Many firsts on Biden itinerary * The stunning saga of Beitar * PODCAST: Faye Kellerman * Makovsky: What Biden, Lapid have in common * Eulogies for Abe * Int’w: Yair Golan

[Times of Israel]( [The daily edition]( Friday, July 8, 2022 The president's itinerary [Iron Dome, Yad Vashem, Maccabiah, Bethlehem: Biden’s 2 days in Israel and West Bank]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Biden to tour Israeli security installations, including new laser defense system; is set to become 1st US president to visit a site in Palestinian East Jerusalem outside Old City]( [Biden staff touch down in Israel as country gears up for US presidential visit]( By [TOI staff]( [Herzog to honor Biden with Presidential Medal of Honor next week]( By [Lazar Berman]( [Paying the penalties: The stranger-than-fiction rise and fall of Beitar Jerusalem]( By [Amy Spiro]( [The fate of the sharply controversial soccer team hangs in the balance once again after yet another owner becomes embroiled in scandal and legal imbroglios]( [Ahead of Biden’s visit, Lapid and Herzog hold phone calls with PA’s Abbas]( By [Lazar Berman]( [Israeli leaders wish Palestinian Authority president a happy Eid al-Adha, stressing need for cooperation and calm; calls come day after Abbas hosts Gantz in Ramallah]( [Gantz meets PA’s Abbas to discuss security coordination ahead of Biden visit]( By [TOI staff]( [IDF says shots fired at military posts near Nablus; no injuries]( By [Emanuel Fabian]( [Former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe assassinated]( By [Agencies]( [Abe gunned down while giving a campaign speech in western Japan, dies soon after, sparking an outpouring of shock from world leaders]( [Israeli leaders express shock at assassination of ex-Japanese PM Shinzo Abe]( By [Amy Spiro]( From the blogs [Yehuda Kurtzer]( [Liberal Jews in the Rebbe’s Christian America]( [As the vision of neutrality in the public sphere is defeated, all Jews – not just Chabad – will need a strategy to compete in the marketplace of religion]( [Western Wall rabbi denounces violence at prayers, urges ‘all sides’ to respect site]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( [Week after Haredim disrupted egalitarian event, Rabinovitch appears to also direct ire at Women of Wall; Reform and Conservative Movements urge Lapid to implement frozen compromise]( [Orthodox leader pledges to teach pluralism after zealots overrun egalitarian prayers]( By [Judah Ari Gross]( [Rioting by Haredi extremists causes damage to construction of Jerusalem light rail]( By [TOI staff]( [Lapid to IDF officers: Our mission is to restore trust in democracy, IDF, each other]( By [Emanuel Fabian and TOI staff]( [‘Israeli power is the power of togetherness,’ PM tells graduating troops in first speech at official ceremony since becoming PM; Gantz warns Lebanon over drone incident]( [Poll shows Netanyahu-led bloc winning 61 seats, enabling government formation]( By [TOI staff]( [Bennett torpedoes Zandberg’s bid to appoint ex-Meretz leader Beilin to parks chief]( By [Tobias Siegal]( Interview [Gunning to lead Meretz, Yair Golan looks to refocus the left around a single flag]( By [Carrie Keller-Lynn]( [With progressive causes spread too thin, MK and ex-IDF deputy chief aims to rally around separating from Palestinians, while rehabbing perception of left and its electoral standing]( Top Ops [David Makovsky]( [Biden and Lapid have plenty in common]( [The two leaders each hold the political center against rising populism – and both sidestep their differences publicly in order to get stuff done]( [Chana Tannenbaum]( [The mysterious ‘passage of Balaam’]( [How much has been lost because written works of value never made it from the ancient world to the modern day? (Balak)]( [Israel asks Saudi Arabia to allow direct flights for Muslim pilgrims on way to Mecca]( By [Tobias Siegal]( [Kingdom currently allows pilgrims from Israel but requires them to travel through a third country; direct flights from Tel Aviv would cut costs by half, says Minister Esawi Frej]( [US aims to close island transfer, Saudi normalization steps before Biden trip]( By [Jacob Magid]( [Inside story / Coalition collapse