LISBON, Portugal (AP) — In a brief escape from his legal and political struggles in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu enjoyed a leisurely excursion in Portugal, keeping a relatively light schedule and finding time to tour the capital and reminisce with reporters about his late father, who was an influential historian. It could turn out to be a last respite … Read More
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Israel has the “full right” to annex the Jordan Valley if it chose to, even as the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court warned the country against taking the bold step. Netanyahu said his proposal to annex the strategic part of the occupied West Bank was discussed … Read More
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Israel’s prime minister on Wednesday praised the tough U.S. sanctions on Iran, saying the financial pressure has sparked protests against Tehran’s influence across the region and urging even stronger action. Speaking alongside U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo before their meeting, Netanyahu said “the first subject I will raise is Iran, the second subject is Iran … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looked to project business as usual Sunday as he returned to work following his indictment on corruption charges, but a wall of silence from his usually loyal Cabinet ministers could mean tough times ahead for the embattled Israeli leader. Netanyahu is determined to fight the charges from the prime minister’s office in what … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was indicted Thursday in a series of corruption cases, throwing Israel’s paralyzed political system into further disarray and threatening his 10-year grip on power. He rejected calls to resign, angrily accusing prosecutors of staging “an attempted coup.” The first-ever charges against a sitting Israeli prime minister capped a three-year investigation, with Attorney General … Read More
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Soccer superstar Lionel Messi finally arrived in sports-crazed Israel on Sunday, after a Palestinian protest campaign derailed his previous visit and the latest round of cross-border fighting in Gaza threatened to scare him off once again. Messi and his Argentine teammates are in the Holy Land to play an international friendly against his Barcelona teammate … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s newly appointed commissioner to Expo 2020 said Monday that next year’s world fair in Dubai offers the country a unique opportunity to present a fresh face to the Arab world, just as Israel is growing closer to the United Arab Emirates and other Arab Gulf states. Elazar Cohen presented plans for the Israeli pavilion at the … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu greeted the country’s triumphant teen delegation to the unofficial “Robotics Olympics” on Wednesday after its groundbreaking visit to Dubai, giving public expression to the growing, and increasingly open, relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. The countries have long had back-channel security and cyber ties, mostly based on their shared enmity … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) — One by one, the 40 descendants of a group of Israeli siblings leaned down and hugged the elderly Greek woman to whom they owe their very existence, as she sat in her wheelchair and wiped away tears streaking down her wrinkled face. Clutching the hands of those she hid, fed and protected as a teenager more than … Read More
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Seeking to bolster its image as a forward-looking metropolis, Dubai hosted the largest-ever international robotics contest this week, challenging young people from 190 countries to find solutions to global ocean pollution. Event organizers say their selection of Dubai as host reflects a vote of confidence that this oil-rich Emirati sheikhdom can be a global … Read More
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — For those who were there, the memories are still fresh, 40 years after one of the defining events of Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, when protesters seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and set off a 444-day hostage crisis. The consequences of that crisis reverberate to this day. Veteran Iranian photographer Kaveh Kazemi recalled snapping away with … Read More
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Political uncertainty and volatile oil prices are hindering economic growth in the Middle East this year, but trends should reverse next year, according to a new report released Monday by the International Monetary Fund. The IMF’s regional outlook report projects growth to rise just 0.5% in 2019, compared to 1.6% in 2018. Increased activity … Read More
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Outgoing U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry said Saturday that he asked President Donald Trump to make the phone call at the center of the impeachment inquiry because it was “important” for the country’s energy needs and had nothing to do with former Vice President Joe Biden or his son Hunter. He also hardened his … Read More
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — In an unmarked villa, nestled amid homes in an upscale Dubai neighborhood, a congregation prays in the first fully functioning synagogue in the Arabian Peninsula in decades. Though its members keep its precise location secret, the synagogue’s existence and the tacit approval it has received from this Islamic sheikhdom represent a slow rebirth of … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) — With a simple tweet, Gideon Saar did what no Israeli politician from the ruling conservative party has done in more than a decade — openly challenge its chief, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The brazen move against the long-serving Israeli leader has solidly positioned the 52-year-old Saar as the Likud party’s leading candidate to replace Netanyahu, who is … Read More