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US, Britain issue travel warnings for Israel; several countries tell citizens to leave Iran

Alerts cite ‘regional tensions’ as Washington weighs strike on regime; UK shuts Tehran embassy; Lufthansa group says it will limit flights to...

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The Times of Israel

Toi Staff

Kibbutz Be’eri chooses single burned-out house to bear testimony to October 7

Home on community’s periphery belongs to the Dvori family, who were overseas when Hamas went on killing spree; other wrecked structures scheduled...

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The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Scale of protests and violence in Iran echoes chaos around 1979 Islamic Revolution

State television has itself recalled violence that led to ouster of shah, indicating regime’s concern over current uprising and its efforts to...

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The Times of Israel

Jon Gambrell

US and UK advise against travel to Israel; Iran closes airspace to commercial flights

Rights group says execution of Iranian protester postponed but warns his life still at risk, as Islamic Republic’s FM says there won’t be ‘hanging...

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The Times of Israel

Toi Staff

Reports suggest US may strike Iran in coming days, as Trump says killing is ‘stopping’

Islamic Republic threatens ‘decisive’ action against US and Israel if targeted; Hezbollah warned against joining fray; IDF ups defensive posture,...

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The Times of Israel

Agencies

Donald Trump rejected antisemitism. That doesn’t necessarily mean MAGA will

Regarding antisemites, the US president said, ‘I think we don’t need them. I think we don’t like them.’ But just because he believes something...

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The Times of Israel

Ben Sales

Oklahoma board to vote on religious Jewish charter school, teeing up potential battle

The bid revives an unresolved Supreme Court dispute over church-state separation in public education, as some in the relatively small community...

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The Times of Israel

Asaf Elia-Shalev

NFL linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair wears ‘stop the genocide’ eye black in postgame interview

The longtime pro-Palestinian advocate broadcasts the message while speaking to ESPN following a playoff win against the Houston Texans, though the...

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The Times of Israel

Joseph Strauss

Anti-Zionist graffiti defaces rubble of Pasadena synagogue destroyed in wildfire

The rabbi of the century-old Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center, along with the Anti-Defamation League and local sheriff’s department, decry the...

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The Times of Israel

Jackie Hajdenberg

US bullish as bodies tasked with replacing Hamas take shape, despite disarmament hurdle

Trump aides insist Hamas is indicating it’s prepared to give up weapons and say they’re committed to bringing back last hostage’s body, but will...

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The Times of Israel

Jacob Magid

Trump says Iran’s Reza Pahlavi ‘seems very nice’ but unsure if he can garner support

‘I don’t know whether or not his country would accept his leadership,’ US president says of the exiled crown prince, who has emerged as a key...

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The Times of Israel

Reuters

Mamdani remarks on synagogues highlight fault line between antisemitism and anti-Zionism

New York mayor is quick to call out discrimination against Jews, but only when Israel is not involved, exemplifying a dilemma that US Jews face in...

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The Times of Israel

Luke Tress

Lipstadt partially recants comment linking US synagogue fire to anti-Israel movement

Ex-antisemitism envoy initially called Jackson fire a step in ‘globalization of the intifada,’ but arsonist was later shown to hold antisemitic...

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The Times of Israel

Andrew Lapin

Decades after KKK bombing, congregant sees Mississippi synagogue burn again in arson attack

Beverly Geiger Bonnheim, who was 17 at time of 1967 attack, laments how generation of Jews must deal with antisemitic violence: ‘Does history...

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The Times of Israel

Sophie Bates

4.2-magnitude earthquake recorded in southern Israel; no reports of injuries

Epicenter of quake identified near Dimona, setting off warning sirens and sparking fears of missile attack among some residents amid heightened...

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The Times of Israel

Toi Staff

Iran’s nationwide protests appear smothered, with fate of potential US action unclear

Oil prices fall as chance of conflict seems to recede; Tehran says protester’s execution called off; Iran’s airspace reopens after closing for...

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The Times of Israel

Agencies

Trump reiterates desire for Greenland following high-stakes diplomatic meeting

US Secretary of State Rubio and VP Vance meet with Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers, but Washington’s position remains unchanged; Greenland...

