LIVE DEVELOPMENTS — updated Tuesday, September 8, 2026  

Israel’s Ambassador Says NYC’s Mamdani Is ‘Sowing Chaos’ Ahead Of Netanyahu’s UN Appearance

TRUSTED ANALYSIS

Day 1,068 — Tuesday, September 8

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon told Fox News Digital that New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is “sowing chaos” ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the U.N. General Assembly later this month.

Danon made the remark after Mamdani called on New Yorkers in July to protest when Netanyahu arrives to speak at the general debate at U.N. headquarters on Sept. 24.

“No one can ignore Mayor Mamdani, you know, instead of actually welcoming all world leaders and making sure that the city will function properly, he is doing exactly the opposite,” Danon said.

“He is inciting, he is sowing chaos into the city. So this year, unfortunately, it will be harder for every New Yorker or every visitor because the mayor is actually calling for people to go out, to demonstrate and it will not deter us. The prime minister will come, will speak and will represent our nation,” the ambassador added.

Mamdani’s office, when asked by Fox News Digital if he had any plans to meet with Netanyahu while he is in town, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“I don’t think the prime minister wants to meet with him,” Danon said.

Mamdani previously called Netanyahu a “war criminal” and “architect of a horrific genocide against the Palestinian people.” The Democratic socialist also acknowledged that he can’t have Netanyahu arrested despite promising to do so during his mayoral campaign.

When asked by a reporter in July about “What do you think that these people who are frustrated with Netanyahu should do when he arrives in New York City for the United Nations meeting,” Mamdani said, “One of the bedrocks of our city is protest.”

“It is something that has been a part of what makes our city so special, that New Yorkers can express themselves whether they are in support or in opposition no matter on whatever topic,” the Democratic socialist mayor said during the press conference on July 22. “And I’ve always said that when we respect our Constitution, we also respect our First Amendment. And here in New York City it will always be a place where you can exercise that.”

Netanyahu told Fox News “Hannity” around a week later that, “I’m going to New York,” and, “I’m going to speak the truth in front of this hate-spewing elected official who’s pitting one group of New Yorkers against the others.”

Danon told Fox News Digital that “we have been involved in a war, a difficult one, a long one, and I think now we have a lot of opportunities ahead of us.”

“So the prime minister would also speak about what we achieved, but also about the opportunities,” he said.

Danon also said Israel has to “finish the job” in Gaza.

“Hamas is still there. They are supposed to disarm, according to the president’s plan. I hope it will take place. I hope that it will happen sooner than later because if it will not happen, we will have to do the job ourselves. But we cannot leave a terrorist organization in Gaza. There will be no future for the people of Gaza or for us if Hamas will stay in power,” he continued.

“I think we can be very proud of our achievements. Israel is being criticized, but we walk very proud at the U.N. because we know that what we did, fighting evil, fighting Iran, fighting Hezbollah, fighting Hamas, it wasn’t only our fight. We fought for the Western societies, for the Western democracies,” Danon also said.

fox news 

Day 1,068 — Tuesday, September 8

Florida Congressman Randy Fine (R-FL) warned Britain on Monday that companies complying with reported British sanctions targeting Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria could be barred from doing business with state and local governments in Florida.

“As the British government considers forcing British companies to boycott portions of Israel, it should be aware that a Florida law that I passed as a member of the Legislature would ban any British company forced to comply from doing business with any state or local government in Florida,” Fine wrote on social media.

He added that the legislation “would also end any British business participating in that boycott from doing any business in Florida if it needed any official interaction with state or local government to operate (permits, tax collection).”

Fine stated that the potential consequences for Britain would be substantial. “Florida is one of Britain’s largest trading partners. They should understand that their vanity project in support of Muslim terror could cost them billions of dollars,” he wrote.

“And for those who doubt the power of this policy,” continued Fine, “it was this same law that broke Airbnb’s misguided effort to boycott portions of Israel in 2019. They realized that this law would have bankrupted their company.”

“Florida has made it clear. Any company – or nation – that boycotts Israel is boycotted by Florida,” he concluded.

Fine was responding to a report in The New York Times that Britain is preparing to announce expanded economic measures against Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. The reported measures could include prohibiting trade in goods produced in the communities and imposing sanctions on companies involved in construction there.

Three officials cited by the newspaper said Britain is also considering sanctions against companies that assist construction in Jewish communities. Such steps would broaden previous British sanctions related to Judea and Samaria, which have largely targeted individuals.

The reported plans come after Britain condemned Israel’s plans for construction in the E1 area between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim. Israel recently issued a tender covering seven residential compounds in E1 with 1,234 housing units, following approval last year of approximately 3,400 units in the area.

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has called on Israel to withdraw the tender, describing the project as “an unacceptable and destructive act” and arguing that construction in E1 would undermine the possibility of establishing a future Palestinian state.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said last week that Israel would respond to British measures.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called Monday for action against Britain before the expected sanctions are announced Tuesday, including the expulsion of Britain’s ambassador.

“The British ambassador should be expelled this evening. We will not be a doormat for an antisemitic government in a country that has been conquered by radical Islam and is trying to save itself from economic and social decline by attacking Jews and the State of Israel. The British Mandate in the Land of Israel is over,” Smotrich said.

arutz sheva

Day 1,068 — Tuesday, September 8

The Pacific nation of Naoero (formerly known as Nauru) opened an embassy in Jerusalem on Monday, becoming the ninth country to locate its diplomatic mission in Israel’s capital.

“Israel’s relations with the nations of the South Pacific are advancing tremendously,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said at the event. “Today two ancient peoples stand together in Jerusalem, proud of our identity, our heritage and our friendship.”

Linking the Pacific nation’s reclaimed indigenous name to Jewish history, Sa’ar added that “we, too, are the indigenous people of this land” and that “Jews are called Jews because we are from Judea.”

“Our support for Israel has been unwavering,” said Naoero’s Foreign Minister Lionel Aingimea. “Naoero is historically one of Israel’s most reliable and consistent diplomatic allies at the United Nations.”

He continued: “We see opening an embassy here in Jerusalem not only as strengthening our ties with Israel, but also as a message to the world of where we stand. Our motto is God first, and Israel always has a special place in our hearts.”

Aingimea noted that the “easy decision” to establish the mission in Jerusalem came after discussions with Sa’ar in Fiji and received full endorsement from Naoero’s Cabinet.

The island nation is one of the smallest countries in the world, with a population of about 12,000 people.

Nine countries now have embassies in Israel’s capital: the United States, Fiji, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo, Naoero, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay and Somaliland.

All the other nations that have diplomatic relations with Israel maintain their embassies in Tel Aviv or its suburbs.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to move the American embassy to Jerusalem during his first term set the stage for other countries to follow suit.

The leaders of Argentina and Colombia have pledged to relocate their embassies to Jerusalem.

jns

Day 1,067 — Monday, September 7

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a fresh warning to Iran on Sunday, saying Tehran would face a devastating response if it attacks Israel as he vowed to complete the mission of toppling the Iranian regime.

“That regime in Iran, its end is near,” Netanyahu said at a government Rosh Hashanah toast in Jerusalem, according to a translation from Hebrew. “It is weak. It is fighting for its life. It is faltering. There is another mission to complete, and we are determined to achieve it.

“This will permanently change the face of the Middle East and the history of our people. We know we are determined to do it, and we know we are capable of doing it.”

Israel is “stronger than ever,” he hailed, claiming the military campaign, carried out with U.S. support, has removed the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program and ballistic missiles.

“We are determined to defend ourselves,” Netanyahu continued. “We are determined to strike our enemies. They are not attacking us. Iran is refraining from doing so, and it knows why.

“Of course, it could make the mistake of attacking us. If it does, it will suffer a blow beyond anything it can even imagine.”

Netanyahu’s remarks came as he praised Israeli forces and security services for ongoing operations in Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank, and told his enemies: “Do not mess with us.”

fox news 

Day 1,067 — Monday, September 7

The Israel Defense Forces launched an unannounced nationwide readiness drill early on Sunday morning to test its preparedness for a sudden, large-scale multi-front conflict ahead of the upcoming High Holidays, according to an army statement.

Under the direction of the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the General Staff surprise exercise—dubbed “Breaking Dawn 2.0″—evaluates the military headquarters, command decision-making and rapid deployment capabilities across multiple operational sectors.

As part of the drill, senior commanders throughout regional commands, branches and directorates were summoned, while standby forces mobilized and reserve readiness underwent review. Zamir observed operations from both the military’s underground Supreme Command Post and positions in the field.

The IDF noted that the public may observe increased movement of ground security forces and aircraft nationwide during the drill, emphasizing that the maneuvers do not stem from an active security emergency.

Conducted under the Operations Directorate’s scheduled training program, the exercise tests updated operational plans and incorporates tactical lessons learned from combat across various fronts following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre.

IDF Comptroller officers in both active-duty and reserve service are actively inspecting units and headquarters throughout the country to review compliance and operational readiness.

The military is facing a “tense and volatile period” on all war fronts, Zamir said on Sunday during a situational assessment held as part of the exercise.

“We are preparing for the upcoming holiday period,” Zamir said, referring to Rosh Hashanah, which will be celebrated on Sept. 12–13. He noted that the military continues to draw lessons from the war, adding that “the baseline posture of the entire IDF is readiness for a surprise attack.”

The nationwide exercise tests readiness across every branch and echelon, from the General Staff to tactical field units, and ensures operational orders remain up to date, the chief of staff said. The assessment also evaluated how commands handle an emerging multi-front scenario under diverse operational conditions.

Hanan Gefen, a former commander of the Israel Defense Forces’ Unit 8200 signals intelligence unit, told JNS that there is a need for closer coordination not only among military forces but also with police, first responders and emergency services that would be called upon during a major terrorist attack.

He said areas such as Eilat and other parts of southern Israel that were not directly exposed on Oct. 7 must also be incorporated into such coordination efforts, particularly given their long and remote borders and relatively sparse population centers.

Gefen said that the Oct. 7 attack exposed a total collapse of Israel’s defense systems. For two or three days, he said, defensive efforts did not come through the traditional command-and-control structure but instead relied on local initiatives, including those led by civilians who played a critical role.

“Even today, we cannot appreciate or understand the full extent of these local initiatives. This is the major lesson learned,” he said.

Gefen emphasized that Sunday’s drill sends a broader message to Israel’s enemies, including Hezbollah, against which Israel is operating covertly on the ground and dismantling strategic strongholds; Hamas, whose head of internal security was recently captured; and Iran, a major state sponsor of terrorism.

“These messages hit very hard. The main overall message, though, is that Israel is acting thoroughly and regrouping,” he said.

Nitzan Nuriel, former director of the Counter-Terrorism Bureau in the Prime Minister’s Office, told JNS that any military exercise that is publicized is intended to send a message, demonstrate power and showcase capabilities.

“It’s not only about us, it’s about our neighbors. In every exercise we publish, there are messages to our allies and enemies,” he said.

To Israel’s allies, Nuriel said, the message is that over the past three years, Israel has achieved significant military accomplishments, and it continues to improve its capabilities, making it a powerful partner.

“To our enemies, the message is: Yes, we have been fighting for three years, but we know what we are fighting for. We are not tired, and we feel capable of taking care of our security if needed,” he said.

“I believe that the Syrian regime may be eyeing more options in case talks between us do not move forward. Hezbollah and many other players, even Turkey, need to receive those messages from us,” Nuriel said.

In addition to the nationwide readiness check, the military announced on Sunday that it will launch a large-scale exercise in the Eilat region and the Jordan Valley.

The drill, led by the 80th “Edom” Division, begins on Monday and will run for several days. Starting Sunday, residents may notice heavy movement of security forces, aircraft and naval vessels, according to the IDF.

Soldiers will rehearse scenarios including a surprise attack and infiltrations of Israeli territory by air, sea and land. The exercise will test the defense of border communities, including the resort city of Eilat, along with force readiness and air and naval integration.

Troops will also drill operational coordination with the Israeli Air Force and Israeli Navy, as well as the Israel Police and the Magen David Adom emergency response organization.

Zamir said on Sept. 3 that Israel “fundamentally changed” its security doctrine during the three-year war that followed the “failure” of the Oct. 7 attacks.

There is no more “ignoring and no containment; there is the removal of threats before they materialize. We are engaged in a continuous process of learning, drawing lessons and implementing them,” Zamir said at a recognition event for IDF troops and security forces, organized by the State Employees’ Union, according to the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, which did not specify the location of the conference.

“For more than a thousand days, the State of Israel has been engaged in a prolonged, unprecedented and multi-front campaign for our existence and our homeland,” the military chief was quoted as saying.

Zamir stressed that over the course of the war, Israel’s security forces “have removed real existential threats that had been built up against us for years. We have proven that the IDF’s long arm is powerful, determined and capable of reaching anywhere to strike those who seek to harm us.”

He went on to say that the military must be expanded with the necessary manpower and equipped with advanced capabilities to meet its evolving missions, while at the same time, the state’s “highest obligation” is to care for those who serve in the IDF.

These include mandatory service personnel, career service personnel, reservists and IDF employees, “who are the foundation of our strength and the secret to our power,” Zamir said.

“This is a generation of courageous and fearless troops whose achievements will be recorded in the annals of Jewish history,” he continued.

Upon receiving an award of appreciation, the military chief stated, “I stand here solely as the commander of hundreds of thousands of troops and officers—both in mandatory service and the reserves—who carry the security of the state on their shoulders every day, hour by hour.”

This award “belongs to the reservists who left behind their homes, families and careers and reported for duty out of a profound sense of mission; it belongs to the families who provide them with unwavering support, and to the fallen and wounded who have paid the highest price. I am merely the representative of an entire military that operates with dedication, determination and humility, and I accept this recognition in their name and because of them.”

jns

Day 1,067 — Monday, September 7

Lebanese MP Fouad Makhzoumi said Lebanon could establish peace with Israel and join the Abraham Accords if Hezbollah is fully disarmed and armed groups are prevented from dragging the country into future conflicts.

“I don’t see any reason why we cannot sign peace with Israel,” Makhzoumi said in an interview with Middle East 24, adding that Lebanon could “achieve” membership in the Abraham Accords.

Makhzoumi said normalization with Israel would benefit Lebanon but maintained that diplomatic relations and trade could move forward only once “our side, as Lebanese, disarms the militias.”

He said Lebanon must ensure armed groups are no longer able to use the country as a base for attacks or involve it in conflicts based on their own ideological objectives.

Makhzoumi said the country needs to disarm Hezbollah and “make sure that there is no opportunity for somebody to take me to a war under ideological reasons.”

In addition to addressing armed groups, Makhzoumi said Lebanon would need to establish a strong banking system that complies with international regulations and “have peace with Israel.”

The Lebanese lawmaker has previously called on the country’s military to demonstrate its willingness to confront Hezbollah’s weapons trafficking.
He urged the military to establish a checkpoint in Beirut’s Dahieh neighborhood as part of those efforts.

Makhzoumi’s comments come as regional and US officials have held broader discussions about possible changes in regional alliances and greater economic cooperation. Recent investments from the UAE have also been part of developments surrounding economic cooperation in the region.

world israel news

Day 1,066 — Sunday, September 6

Iran‘s Foreign Ministry on Saturday condemned the U.S. strikes on three Iranian oil tankers as a “war crime,” warning Washington and its allies they would bear responsibility for any further escalation.

The statement came hours after U.S. Central Command said American forces struck the tankers in response to what it said was an Iranian missile attack targeting two U.S. Navy warships patrolling regional waters.

In its statement, the ministry accused the United States of carrying out a broader campaign of military and economic pressure against Iran and claimed the strikes violated Article 2(4) of the U.N. Charter.

The ministry also said Iran would continue defending its sovereignty and national interests against what it characterized as U.S. aggression.

Iranian state media aired what it said was audio of the U.S. Navy warning one of the Iranian oil tankers to evacuate before it was struck, according to Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst.

Reporting from the Gulf region on “Fox Report,” Yingst said the reported communication instructed those aboard to evacuate part of the vessel before the attack.

Yingst said the reported warning suggested the U.S. military sought to avoid civilian casualties while still delivering what he described as “a very clear message of force” to Iran.

“It’s an indication that the U.S. military wants to send a very clear message of force to the Iranians, but they’re not looking to kill civilians in the process,” Yingst said.

The United States has not publicly confirmed the reported communication.

Fox News 

Day 1,065 — Saturday, September 5

The U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned on Friday a Turkish investment bank and two subsidiaries for allegedly helping Iran move tens of millions of dollars internationally on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force.

The department designated Istanbul-based Golden Global Yatirim Bankasi Anonim Sirketi, or Golden Global Bank, accusing it of providing Iran with critical correspondent banking access and facilitating transactions for the IRGC-QF, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ foreign-operations arm.

Treasury said Golden Global Bank was established to help Iran’s so-called rahbar network transfer oil revenue from China to Turkey, where it could be converted into cash and gold through rahbar money exchangers.

Scott Bessent, the U.S. treasury secretary, stated that “financial institutions continue to find out the hard way that we are serious about Operation Economic Outcast,” the Trump administration’s campaign aimed at cutting off the networks and financial channels Iran uses to smuggle oil, evade sanctions and fund terrorist proxies.

“While we hope no more banks will need to be sanctioned, that ultimately depends on how quickly the international community comes to its senses and ceases support of the murderous Iranian regime,” he said. “We know who you are, we know where you are and we will continue to take action together with our allies and partners until we have buried the head of the Iranian snake.”

According to Treasury, Golden Global knowingly provided correspondent banking services to Iranian financial institutions, allowing transactions through accounts controlled by the IRGC-QF and its proxies. Those included accounts linked to Turkish businessman Sitki Ayan and his companies, which the department sanctioned in 2022 for facilitating hundreds of millions of dollars in Iranian oil sales for the IRGC-QF.

Treasury also sanctioned two Turkey-based subsidiaries controlled by Golden Global Bank: Golden Global Varlik Kiralama Anonim Sirketi and Golden Global Portfoy Yonetimi Anonim Sirketi.

Iran relies on multinational shadow-banking networks to move money abroad and access U.S. dollar correspondent banking relationships, Treasury said. The networks help Iran launder funds, procure weapons and finance regional terrorist proxy groups.

jns

Day 1,065 — Saturday, September 5

Israel will not withdraw from Southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed throughout the country and the danger posed by attacks from the Land of the Cedars is neutralized, Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Friday.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu and I are leading a clear and uncompromising policy, implemented every day by the IDF: Israel will not withdraw from the security zone in Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed throughout Lebanon and the threats to the residents of the Galilee are removed,” Katz said.

“The capture of Ali al-Taher is an important step toward achieving this goal,” he added.

Katz said the IDF’s capture of the Ali al-Taher Ridge in southeastern Lebanon marked the completion of a phase in consolidating Israel’s hold on the security zone.

The decision to advance toward the ridge was made after intelligence indicated the presence of Hezbollah command-and-control tunnels there, according to the defense minister.

The tunnels served as a command center for attacks on IDF troops and the Galilee, while the ridge constituted Hezbollah’s last commanding position protecting the Nabatieh area, giving it strategic importance, Katz said.

The IDF operated in difficult terrain during both offensive and defensive operations on the ridge.

“I closely followed the activity on the ridge, including maintaining contact with the forces in the field, and I was deeply impressed by their commitment to the mission,” Katz said.

He noted that to protect Israeli troops, a strict information blackout had been imposed on details of the operation.

“In a complex and systematic operation, the mission was completed and the tunnels were cleared of terrorists,” Katz said. “I salute the determination of the IDF command and the courage of the fighters.”
The IDF said earlier on Friday that troops from the 36th Division had operated in recent weeks to clear and neutralize two underground routes in the Ali al-Taher Ridge area.

The troops established operational control of the ridge both above and below ground and cleared the area of Hezbollah terrorists. Some were killed, while others fled, according to the military.

The operation to neutralize the underground infrastructure is continuing. Once it is completed, the IDF will adjust its defensive posture based on its assessment of the situation.

The underground network contained command centers, weapons-storage rooms, generator rooms, living quarters, showers and a kitchen, enabling Hezbollah terrorists to conduct operations and remain underground for extended periods.

The IDF described it as a strategic underground network built over two decades with Iranian funding and planning.

The IDF said its operations over recent weeks had neutralized the enemy’s ability to launch attacks from the underground routes.

Katz said the IDF would now complete the neutralization of the tunnels and deploy tactically to maintain control of the ridge and prevent Hezbollah from reestablishing itself there.

The military said it would continue operating in the security zone and would respond to any attempt by Hezbollah to attack Israeli troops, while remaining committed to the ceasefire agreement.

world israel news 

Day 1,064 — Friday, September 4

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in Tel Aviv that overthrowing Iran’s government has become a central Israeli objective and is within reach as Tehran faces growing economic and military pressure.

Netanyahu made the remarks during a toast ahead of Rosh Hashanah, which begins next week. Defense Minister Israel Katz, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, and members of the IDF General Staff Forum attended the gathering at the Kirya.

“This regime is currently crumbling. It is weaker than ever. Overthrowing the regime is the central mission still before us, but it is near. It is not impossible, and it is within reach,” Netanyahu said.

The prime minister also said Israel has the ability to eliminate the threat posed by Iran and bring down its government.

“I am convinced of our ability to remove the threat once and for all and overthrow the Iranian regime that is fighting for its life. I say to our enemies – don’t mess with us. We have the power, the determination and the internal unity to overcome you.”

Netanyahu’s comments come as Iran confronts severe economic difficulties. The Iranian rial has fallen to more than 2 million per US dollar, while sharply rising inflation has driven up the prices of food and other essential goods.

The US has imposed sanctions, frozen assets, and taken additional financial measures designed to limit Tehran’s ability to participate in international trade and obtain foreign currency.

Iran has also faced military pressure from both Israel and the US. Strikes carried out by the two countries have damaged Iranian military infrastructure, including missile-related facilities and other military assets.

world israel news 

Day 1,064 — Friday, September 4

At a time when official relations between Jerusalem and Pretoria remain deeply strained, a royal delegation from South Africa came to Israel for a weeklong visit that ended on Thursday with a very different message: one of love, dialogue and “building bridges” between the two peoples.

The 12-member delegation was composed of Queen Sinokuhle Matiwane of the AmaMpondomise Kingdom; eight princesses, including Princess Lerato Mabalane of Baphiring ba Mabalane in North West Province and Princess Esihle Ntola of the AmaNtshangase Kingdom; and two princes, including Prince Litha Dalindyebo of the AbaThembu Kingdom in the Eastern Cape.

