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The Tel Aviv local planning and building committee gave the final go-ahead for the construction of the 91-story Spiral Tower being planned by the Azrieli group. Construction on the 1,150-foot tall structure is expected to take four years at an estimated cost of $800 million The Azrieli Group, an Israeli real estate and holding company, announced their plan to build Israel’s tallest building as an addition to their already impressive Azrieli Center Complex in Tel Aviv. The new tower will take its place next to the iconic circle, square and triangle towers that make up the Azrieli Complex. By building...

A top House Republican revealed Sunday the investigation into the man who took four people hostage at a Texas synagogue on Saturday has gone international. What are the details? Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), the ranking member on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told CNN host Jake Tapper on "State of the Union" there is "something more" to the case than a lone actor. In fact, McCaul disclosed that the FBI's investigation now extends to London and Tel Aviv. "I know the FBI has now fanned their investigation out to London and Tel Aviv. So this has now turned into an...

The city of Tel Aviv was named after the title in Hebrew of “Old New Land” (“Altneuland” in German), a visionary novel written in 1902 by Theodore Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism. Israel’s commercial capital still blends modernity and history. This summer, as time-poor professionals were ordering coffee pods delivered by drone, archaeologists nearby were uncovering a Byzantine wine press and a 7th-century gold coin. Both discoveries might come in handy in the city that is now the world’s most expensive. According to the latest findings of the Worldwide Cost of Living Survey from The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU),...

With Ramat HaSharon approaching its centennial year, archaeological evidence indicates the Tel Aviv suburb’s history goes back much further than previously thought. “The excavation unearthed evidence of agricultural-industrial activity at the site during the Byzantine period – about 1,500 years ago. Among other finds, we discovered a large winepress paved with a mosaic as well as plastered installations and the foundations of a large structure that may have been used as a warehouse or even a farmstead,” said Dr. Yoav Arbel, who directed the excavation on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority. “Inside the buildings and installations, we found many...

The Tel Aviv municipality on Saturday informed dozens of residents of two apartment buildings in the center of the city that they may return to their homes, days after they were evacuated when the ground suddenly began heating up and emitted steam. Experts who were called in did not detect any dangerous substances at the site or any risk to the buildings’ stability, and the source of the heat was said by the municipality to be "trapped energy" from an unknown source. . . . On Thursday, residents of an apartment building on the northern end of Ibn Gabirol Street...

The State Department confirmed the sale in September The United States sold the ambassador’s residence in Israel for more than $67 million in July, according to an official Israeli record of the sale that shines new light on a transaction that has been shrouded in secrecy. The State Department confirmed the sale in September but refused to identify the buyer or disclose the sale price of the sprawling beachfront compound in the upscale Tel Aviv suburb of Herzliya. On Tuesday, it said the sale had been "open and transparent." The Israeli business newspaper Globes has identified the buyer as the...

A Russian fighter jet on Sunday reportedly came dangerously close to an Israeli passenger aircraft while on route from the Greek island of Rhodes to Tel Aviv's Ben-Gurion Airport. The incident occurred when the Israir flight entered Cypriot air space. No casualties or damage were reported. The Russian Sukhoi Su-27 came to within a mile from the Israir Airbus A320, a distance considered unsafe, for several minutes before air traffic controllers in Cyprus warned it away. Russia has fighter aircraft stationed in nearby Syria, where it is assisting the Assad regime in the civil war, leading to crowded skies in...

A police officer shown throwing a bucket during a crackdown on an illegal outdoor worship service. More later on Israel's coronavirus crackdown. New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio wants to shut down nine neighborhoods in the city starting Wednesday..... "Your own kid's high school football game...we just stood for the national anthem and then we violated every liberty and freedom that we have" "I have a right not to wear a mask" We now have video of what happened from Ammon Bundy's perspective as he took a stand against a mask-muzzle order at a high school football game..... The coronavirus freedom...

Leftist operatives are trying to break through police roadblocks in the area of Habima Square and are holding a procession while blocking traffic arteries. "Beyond the fact that the procession is not approved and constitutes a violation of public order, the violators of the order are marching in violation of emergency regulations: Failure to maintain distance from each other, number of participants above what is defined in the regulations and more. This action is contrary to regulations and constitutes a violation of public safety," the police say. At least 10 protesters were arrested and dozens of tickets were issued ...

The bags were dropped by the "green drone" Telegram group, which advocates for the legalization of cannabis in Israel, with "free love" being the group's slogan. A drone dropped hundreds of bags of cannabis on Thursday afternoon over Rabin Square in Tel Aviv, attracting dozens of confused people, who rushed to pick up as many bags as they could carry. The bags of cannabis were dropped by the "green drone" Telegram group, which advocates for the legalization of cannabis in Israel, with "free love" being the group's slogan. Before dropping the cannabis over Tel Aviv, the group published a message...