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The Times of Israel

Nandita Bose

Qatari company to acquire major stakes in Syrian banks

Estithmar Holding to take 60% controlling share of Shahba Bank and 30% stake in Syrian International Islamic Bank; acquisitions still subject to...

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The Times of Israel

Timour Azhari

Daily Briefing Jan. 15: Day 832 – Trump wills Gaza plan forward, despite Hamas noncompliance

Zman Yisrael founding editor Biranit Goren discusses the US vis-a-vis Iran and Gaza; reporter Sue Surkes brings a Kibbutz Be’eri update, and looks...

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The Times of Israel

Jessica Steinberg

Iran protests show bitter schism among exiled opposition factions

The two main factions abroad are led by Reza Pahlavi, son of the former shah, and the Mujahedin-e Khalq, a leftist-Islamist group. It’s unclear...

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The Times of Israel

John Irish

Podcaster Mitch Ginsburg: Escape from Tehran, an untold 1979 Israeli caper

On February 20, 1979, the last 33 Israeli officials left in Iran miraculously come back to the Jewish state. Their families had been told they were...

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The Times of Israel

Amanda Borschel-Dan

UTJ’s Eichler to be appointed deputy minister, preventing him voting against draft bill

Move reshuffles ultra-Orthodox Knesset seats to secure support for draft bill, budget and protect Netanyahu’s coalition; opposition calls it a bribe

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The Times of Israel

Ariela Karmel

Israel shutters UNRWA health clinic in Jerusalem’s Old City for 30 days

Closure comes after laws banned UN agency from Israeli territory, cut off access to electricity and water; spigots, power to soon shut off in other...

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The Times of Israel

Toi Staff

Israel, Arab nations said to urge US to wait to strike Iran until regime further weakened

Israeli and Arab officials have suggested the Trump administration hold off on striking Iran for now, believing that the Islamic Republic may not...

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The Times of Israel

Toi Staff

Man wanted for Melbourne synagogue firebombing arrested in Iraq — Australian police

Iraqi officials have arrested a man wanted by Australian Federal Police as a person of interest in the investigation into a spate of firebombings,...

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The Times of Israel

Reuters

Fierce government attacks on Supreme Court part of campaign of delegitimization

Recent weeks and months have seen senior cabinet ministers launch a series of vitriolic attacks on the Supreme Court and its judges over a string...

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The Times of Israel

Jeremy Sharon

New study shows that female sex hormones can impact the body’s inner clocks

Israeli scientists have developed an innovative method to track the human body’s circadian rhythms, finding in a new peer-reviewed study that...

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The Times of Israel

Diana Bletter

Jersey City’s outgoing Jewish mayor signs antisemitism laws as ‘guardrail’ for successor

JTA — As he leaves office after nearly 13 years, Jersey City’s Jewish mayor Steven Fulop is leaving his successor “guardrails” he hopes will help...

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The Times of Israel

Grace Gilson

Daily Briefing Jan. 14: Day 831 – Trump pledged to help Iranians. How?

Welcome to The Times of Israel’s Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what’s happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world....

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The Times of Israel

Amanda Borschel-Dan

Iran has aired some 100 forced confessions by anti-regime protesters, activists say

AP — They are shown handcuffed, their faces blurred. The confession videos, broadcast on Iranian state media, feature dramatic background music...

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The Times of Israel

Melanie Lidman

Israel’s recognition of Somaliland brings danger and opportunity to a rough region

AP — Israel’s recognition of Somaliland has thrust the breakaway territory into the international spotlight, causing an uproar in the Horn of...

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The Times of Israel

Sam Metz

Investor gifts $100 million LA office tower to Chabad for massive Jewish center

JTA — A Los Angeles real estate investor known for selling homes to celebrities has donated a $100 million office tower to Chabad, the global...

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The Times of Israel

Asaf Elia-Shalev

Tehran doctors say security forces intentionally firing at protesters’ eyes, heads

Iranian security forces are deliberately firing at protesters’ heads to cause them debilitating injuries, local doctors have claimed, citing wounds...

yesterday 50

The Times of Israel

Toi Staff

Hezbollah warns Beirut that expanded disarmament push could cause ‘chaos, civil war’

A senior Hezbollah official has warned Lebanon’s government that pressing on with efforts to disarm the group throughout the country would trigger...

yesterday 50

The Times of Israel

Reuters

Mississippi synagogue arson suspect hid extremism behind ‘scripture-backed fitness’ persona

The US suspect accused of torching Mississippi’s largest synagogue posted an antisemitic cartoon on Instagram shortly before his attack, and built...

