Page 6 - Israel

'Be right back', Netanyahu writes in his leaving note to successor: Reports

Derisive and dismissive of the incoming leadership, Benjamin Netanyahu in June 2021 in a handover note left for his successor in the Prime Minister's office, Naftali Bennett, wrote, "Be right back", according to media reports. Netanyahu, 73, scored an emphatic victory at polls last week making a comeback when elections were held last Tuesday, the fifth in less than four years, after Bennett's government fell under the pressure of ideological differences among the loosely grouped eight parties drawn from the Left, Centre and Right, along with an Arab party. Netanyahu continuously challenged the legitimacy of the government, charging his successor and his allies of having "stolen" the mandate, making several analysts dub him a "sore loser". Some commentators criticised Netanyahu then for his apparent lack of decorum, noting that previous transfers of power had been more courteous. In new revelations, Channel 12 news on Friday published a photo of a note that was left for Bennett on

UK govt has 'no plans' to relocate Israel embassy to Jerusalem, says report

The United Kingdom has "no plans" to relocate its Israel embassy to Jerusalem, Al Jazeera reported citing a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak

PM Modi congratulates Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu for general election win

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday congratulated Benjamin Netanyahu for his success in the Israeli general elections and said he looks forward to continuing their joint efforts to deepen the India-Israel strategic partnership. Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid Thursday conceded defeat in the general elections and congratulated opposition leader Netanyahu, whose coalition of right-wing parties secured a comfortable majority in parliament to form the next government and end the political impasse plaguing the country. "Mazel Tov my friend @netanyahu for your electoral success. I look forward to continuing our joint efforts to deepen the India-Israel strategic partnership," Prime Minister Modi said in a tweet. Modi also thanked Lapid for giving priority to the India-Israel strategic partnership. "I hope to continue our fruitful exchange of ideas for the mutual benefit of our peoples," Modi said. Modi also put out tweets in Hebrew with the same message. With 99 per cent of the .

Israel PM Lapid congratulates Netanyahu on comeback in national elections

Israel's caretaker Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Thursday congratulated former PM Benjamin Netanyahu on victory in the national election

Former Israeli PM Netanyahu appears to edge toward victory after vote

Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared headed toward victory on Wednesday, with some 85 per cent of the ballots from national elections counted and showing that voters gave him and his far-right allies what looks like a majority in the country's parliament. Votes were still being counted and results were not final. But if preliminary indications were correct, Israel was potentially headed to its most right-wing government, bolstered by a strong showing from the ultranationalist Religious Zionism party, whose members use inflammatory anti-Arab and anti-LGBTQ rhetoric. The initial results pointed to a continued rightward shift in the Israeli electorate, further dimming hopes for peace with the Palestinians and setting the stage for possible conflict with the Biden administration and Israel's supporters in the United States. The early results also showed that Netanyahu had overcome his detractors, who claimed he was not fit to rule while on trial for corruption and .

Israel elections: Exit polls predict win for former PM Benjamin Netanyahu

Exit polls broadcast by all the leading Israeli TV channels on Tuesday predicted an election win for former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu-led right-wing bloc. The exit polls were broadcast soon after polling booths closed at 10 PM local time. The exit polls saw pro-Netanyahu bloc winning 61-62 seats in the 120 member Knesset (Israeli parliament), just about making the magical figure that would see him making a comeback after losing power following March 2019 polls. Prime Minister Yair Lapid-led bloc was put at 54-55 seats, as per the exit polls. Public broadcaster Kan and Channel 12 gave the Netanyahu-led bloc 62 seats, while Channel 12 projected 61 seats for him.