could impede concessions for Palestinians ahead of Biden trip]( By [Jacob Magid]( Warning: Spoilers! [Not even Hebrew hammer Natalie Portman can save Marvel’s ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’]( By [Jordan Hoffman]( [Now in theaters, the latest soon-to-be blockbuster is entertaining – but with repetitive jokes and a juvenile tone, it’s not bad that it’s the franchise’s shortest feature in years]( Times Will Tell [Podcast: Author Faye Kellerman talks books, crime and characters]( By [TOI staff]( [The bestselling crime writer discusses ‘The Hunt,’ the last in her Decker/Lazarus series]( Laughing matter [US court rejects Roy Moore’s $95 million lawsuit against Sacha Baron Cohen]( By [Kim Chandler]( [Judges say Jewish comedian’s use of ‘pedophile detecting device’ on Alabama judge accused of misconduct was ‘clearly comedy’]( [Belfast, a broken menorah, listening to survivors: Johnson’s notable Jewish moments]( By [Cnaan Liphshiz]( [The outgoing PM proved warmly disposed to UK Jews and a friend of Israel, changing Britain’s voting pattern at the UN]( [UK’s Johnson digs in for final weeks as potential successors jostle for position]( By [Jill Lawless and DANICA KIRKA]( [Who could replace Boris Johnson as UK’s next prime minister?]( By [Jitendra Joshi and Joe JACKSON]( [CRM]( [Ukraine warns Israelis against Uman pilgrimage this fall amid Russian invasion]( By [TOI staff]( [Israel’s Foreign Ministry says it is ‘premature’ to make any final decisions, while ultra-Orthodox figures defiant that traditional Rosh Hashanah gathering will go ahead]( [‘I could not remain silent’: Moscow’s chief rabbi says he left over war in Ukraine]( By [TOI staff and JTA]( [Blinken shuns Lavrov at G20 summit, demanding Russia ‘let the grain out’ of Ukraine]( By [Shaun Tandon]( [James Caan, ‘Godfather’ and ‘Misery’ star, son of German Jews, dies at 82]( By [AP, TOI staff and JTA]( [Oscar-nominated actor toured Etzion Bloc in 2016, urged Israel not to withdraw to 1967 lines; in 2019’s ‘Holy Lands,’ played retired cardiologist who moves to Israel to raise pigs]( Analysis [Nathan Jeffay]( [Diphtheria in Australia, like polio in Israel, is collateral cost of pandemic]( [Two cases of diphtheria reported in Australia, as experts say phenomenon is caused by same vulnerability that brought polio in Israel — missed routine vaccines during the pandemic]( [Health Ministry touts 99% polio vaccination rate among babies]( By [TOI staff and Nathan Jeffay]( Analysis [Lazar Berman]( [Without budging on Iran or Palestinians, Macron offers Lapid an important gift]( [Limited in the tangible steps they can make to transform ties amid political gridlock, the French leader shows the world who he wants to win Israel’s November election]( [EU envoy calls for ‘international pressure’ to halt evictions of Palestinians]( By [AFP]( [CRM]( More Headlines [Israel grants residency visa to US rabbi convicted of sexually assaulting students]( By [Andrew Silow-Carroll]( [Herzog calls Erdogan with holiday blessings, lauds warming ties between nations]( By [TOI staff]( [UK grants $600,000 lifeline to turn old Welsh synagogue into Jewish cultural hub]( By [MADELINE FIXLER]( [Father of Bedouin charged with espionage: ‘If he did it, he should be punished’]( By [Emanuel Fabian and TOI staff]( [Man shot to death in northern town amid unrelenting deadly crime wave]( By [TOI staff]( [IDF, police bust gun-running operation on Jordanian border, seize 12 handguns]( By [Emanuel Fabian]( [Key witness at Netanyahu trial files police complaint against journalist for doxxing]( By [TOI staff]( [Planning committee approves two new Jewish villages on Golan Heights]( By [Sue Surkes]( [PA premier Shtayyeh claims Israel conducting ‘lab experiments’ on Palestinian bodies]( By [TOI staff]( [UAE court hands Israeli woman life imprisonment after death sentence struck down]( By [TOI staff]( [Polish officials found to be targeted with Israeli NSO group’s spyware]( By [AP]( [Legume doom / Hold your hummus: Global chickpea supply could drop 20% this year]( By [CALEB GUEDES-REED]( [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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