Coronavirus: Israel is 1st country to advise against overseas travel; El Al signals mayday; Iran Veep sick * Polls show momentum with Netanyahu * 347 rabbis slam Sanders

[Visit timesofisrael.com for 24/7 updates]( The Daily Edition Thursday, February 27, 2020 [In unprecedented move, Israelis advised to avoid all travel abroad over virus]( By [TOI staff]( [Health Ministry warning sees ‘high probability’ pathogen has now spread worldwide and is no longer containable; Israelis returning from Italy ordered to 14-day quarantine]( [El Al signals mayday, as extraordinary virus warning jolts travelers, carriers]( By [TOI staff]( [Israel media review / Flight or fright: 8 things to know for February 27]( By [Joshua Davidovich]( [Israeli diagnosed with virus after Italy trip; visitors from there to be barred]( By [TOI staff]( Live updates [El Al suspends flights to Italy, Thailand over coronavirus fears]( By [TOI staff]( [Israeli airliner also delays launch of direct Tokyo flight until April; Education Ministry halts all school trips abroad; 1,700 people in Israel reportedly under quarantine]( [Iranian vice president said infected with coronavirus]( By [Jon Gambrell]( [In unprecedented move, Saudi Arabia bars Muslim pilgrims from visiting holy city of Mecca]( [Saudi Arabia halts travel to Islam’s holiest sites over coronavirus]( By [Jon Gambrell]( [Iran reports 7 new virus deaths as another senior government official infected]( By [TOI staff and Agencies]( [Pope suffering ‘mild ailment,’ will skip mass, Vatican says]( By [AFP]( Analysis [David Horovitz]( [Polls suggest momentum with Netanyahu, as campaigns turn nasty in final days]( [Likud has risen slightly, but the balance between the blocs suggests continued deadlock on March 2 — unless one of the two rivals manages to inspire higher turnout from his camp]( [As campaign turns muddy, Gantz says Netanyahu ‘poisoning’ Israel with divisions]( By [TOI staff]( [Liberman: Gantz is not ready to be PM; only I pose a challenge to Netanyahu]( By [TOI staff]( Analysis [Raoul Wootliff]( [Campaigns use tens of millions in extra state funds for ‘all-out’ election push]( [Vastly increased allocations of state funds have been put into parties’ coffers to allow them pitch voters for third time in a year. And most have been saving up]( [Far-right leader says he will quit race if PM meets near-impossible demands]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Blue and White slashes left, right in home-stretch scramble to regain top spot]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Blue and White urges probe of alleged Likud hiring of intel firm]( By [TOI staff]( [347 US rabbis denounce Sanders’ AIPAC bigotry comments as ‘outrageous’]( By [JTA]( [Reform, Conservative, Orthodox religious leaders call Israel lobby ‘one of last remaining vehicles in that seeks to bring Americans from across political spectrum together’]( [Netanyahu on Bernie Sanders calling him a racist: ‘He’s wrong’]( By [TOI staff]( [Democrats Buttigieg, Klobuchar latest to skip AIPAC conference]( By [Eric Cortellessa]( Analysis [Judah Ari Gross]( [10 bouts in Gaza later, Israel not much closer to preventing the next round]( [The Strip remains a powder keg, with terror groups just waiting for another excuse — like Sunday’s bulldozer incident — to set it off]( [1 killed in Israeli drone strike near Quneitra — Syrian state TV]( By [TOI staff]( [Israeli jets down drone launched from Gaza]( By [TOI staff]( [Thousands rally for Israelis held in Gaza as families blast government inaction]( By [TOI staff]( Interview [Jewish actress plays first deaf doctor on ABC medical drama ‘Grey’s Anatomy’]( By [Renee Ghert-Zand]( Top Ops [Joshua Hammerman]( [Of the Coronavirus, the Red Sea, and Fear]( [It’s OK to place your personal and family safety above your calling to do good in the world, but some really do put it all on the line, and I’m in awe]( [Elizabeth Warren]( [Trump’s Middle East peace plan is a disaster. I’ve got a plan for that]( [Also, we are all affected by the recent attacks against the Jewish community – and we must all stand up against anti-Semitism, together]( [Far-right extremists killed at least 38 in US in 2019, ADL says]( By [Michael Kunzelman]( [None of the killings last year were linked to domestic Islamist terrorism, a first since 2012, watchdog reports; Jersey City anti-Semitic attack defies ‘left-right classification’]( [2 months after deadly shooting, Jersey City kosher supermarket starts to reopen]( By [Ben Sales]( [Monsey stabbing victim opens eyes after 59 days in coma]( By [Marcy Oster]( [US arrests 5 neo-Nazis over threats to journalists, activists]( By [AFP]( [Duma terror suspect’s petition denied because he won’t look at women in court]( By [Jacob Magid]( [In hearing, judge says he regrets offering solutions to allow Amiram Ben-Uliel, alleged arsonist in deadly attack, to participate in proceedings in line with his extremist views]( [Tires slashed, West Bank village threatened with ‘war’ in apparent hate attack]( By [Adam Rasgon]( [UN slams ‘worrying’ Israeli plans to build in West Bank, East Jerusalem]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Peace envoy Nickolay Mladenov says moves promoted by Netanyahu endanger prospects for two-state solution]( [50 ex-European leaders and FMs condemn Trump plan, cite apartheid similarities]( By [TOI staff]( [CRM]( More Headlines [Texas Jewish student punished for self-deprecating joke about Jews, money]( By [JTA]( [Polanski snubs French Oscars for Dreyfus movie, fearing ‘lynching’ by activists]( By [Fiachra GIBBONS]( [Athletes take a knee in protest during playing of Israeli anthem at Yeshiva U]( By [JTA]( [Israeli ambassador denounces anti-Semitic float at Spanish carnival]( By [AP]( [Government lifts import tariffs to end year-long butter famine]( By [TOI staff]( [Defense Ministry plane with NIS 1b in cash said stranded abroad in worker feud]( By [TOI staff]( [US lifts sanctions on ex-IDF general accused of arms sales to South Sudan]( By [TOI staff]( [Another former employee at PM’s residence sues Sara Netanyahu for abuse]( By [TOI staff]( [High tech workforce growing but lacks skilled employees, report says]( By [Luke Tress]( [Israel-founded urban transport app Moovit reaches its 100th country]( By [Luke Tress]( [Former Sderot mayor Eli Moyal laid to rest in his hometown]( By [TOI staff]( [Berlin drops Hindenburg’s honorary title for his role in Nazis’ rise]( By [AP]( [Unsubscribe from this List]( © 2020 THE TIMES OF ISRAEL, All Rights Reserved