War & Peace: US Reportedly Approves Sale of F-22 Raptors to Israel, F-35s to UAE

The Trump Administration has reportedly approved the sale of F-22 Raptor fighter jets and precision-guided bombs to Israel. Last week, US Defense Secretary Mark Esper arrived in the Jewish state for a short visit and held meetings with his Israeli counterpart Benny Gantz, as well as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Esper informed Israeli officials of the US response to their demands, which Gantz had raised during his two previous visits to Washington. Israel’s defense minister pushed for an increase in military support, including another squadron of F-35 fighters, advanced model F-15 jets, V-22 helicopters, and refueling aircraft.

Israel also requested the smart bomb and F-22 jets, which is the only stealth aircraft that can carry that munition. Notably, the US has pledged to refrain from selling these arms to any other country in the world.

Relatedly, the US Department of State notified Congress it approved the sale of 50 F-35 jets to the United Arab Emirates in a deal that could be worth $10 billion.

Israel initially balked at the notion but altered its opposition after being given what it described as American guarantees that the Jewish state’s military superiority in the Middle East would be preserved.

Any deal must satisfy a longstanding agreement between Washington and Jerusalem that weapons sold in the region must not jeopardize Israel’s qualitative military edge.

The Dominican Republic announced that it is considering relocating its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Santo Domingo said it was accounting for a variety of factors, including the fact that until 1980 the Dominican mission to Israel was based in Jerusalem.

It is also mindful of “the reality that the seat of political power, including the office of the Prime Minister, the President and the Parliament, is located in the capital of Jerusalem.”

Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi thanked his Dominican Republic counterpart Roberto Alvarez during a phone conversation.

As things stand, only two countries have their embassies in Jerusalem: the United States and Guatemala. However, a number of governments have indicated their openness to relocating their primary missions to the holy city, including Honduras, Brazil, Serbia and the Czech Republic. Kosovo, which does not have an embassy in Israel, has spoken of establishing one in Jerusalem.

On Sunday, the second stage of Israel’s coronavirus exit strategy went into effect. National parks and beaches have reopened, while beauty parlors, hair salons, and psychiatric professionals have been able to resume their work. Meanwhile, children in grades one through four have been allowed to return to their classrooms in groups of up to 20. In addition, houses of worship may now conduct services either indoors or outside – in accordance with relevant regulations.

Meanwhile, the volunteer who on Sunday received the first dose of a potential Israeli COVID-19 vaccine said he was optimistic, describing his participation in the clinical trial as “a historic opportunity.” Segev Harel, 26, said he was healthy and feeling confident about the upcoming tests.

Clinical trials for the Brilife vaccine, developed by the Israel Institute for Biological Research, began at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan and Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem.

Israel’s Health Ministry said on Saturday evening that 674 new coronavirus cases had been identified in the previous 24 hours, with some 32,615 tests being carried out. The figures showed that the rate of positive tests had decreased to 1.8 percent, the lowest level since June.  According to the latest report from the ministry, the number of active patients also continued to fall. On Saturday evening, 10,684 Israelis were infected with the coronavirus, compared to 11,254 on Friday morning.

For the first time ever, the United States issued a passport to a Jerusalem-born American with Israel listed as the place of birth instead of the city itself.  US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman presented the document to 18-year-old Menachem Zivotofsky, following a change of policy implemented by US President Donald Trump.

“You have a nation of birth – the state of Israel,” Friedman told the teenager, while thanking the US administration for having “set this course in motion.”

Since Israel was founded in 1948, successive American governments had declined to recognize any country’s sovereignty over Jerusalem. That is, until December 2017, when President Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and a few months later moved the US Embassy there from Tel Aviv.

Antisemitism Watch: Jewish schools and synagogues in Nice remained closed as a precautionary measure following an Islamist terrorist attack at a Catholic church in the southern French city.

A knife-wielding attacker shouting “Allahu akhbar” beheaded a woman and killed two other people in last Thursday’s incident at the Notre Dame Church, the largest in Nice.

Speaking to Israeli media hours after the attack, Franck-Daniel Teboul, the chief rabbi of Nice, said that synagogues and schools would be closed and that kosher shops would be on alert.

“We’re all feeling threatened,” he said.

The attack came two weeks after a Paris school teacher, Samuel Paty, was beheaded by an 18-year-old Muslim refugee from Chechnya.