Trump reportedly pardons former strategist Steve Bannon

US President Donald Trump has pardoned his former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, as part of a flurry of clemency action in the final hours of his...

On his last day, Iran places symbolic sanctions on Trump for alleged ‘terrorism’

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran on Tuesday imposed sanctions on US President Donald Trump and a number of members of his administration over their alleged role...

Meet Marcella Campbell, 1st Jew of color to head diversity group Be’chol Lashon

JTA — As the videos of George Floyd’s killing galvanized a historic wave of racial justice protests this past summer, the staff of one of the...

Opinion – The Challenges Facing Joe Biden in the Middle East

Joe Biden’s presidency will likely have important consequences for U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. Biden comes into the job with a lot on...

Hit me with your best shot: Turkey’s vaccination debate

While those in power in Turkey block the sale of affordable bread to the public, top executives from the ruling party came together to get...

PODCAST: The Daily Briefing – ToI blogosphere weighs in on end of Trump era

Welcome to The Times of Israel’s Daily Briefing: Your 15-minute audio update on what’s happening in Israel, the Middle East, and the Jewish...

Right-wing Jewish Home party elects first female leader

The Jewish Home party on Tuesday night for the first time selected a woman as its leader, choosing Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Hagit Moshe to head the...

Two HMOs say they’ll vaccinate those 35 and up, without Health Ministry okay

Two of Israel’s four health maintenance organizations said Wednesday they will begin vaccinating anyone over age 35 and up, despite the current...

Biden arrives in Washington for inauguration with big plans, big problems

WASHINGTON (AP) — US President-elect Joe Biden made a sober entrance to the nation’s capital Tuesday, ready to assume power as America reels from...

The continuous murder of Hrant Dink

The case of the 2007 murder of Hrant Dink remains unresolved despite the promises made by the then prime minister, Erdoğan and his AKP. Calling...

Netanyahu’s Likud widens lead over Saar’s New Hope to 15 seats — poll

A new poll released on Tuesday suggested Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud party is regaining supporters, while ex-Likud minister Gideon Sa’ar’s...

Pfizer vaccine appears effective against British virus variant — study

The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine appears to be effective against the new, more infectious coronavirus variant that was first detected in Britain and has...

17 arrested as police clash with ultra-Orthodox over virus lockdown violations

At least 17 people were said arrested Wednesday as police worked to enforce a national lockdown in a Jerusalem neighborhood where a school was...

US Institutions After Trump

BOSTON – The storming of the US Capitol by Donald Trump’s supporters on January 6 may be remembered as a turning point in American history. The...

Can America Be Trusted Again?

STOCKHOLM – A sigh of relief swept across Europe when it became clear that Joe Biden would replace Donald Trump in the White House. New leadership...

How to decarbonize Japan

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has pledged that his country will become carbon neutral by 2050. “Responding to climate change is no longer...

As Joe Biden takes over, the Democrats are still running scared as resurgent Russophobia reaches peak insanity

Once again, and despite major victories at the polls, the Democrats just can’t stop hyperventilating over Russia. Indeed, the Russian people must...

Picking up the pieces: The path to Gulf reconciliation

A bitter political rift in the Gulf region, which led to Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt imposing an air, land, and sea...

Former New York congressman Max Rose listed as new Pentagon COVID adviser

JTA — Max Rose, the outspoken former congressmen from Staten Island, appears headed to the Pentagon to be a top adviser on the coronavirus...

Biden to be sworn in as 46th US president, ending Trump era

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Thirty-four years after first seeking the job, Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th US president Wednesday, drawing a curtain...

Thousands attend Hasidic wedding in Brooklyn kept secret due to COVID rules

JTA — JDN, an ultra-Orthodox Israeli news site, published an article before a large wedding held in New York by the Bobov Hasidic sect about the...

IHRA definition of anti-Semitism divides US Jews ahead of Biden presidency

JTA — When is it anti-Semitic to criticize Israel? Anti-Semitism signifies hatred of Jews and the ways that hatred is perpetuated through age-old...

Trump considers starting new political party as his term ends, report says

US President Donald Trump is considering the possibility of launching a new political party as his White House tenure draws to a close, according to...

