PM vows he won’t try to halt his trial * Job done, large vaccine centers closing * Israel, 12th happiest nation * Yossi Klein Halevi at final pr e-election anti-PM rally

[Times of Israel]( [The daily edition]( Sunday, March 21, 2021 Presented by Leket Israel [Netanyahu dodges Lapid debate call; vows he won’t try to halt his trial, fire AG]( By [TOI staff]( [PM says opposition leader should first declare candidacy for premiership; ‘He’s scared,’ retorts Yesh Atid head]( [Likud MK says election czar ‘biased,’ but denies Trump-like plan to dispute vote]( By [TOI staff]( [Haredi party leader: If Netanyahu lacks majority, ‘we’ll weigh’ our options]( By [TOI staff]( From the blogs [Yossi Klein Halevi]( [Burning the hametz on Balfour StreetÂ]( [Saturday night’s massive protest revealed how deeply secular Israeli identity is infused with Jewish values; how Zionism’s cultural vision has triumphed]( [Highest turnout in months at final pre-election protest against Netanyahu]( By [Aaron Boxerman]( [Organizers reflect on previous nine months of rallies: ‘We were able to make a huge protest [movement], but without any means of channeling it’]( [Jerusalem cops remove iconic protest statue with demonstrators chained to base]( By [TOI staff]( Analysis [Haviv Rettig Gur]( [What sort of ‘victory’ would await a victorious Netanyahu?]( [The premier has focused obsessively on weakening his rival Bennett – and for good reason. Even if he hands Netanyahu his victory, the Yamina head will exact a painfully high price]( [Rivlin to wait some 2 weeks for final election result before meeting party heads]( By [TOI staff]( [With most adults vaccinated, Israel’s large inoculation centers start to close]( By [TOI staff]( [As pace slows, Tel Aviv shuts major sites; focus shifts to smaller communities as health providers run mobile units in various places with low rates of vaccination]( [Up to 8,000 Israelis a day can fly in and out via Ben Gurion as limits lapse]( By [TOI staff]( [In precedent, court rules school can bar unvaccinated, untested worker]( By [Michael Bachner]( Top Ops [Yael Leibowitz]( [We are Moses]( [We have been strangers everywhere that we have been. We have tried, and failed, and fled, and found refuge, and fled again. And then the sea of exile split for a second time]( [Melody Muhlrad]( [Raising Asian Jewish kids in the US has never been scarier]( [As a mother, I wondered how to keep my children safe – and how to educate them about a society where people are victimized for race and/or religionÂ]( Message from Leket Israel [Help put a meal on their Passover table]( [Over the past year, thousands of Israeli families joined the circle of poverty. You can provide a hot meal for vulnerable Israelis in time for the Passover holiday.]( Times of Israel Podcast [Podcast: Daily Briefing Mar. 21 – Will the Biden-Putin slap-down affect Israel?]( By [TOI staff]( [Tune in Sunday through Thursday to hear ToI editors and reporters quickly catch you up on what’s important today]( Live updates [LIVE: Netanyahu claims there will soon be direct flights from Israel to Mecca]( By [TOI staff]( [In pre-election interview, PM also declares ‘there will no more lockdowns’ as pandemic ebbs, defends transfer of vaccines to Palestinians]( [Israel climbs to 12th spot in pandemic-focused World Happiness Report]( By [TOI staff and AP]( [Finland tops UN’s annual survey for fourth successive year; Canada is 14th, the UK 17th, and the US 19th]( [Poll: Americans’ support for Israel high; approval for PA and Palestinians rises]( By [TOI staff]( [CRM]( Passover 2021 [Lions read haggadahs, magical guests appear in new Passover kids’ books]( By [Penny Schwartz]( [Abbas receives first vaccine dose as Palestinian inoculation drive set to begin]( By [TOI staff]( [Vaccination campaign for Palestinian public begins Sunday with 61,440 shots donated through international COVAX program]( [New virus lockdowns in Europe, overseas fans banned from Tokyo Olympics]( By [AFP]( [27-year-old Israeli-Dutch Jew leads new progressive party into Dutch parliament]( By [Cnaan Liphshiz]( [‘We are what America looks like’: Hundreds rally to denounce Georgia shooting]( By [Kate Brumback]( [Demonstrators across the US protest hate after a man shot to death 6 women of Asian descent; police investigate if attack can be classified as hate crime]( [Toxic mood pervades US Capitol amid fallout from riot, pandemic]( By [LISA MASCARO]( [CRM]( More Headlines [Teen construction worker, 15, seriously hurt on site; ministry opens probe]( By [TOI staff]( [Rivlin hosts new UN envoy for Middle East peace process]( By [TOI staff]( [Refuse to lose / Public asked to find a name for Tel Aviv’s new garbage truck]( By [Jessica Steinberg]( [Child among 5 said killed in regime attack on hospital in rebel area of Syria]( By [AP]( [Israeli, Hungarian, awarded ‘math Nobel’ for computer security achievements]( By [AFP and TOI staff]( [Miami imam slams normalization with ‘descendants of pigs and apes’]( By [TOI staff]( [Russian-Israeli tennis player Aslan Karatsev wins Dubai open, his first title]( By [AFP and TOI staff]( [Iran blames deadly bomb attack near Pakistan border on ‘terrorist group’ enemies]( By [Agencies]( [Amid Iran tensions, US, Belgium, France and Japan hold Mideast naval exercise]( By [Agencies and TOI staff]( [Out of control taxi smashes into Tel Aviv restaurant, injuring 5]( By [TOI staff]( [Unsubscribe from this List]( Email not displaying correctly? 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