Army convoy spotted heading from Russian border to separatist territory in Ukraine

Iranian hackers publish CCTV footage, workers’ details from Haifa, Ashdod ports

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has published a video that shows footage from security cameras at two of Israel’s largest seaports as well as details of hundreds of workers at the sites.

Iranian hackers linked to the Guards claim they obtained the information that the IRGC posted on its Telegram app channel.

Clips show images from cameras recording access gates and even workers sitting at their desks in offices. In addition, the video includes personal details about workers and even their identification papers.

The hackers also published a file that contained details of hundreds of workers from the ports.

Zandberg vows to pass ‘climate law’ by this summer

Environment Minister Tamar Zandberg attends a finance committee meeting, at the Knesset in Jerusalem, November 15, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Environmental Protection Minister Tamar Zandberg vows at Haaretz’s climate conference that she will pass a “climate law” by this coming summer.

“We are currently in intensive and feverish discussions on the climate law with government ministries,” she says.

It was not immediately clear what the law would consist of.

John Kerry: ‘Israel could be extraordinarily helpful’ in global fight against climate change

United States Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry attends a joint press conference with French Economy and Finance minister Bruno Le Maire, at Bercy Ministry in Paris, Wednesday, March 10, 2021. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)

US climate envoy John Kerry tells Haaretz that “Israel could be extraordinarily helpful in assisting other countries in the region” with developing environmentally sustainable agricultural practices to combat climate change.

Kerry, who butted heads regularly with the Israeli government when he tried to advance the Obama administration’s peace plan as secretary of state, calls Israel a “technology powerhouse.”

He lauds the recent US and UAE brokered water deal Israel signed with Jordan.

US said satisfied with Israeli statement expressing concern regarding Ukraine

A woman walks by a photographic memorial for those killed in the confrontation between Ukraine's military and the pro-Russia separatist forces in Sievierodonetsk, Luhansk region, eastern Ukraine, Feb. 23, 2022. (Vadim Ghirda/AP)

The Biden administration has passed along messages to Jerusalem expressing its satisfaction with the statement Israel issued in response to the latest developments in Ukraine, Army Radio reports.

Earlier today, Israel broke its diplomatic silence held since Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized the separatist republics in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region.

Being one of only a few countries to maintain close relations with both Russia and Ukraine, Israel has sought to avoid aligning itself too closely with either side, despite Putin’s threats to invade a sovereign country. The stance has angered Ukraine, which says it expected more solidarity from Israel during its time of need.

But Putin’s Monday announcement on Ukraine ultimately left Israel with no choice.

“Israel shares the concern of the international community regarding the steps taken in eastern Ukraine and the serious escalation in the situation,” the Foreign Ministry says in a statement, which carefully avoids mentioning either “Putin” or even “Russia.”

Bahrain said to summon US envoy after meeting with local rights activists

Bahrain has summoned US Ambassador to Manama Steven Bondy after the envoy met with local human rights activists shortly after handing over his credentials to King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa earlier this month, Axios reports.

The activists highlighted the difficulties faced by Bahraini civil society along with government crackdowns and Manama’s use of the death penalty, the local Delmon Post reported.

Bahrain’s interior minister subsequently issued a statement accusing Bondy of interference in internal affairs.

Bahrain is sensitive to Western engagement with its civil society groups, particularly after US backing of such forces in 2011 during the Arab Spring.

IDF informs family of alleged Palestinian terrorist of impending home demolition

The sealing of the first floor of 19-year-old Omar al-Abed, the perpetrator of the deadly terror attack in the settlement of Halamish on July 21, 2017, in the northern West Bank village of Kobar, August 16, 2017. (Israel Defense Forces)

The Israel Defense Forces has informed the family of a fourth alleged Palestinian terrorist that the floor in the home where he lived in the northern West Bank village of Silat al-Harithiya is slated for demolition.

Omar Ahmed Yassin Jaradat’s family is given the chance to appeal the demolition order.

Jaradat is one of several suspects accused of carrying out a deadly shooting attack in December in which an Israeli man, Yehuda Dimentman, was killed and two others were lightly wounded near the Homesh outpost.