Vowing return ‘in some form,’ Trump departs White House for last time

US President Donald Trump left the White House for the final time as president on Wednesday, heading by helicopter to a nearby military base and...

‘Our Moses’: Delaware rabbi blesses Biden at ceremony on eve of inauguration

JTA — A Delaware rabbi blessed US President-elect Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, before they left the state for the presidential inauguration, by...

After record infections, record vaccines: Israel gives 200,000 shots in past day

Health Minister Yuli Edelstein on Wednesday presented figures showing that over 210,000 vaccination shots were administered the day before, a new...

Snow, rain hit Israel in winter spell, raising Sea of Galilee level

Stormy weather hit Israel Wednesday for the first time in weeks, with the nationwide wintry spell lifting the level of the Sea of Galilee, filling...

The Worst Man in America Is No Longer President

The ‘pro-life’ president ended his term with unprecedented executions, a health crisis rivaling a world war and a climate catastrophe. Thank God...

‘But He’s Not Hitler’: Unraveling the Objections to Calling Trump a Fascist

Since the Capitol insurrection, there’s been a surge of historians rightly identifying fascist elements in Trumpism. So what’s behind the...

Biden or Bush? Democrats and neocons clamor to bring the ‘war on terror’ home, targeting Trump supporters as ‘domestic terrorists’

“The pro-Trump fanatics stormed and trashed the citadel of American democracy, nearly executing what al-Qaeda had failed to do: destroy the US...

Liberation

NEW YORK – In celebrating the liberation from Donald Trump’s misrule, we must not forget that Trump’s presidency embodied the raw politics of US...

Health Ministry advises pregnant women get vaccine after 10 serious infections

The Health Ministry on Tuesday advised pregnant women to get the coronavirus vaccine after a number of women expecting a baby fell seriously ill...

A transwoman who raped a female in an horrific attack has been jailed for 15 years – but could still end up in a women’s prison

Last Friday, Michelle Winter was convicted of rape at Cambridge Crown Court in the UK. The victim told police that she still had nightmares about...

Biden, Harris and their families are making Jewish history on Inauguration Day

JTA — When Joe Biden and Kamala Harris take office as US president and vice president, they will be making history in all sorts of ways —...

Departing Trump gets his parade, but few show up for sendoff

AFP — Donald Trump wanted a hero’s sendoff Wednesday and the ceremony arranged for him at an Air Force Base outside Washington looked just like...

COVID-ravaged India will limit Biden's efforts to counter China

Increase in poverty just one example of the damage wrought by pandemic

US-based political scientist arrested, accused of secretly working for Iran

BOSTON (AP) — A Massachusetts-based political scientist and author is accused of secretly working for the government of Iran while lobbying US...

Why doesn’t the NYTimes rely on its own archives?

The New York Times’ return last month of the prestigious Peabody Award for the discredited 2018 “Caliphate” podcast series marked an...

Repudiated presidents and Israel

The end of the Trump administration has prompted much stock-taking. Many have argued that Donald Trump was good for Israel. Moving the US embassy...

Introducing 40-year mortgages

Elaborate safeguards needed to help young adults own homes easily The financial authorities have unveiled a plan to introduce mortgages with a...

Bid to restart talks

Former adviser tapped as foreign minister President Moon Jae-in tapped former national security adviser Chung Eui-yong as his new foreign minister...

Haaretz Cartoon

Trump gave America a four-year civics lesson - the hard way

By Scott Martelle Sitting out front of our house last week watching the sun set, I struck up a conversation with a few neighbors going through...

Was Brexit inevitable?

By Robert Skidelsky LONDON ― On one level, the United Kingdom's departure from the European Union was an unintended consequence of a too-clever...

North Korea's strange military moves

By Boo Hyeong-wook During the eighth congress of the ruling Workers' Party, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un declared important development...

Housing crisis pitting us against each other

By Joseph Shin Growing up on housing subsidies for 20 years, I went through childhood conditioning myself to the idea that homeownership was simply...

Dialogue between factions and the importance of successful Palestinian elections

In light of the announcement of the dates for the Palestinian presidential, legislative and PNC elections, it is imperative to define the...

China's economy is not out of the woods yet

Positive growth belies unresolved structural challenges