China's Ambassador to Israel, Du Wei, was found dead inside his official residence Sunday morning, a spokeswoman for Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs told CNN. At this stage, the 57-year-old's death is not being treated as suspicious. Police are outside the ambassador's residence in Herzliya -- to the north of Tel Aviv -- as part of standard procedure, the spokeswoman said. His death comes less than a week after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Jerusalem, openly criticizing China's actions during the coronavirus pandemic, as well as calling on Israeli leaders to stop signing major infrastructure and communications deals...

Full title: BREAKING NEWS: 'Huge explosion' heard across London as Twitter users report being woken by a loud bang and 'buildings shaking'

A Palestinian rally set to take place Wednesday in front of Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate has caused a diplomatic storm as both the Israeli and US ambassadors to Germany called for a performance by Palestinian rappers Shadi Al-Bourini and Shadi Al-Najjar to be banned. Their pressure succeeded at the last hour with the Jüdische Allgemeine newspaper reporting, just 30 minuted before the rally was due to start, that the Berlin Senate Department for Home Affairs and Sport said it was banning the two rappers from appearing. The spokesperson for the Home Affairs and Sport Ministry, Martin Pallgen, said it would probably...

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar warned Israel that "if the Strip is dragged into war, Israel will suffer. It won't evacuate just the towns bordering Gaza, but also Ashdod, Ashkelon, and even Tel Aviv." "Our fingers are still on the trigger, and they'll stay there in order to protect the Palestinian nation. Hamas will be a sword and shield for the Palestinian people." On Wednesday, the Palestinian Authority's Al-Quds newspaper reported that the various local factions - headed by Hamas and Islamic Jihad - ordered their members to cease using explosives along Gaza's border with Israel. The report also claimed that...

The Israeli army attacked Thursday overnight targets in Gaza Strip, hours after two rockets were fired at Tel Aviv from Gaza, a first since Israel's 2014 campaign in Gaza. According to the Israeli military, the Iron Dome missile defense system was activated. It is assumed that the rockets landed in open areas due to the fact that no damage or injuries were reported as of yet. The last time rocket alerts were activated in Tel Aviv was two years ago, in what turned out to be a false alarm. The flare-up comes three weeks before Israel holds its general election.

New sustainable biopolymer technology may one day free the world of its worst pollutant Source: American Friends of Tel Aviv University Summary: A new Tel Aviv University study describes a process to make bioplastic polymers that don't require land or fresh water — resources that are scarce in much of the world. The resulting material is biodegradable, produces zero toxic waste and recycles into organic waste. FULL STORY: The invention was the fruit of a multidisciplinary collaboration between Dr. Alexander Golberg of TAU's Porter School of Environmental and Earth Sciences and Prof. Michael Gozin of TAU's School of Chemistry....

A jewelry store at Paris Orly airport apologized for describing the Ben Gurion Airport in Israel as being located in “Occupied Palestine Territories”, JTA reported on Friday. In October, a receipt given to an Israeli couple who purchased an item at the Royal Quartz/Galeries Lafayette store said Ben Gurion was in occupied “Palestine.” The airport is located in the city of Lod, southeast of Tel Aviv. Arthur Lemoine, the director-general of the Galeries Lafayette watch division, said on Friday that steps will be taken to address the mistake. …

A former Australian prime minister has warned the government to expect a negative reaction from Indonesia if Australia follows the United States by shifting its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull spoke to reporters after meeting Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on the tourist island of Bali on Monday to discuss a bilateral free trade deal. “The president expressed to me ... the very serious concern held in Indonesia about the prospect of the Australian Embassy in Israel being moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem,” Turnbull told Australian Broadcasting Corp. in an interview...

World-renowned British rocker, Ozzy Osbourne will be coming to Israel this year to play a show to his Israeli fans. Ozzy Osbourne will be performing in Tel Aviv’s Live Park on July 8 of this year as part of his “No More Tours 2” farewell tour, along with members of Black Sabbath, the iconic band he founded and fronted 49 years ago. Ozzy has earned the informal title of “Godfather of Heavy Metal,” due to his overwhelming influence on the music genre. In a recent press conference posted to Facebook, Ozzy and his wife, Sharon Osbourne, were asked if they...

The Caliber 3 training facility takes down pics of the famous comedian snapped during a family visit Comedian Jerry Seinfeld is taking heat from fans after photos of him at a West Bank “anti-terrorism” course were posted online earlier this week. The Caliber 3 training facility, located near the settlement of Efrat south of Bethlehem, posted the photos of Seinfeld on its Facebook page with the message, “Finally we are allowed to tell you! Jerry Seinfeld and his family were in Caliber 3. During their visit to Israel last week, they came to us for a special and exciting activity...