One suspect had the floor in which he lived demolished last week, and two other suspects’ families were given demolition orders last month.

Lapid meets with J Street-sponsored congressional delegation at Knesset

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid meets with a congressional delegation sponsored by the dovish J Street lobby at the Knesset for a discussion on US-Israel ties and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

This is the second time Lapid has met with a J Street-sponsored congressional delegation. He and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett did so in November.

Previous governments led by former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu largely boycotted J Street.

The delegation of nine progressive Democrats meeting Lapid is one of several that are in Israel this week.

תודה לשר החוץ @yairlapid על אירוח משלחת חברי קונגרס ומנהיגים שהגיעו לישראל באירוח @jstreetdotorg ועל נכונותו לנהל שיח פתוח ומכבד, גם על נושאים שבמחלוקת. pic.twitter.com/yC5NaRPpHA

— J Street ישראל (@jstreetisrael) February 23, 2022

Tank-filled convoy spotted making its way from Russian border toward Donetsk

Two convoys of military equipment have been spotted making their way from the Russian border to the eastern Ukraine city of Donetsk, which President Vladimir Putin declared as independent earlier this week, a witness tells Reuters.

The unmarked convoy included nine tanks and an infantry fighting vehicle and the other included trucks and fuel tankers, Reuters reports.

The spotting comes hours after Ukraine declared a state of emergency on Wednesday and told its citizens in Russia to flee the country.

Prof. Yoram Palti awarded Israel Prize for ‘groundbreaking’ cancer treatment

Education Minister Yifat Shasha-Bitton announces that the 2022 Israel Prize in the Field of Entrepreneurship and Technological Innovation will be awarded to Prof. Yoram Palti.

A professor emeritus of physiology and biophysics at the Technion Institute of Technology, Palti helped develop a new groundbreaking cancer treatment that fights malignant brain tumors using electric pulses — a non-invasive treatment with a high level of selectivity.

חתן פרס ישראל ביזמות וחדשנות טכנולוגית לתשפ"ב – פרופ' יורם פלטי. בנימוקיה ציינה הוועדה: "פלטי פיתח שיטה פורצת דרך לטיפול חשמלי בכמה סוגי סרטן. סיפורו האישי מעורר השראה"@lirankog
צילום: Peter Doyle pic.twitter.com/DZscaH9bYD

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) February 23, 2022

US announces new sanctions against Iran-backed network funneling money to Houthis

Shiite fighters, known as Houthis, wearing army uniforms escort the convoy of Ismail Weld al-Sheikh, new UN special envoy to Yemen, at the international airport in Sanaa, Yemen, Tuesday, May 12, 2015. (AP/Hani Mohammed)

The US Department of the Treasury announces new sanctions against an international financial network run by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps that funneled tens of millions of dollars to Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

“Led by the U.S.-designated Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) and Houthi financier Sa’id al-Jamal, this network has transferred tens of millions of dollars to Yemen via a complex international network of intermediaries in support of the Houthis’ attacks,” the Treasury statement says.

US warns a Russian invasion of Ukraine could displace 5 million people

Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations (UN) Sergiy Kyslytsya (L) fist bumps US ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield (R) after he speaking during an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on the Ukraine crisis, in New York, February 21, 2022 (TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP)

The United States tells the UN General Assembly that a Russian invasion of Ukraine could displace as many as five million people.

“If Russia continues down this path, it could — according to our estimates — create a new refugee crisis, one of the largest facing the world today,” says America’s ambassador to the world body, Linda Thomas-Greenfield.

Erdan blasts Security Council for elevating session on Palestinian issue amid Ukraine crisis

Israeli Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan blasts the UN Security Council for elevating the monthly session on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to a public debate at the last minute, rather than a closed-door session as had originally been planned.

“One might wonder what the urgency was to turn the closed monthly debate into an open one while such critical matters to global security are being discussed in the General Assembly as we speak,” Erdan says in his speech.

Today’s session was changed to an open debate by Russia, which chairs the meeting. Moscow’s representative asked Palestinian Ambassador Riyad Mansour to address the session, giving an opening for Erdan to do the same.