Princess Fundiswa Zote, who also represented the AbaThembu Kingdom, said before departing that although King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo had come to Israel in December 2025, this visit by a group of mostly female traditional leaders representing various South African kingdoms was “awesome,” even during what she referred to as “this hard, hard, hard period” in the country.

“It’s been exciting; it’s been awesome,” she told JNS on Thursday. “We are truly grateful. We’re thankful for the relationship. We’re thankful for the friendship and we hope that this extends beyond, beyond, beyond.”

Zote said the trip had focused on “showing our women what Israel is all about” and involved high-level meetings and visits around the country. Highlights included Christian holy sites—her favorite was Magdala on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee—as well as the City of David and the Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem.

She said one of her people’s main concerns was water, a problem they were addressing with the help of Israel and particularly Innovation: Africa, an Israeli-founded nonprofit that uses Israeli solar and water technology to provide clean drinking water and electricity to African communities.

“There’s no water in our communities and we’ve been speaking to Innovation: Africa to see how we can work together and collaborate and use some of the Israeli technology to bring water to our people,” she said.

Zote concluded the interview by saying, “May God bless the city of Jerusalem. May God keep her. May God bless Israel and keep Israel in perfect peace. We love you.”

jns

Day 1,063 — Thursday, September 3

Let’s call it what it was: masked settlers ambushing an NBC News crew and local Palestinians in the West Bank village of Jalud is an indefensible, unacceptable criminal act. This wasn’t a “clash.” It was an assault on journalists doing their jobs and people going about their daily lives.

Prime Minister Netanyahu condemned the attack, calling it a “criminal act of violence” committed by “a handful of rioters” who “harm Israel’s standing in the world.” Israeli security forces have confiscated three vehicles and opened an investigation — as Netanyahu called upon them to arrest those involved and deal with them to the full extent of the law. Sadly, this is not the first time, and Israel must show zero tolerance for such behavior by a lawless fringe — with arrests, prosecutions and prison sentences.

But there’s another important story here, and it’s about the press itself. For over two years, Hamas and Gaza dominated nearly every broadcast, every U.N. session, every campus protest. That unparalleled coverage eclipsed the humanitarian crisis in Sudan, where the number of people in dire need of help is estimated at over 33 million (!) with close to 12 million people displaced from their homes.

However, even as the war in Gaza came to an end, global newsrooms didn’t move on. They moved over. Judea and Samaria, also known as the West Bank, became the new venue of choice, the fresh well of footage and outrage needed to keep the anti-Israel narrative running at full volume. The war may be winding down. The narrative apparatus built around it is more active than ever.

Acts of violence, such as the one in Jalud, are real and deserve coverage — but so does an enormous amount of violence elsewhere that never gets a fraction of this attention. Attacks on religious minorities across Africa, Asia and the Middle East routinely go unreported by the very same networks now camped out on the West Bank. Meanwhile, an isolated incident involving Israel — even one carried out by a small band of extremists the Israeli government itself condemns — has dominated the media for days.

The lesson audiences absorb, whether intended or not, is that violence only matters when Jews or Israel are on one side of it. That selective spotlight doesn’t stay contained to foreign policy debates. It filters into U.N. resolutions, into government statements, into placards at protests and finally into open hostility toward Jews who have nothing to do with those acts at all.

The pipeline runs from social media to the newsroom to the street with disturbing speed, and it demands the media’s accountability.

Lost in all of this is scale. The extremists carrying out these attacks are a minority of the minority, the very fringe among more than 500,000 Jewish residents living peacefully in Judea and Samaria, the biblical heartland of the Jewish State. The “unsettlers” was how U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee recently described them in an X post, “The ‘unsettlers’ betray the State of Israel, Judea/Samaria residents, civil law & the Torah.”

The overwhelming majority of Jews living on the West Bank are ordinary families: teachers, farmers, students, commuters who live under the daily threat of stabbings, shootings, and car-rammings that rarely make headlines anywhere. For example, only last week, a 16-year-old Palestinian jumped from behind and stabbed, moderately injuring a 24-year-old Israeli who stopped to shop near the village of Auja in the Jordan Valley. Where was this victim or his family interviewed? What coverage was given to the hateful education that propels a 16-year-old to viciously attack another person with a knife?!

The media’s insistence on treating a fringe group as representative of that entire population — while ignoring the terror those same families face — isn’t just lazy. It’s a distortion that criminalizes an entire community and propels hatred and acts of violence on a global scale.

Antisemitism doesn’t erupt in a vacuum. It needs a story, a grievance, a reason for outrage and there is no easier vehicle to manufacture one than the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Under the political charade, the ugliness under the cloak is clear: Israel is the Jew among the nations, and what is disguised as “political reporting” is really a biased attack on that Jew, the one and only Jewish state in the world.

When newsrooms chase Judea and Samaria the way they chased Gaza, amplifying the fringe, ignoring real terror and ignoring the peaceful majority, they aren’t just shaping coverage, they’re feeding the oldest hatred with the newest headlines.

No Jews, no news has ever been truer, or more dangerous.

fox news

Day 1,063 — Thursday, September 3

Kuwaiti air defenses are confronting hostile missile and drone attacks from Iran, the Kuwait Armed Forces confirmed in a post on X/Twitter on Thursday morning.

“Everyone is requested to adhere to the security and safety instructions issued by the competent authorities,” the post added.

The Iranian attack on Kuwait targeted US military bases in the country, Iranian state media IRIB reported.

Local sources told IRIB that a US base in Kuwait had been struck, claiming that smoke was rising from the site. Neither the US nor Kuwait have confirmed such reports.

The Kuwait Armed Forces said in their post on X, “If explosion sounds are heard, they are the result of air defense systems intercepting the hostile attacks.”

jerusalem post

Day 1,062 — Wednesday, September 2

US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it completed a wave of strikes against Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran early on Wednesday.

According to CENTCOM, the strikes were carried out in retaliation for Iranian attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and the recent attack on US troops stationed in the region.

“US forces struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets including air defense sites, radar systems, maritime assets and facilities, mine laying capabilities, and communications sites,” CENTCOM said in a post on X/Twitter.

“The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members.”

Iranian state media reported that several explosions were heard in the cities of Bandar Abbas, Ahvaz, and Sirik.

Following the strikes, electrical power to several parts of the Hormozgan province was lost, Iranian state media IRIB reported. Power has been restored to Qeshm county in Hormozgan, the area’s governor announced on Wednesday morning.

IRIB claimed that a US airstrike on Sirik hit a wedding, killing four and injuring 63. The US did not immediately respond to the allegations.

Air defenses were also reportedly activated in eastern Tehran, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency said.

The US military attacked two Iranian government tankers during Tuesday’s strikes on Iran, US officials told Axios.

This is the first time that the US has struck an Iranian tanker under a new “tanker for tanker” policy rather than to stop a ship violating the naval blockade. The policy, which Axios said was approved by US President Donald Trump, aims to deter Iranian attacks on tankers traveling through the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump later confirmed the strikes in a post to Truth Social, echoing CENTCOM’s reasoning for the strikes.

“The United States is, as we speak, striking Iranian Targets near the Strait of Hormuz,” he wrote. “The strikes are large and powerful, and in retaliation for the Iranians’ failed attempt at adding sea mines to the Strait, which currently has no mines (They have been completely removed or detonated!), and the Iranians shooting eight missiles, all successfully knocked down, at our Military Base in Jordan.”

Trump threatened Iran that, should it respond to the “very justified attack,” it will be hit “again at a much harder and higher level, but it will not be the biggest attack of them all, that is waiting in the wings and, when it is over, there will be very little left of the Islamic Republic of Iran!”

jerusalem post

Day 1,062 — Wednesday, September 2

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday rejected reports that he is trying to force Iran to resume talks with the US.

“I’m not trying to force Iran to the bargaining table, as ABC Fake News reported. I couldn’t care less if they sign a worthless, to them, agreement. I like our position now much better, with almost total control of the Hormuz Strait, and their economy totally collapsing,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

He added, “They are just playing out the inevitable. When are the Iranian people going to rise up and fight?”

The post followed the launch of US strikes against IRGC targets in Iran. Initial reports said Qeshm Island and Chabahar were among the areas targeted, with explosions reported at both locations.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that its forces successfully completed the wave of strikes against Iranian military targets.

“US forces struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets including air defense sites, radar systems, maritime assets and facilities, mine laying capabilities, and communications sites,” it said.

“The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members,” added CENTCOM.

Trump said earlier that the American strikes were carried out in response to Iranian activity in the Strait of Hormuz and an earlier missile attack against a US military base in Jordan, warning Iran of more powerful strikes if it retaliated.

arutz sheva 

Day 1,061 — Tuesday, September 1

President Donald Trump declared Iran a “Failed Nation” on Monday and called for its leaders to face prosecution over the killing of anti-government protesters, issuing the broadside as direct fighting between the US and Iran resumed after a roughly month-long lull.

In a Truth Social post Monday morning, Trump described Iran as being militarily shattered and economically devastated after six months of war, while accusing its government of killing over 100,000 protesters.

“Iran is officially a Failed Nation,” the president wrote. “IT IS DEAD! They have no Navy, they have no Air Force, they have no currency, they are not paying their soldiers or police, Inflation is at 300%, and their leadership is in total disarray and incapable of properly representing the country.”

“The only thing they have is FAKE NEWS from the USA, a willingness to kill their protesters (now over 100,000 people dead. They must be tried for war crimes against humanity!), and a good line of ‘BULLS***.’”

The post was published Monday morning, hours after Iran fired ballistic missiles at US military facilities in Jordan in retaliation for an American strike on Iranian military equipment on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz.

US forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak after Ame
rican officials said Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel were preparing to use them to deploy naval mines into the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran subsequently launched missiles at two American bases in Jordan, with nearly all of the incoming missiles intercepted and no significant damage initially reported.

Trump separately warned Monday that the US would retaliate against the Iranian attack, saying Washington was “going to hit them hard,” while suggesting the latest exchange did not necessarily signal a return to the most intense phase of the war. He also ruled out using nuclear weapons against Iran, saying Tehran had already been defeated militarily.

Iran’s economy has also deteriorated sharply during the war.

The rial fell to a record low of roughly 2 million to the US dollar in late August, compared with about 1.53 million in early March, as sanctions, damage to infrastructure and restrictions on Iranian trade intensified pressure on the economy.

Trump’s claim of 300% inflation is substantially higher than available estimates of Iran’s annual inflation rate. Recent reporting put annual inflation at approximately 66%, while projections indicated inflation could average around 70% during 2026.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said the country’s foreign trade has fallen by approximately 35% amid sanctions and the US blockade.
Trump has repeatedly claimed in recent weeks that Iran has been unable to pay portions of its military and security forces.

Reports from inside Iran have also described labor protests and demonstrations over unpaid wages amid worsening shortages and declining purchasing power.

world israel news

Day 1,061 — Tuesday, September 1

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar accused Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Monday of “lying shamelessly” about Israel’s role in the Ceuta crisis, which broke out on July 30 when tens of thousands of migrants from Morocco flooded into the North African Spanish enclave.

“In an interview with Cadena SER today, he lied again, astonishingly accusing Israel of disseminating misleading information regarding the events in Ceuta,” Sa’ar wrote. “This is a brazen lie. Continuing to spread defamatory lies will not distract from Sánchez’s disgraceful failure to manage his country’s affairs.”

Sánchez, speaking to host Aimar Bretos on Cadena SER’s “Hoy por Hoy,” said the causes of the crisis remain under investigation but blamed “rumors and disinformation” spread through social media accounts “linked both to Russia and to Israel, and to an international far-right” movement that he said exploits migration to attack Spain and Europe.

The crisis erupted on July 30 and 31, when tens of thousands of migrants crossed or attempted to cross into Ceuta from neighboring Morocco. Spanish officials have put the number at roughly 70,000, with most subsequently returning to Morocco. About 5,000 migrants, including 1,200 minors, remained in Ceuta as of Monday, according to Sánchez.

Sánchez said there is no evidence that Moroccan authorities were involved in the mass crossing and credited Rabat with cooperating with Madrid during the crisis. He attributed the surge in part to false claims circulating online after a Spanish Supreme Court ruling concerning the return of migrants who enter Ceuta by sea.

The episode has fueled conspiracy theories in Spain, including claims that Israel benefited from or helped engineer the crisis. Spanish actor Javier Bardem shared social-media posts alleging that Israel and Western far-right groups benefited from a weakened Spain.

The speculation intensified after Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, criticized Spain’s handling of the crisis on July 30, writing that Madrid should explain why it maintains “colonial enclaves” in Africa before continuing to lecture Israel. Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente responded, “Well, it’s all starting to become quite clear,” in an apparent reference to the suggestion of Israeli involvement.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry subsequently distanced itself from Danon’s remarks. Dana Erlich, Israel’s ambassador to Spain, wrote on July 31 that Israel was “closely monitoring the situation in Ceuta” and that “the comment made by Israel’s Ambassador to the UN on the issue does not represent the position of the State of Israel.”

jns

Day 1,060 — Monday, August 31

U.S. forces struck Iranian missile launchers on Larak Island on Sunday after intelligence indicated Tehran was preparing to fire rockets carrying sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz, Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst reported.

The plan to launch rockets with sea mines was designed to redeploy the explosives in the strait after U.S. forces demined the area, he said on “The Big Weekend Show.”

President Donald Trump had said Aug. 25 that the U.S. Navy had informed him that all mines had been removed from the strait’s waters.

Trump also warned Iran that any vessel caught laying new ones would be “immediately and systematically destroyed.”

The developments came as U.S. forces in Jordan faced missile attacks Sunday in retaliation for the strikes on Larak Island.

Yingst said American forces stationed in Jordan had multiple air-defense systems to counter such threats, including Patriot and THAAD missile-defense systems deployed in the region.

“At this point, there are no significant impacts, and nearly all of the incoming missiles have been intercepted,” Yingst said.

“These are serious attacks,” he added.

On Sunday evening, the IRGC threatened retaliation following a US strike on Iranian military targets on Larak Island that reportedly killed two people and wounded two others.

A US official confirmed to Axios that American forces carried out the strike to prevent Iranian forces from deploying sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz. The operation marked the first known US strike inside Iran since late July, when President Donald Trump paused a two-week US military campaign in the strategic waterway.

“Earlier today US forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island. Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz,” a US official told Axios.

The official added that US forces are “monitoring the area closely and remain prepared to protect the free flow of commerce” through the strait.

Tasnim, an Iranian news agency affiliated with the IRGC, reported that the attack was carried out by a drone and that two people were killed and two others wounded.

In a statement quoted by Iran’s IRNA news agency, the IRGC vowed retaliation, saying, “The terrorist enemy’s aggression on Larak Island will be met with punishment for the aggressor.”

The IRGC further accused the United States and Israel of attempting to reassert their influence in the region.

“The American-Zionist adversary, once more acting out of frustration over its domestic challenges and waning influence in the region, aims to resurrect its malevolent presence and sway public perception. “In an act of aggression, it attacked Larak Island, resulting in the martyrdom and injury of several citizens.”

The US strike comes amid heightened tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for international commercial shipping and energy supplies.

Last week, Trump said that the US Navy had cleared all mines from the international waters of the Strait of Hormuz.

“I have just been informed by the United States Navy that all mines have been removed and/or detonated from within the International Waters of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has been notified that any ship or boat placing new mines will be immediately and systematically destroyed,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

He added, “Through Space Force, we are watching every square inch of the Strait, as we are, also, with Pickaxe Mountain and the already destroyed three other Nuclear sites. There is a Zero Tolerance policy on mine placement in full force and effect.”

Later, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said that Tehran considers itself to still be at war and warned that the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until several conditions are met.

“We are still in a state of war, and the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed,” Gharibabadi said, in comments quoted by Iranian media, while stressing that reopening the strategic waterway would require an end to the conflict on all fronts, the lifting of the blockade and a resolution of the situation in Yemen.

“The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz will only happen in exchange for ending the war on all fronts, lifting the blockade, and resolving the situation in Yemen.”

He also linked the reopening of the strait to commitments made by Washington under the memorandum of understanding signed by the sides in June.

“We told Pakistan’s Army Chief that reopening the Strait of Hormuz depends on America fulfilling its commitments under the memorandum of understanding.”

Gharibabadi further warned that Iran could take military action before being attacked.

“Why should we always wait for America to attack? We can take preemptive action.”

arutz sheva 

Day 1,060 — Monday, August 31

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) removed a link from its annual back-to-school guide after the linked curriculum blamed US support for Israel for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and recommended Osama bin Laden’s “Letter to America” as a student resource.

CAIR released its “Back to school resource guide” for K-12 students Monday, but the link was removed a day later.

The 16-page guide directed readers to a “Muslim Studies Curriculum,” a collaborative project between CAIR-NJ and Teaching While Muslim.

The curriculum described the nearly 3,000 deaths on 9/11 as the work of a “group self-identifying as Al Quaeda hailing from the mountains of Afghanistan.”

It attributed the attack in part to US “support of Israel,” American involvement in the Persian Gulf War and the “vast presence” of US forces across the Middle East.

Among its recommended resources was bin Laden’s “Letter to America,” which contains antisemitic claims about Jewish control over US politics, media and the economy.

The curriculum also presented bin Laden as among the Afghan “rebels” fighting the Soviet Union during the 1980s.

The material focused heavily on the consequences of 9/11 for Muslims, including increased hate crimes and discrimination.

CAIR said lessons about the attacks can be “a particularly dangerous time for Muslim students,” who “often experience a surge in bullying during school lessons about 9/11.”

The curriculum also described the post-9/11 period as producing an “aggressive shift in US domestic and foreign policy” and an “erosion of civil liberties of many Americans.”

Nicholas Haros Jr., whose mother, Frances, was killed on 9/11, criticized the curriculum.

“Israel had nothing to do with 9/11,” Haros said. “The further we get from 9/11, this new generation of kids will learn to blame our country. These kids are going to be poisoned – and that’s the intent.”

When contacted by The New York Post, CAIR did not deny removing the link and referred the newspaper to a note explaining changes to an earlier document.

world israel news 

Day 1,059 — Sunday, August 30

Ejecting representatives of the U.K. or of other countries from the U.S.-led International Gaza Support Center in the southern Israeli city of Kiryat Gat would undermine efforts to improve Gaza’s future, the British embassy in Israel tweeted on Friday.

Reports emerged over the past week that Israel was planning to evict British personnel from the multinational hub, which is meant to oversee post-war Gaza stabilization efforts. The Israeli plans come in response to the British government’s intention to impose “robust” sanctions targeting Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, in connection with Israel’s planned development of the E1 area in Ma’aleh Adumim, east of Jerusalem.

“The U.K. is committed to the implementation of the 20-Point Plan in Gaza and playing our part in improving the situation on the ground, at the request of the United States and the Board of Peace,” the embassy added, referring to the original Trump administration’s peace plan for Gaza, advanced alongside the hostage-terrorist swap agreement that took effect from January to March 2025.

On Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said that the Jewish state was evicting the Dutch from the IGSC (previously known as the Civil-Military Coordination Center).

Israel is responding to “a series of anti-Israel measures taken by the Dutch government,” specifically a Dutch law set to take effect next month that will ban trade of products made in Judea and Samaria, eastern Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, Sa’ar said.

The Netherlands is joining other European nations, including Belgium, Ireland and Spain, in restricting trade with Jewish communities in those areas.

Israel long ago annexed eastern Jerusalem and extended Israeli law to the Golan Heights after liberating them in a defensive war in 1967.

Sa’ar gave Dutch representatives at the center a week to depart Israel, and the expulsion from the center took effect immediately, he said.

The Times of London reported on Tuesday that Britain’s new prime minister, Andy Burnham, wants to take a stronger position on Israel than his predecessor, Keir Starmer, according to a government source who was not identified by name.

The source expected that a trade ban, as well as sanctions on individuals, will be implemented.

More than 140 Labour MPs, comprising roughly a third of the party, wrote an open letter to U.K. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper in June calling to expand the sanctions regime on Israel in response to Jerusalem’s decision to approve construction in E1, connecting the capital to the developed part of Ma’ale Adumim.

“We believe ending trade with settlements is a vital next step and urge you to initiate proceedings to put such a ban into place as soon as possible,” the letter read.

Other Labour Party legislators, however, expressed opposition to the letter.

Labour Friends of Israel released a statement on July 30 warning the British government against taking “any further untargeted steps” beyond sanctioning “violent extremist settlers and organisations.”

It warned that a sweeping trade ban on Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria would affect all Israeli businesses operating in the area, “adversely affecting Israelis living within the state’s borders” and thus de facto becoming a boycott of all of Israel.

It moreover said that the measure could weaken Israel’s opposition parties ahead of the Oct. 27 general election, while also harming the Palestinian Authority economy, which is “inextricably linked” to the Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

jns

Day 1,058 — Saturday, August 29

During their White House meeting last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he presented President Trump with three options for dealing with Iran: a good agreement, military action, or tightening the economic siege.

Speaking in Jerusalem, Netanyahu praised the Trump administration’s latest economic pressure plan against Tehran, calling it a “very powerful move.”

“What President Trump did yesterday was to tighten the siege on Iran, not only by tightening the siege on Iran itself, but by tightening the siege on those who aid this regime, this terrible dictatorship. This is a very important step,” he said.

Netanyahu also cautioned that Israel’s struggle against Iran and its regional allies is far from finished. “We still have challenges ahead of us. The Iran challenge is not yet over. We need to bring to an end also the challenge in Gaza, in Lebanon, and also other arenas, and we are determined to do so.”

The prime minister delivered the remarks before leaders from Judea and Samaria, where he boasted of the dramatic expansion of Jewish communities in Israel’s biblical heartland, despite ongoing opposition from critics.

“I know that we are not only ensuring our existence in the present, we are ensuring the existence of the people of Israel in the future. One hundred sixty farms, 104 settlements that we established and regularized. And it is not easy. It is never easy.”

Netanyahu added, “We do not give up. We have a vision. This is our land, and it will remain ours.”

cbn israel

Day 1,057 — Friday, August 28

The Foreign Ministry on Thursday sharply criticized a joint statement by 15 countries and the European Union condemning Israel’s entry into a UNRWA training center in Kalandia and the seizure of the agency’s facilities in eastern Jerusalem two days earlier.

The countries called on Israel to “honor its commitments” and immediately stop what they described as interference with UNRWA’s operations.

The statement, signed by the UK, France, Germany, Canada, Italy, Spain, Japan, and other countries, reaffirmed their support for UNRWA and argued that Israel’s entry into the facilities was illegal. They said UN facilities are protected under international law and called on Israel to allow UNRWA to carry out its work without obstruction.

