Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers have averted a suspected car-ramming terror attack in the Arab village of Beitin, near Ramallah. An Arab driver was shot when he accelerated towards an IDF checkpoint.

No Israeli soldiers were injured in the suspected attack. The suspect was treated by paramedics at the scene, his condition remains unclear.

Israeli soldiers were reportedly operating in the village of Beitin after molotov cocktails were thrown on Highway 60.

On February 6th an Arab terrorist rammed his car into a group of IDF soldiers at Jerusalem’s First Station, injuring 12 soldiers. He was captured several hours later.

The IDF on Wednesday evening captured an infiltrator from Lebanon who crossed the border into Israel.

The IDF stated that the suspect was apprehended near the border fence, and after questioning on site he was returned to Lebanon.

No one was injured in the incident.

Official Israeli representatives around the world kicked off the elections for the 23rd Knesset ahead of the March 2 general elections.

The first to cast his vote was Dr. Itzhak Gerberg, Israel Ambassador to New Zealand. “Exciting to cast the first vote in the world for Israel’s 23^rd Knesset elections,” he wrote on Twitter.

The embassies in China and the Philippines followed next.

While most Israelis will have to wait for March to vote in the elections, Israeli representatives in 96 embassies and consulates in 77 countries across the globe cast their ballots on Wednesday.

According to the Knesset Election Law, private citizens living abroad cannot vote unless they come to Israel, but diplomats and emissaries sent abroad by the Jewish Agency, Jewish National Fund (KKL), Keren Hayesod and the World Zionist Organization can vote in time for it to be sent via diplomatic mail to Jerusalem to be counted on Election Day.

Some 5,000 Israelis living abroad are eligible to vote.

The first polling station to open abroad was the Israeli Embassy in Wellington, New Zealand. The last polling stations to close are the Israeli consulates in San Francisco and Los Angeles.

The largest polling station is the consulate in New York with 700 eligible voters, while the smallest is the Israeli Embassy in Tirana, Albania, with only four eligible voters.

At the end of the process, all envelopes are sent to the Knesset in Jerusalem, where they are guarded in a safe until Election Day. After the polls close in Israel and the counting starts, the diplomats’ ballots will be counted as well.

This is the third time in the past year that Israel is voting. The latest polls project another political stalemate and a possible fourth round of elections.

Israeli Border Police troops on Monday night arrested four Arab suspects at the Tapuach Junction in Samaria who had two Carlo submachine guns in their possession.

Intelligence information received about a suspicious vehicle containing weapons resulted in the special preparation of Border Police forces at the Tapuach Junction, a major intersection in Samaria.

During the operation, the vehicle reached the intersection with four suspects. A search of the vehicle led to the exposure of two Carlo guns that were hidden in the trunk.

The four suspects, residents of Ramallah, Qalandiya, and Jerusalem in their 20s, were arrested for investigation.

The Border Police “will continue to operate in all sectors, including in Judea and Samaria, to eliminate the production and trafficking of illegal weapons in order to thwart terrorism and keep civilians safe,” it stated.

The Carlo is an improvised weapon produced mostly in the areas in Judea and Samaria under Palestinian Authority control in illegal shops and are often used in terror attacks.

A plane is ready to be dispatched to Japan to retrieve the 13 Israelis who are on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship anchored in Yokohama and who have been quarantined for the past two weeks after the virus was discovered on board.

The PassportCard overseas travel insurance company stated Sunday that the plane was ready in Turkey for takeoff, and after receiving clearance from Israel’s Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Health, it will leave for Japan.

The plane is expected to leave as soon as Tuesday. Upon their return from Japan, the Israelis will go into isolation and medical surveillance.

Three other Israelis have contracted Coronavirus on the boat quarantined off Japan’s coast, Israel’s Ministry of Health said Sunday.

They are the first Israelis to contract the virus.

They were transferred to a hospital in Japan, and Israel has sent a specialist doctor who will be in direct contact with the relevant parties in Japan and accompany them in the medical procedure.

Dozens of passengers have already been removed from the ship and hospitalized after testing positive for the virus.

Despite several scares, Israel itself has yet to contend with a patient suffering from Corona, with several people tested for the virus all proving negative.

Israeli authorities have issued several directives aimed at blocking the entry of individuals suffering from Coronavirus into the country and its spread among the Israeli population.

Israel understands that it is only a question of time before the virus appears in the country but is taking several measures to minimize this occurrence.

China’s National Health Commission stated Sunday that at least 71,336 cases of Wuhan coronavirus have been confirmed in the country, including at least 1,776 deaths. Some 11,150 have recovered.