A Western diplomat familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel that the decision by Russia appeared to be an effort to “distract” from its controversial steps in Ukraine.

Erdan hails appointment of Arab MK to diplomatic post after Netanyahu blasted move

Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan uses the recent appointment of Meretz MK Ghaida Rinawie Zoabi to become consul general in Shanghai to dismiss claims that Israel is an apartheid state.

“Can any decent person justify associating Israel with this most horrific form of discrimination?” Erdan says in his speech during the monthly UN Security Council session on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

His remarks came hours after Likud chair Benjamin Netanyahu blasted “Zoabi’s” appointment as scandalous and called on the government to cancel it. He claimed Zoabi refuses to acknowledge Israel as a Jewish state. Pressed on the claim, the Meretz MK said she swore her allegiance to the Jewish and democratic state of Israel upon entering the Knesset last year.

Russia defends ‘integrity’ of Syrian sovereignty as Ukraine invasion fears grow

As Moscow moves closer to a full-on invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s representative calls on Israel during the UN Security Council monthly session on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to respect Syrian sovereignty and cease airstrikes, which Jerusalem says are meant to thwart Iranian military entrenchment along its northern border.

The Russian representative defends the “integrity” of Syria’s sovereignty amid Israeli airstrikes.

IDF says troops downed Hamas drone that flew across Gaza border

The IDF says troops downed a drone belonging to the Hamas terror group that was flying over the border between the northern section of the Gaza Strip and Israel.

“The drone was monitored throughout the incident,” the army says.

According to the military, the drone fell on the Palestinian side of the border fence.

In rare criticism, UAE urges Israel to ease tensions in Sheikh Jarrah

Israeli security forces in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah on February 13, 2022. (AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)

The UAE’s representative addressing the UN Security Council monthly session on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict pans Israeli policies in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in criticism that has been exceedingly rare since the two countries normalized relations in August 2020.

This is the first monthly session that the UAE has joined since it became a member of the Security Council in January.

The UAE representative notes with concern Israeli demolitions in the West Bank and East Jerusalem which have displaced hundreds of Palestinians.

He also urges Israel to act with caution in Sheikh Jarrah where dozens of Palestinian families face looming evictions. An Israeli court yesterday ordered that the most imminent eviction of the Palestinian Salem family be delayed indefinitely.

“In conclusion, I reiterate the UAE’s firm commitment… to achieving the independence of a sovereign Palestinian state based on the border for June 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital,” the UAE representative says.

France: We’ll continue backing blacklisted Palestinian NGOs due to lack of evidence by Israel

France will continue to support the six Palestinian NGOs that were blacklisted last year by Israel due to the “absence of evidence” by Israel demonstrating that the organizations actually support terror, a French representative tells the UN Security Council during the monthly session on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel claims that the six organizations serve as a front, funneling humanitarian aid they’ve received to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which the US and Israel have blacklisted as a terror group.

Ukraine says it was hit by cyberattack that briefly took down government websites

An illustrative image of computer pop-up box screen warning of a system being hacked. (solarseven; iStock by Getty Images)

Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov says that the country was hit by a cyberattack that took down the websites of the foreign affairs ministry, the parliament and the cabinet of ministers.

The attack took place at around 4 p.m. local time, but all three websites were back up and running about an hour later.

Hebrew media cited an unnamed Ukrainian security official who blamed Russia for the attack.

Ukraine soldier dies in shelling attack by Russia-backed separatists

An armored vehicle rolls down a street outside Donetsk, the territory controlled by pro-Russian militants, eastern Ukraine, late Tuesday, February 22, 2022. (AP)

A Ukrainian soldier has died in a shelling attack near the frontline with the Moscow-backed separatist east, the armed forces say, as fears mount of a Russian invasion.

Ukraine’s army did not specify the location of the attack, saying only that one soldier “suffered fatal injuries” and another was wounded in the shelling.

Nine Ukrainian soldiers have died since the beginning of the year, with six of them killed in intensifying clashes over the past four days, according to an AFP tally based on official sources.

Rebel leaders have only claimed casualties among civilians, but not their fighters.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday recognized the independence of Ukraine’s two separatist regions, approving the deployment of regular troops into the region.