In response, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said: “Your facts are wrong. You support an organization that is a breeding ground for terrorism, and you prefer to attack Israel with baseless accusations instead of acting for the benefit of Arab children in Kafr Akab. This is a disgrace.”

The ministry also claimed that, according to a report by the USAID Office of Inspector General, which US President Donald Trump referenced on Thursday, more than 100 UNRWA employees participated in the October 7 Hamas attack.

“UNRWA employees served as terror operatives, and UNRWA facilities were systematically used for terror purposes,” the ministry said.

The Foreign Ministry said this was the reason UNRWA operations in Israel were banned, adding that “all Israeli actions were carried out in accordance with Israeli law and international law.”

The ministry further claimed that UNRWA never had property rights over the compound and that the organization had been using the site unlawfully. According to the ministry, the compound is planned to become a school and community center for children in the Kafr Akab neighborhood.

The dispute comes two days after police forces raided a UNRWA training compound in Kafr Akab , following an announcement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that “in accordance with my directive and following the law we passed, the evacuation of the UNRWA compound in Kafr Akab in Jerusalem begins today.”

Netanyahu later clarified: “The State of Israel will not allow an organization whose employees were involved in terrorism and the October 7 massacre to operate in its territory and will act against it using all available tools.”

According to statements from both sides, the compound targeted in the raid was a “training compound.” UNRWA said the site housed refugees and hosted workshops and classes. Following the raid, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said the Jerusalem Municipality had already begun work at the site to convert it into an educational center.

The Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee previously approved legislation aimed at ending UNRWA’s operations in Israel. The laws stipulate, among other measures, that UNRWA will not be permitted to operate a representative office, provide services, or conduct activities within Israel’s sovereign territory.

The legislation also calls for revoking the organization’s diplomatic status and canceling diplomatic visas for UNRWA personnel.

jpost

Day 1,057 — Friday, August 28

US Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said Thursday that American forces have completed the clearance of Iranian-laid sea mines from internationally recognized shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz, describing the operation as a major milestone.

In an operational update, Cooper said thousands of US servicemembers are simultaneously enforcing a naval blockade against Iran while helping maintain the flow of commercial shipping through the strategically important waterway.

“We have successfully cleared sea mines in the Strait’s international shipping lanes that were laid months ago by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” Cooper said. “Internationally recognized transit routes in the Strait are free of Iranian sea mines thanks to the incredible work of the US military.”

According to Cooper, the mine-clearing operation involved Navy divers, Navy SEALs and air assets from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. He described the mission as difficult and dangerous but said the forces involved had successfully completed their task.

“The circumstances were challenging and dangerous to say the least, but we got the job done,” he said. “Bottom line, today, international shipping lanes are open and momentum is building.”

Cooper explained that the cleared routes form part of the Strait’s internationally recognized traffic separation scheme, which directs vessels traveling in opposite directions through the narrow waterway.
Over recent months, US forces have helped nearly 1,500 commercial vessels pass through the Strait under coordinated protection, Cooper said. Those ships transported nearly 750 million barrels of crude oil to global markets.

At the same time, he said, Iran has been unable to export oil from its shores since the US naval blockade resumed in mid-July.

“And while American forces have supported 750 million barrels of crude oil leaving the Gulf, Iran has exported zero oil from its shores since we resumed the naval blockade in mid-July. We have been highly effective,” Cooper said.

He added that no vessels had entered or departed Iranian ports without US authorization, with exceptions made only for humanitarian reasons.

Since the blockade resumed, thousands of American servicemembers operating more than 20 warships and hundreds of aircraft have supported the mission, according to Cooper. He said US forces have turned around 75 vessels that attempted to breach the blockade and disabled three that failed to comply with orders.

Cooper praised the personnel carrying out the operation and said CENTCOM remained focused on its mission.

arutz sheva 

Day 1,056 — Thursday, August 27

Hamas and other Palestinian terror organizations must end extrajudicial executions of Palestinians suspected of collaborating with the Israeli government, Amnesty International said in a recent article published to its website. 

“Authorities and forces affiliated with Hamas in the occupied Gaza Strip must put an end to extrajudicial executions of suspected collaborators with Israel, carried out in the absence of any judicial proceedings,” the human rights organization said in a statement. 

Amnesty cited a June 2026 UN report, which it said found “249 cases of extrajudicial executions and severe physical violence in Gaza between August 2024 and early 2026.” 

Many of these cases were carried out directly by Hamas forces, Amnesty claimed. 

Despite calling out Hamas for “extrajudicial executions and unlawful killings,” Amnesty still blamed Israel for “the collapse of law and order in Gaza and the extreme state of deprivation,” saying they were a result of “Israel’s ongoing genocide.” 

“The Hamas authorities must immediately halt all unlawful killings, acts of vigilantism, and arbitrary arrests,” Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaign Erika Guevara-Rosas said.

“Restoring law and order must never serve as a cover to commit grave human rights violations, carry out reprisals or to collectively punish entire families,” she said. 

On its Telegram channel, Hamas has publicly confirmed the executions of several Gaza Palestinians, calling them “collaborators.” 

Before the October 2025 ceasefire, a Telegram channel affiliated with Hamas published several documented killings of so-called “collaborators,” along with threats to hunt down any Gaza citizen passing information to Israel. 

In its report, Amnesty said it documented nine extrajudicial executions and one unlawful killing, all of which came after the October 2025 ceasefire-hostage deal. 

Several of those killed were members of the Dughmush family from western Gaza City, with which Hamas engaged in a battle for control over Al-Sabra neighborhood, following the ceasefire declaration.

Hamas also publicly executed “eight unarmed members of the Dughmush family,” accusing them of collaborating with Israel. 

A Palestinian woman who spoke with Amnesty International on condition of anonymity, to protect her safety, said the eight family members “turned themselves in after being promised a fair trial, only to be publicly executed two hours later.” 

At the same time, the Center for Peace Communications, a New York-based nonprofit dedicated to fostering reconciliation and reducing identity-based conflicts in the region, said that Hamas has created a culture of militancy in the Gaza Strip. 

Citing several testimonials shared with Jusoor News by local Gazans, the Center for Peace Communications described a broad “proliferation of weapons beyond militant ranks.” 

It referenced a recent video published by Jusoor News, in which armed Gaza men can be seen shouting to Hamas, “We have guns just like you!” 

“Anyone who feels they or their family has been insulted grabs a gun,” an older man told Jusoor News. “The leaders don’t treat people with respect, and regular people don’t respect the leaders or each other.” 

Moumen Al-Natour, a political activist who fled Hamas’s rule in Gaza during the war, told the Center for Peace Communications that the Hamas’ ideology created a culture of violence that needs to be uprooted. 

“When I was a child, I remember my Islamic studies teacher telling us, ‘Kill a Jew and you will enter paradise,’” Al-Natour recalled. “If we do not replace these ideas with new ones, we will accomplish nothing.” 

all israel news 

Day 1,056 — Thursday, August 27

The US State Department has instructed nearly all of its diplomatic missions worldwide to urge local governments to strengthen security for Jewish communities ahead of the upcoming High Holidays, according to a diplomatic cable obtained by JNS.

The cable calls on US missions to provide host governments with basic information about the Jewish holidays as well as the anniversary of the October 7 attacks, which occurred during Simchat Torah in 2023. It also notes that other terrorist attacks have taken place on or around Jewish holidays.

“We urge your government to deploy law enforcement, counterterrorism or military forces, as appropriate, to synagogues and other locations hosting services or events,” the cable states, as quoted by JNS.

US diplomatic missions were instructed to deliver the message to the highest available levels of government in their respective countries.

The cable also calls for increased security in residential areas with Jewish populations, noting that worshippers often travel along predictable routes at predictable times while wearing identifiable religious clothing.

Host governments are further urged to provide security briefings and establish coordination channels with Jewish institutions, security organizations and businesses ahead of the holidays.

This year, the two-day observance of Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on Friday, September 11, which also marks the beginning of Shabbat, and ends after sundown on Sunday, September 13.

The State Department also encouraged governments to increase patrols in crowded areas. The cable points out that religious Jews generally do not use electronic communications during nearly all of the holidays and therefore recommends establishing a system capable of delivering direct warnings about sudden threats.

There has been no official comments from the State Department on the reported cable.

arutz sheva

Day 1,055 — Wednesday, August 26

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday condemned Israel’s evacuation and takeover of a UNRWA vocational training center in eastern Jerusalem, warning that the move would disrupt educational opportunities for young people.

“The Secretary-General is greatly alarmed at this development, as it will deprive young people of the vocational education they were receiving,” Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

Dujarric emphasized that the facility, like other UNRWA properties, is protected under the UN’s legal status. The training center “and other UNRWA premises are premises of the United Nations. They are inviolable and immune from any form of interference.”

The statement followed an operation by the IDF, Israel Police and Jerusalem Municipality to evacuate the UNRWA compound in Kafr Aqab, in the northern part of the capital.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir welcomed the operation, saying Israeli authorities were enforcing legislation against the agency.

“This morning, Israel Police forces are working with the relevant authorities to enforce the law and remove UNRWA from the premises. An organization whose employees were involved in terrorism and that repeatedly served as a cover for Hamas has no right to exist for even one more second, and has no place in Jerusalem or the State of Israel,” he stated.

“My policy is clear: Sovereignty is not something you talk about – it is something you exercise. The Israel Police will continue to act resolutely to enforce the law, strengthen governance and make it clear that Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Israel, and so it will remain. Anyone who establishes terrorist nests there will be removed,” Ben Gvir added.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also addressed the evacuation, saying it followed legislation passed by the Knesset and his directive.

“In accordance with my directive and following the law we passed, the evacuation of the UNRWA compound in Kafr Aqab, Jerusalem, began today. The State of Israel will not allow an organization whose employees were complicit in terrorism and the October 7 massacre to operate within its territory, and will act against it by all means at its disposal.”

UNRWA has faced sustained Israeli criticism over ties between its employees and the Hamas terrorist organization. The criticism intensified in 2024 after Israel presented evidence that UNRWA personnel had participated in the October 7, 2023 attack.

The UN subsequently established a review group headed by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna to examine the allegations. Its report identified “neutrality-related issues” within UNRWA, while also stating that Israel had not provided evidence supporting claims that a significant number of agency employees belonged to terrorist organizations.

In October 2024, the Knesset approved legislation prohibiting UNRWA from operating in Israel and preventing Israeli officials from maintaining contact with the agency. The legislation was later amended to prohibit the provision of electricity and water to UNRWA facilities.

Guterres has upped his criticism of Israel since the October 7 Hamas attack. Several weeks afterward, he said the attack “did not happen in a vacuum” and appeared to blame Israel, remarks that drew widespread condemnation. He subsequently claimed his comments had been misunderstood and reiterated that he had condemned Hamas.

Tensions between Israel and Guterres’s office increased further in May after the UN chief placed Israeli entities on a blacklist concerning sexual violence in conflict zones. Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, responded by announcing that Israel would freeze relations with the Secretary-General’s office.

“We are done with this UN Secretary-General. Guterres has put Israel on the same blacklist along with Hamas, ISIS and the most depraved terrorist organizations in the world. This is a moral disgrace that proves that Guterres has lost all credibility,” Danon stated at the time.

arutz sheva 

Day 1,055 — Wednesday, August 26

The U.S. Secret Service said it was aware of a video aired on Iranian state media threatening President Trump’s youngest son, Barron Trump.

“The U.S. Secret Service is aware of the video and investigates anything that can be perceived as a threat toward our protectees,” Nate Herring, a Secret Service spokesperson, told Fox News Digital.

“Out of concern for operational security, we do not discuss matters of protective intelligence,” Herring added.

The video depicts locations associated with the younger Trump’s whereabouts. It ends with a suggested $10 million reward for his location.

Iranian state media has aired content on multiple occasions threatening Trump and his family following the assassination of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which came at the start of the war between the United States and Iran, as well as the U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in 2020.

“I don’t think it’s any secret, it’s been in the media, that Iran has publicly said they want to kill President Trump,” Deputy Director of the U.S. Secret Service Matt Quinn told reporters at an event last month.

The video came amid threats from the Trump administration to nations that fail to sever their economic ties with Tehran and an ongoing naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

In July, Trump secretly switched planes from Air Force One to another aircraft in Turkey via a catering truck due to a credible Iranian surface-to-air missile threat.

fox news

Day 1,054 — Tuesday, August 25

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced an “economic onslaught” against Iran’s global trade partners on Monday as part of the financial “D-Day” that U.S. President Donald Trump declared last week.

Bessent said that the sanctions program, “Operation Economic Outcast,” was an “unprecedented, whole-of-government” campaign to “collapse every last option for Iran.”

“For decades, this regime has drawn strength from a calculus that regards Iranian retaliation as certain and American enforcement as negotiable,” Bessent told reporters. “That era is over.”

Iran’s economy has long been subject to primary economic sanctions aimed at hindering its ability to trade oil, fund terrorist groups around the region and finance its missile, drone and nuclear programs.

Successive administrations have declined, however, to impose secondary sanctions on many countries and companies that do business with Iran. Many of the countries that retain economic ties with Iran are close partners of the United States, including many of the Arab countries in the Persian Gulf.

The department has also generally refrained from imposing sanctions on Chinese banks and oil refineries that transact business with Iran in apparent fear of economic retaliation.

Though he declined to “name names,” Bessent suggested that those secondary sanctions would finally be imposed.

“We want to make clear here today that no one is above the reach of U.S. sanctions,” Bessent said in response to a question about the potential sanctioning of Chinese entities. “We find that the best way to engage with countries is through quiet diplomacy, and we are level-setting with every country to tell them our expectations.”

“We know who they are. They know who they are,” he said. “When the hammer of U.S. Treasury actions falls upon them, they will have no one to blame but themselves.”

Bessent said that teams from the U.S. military and Treasury and State Departments were meeting with counterparts around the world to explain the new policy.

jns

Day 1,054 — Tuesday, August 25

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed this evening (Monday) that Iran has attempted to assassinate one of his children. The information was previously prohibited from being published.

In a conversation with Channel 14 News, Netanyahu said, “There is something here that is unbelievable. Iran targeted one of my children. Iran tried to murder one of my children.”

When asked whether this was intelligence information that was presented to him, Netanyahu did not elaborate and repeated his words: “Iran tried to assassinate one of my children.” According to him, security for his children is not a luxury: “It is something without which this attempt will simply succeed.”

The Ministerial Committee for Shin Bet Affairs approved on July 16th granting Netanyahu security for life, and his wife Sara will be secured for the rest of her husband’s life. The Prime Minister’s sons will be secured, even if he does not continue for another term, for five years.

The Shin Bet and the Mossad determined before the decision that Netanyahu and his family were at a high level of threat for their entire lives due to the desire of Israel’s enemies to avenge the assassinations of senior Iranian officials during the war.

Two years ago, it was revealed that the Shin Bet and the police arrested Motti Maman, a 73-year-old resident of Ashkelon, who had been recruited by intelligence officials in Iran for the purpose of assassinating Israeli figures. Among the targets were Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Galant, and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar.

According to the security establishment, Maman was smuggled into Iranian territory twice and received payment for carrying out missions. The background to the Israeli’s actions is an attempt to obtain “easy money” after he got into debt.

Netanyahu’s statement follows reports that Iranian state television aired a video threatening Barron Trump, the 20-year-old son of US President Donald Trump.

The video, titled “Where and How Barron Trump Should Be Killed,” claims that Barron Trump’s movements have been “fully monitored” and that the information obtained includes the location of the university he attends, the vehicles accompanying him, and the locations of the Secret Service personnel protecting him. The video also claims that a $10 million bounty has been offered for him, although that claim had not been independently verified at the time of publication.

arutz sheva

Day 1,053 — Monday, August 24

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday the U.S. is entering an “endgame” against Iran, pledging an unprecedented financial campaign to cut off the regime’s remaining economic lifelines and avert the need for more military action.

“At dawn begins an economic D-Day — the single greatest financial offensive ever marshaled against an adversary,” Bessent wrote in an opinion piece in the Financial Times.

He also argued that President Donald Trump was confronting a threat previous administrations had sought only to manage.

Bessent said the campaign would target countries and entities that buy or transport Iranian oil, facilitate financial transactions, host Iranian flights, maintain ship registries or enable ship-to-ship fuel transfers.

He warned that governments maintaining ties with Tehran risked sharing its economic isolation.

The Treasury chief said the aim was to sever every economic lifeline supporting the Islamic Republic until it is left in “total financial isolation.”

fox news

Day 1,053 — Monday, August 24

Israeli authorities are examining a series of kite launches from Gaza after at least four crossed into Israel over two days, prompting Defense Minister Israel Katz to order the IDF to respond forcefully to any further launches toward southern communities.

The devices crossed the Gaza border Friday and Saturday and came down in several Israeli communities, among them Nahal Oz.

Investigators have not established who was responsible, but are examining possible Hamas involvement, N12 reported.

Katz called for military action against the practice rather than allowing it to develop further.

“I instructed the IDF to act immediately and forcefully against any phenomenon of launches from Gaza toward the communities of the western Negev,” Katz said in statement.

While the IDF determined that the kites recovered so far were harmless, security officials are investigating the purpose of the launches. “No suspicious findings were identified on the kites,” the military said, adding that “at no stage was there any danger to the public.”

One focus of the investigation is the length of the strings found attached to the kites, with some stretching several kilometers.

N12 reported that officials are considering several possibilities, including that the devices were being used to gather intelligence or experiment with technology that could later be incorporated into fiber-optic drones. Such drones have recently been used on the northern front with Lebanon.

The appearance of kites from Gaza has particular significance for border communities because of their use during the 2018 protests.

What initially appeared to be a simple tactic later developed into the use of kites and balloons carrying incendiary devices that set fire to fields in southern Israel.

The latest incidents led at least one community to caution residents against handling unidentified objects because they could potentially carry explosives or incendiary materials.

Residents and regional officials urged authorities not to allow the launches to become routine.

“This is exactly how escalation begins again — we must not ignore it and contain it again,” residents warned.

The head of the Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Council similarly urged action at an early stage.

“If we want to put an end to the phenomenon when it is just beginning, we must cut it off at the initial stage and strike with force over every kite,” he said.

World Israel News

Day 1,052 — Sunday, August 23

The IDF hit the Abu al-Duhur military air base after it received intelligence that Turkey was seeking to station a radar and an air defense system manned by Turkish troops there, sources confirmed to The Jerusalem Post.

Israel told the US that intelligence suggested that Turkey was set to dispatch radar, troops, and air defense systems to a base in Syria, KAN News reported on Saturday.

While the IDF did not detail when the Turkish military systems were set to arrive, officials pointed to the Abu al-Duhur base as a possible target due to its proximity to the Turkish border.

Israeli sources also told KAN News that the four IDF strikes were aimed at the base’s runway to prevent Turkish troops from landing.

“Since the diplomatic message did not get through, Israel delivered it through a targeted warning strike,” one official said.

Defense Minister Israel Katz had said earlier on Saturday that the army issued a direct warning to senior Syrian officials before the strikes on the Abu al-Duhur air base “in an attempt to prevent the move.”

“Following several discussions that Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] and I held with the IDF and the various security officials, it was agreed that before approval was given, a direct warning would be issued to the Syrian regime at the highest levels first in an attempt to prevent the move, and that is what was done,” Katz said.

“After the request went unanswered, the prime minister and I authorized the IDF to carry out the strike, which commenced successfully. [Turkish President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan was caught with his hand in the cookie jar and was forced to back down,” the defense minister said.

Jerusalem Post 

Day 1,051 — Saturday, August 22

Hezbollah, the Iran-backed terrorist group that has controlled southern Lebanon for decades, “operates with little to no regard for Lebanese sovereignty, the Lebanese people or the Lebanese state,” a U.S. State Department official said on Thursday, as the Trump administration again sanctioned Hezbollah “for service to the Iranian regime.”

“The United States will not relent in targeting Iran’s financial support networks, including those enabling Hezbollah to threaten peace, undermine the sovereignty of the Lebanese state and endanger the security of our regional allies,” wrote Tommy Pigott, spokesman for the State Department.

The official said that Hezbollah, which has long been sanctioned as a foreign terrorist organization, is being re-designated “an Iranian proxy, not a stand-alone operation as implied by the previous designation.”

The action on Thursday “builds on years of U.S. designations that have repeatedly documented the operational, financial and logistical integration” between Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, which is Iran’s elite military wing specializing in unconventional warfare, foreign intelligence and management of Iran’s network of terrorist proxies throughout the Middle East.

Thursday’s determination “formally recognizes” Hezbollah’s activities “as an extension of the IRGC-QF” and “not a Lebanese resistance movement.”

Jointly, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned 10 people, who it said take part in a network that helps move hundreds of millions of dollars of sanctions-evading cash transfers between the Quds Force and Hezbollah, using commercial flights between Lebanon, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.

“The investigation and disruption of this network are the result of close coordination and collaboration with our Turkish partners,” Pigott wrote.

The State Department official said that Hezbollah has “twice dragged Lebanon into devastating wars, subordinating the country’s interests to Tehran’s regional agenda and leaving the Lebanese people to bear the consequences.” He called the terror group “the obstacle to Lebanon’s sovereignty, stability and economic recovery.”

The United States, Israel and Lebanon have developed a trilateral framework to help restore Lebanese sovereignty to the southern part of the country, which Hezbollah has long used to launch attacks on Israel.
As part of that pact, Israel and Lebanon are coordinating on so-called “pilot zones,” and Hezbollah, either voluntarily or by force, is to exit designated areas and relocate further north.

At the same time, the Lebanese Armed Forces will take over and Israeli forces will withdraw.

State Department officials have expressed optimism about the trajectory of ongoing talks between Israel and Lebanon to implement the agreement.

jns

Day 1,051 — Saturday, August 22

Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government on Friday issued another arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, amid spiking tensions between the two countries over an Israeli strike in Syria.

Turkey has already issued warrants against Netanyahu and other top officials for “genocide” over Israel’s actions in the war against Hamas in Gaza. Israel firmly denies accusations of genocide.

The new warrant accuses Netanyahu of “genocide” over the interception in May of a flotilla carrying some 430 activists to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Turkey’s Justice Minister Akin Gurlek said on X that his ministry had asked the interior ministry to issue Interpol red notice alerts for Netanyahu and another Israeli, named as Afek Moskovitch, as part of a larger case against 35 people.

A red notice is a request to police forces worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition. Interpol reviews requests submitted by member states before deciding whether to issue red notices.

