New COVID variant: PM warns of emergency; 1st cases found; Africa flights barred * Israel-US friction on Iran * Leonard Cohen’s divine sources * Atarot housing grounded

[Times of Israel]( [The daily edition]( Friday, November 26, 2021 [Bennett warns Israel entering ’emergency situation’ over new COVID-19 strain]( By [TOI staff]( [As arrival from Malawi becomes first case of highly mutated B.1.1.529 variant detected in country, Health Ministry said to urge mandating additional COVID test for all arrivals]( [Israel bars travel from most of Africa in effort against ‘worrying’ new COVID strain]( By [TOI staff]( [Israel detects its first case of new, highly mutated COVID-19 strain]( By [TOI staff]( Explainer [Maria Cheng]( [What is the new COVID variant in Africa, and why are scientists so concerned?]( [Little is yet known of new strain, but it appears to be most heavily mutated version of the virus yet — which could affect transmissibility and potentially limit vaccine efficacy]( [Europe moves to halt flights from southern Africa over worrying COVID variant]( By [Agencies]( [UK to ban travel from six African countries due to new COVID variant]( By [AFP]( [US says it’ll amp up pressure on Iran if it does not start cooperating with IAEA]( By [TOI staff and Agencies]( [As UN nuclear watchdog laments lack of progress with Tehran, American envoy warns an ‘extraordinary session’ may be needed before year’s end]( [Ex-Mossad chief says Israeli strikes on Iran nuclear sites ‘must be on the table’]( By [TOI staff]( [On eve of renewed Iran talks, UN nuclear watchdog chief says ‘no progress’ made]( By [Jastinder KHERA]( Israel media review [Hold me back, bru: What the press is saying about threats on Iran and from S. Africa]( By [Joshua Davidovich]( [Israel aims its tough guy routine at Iran and the US, but as the threats trickle through domestically, some ask whether the bombast is credible]( [Gantz says differences over Iran must not upset US ties]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( Interview [Hallelujah: How Leonard Cohen looked to the Bible and Kabbalah for inspiration]( By [JP O’ Malley]( [‘Leonard Cohen: The Mystical Roots of Genius’ by UK author Harry Freedman shows how Judeo-Christian theology and rabbinic roots shaped the writer and musician’s worldview]( Top Ops [Dani Fessler]( [A post-lockdown pandemic of violence is spreading through our schools]( [We must put the well-being of those who are finding it hard to adjust to school after so much social isolation ahead of academics]( [David Sedley]( [Thanksgiving kindness (Parshat Vayishlach)]( [The woman who engineered the national holiday most feared the brother-against-brother violent potential for civil war, akin to the clash between Joseph and his brothers]( [Police reopen investigation into claim female guards ‘pimped’ to Palestinian inmates]( By [TOI staff]( [Gilboa Prison Warden Freddy Ben Shitrit expected to give testimony after making bombshell comments on incident during inquiry into prison break]( [IDF chief says officer suspected of secretly filming female soldiers to be expelled]( By [TOI staff]( [From the web / Domestic violence awareness campaign gives ‘voice’ to murdered Israeli women]( [Woman, 32, shot dead at home in northern town]( By [Emanuel Fabian]( [Police say no arrests made yet in Maghar after shooting of Rasha Sitawi; at least 22 women killed in apparent homicides in Israel this year, 15 of them Arab]( [Man allegedly pushed partner off roof, then faked accident to get to her in hospital]( By [Emanuel Fabian]( [Egypt unveils renovated 3,000-year-old ‘Avenue of the Sphinxes’ in Luxor]( By [Haggag Salama]( [Ancient walkway connects famous Karnak and Luxor temples, is believed to have been path pilgrims trod to visit holy sites and pay tribute to their deities]( [Israel looking to deepen ties with Morocco, with plans for arms sales, joint drills]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( [Leaving Rabat, Gantz says his 2-day trip was unprecedentedly public and heralds deep cooperation with the kingdom]( [Algeria says it was ‘targeted’ by Gantz’s visit to Morocco]( By [AFP and Judah Ari Gross]( Times Will Tell [Podcast: This Arab and Jew talk straight, in raps and in person]( By [TOI staff]( [Rapper Samekh Zakout and educator Uriya Rosenman talk about the impetus for their Dugri rap project]( [CRM]( [Israel backs off housing project at Jerusalem’s Atarot airport site amid US pressure]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Officials notify White House they won’t move forward with plan to build 9,000 units on abandoned plot at northern tip of the capital, across the pre-1967 Green Line]( [Experts: Israel has ‘no strategy’ for managing ‘lifeline’ Mediterranean Sea]( By [Sue Surkes]( [Naval, planning experts tell confab that country needs laws, coordinating body, to ensure that sea, on which Israel depends for drinking water, fuel and trade, is properly managed]( [Supermarkets ill-prepared for expanded bottle deposit law]( By [Sue Surkes]( [With more choosing pure olive oil for Hanukkah, counterfeiters see an opportunity]( By [Cnaan Liphshiz]( Analysis [Lazar Berman]( [Meeting between Erdogan and MBZ points to a new, pragmatic regional order]( [Bitter rivals Turkey and UAE are striking a conciliatory tone, in line with Ankara’s moves away from its Muslim Brotherhood allies]( [As unrest in West Bank’s Jenin rises, governor vows to restore order]( By [Aaron Boxerman]( [City has boiled in recent months, with illegal weapons spreading, says PA governor; Israeli forces entering Jenin have seen repeated gun battles over the past few months]( [Budapest’s new $30m Holocaust museum sits in limbo as Hungary debates its contents]( By [Cnaan Liphshiz]( [Though completed in 2015, the grandiose building with its towering Star of David remains empty amid an ongoing stalemate between two arms of the Jewish community and the government]( [Iranian police fire tear gas at protesters demanding response to drought]( By [AP]( [Hundreds said to gather in Isfahan; separately, pipeline that transfers water to other provinces reported to be damaged]( [Protesters storm Lebanese ministry building as country’s currency sinks to new low]( By [AP]( [Syria hopes for return of European tourists]( By [AFP]( [CRM]( More Headlines [Israel Air Force flight school gets first female squadron leader]( By [TOI staff]( [Poland downgrades mission to Israel, says it won’t return ambassador]( By [AP and TOI staff]( [Cyprus said to arrest man who aided ‘kidnapping’ of boy orphaned in cable car crash]( By [TOI staff]( [1 killed in crash on Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway; driver suspected to have been drunk]( By [Emanuel Fabian]( [Israeli held in Taiwan for over a month after violent road incident]( By [TOI staff]( [Ombudsman: Axe chief Sephardi rabbi from religious court over anti-government action]( By [TOI staff]( [From our partner / Injured veterans from Israel, UK participate in joint sporting competition]( [Auction of joystick from Israeli jet that bombed Iraqi reactor fires up dispute]( By [TOI staff]( [Ultra-Orthodox leader’s grave desecrated, prompting outrage]( By [TOI staff]( [German coalition parties vow to defend Israel’s security, fight antisemitism]( By [Cnaan Liphshiz]( [IDF accuses Syrian recon officer of aiding Hezbollah on northern border]( By [Emanuel Fabian]( [Hanukkah menorah removed from roof of mosque after Palestinians protest]( By [TOI staff]( [The daily edition]() [facebook]( [twitter]( [instagram]( [View in browser]( [Contact support](mailto:support@timesofisrael.com) [Advertise with us](mailto:advertise@timesofisrael.com) Were you forwarded this email? 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