US and NATO officials say Russia is now poised to invade Ukraine after surrounding it with 150,000 soldiers and then staging a series of military drills, including with its ally Belarus.

But Putin has not said when he might dispatch his force, saying on Tuesday that it would “depend on the situation on the ground.”

UN chief says world facing ‘moment of peril’ over Ukraine-Russia crisis

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during an interview at the UN Headquarters, on January 20, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/Robert Bumsted)

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tells the General Assembly that the world is “facing a moment of peril” over Ukraine’s crisis with Russia.

“If the conflict in Ukraine expands, the world could see a scale and severity of need unseen for many years,” he warns the body.

EU calls emergency summit on Russia-Ukraine crisis

The EU will hold an emergency summit in Brussels late Thursday on Russia’s “aggressive actions” against Ukraine, European Council President Charles Michel announced in a letter to the bloc’s leaders.

“It is important that we continue to be united and determined and jointly define our collective approach and actions,” he says.

“Therefore, I would like to invite you for a special European Council (summit) on Thursday 24 February, which will take place in person in Brussels and start at 20:00 (local time).”

US said to announce sanctions against Russian firm tasked with building Nord Stream 2 pipeline

Pipes at the landfall facilities of the 'Nord Stream 2' gas pipeline are pictured in Lubmin, northern Germany, on February 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, File)

The Biden administration is slated to announce later today that it will allow sanctions to move forward against the Russian company in charge of building the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Germany, CNN reports.

Washington had blocked such sanctions last year, using a national security waiver, but appears to be changing its tune amid growing Russian escalations vis a vis Ukraine.

Opposition wraps up plenum session with 13 bills advancing amid coalition dysfunction

Justice Minister Gideon Sa'ar sits in the plenum hall of the Knesset, on February 16, 2022. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

The opposition wraps up one of its most successful legislative sessions since the start of the 24th Knesset last year.

In today’s session, it managed to advance 13 pieces of legislation through preliminary votes, thanks to dysfunction in the coalition, which was forced to pull its legislative efforts and send its lawmakers home for the day due to a lack of a majority in the plenum.

Blue and White is boycotting votes due to disagreements with other coalition parties regarding a bill it backs to regulate pensions for IDF career officers.

Netanyahu posts photo with Likud MK in attempt to clear the air

Opposition chairman Benjamin Netanyahu (right) poses with Likud MK David Amsalem, on February 23, 2022. (Benjamin Netanyahu/Twitter)

Likud chairman and opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu posts a photo with fellow faction member David Amsalem in an apparent attempt to clear the air between the two of them.

Amsalem attacked Netanyahu earlier today, saying that his party leader “damaged the dignity” of the right-wing bloc by distancing himself from Amsalem’s incendiary comments about Supreme Court President Justice Esther Hayut.

Last week, Amsalem raged against the court from the Knesset plenum, alleging that petitions he had filed were rejected by the bench due to discrimination against Jews of Middle Eastern or North African extraction.

Amsalem’s comments prompted an open letter from Hayut, followed a few hours later by a statement from Netanyahu saying that he had spoken to the Supreme Court chief justice, and that the comments by his longtime confidant were unacceptable.

“I do not in any way accept that he called Hayut, it is not right. He has damaged the dignity of the national camp,” Amsalem told the Kan public broadcaster on Wednesday, using a phrase used to describe the right-wing bloc.

A few hours later, Netanyahu posts a conciliatory tweet with a photo of himself and Amsalem, with the Song of Songs quote “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine,” a play on the Hebrew spelling of Amsalem’s nickname.

אני לדודי ודודי לי ❤️???????? pic.twitter.com/9tFLAoGCAh

— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) February 23, 2022

Netanyahu blasts ‘scandalous’ appointment of Arab MK as consul general to Shanghai

New Knesset member Rinawie Zoabi seen at the Knesset ahead of the opening Knesset session of the new government, on April 5, 2021. (Olivier Fitousi/Flash90)

Opposition chairman Benjamin Netanyahu tears into Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid over the “scandalous” appointment of Meretz MK Ghaida Rinawie Zoabi as Israel’s next consul general in Shanghai, China.