“As part of the judicial proceedings concerning the attack in international waters on the Flotilla activists (…) and in accordance with the arrest warrants issued on July 14, 2026, against Benjamin Netanyahu and Afek Moskovitch for ‘genocide,’ the ministry of justice has requested that the ministry of the interior issue red notices for their international arrest,” Gurlek stated.

Netanyahu and Moskovitch are being prosecuted for “crimes against humanity, genocide, aggravated deprivation of liberty, ‘intentional assault and battery,’ torture, destruction of property, aggravated looting, and hijacking of transport vehicles,” the ministry said.

The Turkish statement didn’t provide any additional details about Moskovitch and no additional information about him could be found.

In response, Netanyahu’s office said that Erdogan “now seeks to extend his aggression against Israel into Syria. Israel will not tolerate it.” The Israeli statement reiterated past accusations by Jerusalem against Erdogan, calling him “an antisemitic dictator who has massacred Kurds, harbors Hamas terrorists, occupies half of Cyprus, and jails record numbers of journalists and politicians who oppose him.”

“Erdogan’s pathetic attempt to intimidate the leaders and soldiers of Israel, the only true democracy in the Middle East, will go nowhere,” the statement added.

In a separate Hebrew-language statement, the Prime Minister’s Office asserted that “Israel will continue to act forcefully against Turkey’s attempts to destabilize the region and against any threat to its security.”

times of israel

Day 1,050 — Friday, August 21

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon called on Wednesday for changes to the U.N. Security Council’s process for convening emergency meetings, which he said has become a political tool used disproportionately against the Jewish state.

“It shouldn’t be that you just send a fax or email and you have a session,” Danon told JNS, ahead of his remarks. “It should be not only one country, maybe three countries, and actually use it when it’s needed, not for political usage.”

Danon spoke to JNS in the Qatari lounge shortly before addressing the Security Council on Wednesday afternoon.

He proposed requiring the support of three council members to convene an emergency meeting, rather than allowing a single member to request one, and to establish clearer criteria for what constitutes an “emergency.”

The Security Council has held about 100 meetings about Israel over the past four years, including at least 17 “emergency” sessions, according to the envoy.

Iranian aggression, Houthi attacks on international shipping routes, Hamas’s holding of hostages and Turkey’s military entrenchment in Syria have rarely prompted emergency meetings, he told JNS.

“Today, the debate is more about procedure in the Security Council,” he said. “For a change, it’s not about us. I will focus my speech on the fact that the U.N. Council is not focusing on the right issues. They focus on Israel.”

Whenever council members want to criticize the Jewish state, they simply “call for an emergency session, but there is no emergency,” Danon said.

“The entire U.N. today—they focus their energy not in the right places,” he told JNS. “It’s more about the debate. It’s more about bashing Israel, less about concrete efforts, practical solutions and confronting the bad guys.”

He pointed to recent “emergency” meetings over Israel’s recognition of Somaliland and what he said was “so-called settler violence.” Those sessions came in addition to the council’s regular monthly discussions on Israel, he said.

“When we recognized Somaliland, we had to come to an emergency session, and they blamed us for wanting to expel the Palestinians, which is a joke,” he told JNS.

The emergency sessions, Danon added, take time away from what he sees as more pressing action against terrorist groups.

“They were not able to designate Hamas. They were not able to designate Hezbollah, the Houthis,” he told JNS. “So instead of doing those things, they are putting the time on us.”

In his formal remarks, Danon said that the council had become “very good at holding meetings but very bad at making a difference.”

“Instead of focusing its time on Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, it is repeatedly drawn into political theater,” he told the council.

“The Security Council was not created to hold fruitless meetings,” he said. “It was created to prevent wars. It is time to return to the mission for which it was established.”

jns

Day 1,050 — Friday, August 21

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a stark warning to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan early Thursday, accusing him of dragging Turkey into “dangerous adventures in Syria” and warning the Turkish leader not to test Israel’s resolve.

“Israel will not allow any actor to threaten its security,” Katz wrote on X. “It would be better for Erdoğan to continue his detached-from-reality, fanciful rhetoric against Israel in the Turkish Grand National Assembly than to attempt to test Israel’s determination to defend itself.”

The warning comes two days after Israel struck Syria’s Abu al-Duhur Airbase. The increasingly heated rhetoric has put Washington in the position of trying to contain tensions between Turkey, a NATO member, and Israel, Washington’s closest security partners in the Middle East. Israel said Syria was on the verge of breaching a security understanding by allowing Turkish troops to deploy there, while Ankara rejected Israel’s account.

On Wednesday, Turkey called these allegations from Israel “untenable,” arguing that they are “intended to legitimize Israel’s unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. … The imputations voiced stem from Netanyahu’s intent to pursue expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region ahead of the elections in Israel,” Turkey’s government said in a social media post.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Reuters Thursday that Washington was working on “a de-escalation process” that was already in place but still needed to be refined. Asked whether the dispute could lead to a direct Israeli-Turkish confrontation, Huckabee said, “I don’t think we’re even close to that.” He said Israel viewed Turkey as “moving further south” in Syria and perceived that as potentially threatening.

fox news

Day 1,049 — Thursday, August 20

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Thursday morning rejected his British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband’s demand that Israel scrap plans for construction in the E1 area between Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumum.

Miliband became Britain’s Foreign Secretary last month after newly installed Prime Minister Andy Burnham carried out a major Cabinet reshuffle.

“I reject outright the statement of the UK Foreign Secretary and the patronising tone of his words,” Sa’ar wrote on X.

“The Jewish people have the right to live throughout the Land of Israel, just as the British have the right to live in London and throughout the United Kingdom. More than a century ago, the Balfour Declaration formally recognised the historic right of the Jewish people to re-establish their national home in the Land of Israel – including in the area in question.”

Sa’ar also called out British hypocrisy, noting, “Britain itself still controls colonial territories thousands of miles from its shores. It is absurd for Britain to lecture the Jewish people about where they may live in their historic tiny homeland, when the Jewish people’s connection and right to this land is the most extensively documented of any people in human history.”

“There have been no new decisions regarding development in E1. The decision was made in 2025.

“The tender process has been underway for several months, with certain tender documents published only in recent days.”

He blasted, “The British Foreign Secretary’s statement is entirely one-sided.”

“It condemns Israel while turning a blind eye to Palestinian terrorism, incitement and the Palestinian Authority’s continued financial support for terror – the ‘pay for slay’ policy.

“The UK Government’s systematic policy of blaming only Israel while ignoring Palestinian extremism has already contributed to a massive wave of antisemitic hatred and attacks against the British Jewish community. Continuing down this path will only make the situation worse.

“The UK Government’s decision to damage the relationship between our countries is deeply unfortunate. But Israel will not be a passive victim of this policy.

“Israel will defend its rights, its interests and its people.”

arutz sheva

Day 1,049 — Thursday, August 20

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday an “economic D-Day” to financially strangle Iran.

The Iranian “navy is gone, their air force is destroyed, their military factories are now rubble, their currency is worthless and their country is hanging by a thread,” he wrote on Truth Social.

No one has given the Iranian regime a better chance to make a deal than he, Trump wrote.

“Tragically, for them, they have failed to take it. Therefore, today, I am announcing the most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country,” he continued.

The president further threatened “tremendous economic consequences” for any country that lets its “financial institutions, businesses, airports or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran.”

“Oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries, front companies—it all needs to stop now,” he stated. “You know who you are. This will be an economic D-Day.”

He called on all U.S. allies to “isolate and defeat the Iran threat.”

“These maniacs are on the ropes,” he said. “These historic measures will cripple them and their ability to project terror worldwide. Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.”

Also on Wednesday, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee warned that the possibility of a return to open conflict with Iran was very real.

The diplomat noted that Tehran has already faced U.S. military action twice and should understand that Trump is serious about using force if necessary.

“I think the Iranians should understand that President Trump is not bluffing,” he told Al Arabiya English, a Saudi state-owned broadcaster.

Huckabee was referring to two U.S. military operations carried out against Iran over the past two years. The first, “Operation Midnight Hammer,” was a one-night aerial campaign on June 22, 2025, that targeted three nuclear facilities in Iran. The second, “Operation Epic Fury,” was a heavy aerial bombardment campaign launched on Feb. 28 and lasted 40 days before a ceasefire was announced.

jns

Day 1,049 — Thursday, August 20

The Turkish government publicly denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for allegedly pursuing “expansionist and destabilizing policies” after Israel launched airstrikes on a Syrian airbase this week.

Netanyahu’s office took responsibility for the Tuesday morning strike on the Abu al-Duhur airbase the next day, saying Syria was on the verge of breaching a security agreement by allowing Turkish troops to deploy from the base, which is near Aleppo.

“Israel repeatedly warned Syria that such a deployment would pose a threat to Israel’s security,” Netanyahu’s office said Tuesday night. “Syria chose to ignore these warnings. Israel will not tolerate threats to its security, and would welcome a return to the status quo.”

On Wednesday, Turkey called these allegations from Israel “untenable,” arguing that they are “intended to legitimize Israel’s unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

“The imputations voiced stem from Netanyahu’s intent to pursue expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region ahead of the elections in Israel,” Turkey’s government said in a social media post.

“Türkiye, like the vast majority of the international community, stands for the consolidation of lasting peace in our region. The sole path to this objective lies in Netanyahu’s abandonment of his aggressive and coercive policies and in his respect for international law,” it continued.

“Türkiye will resolutely continue to cooperate with the Syrian Government on a legitimate basis for the establishment of peace, stability, and prosperity in Syria, and will never allow the destabilization of Syria,” the statement concluded.

The strike on the Syrian airbase, which caused damage but no casualties, also drew criticism from U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, despite a senior Israeli official telling Fox News that “highly sensitive intelligence was shared with the United States in advance” of the attack.

But Turkey, which has been training Syria’s soldiers to rebuild the country’s armed forces, has routinely accused Israel of trying to destabilize the region.

Since al-Assad was deposed in December 2024, Israel has repeatedly struck targets within Syria seeking to prevent the new government from building up its military capabilities near the border.

Netanyahu reiterated in July that he wants the region south of Damascus to remain demilitarized, while also professing a desire to protect the Druze population, an ethnoreligious minority that lives in Syria.

fox news 

Day 1,048 — Wednesday, August 19

After months of relative quiet, the Syrian front came back into focus in Israel in recent days, as Jerusalem confirmed having struck an airport in northern Syria on Tuesday to prevent Turkey’s military from establishing itself there, rejecting criticism from the United States.

At the same time, the government in Damascus announced its intention to retain nuclear material left over from the Assad regime, asserting its right to pursue a civilian nuclear power program. The announcement came shortly after new video footage emerged showing Syrian military units chanting antisemitic slogans.

These recent incidents highlight Israel’s concern that the new Syrian government of former terrorist Ahmad al-Sharaa continues to pose a serious threat, particularly because its close ties to the Turkish government, despite American efforts to legitimize the government and integrate it into its regional alliance system.

Following the unusual public criticism from the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) responded late on Tuesday: “Israel will not tolerate threats to its security,” accusing Syria and Turkey of trying to breach the status quo.

“Israel and Syria agreed to a status quo in security matters, which Syria was on the verge of breaching by permitting Turkish troops to deploy at an airbase near Aleppo. Israel repeatedly warned Syria that such a deployment would pose a threat to Israel’s security. Syria chose to ignore these warnings,” the PMO stated, adding that Jerusalem would “welcome a return to the status quo.”

Early on Tuesday, Israeli fighters had reportedly bombed Syrian targets in the Abu al-Duhur Airbase in Idlib province, some 300 kilometers (188 miles) from the Israeli border.

Targets reportedly included the runway and several warehouses. Israeli security think tank Alma Research Center assessed that “the objective was to strike advanced equipment or weapons with potential threat capabilities. In addition, the purpose of striking the runway would be to temporarily prevent its use and, in any event, to send a message to the al-Sharaa regime – and possibly also to a third country – that their actions cannot be tolerated.”

In its analysis, Alma also noted, “reports of Turkish plans to deploy air defense systems in Syria, such as the Hisar system. Israel was previously reported to have warned Turkey against transferring advanced military capabilities to Syria that could disrupt the Israeli Air Force’s freedom of operation. It was also reported in April 2025 that Israel had struck the T4 airbase to prevent Turkey from establishing capabilities there.”

Barrack later argued that the Israeli strikes raised a significant danger of a direct confrontation with the Turkish military. Speaking to Reuters, he said Turkey “observed the aircraft heading north toward its territory and therefore could have reasonably prepared its own response.”

“Thankfully, calm heads were able to prevent the situation from deteriorating further,” Barrack said, stressing that this incident “underscores the need for a deconfliction mechanism involving Israel, Syria and Türkiye. That ​is something we are actively working on to establish in order to prevent future miscommunication.”

“Turkey knew full well that it was provoking Israel,” assessed Dr. David Wurmser, a fellow at the Jerusalem Center for Foreign Affairs and Security.

“Turkey was the party responsible for what can only be seen as an escalation that it itself sought to provoke,” he argued, adding that Barrack should condemn the Turkish government instead of encouraging “Turkey’s imperial and destabilizing ambitions.”

On Sunday, footage showing troops from the new Syrian military chanting threats against Israel and the Jewish people went viral on social media.

The Foreign Ministry retweeted one news report, commenting, “Outside the historic Damascus Citadel last Saturday, Syrian soldiers chanted: ‘I am coming for you, Jew. I will make your blood flow in rivers.’ This is Syria’s new army. Same old antisemitic bloodlust.”

all israel news 

Day 1,048 — Wednesday, August 19

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on Tomoko Akane, a Japanese judge who is president of the International Criminal Court, according to the US Treasury Department website.

The move is the latest escalation in the Trump administration’s campaign against The Hague-based court, which was established in 2002 by the international community to prosecute war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. The US is not a member of the court.

Rubio said in a statement that he was imposing sanctions on Akane as well as Abdoulaye Seye, a senior trial lawyer and a Senegalese national, under a Trump executive order last year authorizing sanctions against the court.

“These individuals have directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction,” Rubio said.

The ICC condemned the move, saying in a statement that the measures undermine the rule of law.

“When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk,” the ICC said.

Japan’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday that US sanctions on the International Criminal Court and its president, Judge Tomoko Akane, were “very unfortunate.”

In a statement, the ministry said: “Japan has consistently supported the ICC … in its efforts to prosecute and punish the most serious crimes of concern to the international community and to uphold the rule of law.” It added that Japan would remain committed to strengthening the rule of law in the international community while maintaining communication with related countries.

Seye is a senior trial lawyer on the prosecution team that sought an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and has been nominated for election as an ICC judge.

jerusalem post

Day 1,047 — Tuesday, August 18

After the Memorandum of Understanding with Iran expired on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said the Islamic Republic should “put up the white flag of surrender.” 

In a phone conversation with Fox News’ Try Yingst, the president reiterated that the number one goal for his administration is preventing the Islamic Republic from obtaining nuclear weapons. 

“The number one Goal is, and always will be, that Iran cannot have, in any way, shape, or form, a Nuclear Weapon,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account shortly before the phone call with Yingst. 

Despite upcoming elections in the United States, the president said he feels no pressure to alter his current course of continued economic sanctions and a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz for Iranian traffic. 

“I have no time schedule,” President Trump told Yingst during the call. “I’m not in a hurry.” 

“Midterms have nothing to do with my thinking,” he added. 

While Hormuz remains a highly contested issue in the negotiations, President Trump issued an odd warning to Oman, which has been negotiating with Iran over the strait for the past several weeks. 

“If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the [expletive] out of them,” Trump was reported by Yingst as saying. 

“I don’t think they [Oman] behaved very well, but we’d handle them very easily, just like we do others,” the president told reporters in the Oval Office hours later. 

all israel news 

Day 1,047 — Tuesday, August 18

U.S. special envoy Jared Kushner delivered a stark ultimatum to Hamas on Monday, warning that the terrorist group must honor its commitments to disarm in Gaza or face an Israeli military operation to “finish the job.“

Speaking exclusively to Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst, Kushner also detailed high-stakes diplomatic meetings in Egypt and Israel over the last 48 hours aimed at advancing President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace roadmap as fighting and disagreements between Israel and Hamas persists.

“Time will tell whether [Hamas disarmament is] going to be implemented,” he added, before stating that Washington feels it could be “very close to knowing, and we’re making a lot of progress towards trying to get to the next steps.“

“If they don’t follow through now on their commitment, everyone will see that they’re not genuine about peace, and then Israel will have a lot more support from the U.S. and others to go and finish the job in the appropriate way,” Kushner also told Yingst of the militant group.

The warning from Trump’s son-in-law followed the rare face-to-face meeting — only Kushner’s second known meeting with the group.

“They said all the right things, but obviously, it’s very, very hard to trust, you know, a terrorist organization that committed these terrible atrocities,” Kushner continued. “But we had a very cordial meeting, and they said all the right things, and so we’re going to give them a chance to perform. 

“It’s going to have to be based on actions and steps, and I hope it will be true.“

fox news 

Day 1,046 — Monday, August 17

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refered to Britain as an “Islamic republic” during a lengthy podcast interview with Army Radio.

Discussing Winston Churchill’s son Randolph Churchill and grandson Winston Spencer Churchill, who like the World War II-era UK prime minister were journalists, Netanyahu says the pair “came here and covered the Six Day War in a very positive way for us.”

“Try to find that now in Britain, which you could call the Islamic republic of Britain,” Netanyahu chuckles.

He then responds “yes” when the interviewer asks “if all of Europe isn’t already like that, no?” apparently referring to Muslim communities in countries there and many European governments’ increasingly critical postures toward Israel in recent years.

“The first nuclear Islamic republic will be the Islamic republic of Britain,” Netanyahu further stated. “We’re making sure there won’t be another one in Iran.”

Times of Israel 

Day 1,046 — Monday, August 17

Jewish men were permitted to bring prayer books onto the Temple Mount on Sunday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir confirmed to The Jerusalem Post, after right-wing journalist Arnon Segal shared a photo of Jewish men praying and reading from prayer books, claiming the photo was taken from the Temple Mount.

“Still no blanket permit, but an initial experiment aimed at ensuring the Middle East doesn’t lose its mind over this,” Segal claimed in his post. “History.”

“The Israel Police operates on the Temple Mount in accordance with the directives of the political echelon, the established rules governing the site, and operational assessments, with the aim of safeguarding public safety, security, and public order,” Israel Police said in response to the Post’s request for comment.

Under the longstanding status quo, Jews and Christians are permitted to visit the Temple Mount but are generally prohibited from praying there, while Muslims are permitted to worship.

In January, Israel Police began relaxing some restrictions on Jewish prayer at the site, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Jewish visitors may now enter with a single printed prayer page prepared in advance, although prayer books remain prohibited.

Times Of Israel

Day 1,046 — Monday, August 17

Hengli Group, a Chinese company that employs over 300,000 people and earns over $100 billion per year, is a primary importer of Iranian crude oil, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing industry analysts, shipping brokers, and the US Treasury.

Hengli is one of the largest companies in a network of “teapot” refineries in China that purchase sanctioned oil, according to the officials cited by WSJ.

Since 2023, Hengli has received at least five million barrels of Iranian oil from multiple ships sanctioned by the United States, the US Treasury and shipping brokers claimed.

Hengli Group, a Chinese company that employs over 300,000 people and earns over $100 billion per year, is a primary importer of Iranian crude oil, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing industry analysts, shipping brokers, and the US Treasury.

Hengli is one of the largest companies in a network of “teapot” refineries in China that purchase sanctioned oil, according to the officials cited by WSJ.

Since 2023, Hengli has received at least five million barrels of Iranian oil from multiple ships sanctioned by the United States, the US Treasury and shipping brokers claimed.

Iran has been evading US sanctions and the blockade using a system of ship-to-ship transfers in which sanctioned ships laden with Iranian oil offload their cargo onto another ship in the water before it is sent to China, the WSJ reported in May.

The ships receiving the oil are often part of Iran’s “shadow fleet,” a fleet of old, rusting tankers that obscure their owners and may switch their flags to those of countries with little shipping oversight to conceal their identities. Ships will often turn off their tracking device and may paint over identity numbers.

Jerusalem Post

Day 1,045 — Sunday, August 16

The Israel Defense Forces killed overnight Friday a commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force in the Ansar area in southwestern Lebanon, the military said.

The strike came in response to an attack earlier in the day on Israeli troops operating in the Security Zone in Southern Lebanon in accordance with the ceasefire agreement, the IDF said.

An IDF officer and two enlisted men were “severely injured” as a result of an explosive drone hit in Southern Lebanon, the military said later on Saturday.

The three were evacuated to a hospital and their families have been notified.

The military identified Ali Samir al-Haj Hassan as a battalion commander in the Radwan Force. Several other terrorists were killed in the IDF strike as well, the army continued.

The Israeli military addressed reports that the commander’s family members were harmed in the attack as well.

Hassan was targeted inside a military headquarters used to command Hezbollah’s operations in the area, the IDF said. “The strike was specifically directed at Hassan, who was a lawful target under international law,” the army emphasized.

“The terrorist used his family as human shields, hiding alongside them inside the military headquarters,” it added.

The Prime Minister’s Office said that the attack on the three soldiers was ordered from this headquarters, and that only later did the IDF learn that Hezbollah “deliberately” placed civilians inside it.

Lebanese media reported that Israeli strikes in the areas of Ali al-Taher Ridge, Ansar, and Nabatieh al-Fawqa killed nine people, among them women and children, according to Ynet.

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Saturday slammed Israel’s retaliation, saying on X in Arabic that it “undermines efforts to stabilize the situation in the south.”

He further stated that the responsibility for dealing with terrorist infrastructure, “if it exists,” on the Lebanese side lies with the Lebanese state.

Meanwhile, U.S Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa told reporters in Arabic that while no date for further Israeli-Lebanese negotiations has been set, “they will continue,” LBCI, the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International, reported.

Asked whether Washington supports Israel’s latest round of strikes, Issa replied, “I don’t know. You know more than I do.” Israeli operations in Southern Lebanon will stop when Hezbollah lays down its weapons, he continued. “Everything will stop,” he added.

Issa spoke with reporters after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri in Beirut.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee lashed out at Hezbollah, calling it “pure evil.”

Hezbollah wounds Israeli troops, then “rounds up children” in a military compound knowing that Israel will retaliate because Iran’s proxy group “want[s] them to be in harm’s way,” he said.

He equated Hezbollah’s conduct with that of Hamas.

JNS

Day 1,044 — Saturday, August 15

An Iranian official fired back Friday after President Donald Trump said he may eventually declare the Strait of Hormuz “territory of the United States,” insisting Tehran will continue enforcing its blockade of the strategic waterway.

