Israel

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip late Thursday for a second time since a shaky cease-fire ended last month’s 11-day war. The strikes came after activists mobilized by Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers launched incendiary balloons into Israel for a third straight day.

There were no immediate reports of casualties from the strikes, which could be heard from Gaza City. Israel also carried out airstrikes early Wednesday, targeting what it is said were Hamas facilities, without killing or wounding anyone.

JERUSALEM, June 17 (Reuters) - Israel's defence minister proposed on Thursday that the country's newly installed government launch an official inquiry into the stampede at a Jewish religious festival that killed 45 people in April.

Tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews thronged to the tomb of 2nd-century sage Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai in the Galilee on April 30 for the annual Lag B'Omer celebration that includes all-night prayer, mystical songs and dance.

16 June 2021; MEMO: Israeli occupation forces shot dead a Palestinian woman today alleging she had tried to carry out a car-ramming attack northeast of Jerusalem.

A military statement said the woman attempted to ram her car into a number of Israeli soldiers before exiting the vehicle with a knife near the town of Hizme, northeast of Jerusalem. Soldiers did not allow healthcare workers to provide the lady with medical assistance.

16 June 2021; MEMO: The US Secretary of Defence, Lloyd Austin, and his Israeli counterpart Benny Gantz discussed mutual cooperation during in a telephone call on Tuesday morning, local media have reported.

16 June 2021; MEMO: Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has refused to leave the postholder's official residence in Jerusalem, the Times of Israel reported on Tuesday. According to his office, the leader of the opposition will not vacate the property for several weeks.

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is reported to be indifferent to the situation. This suggests that he is making an effort not to antagonise his predecessor and former mentor.

16 June 2021; MEMO: The Israeli aviation authority has rerouted flights to and from Ben Gurion Airport away from the Gaza Strip, fearing missiles fired in response to the provocative right-wing Flag March organised by extremist Jewish settlers in Jerusalem yesterday, the Times of Israel has reported.

After much hesitation, the new Israeli government approved the march, but police insisted on a different route to avoid places where settlers might be expected to clash with Palestinians.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli aircraft carried out a series of airstrikes at militant sites in the Gaza Strip early Wednesday, the first such raids since a shaky cease-fire ended the war with Hamas last month.

The airstrikes targeted facilities used by Hamas militants for meetings to plan attacks, the Israeli military said, blaming the group for any act of violence emanating from Gaza. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

(Reuters) --- Far-right Israeli groups plan to march in East Jerusalem on Tuesday in a flag-waving procession that risks reigniting tensions with Palestinians and poses an early test for Israel's new government.

Several hours before the event was due to start, incendiary balloons launched from Gaza caused several fires in fields in Israeli communities near the border with the Palestinian enclave, witnesses and the Israeli fire brigade said.

15 June 2021; MEMO: Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to attend the inauguration of his successor Naftali Bennett, Israeli media reported yesterday. Bennett's government won a narrow 60-59 vote of confidence in the Knesset on Sunday.

Likud leader Netanyahu is now the leader of the opposition in the parliament. The one-time mentor of Bennet is convinced that the new government will not last long. He has promised that he will be back in office "soon".

15 June 2021; MEMO: Outgoing Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, praised the normalisation agreements his government signed with Arab countries, starting with the UAE and Bahrain.