“It is not acceptable that someone who represents the State of Israel to one of the most important world powers will be someone who does not recognize Israel as a Jewish state and someone who opposes our national anthem. I demand the government cancel this shameful appointment today,” Netanyahu says in a statement.

The response comes hours after Zoabi was interviewed on the Kan public broadcaster and was asked if she recognizes Israel as a Jewish state.

After initially avoiding answering and insisting that she recognizes Israel as a democracy, Zoabi twice repeated that when she entered Knesset and swore allegiance to the state, she did so by recognizing Israel as a Jewish and democratic state.

Kan then pressed the Arab lawmaker over whether she will sing the national anthem while serving in her next post. Zoabi admitted that the song’s first sentence about “the soul of a Jew still yearn[ing]” is “not something I identify with,” later adding that it “excludes me” and that she doesn’t know the anthem by heart. At no point, though, did she say that she “opposes” the anthem, as Netanyahu charges.

Asked whether her appointment had anything to do with her decision to vote against the coalition last month, Zoabi insisted that it did not. She pointed to her studies at Oxford University and the statement the new government was trying to make to the country’s Arab population that it was worthy of having its members represent Israel abroad.

“I do believe that Israel is a democracy, and I have fought so that Israel will… treat its Arab citizens equally,” She told Kan.

But Yesh Atid MK Boaz Toporovsky appeared to contradict Zoabi’s remarks, telling Channel 13 that Zoabi’s vote against legislation seeking to regulate the conscription of ultra-Orthodox youth did play a role in the decision to send her abroad. Toporovsky clarifies that it was not the main factor and that Zoabi is very qualified for the role.

Zoabi is slated to enter the role in roughly six months.

Tickets go on sale for May 9 Maroon 5 concert in Tel Aviv

Adam Levine of Maroon 5 performs during the Super Bowl LIII halftime show at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, on February 3, 2019. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Tickets went on sale this morning for Maroon 5’s concert at Tel Aviv’s Park Hayarkon on May 9.

It will be the first time the pop band will play in Israel, and it will be part of its tour throughout the Middle East this spring.

Iran says nuclear talks at ‘critical’ stage, ‘optimistic’ about chances for deal

Chief Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani arrives at the Coburg Palace, venue of the talks aimed at reviving the Iran nuclear deal, in Vienna, on February 8, 2022. (Alex Halada/AFP)

Negotiations to revive the Iran nuclear deal have entered a “critical” stage during which some key issues still need to be resolved, Tehran’s top diplomat says.

“We hope that some sensitive and important issues remaining in the negotiations will be resolved in the coming days with realism from the Western side,” Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian says at a joint press conference with his Oman counterpart Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi.

Amir-Abdollahian says he is “optimistic” about a deal, while insisting Iran would not give up its “red lines” in the negotiations. He did not elaborate.

The Vienna talks, which involve Iran, as well as Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia directly, and the United States indirectly, resumed in November.

In recent days, progress in the negotiations has been reported by France, Germany, the US, and even Iran.

Signs of an agreement coming together emerged over the past week, with France warning that Iran has just days left to accept a deal.

France’s Macron to kick off re-election bid in March

France's President Emmanuel Macron listens to his Lithuanian counterpart as they make a statement prior to their working lunch at the Elysee palace in Paris, on November 30, 2021 (Thomas Coex/AFP)

French President Emmanuel Macron will launch his re-election bid on March 5 at an inaugural campaign rally in Marseille, sources in his party say.

Macron has so far kept away from formal campaigning ahead of the April 10 first round, working around the clock in diplomatic efforts to avert a war caused by a Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The declaration of his candidacy is now expected next week, just ahead of a March 4 deadline. Three sources in his centrist Republic on the Move (LREM) party told AFP on Wednesday his first rally would then be on March 5 in Marseille.

Polls have steadily indicated that Macron is likely to come out on top in the first round of voting on April 10.

Yet the polls also suggest that securing a second five-year term in the run-off vote two weeks later is far from a foregone conclusion, as the far-right has continued to make inroads in recent years.

The extreme-right vote is currently divided between two candidates, Marine Le Pen and Eric Zemmour, trailed by the conservative candidate Valerie Pecresse.