“The Strait of Hormuz cannot be seized by tweet, nor by aircraft carrier, nor by issuing an order, nor by an election speech,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi wrote on X. “Iran neither fears threats nor cowers before displays of power.”

Gharibabadi then claimed the U.S. has suffered “strategic and heavy defeats” and asserted that “the Strait of Hormuz has been Iranian, is Iranian, and will remain Iranian.”

“This strait will only be closed and opened under Iran’s command,” he continued, adding that Tehran would maintain the blockade until the U.S. accepts what he characterized as the “reality of defeat.”

Trump said during remarks in Nassau County, New York, earlier Friday that after Iran is defeated, “pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States,” while touting the U.S. blockade and saying no ships pass through unless Washington allows it.

The Islamic Republic of Iran’s Foreign Ministry has previously publicly identified Gharibabadi’s X account among its official government accounts.

fox news 

Day 1,044 — Saturday, August 15

Israeli Consul General in New York, Ofir Akunis spoke at an event for young Jewish community leaders in New York and addressed the sharp rise in antisemitic hate crimes in New York City since Mayor Zohran Mamdani took office.

“The mayor is busy inciting against and promoting a boycott of the Jewish state. His method is the ‘well-known’ antisemitic one: ‘No matter what – blame the Jews.’ This is exactly the same method that was used a century ago by the Third Reich,” Akunis said.

He stated: “Data released by the New York Police Department points to a sharp increase in antisemitic hate crimes since he took office. This is further proof of his failure to protect the city’s Jewish community. Mamdani continues to incite and fuel his supporters to attack the State of Israel and its Prime Minister. This must stop before it is too late!”

His comments follow the release of the NYPD’s hate crime statistics for the month of July, which show that antisemitic hate crimes in New York City rose sharply in July, accounting for nearly 70% of all confirmed hate crimes reported during the month.

The NYPD recorded 33 confirmed hate crimes in July, including 23 targeting Jews, up 53.3% from the 15 anti-Jewish incidents recorded in July 2025. Muslims were the targets of five confirmed hate crimes, compared with two during the same month last year.

So far this year, the department has recorded 360 confirmed hate crimes, a 9.4% increase from the 329 reported during the same period in 2025. Of those incidents, 205 targeted Jews, 56.9% of the total, while 26 targeted Muslims. Anti-Jewish hate crimes have increased 8.5% year over year, while anti-Muslim incidents have risen 62.5%.

arutz sheva

Day 1,043 — Friday, August 14

Defense Minister Israel Katz has instructed the military to prepare a plan to transfer all civilian law-enforcement responsibilities in Judea and Samaria to the Israel Police, his office said on Friday.

Katz issued the directive following a meeting on Thursday with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the heads of the IDF’s Operations Directorate and Military Intelligence and other senior commanders.

Under the proposed plan, which is to be drawn up in coordination with the Israel Police and other relevant authorities, civilian law enforcement in Judea and Samaria would be transferred from the IDF to the police, as is the case elsewhere in Israel.

The police would establish a dedicated force to handle civilian matters and receive the necessary authority and funding, according to Katz’s office.

The IDF would continue to combat Palestinian terrorism and focus on defending Israeli communities and borders.

“It is not the IDF’s role, nor does it have the capacity, to deal with the enforcement of civilian matters in Judea and Samaria, given the welcome expected increase in the number of residents in Judea and Samaria following the decisions to establish 104 new communities and formalize the agricultural farms, on the one hand, and the growing security threats and challenges that the IDF is facing and is expected to face on the central front, on the other,” Katz said.

“The IDF’s role is to fight Palestinian terrorism, focus on defending the borders and communities against threats, deal with the borders and the territory itself, and address security threats to the communities and the State of Israel—not to chase teenagers on the hilltops. All responsibility for handling and enforcing matters relating to the communities, residents and civilian issues will be transferred to the Israel Police, which will be required to prepare accordingly.”

Katz described the move as “a significant step toward strengthening governance and enforcing law and order throughout Judea and Samaria,” while freeing the military to concentrate on its primary missions.

“The Israeli government and the IDF will delegate to the police all the powers necessary to carry out these missions,” he said.

The announcement came a day after Israeli security forces dismantled two unauthorized outposts near the Palestinian villages of Qusra and Jalud in Samaria.

Israeli forces overnight Thursday cleared Israelis from an unauthorized outpost and sheep pen next to Qusra and dismantled a second unauthorized outpost near Jalud. Both had been established in Area B, where the Palestinian Authority exercises administrative control and Israel retains security responsibility. One Israeli was detained during the operation.

The IDF had previously received reports of Israelis entering Palestinian homes and areas near the villages. The military described the activity as “illegal, obscene and unacceptable” and declared the area a closed military zone, barring anyone who was not a local resident.

The military said it “strongly condemns” such incidents and that those involved would be dealt with in cooperation with the security forces.

Yisrael Gantz, chairman of the Yesha Council, an umbrella organization representing Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, also condemned the actions.

He described the incidents as “serious and not our way,” saying, “There is no place to privately decide on establishing a hilltop in the yard of a house. There is no justification for violence against uninvolved parties or against security forces.”

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee also issued a condemnation, saying Israeli security forces had arrived at the scene at the request of the United States. “The actions of those who attacked this family’s home are criminal,” Huckabee said, describing the incident as “a shocking act of terrorism designed to intimidate and harass this family.”

In a subsequent post, Huckabee adopted a more conciliatory tone, stressing that a small minority carried out the actions and should not be attributed to Israeli residents of Judea and Samaria as a whole.

“‘Settlers’ are not the problem in Judea/Samaria. ‘Unsettlers’ are,” the ambassador wrote on X. “Very small minority who do great damage to Palestinian families & to Israel.”

He added, “Real settlers like Ysrael Ganz, Governor of Judea/Samaria condemn the actions of the few,” Huckabee wrote, using an alternate spelling of Gantz’s name. “Let’s hope the media gives attention to this & balances their stories.”

jns

Day 1,043 — Friday, August 14

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday that the United States is going to apply measures that have “never been seen” on Iran.

“Watch this space for more announcements coming next week because we are going to apply measures like have never been seen in the history of economic isolation on a country,” Bessent said in an interview on on Newsmax’s “Rob Schmitt Tonight” program.

“It will be a combination of economic isolation like the world has never seen before, and the continued blockade in the Strait of Hormuz that will keep anything from going in or out of the Iranian ports,” Bessent said.

jerusalem post

Day 1,042 — Thursday, August 13

The co-chair of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) group is receiving sharp backlash for saying on Friday that the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre in Israel was mostly “inevitable.”

During an interview with The New Yorker’s David Remnick, DSA co-chair Megan Romer was questioned about democratic socialist Darializa Avila Chevalier, who attended an anti-Israel, pro-Hamas rally the day after the Oct. 7 terrorist attack in 2023, and was pressed on whether she would have attended if she were in her position.

“You would have gone to that rally, had you been able?” Remnick asked.

“That’s a good question. I probably would have,” Romer replied. “Yeah, yeah. I don’t live in New York City, so I wouldn’t have —”

Remnick pressed further, asking, “One day after the slaughter of 1,200 people and taking of over 200 hostages, you would have come and rallied behind Hamas?”

“I think that Oct. 7 was largely inevitable,” she replied. “If you put people in an open-air concentration camp and you deprive them of rights, of dignity, of food, of the ability to live in safety, you have to expect that they are going to not take that for that long. And that is not defending any harm of civilians or of non-combatants —”

When Remnick accused her remark of being an expression of support for the violence, she pushed back and said “I’m saying that I think it was inevitable.”

Pro-Israel groups condemned her comments.

“I agree with DSA Co-chair Megan Romer that the October 7 attacks were in many ways inevitable — but not for the libelous reasons she cited,” Zionist Organization of America National President Morton A. Klein told Fox News Digital.

“When Gazans elected Hamas – a terror organization whose charter calls for murdering every Jew and destroying Israel, October 7 was the result,” he added. “When Qatar and Iran gave arms and hundreds of millions of dollars to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, gave sanctuary to Hamas leaders, and helped terror groups plan attacks on Israel, October 7 was the result.”

“When UNRWA (UN Relief and Works Agency) teaches children to hate and murder Jews, employs Hamas terrorists as teachers and principals, stores weapons for Hamas, and provides communications centers for Hamas, October 7 is the result. When Israel, under pressure from the Biden administration, issued thousands of work permits to enter Israel to Hamas terrorists and scouts, October 7 was the result,” he continued.

He warned that there may be even more October 7th-style violence in the future.

“And now, when Hamas is refusing to really disarm, and is vowing to commit more and more October 7ths, we must enable Israel to ensure its safety by retaining a buffer zone in Gaza and insisting on Hamas’ disarmament prior to any other peace plan steps,” he said. “Or else another October 7 will be the result. Regarding Romer’s lies, the parties ‘imprisoning’ Gaza are Hamas, PIJ and other terror groups. By contrast, Israel facilitated tons of food, water, medical and other supplies into Gaza — while Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad launched 30,000 rockets at Israeli civilians.”

fox news 

Day 1,042 — Thursday, August 13

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Wednesday vowed to “resolutely” work toward a “sovereign and geographically contiguous” Palestinian state with eastern Jerusalem as its capital, Turkish state-run news channel TRT reported.

Speaking at a joint news conference in Ankara with Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas, Erdoğan accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to “remove Palestine from the common agenda of humanity by profiting from chaos and new conflicts in the region.”

“They will not succeed,” he added.

Erdoğan said Ankara “strongly opposes” what he denounced as provocations aimed at changes to the status quo at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and other Jerusalem holy sites, and accused the Jewish state of “unlawful actions” in Judea and Samaria.

The Turkish leader also called for establishing conditions for Gaza’s reconstruction and vowed to continue efforts “to support the Palestinian people and defend their rights.”

Abbas arrived in Ankara on Tuesday afternoon for a two-day visit, Ramallah’s official Wafa agency reported.

Abbas was met at the airport by Turkish Trade Minister Ömer Bolat and the P.A.’s envoy to Ankara, Nasri Abu Jaish, according to the report.

Wafa said the P.A. delegation includes PLO Executive Committee member Ziad Abu Amr; Fatah Central Committee member Maj. Gen. Majed Faraj, who also heads Ramallah’s General Intelligence Service; and Abbas advisers Majdi al-Khaldi and Mahmoud al-Habbash.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich condemned Abbas’s visit, describing the P.A. leader as “an enemy at the head of a terror authority that encourages and funds terror against the State of Israel.”

Smotrich called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prevent Abbas from returning to Israel and Judea and Samaria, adding that the Palestinian Authority “must be dismantled.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday accused Erdoğan of military aggression “that knows no borders,” saying Ankara occupies roughly 36% of Cyprus, 5% of Syria and 2,000 square kilometers of Iraq, with thousands of Turkish troops stationed across the three countries.

The ministry made the comparison amid Turkish criticism of Israel, writing on X, “Turkey has the audacity to criticize Israel. But what are the facts on the ground?”

Israel, by contrast, “temporarily controls merely 0.1% of Syria,” the ministry said, describing it as “a buffer zone to protect its citizens from proven security threats.”

jns

Day 1,041 — Wednesday, August 12

Israel’s United Nations envoy told the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday the facts regarding violence in Judea and Samaria contradict the “rising settler violence” narrative.

The council held a briefing on Judea and Samaria, as requested by European members Denmark, France, Greece, Latvia and the United Kingdom, collectively known as the “E5.”

The briefing was purportedly to condemn the alleged rise of violence by Jewish residents in the region, which the United Nations refers to as “settlers.”

“This May, there were 348 Palestinian terrorist attacks in Judea and Samaria. Eight pipe bomb attacks, 282 stone-throwing incidents, 32 fire bomb attacks, 24 arson incidents and two serious car ramming attacks,” said Danny Danon, Israel’s U.N. ambassador, noting that the high figure was higher than even the 325 recorded attacks in April. Over 400 more attacks were stopped by Israeli security forces preemptively, Danon said.

“How many of you have condemned these terrorist attacks against Jews? None of these numbers were reported by the briefers, and none of these attacks were mentioned by any of you,” he continued. “This is the bias we are confronting today.”

Meanwhile, Danon said Israel is cracking down on attacks by Jews against Palestinians, with 354 investigations opened, 20 indictments filed and 35 residents arrested through the first quarter of this year.

“This has led to a decrease in extremist violence,” said Danon. “That is why calling it ‘settler violence’ is a provocation. It denies our connection to the land of Israel. It distracts from constant terrorist attacks against Israelis and it collectively labels entire innocent communities for the crimes of the marginal extremist minority.

He drew attention to the flow of Iranian weapons and funding into Judea and Samaria, and the Palestinian Authority’s dishonesty about its so-called pay-for-slay program, which rewards terrorists on a sliding scale based on the severity of their crimes.

“The Palestinian Authority is supposed to help us to mitigate this problem,” said Danon, while the U.S. State Department told Congress that the Palestinian Authority continues to administer the program, even as Ramallah said it was converted into a broader social welfare initiative.

Washington’s representative on Tuesday said that the United States “appreciates the Israeli government’s condemnation of, and the increased actions to counter, violence in” Judea and Samaria.

“Israel has taken specific steps, such as increasing law enforcement actions, to boosting the IDF presence and to allocating significant financial resources to counter the violence,” said Jennifer Locetta, U.S. alternative representative for special political affairs.

She doubled down on Danon’s pay-for-slay criticism, telling the council that Washington “will not accept compensation for terrorism under the guise of ‘welfare’ or through any other attempts to evade detection under a different name.”

But, Locetta took a veiled shot at Israel’s approval this week of the advancement of plans to build housing units in areas between northern Jerusalem and the P.A. cities of Ramallah and el-Bireh.

“The United States reiterates its opposition to annexation,” in the area, she said.

jns

Day 1,041 — Wednesday, August 12

A credible Iranian assassination threat led the U.S. Secret Service to use an elaborate deception to get President Trump safely out of Turkey after the NATO Summit last month.

Trump was taken to an alternate military aircraft while the White House made it appear that he was flying on Air Force One, according to a new report from The Washington Post.

The operation involved a ruse where journalists and some White House staff believed they were on the same plane as Trump. But after boarding Air Force One, Trump was secretly transferred to a smaller Air Force C-32A via an airport catering truck.

The Post said it had reviewed material related to the operation and had confirmed it through a U.S. official with inside knowledge, as well as another person who knew about the president’s travel.

The White House did not directly address the report, but issued a statement highlighting that it uses every tool at its disposal to address threats to the president. The Secret Service declined to comment.

cbn israel

Day 1,068 — Tuesday, September 8

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon told Fox News Digital that New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is “sowing chaos” ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the U.N. General Assembly later this month.

Danon made the remark after Mamdani called on New Yorkers in July to protest when Netanyahu arrives to speak at the general debate at U.N. headquarters on Sept. 24.

“No one can ignore Mayor Mamdani, you know, instead of actually welcoming all world leaders and making sure that the city will function properly, he is doing exactly the opposite,” Danon said.

“He is inciting, he is sowing chaos into the city. So this year, unfortunately, it will be harder for every New Yorker or every visitor because the mayor is actually calling for people to go out, to demonstrate and it will not deter us. The prime minister will come, will speak and will represent our nation,” the ambassador added.

Mamdani’s office, when asked by Fox News Digital if he had any plans to meet with Netanyahu while he is in town, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“I don’t think the prime minister wants to meet with him,” Danon said.

Mamdani previously called Netanyahu a “war criminal” and “architect of a horrific genocide against the Palestinian people.” The Democratic socialist also acknowledged that he can’t have Netanyahu arrested despite promising to do so during his mayoral campaign.

When asked by a reporter in July about “What do you think that these people who are frustrated with Netanyahu should do when he arrives in New York City for the United Nations meeting,” Mamdani said, “One of the bedrocks of our city is protest.”

“It is something that has been a part of what makes our city so special, that New Yorkers can express themselves whether they are in support or in opposition no matter on whatever topic,” the Democratic socialist mayor said during the press conference on July 22. “And I’ve always said that when we respect our Constitution, we also respect our First Amendment. And here in New York City it will always be a place where you can exercise that.”

Netanyahu told Fox News “Hannity” around a week later that, “I’m going to New York,” and, “I’m going to speak the truth in front of this hate-spewing elected official who’s pitting one group of New Yorkers against the others.”

Danon told Fox News Digital that “we have been involved in a war, a difficult one, a long one, and I think now we have a lot of opportunities ahead of us.”

“So the prime minister would also speak about what we achieved, but also about the opportunities,” he said.

Danon also said Israel has to “finish the job” in Gaza.

“Hamas is still there. They are supposed to disarm, according to the president’s plan. I hope it will take place. I hope that it will happen sooner than later because if it will not happen, we will have to do the job ourselves. But we cannot leave a terrorist organization in Gaza. There will be no future for the people of Gaza or for us if Hamas will stay in power,” he continued.

“I think we can be very proud of our achievements. Israel is being criticized, but we walk very proud at the U.N. because we know that what we did, fighting evil, fighting Iran, fighting Hezbollah, fighting Hamas, it wasn’t only our fight. We fought for the Western societies, for the Western democracies,” Danon also said.

fox news 

Day 1,068 — Tuesday, September 8

Florida Congressman Randy Fine (R-FL) warned Britain on Monday that companies complying with reported British sanctions targeting Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria could be barred from doing business with state and local governments in Florida.

“As the British government considers forcing British companies to boycott portions of Israel, it should be aware that a Florida law that I passed as a member of the Legislature would ban any British company forced to comply from doing business with any state or local government in Florida,” Fine wrote on social media.

He added that the legislation “would also end any British business participating in that boycott from doing any business in Florida if it needed any official interaction with state or local government to operate (permits, tax collection).”

Fine stated that the potential consequences for Britain would be substantial. “Florida is one of Britain’s largest trading partners. They should understand that their vanity project in support of Muslim terror could cost them billions of dollars,” he wrote.

“And for those who doubt the power of this policy,” continued Fine, “it was this same law that broke Airbnb’s misguided effort to boycott portions of Israel in 2019. They realized that this law would have bankrupted their company.”

“Florida has made it clear. Any company – or nation – that boycotts Israel is boycotted by Florida,” he concluded.

Fine was responding to a report in The New York Times that Britain is preparing to announce expanded economic measures against Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. The reported measures could include prohibiting trade in goods produced in the communities and imposing sanctions on companies involved in construction there.

Three officials cited by the newspaper said Britain is also considering sanctions against companies that assist construction in Jewish communities. Such steps would broaden previous British sanctions related to Judea and Samaria, which have largely targeted individuals.

The reported plans come after Britain condemned Israel’s plans for construction in the E1 area between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim. Israel recently issued a tender covering seven residential compounds in E1 with 1,234 housing units, following approval last year of approximately 3,400 units in the area.

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has called on Israel to withdraw the tender, describing the project as “an unacceptable and destructive act” and arguing that construction in E1 would undermine the possibility of establishing a future Palestinian state.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said last week that Israel would respond to British measures.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called Monday for action against Britain before the expected sanctions are announced Tuesday, including the expulsion of Britain’s ambassador.

“The British ambassador should be expelled this evening. We will not be a doormat for an antisemitic government in a country that has been conquered by radical Islam and is trying to save itself from economic and social decline by attacking Jews and the State of Israel. The British Mandate in the Land of Israel is over,” Smotrich said.

arutz sheva

Day 1,068 — Tuesday, September 8

The Pacific nation of Naoero (formerly known as Nauru) opened an embassy in Jerusalem on Monday, becoming the ninth country to locate its diplomatic mission in Israel’s capital.

“Israel’s relations with the nations of the South Pacific are advancing tremendously,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said at the event. “Today two ancient peoples stand together in Jerusalem, proud of our identity, our heritage and our friendship.”

Linking the Pacific nation’s reclaimed indigenous name to Jewish history, Sa’ar added that “we, too, are the indigenous people of this land” and that “Jews are called Jews because we are from Judea.”

“Our support for Israel has been unwavering,” said Naoero’s Foreign Minister Lionel Aingimea. “Naoero is historically one of Israel’s most reliable and consistent diplomatic allies at the United Nations.”

He continued: “We see opening an embassy here in Jerusalem not only as strengthening our ties with Israel, but also as a message to the world of where we stand. Our motto is God first, and Israel always has a special place in our hearts.”

Aingimea noted that the “easy decision” to establish the mission in Jerusalem came after discussions with Sa’ar in Fiji and received full endorsement from Naoero’s Cabinet.

The island nation is one of the smallest countries in the world, with a population of about 12,000 people.

Nine countries now have embassies in Israel’s capital: the United States, Fiji, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo, Naoero, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay and Somaliland.

All the other nations that have diplomatic relations with Israel maintain their embassies in Tel Aviv or its suburbs.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to move the American embassy to Jerusalem during his first term set the stage for other countries to follow suit.

The leaders of Argentina and Colombia have pledged to relocate their embassies to Jerusalem.

jns

Day 1,067 — Monday, September 7

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a fresh warning to Iran on Sunday, saying Tehran would face a devastating response if it attacks Israel as he vowed to complete the mission of toppling the Iranian regime.

“That regime in Iran, its end is near,” Netanyahu said at a government Rosh Hashanah toast in Jerusalem, according to a translation from Hebrew. “It is weak. It is fighting for its life. It is faltering. There is another mission to complete, and we are determined to achieve it.

“This will permanently change the face of the Middle East and the history of our people. We know we are determined to do it, and we know we are capable of doing it.”

Israel is “stronger than ever,” he hailed, claiming the military campaign, carried out with U.S. support, has removed the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program and ballistic missiles.

“We are determined to defend ourselves,” Netanyahu continued. “We are determined to strike our enemies. They are not attacking us. Iran is refraining from doing so, and it knows why.

“Of course, it could make the mistake of attacking us. If it does, it will suffer a blow beyond anything it can even imagine.”

Netanyahu’s remarks came as he praised Israeli forces and security services for ongoing operations in Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank, and told his enemies: “Do not mess with us.”

fox news 

Day 1,067 — Monday, September 7

The Israel Defense Forces launched an unannounced nationwide readiness drill early on Sunday morning to test its preparedness for a sudden, large-scale multi-front conflict ahead of the upcoming High Holidays, according to an army statement.

Under the direction of the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the General Staff surprise exercise—dubbed “Breaking Dawn 2.0″—evaluates the military headquarters, command decision-making and rapid deployment capabilities across multiple operational sectors.

As part of the drill, senior commanders throughout regional commands, branches and directorates were summoned, while standby forces mobilized and reserve readiness underwent review. Zamir observed operations from both the military’s underground Supreme Command Post and positions in the field.

