Lockdown eased in Bnei Brak, not Jerusalem * Rivlin gives Knesset 21 days to choose a PM; if not, 4th elections * Why so many NY deaths? * Ivanka flouted rules for Seder

[Visit timesofisrael.com for 24/7 updates]( The Daily Edition Thursday, April 16, 2020 Live updates [Ministers ease Bnei Brak lockdown, extend Jerusalem neighborhoods closure]( By [TOI staff]( [Cars to be permitted into Haredi city near Tel Aviv, but no public transportation; restrictions on areas of capital set to expire April 19]( [Rivlin gives Knesset 21 days to agree on a PM, or go to new election]( By [Raoul Wootliff and TOI staff]( [After talks fail to produce government by Gantz’s Wednesday night deadline, president says he hopes legislature can choose an MK to form a coalition]( [Gantz mandate to form coalition expires but Likud, Blue and White talks to go on]( By [TOI staff and AFP]( [Analysis / Netanyahu and Gantz negotiate as if time is on their side — and on ours]( By [Haviv Rettig Gur]( Op-ed [David Horovitz]( [Party broken, tactics poor, and deal elusive, Gantz plays into Netanyahu’s hands]( [In 6 weeks, the Blue and White leader has undergone an extraordinary downfall – from being endorsed as PM by most MKs, to heading a diminished party merely irritating the incumbent]( [Pushing bills against PM, Liberman says he means to press him to join with Gantz]( By [TOI staff]( [US said probing possibility that virus came from Chinese laboratory]( By [TOI staff]( [Intelligence officials tell CNN they are looking into theory virus was accidentally released by infected technician, though they stress it is far from substantiated]( [Coronavirus could erode global fight against other diseases]( By [ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL and Victoria Milko]( [Cuomo says threat that virus will overwhelm New York hospital system averted]( By [TOI staff and Agencies]( [New York governor orders people to wear face masks in public, sending 150 ventilators to Michigan and Maryland; State develops own antibody test]( [Explainer / Why have so many died of coronavirus in New York?]( By [Catherine TRIOMPHE]( [US factory shutdowns near levels of post-WWII demobilization]( By [PAUL WISEMAN and AP]( [Police remove Bnei Brak roadblocks, anticipating end of closure]( By [TOI staff]( [As cabinet ministers discuss whether to extend restrictions on city, authorities appear to believe lockdown at an end; no immediate news on Jerusalem]( [Report: Morocco blocks joint UAE-Israel effort to repatriate stranded citizens]( By [Raphael Ahren]( [In new low, only a single flight departs from Israel Wednesday]( By [TOI staff]( [Israel said to shut down East Jerusalem virus testing site operating under PA]( By [TOI staff]( [Police arrest 4 who were running the clinic; UNRWA says Israeli authorities hindering efforts to curb virus in city’s east]( [Settler extremists quarantined in West Bank abscond with IDF-supplied tents]( By [Judah Ari Gross and Jacob Magid]( Analysis: COVID-19 crisis [Raphael Ahren]( [Ahead of curve, now marred by politics: Fading praise for Netanyahu’s leadership]( [Most Israelis satisfied with Netanyahu’s management of battle against pandemic, but analysts say his initially savvy handling is being overshadowed by mistakes and petty politics]( [Netanyahu said to have turned down UK request for ventilators]( By [TOI staff]( [Flights from US, S. Korea bring 100 ventilators, chemicals for 100k virus tests]( By [TOI staff]( [National death toll rises to 141 with 10 new deaths, as Passover closure lifted]( By [TOI staff]( [Infection cases at 12,591; bakeries reopen, limited public transportation resumes and Israelis can again leave hometowns if they comply with restrictions]( [In landmark pilot, High Court livestreams hearing on Shin Bet phone tracking]( By [TOI staff]( [Virus rules ignored at Druze funeral, ultra-Orthodox circumcision]( By [TOI staff]( [Iran unveils ‘smart system’ to detect virus from 100m in seconds, faces derision]( By [TOI staff]( [IRGC commander says Mosta’an can find infections in five seconds ‘creating a magnetic field and using a bipolar virus’; critics claim it is based on scam tool for detecting bombs]( [US accuses Iran of ‘dangerous’ harassment of its warships in Strait of Hormuz]( By [AP]( [Flouting social distancing rules, Ivanka Trump flew to New Jersey for seder]( By [TOI staff]( [President’s daughter has been at forefront of administration’s response to coronavirus, and repeatedly urged Americans to refrain from discretionary travel]( [Absorption Minister Galant latest top official accused of flouting virus rules]( By [TOI staff]( [Dozens of world’s top entertainers to lead virus extravaganza — from home]( By [TOI staff and AP]( [Lady Gaga, Paul McCartney among stars to headline ‘One World: Together At Home,’ airing April 18 to raise funds or frontline health care workers]( [World’s coronavirus cases top 2 million — more than doubling in two weeks]( By [TOI staff and AP]( [Europe still ‘in eye of the storm’ despite moves to ease virus lockdowns]( By [James Pheby]( Top Ops [Shula Mola and Micha Odenheimer]( [They moved school online and locked the underprivileged kids out]( [Educational authorities have a moral obligation to find solutions for families with limited or no access to computers, internet and tech skills]( [Nili Bresler]( [I’m a different kind of ‘prepper’]( [I may resemble a Doomsday hoarder, but the opposite is true: I’m busy chopping garlic and getting ready for the New Beginning to come]( [CRM]( More Headlines [Man who escaped strike on car in Syria named as slain Hezbollah leader’s son]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( [Germany marks liberation of Bergen-Belsen Nazi camp as memorial event canceled]( By [AFP]( [Auschwitz online: Raising Holocaust awareness in the digital age]( By [Bernard OSSER]( [Warren becomes latest ex-presidential rival to back Biden]( By [Will Weissert]( [Captain Tom, inspiration / UK WWII veteran, 99, raises $10 million (and rising) for health service]( By [SYLVIA HUI]( [World Health Organization voices ‘regret’ at US decision to halt funding]( By [AFP and TOI staff]( [Progress reported on possible prisoner swap with Hamas amid ‘rare opportunity’]( By [TOI staff]( [Amazon donates $300,000 to help Israel buy equipment to fight coronavirus]( By [Shoshanna Solomon]( [Oxford University scientists starting human trials for virus vaccine next week]( By [TOI staff and AP]( [As virus strikes small businesses, social bank seeks to provide credit lifeline]( By [Shoshanna Solomon]( [Poland blocks bill that would prevent restitution of private Jewish property]( By [Cnaan Liphshiz]( [Deck dash / French-Jewish marathoner runs race on 7-yard-long balcony]( By [JTA]( [Unsubscribe from this List]( © 2020 THE TIMES OF ISRAEL, All Rights Reserved