Israel

17 Apr 2019; DW: Human Rights Watch has accused Israel of using a 2017 anti-boycott law to silence criticism of the occupation of Palestinian territories. A Jerusalem court ruled the watchdog official supported boycotts against Israel.

The Israeli Justice Ministry on Tuesday said Omar Shakir, the director of Human Right Watch's Israel office, must leave the country by May 1 after he lost an appeal against a deportation order.

JERUSALEM, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Israel's president said on Tuesday that a majority of lawmakers had advised him to task incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with forming the government following the recent elections.

President Reuven Rivlin said in a broadcast that 65 members of the newly-elected parliament, or Knesset, had recommended him to task Netanyahu with forming the government.

A coalition needs at least 61 members to secure a majority in the 120-member Knesset.

JERUSALEM, April 11 (Xinhua) -- Official results of Israel's elections were published on Thursday night, showing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's party has beaten the main rival, the Blue and White party.

The results were released by the Central Election Committee after two days of counting ballots and delays caused by computer malfunctions, according to the committee chairman, Judge Hanan Melcer.

Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party won 36 seats while the centrist Blue and White, led by an ex-army chief, gained 35 seats, the results showed.

YEHUD, Israel (AP) — An Israeli spacecraft crashed into the moon Thursday just moments before touchdown, failing in an ambitious attempt to make history as the first privately funded lunar landing.

The spacecraft lost communication with ground control during its final descent. Moments later, the mission was declared a failure.

“We definitely crashed on the surface of the moon,” said Opher Doron of Israel Aerospace Industries.

JERUSALEM, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main challenger, Benny Gantz, tied in the parliamentary elections on Wednesday morning after 97.4 percent of the votes were counted, official figures by Israeli Central Election Committee showed.

Both Netanyahu's Likud and Gantz's centrist party of Blue and White had 35 seats in the 120-seat parliament, or the Knesset, according to the figures.

San Francisco (AP) - Airbnb is rescinding its plan to bar listings in Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

The home-sharing company announced in November that it would remove about 200 listings in the West Bank, which is territory claimed by Palestinians. Airbnb said Tuesday it will now allow properties in Israeli settlements to be listed, but will donate all of its profits from properties in the West Bank to humanitarian aid organizations.

9 Apr 2019; DW: Polls opened on Tuesday in Israel's parliamentary elections with more than 6 million people eligible to vote.

The election is billed as the toughest challenge yet for Prime Minister Benjaming Netanyahu, who has been rocked by corruption probes.

The latest:

7 Apr 2019; AFP: The main challenger to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel's elections on Sunday condemned the premier's deeply controversial pledge to annex West Bank settlements, calling it an "irresponsible" bid for votes.

Netanyahu said late Saturday he planned to apply sovereignty over at least parts of the occupied West Bank, a move that could prove the death knell for the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

7 Apr 2019; DW: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that if he secured another term in office, he would move to annex Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

The remark came ahead of nationwide elections in Israel that will take place next week.

"I won't clear a single settlement. And I will naturally ensure that we control the area west of the Jordan River," Netanyahu said during an interview with Israeli television.

MOSCOW, April 4. /TASS/. Russia has transferred the remains of Israeli tank battalion soldier Zachary Baumel, who had been missing in action for 37 years after the Battle of Sultan Yacoub in Lebanon, over to Israel, the Russian Defense Ministry told reporters on Thursday.

"Today, in the Russian Defense Ministry the remains of the Israeli soldier were handed over to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with honors to be buried by his relatives in his homeland," the ministry said.