The IDF noted that the public may observe increased movement of ground security forces and aircraft nationwide during the drill, emphasizing that the maneuvers do not stem from an active security emergency.

Conducted under the Operations Directorate’s scheduled training program, the exercise tests updated operational plans and incorporates tactical lessons learned from combat across various fronts following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre.

IDF Comptroller officers in both active-duty and reserve service are actively inspecting units and headquarters throughout the country to review compliance and operational readiness.

The military is facing a “tense and volatile period” on all war fronts, Zamir said on Sunday during a situational assessment held as part of the exercise.

“We are preparing for the upcoming holiday period,” Zamir said, referring to Rosh Hashanah, which will be celebrated on Sept. 12–13. He noted that the military continues to draw lessons from the war, adding that “the baseline posture of the entire IDF is readiness for a surprise attack.”

The nationwide exercise tests readiness across every branch and echelon, from the General Staff to tactical field units, and ensures operational orders remain up to date, the chief of staff said. The assessment also evaluated how commands handle an emerging multi-front scenario under diverse operational conditions.

Hanan Gefen, a former commander of the Israel Defense Forces’ Unit 8200 signals intelligence unit, told JNS that there is a need for closer coordination not only among military forces but also with police, first responders and emergency services that would be called upon during a major terrorist attack.

He said areas such as Eilat and other parts of southern Israel that were not directly exposed on Oct. 7 must also be incorporated into such coordination efforts, particularly given their long and remote borders and relatively sparse population centers.

Gefen said that the Oct. 7 attack exposed a total collapse of Israel’s defense systems. For two or three days, he said, defensive efforts did not come through the traditional command-and-control structure but instead relied on local initiatives, including those led by civilians who played a critical role.

“Even today, we cannot appreciate or understand the full extent of these local initiatives. This is the major lesson learned,” he said.

Gefen emphasized that Sunday’s drill sends a broader message to Israel’s enemies, including Hezbollah, against which Israel is operating covertly on the ground and dismantling strategic strongholds; Hamas, whose head of internal security was recently captured; and Iran, a major state sponsor of terrorism.

“These messages hit very hard. The main overall message, though, is that Israel is acting thoroughly and regrouping,” he said.

Nitzan Nuriel, former director of the Counter-Terrorism Bureau in the Prime Minister’s Office, told JNS that any military exercise that is publicized is intended to send a message, demonstrate power and showcase capabilities.

“It’s not only about us, it’s about our neighbors. In every exercise we publish, there are messages to our allies and enemies,” he said.

To Israel’s allies, Nuriel said, the message is that over the past three years, Israel has achieved significant military accomplishments, and it continues to improve its capabilities, making it a powerful partner.

“To our enemies, the message is: Yes, we have been fighting for three years, but we know what we are fighting for. We are not tired, and we feel capable of taking care of our security if needed,” he said.

“I believe that the Syrian regime may be eyeing more options in case talks between us do not move forward. Hezbollah and many other players, even Turkey, need to receive those messages from us,” Nuriel said.

In addition to the nationwide readiness check, the military announced on Sunday that it will launch a large-scale exercise in the Eilat region and the Jordan Valley.

The drill, led by the 80th “Edom” Division, begins on Monday and will run for several days. Starting Sunday, residents may notice heavy movement of security forces, aircraft and naval vessels, according to the IDF.

Soldiers will rehearse scenarios including a surprise attack and infiltrations of Israeli territory by air, sea and land. The exercise will test the defense of border communities, including the resort city of Eilat, along with force readiness and air and naval integration.

Troops will also drill operational coordination with the Israeli Air Force and Israeli Navy, as well as the Israel Police and the Magen David Adom emergency response organization.

Zamir said on Sept. 3 that Israel “fundamentally changed” its security doctrine during the three-year war that followed the “failure” of the Oct. 7 attacks.

There is no more “ignoring and no containment; there is the removal of threats before they materialize. We are engaged in a continuous process of learning, drawing lessons and implementing them,” Zamir said at a recognition event for IDF troops and security forces, organized by the State Employees’ Union, according to the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, which did not specify the location of the conference.

“For more than a thousand days, the State of Israel has been engaged in a prolonged, unprecedented and multi-front campaign for our existence and our homeland,” the military chief was quoted as saying.

Zamir stressed that over the course of the war, Israel’s security forces “have removed real existential threats that had been built up against us for years. We have proven that the IDF’s long arm is powerful, determined and capable of reaching anywhere to strike those who seek to harm us.”

He went on to say that the military must be expanded with the necessary manpower and equipped with advanced capabilities to meet its evolving missions, while at the same time, the state’s “highest obligation” is to care for those who serve in the IDF.

These include mandatory service personnel, career service personnel, reservists and IDF employees, “who are the foundation of our strength and the secret to our power,” Zamir said.

“This is a generation of courageous and fearless troops whose achievements will be recorded in the annals of Jewish history,” he continued.

Upon receiving an award of appreciation, the military chief stated, “I stand here solely as the commander of hundreds of thousands of troops and officers—both in mandatory service and the reserves—who carry the security of the state on their shoulders every day, hour by hour.”

This award “belongs to the reservists who left behind their homes, families and careers and reported for duty out of a profound sense of mission; it belongs to the families who provide them with unwavering support, and to the fallen and wounded who have paid the highest price. I am merely the representative of an entire military that operates with dedication, determination and humility, and I accept this recognition in their name and because of them.”

jns

Day 1,067 — Monday, September 7

Lebanese MP Fouad Makhzoumi said Lebanon could establish peace with Israel and join the Abraham Accords if Hezbollah is fully disarmed and armed groups are prevented from dragging the country into future conflicts.

“I don’t see any reason why we cannot sign peace with Israel,” Makhzoumi said in an interview with Middle East 24, adding that Lebanon could “achieve” membership in the Abraham Accords.

Makhzoumi said normalization with Israel would benefit Lebanon but maintained that diplomatic relations and trade could move forward only once “our side, as Lebanese, disarms the militias.”

He said Lebanon must ensure armed groups are no longer able to use the country as a base for attacks or involve it in conflicts based on their own ideological objectives.

Makhzoumi said the country needs to disarm Hezbollah and “make sure that there is no opportunity for somebody to take me to a war under ideological reasons.”

In addition to addressing armed groups, Makhzoumi said Lebanon would need to establish a strong banking system that complies with international regulations and “have peace with Israel.”

The Lebanese lawmaker has previously called on the country’s military to demonstrate its willingness to confront Hezbollah’s weapons trafficking.
He urged the military to establish a checkpoint in Beirut’s Dahieh neighborhood as part of those efforts.

Makhzoumi’s comments come as regional and US officials have held broader discussions about possible changes in regional alliances and greater economic cooperation. Recent investments from the UAE have also been part of developments surrounding economic cooperation in the region.

world israel news

Day 1,066 — Sunday, September 6

Iran‘s Foreign Ministry on Saturday condemned the U.S. strikes on three Iranian oil tankers as a “war crime,” warning Washington and its allies they would bear responsibility for any further escalation.

The statement came hours after U.S. Central Command said American forces struck the tankers in response to what it said was an Iranian missile attack targeting two U.S. Navy warships patrolling regional waters.

In its statement, the ministry accused the United States of carrying out a broader campaign of military and economic pressure against Iran and claimed the strikes violated Article 2(4) of the U.N. Charter.

The ministry also said Iran would continue defending its sovereignty and national interests against what it characterized as U.S. aggression.

Iranian state media aired what it said was audio of the U.S. Navy warning one of the Iranian oil tankers to evacuate before it was struck, according to Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst.

Reporting from the Gulf region on “Fox Report,” Yingst said the reported communication instructed those aboard to evacuate part of the vessel before the attack.

Yingst said the reported warning suggested the U.S. military sought to avoid civilian casualties while still delivering what he described as “a very clear message of force” to Iran.

“It’s an indication that the U.S. military wants to send a very clear message of force to the Iranians, but they’re not looking to kill civilians in the process,” Yingst said.

The United States has not publicly confirmed the reported communication.

Fox News 

Day 1,066 — Saturday, September 5

The U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned on Friday a Turkish investment bank and two subsidiaries for allegedly helping Iran move tens of millions of dollars internationally on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force.

The department designated Istanbul-based Golden Global Yatirim Bankasi Anonim Sirketi, or Golden Global Bank, accusing it of providing Iran with critical correspondent banking access and facilitating transactions for the IRGC-QF, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ foreign-operations arm.

Treasury said Golden Global Bank was established to help Iran’s so-called rahbar network transfer oil revenue from China to Turkey, where it could be converted into cash and gold through rahbar money exchangers.

Scott Bessent, the U.S. treasury secretary, stated that “financial institutions continue to find out the hard way that we are serious about Operation Economic Outcast,” the Trump administration’s campaign aimed at cutting off the networks and financial channels Iran uses to smuggle oil, evade sanctions and fund terrorist proxies.

“While we hope no more banks will need to be sanctioned, that ultimately depends on how quickly the international community comes to its senses and ceases support of the murderous Iranian regime,” he said. “We know who you are, we know where you are and we will continue to take action together with our allies and partners until we have buried the head of the Iranian snake.”

According to Treasury, Golden Global knowingly provided correspondent banking services to Iranian financial institutions, allowing transactions through accounts controlled by the IRGC-QF and its proxies. Those included accounts linked to Turkish businessman Sitki Ayan and his companies, which the department sanctioned in 2022 for facilitating hundreds of millions of dollars in Iranian oil sales for the IRGC-QF.

Treasury also sanctioned two Turkey-based subsidiaries controlled by Golden Global Bank: Golden Global Varlik Kiralama Anonim Sirketi and Golden Global Portfoy Yonetimi Anonim Sirketi.

Iran relies on multinational shadow-banking networks to move money abroad and access U.S. dollar correspondent banking relationships, Treasury said. The networks help Iran launder funds, procure weapons and finance regional terrorist proxy groups.

jns

Day 1,066 — Saturday, September 5

Israel will not withdraw from Southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed throughout the country and the danger posed by attacks from the Land of the Cedars is neutralized, Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Friday.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu and I are leading a clear and uncompromising policy, implemented every day by the IDF: Israel will not withdraw from the security zone in Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed throughout Lebanon and the threats to the residents of the Galilee are removed,” Katz said.

“The capture of Ali al-Taher is an important step toward achieving this goal,” he added.

Katz said the IDF’s capture of the Ali al-Taher Ridge in southeastern Lebanon marked the completion of a phase in consolidating Israel’s hold on the security zone.

The decision to advance toward the ridge was made after intelligence indicated the presence of Hezbollah command-and-control tunnels there, according to the defense minister.

The tunnels served as a command center for attacks on IDF troops and the Galilee, while the ridge constituted Hezbollah’s last commanding position protecting the Nabatieh area, giving it strategic importance, Katz said.

The IDF operated in difficult terrain during both offensive and defensive operations on the ridge.

“I closely followed the activity on the ridge, including maintaining contact with the forces in the field, and I was deeply impressed by their commitment to the mission,” Katz said.

He noted that to protect Israeli troops, a strict information blackout had been imposed on details of the operation.

“In a complex and systematic operation, the mission was completed and the tunnels were cleared of terrorists,” Katz said. “I salute the determination of the IDF command and the courage of the fighters.”
The IDF said earlier on Friday that troops from the 36th Division had operated in recent weeks to clear and neutralize two underground routes in the Ali al-Taher Ridge area.

The troops established operational control of the ridge both above and below ground and cleared the area of Hezbollah terrorists. Some were killed, while others fled, according to the military.

The operation to neutralize the underground infrastructure is continuing. Once it is completed, the IDF will adjust its defensive posture based on its assessment of the situation.

The underground network contained command centers, weapons-storage rooms, generator rooms, living quarters, showers and a kitchen, enabling Hezbollah terrorists to conduct operations and remain underground for extended periods.

The IDF described it as a strategic underground network built over two decades with Iranian funding and planning.

The IDF said its operations over recent weeks had neutralized the enemy’s ability to launch attacks from the underground routes.

Katz said the IDF would now complete the neutralization of the tunnels and deploy tactically to maintain control of the ridge and prevent Hezbollah from reestablishing itself there.

The military said it would continue operating in the security zone and would respond to any attempt by Hezbollah to attack Israeli troops, while remaining committed to the ceasefire agreement.

world israel news 

Day 1,064 — Friday, September 4

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in Tel Aviv that overthrowing Iran’s government has become a central Israeli objective and is within reach as Tehran faces growing economic and military pressure.

Netanyahu made the remarks during a toast ahead of Rosh Hashanah, which begins next week. Defense Minister Israel Katz, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, and members of the IDF General Staff Forum attended the gathering at the Kirya.

“This regime is currently crumbling. It is weaker than ever. Overthrowing the regime is the central mission still before us, but it is near. It is not impossible, and it is within reach,” Netanyahu said.

The prime minister also said Israel has the ability to eliminate the threat posed by Iran and bring down its government.

“I am convinced of our ability to remove the threat once and for all and overthrow the Iranian regime that is fighting for its life. I say to our enemies – don’t mess with us. We have the power, the determination and the internal unity to overcome you.”

Netanyahu’s comments come as Iran confronts severe economic difficulties. The Iranian rial has fallen to more than 2 million per US dollar, while sharply rising inflation has driven up the prices of food and other essential goods.

The US has imposed sanctions, frozen assets, and taken additional financial measures designed to limit Tehran’s ability to participate in international trade and obtain foreign currency.

Iran has also faced military pressure from both Israel and the US. Strikes carried out by the two countries have damaged Iranian military infrastructure, including missile-related facilities and other military assets.

world israel news 

Day 1,064 — Friday, September 4

At a time when official relations between Jerusalem and Pretoria remain deeply strained, a royal delegation from South Africa came to Israel for a weeklong visit that ended on Thursday with a very different message: one of love, dialogue and “building bridges” between the two peoples.

The 12-member delegation was composed of Queen Sinokuhle Matiwane of the AmaMpondomise Kingdom; eight princesses, including Princess Lerato Mabalane of Baphiring ba Mabalane in North West Province and Princess Esihle Ntola of the AmaNtshangase Kingdom; and two princes, including Prince Litha Dalindyebo of the AbaThembu Kingdom in the Eastern Cape.

Princess Fundiswa Zote, who also represented the AbaThembu Kingdom, said before departing that although King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo had come to Israel in December 2025, this visit by a group of mostly female traditional leaders representing various South African kingdoms was “awesome,” even during what she referred to as “this hard, hard, hard period” in the country.

“It’s been exciting; it’s been awesome,” she told JNS on Thursday. “We are truly grateful. We’re thankful for the relationship. We’re thankful for the friendship and we hope that this extends beyond, beyond, beyond.”

Zote said the trip had focused on “showing our women what Israel is all about” and involved high-level meetings and visits around the country. Highlights included Christian holy sites—her favorite was Magdala on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee—as well as the City of David and the Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem.

She said one of her people’s main concerns was water, a problem they were addressing with the help of Israel and particularly Innovation: Africa, an Israeli-founded nonprofit that uses Israeli solar and water technology to provide clean drinking water and electricity to African communities.

“There’s no water in our communities and we’ve been speaking to Innovation: Africa to see how we can work together and collaborate and use some of the Israeli technology to bring water to our people,” she said.

Zote concluded the interview by saying, “May God bless the city of Jerusalem. May God keep her. May God bless Israel and keep Israel in perfect peace. We love you.”

jns

Day 1,063 — Thursday, September 3

Let’s call it what it was: masked settlers ambushing an NBC News crew and local Palestinians in the West Bank village of Jalud is an indefensible, unacceptable criminal act. This wasn’t a “clash.” It was an assault on journalists doing their jobs and people going about their daily lives.

Prime Minister Netanyahu condemned the attack, calling it a “criminal act of violence” committed by “a handful of rioters” who “harm Israel’s standing in the world.” Israeli security forces have confiscated three vehicles and opened an investigation — as Netanyahu called upon them to arrest those involved and deal with them to the full extent of the law. Sadly, this is not the first time, and Israel must show zero tolerance for such behavior by a lawless fringe — with arrests, prosecutions and prison sentences.

But there’s another important story here, and it’s about the press itself. For over two years, Hamas and Gaza dominated nearly every broadcast, every U.N. session, every campus protest. That unparalleled coverage eclipsed the humanitarian crisis in Sudan, where the number of people in dire need of help is estimated at over 33 million (!) with close to 12 million people displaced from their homes.

However, even as the war in Gaza came to an end, global newsrooms didn’t move on. They moved over. Judea and Samaria, also known as the West Bank, became the new venue of choice, the fresh well of footage and outrage needed to keep the anti-Israel narrative running at full volume. The war may be winding down. The narrative apparatus built around it is more active than ever.

Acts of violence, such as the one in Jalud, are real and deserve coverage — but so does an enormous amount of violence elsewhere that never gets a fraction of this attention. Attacks on religious minorities across Africa, Asia and the Middle East routinely go unreported by the very same networks now camped out on the West Bank. Meanwhile, an isolated incident involving Israel — even one carried out by a small band of extremists the Israeli government itself condemns — has dominated the media for days.

The lesson audiences absorb, whether intended or not, is that violence only matters when Jews or Israel are on one side of it. That selective spotlight doesn’t stay contained to foreign policy debates. It filters into U.N. resolutions, into government statements, into placards at protests and finally into open hostility toward Jews who have nothing to do with those acts at all.

The pipeline runs from social media to the newsroom to the street with disturbing speed, and it demands the media’s accountability.

Lost in all of this is scale. The extremists carrying out these attacks are a minority of the minority, the very fringe among more than 500,000 Jewish residents living peacefully in Judea and Samaria, the biblical heartland of the Jewish State. The “unsettlers” was how U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee recently described them in an X post, “The ‘unsettlers’ betray the State of Israel, Judea/Samaria residents, civil law & the Torah.”

The overwhelming majority of Jews living on the West Bank are ordinary families: teachers, farmers, students, commuters who live under the daily threat of stabbings, shootings, and car-rammings that rarely make headlines anywhere. For example, only last week, a 16-year-old Palestinian jumped from behind and stabbed, moderately injuring a 24-year-old Israeli who stopped to shop near the village of Auja in the Jordan Valley. Where was this victim or his family interviewed? What coverage was given to the hateful education that propels a 16-year-old to viciously attack another person with a knife?!

The media’s insistence on treating a fringe group as representative of that entire population — while ignoring the terror those same families face — isn’t just lazy. It’s a distortion that criminalizes an entire community and propels hatred and acts of violence on a global scale.

Antisemitism doesn’t erupt in a vacuum. It needs a story, a grievance, a reason for outrage and there is no easier vehicle to manufacture one than the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Under the political charade, the ugliness under the cloak is clear: Israel is the Jew among the nations, and what is disguised as “political reporting” is really a biased attack on that Jew, the one and only Jewish state in the world.

When newsrooms chase Judea and Samaria the way they chased Gaza, amplifying the fringe, ignoring real terror and ignoring the peaceful majority, they aren’t just shaping coverage, they’re feeding the oldest hatred with the newest headlines.

No Jews, no news has ever been truer, or more dangerous.

fox news

Day 1,063 — Thursday, September 3

Kuwaiti air defenses are confronting hostile missile and drone attacks from Iran, the Kuwait Armed Forces confirmed in a post on X/Twitter on Thursday morning.

“Everyone is requested to adhere to the security and safety instructions issued by the competent authorities,” the post added.

The Iranian attack on Kuwait targeted US military bases in the country, Iranian state media IRIB reported.

Local sources told IRIB that a US base in Kuwait had been struck, claiming that smoke was rising from the site. Neither the US nor Kuwait have confirmed such reports.

The Kuwait Armed Forces said in their post on X, “If explosion sounds are heard, they are the result of air defense systems intercepting the hostile attacks.”

jerusalem post

Day 1,062 — Wednesday, September 2

US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it completed a wave of strikes against Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran early on Wednesday.

According to CENTCOM, the strikes were carried out in retaliation for Iranian attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and the recent attack on US troops stationed in the region.

“US forces struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets including air defense sites, radar systems, maritime assets and facilities, mine laying capabilities, and communications sites,” CENTCOM said in a post on X/Twitter.

“The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members.”

Iranian state media reported that several explosions were heard in the cities of Bandar Abbas, Ahvaz, and Sirik.

Following the strikes, electrical power to several parts of the Hormozgan province was lost, Iranian state media IRIB reported. Power has been restored to Qeshm county in Hormozgan, the area’s governor announced on Wednesday morning.

IRIB claimed that a US airstrike on Sirik hit a wedding, killing four and injuring 63. The US did not immediately respond to the allegations.

Air defenses were also reportedly activated in eastern Tehran, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency said.

The US military attacked two Iranian government tankers during Tuesday’s strikes on Iran, US officials told Axios.

This is the first time that the US has struck an Iranian tanker under a new “tanker for tanker” policy rather than to stop a ship violating the naval blockade. The policy, which Axios said was approved by US President Donald Trump, aims to deter Iranian attacks on tankers traveling through the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump later confirmed the strikes in a post to Truth Social, echoing CENTCOM’s reasoning for the strikes.

“The United States is, as we speak, striking Iranian Targets near the Strait of Hormuz,” he wrote. “The strikes are large and powerful, and in retaliation for the Iranians’ failed attempt at adding sea mines to the Strait, which currently has no mines (They have been completely removed or detonated!), and the Iranians shooting eight missiles, all successfully knocked down, at our Military Base in Jordan.”

Trump threatened Iran that, should it respond to the “very justified attack,” it will be hit “again at a much harder and higher level, but it will not be the biggest attack of them all, that is waiting in the wings and, when it is over, there will be very little left of the Islamic Republic of Iran!”

jerusalem post

Day 1,062 — Wednesday, September 2

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday rejected reports that he is trying to force Iran to resume talks with the US.

“I’m not trying to force Iran to the bargaining table, as ABC Fake News reported. I couldn’t care less if they sign a worthless, to them, agreement. I like our position now much better, with almost total control of the Hormuz Strait, and their economy totally collapsing,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

He added, “They are just playing out the inevitable. When are the Iranian people going to rise up and fight?”

The post followed the launch of US strikes against IRGC targets in Iran. Initial reports said Qeshm Island and Chabahar were among the areas targeted, with explosions reported at both locations.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that its forces successfully completed the wave of strikes against Iranian military targets.

“US forces struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets including air defense sites, radar systems, maritime assets and facilities, mine laying capabilities, and communications sites,” it said.

“The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members,” added CENTCOM.

