaretz investigation. The proposal included the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and renewed…

Pro Football Tour To Israel Cut By Over Half After Protest

More than half of the American pro football players who were supposed to tour Israel pulled out in rejection of the Israeli government using their visit to score public relations points. Only five out the original group of 13 football players toured Israel after Palestinian rights activists circulated a letter urging them not to go,…

Israel And Saudi Arabia Signal United Front Against Iran

Netanyahu Claims Alliance With America Has Become ‘Even Stronger’ With Trump

JERUSALEM (JTA) — The alliance between Israel and the United States has become “even stronger,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. Netanyahu made the remarks on Sunday during the regular weekly Cabinet meeting, his first meeting with government ministers since returning on Friday from meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, his administration, and members of…