COVID race: Cases soar; 495,000 vaccinated * Tel Aviv mayor forms left-wing party, justice minister joins * PODCAST: ToI 2020 cultural Top 11 * Inside a Negev eco-village

[Times of Israel]( [The daily edition]( Tuesday, December 29, 2020 Presented by IDC Herzliya [Health Ministry reports 5,459 new cases, highest daily tally in nearly 3 months]( By [TOI staff]( [Record 115,000 vaccinated on Monday, bringing the total to 495,000, more than the number diagnosed since pandemic’s start]( [Israel nears 500,000 vaccinated, in new daily record; teachers to be prioritized]( By [TOI staff]( [In U-turn, government cancels forced hotel quarantine for arrivals from abroad]( By [TOI staff]( [Tel Aviv mayor to form new left-wing party to run in March elections]( By [Raoul Wootliff]( [Ron Huldai confirms entry into national political arena, says he’ll launch campaign Tuesday night reaching out to those who ‘feel they have no home in the current political system’]( [In blow to Gantz, Justice Minister Nissenkorn joins Tel Aviv mayor’s new party]( By [TOI staff]( [MK Cotler-Wunsh quits Blue and White, says she’s ‘committed to continue serving’]( By [TOI staff]( Times of Israel Podcast [PODCAST: ToI’s top 11 countdown of Jew-ish TV, songs, movies and books of 2020]( By [Jordan Hoffman]( Israel media review [Hit me with your best shots: What the press is saying on December 29]( By [Joshua Davidovich]( [Israel is going gangbusters for the COVID-19-busting vaccine and there’s enough for everyone, assuming the doses keep coming. Until then, the fake lockdowns should keep us safe]( [Family, ministry say no link to vaccine as man dies hours after inoculation]( By [TOI staff]( [Under new lockdown rules, 640,000 kids to return to remote learning on Wednesday]( By [TOI staff]( [Lockdown lite: Closure sees patchy compliance, has little impact on traffic]( By [TOI staff]( [Gaza terror groups launch first joint drill, fire rockets into sea as ‘message’]( By [TOI staff]( [Hamas closes down main streets of Gaza City for exercise conducted with Islamic Jihad and smaller Gaza factions, breathlessly covered by local media]( [Rocket sirens blare in south as projectile fired from Gaza fails to cross border]( By [TOI staff]( [Siding with Netanyahu, court demands to see AG’s written authorization of probes]( By [TOI staff]( [Prosecutors must hand over documents within a week; PM’s attorneys claim Mandelblit’s permission for police investigations was given retroactively, all charges must be canceled]( [High Court to hear petitions on opening probe into Netanyahu over submarine case]( By [TOI staff]( [Rabin assassin hires prominent lawyer to work for his early release]( By [TOI staff]( Top Ops [Dan Perry]( [Crime and punishment: The sorrows of young Benny]( [Gantz, a decent fellow who bumbled and stumbled into leadership, committed the sins of hubris, cluelessness, weakness and, worst of all, being a ’freier’]( [Nitsana Darshan-Leitner]( [Justice must not be the price for peace with Sudan]( [The US Congress should stand firm in protecting the legal rights of the many victims of terror groups sponsored by the East African nation]( [Aron Heller]( [A focused Netanyahu is down, but not out]( [The prime minister’s unmatched zest for ruling has beaten down and worn out anyone with even a hint of potential to succeed him]( [Naomi Mittelmann Cohen]( [A cancel culture that risks canceling our own Jewish voices]( [Some World Union of Jewish Students members are boycotting the annual congress over a New Israel Fund speaker. That is the opposite of leadership.]( [Eat my dust: Israeli scientist shows plants grab nutrients off dust in the wind]( By [Sue Surkes]( [Researchers find some desert plants sprinkled with motes manage to absorb phosphorous on their leaves, and grow stronger; breakthrough could open door to reduced fertilizer usage]( [CRM]( First person [Double tragedy: Survivor’s nephew uncovers fate of Polish Jews who fled to USSR]( By [Bernard Dichek]( Live updates [Israel said aiming to allow tourists to visit starting April — with conditions]( By [Michael Bachner]( [Report says initial Health Ministry plan would require tourist groups to get special health insurance, register detailed schedule for visit and be monitored by authorities]( [For 21st century Zionist pioneers, it takes an off-the-grid eco-village]( By [Sue Surkes]( inside story [Abraham Gross]( [Half-vaccinated patients at NY clinic under investigation unsure what’s next]( [As the Jewish-owned ParCare network undergoes what appears to be the US’s first inquiry into vaccine misappropriation, it promises to work with state to administer second dose]( [Cuomo vows consequences for vaccine fraud as ParCare clinics investigated in NY]( By [Shira Hanau]( [Prominent US rabbi says he didn’t know his ParCare vaccination was not allowed]( By [Shira Hanau]( [CRM]( Interview [Beitar Jerusalem owner confronts soccer team’s racist fans]( By [Josef Federman]( [After selling 50% of the club to an Emirati royal, Moshe Hogeg vows to take on fans opposed to signing Arab players: ‘If you are about hate and racism, you are not part of us’]( More Headlines [Pandemic withers immigration by nearly 40%]( By [Stuart Winer]( [UK Labour leader Starmer opens up about his family’s Jewish traditions]( By [Cnaan Liphshiz]( [Supermarket mogul poised to become new owner of Israir Airlines]( By [TOI staff]( [Smash and grab robbers take NIS 1.7 million haul from Beersheba jewelry store]( By [Stuart Winer and TOI staff]( [Knesset approves interim financial package in absence of state budget]( By [TOI staff]( [Iran begins human trials for locally made coronavirus vaccine]( By [Amir Vahdat]( [Western Sahara map in backdrop of Netanyahu clip said to spark fury in Morocco]( By [TOI staff]( [Settler youths suspected of negligent homicide in fatal crash during chase]( By [TOI staff]( [Israeli records show US sold ambassador’s home for $67 million]( By [Joseph Krauss]( [M&A deals plunge in Israel as pandemic sidelines foreign investors]( By [Shoshanna Solomon]( [Driver jailed for 9 years for killing 8-year-old boy on Yom Kippur]( By [TOI staff]( [Pfizer, AstraZeneca chosen for lab to foster Israel biotech startups]( By [Shoshanna Solomon]( [Unsubscribe from this List]( Email not displaying correctly? 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