Submitted by: M Mulukin
A fifth Muslim country is reportedly preparing to establish diplomatic relations with Israel before the end of Trump’s term in the White House.
Prior to the end of President Donald Trump’s term in January 2021, Israel may ink a peace deal with yet another Muslim nation.
This country would become the fifth Muslim-majority state to establish diplomatic relations during the Abraham Accords era, following Israel’s agreements with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco.
The news was reported by Ynet on Wednesday.
“There will be an American announcement about another country that is going public with the normalization of relations with Israel and, in essence, with the infrastructure for an accord — a peace accord,” said Regional Cooperation Minister Ofir Akunis, The Algemeiner reported.
While Akunis didn’t name the state to which he was referring, he said there were two candidates, with one in the Persian Gulf.
This led to speculation that Akunis was hinting at Oman, because he definitively indicated he country is not Saudi Arabia.
With regard to the second country, Akunis reportedly ruled out Pakistan, but said it is a “Muslim country that is not small” and is further east than the first.
Developing..............
Kushner joins Israelis on landmark visit to Morocco.
U.S. White House Senior Adviser Jared Kushner, speaks to journalists after U.S. Ambassador David Friedman unveiled a plaque at the U.S.
embassy designating the Kushner Courtyard, seen at right, Monday, December 21, 2020. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo, Pool)
RABAT, Morocco — Senior White House adviser Jared Kushner led a delegation from Israel to Morocco on Tuesday on the first known direct flight since the two countries agreed to establish full diplomatic ties earlier this month as part of a series of U.S.-brokered normalization accords with Arab countries.
Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, has overseen the diplomatic push that saw the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco normalize relations with Israel in historic agreements that also brought them major favours from Washington.
As part of the deal, Morocco, which is home to a small but centuries-old Jewish community and has long welcomed Israeli tourists, secured U.S. recognition of its 1975 annexation of the disputed region of Western Sahara, which is not recognized by the United Nations.
The 23rd Knesset dissolves. Elections on March 23 ......
December 24, 2020
Nine months after being sworn in, the 23rd Knesset dissolved at midnight on December 22 and its 120 members left an empty chamber, after failing to pass a state budget for 2020. Israel holds its fourth election in two years on March 23rd.
The “unity government” established for a consolidated effort to battle the coronavirus lasted seven months before collapsing under the weight of endless squabbles between the two main partners, Likud and Kahol Lavan.
PM Binyamin Netanyahu said he had no wish to face the voter again, and blamed his coalition partner, Kahol Lavan leader defence minister Benny Gantz, for forcing this election by allowing his fellow faction member, Justice Minister Nissenkorn, to impose “a leftist dictatorship.” He promised his Likud would win big. Gantz’s rejoinder: “It’s all lies.”
Likud’s main challenge this time round comes not from the fragmented Kahol Lavan as in the last three ballots, but the right wing, including the new party set up last week by the defecting former minister Gideon Saar, and Naphtali Bennett’s Yemina.
Some of the parties contesting the vote will hold leadership primaries. They must submit their slates by February 7.
By a hairline majority of 49 to 47, Israel’s parliament acted in the small hours of December 22 to dissolve itself at midnight, forcing the country to endure its fourth election in two years on March 23.
The vote came amid a stormy debate and bitter Likud recriminations against Defence Minister Benny Gantz and his rebellious Kahol Lavan faction, which forced the vote hours before the budget deadline. This shut the door on even the faintest chance of a compromise for staving off an unwanted election in the middle of a soaring coronavirus crisis.
Jumping the aisle with them to vote with the opposition, Likud lawmaker Michal Shir Segman announced she was joining Gideon Saar, who split from Likud last week to establish a new party in opposition to PM Binyamin Netanyahu.
Developing.....
Russian and Chinese bombers fly joint patrol over Pacific.
December 23, 2020
In this photo taken from a video distributed by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service, on Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020, a Chinese H-6K strategic
bomber flies during a joint patrol mission over the Western Pacific. Russian and Chinese bombers flew a joint patrol mission over the Western
Pacific Tuesday in a show of increasingly close military ties between Moscow and Beijing. The Russian military said that a pair of its Tu-95
strategic bombers and four Chinese H-6K bombers flew over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service)
MOSCOW — Russian and Chinese bombers flew a joint patrol mission over the Western Pacific Tuesday in a show of increasingly close military ties between Moscow and Beijing.
The Russian military said that a pair of its Tu-95 strategic bombers and four Chinese H-6K bombers flew over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea.
The Russian Defence Ministry said in a statement that the joint mission was intended to “develop and deepen the comprehensive Russia-China partnership, further increase the level of cooperation between the two militaries, expand their ability for joint action and strengthen strategic stability.”
The ministry added that the patrol flight “wasn’t directed against any third countries.”
It follows Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statement in October that the idea of a future Russia-China military alliance can’t be ruled out — a signal of deepening military cooperation between Moscow and Beijing amid growing tensions in their relations with the United States.
Until that moment, Russia and China had hailed their “strategic partnership,” but rejected any talk about the possibility of their forming a military alliance. Things have changed quite suddenly?
Putin also noted in October that Russia has been sharing highly sensitive military technologies with China that helped significantly bolster its defence capability.
South Korea Scrambles Jets as Chinese, Russian Aircraft Enter Air Defence Zone.
24 December 2020
South Korea said it scrambled fighter jets in response to an intrusion into its air defence identification zone by 19 Russian and Chinese military aircraft on Tuesday.
Four Chinese warplanes entered the Korea Air Defence Identification Zone (KADIZ) followed by 15 Russian aircraft, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
The South Korean military dispatched air force fighters to take tactical measures.
The South Korean military said the Chinese military had informed South Korea that its planes were carrying out routine training before the Chinese aircraft entered the KADIZ.
"This incident seems to be a joint military drill between China and Russia but it requires a further analysis," the JCS said in a statement.
3 asteroids, including one bigger than the Washington Monument, to fly past Earth on Christmas Day.
The largest space rock is known as asteroid 501647 (2014 SD224)
The fire ball that passed over Japan in 2017 is linked to a mile-long asteroid. Scientists now believe that the asteroid, known as 2003 YT1 could break up and harm life on Earth.
Three asteroids, including one that's larger than the Washington Monument, are set to safely fly past Earth on Christmas Day, according to NASA's Centre for Near-Earth Object Studies.
The largest space rock, known as asteroid 501647 (2014 SD224), is slated to come within 1.9 million miles of Earth and is thought to have a diameter as great as 689 feet. At its size and distance, it is considered a "potentially hazardous" Near-Earth Object (NEO), but it poses no threat to the planet when it zips past later this week.
"Potentially hazardous" NEOs are defined as space objects that come within 0.05 astronomical units and measure more than 460 feet in diameter, NASA explained. According to a 2018 report by Planetary.org,
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