Analysts say low turnout — nearly one in four voters did not cast ballots in the 2017 contest — could add another layer of uncertainty to the first-round outcome.

Russia says US sanctions will meet ‘strong response’

This combination of file photos shows Joe Biden (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin. (Jim Watson and Grigory Dukor/Various Sources/AFP)

Russia says that new US sanctions will meet a “strong response” after US President Joe Biden announced new penalties against Moscow for “beginning” an invasion of Ukraine.

“There should be no doubt — sanctions will meet a strong response, not necessarily symmetrical, but well-calibrated and sensitive for the American side,” the Russian foreign ministry says in a statement.

Russia begins evacuating diplomatic staff from Ukraine

A woman shows a poster in support of Ukraine at a demonstration along the street near the Russian embassy to protest against the escalation of the tension between Russia and Ukraine in Berlin, Germany, on Tuesday, February 22, 2022. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Russia had begun evacuating diplomatic staff from Ukraine, its embassy in Kyiv tells AFP, a day after lawmakers in Moscow granted Russian President Vladimir Putin permission to use force abroad.

Asked if the evacuation had begun, the embassy’s spokesman Denis Golenko tells AFP by phone: “Yes.”

Moscow’s foreign ministry announced Tuesday it would evacuate diplomats from the country soon, saying this was in order to “protect their lives.”

The Russian flag was lowered over the embassy’s building, according to eyewitnesses.

An AFP reporter saw several families leaving the embassy with suitcases.

Golenko says the evacuation was “linked to the fact that Western embassies announced evacuations of some of their staff, and that our ministry also took this decision.”

Some Western embassies, including the United States and Britain, moved their staff to the city of Lviv near the Polish border.

They did so fearing a Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying the capital could come under attack.

Zelensky: ‘Future of European security’ being decided in Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks at the Munich Security Conference (MSC) in Munich, southern Germany, on February 19, 2022. (Thomas Kienzle/AFP)

Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky warns that the “future of European security” is being decided in his country’s standoff with Russia.

“We are united in believing that the future of European security is being decided right now, here in our home, in Ukraine,” Zelensky says during a joint media appearance with the visiting leaders of Poland and Lithuania.

Court throws out former cleaner’s claim of abuse by Sara Netanyahu

Sara Netanyahu at the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery, in Jerusalem, on June 16, 2021. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

A labor court has rejected the claim of abuse by a woman who worked as a cleaner for Sara Netanyahu at the Prime Minister’s Residence.

The Jerusalem District Labor Court rules that Shira Raban’s version of events was unreliable, and she had failed to prove that there was abusive behavior on Netanyahu’s part when she worked as a cleaner for the wife of the then-prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The court also says that Raban’s claim that the alleged abuse went on for a prolonged period could not be proven due to the fact that Raban only worked at the residence for a short period of time, and the defense provided evidence that she and the then-premier’s wife were never alone on the same floor.

Despite the dismissal of the lawsuit, the court decides that in view of the plaintiff’s financial situation, Raban would not be compelled to pay the legal expenses.

In their verdict, the judges write that while the legal defense of working conditions should be maintained, it was not without limit.

“Although the growth of this cause should be welcomed, given the significance it has for preserving the rights of workers and formulating a proper standard for a respectful work environment and proper working conditions, it is worth remembering that this cause is not unlimited,” the verdict reads.

Tel Aviv Mayor Huldai, 77, to run for sixth 5-year term after 25 years in office

Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai attends the annual international Municipal Innovation Conference in Tel Aviv, on February 19, 2020. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai announces that he will be running for his sixth consecutive term as mayor of Tel Aviv in the next round of municipal elections scheduled for next year.

Huldai, 77, has served as Tel Aviv mayor for five consecutive terms, spanning over 25 years since 1998, but doesn’t seem to be ready for retirement just yet.

With over a year and a half left before Israeli voters get to cast their ballots in the next round of municipal elections, the seasoned mayor has said he intends to run for a sixth term, but noted that the final decision will probably be made next year.

“I’m still strong,” he tells Army Radio, noting burning issues on the Israeli agenda that he would still like to address.

