LIVE: IDF bombs Gaza tunnels, as rockets pound south * US says violence must end now, blocks UN statement * Ashkelon shul’s holy cleanup * ’F— t heir mothers’ UK convoy

[Times of Israel]( [The daily edition]( Monday, May 17, 2021 Live updates [IDF kills senior Islamic Jihad commander; 3 lightly hurt as rocket hits Ashdod]( By [TOI staff]( [Warning sirens sound in southern communities * Military says 15 km of Hamas tunnels in Gaza bombed * US again expected to block joint Security Council statement blaming both sides]( Exclusive [For 3rd time, US blocking joint Security Council statement urging ceasefire]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Member states have until noon on Monday to negotiate; diplomats tell ToI that Washington is pushing back on statement which laments loss of life, but doesn’t mention Hamas rockets]( [US says violence must end immediately; UN envoy said stepping up ceasefire push]( By [TOI staff and Jacob Magid]( [At UN Security Council, US says working ‘tirelessly’ to end Gaza fighting]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Senior Islamic Jihad commander killed in Israeli airstrike]( By [Aaron Boxerman]( [Hussam Abu Harbeed, who led the Gaza terror group’s northern division, led attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians for 15 years; Islamic Jihad deems him ‘blessed martyr’]( [IDF hits Hamas tunnels in massive strikes on Gaza as ceasefire pressure mounts]( By [Jacob Magid and TOI staff]( [Southern communities pounded by Gaza rockets; PM: Fighting will take more time]( By [TOI staff]( [Holy cleanup: Ashkelon synagogue ready for Shavuot 2 hours after hit by rocket]( By [TOI staff]( [The hole smashed in the wall by a rocket from Gaza is still there but the rest of the damage has been fixed, and Yad Michael Synagogue is ready for festival prayers]( Analysis [Judah Ari Gross]( [IDF believes it significantly hurt Hamas, and that’s the best it can do for now]( [Gaza’s terror rulers misjudged Israel’s readiness to respond to its rockets, and the IDF implemented a long-prepared response. But Israel is not about to end Hamas’s rule]( [Top IDF general says Hamas chiefs Deif and Sinwar ‘remain in Israel’s sights’]( By [TOI staff]( [Hamas attempting to hit Tamar offshore gas rig with rockets]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( [2 killed, over 160 hurt as synagogue bleacher collapses near Jerusalem]( By [TOI staff]( [Deadly incident in Givat Ze’ev occurs at celebrations just before start of Shavuot holiday; police say the unfinished building wasn’t approved for use]( From the blogs [Nili Bresler]( [Shavuot beneath the shooting stars]( [Two years since we last celebrated this beloved holiday together, my family gathered in Ramat Gan, like old times – except for an important difference]( [CRM]( [London to up police presence in Jewish areas after antisemitic convoy]( By [AFP and TOI staff]( [Mayor touts move as one of several steps ‘to reassure Londoners, particularly those from Jewish communities’ amid anti-Israel protests over Gaza fighting]( [From our partner / Convoy in London Jewish area yells: ‘F*** their mothers, rape their daughters’]( [Ra’am leader Abbas faces backlash in his party for meeting right-wing Lod mayor]( By [Aaron Boxerman]( [Islamic Movement secretary condemns ‘inappropriate, mistaken’ visit with Yair Revivo, a former Likud campaign chief who is disliked by many of Lod’s Arab residents]( [Lapid blames PM, Ben Gvir for violence; Ra’am chair condemns synagogue arsons]( By [TOI staff]( [Blinken says yet to see evidence on strike on Gaza tower housing AP, Al Jazeera]( By [Agencies and TOI staff]( [US secretary of state: Washington awaiting info on demolished tower Israel says contained Hamas intel, weapons development assets; AP urges independent probe]( [Associated Press demands probe of Israel’s leveling of Gaza media tower]( By [Agencies and TOI staff]( [Canadian police use tear gas as Israel rally attacked by pro-Palestinians]( By [AFP]( [Clashes break out after Palestinian activists arrive at Israel solidarity event; police declare both rallies ‘illegal’]( [Rabbi hospitalized after being assaulted near London]( By [Cnaan Liphshiz]( [7 cops hurt in car-ramming in Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah; attacker shot dead]( By [Emanuel Fabian]( [East Jerusalem man accelerates vehicle into temporary police roadblock in flashpoint neighborhood; footage of attack caught live on TV]( [Assailant tries to ram troops in West Bank, hits jeep and is arrested — IDF]( By [TOI staff]( [Probe opened after IDF troops shoot at Israeli family’s car that swerved at them]( By [TOI staff]( [As ER arrivals fall, MDs say it shows rocket-battered Israelis neglecting health]( By [Nathan Jeffay]( [Tel Aviv hospital reports 25% drop in emergency cases, amid national concerns that people are putting off urgent care, potentially putting their lives in danger]( Times of Israel Podcast [Daily Briefing: Shavuot edition – Drip irrigation for rice & (non)dairy delights]( By [TOI staff]( [Tune in Sunday through Thursday to hear ToI editors and reporters quickly catch you up on what’s important today]( [Farmers and volunteers find each other with agricultural app SunDo]( By [Jessica Steinberg]( [With the harvest festival of Shavuot approaching, non-profit Hashomer Hachadash is helping to build a stronger connection between Israelis and the land through farming]( [CRM]( Top Ops [Lisa Fliegel]( [Sometimes all you can do is stand up for love]( [I can’t afford the luxury of despair, and so I hold onto the memory of those girls in a West Bank village singing a song of hope]( [Daniel Dorsch]( [Our synagogue does not want your old books]( [We have plenty, and that is the case for just about all synagogues. But this Shavuot, I do have a suggestion for who should receive your books]( [Unsubscribe from this List]( Email not displaying correctly? [View in browser]( © 2021 The Times Of Israel, All Rights Reserved