Trump said earlier that the American strikes were carried out in response to Iranian activity in the Strait of Hormuz and an earlier missile attack against a US military base in Jordan, warning Iran of more powerful strikes if it retaliated.

arutz sheva 

Day 1,061 — Tuesday, September 1

President Donald Trump declared Iran a “Failed Nation” on Monday and called for its leaders to face prosecution over the killing of anti-government protesters, issuing the broadside as direct fighting between the US and Iran resumed after a roughly month-long lull.

In a Truth Social post Monday morning, Trump described Iran as being militarily shattered and economically devastated after six months of war, while accusing its government of killing over 100,000 protesters.

“Iran is officially a Failed Nation,” the president wrote. “IT IS DEAD! They have no Navy, they have no Air Force, they have no currency, they are not paying their soldiers or police, Inflation is at 300%, and their leadership is in total disarray and incapable of properly representing the country.”

“The only thing they have is FAKE NEWS from the USA, a willingness to kill their protesters (now over 100,000 people dead. They must be tried for war crimes against humanity!), and a good line of ‘BULLS***.’”

The post was published Monday morning, hours after Iran fired ballistic missiles at US military facilities in Jordan in retaliation for an American strike on Iranian military equipment on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz.

US forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak after Ame
rican officials said Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel were preparing to use them to deploy naval mines into the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran subsequently launched missiles at two American bases in Jordan, with nearly all of the incoming missiles intercepted and no significant damage initially reported.

Trump separately warned Monday that the US would retaliate against the Iranian attack, saying Washington was “going to hit them hard,” while suggesting the latest exchange did not necessarily signal a return to the most intense phase of the war. He also ruled out using nuclear weapons against Iran, saying Tehran had already been defeated militarily.

Iran’s economy has also deteriorated sharply during the war.

The rial fell to a record low of roughly 2 million to the US dollar in late August, compared with about 1.53 million in early March, as sanctions, damage to infrastructure and restrictions on Iranian trade intensified pressure on the economy.

Trump’s claim of 300% inflation is substantially higher than available estimates of Iran’s annual inflation rate. Recent reporting put annual inflation at approximately 66%, while projections indicated inflation could average around 70% during 2026.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said the country’s foreign trade has fallen by approximately 35% amid sanctions and the US blockade.
Trump has repeatedly claimed in recent weeks that Iran has been unable to pay portions of its military and security forces.

Reports from inside Iran have also described labor protests and demonstrations over unpaid wages amid worsening shortages and declining purchasing power.

world israel news

Day 1,061 — Tuesday, September 1

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar accused Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Monday of “lying shamelessly” about Israel’s role in the Ceuta crisis, which broke out on July 30 when tens of thousands of migrants from Morocco flooded into the North African Spanish enclave.

“In an interview with Cadena SER today, he lied again, astonishingly accusing Israel of disseminating misleading information regarding the events in Ceuta,” Sa’ar wrote. “This is a brazen lie. Continuing to spread defamatory lies will not distract from Sánchez’s disgraceful failure to manage his country’s affairs.”

Sánchez, speaking to host Aimar Bretos on Cadena SER’s “Hoy por Hoy,” said the causes of the crisis remain under investigation but blamed “rumors and disinformation” spread through social media accounts “linked both to Russia and to Israel, and to an international far-right” movement that he said exploits migration to attack Spain and Europe.

The crisis erupted on July 30 and 31, when tens of thousands of migrants crossed or attempted to cross into Ceuta from neighboring Morocco. Spanish officials have put the number at roughly 70,000, with most subsequently returning to Morocco. About 5,000 migrants, including 1,200 minors, remained in Ceuta as of Monday, according to Sánchez.

Sánchez said there is no evidence that Moroccan authorities were involved in the mass crossing and credited Rabat with cooperating with Madrid during the crisis. He attributed the surge in part to false claims circulating online after a Spanish Supreme Court ruling concerning the return of migrants who enter Ceuta by sea.

The episode has fueled conspiracy theories in Spain, including claims that Israel benefited from or helped engineer the crisis. Spanish actor Javier Bardem shared social-media posts alleging that Israel and Western far-right groups benefited from a weakened Spain.

The speculation intensified after Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, criticized Spain’s handling of the crisis on July 30, writing that Madrid should explain why it maintains “colonial enclaves” in Africa before continuing to lecture Israel. Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente responded, “Well, it’s all starting to become quite clear,” in an apparent reference to the suggestion of Israeli involvement.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry subsequently distanced itself from Danon’s remarks. Dana Erlich, Israel’s ambassador to Spain, wrote on July 31 that Israel was “closely monitoring the situation in Ceuta” and that “the comment made by Israel’s Ambassador to the UN on the issue does not represent the position of the State of Israel.”

jns

Day 1,060 — Monday, August 31

U.S. forces struck Iranian missile launchers on Larak Island on Sunday after intelligence indicated Tehran was preparing to fire rockets carrying sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz, Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst reported.

The plan to launch rockets with sea mines was designed to redeploy the explosives in the strait after U.S. forces demined the area, he said on “The Big Weekend Show.”

President Donald Trump had said Aug. 25 that the U.S. Navy had informed him that all mines had been removed from the strait’s waters.

Trump also warned Iran that any vessel caught laying new ones would be “immediately and systematically destroyed.”

The developments came as U.S. forces in Jordan faced missile attacks Sunday in retaliation for the strikes on Larak Island.

Yingst said American forces stationed in Jordan had multiple air-defense systems to counter such threats, including Patriot and THAAD missile-defense systems deployed in the region.

“At this point, there are no significant impacts, and nearly all of the incoming missiles have been intercepted,” Yingst said.

“These are serious attacks,” he added.

On Sunday evening, the IRGC threatened retaliation following a US strike on Iranian military targets on Larak Island that reportedly killed two people and wounded two others.

A US official confirmed to Axios that American forces carried out the strike to prevent Iranian forces from deploying sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz. The operation marked the first known US strike inside Iran since late July, when President Donald Trump paused a two-week US military campaign in the strategic waterway.

“Earlier today US forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island. Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz,” a US official told Axios.

The official added that US forces are “monitoring the area closely and remain prepared to protect the free flow of commerce” through the strait.

Tasnim, an Iranian news agency affiliated with the IRGC, reported that the attack was carried out by a drone and that two people were killed and two others wounded.

In a statement quoted by Iran’s IRNA news agency, the IRGC vowed retaliation, saying, “The terrorist enemy’s aggression on Larak Island will be met with punishment for the aggressor.”

The IRGC further accused the United States and Israel of attempting to reassert their influence in the region.

“The American-Zionist adversary, once more acting out of frustration over its domestic challenges and waning influence in the region, aims to resurrect its malevolent presence and sway public perception. “In an act of aggression, it attacked Larak Island, resulting in the martyrdom and injury of several citizens.”

The US strike comes amid heightened tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for international commercial shipping and energy supplies.

Last week, Trump said that the US Navy had cleared all mines from the international waters of the Strait of Hormuz.

“I have just been informed by the United States Navy that all mines have been removed and/or detonated from within the International Waters of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has been notified that any ship or boat placing new mines will be immediately and systematically destroyed,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

He added, “Through Space Force, we are watching every square inch of the Strait, as we are, also, with Pickaxe Mountain and the already destroyed three other Nuclear sites. There is a Zero Tolerance policy on mine placement in full force and effect.”

Later, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said that Tehran considers itself to still be at war and warned that the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until several conditions are met.

“We are still in a state of war, and the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed,” Gharibabadi said, in comments quoted by Iranian media, while stressing that reopening the strategic waterway would require an end to the conflict on all fronts, the lifting of the blockade and a resolution of the situation in Yemen.

“The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz will only happen in exchange for ending the war on all fronts, lifting the blockade, and resolving the situation in Yemen.”

He also linked the reopening of the strait to commitments made by Washington under the memorandum of understanding signed by the sides in June.

“We told Pakistan’s Army Chief that reopening the Strait of Hormuz depends on America fulfilling its commitments under the memorandum of understanding.”

Gharibabadi further warned that Iran could take military action before being attacked.

“Why should we always wait for America to attack? We can take preemptive action.”

arutz sheva 

Day 1,060 — Monday, August 31

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) removed a link from its annual back-to-school guide after the linked curriculum blamed US support for Israel for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and recommended Osama bin Laden’s “Letter to America” as a student resource.

CAIR released its “Back to school resource guide” for K-12 students Monday, but the link was removed a day later.

The 16-page guide directed readers to a “Muslim Studies Curriculum,” a collaborative project between CAIR-NJ and Teaching While Muslim.

The curriculum described the nearly 3,000 deaths on 9/11 as the work of a “group self-identifying as Al Quaeda hailing from the mountains of Afghanistan.”

It attributed the attack in part to US “support of Israel,” American involvement in the Persian Gulf War and the “vast presence” of US forces across the Middle East.

Among its recommended resources was bin Laden’s “Letter to America,” which contains antisemitic claims about Jewish control over US politics, media and the economy.

The curriculum also presented bin Laden as among the Afghan “rebels” fighting the Soviet Union during the 1980s.

The material focused heavily on the consequences of 9/11 for Muslims, including increased hate crimes and discrimination.

CAIR said lessons about the attacks can be “a particularly dangerous time for Muslim students,” who “often experience a surge in bullying during school lessons about 9/11.”

The curriculum also described the post-9/11 period as producing an “aggressive shift in US domestic and foreign policy” and an “erosion of civil liberties of many Americans.”

Nicholas Haros Jr., whose mother, Frances, was killed on 9/11, criticized the curriculum.

“Israel had nothing to do with 9/11,” Haros said. “The further we get from 9/11, this new generation of kids will learn to blame our country. These kids are going to be poisoned – and that’s the intent.”

When contacted by The New York Post, CAIR did not deny removing the link and referred the newspaper to a note explaining changes to an earlier document.

world israel news 

Day 1,059 — Sunday, August 30

Ejecting representatives of the U.K. or of other countries from the U.S.-led International Gaza Support Center in the southern Israeli city of Kiryat Gat would undermine efforts to improve Gaza’s future, the British embassy in Israel tweeted on Friday.

Reports emerged over the past week that Israel was planning to evict British personnel from the multinational hub, which is meant to oversee post-war Gaza stabilization efforts. The Israeli plans come in response to the British government’s intention to impose “robust” sanctions targeting Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, in connection with Israel’s planned development of the E1 area in Ma’aleh Adumim, east of Jerusalem.

“The U.K. is committed to the implementation of the 20-Point Plan in Gaza and playing our part in improving the situation on the ground, at the request of the United States and the Board of Peace,” the embassy added, referring to the original Trump administration’s peace plan for Gaza, advanced alongside the hostage-terrorist swap agreement that took effect from January to March 2025.

On Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said that the Jewish state was evicting the Dutch from the IGSC (previously known as the Civil-Military Coordination Center).

Israel is responding to “a series of anti-Israel measures taken by the Dutch government,” specifically a Dutch law set to take effect next month that will ban trade of products made in Judea and Samaria, eastern Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, Sa’ar said.

The Netherlands is joining other European nations, including Belgium, Ireland and Spain, in restricting trade with Jewish communities in those areas.

Israel long ago annexed eastern Jerusalem and extended Israeli law to the Golan Heights after liberating them in a defensive war in 1967.

Sa’ar gave Dutch representatives at the center a week to depart Israel, and the expulsion from the center took effect immediately, he said.

The Times of London reported on Tuesday that Britain’s new prime minister, Andy Burnham, wants to take a stronger position on Israel than his predecessor, Keir Starmer, according to a government source who was not identified by name.

The source expected that a trade ban, as well as sanctions on individuals, will be implemented.

More than 140 Labour MPs, comprising roughly a third of the party, wrote an open letter to U.K. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper in June calling to expand the sanctions regime on Israel in response to Jerusalem’s decision to approve construction in E1, connecting the capital to the developed part of Ma’ale Adumim.

“We believe ending trade with settlements is a vital next step and urge you to initiate proceedings to put such a ban into place as soon as possible,” the letter read.

Other Labour Party legislators, however, expressed opposition to the letter.

Labour Friends of Israel released a statement on July 30 warning the British government against taking “any further untargeted steps” beyond sanctioning “violent extremist settlers and organisations.”

It warned that a sweeping trade ban on Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria would affect all Israeli businesses operating in the area, “adversely affecting Israelis living within the state’s borders” and thus de facto becoming a boycott of all of Israel.

It moreover said that the measure could weaken Israel’s opposition parties ahead of the Oct. 27 general election, while also harming the Palestinian Authority economy, which is “inextricably linked” to the Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

jns

Day 1,058 — Saturday, August 29

During their White House meeting last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he presented President Trump with three options for dealing with Iran: a good agreement, military action, or tightening the economic siege.

Speaking in Jerusalem, Netanyahu praised the Trump administration’s latest economic pressure plan against Tehran, calling it a “very powerful move.”

“What President Trump did yesterday was to tighten the siege on Iran, not only by tightening the siege on Iran itself, but by tightening the siege on those who aid this regime, this terrible dictatorship. This is a very important step,” he said.

Netanyahu also cautioned that Israel’s struggle against Iran and its regional allies is far from finished. “We still have challenges ahead of us. The Iran challenge is not yet over. We need to bring to an end also the challenge in Gaza, in Lebanon, and also other arenas, and we are determined to do so.”

The prime minister delivered the remarks before leaders from Judea and Samaria, where he boasted of the dramatic expansion of Jewish communities in Israel’s biblical heartland, despite ongoing opposition from critics.

“I know that we are not only ensuring our existence in the present, we are ensuring the existence of the people of Israel in the future. One hundred sixty farms, 104 settlements that we established and regularized. And it is not easy. It is never easy.”

Netanyahu added, “We do not give up. We have a vision. This is our land, and it will remain ours.”

cbn israel

Day 1,057 — Friday, August 28

The Foreign Ministry on Thursday sharply criticized a joint statement by 15 countries and the European Union condemning Israel’s entry into a UNRWA training center in Kalandia and the seizure of the agency’s facilities in eastern Jerusalem two days earlier.

The countries called on Israel to “honor its commitments” and immediately stop what they described as interference with UNRWA’s operations.

The statement, signed by the UK, France, Germany, Canada, Italy, Spain, Japan, and other countries, reaffirmed their support for UNRWA and argued that Israel’s entry into the facilities was illegal. They said UN facilities are protected under international law and called on Israel to allow UNRWA to carry out its work without obstruction.

In response, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said: “Your facts are wrong. You support an organization that is a breeding ground for terrorism, and you prefer to attack Israel with baseless accusations instead of acting for the benefit of Arab children in Kafr Akab. This is a disgrace.”

The ministry also claimed that, according to a report by the USAID Office of Inspector General, which US President Donald Trump referenced on Thursday, more than 100 UNRWA employees participated in the October 7 Hamas attack.

“UNRWA employees served as terror operatives, and UNRWA facilities were systematically used for terror purposes,” the ministry said.

The Foreign Ministry said this was the reason UNRWA operations in Israel were banned, adding that “all Israeli actions were carried out in accordance with Israeli law and international law.”

The ministry further claimed that UNRWA never had property rights over the compound and that the organization had been using the site unlawfully. According to the ministry, the compound is planned to become a school and community center for children in the Kafr Akab neighborhood.

The dispute comes two days after police forces raided a UNRWA training compound in Kafr Akab , following an announcement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that “in accordance with my directive and following the law we passed, the evacuation of the UNRWA compound in Kafr Akab in Jerusalem begins today.”

Netanyahu later clarified: “The State of Israel will not allow an organization whose employees were involved in terrorism and the October 7 massacre to operate in its territory and will act against it using all available tools.”

According to statements from both sides, the compound targeted in the raid was a “training compound.” UNRWA said the site housed refugees and hosted workshops and classes. Following the raid, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said the Jerusalem Municipality had already begun work at the site to convert it into an educational center.

The Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee previously approved legislation aimed at ending UNRWA’s operations in Israel. The laws stipulate, among other measures, that UNRWA will not be permitted to operate a representative office, provide services, or conduct activities within Israel’s sovereign territory.

The legislation also calls for revoking the organization’s diplomatic status and canceling diplomatic visas for UNRWA personnel.

jpost

Day 1,057 — Friday, August 28

US Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said Thursday that American forces have completed the clearance of Iranian-laid sea mines from internationally recognized shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz, describing the operation as a major milestone.

In an operational update, Cooper said thousands of US servicemembers are simultaneously enforcing a naval blockade against Iran while helping maintain the flow of commercial shipping through the strategically important waterway.

“We have successfully cleared sea mines in the Strait’s international shipping lanes that were laid months ago by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” Cooper said. “Internationally recognized transit routes in the Strait are free of Iranian sea mines thanks to the incredible work of the US military.”

According to Cooper, the mine-clearing operation involved Navy divers, Navy SEALs and air assets from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. He described the mission as difficult and dangerous but said the forces involved had successfully completed their task.

“The circumstances were challenging and dangerous to say the least, but we got the job done,” he said. “Bottom line, today, international shipping lanes are open and momentum is building.”

Cooper explained that the cleared routes form part of the Strait’s internationally recognized traffic separation scheme, which directs vessels traveling in opposite directions through the narrow waterway.
Over recent months, US forces have helped nearly 1,500 commercial vessels pass through the Strait under coordinated protection, Cooper said. Those ships transported nearly 750 million barrels of crude oil to global markets.

At the same time, he said, Iran has been unable to export oil from its shores since the US naval blockade resumed in mid-July.

“And while American forces have supported 750 million barrels of crude oil leaving the Gulf, Iran has exported zero oil from its shores since we resumed the naval blockade in mid-July. We have been highly effective,” Cooper said.

He added that no vessels had entered or departed Iranian ports without US authorization, with exceptions made only for humanitarian reasons.

Since the blockade resumed, thousands of American servicemembers operating more than 20 warships and hundreds of aircraft have supported the mission, according to Cooper. He said US forces have turned around 75 vessels that attempted to breach the blockade and disabled three that failed to comply with orders.

Cooper praised the personnel carrying out the operation and said CENTCOM remained focused on its mission.

arutz sheva 

Day 1,056 — Thursday, August 27

Hamas and other Palestinian terror organizations must end extrajudicial executions of Palestinians suspected of collaborating with the Israeli government, Amnesty International said in a recent article published to its website. 

“Authorities and forces affiliated with Hamas in the occupied Gaza Strip must put an end to extrajudicial executions of suspected collaborators with Israel, carried out in the absence of any judicial proceedings,” the human rights organization said in a statement. 

Amnesty cited a June 2026 UN report, which it said found “249 cases of extrajudicial executions and severe physical violence in Gaza between August 2024 and early 2026.” 

Many of these cases were carried out directly by Hamas forces, Amnesty claimed. 

Despite calling out Hamas for “extrajudicial executions and unlawful killings,” Amnesty still blamed Israel for “the collapse of law and order in Gaza and the extreme state of deprivation,” saying they were a result of “Israel’s ongoing genocide.” 

“The Hamas authorities must immediately halt all unlawful killings, acts of vigilantism, and arbitrary arrests,” Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaign Erika Guevara-Rosas said.

“Restoring law and order must never serve as a cover to commit grave human rights violations, carry out reprisals or to collectively punish entire families,” she said. 

On its Telegram channel, Hamas has publicly confirmed the executions of several Gaza Palestinians, calling them “collaborators.” 

Before the October 2025 ceasefire, a Telegram channel affiliated with Hamas published several documented killings of so-called “collaborators,” along with threats to hunt down any Gaza citizen passing information to Israel. 

In its report, Amnesty said it documented nine extrajudicial executions and one unlawful killing, all of which came after the October 2025 ceasefire-hostage deal. 

Several of those killed were members of the Dughmush family from western Gaza City, with which Hamas engaged in a battle for control over Al-Sabra neighborhood, following the ceasefire declaration.

Hamas also publicly executed “eight unarmed members of the Dughmush family,” accusing them of collaborating with Israel. 

A Palestinian woman who spoke with Amnesty International on condition of anonymity, to protect her safety, said the eight family members “turned themselves in after being promised a fair trial, only to be publicly executed two hours later.” 

At the same time, the Center for Peace Communications, a New York-based nonprofit dedicated to fostering reconciliation and reducing identity-based conflicts in the region, said that Hamas has created a culture of militancy in the Gaza Strip. 

Citing several testimonials shared with Jusoor News by local Gazans, the Center for Peace Communications described a broad “proliferation of weapons beyond militant ranks.” 

It referenced a recent video published by Jusoor News, in which armed Gaza men can be seen shouting to Hamas, “We have guns just like you!” 

“Anyone who feels they or their family has been insulted grabs a gun,” an older man told Jusoor News. “The leaders don’t treat people with respect, and regular people don’t respect the leaders or each other.” 

Moumen Al-Natour, a political activist who fled Hamas’s rule in Gaza during the war, told the Center for Peace Communications that the Hamas’ ideology created a culture of violence that needs to be uprooted. 

“When I was a child, I remember my Islamic studies teacher telling us, ‘Kill a Jew and you will enter paradise,’” Al-Natour recalled. “If we do not replace these ideas with new ones, we will accomplish nothing.” 

all israel news 

Day 1,056 — Thursday, August 27

The US State Department has instructed nearly all of its diplomatic missions worldwide to urge local governments to strengthen security for Jewish communities ahead of the upcoming High Holidays, according to a diplomatic cable obtained by JNS.

The cable calls on US missions to provide host governments with basic information about the Jewish holidays as well as the anniversary of the October 7 attacks, which occurred during Simchat Torah in 2023. It also notes that other terrorist attacks have taken place on or around Jewish holidays.

“We urge your government to deploy law enforcement, counterterrorism or military forces, as appropriate, to synagogues and other locations hosting services or events,” the cable states, as quoted by JNS.

US diplomatic missions were instructed to deliver the message to the highest available levels of government in their respective countries.

The cable also calls for increased security in residential areas with Jewish populations, noting that worshippers often travel along predictable routes at predictable times while wearing identifiable religious clothing.

Host governments are further urged to provide security briefings and establish coordination channels with Jewish institutions, security organizations and businesses ahead of the holidays.

This year, the two-day observance of Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on Friday, September 11, which also marks the beginning of Shabbat, and ends after sundown on Sunday, September 13.

The State Department also encouraged governments to increase patrols in crowded areas. The cable points out that religious Jews generally do not use electronic communications during nearly all of the holidays and therefore recommends establishing a system capable of delivering direct warnings about sudden threats.

There has been no official comments from the State Department on the reported cable.

arutz sheva

Day 1,055 — Wednesday, August 26

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday condemned Israel’s evacuation and takeover of a UNRWA vocational training center in eastern Jerusalem, warning that the move would disrupt educational opportunities for young people.