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The Times of Israel

Zev Stub

French publisher withdraws textbooks that called Oct. 7 victims ‘Jewish settlers’

Macron criticizes the books for ‘falsification of the facts’ as publishers launch internal investigation into the incident

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The Times of Israel

Jacob Magid

NY governor pushes for buffer zone to protect synagogues from protests

NEW YORK — New York State Governor Kathy Hochul on Tuesday vowed new protections for synagogues this year, after two caustic protests outside New...

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The Times of Israel

Luke Tress

Why the massive Iran protests haven’t toppled its clerical establishment

Reuters —Despite Iran’s nationwide protests and years of external pressure, there are as yet no clear signs of fracture in the Islamic Republic’s...

yesterday 60

The Times of Israel

Samia Nakhoul

Some US personnel told to leave Qatar base as Iran touts ‘peak readiness’ for conflict

Amid concerns of a new round of fighting with Iran, some personnel were advised to leave the US military’s Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar on Wednesday...

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The Times of Israel

Agencies

Beijing tells local firms to stop using US, Israeli cybersecurity software

Chinese authorities have told domestic companies to stop using cybersecurity software made by roughly a dozen firms from the US and Israel due to...

yesterday 30

The Times of Israel

Reuters

UK’s anti-terror watchdog says demonizing Israelis is a ‘vehicle for hatred of Jews’

The UK government’s terrorism watchdog has criticized British police for not properly enforcing the law against racial hatred when it comes to...

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The Times of Israel

Stuart Winer

Fall of the ayatollahs would be bittersweet poetic justice for October 7, but it’s not guaranteed

This Editor’s Note was sent out earlier Wednesday in ToI’s weekly update email to members of the Times of Israel Community. To receive these...

yesterday 50

The Times of Israel

David Horovitz

Archaeologist Gabriel Barkay, pioneer of Temple Mount research, dies at 81

Iconic Israeli archaeologist Gabriel “Gabi” Barkay died on Sunday at age 81 after a long illness. He was well known for his pioneering work on soil...

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The Times of Israel

Rossella Tercatin

Former IDF chief Herzi Halevi gives testimony in Bild leak affair probe

Former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Herzi Halevi was summoned by police Wednesday to give testimony in the Bild leak affair, in which aides...

yesterday 20

The Times of Israel

Toi Staff

Playtika cuts 15% of its workforce amid shift to leaner teams that rely on AI

Israeli-founded online game developer Playtika Holding Co. is laying off 15 percent of its workforce, or about 500 employees, in a move to cut...

yesterday 20

The Times of Israel

Sharon Wrobel

Anger in UK as police chief blames AI for false evidence used to ban Israeli soccer fans

LONDON, United Kingdom — An under-fire UK police chief on Wednesday blamed the use of AI for erroneous evidence given to MPs over the decision to...

yesterday 20

The Times of Israel

Stav Levaton

German police arrest man suspected of trying to torch synagogue

German police arrested a 32-year-old man suspected of trying to burn down a synagogue in what is believed to be an antisemitic attack, local media...

yesterday 30

The Times of Israel

Zev Stub

IDF says 6 gunmen killed Tuesday in Rafah firefight after ‘serious violation’ of truce

The Israel Defense Forces said on Wednesday that all six of the gunmen identified during a clash in western Rafah on Tuesday were killed during the...

yesterday 20

The Times of Israel

Stav Levaton

Opposition leaders claim new Gantz campaign against Arab parties is hypocritical, aids PM

Opposition parties have accused Benny Gantz’s centrist Blue and White party of anti-Arab racism, hypocrisy and desperate maneuvering following a...

yesterday 30

The Times of Israel

Ariela Karmel

As Greenland stands up to Trump, president says anything short of US control ‘unacceptable’

NUUK, Greenland (AP) — US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that NATO should help the US acquire Greenland and anything less than having the...

yesterday 20

The Times of Israel

Emma Burrows