Jamal Khashoggi’s US lawyer sentenced to three years following detention in UAE

A shocking story from Yahoo News relays a US intelligence report that warns of potential assassination threats from Iran against top Trump administration officials, including the ex-president himself to avenge the 2020 death of Qassem Soleimani.

Here’s a refresher on who General Soleimani was and his role in Iran and the wider region.

US President Joe Biden left Israeli President Isaac Herzog a personal message of friendship in a note for the visitors’ book at the presidential residence in Jerusalem.

My friend, thank you for all you and your family have done to deepen the ironclad bonds between our two great countries. From our shared Irish roots to our shared love of Israel we are united in heart and spirit. May our friendship endure and continue to grow!

After his meeting with the Israeli president, Joe Biden met with former Prime Minister and leader of the opposition Benjamin Netanyahu.

President Joe Biden is participating in a ceremony with President Isaac Herzog in which he is being awarded the Israeli Presidential Medal of Honour.

In remarks before the ceremony, Mr Herzog said he brought with him a copy of the minutes from then-Senator Biden’s 1973 meeting with Golda Meir that he frequently talks about.

The minutes record how the young Mr Biden “was carried away by his enthusiasm” during the meeting on his first trip to Israel.

In an article exclusively for The Independent, Aida Touma-Sliman, a member of the Israeli Knesset has a plea for Joe Biden: “We need to talk about the Palestinian people, even if you’d rather not.”

President Joe Biden is six years older than the state of Israel, which was established in 1948, and he’s met every one of the country’s prime ministers since he first became as a US senator in 1973.

He first visited Israel that year shortly before the Yom Kippur War - fought between Israel and Arab nations.

The United States would use force to prevent Iran from acquiring or developing nuclear weapons if all other options fail, President Joe Biden has said.

Mr Biden said the US would use its military to prevent Iran’s nuclear program from succeeding in bringing about a working nuclear weapon during an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 news.

Andrew Feinberg reports.

When Joe Biden travels to Bethlehem he will be greeted by large billboards emblazoned with the words: “Mr President, this is apartheid,” alongside a map of what is left of the disconnected Palestinian territories — a stunt arranged by Israeli human rights group B’Tselem.

Richard Hall reports on how some of the world’s leading human rights groups have condemned Israel for committing what the president opposed so fiercely as a senator in the 1980s and how he is accused of ignoring it today.

Per The White House:

President Biden met with President Isaac Herzog of Israel today ahead of the Israeli Medal of Honour ceremony this evening. The leaders discussed several issues including the United States’ ironclad support for Israel’s security, their commitment to working together to counter Iran’s destabilising activities, and efforts to promote regional integration to widen the circle of peace. President Biden and President Herzog reaffirmed the deep bonds and enduring friendship between our two nations and our people.