NETANYAHU DEAL?
Former prime minister and opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu gave his lawyers the go-ahead on January 17 to pursue a plea bargain with outgoing Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit in his public corruption case. A spokesperson for Netanyahu said he had agreed to hold talks with Mandelblit and the prosecution, but “has not announced he agrees to [acknowledging] moral turpitude.” Netanyahu has consistently denied all allegations in his ongoing trial for fraud, breach of trust and bribery. Both sides said they had hoped a deal could be struck before Mandelblit steps down at the end of January.
TEXAS STANDOFF
The FBI identified Malik Faisal Akram, a 44-year-old British national, as the man who held four people hostage at the Beth Israel Congregation in Colleyville, Texas, on January 15 before an FBI hostage rescue team entered the building and killed him. After Akram freed one hostage, the other three managed to escape. “Prayers answered. All hostages are out alive and safe,” Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted 11 hours after Akram entered the synagogue at about 11 a.m. and took the four hostages, including Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker. FBI Director Christopher A. Wray said the Agency is treating the attack as “an act of terrorism targeting the Jewish community,” adding: “It was intentional, it was symbolic and we’re not going to tolerate antisemitism in this country.”
ARROW TEST
Israel conducted a successful test of the Arrow 3 anti-ballistic missile system on January 18. “The success of this test is an important milestone for Israel’s operational capability to defend itself against existing and evolving threats in the region,” the Defense Ministry said. The system was tested against targets similar to advanced missiles being developed by Iran. The Arrow-3 is a joint program between Israel and the United States, both of which are concerned that Iran is progressing with its nuclear and ballistic missile programs despite international criticism.
TRAGIC SHOOTING
Two company commanders in the IDF Egoz unit, Maj. Ofek Aharon, 28, and Maj. Itamar Elharar, 26, were killed in a friendly fire incident at a base in the Jordan Valley known as Nabi Musa on the night of January 12. According to the IDF, they were on patrol after a training exercise when another officer, who mistook them for armed terrorists, opened fire. “The officers were killed after a mistaken identification led to a friendly fire incident,” the IDF said.
ICONIC SONGWRITER
Israeli lyricist, poet and author Yoram Taharlev was laid to rest on January 7 on Kibbutz Yagur, where he was born almost 84 years before. The son of Lithuanian immigrants, Taharlev wrote over 1,000 songs, including the iconic “Givat Hatahmoshet” (Ammunition Hill), as well as more than 70 books, including children’s books and volumes of poetry. His story and songs can be found in English on his website (www.taharlev.com/english.html), where he also included unrecorded songs that he invited “young singers and composers to take a look and see if something catches their fancy.”
MATRIARCH BURIED
Aura Herzog, mother of President Isaac Herzog and widow of Israel’s sixth president, Chaim Herzog, was laid to rest next to her husband in the Great Leaders of the Nation section of the Mount Herzl Cemetery in Jerusalem on January 12. The couple’s four children, Isaac, Mike (who is Israel’s ambassador to the US), Yoel and Ronit said kaddish at her graveside. Aura Herzog, who was 97, founded the Council for a Beautiful Israel, a nonprofit environmental group that she led for 40 years.