Middle East

His frustrations public, Tillerson tries to tamp down resignation speculation

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Rex Tillerson held his first public event in five days Wednesday — a meeting with the visiting Lebanese prime minister — as aides try to quell speculation over whether he is considering resigning. Speculation about the possibility of a Tillerson resignation has been mounting as the secretary’s frustrations with life

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Middle East, USA

Lawmaker suspended from committee for boycott over gay adoption

Openly gay Likud MK Amir Ohana punished for skipping key Knesset votes in protest at government’s discriminatory policy By Times of Israel staff Likud Knesset Member Amir Ohana leads a House committee meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem on July 26, 2017. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90) Likud’s first openly gay lawmaker was suspended from a powerful Knesset

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Middle East

Finds in Jerusalem shore up biblical account of Babylonian conquest

On the eve of the Hebrew commemoration of the destruction of the Temples, archaeologists discover remnants of a blaze indicating the city was grander than thought By Amanda Borschel-Dan The structure in which shattered jugs were found during the summer 2017 Israel Antiquities Authority dig, attesting to the destruction. (Eliyahu Yanai, Courtesy of the City

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Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East

Libyan PM Al-Serraj and Haftar agree to ceasefire at Paris talks

Libya’s UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj and and the divided country’s eastern commander General Khalifa Haftar agreed to a conditional ceasefire and elections at Paris talks on Tuesday. “We commit to a ceasefire and to refrain from any use of armed force for any purpose that does not strictly constitute counter-terrorism,” the rival leaders said

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Middle East

US Islamic preacher calls on Allah to annihilate the Jews

In video posted to YouTube by Californian mosque, Sheikh Ammar Shahin prays for ‘liberation’ of Al-Aqsa Mosque By Times of Israel staff Sheikh Ammar Shahin speaking at the Islamic Center of Davis, California on July 21, 2017. (Screen capture: YouTube) An Egyptian-born American imam in his Friday sermon called on Allah to annihilate the Jews

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Middle East, USA

Jerusalem holy site boycott remains despite scrapped metal detectors

The Muslim committee administering a sensitive Jerusalem holy site announced Tuesday that a boycott of the shrine would continue despite Israel’s removal of controversial new security measures. “No entry into Al-Aqsa mosque until after an assessment by a Waqf technical committee and the return of the situation to how it was before the 14th of

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Middle East, USA

Jordan did deal with Israel to question embassy guard over shooting

Cairo (dpa) – Jordan reached a deal with Israel to question an Israeli security guard who had shot and killed an alleged attacker in Amman before he was allowed to leave the country, Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi said on Tuesday. The security guard at the Israeli embassy in Amman, who enjoyed diplomatic

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Middle East

1,600 years ago, soldiers may have quaffed wine from this desert press

A large Byzantine-era wine press uncovered in the Negev region is only the second of its kind to be found By Amanda Borschel-Dan Digging in the ancient 1,600-year-old wine press in Ramat Negev, summer 2017. (Tali Gini, Israel Antiquities Authority) While Israel is famous for greening the desert, a recent find of a 1,600-year-old wine

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Jewish History, Middle East

First LGBT Unit Created to Fight ISIS in Syria

LGBT supporters are fighting back against the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) on the Syrian battlefield after three years of persecution in which their community suffered stonings, executions from rooftops and a deadly shooting at an LGBT nightclub in Orlando, Florida. A group of international volunteers fighting with Kurdish forces against ISIS in northern Syria

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Middle East, USA