Amnesty’s Israel chief vs. ’Israel apartheid’ report * 1st Muslim named to Israel’s top court * Mount of Olives park plan on church lands shelved * Israeli rabbi in Iran

[Times of Israel]( [The daily edition]( Monday, February 21, 2022 Presented by [Atlantis Paradise]( [in]( [The Bahamas]( Exclusive [Amnesty’s Israel chief criticizes group’s report accusing Israel of apartheid]( By [Tani Goldstein]( [Molly Malekar says Amnesty International’s report is too sweeping an indictment that ignores human rights work, wrongly depicts Arab Israelis as helpless victims]( [Lapid calls on White House not to delist Iran’s Guards as terror group]( By [Lazar Berman]( [FM says Israel will not be bound by a restored nuke deal: ‘We will not hesitate to act’; Bennett points to JCPOA’s sunset clauses as main reason for Israel’s opposition]( [‘Turned diplomacy into a religion’: Israel officials said to lash Biden on Iran deal]( By [TOI staff]( [Bennett: Iran deal will spell more violent region, boost regime’s attacks on Israel]( By [Lazar Berman]( [Muslim man, Mizrahi woman picked to serve as Supreme Court justices, both firsts]( By [TOI staff]( [Judicial Selection Committee makes 4 new appointments, including 2 women; justice minister says appointments represent ‘a variety of opinions, genders and ethnic backgrounds’]( From our sponsor [Kosher in the Bahamas]( [Inspired by Israeli cooking techniques, Atlantis’ Kosher dining service offers contemporary fare with an array of classic and novel dishes. For events and group functions.]( [Parks authority says it’s shelving Mount of Olives plan that angered church leaders]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Plan to expand national park onto church-owned lands still appears on website of planning panel; parks authority: Project won’t be advanced without dialogue with church leaders]( Live updates [LIVE: Russia claims to kill 5 Ukrainian ‘saboteurs’ who crossed border; Ukraine denies it]( By [Luke Tress]( [Kyiv’s foreign minister firmly rejects Russian accusations of aggression as western leaders say Moscow is planning a ‘false flag’ operations to justify an invasion]( [Israel to open to unvaccinated tourists starting March 1]( By [TOI staff]( [Under new plan, tourists must submit to pre- and post-flight PCR tests, but returning Israelis will no longer need to show a negative COVID test before flying home]( ToI podcast [TOI staff]( [Daily Briefing Feb. 21: Team Israel’s Beijing triumph; how PM Bennett lost the right]( [Political correspondent Tal Schneider talks Nancy Pelosi visit and rumors of an Iran deal, and news editor Amy Spiro brings us the best of the Winter Olympics]( Archaeology [New analysis of 3,200-year-old lead ingots sinks theories about Bronze Age trade]( By [Amanda Borschel-Dan]( [Interdisciplinary study shows a much more central role for ‘passive’ copper-rich nation Cyprus, which was able to pivot during fall of empires in 1200 BCE]( [Ship-mounted Iron Dome completes ‘complex’ trial against threats at sea]( By [Emanuel Fabian]( [Defense Ministry says interceptor system able to down drones, rockets and cruise missiles from aboard Sa’ar-6 corvette]( Top Ops [Robert Kramer]( [Kafka and the Jewish Agency]( [Two years! That’s how long I’ve been submitting unequivocal proof I’m eligible for aliyah. Zero. That’s how many responses I’ve received.]( [Donniel Hartman]( [Dear Sophie, Israel has failed you]( [The first step in engaging a generation of Jews troubled over where Israel and Zionism are heading is to acknowledge that they do indeed have a valid point]( [Naomi Chazan]( [How long can this ‘avoidance coalition’ rule?]