Bahrain welcomes Israeli envoy, signaling revived ties
(JNS) — Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani on Wednesday received the credentials of Israeli Ambassador Shmuel Revel at the ministry’s headquarters in Manama, the state-run Bahrain News Agency reported.
“The foreign minister welcomed the ambassador, wishing him success in his diplomatic duties,” the article stated. “Dr. Al Zayani emphasized the importance of continuing efforts to support peace, security and stability in the region.”
Also present at the meeting were Khaled Yousef Al Jalahma, undersecretary for political affairs, and Salah Mohammed Shehab, chief of protocol at the Foreign Ministry.
Revel was the first head of Israel’s Trade Representation Office in Doha, Qatar.
Israel and Bahrain normalized relations in 2020 as part of the Abraham Accords reached under the first Trump administration, which also saw Jerusalem establish official relations with the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan.
Diplomatic relations between Jerusalem and the Gulf state faced temporary setbacks following the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 and the subsequent war in Gaza.
Nearly a month after the massacre, it was reported that Bahrain recalled Ambassador Khaled Yousif Al Jalahma and halted economic relations with Israel.
Nazi-looted painting spotted in Argentine real estate ad
(JNS) — A late-Baroque portrait stolen from a Jewish arts dealer in Europe by the Nazis during World War II has surfaced in Argentina, having been featured in an online real-estate ad, a Dutch newspaper reported on Monday.
“Portrait of a Lady” by Vittore Ghislandi, an Italian painter who died in 1743, belonged to the Dutch Jewish collector Jacques Goudstikker.
In 2006, government-commissioned investigators determined that hundreds of artworks from his massive collection had been seized or bought under duress by the Nazis and were therefore looted. More than 200 of them were restituted in the early 2000s, but many remained missing.
In recent weeks, “Portrait of a Lady” was seen on a real estate listing in Argentina, where it casually appeared as part of the asset’s interior decoration, the AD newspaper reported. The paper’s research into how the painting got there led to Friedrich Kadgien, who had served as top Nazi official Hermann Göring’s financial adviser. Kadgien fled to Argentina after World War II and died there.
The house advertised in the listing belongs to one of his daughters, according to AD. She told the paper she did not know what painting they meant and then said she was too busy to answer their queries, according to AD.
One last UNIFIL renewal, then complete withdrawal from Lebanon in 2027
(JNS) — The mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon will be renewed one final time on Thursday morning, a reliable diplomatic source told JNS.
The U.S. mission to the United Nations confirmed to JNS that the vote will take place but said it could not preview its position.
UNIFIL is tasked with monitoring the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire and helping the Lebanese Armed Forces disarm Hezbollah and restore Lebanese government control to the south of the country. Its current mandate is slated to expire on Sunday. (JNS sought comment from the Israeli mission to the United Nations.)
The Trump administration has called the mission an “abject failure,” in light of Hezbollah’s military buildup, leading to nearly a year of almost daily attacks on Israel during the Israel-Hamas war before the Jewish state dismantled the terror group’s leadership and infrastructure.
The White House got Congress to approve canceling tens of millions of dollars in unspent UNIFIL funding, and Washington turned down a French-led U.N. Security Council draft resolution, which failed to include a definitive end date for the mission.
The newest French draft, which JNS viewed, calls for the council to “extend for a final time the mandate of UNIFIL” until Dec. 31, 2026.
UK: 67 charged for backing Palestine Action
(JNS) — London’s Metropolitan Police Service laid charges against 67 individuals for showing support for the outlawed Palestine Action group, the police announced on Tuesday.
The Crown Prosecution Service authorized the charges for an offense under section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000, with a maximum punishment of six months’ imprisonment, the Met said.
The designation of the group as a terrorist organization was passed in July by a significant majority in the House of Commons (385 to 26), making it a crime to belong to or support Palestine Action — placing it on the same legal footing as groups like Al-Qaeda and Islamic State.
Cmdr. Dominic Murphy from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command said that all those charged were arrested in central London on July 5 or July 12.
“The notion that by coming out and showing support toward a proscribed terrorist group will overwhelm us is completely misguided,” Murphy said in a Met statement.
“The reality for those who have carried out this action is that they are now facing serious charges under the Terrorism Act. If convicted of such an offense, it can have a severe impact on your life or career,” he added.
“My message to anyone thinking about carrying out similar action in the coming weeks is to reconsider,” the commander warned.
KLM to resume flights to Israel in September
(JNS) — KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is resuming flights to Israel next month, becoming the latest carrier to restore service to Tel Aviv following Israel’s 12-day war with Iran in June, the airline announced on Tuesday.
The move highlights both the resurgence of the Israeli aviation sector and the reemergence of Tel Aviv as an international travel hub at a time when an ever-increasing number of foreign carriers have resumed flights to Israel.
The Dutch flag carrier will renew daily flights to Israel from Amsterdam starting on Sept. 28, although there will be a stopover in Larnaca, Cyprus, while service from Tel Aviv to Amsterdam will be direct.
Other international carriers planning to restore service to Israel include Delta Air Lines, which is set to restart flights next week, while Air Canada, Italy’s ITA Airways, British Airways and Irish budget carrier Ryanair are scheduled to resume operations in October.
Some 92,000 passengers traveled through Ben-Gurion International Airport on Aug. 21, the highest single-day figure since the Hamas-led invasion of southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, according to the Israel Airports Authority.