“In the reality of a high cost of living and terrible traffic jams – I think I have something to contribute,” he says.

In 1st formal statement, Israel backs Ukraine’s sovereignty, doesn’t mention Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett speak during their meeting in Sochi, Russia, on October 22, 2021. (Evgeny Biyatov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP/ File)

Israel has broken its diplomatic silence held since Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized the separatist republics in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region, which sparked an international outcry.

Being one of only a few countries to maintain close relations with both Russia and Ukraine, Israel has sought to avoid aligning itself too closely with either side, despite Putin’s threats to invade a sovereign country. The stance has angered Ukraine, which says it expected more solidarity from Israel during its time of need.

But Putin’s Monday announcement on Ukraine ultimately left Israel with no choice.

“Israel shares the concern of the international community regarding the steps taken in eastern Ukraine and the serious escalation in the situation,” the Foreign Ministry says in a statement, which carefully avoids mentioning either “Putin” or even “Russia.”

“Israel supports the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine,” it continues. “Israel is concerned about the welfare of thousands of Israeli citizens living in Ukraine and the welfare of the large Jewish community in the country.”

“Israel hopes for a diplomatic solution that will lead to calm and is willing to help if asked,” the Foreign Ministry adds.

“Israel is ready and willing to immediately transfer humanitarian assistance to Ukraine according to its needs and is in contact with the Ukrainian authorities,” the statement concludes.

Seen as a potential mediator, Omani official visits Tehran amid nuclear talks

Oman’s foreign minister arrives in Tehran for talks with his Iranian counterpart, state media reported, as nuclear talks between Iran and world powers continue in Vienna.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian welcomes Sayyid Badr Albusaidi upon his arrival, with the visit scheduled to focus on bilateral and international affairs, the IRNA news agency says.

Oman has often acted as a go-between to help facilitate back-door diplomacy between the US and Iran, sometimes involving the release of prisoners.

Negotiations in Vienna aim to restore a 2015 nuclear deal that saw Tehran drastically limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.

The diplomatic visit raised speculation that Oman may get involved as an intermediary in the ongoing nuclear talks, or deliver a US message to Iran.

The US has participated indirectly in the ongoing talks because it withdrew from the accord in 2018 under then-US president Donald Trump, who imposed crushing sanctions on Iran.

US President Joe Biden has signaled that he wants to rejoin the deal.

Opposition bills advance, as Gantz boycotts plenum over stalled IDF pension law

Defense Minister Benny Gantz speaks at the Makor Rishon newspaper conference in Jerusalem, on February 21, 2022. (Shaul Ofer/Makor Rishon)

The opposition has managed to advance five of its bills and counting at the Knesset plenum, after the coalition pulled all of its legislation and told its members they need not show up for votes amid the latest standoff that threatens to bring the government to its knees.

The defeats for the coalition are largely symbolic, as the opposition bills being advanced are only passing preliminary votes and are highly unlikely to be green-lit through the subsequent readings in order to be signed into law.

But the developments continue a trend seen in recent weeks in which the narrow, 61-MK coalition has been forced to pull its legislation due to an inability to garner a majority in the Knesset.

In previous weeks, the party causing the mayhem was Ra’am, due to its frustration with the government advancing the citizenship law barring Palestinians who marry Israeli Arabs from obtaining citizenship, as well as the tabling of legislation to assist Israel’s Bedouin population.

Now, it is Blue and White’s turn to boycott coalition votes over its refusal to advance legislation to legalize a long-standing practice of army pension increases for career officers.

The legislation to boost the pensions for IDF officers is seen as relatively unpopular, as it will benefit some officers who are already well paid as the cost of living in Israel continues to grow. But Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz is a former IDF chief of staff and is determined to provide financial relief to a key constituency of his party.

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid held a meeting with Gantz in an effort to reach a compromise, but it failed to bear fruit, leading Blue and White to issue a statement announcing its boycott.

The boycott may impact Gantz directly as the opposition has placed a bill on the docket calling for an official state commission of inquiry into the failed Fifth Dimension security firm that he used to run, which has faced accusations of misleadings.