Landmark maritime Lebanon-Israel pact could have important ramifications

Under the agreement, Lebanon is awarded 840 square kilometres of the previously disputed area

Hezbollah ends anti-Israel mobilisation after maritime demarcation deal

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah announced the end of his armed group's "exceptional" mobilisation against Israel after Lebanese and Israeli leaders finalised a US-brokered maritime demarcation deal

Lebanon and Israel sign US-mediated sea border deal, deliver them to UN

Lebanon and Israel signed copies of a US-mediated sea border deal on Thursday and delivered them to the UN in the coastal border town of Naqoura. The agreement to demarcate the maritime border comes after months of indirect talks mediated by Amos Hochstein, the US envoy for energy affairs, and would mark a major breakthrough in relations between the two nations, which have formally been at war since Israel's creation in 1948. Lebanon and Israel both claim around 860 square kilometers (330 square miles) of the Mediterranean Sea that are home to offshore gas fields. Lebanon hopes that demarcating maritime borders will pave the way for gas exploration to help lift it out of its crippling economic crisis, which has plunged three-quarters of its population into poverty. Israel hopes that the deal will reduce the risk of war with Lebanon's Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Lebanon and Israel sent delegations to the United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon, who received separately sign

Australia drops recognition of West Jerusalem as Israel's capital

Australia has reversed a previous government's recognition of West Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the foreign minister said Tuesday. The center-left Labor Party government Cabinet agreed to again recognize Tel Aviv as the capital and reaffirmed that Jerusalem's status must be resolved in peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said. Australia remained committed to a two-party solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians, and we will not support an approach that undermines this prospect, Wong said. Former conservative Prime Minister Scott Morrison formally recognized West Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December 2018, although the Australian embassy remained in Tel Aviv. The change followed the then-U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to shift the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. President Joe Biden has kept the embassy in Jerusalem as the U.S. steps back from its once-intense mediation between the Israelis and ..

Israel and Lebanon reach 'historic' deal on gas fields, says report

Israel has said gas production from Karish in the eastern Mediterranean will enable it to increase exports, including to Europe.

Israeli top court overturns a ban on Arab party of Balad from elections

The Israeli top court has overturned a ban preventing the Arab party of Balad from running in the country's parliamentary elections due on November 1.

Two Palestinians killed in Israel during military raid in West Bank

Israeli soldiers shot and killed two Palestinians on Saturday in an exchange of fire that erupted during a military raid in the West Bank, according to Israeli and Palestinian accounts, in the latest confrontation that has made 2022 the deadliest year of violence in the occupied territory since 2015. The raid occurred in the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, the site of repeated clashes between Israeli forces and local gunmen and residents. The camp is known as a stronghold of Palestinian militants and the army often operates there. Palestinian officials said soldiers entered the camp early Saturday and surrounded a house. In videos circulated on social media, exchanges of fire could be heard. The Palestinian Health Ministry reported two dead and 11 wounded, three of them critically. The official Wafa news agency said both of the dead were 17-year-old boys. The Israeli military said it had arrested a 25-year-old operative from the Islamic Jihad militant group who has ...

Israel, Argentina to jointly sponsor five medical, green energy projects

Israel and Argentina will jointly sponsor five research projects in the fields of medicine and green energy, Israel's Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology said in a statement

Israeli Defence Minister visits Azerbaijan to discuss diplomacy, security

Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz visited Azerbaijan to discuss diplomatic and security issues, his office said in a statement.

High-level dialogue forum with EU to renew after decade-long freeze: Israel

Israel announced on Sunday that a high-level dialogue forum with the European Union (EU) will be renewed in Brussels on Monday after a decade-long freeze

Hamas supporters rally over Israeli raids on Al-Aqsa Mosque in Gaza

Hundreds of Palestinians rallied in Gaza City to protest against Israeli raids on the Al-Aqsa Mosque

European Union urges Israel, Palestine to defuse West Bank tension

The European Union (EU) is exerting efforts to defuse the escalating tension between Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank, an official announced

Israeli elections panel bars Arab party from running in upcoming polls

An Israeli-Arab party was disqualified from running in the country's November elections over allegations of promoting an anti-Israel agenda

Israeli minister orders expulsion of Palestinian attacker's family members

Israeli Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked has ordered the expulsion of families of a Palestinian man who carried out an attack five years ago in East Jerusalem