Israel

In what could be a dress rehearsal for the evacuation and demolition of Ulpana Hill, Israeli security forces accompanied a bulldozer which overnight demolished a stone structure in the Ramat Migron outpost and two temporary structures in the Oz Zion outpost in Judea and Samaria. Clashes erupted during the demolition, between right-wing activists, most of them teenage girls, and security forces.

Israeli security authorities including the IDF Military Intelligence Formation, closely monitored the Google Street View Project, first launched in Israel just last month, giving a close look of streets in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa. The inspection prevented publication of pictures revealing classified information and locations of security facilities operating in Israel.

With tears flowing, a phalanx of top American TV stars recounted various personal and religious revelations they gained during last week’s weeklong visit to Israel. They expressed admiration for the Jewish people’s vitality and for their willingness to create a better society in the midst of political and religious upheaval in the region.

In poll conducted by the Israel Democracy Institute in conjunction with Tel Aviv University, 90% of Israeli Arab respondents said that it was unsuitable for 'Hatikvah' "to serve as the national anthem of the State of Israel," compared to 80% of Israeli Jews said that it was suitable.

The family of Daniel Wultz, 16, a Florida resident who was killed in a Palestinian suicide bomb attack in Tel Aviv won a $323 million judgment in a U.S. court against Iran and Syria. Attorney Darshan-Leitner said the Syrian government's aircraft, ships and corporations can be impounded to force Syria to comply with the court's ruling.

The day after police arrested four Eritrean and Sudanese men for robbing and raping a 19 year-old woman in south Tel Aviv’s Neve Sha’anan neighborhood, Israeli Interior Minister Eli Yishai said most African illegal immigrants should be rounded up and either deported or arrested.

Omar Epps, on his second visit to Israel with America's Voices in Israel, explained that it was the country's "rich history, culture, people and energies" that drew him back. "For me personally, the spiritual significance of this place hits me to the core. The fact that the world's three ancient religions meet in one place makes the holiness of this land so unique," said Epps. "I'm bringing my kids here next time to experience this land together with my wife."

On the issue of ultra-Orthodox military service, 41% of those surveyed said they would be moderately or very interested in joining the Haredi IDF program, while 59% said they had either little or no interest. Still, the percentage of interest is substantially higher than the current annual rate of Haredi enlistment in the IDF.

On Monday night, hundreds of Palestinian prisoners agreed to end their hunger strike after winning concessions from Israel to improve their conditions, both sides announced. Earlier in the week, concern had been rising about the effect the death of one of the strikers might have on Tuesday's 'Nakba Day' protests.

The intensifying focus on legislating an alternative to the Tal Law has the ultra-Orthodox parties in the Likud-led coalition defensive yet intractable. Shas and UTJ - representing 15 seats in the government - have declared that they will not participate in the coalition committee on finding an alternative.

A new Health Ministry reports shows that a whopping 25 percent of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF)treatments resulted in pregnancies, with 20% of attempts resulting in live births. The number represents the doubling of success in the last decade, partly thanks to Israeli law supporting free IVF for two live babies.

Despite the arrest of a local Arab man for repeat Molotov cocktail attacks on the eastern Jerusalem Jewish neighborhood of Maale HaZeitim, assaults on the residential area just across from the Old City of Jerusalem continue, with two offenses occurring in the last 72 hours.

The unintended consequence of the hostile cancellation of Egypt's natural gas contract with Israel may result in increased blackouts in Gaza. Benjamin Netanyahu's Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan says Israel should consider cutting its supply of electricity to the Gaza Strip this summer in face of predicted power shortages.

Netanyahu: "By the end of July, we will pass a law that will divide the burden on a more equal, more egalitarian and more just basis for all Israelis, Jewish and Arab alike, without setting public against public."

In a televised speech in suburbs south of Beirut on Friday, Hizbullah leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah boasted that his sophisticated terror network is capable of hitting any target “in Tel Aviv and occupied Palestine”, and would target Tel Aviv in a future war.

Early this week, the Obama administration was ready to give up on its "haggling" with Netanyahu's government, abandoning its effort to renew the freezing of Jewish settlement construction. Then came the Netanyahu-Mofaz deal, guaranteeing the PM the support of 94 MKs. Hours later, a call came from Secretary of State Clinton, urging Netanyahu to use his new clout to advance the two-state solution.

"Be fruitful and multiply" (Genesis 1:28) says God in his first command to humanity. Thanks to the vision and donations of Rabbi David and Anita Fuld, Shaarei Tzedek is the world leader in helping families who would otherwise never even dream of having healthy children.

To properly combat thThe phenomenon of tired drivers on Lag Ba'Omer, police officers from the Jordan Valley region, in conjunction with volunteers and the local municipality, have initiated a stop-over refreshment station on one of the main routes from Meron.

Cleric Safwat Higazi: "Our capital shall not be Cairo, Mecca, or Medina. It shall be Jerusalem, Allah willing. Our cry shall be: 'Millions of martyrs march toward Jerusalem! Millions of martyrs march toward Jerusalem!"

The regional instability has changed Israel's security outlook in a number of ways, said Chief Intelligence Officer Brigadier General Ariel Karo, most notably in recent months in the Sinai Peninsula. Moreover, he said, the nature of the IDF's enemies is not always entirely clear, with the lines between military and terrorist groups blurred.

Moti Gaber, a resident of Kfar Yonah, a suburb of Netanya, Israel, was coming home with his son Wednesday night around 8:00 from the Lag Ba'Omer festivities, when he saw something quite literally out of this world.

JERUSALEM – Prime Minister Netanyahu’s bombshell announcement of a unity government agreement with new Kadima Party head Shaul Mofaz gives the Israeli leader an unshakeable government coalition for at least another year.

JERUSALEM – Israelis went to sleep Monday night expecting early elections in September for the 19th Knesset. They woke up to the news that elections would take place as planned in October 2013.

Israel Beytenu Chairman: "The residents who have lived in Givat Ulpana for years are law-abiding citizens. This is not an illegal outpost. It is the state's mistake, and it must take responsibility. There are ways to regulate the matter with legislation."

Israeli President Shimon Peres praised Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper for his support of Israel during his 5-day state visit beginning on Monday. “I sense...

Oplon Pure Science, a Rehovot-based developer of anti-bacterial polymer sheets for packaging, has signed an $8 million contract with the Pepsi Corporation to supply...

Coupled with the new political reality engendered by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's new and broad unity government, Congress' supplementary funding appears to advance Israel's preparation for the military option against Iran, as well as the potential international and military fallout.

The stealth move by Premier Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition leader Shaul Mofaz was a reunification of the 2005 Likud. Joining forces, they are close to realizing the dream of every Israeli premier, to rule without partners. But the new coalition deal means decidedly sobering news for Israel's two major religious camps - the Haredim and the settlement movement.

In an overnight drama worthy of a Hollywood thriller, the leaders of Likud and Kadima, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition leader Shaul Mofaz concluded a deal for a broad coalition government led by their two factions, and the cancellation of the early, September 4 elections.

Some 5,000 French Jews participated in an aliyah fair in Paris. The fair, organized and run by the Jewish Agency, took place on the Sunday of Francois Hollande's election as their new president, beating incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy—the Jewish community's favorite. A recent poll found that 26 percent of those surveyed said they have considered emigrating due to French anti-Semitism.