Jerusalem, Israel | Xinhua | Benjamin Netanyahu, tasked by Israeli President Isaac Herzog to form a new government on Sunday, is now squarely poised to take office for a record-breaking sixth time as prime minister, and bring the country back to the rule of rightists. “It will be a stable, successful, …
Read More »Israeli ex-PM Netanyahu takes lead in election — exit polls
Jerusalem, Israel | Xinhua | Exit polls from Israel’s parliamentary elections suggested Tuesday that former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc has a good chance of making a comeback after the country’s fifth elections since 2019. Exit polls of three main Israeli TV channels indicated that the long-time leader and his alliance …
Read More »Middle East is not someone’s backyard: China spokesperson
Beijing, China | Xinhua | The people of the Middle East are the masters of the region, and the Middle East is not someone’s backyard, let alone a so-called “vacuum,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Friday. Wang made the remarks at a routine press briefing when asked to comment …
Read More »Palestinian factions reject Biden’s Middle East visit, call for protests
Gaza, Palestine | Xinhua | As U.S. President Joe Biden arrived in Israel on Wednesday for his first Middle East trip as president, some Palestinian political factions have voiced their rejection of the visit, and called for protests in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. During a seminar held in Gaza …
Read More »Iran’s Revolution Guards says presence of Israel in Gulf “unacceptable”
Tehran, Iran | Xinhua | The commander-in-chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has called on some Gulf states to halt the continuation of normalization relations with Israel, saying that it would endanger the security of the region, Press TV reported on Thursday. The establishment of political and security relations …
Read More »Blinken: Israel, US to cooperate to prevent nuclear-armed Iran
Jerusalem, Israel | Xinhua | Israel and the United States will “work together” to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons despite their disagreements over the emerging nuclear deal, Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said Sunday after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. “We have disagreements between us about …
Read More »Israel approves former top general as cyber security chief
Jerusalem, Israel | Xinhua| Israeli cabinet approved on Sunday the appointment of the former general Gaby Portnoy as the country’s head of cyber at the National Cyber Directorate. A statement issued by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s office said the ministers voted in favor of the appointment. Portnoy, a 52-year-old former …
Read More »Israel’s GDP grows 8.1 pct in 2021, highest since 2000 – report
Jerusalem, Israel | Xinhua | Israel’s gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 8.1 percent in 2021, the highest annual growth in 21 years, according to a report released by the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday. The country’s GDP increased by 3.6 percent in 2019, and decreased by 2.2 …
Read More »Israel first country to allow drone flight in civilian airspace
Jerusalem, Israel | Xinhua | Israel’s Ministry of Transport and Road Safety announced on Wednesday the country’s first certification for unmanned aircraft vehicles (UAVs) to operate in civilian airspace. The certification was issued by the Israeli Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to the Hermes Starliner unmanned system, which was developed and …
Read More »Israeli army to build laser-based shield against missiles
Jerusalem, Israel | Xinhua | Israel will start using a laser-based system to intercept missiles within a year, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced on Tuesday. “Within about a year, the IDF (Israel Defense Force) will bring into action a laser-based interception system, first experimentally, and later operationally,” Bennett told …
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