US President Joe Biden and President Reuven Rivlin met at the White House, where Biden vowed that Iran will never be allowed to achieve its nuclear aspirations while he is in office. “Iran will never get a nuclear weapon on my watch,” he said, declaring his commitment to Israel’s security “is ironclad.” Biden added that he has an “unwavering commitment to your [right of] self-defense” against Iran, a country dedicated to the Jewish state’s destruction.
Rivlin arrived in Washington for his farewell visit to Washington at Biden’s invitation. America’s chief executive thanked Israel’s president for the latter’s efforts to promote partnership, hope and understanding – both inside Israel and between the Jewish state and its neighbors.
Alluding to Washington’s plan to rejoin the nuclear accord with Iran and world powers, Rivlin said: “And according to a real friendship, we can, from time to time, discuss matters and even agree not to agree on everything.”
In related news, it was announced that Prime Minister Naftali Bennett will be meeting with President Biden at the White House in July or August. This will be Bennett’s first trip abroad since becoming prime minister two weeks ago.
Biden “looks forward to hosting Prime Minister Bennett soon,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said. “We’re working on a date.”
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid became the Jewish state’s first high-ranking official to visit the United Arab Emirates since last year’s signing of the Abraham Accords, a US-brokered agreement that normalized relation between Jerusalem and Abu Dhabi.
During his two-day trip, Lapid will inaugurate Israel’s Embassy in the Emirati capital along with the Jewish state’s consulate in Dubai.
Israel’s top diplomat will be hosted by his Emirati counterpart Abdullah bin Zayed al Nahyan.
The UAE, along with Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco, began normalizing relations with Israel last year under accords brokered by then-US President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke by phone for the first time with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, during which the former emphasized the need for the Hamas terror group to return to Israel two captives being held in the Gaza Strip in addition to the remains of two IDF soldiers who were killed in the Palestinian enclave during the 2014 war.
The two leaders discussed, among other issues such as the 1979 peace treaty between the countries, the fragile ceasefire that ended May’s 11-day conflict between Israel and Gaza-based terrorist groups. They also agreed to meet as soon as possible.
The family of Nizar Banat, who died in PA custody last week, has rejected the results of an official commission on his death. Banat, a prominent critic of PA President Mahmoud Abbas, was allegedly beaten by Palestinian officers during his arrest. His death sparked protests in Hebron and Ramallah, during which Palestinians called for an end to Abbas’ 16-year rule.
A representative from the Banat family and from the Independent Commission on Human Rights, a leading Palestinian civil society group, both withdrew from the investigation, calling it slanted. According to an autopsy, Banat was beaten on the head, chest, neck, legs, and hands, with less than an hour elapsing between his incarceration and death.
Banat, who railed against alleged corruption in the PA, had registered as a candidate in Palestinian parliamentary elections, which had been set for May until Abbas postponed them indefinitely.
The United States said it was “deeply disturbed” by Banat‘s death, and UN Middle East peace envoy Tor Wennesland said the “perpetrators must be brought to justice.”
The PA committee investigating the incident is expected to deliver its conclusions to Abbas on Tuesday.
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Recommended Reading
- The Surfside Tragedy Recalls South Florida’s Long Hold On the Jewish Imagination and Reality (Thane Rosenbaum, Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
- Getting Out of Iran’s Way (Bradley Bowman and Behnam Ben Taleblu, Foundation for Defense of Democracies)
- Where’s the Outrage? (David Harris, Algemeiner)
- US to Open Olympic Baseball Against Israel on July 30 (Associated Press)
- 10 Top Culinary Hotspots in Tel Aviv’s Levinsky Market (Abigail Klein Leichman, Israel21C)
