Netanyahu chooses to stay in Rome after Tel Aviv attack

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not change his schedule and fly back early from Italy following the attack in Tel Aviv on Thursday, according to an official lose to the prime minister.

"The Prime Minister will meet tomorrow at noon with the Prime Minister of Italy for an important political meeting, so there is no change in the schedule and there will be no surrender to terrorism," said the official.

Netanyahu's goals in Italy

The Prime Minister's Office later updated that, "Netanyahu completed a security situation assessment, where decisions were made regarding several operations, primarily the reinforcement of forces in the field," and again clarified that "due to the importance of the political meeting scheduled by the Italian government, the schedule will continue as intended."

Getting there is half the battle

Israel's national airline El Al pilots left Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, high and dry after no one volunteered to fly Israel's first couple out to Rome for a state visit to Italy scheduled later this week, El Al Airlines said on Sunday. 

The deadline of a tender issued by Israel's national airline, as is required when the prime minister is set to depart on a commercial airline, expired at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday and was met with indifference by El Al pilots and flight attendants, who refused to take up the opportunity.

Thousands of protestors against the government's proposed judicial reforms disrupted traffic at Ben-Gurion International Airport beginning on Thursday in order to delay Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's flight.

Haaretz reported earlier on Wednesday that the prime minister's office requested that Netanyahu and his accompanying entourage travel from Jerusalem to the airport via helicopter so as to avoid the attempt to block his flight.