An ultra-Orthodox mother of five from Israel won Miami’s half-marathon on Sunday as she angles to represent Israel in the upcoming Olympics in Tokyo.

Beatie Deutsch, 30, won the 18th annual Life Time Miami Marathon and Half Marathon event in the women’s category with a time of 1:16:4, according to the Miami Herald.

Known as the Marathon Mom, Deutsch adheres to her religious observances, running in a skirt, head covering and long sleeves. But her athletic ambition is a rare quality in the Haredi world among both women and men. 

A 9-year-old boy from Belgium who is considered the world’s smartest child approached the Israeli embassy in Brussels in order to explore the possibility of continuing his advanced studies in Israel.

Laurent Simons, a child prodigy with an IQ of 147, has never been to Israel and he is not Jewish. Yet, he would like to study in Israel because he believes he can reach his highest potential here.

His parents, Lydia and Alexander Simons, asked the Israeli Consulate to help them find a suitable university for Laurent.

A host on the Qatar-based news channel, Al Jazeera, sparked quite the controversy when he wrote on Twitter that Zionism is the “most successful project of the past century.”

Faisal al-Kasim, a Druze born in Syria, hosts the popular talk show The Opposite Direction on Al Jazeera and has frequently criticized Arab and Islamic regimes in the Middle East, along with Israel.

Last week he shocked many, however, when he extolled Israel as a success. 

The first ever public meeting between Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman could take place later this month, according to several sources. 

Such a meeting would mark a major milestone in relations between Israel and the Arab world. Netanyahu and MBS are believed to have met in secret before, but a public meeting would be a game changer in geopolitics of the region.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has been trying to arrange this for months now, according to reports. The meeting would take place at a summit in Cairo with leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Bahrain and Oman in attendance.

In what was described as “a low point in Israel’s history,” former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert joined Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a joint press conference to denounce the American peace plan.

Olmert joined Abbas just a few hours after the Palestinian leader called Israel “the apartheid regime” during a speech on Tuesday at the United Nations Security Council in New York. 

Olmert and Abbas held negotiations in 2008 during the former prime minister’s time in office. Olmert resigned after being charged with corruption and was later sentenced to prison where he served 16 months.