( [A government that declines to make hard decisions isn’t sustainable: It’s just a matter of time before the Palestinian-Israeli status quo becomes unsustainable]( [Andrew Silow-Carroll]( [Israel’s never-ending, and very human, ‘who is a Jew?’ saga]( [For years the Chief Rabbinate has had a monopoly on Jewish conversion, barring many Jews in Israel from belonging — new legislation may change that]( Explainer [Carrie Keller-Lynn]( [Eight key questions at the heart of the NSO spy software confusion]( [What we know about the Israel Police phone-hacking allegations, what we don’t — and the potential consequences]( [Police pressing to resume use of spyware to fight crime – report]( By [TOI staff]( [Netanyahu’s trial delayed after judge tests positive for COVID]( By [TOI staff]( [As Russian invasion threat looms, charities find it harder to support Ukraine’s Jews]( By [Lazar Berman]( [With inflation and unemployment rising, organizations like the Joint Distribution Committee adapt to continue serving tens of thousands of elderly and poor clients]( [Israeli envoys in Ukraine border countries prepare for potential land evacuation]( By [TOI staff]( [Amid tensions at home, dozens of Ukrainian immigrants arrive in Israel]( By [TOI staff]( [Russia has lists of Ukrainians ‘to be killed or sent to camps,’ US warns UN]( By [AFP and TOI staff]( [In letter to UN rights chief, Washington says an invasion could lead to ‘kidnappings or torture’ of ‘political dissidents and religious and ethnic minorities’]( [Putin orders army to prepare invasion of Ukraine — reports]( By [TOI staff and Agencies]( [Russia, Ukraine press for more talks as fighting in border region intensifies]( By [Dave Clark and Yulia SILINA]( [Government advances conversion reform that seeks to curb rabbinate’s control]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( [Contentious proposal for accepting Jewish conversions meant to give more power to local authorities, but liberal critics say it doesn’t go far enough]( [In first, ultra-Orthodox woman tapped to lead a local religious council]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( [Screen time / New TV series looks at impossible love among the ultra-Orthodox]( By [Jessica Steinberg]( [CRM]( Interview [Clinton in-law and former House rep talks about small kindness and raising a village]( By [Cathryn J. Prince]( [In her new memoir/parenting guide ‘And How are the Children?,’ Marjorie Margolies describes the diverse family she cobbled together while fighting for social equality]( [Israeli rabbi visits Iran, meets with local leaders and documents his trip]( By [Tobias Siegal]( [Ultra-Orthodox Rabbi Jacob Yisrael Herzog, who previously attempted to establish Jewish community in Saudi Arabia, tours Iran’s Jewish sites, meets religious leaders]( [Iranian fighter jet crashes near school in Tabriz, killing three people]( By [TOI staff and Agencies]( [Economy minister travels to Morocco to deepen trade ties]( By [AFP]( [CRM]( [The literary tastemaker who saved Brooklyn’s oldest independent bookstore retires]( By [julia GERGELY]( [Ezra Goldstein took over Park Slope’s Community Bookstore in 2009 to bring it out of debt and become known as ‘the oracle’ of the borough’s literary community]( More Headlines [5-year-old boy killed by donkey near Mitzpe Ramon]( By [TOI staff]( [Jordan’s King Abdullah kept secret Swiss bank accounts to hide vast wealth – report]( By [TOI staff]( [Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff’s sister, brother-in-law found dead]( By [AP]( [US Federations revises agenda, restoring gun control, LGBT rights to priority list]( By [Ron Kampeas]( [National lottery chief sought to quash damning story on ex-Mossad boss – report]( By [TOI staff]( [Gantz threatens coalition with demand for pension hike for career officers]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( [Woman arrested on suspicion of killing her infant children over 25 years ago]( By [TOI staff]( [Police cleared in shooting of Arab nursing student during firefight]( By [Aaron Boxerman]( [Mother suspected of drugging her daughters to collect national insurance benefits]( By [TOI staff]( [Former Supreme Court chief Grunis to head state probe of ‘submarine affair’]( By [TOI staff]( [Following death of infant in the US, Similac baby formula recalled in Israel]( By [TOI staff]( [Ex-justice Gabriel Bach, prosecutor in trial of Adolf Eichmann, dies at 94]( By [AP]( [The daily edition]() [facebook]( [twitter]( [instagram]( [View in browser]( [Contact support](mailto:support@timesofisrael.com) [Advertise with us](mailto:advertise@timesofisrael.com) Were you forwarded this email? 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