“The Secretary-General is greatly alarmed at this development, as it will deprive young people of the vocational education they were receiving,” Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

Dujarric emphasized that the facility, like other UNRWA properties, is protected under the UN’s legal status. The training center “and other UNRWA premises are premises of the United Nations. They are inviolable and immune from any form of interference.”

The statement followed an operation by the IDF, Israel Police and Jerusalem Municipality to evacuate the UNRWA compound in Kafr Aqab, in the northern part of the capital.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir welcomed the operation, saying Israeli authorities were enforcing legislation against the agency.

“This morning, Israel Police forces are working with the relevant authorities to enforce the law and remove UNRWA from the premises. An organization whose employees were involved in terrorism and that repeatedly served as a cover for Hamas has no right to exist for even one more second, and has no place in Jerusalem or the State of Israel,” he stated.

“My policy is clear: Sovereignty is not something you talk about – it is something you exercise. The Israel Police will continue to act resolutely to enforce the law, strengthen governance and make it clear that Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Israel, and so it will remain. Anyone who establishes terrorist nests there will be removed,” Ben Gvir added.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also addressed the evacuation, saying it followed legislation passed by the Knesset and his directive.

“In accordance with my directive and following the law we passed, the evacuation of the UNRWA compound in Kafr Aqab, Jerusalem, began today. The State of Israel will not allow an organization whose employees were complicit in terrorism and the October 7 massacre to operate within its territory, and will act against it by all means at its disposal.”

UNRWA has faced sustained Israeli criticism over ties between its employees and the Hamas terrorist organization. The criticism intensified in 2024 after Israel presented evidence that UNRWA personnel had participated in the October 7, 2023 attack.

The UN subsequently established a review group headed by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna to examine the allegations. Its report identified “neutrality-related issues” within UNRWA, while also stating that Israel had not provided evidence supporting claims that a significant number of agency employees belonged to terrorist organizations.

In October 2024, the Knesset approved legislation prohibiting UNRWA from operating in Israel and preventing Israeli officials from maintaining contact with the agency. The legislation was later amended to prohibit the provision of electricity and water to UNRWA facilities.

Guterres has upped his criticism of Israel since the October 7 Hamas attack. Several weeks afterward, he said the attack “did not happen in a vacuum” and appeared to blame Israel, remarks that drew widespread condemnation. He subsequently claimed his comments had been misunderstood and reiterated that he had condemned Hamas.

Tensions between Israel and Guterres’s office increased further in May after the UN chief placed Israeli entities on a blacklist concerning sexual violence in conflict zones. Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, responded by announcing that Israel would freeze relations with the Secretary-General’s office.

“We are done with this UN Secretary-General. Guterres has put Israel on the same blacklist along with Hamas, ISIS and the most depraved terrorist organizations in the world. This is a moral disgrace that proves that Guterres has lost all credibility,” Danon stated at the time.

arutz sheva 

Day 1,055 — Wednesday, August 26

The U.S. Secret Service said it was aware of a video aired on Iranian state media threatening President Trump’s youngest son, Barron Trump.

“The U.S. Secret Service is aware of the video and investigates anything that can be perceived as a threat toward our protectees,” Nate Herring, a Secret Service spokesperson, told Fox News Digital.

“Out of concern for operational security, we do not discuss matters of protective intelligence,” Herring added.

The video depicts locations associated with the younger Trump’s whereabouts. It ends with a suggested $10 million reward for his location.

Iranian state media has aired content on multiple occasions threatening Trump and his family following the assassination of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which came at the start of the war between the United States and Iran, as well as the U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in 2020.

“I don’t think it’s any secret, it’s been in the media, that Iran has publicly said they want to kill President Trump,” Deputy Director of the U.S. Secret Service Matt Quinn told reporters at an event last month.

The video came amid threats from the Trump administration to nations that fail to sever their economic ties with Tehran and an ongoing naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

In July, Trump secretly switched planes from Air Force One to another aircraft in Turkey via a catering truck due to a credible Iranian surface-to-air missile threat.

fox news

Day 1,054 — Tuesday, August 25

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced an “economic onslaught” against Iran’s global trade partners on Monday as part of the financial “D-Day” that U.S. President Donald Trump declared last week.

Bessent said that the sanctions program, “Operation Economic Outcast,” was an “unprecedented, whole-of-government” campaign to “collapse every last option for Iran.”

“For decades, this regime has drawn strength from a calculus that regards Iranian retaliation as certain and American enforcement as negotiable,” Bessent told reporters. “That era is over.”

Iran’s economy has long been subject to primary economic sanctions aimed at hindering its ability to trade oil, fund terrorist groups around the region and finance its missile, drone and nuclear programs.

Successive administrations have declined, however, to impose secondary sanctions on many countries and companies that do business with Iran. Many of the countries that retain economic ties with Iran are close partners of the United States, including many of the Arab countries in the Persian Gulf.

The department has also generally refrained from imposing sanctions on Chinese banks and oil refineries that transact business with Iran in apparent fear of economic retaliation.

Though he declined to “name names,” Bessent suggested that those secondary sanctions would finally be imposed.

“We want to make clear here today that no one is above the reach of U.S. sanctions,” Bessent said in response to a question about the potential sanctioning of Chinese entities. “We find that the best way to engage with countries is through quiet diplomacy, and we are level-setting with every country to tell them our expectations.”

“We know who they are. They know who they are,” he said. “When the hammer of U.S. Treasury actions falls upon them, they will have no one to blame but themselves.”

Bessent said that teams from the U.S. military and Treasury and State Departments were meeting with counterparts around the world to explain the new policy.

jns

Day 1,054 — Tuesday, August 25

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed this evening (Monday) that Iran has attempted to assassinate one of his children. The information was previously prohibited from being published.

In a conversation with Channel 14 News, Netanyahu said, “There is something here that is unbelievable. Iran targeted one of my children. Iran tried to murder one of my children.”

When asked whether this was intelligence information that was presented to him, Netanyahu did not elaborate and repeated his words: “Iran tried to assassinate one of my children.” According to him, security for his children is not a luxury: “It is something without which this attempt will simply succeed.”

The Ministerial Committee for Shin Bet Affairs approved on July 16th granting Netanyahu security for life, and his wife Sara will be secured for the rest of her husband’s life. The Prime Minister’s sons will be secured, even if he does not continue for another term, for five years.

The Shin Bet and the Mossad determined before the decision that Netanyahu and his family were at a high level of threat for their entire lives due to the desire of Israel’s enemies to avenge the assassinations of senior Iranian officials during the war.

Two years ago, it was revealed that the Shin Bet and the police arrested Motti Maman, a 73-year-old resident of Ashkelon, who had been recruited by intelligence officials in Iran for the purpose of assassinating Israeli figures. Among the targets were Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Galant, and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar.

According to the security establishment, Maman was smuggled into Iranian territory twice and received payment for carrying out missions. The background to the Israeli’s actions is an attempt to obtain “easy money” after he got into debt.

Netanyahu’s statement follows reports that Iranian state television aired a video threatening Barron Trump, the 20-year-old son of US President Donald Trump.

The video, titled “Where and How Barron Trump Should Be Killed,” claims that Barron Trump’s movements have been “fully monitored” and that the information obtained includes the location of the university he attends, the vehicles accompanying him, and the locations of the Secret Service personnel protecting him. The video also claims that a $10 million bounty has been offered for him, although that claim had not been independently verified at the time of publication.

arutz sheva

Day 1,053 — Monday, August 24

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday the U.S. is entering an “endgame” against Iran, pledging an unprecedented financial campaign to cut off the regime’s remaining economic lifelines and avert the need for more military action.

“At dawn begins an economic D-Day — the single greatest financial offensive ever marshaled against an adversary,” Bessent wrote in an opinion piece in the Financial Times.

He also argued that President Donald Trump was confronting a threat previous administrations had sought only to manage.

Bessent said the campaign would target countries and entities that buy or transport Iranian oil, facilitate financial transactions, host Iranian flights, maintain ship registries or enable ship-to-ship fuel transfers.

He warned that governments maintaining ties with Tehran risked sharing its economic isolation.

The Treasury chief said the aim was to sever every economic lifeline supporting the Islamic Republic until it is left in “total financial isolation.”

fox news

Day 1,053 — Monday, August 24

Israeli authorities are examining a series of kite launches from Gaza after at least four crossed into Israel over two days, prompting Defense Minister Israel Katz to order the IDF to respond forcefully to any further launches toward southern communities.

The devices crossed the Gaza border Friday and Saturday and came down in several Israeli communities, among them Nahal Oz.

Investigators have not established who was responsible, but are examining possible Hamas involvement, N12 reported.

Katz called for military action against the practice rather than allowing it to develop further.

“I instructed the IDF to act immediately and forcefully against any phenomenon of launches from Gaza toward the communities of the western Negev,” Katz said in statement.

While the IDF determined that the kites recovered so far were harmless, security officials are investigating the purpose of the launches. “No suspicious findings were identified on the kites,” the military said, adding that “at no stage was there any danger to the public.”

One focus of the investigation is the length of the strings found attached to the kites, with some stretching several kilometers.

N12 reported that officials are considering several possibilities, including that the devices were being used to gather intelligence or experiment with technology that could later be incorporated into fiber-optic drones. Such drones have recently been used on the northern front with Lebanon.

The appearance of kites from Gaza has particular significance for border communities because of their use during the 2018 protests.

What initially appeared to be a simple tactic later developed into the use of kites and balloons carrying incendiary devices that set fire to fields in southern Israel.

The latest incidents led at least one community to caution residents against handling unidentified objects because they could potentially carry explosives or incendiary materials.

Residents and regional officials urged authorities not to allow the launches to become routine.

“This is exactly how escalation begins again — we must not ignore it and contain it again,” residents warned.

The head of the Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Council similarly urged action at an early stage.

“If we want to put an end to the phenomenon when it is just beginning, we must cut it off at the initial stage and strike with force over every kite,” he said.

World Israel News

Day 1,052 — Sunday, August 23

The IDF hit the Abu al-Duhur military air base after it received intelligence that Turkey was seeking to station a radar and an air defense system manned by Turkish troops there, sources confirmed to The Jerusalem Post.

Israel told the US that intelligence suggested that Turkey was set to dispatch radar, troops, and air defense systems to a base in Syria, KAN News reported on Saturday.

While the IDF did not detail when the Turkish military systems were set to arrive, officials pointed to the Abu al-Duhur base as a possible target due to its proximity to the Turkish border.

Israeli sources also told KAN News that the four IDF strikes were aimed at the base’s runway to prevent Turkish troops from landing.

“Since the diplomatic message did not get through, Israel delivered it through a targeted warning strike,” one official said.

Defense Minister Israel Katz had said earlier on Saturday that the army issued a direct warning to senior Syrian officials before the strikes on the Abu al-Duhur air base “in an attempt to prevent the move.”

“Following several discussions that Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] and I held with the IDF and the various security officials, it was agreed that before approval was given, a direct warning would be issued to the Syrian regime at the highest levels first in an attempt to prevent the move, and that is what was done,” Katz said.

“After the request went unanswered, the prime minister and I authorized the IDF to carry out the strike, which commenced successfully. [Turkish President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan was caught with his hand in the cookie jar and was forced to back down,” the defense minister said.

Jerusalem Post 

Day 1,051 — Saturday, August 22

Hezbollah, the Iran-backed terrorist group that has controlled southern Lebanon for decades, “operates with little to no regard for Lebanese sovereignty, the Lebanese people or the Lebanese state,” a U.S. State Department official said on Thursday, as the Trump administration again sanctioned Hezbollah “for service to the Iranian regime.”

“The United States will not relent in targeting Iran’s financial support networks, including those enabling Hezbollah to threaten peace, undermine the sovereignty of the Lebanese state and endanger the security of our regional allies,” wrote Tommy Pigott, spokesman for the State Department.

The official said that Hezbollah, which has long been sanctioned as a foreign terrorist organization, is being re-designated “an Iranian proxy, not a stand-alone operation as implied by the previous designation.”

The action on Thursday “builds on years of U.S. designations that have repeatedly documented the operational, financial and logistical integration” between Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, which is Iran’s elite military wing specializing in unconventional warfare, foreign intelligence and management of Iran’s network of terrorist proxies throughout the Middle East.

Thursday’s determination “formally recognizes” Hezbollah’s activities “as an extension of the IRGC-QF” and “not a Lebanese resistance movement.”

Jointly, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned 10 people, who it said take part in a network that helps move hundreds of millions of dollars of sanctions-evading cash transfers between the Quds Force and Hezbollah, using commercial flights between Lebanon, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.

“The investigation and disruption of this network are the result of close coordination and collaboration with our Turkish partners,” Pigott wrote.

The State Department official said that Hezbollah has “twice dragged Lebanon into devastating wars, subordinating the country’s interests to Tehran’s regional agenda and leaving the Lebanese people to bear the consequences.” He called the terror group “the obstacle to Lebanon’s sovereignty, stability and economic recovery.”

The United States, Israel and Lebanon have developed a trilateral framework to help restore Lebanese sovereignty to the southern part of the country, which Hezbollah has long used to launch attacks on Israel.
As part of that pact, Israel and Lebanon are coordinating on so-called “pilot zones,” and Hezbollah, either voluntarily or by force, is to exit designated areas and relocate further north.

At the same time, the Lebanese Armed Forces will take over and Israeli forces will withdraw.

State Department officials have expressed optimism about the trajectory of ongoing talks between Israel and Lebanon to implement the agreement.

jns

Day 1,051 — Saturday, August 22

Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government on Friday issued another arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, amid spiking tensions between the two countries over an Israeli strike in Syria.

Turkey has already issued warrants against Netanyahu and other top officials for “genocide” over Israel’s actions in the war against Hamas in Gaza. Israel firmly denies accusations of genocide.

The new warrant accuses Netanyahu of “genocide” over the interception in May of a flotilla carrying some 430 activists to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Turkey’s Justice Minister Akin Gurlek said on X that his ministry had asked the interior ministry to issue Interpol red notice alerts for Netanyahu and another Israeli, named as Afek Moskovitch, as part of a larger case against 35 people.

A red notice is a request to police forces worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition. Interpol reviews requests submitted by member states before deciding whether to issue red notices.

“As part of the judicial proceedings concerning the attack in international waters on the Flotilla activists (…) and in accordance with the arrest warrants issued on July 14, 2026, against Benjamin Netanyahu and Afek Moskovitch for ‘genocide,’ the ministry of justice has requested that the ministry of the interior issue red notices for their international arrest,” Gurlek stated.

Netanyahu and Moskovitch are being prosecuted for “crimes against humanity, genocide, aggravated deprivation of liberty, ‘intentional assault and battery,’ torture, destruction of property, aggravated looting, and hijacking of transport vehicles,” the ministry said.

The Turkish statement didn’t provide any additional details about Moskovitch and no additional information about him could be found.

In response, Netanyahu’s office said that Erdogan “now seeks to extend his aggression against Israel into Syria. Israel will not tolerate it.” The Israeli statement reiterated past accusations by Jerusalem against Erdogan, calling him “an antisemitic dictator who has massacred Kurds, harbors Hamas terrorists, occupies half of Cyprus, and jails record numbers of journalists and politicians who oppose him.”

“Erdogan’s pathetic attempt to intimidate the leaders and soldiers of Israel, the only true democracy in the Middle East, will go nowhere,” the statement added.

In a separate Hebrew-language statement, the Prime Minister’s Office asserted that “Israel will continue to act forcefully against Turkey’s attempts to destabilize the region and against any threat to its security.”

times of israel

Day 1,050 — Friday, August 21

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon called on Wednesday for changes to the U.N. Security Council’s process for convening emergency meetings, which he said has become a political tool used disproportionately against the Jewish state.

“It shouldn’t be that you just send a fax or email and you have a session,” Danon told JNS, ahead of his remarks. “It should be not only one country, maybe three countries, and actually use it when it’s needed, not for political usage.”

Danon spoke to JNS in the Qatari lounge shortly before addressing the Security Council on Wednesday afternoon.

He proposed requiring the support of three council members to convene an emergency meeting, rather than allowing a single member to request one, and to establish clearer criteria for what constitutes an “emergency.”

The Security Council has held about 100 meetings about Israel over the past four years, including at least 17 “emergency” sessions, according to the envoy.

Iranian aggression, Houthi attacks on international shipping routes, Hamas’s holding of hostages and Turkey’s military entrenchment in Syria have rarely prompted emergency meetings, he told JNS.

“Today, the debate is more about procedure in the Security Council,” he said. “For a change, it’s not about us. I will focus my speech on the fact that the U.N. Council is not focusing on the right issues. They focus on Israel.”

Whenever council members want to criticize the Jewish state, they simply “call for an emergency session, but there is no emergency,” Danon said.

“The entire U.N. today—they focus their energy not in the right places,” he told JNS. “It’s more about the debate. It’s more about bashing Israel, less about concrete efforts, practical solutions and confronting the bad guys.”

He pointed to recent “emergency” meetings over Israel’s recognition of Somaliland and what he said was “so-called settler violence.” Those sessions came in addition to the council’s regular monthly discussions on Israel, he said.

“When we recognized Somaliland, we had to come to an emergency session, and they blamed us for wanting to expel the Palestinians, which is a joke,” he told JNS.

The emergency sessions, Danon added, take time away from what he sees as more pressing action against terrorist groups.

“They were not able to designate Hamas. They were not able to designate Hezbollah, the Houthis,” he told JNS. “So instead of doing those things, they are putting the time on us.”

In his formal remarks, Danon said that the council had become “very good at holding meetings but very bad at making a difference.”

“Instead of focusing its time on Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, it is repeatedly drawn into political theater,” he told the council.

“The Security Council was not created to hold fruitless meetings,” he said. “It was created to prevent wars. It is time to return to the mission for which it was established.”

jns

Day 1,050 — Friday, August 21

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a stark warning to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan early Thursday, accusing him of dragging Turkey into “dangerous adventures in Syria” and warning the Turkish leader not to test Israel’s resolve.

“Israel will not allow any actor to threaten its security,” Katz wrote on X. “It would be better for Erdoğan to continue his detached-from-reality, fanciful rhetoric against Israel in the Turkish Grand National Assembly than to attempt to test Israel’s determination to defend itself.”

The warning comes two days after Israel struck Syria’s Abu al-Duhur Airbase. The increasingly heated rhetoric has put Washington in the position of trying to contain tensions between Turkey, a NATO member, and Israel, Washington’s closest security partners in the Middle East. Israel said Syria was on the verge of breaching a security understanding by allowing Turkish troops to deploy there, while Ankara rejected Israel’s account.

On Wednesday, Turkey called these allegations from Israel “untenable,” arguing that they are “intended to legitimize Israel’s unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. … The imputations voiced stem from Netanyahu’s intent to pursue expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region ahead of the elections in Israel,” Turkey’s government said in a social media post.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Reuters Thursday that Washington was working on “a de-escalation process” that was already in place but still needed to be refined. Asked whether the dispute could lead to a direct Israeli-Turkish confrontation, Huckabee said, “I don’t think we’re even close to that.” He said Israel viewed Turkey as “moving further south” in Syria and perceived that as potentially threatening.

fox news

Day 1,049 — Thursday, August 20

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Thursday morning rejected his British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband’s demand that Israel scrap plans for construction in the E1 area between Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumum.

Miliband became Britain’s Foreign Secretary last month after newly installed Prime Minister Andy Burnham carried out a major Cabinet reshuffle.

“I reject outright the statement of the UK Foreign Secretary and the patronising tone of his words,” Sa’ar wrote on X.

“The Jewish people have the right to live throughout the Land of Israel, just as the British have the right to live in London and throughout the United Kingdom. More than a century ago, the Balfour Declaration formally recognised the historic right of the Jewish people to re-establish their national home in the Land of Israel – including in the area in question.”

Sa’ar also called out British hypocrisy, noting, “Britain itself still controls colonial territories thousands of miles from its shores. It is absurd for Britain to lecture the Jewish people about where they may live in their historic tiny homeland, when the Jewish people’s connection and right to this land is the most extensively documented of any people in human history.”

“There have been no new decisions regarding development in E1. The decision was made in 2025.

“The tender process has been underway for several months, with certain tender documents published only in recent days.”

He blasted, “The British Foreign Secretary’s statement is entirely one-sided.”

“It condemns Israel while turning a blind eye to Palestinian terrorism, incitement and the Palestinian Authority’s continued financial support for terror – the ‘pay for slay’ policy.

“The UK Government’s systematic policy of blaming only Israel while ignoring Palestinian extremism has already contributed to a massive wave of antisemitic hatred and attacks against the British Jewish community. Continuing down this path will only make the situation worse.

“The UK Government’s decision to damage the relationship between our countries is deeply unfortunate. But Israel will not be a passive victim of this policy.

“Israel will defend its rights, its interests and its people.”

arutz sheva

Day 1,049 — Thursday, August 20

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday an “economic D-Day” to financially strangle Iran.

The Iranian “navy is gone, their air force is destroyed, their military factories are now rubble, their currency is worthless and their country is hanging by a thread,” he wrote on Truth Social.

No one has given the Iranian regime a better chance to make a deal than he, Trump wrote.

“Tragically, for them, they have failed to take it. Therefore, today, I am announcing the most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country,” he continued.

The president further threatened “tremendous economic consequences” for any country that lets its “financial institutions, businesses, airports or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran.”

“Oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries, front companies—it all needs to stop now,” he stated. “You know who you are. This will be an economic D-Day.”

He called on all U.S. allies to “isolate and defeat the Iran threat.”

“These maniacs are on the ropes,” he said. “These historic measures will cripple them and their ability to project terror worldwide. Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.”

Also on Wednesday, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee warned that the possibility of a return to open conflict with Iran was very real.

The diplomat noted that Tehran has already faced U.S. military action twice and should understand that Trump is serious about using force if necessary.

“I think the Iranians should understand that President Trump is not bluffing,” he told Al Arabiya English, a Saudi state-owned broadcaster.

Huckabee was referring to two U.S. military operations carried out against Iran over the past two years. The first, “Operation Midnight Hammer,” was a one-night aerial campaign on June 22, 2025, that targeted three nuclear facilities in Iran. The second, “Operation Epic Fury,” was a heavy aerial bombardment campaign launched on Feb. 28 and lasted 40 days before a ceasefire was announced.

jns

Day 1,049 — Thursday, August 20

The Turkish government publicly denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for allegedly pursuing “expansionist and destabilizing policies” after Israel launched airstrikes on a Syrian airbase this week.

Netanyahu’s office took responsibility for the Tuesday morning strike on the Abu al-Duhur airbase the next day, saying Syria was on the verge of breaching a security agreement by allowing Turkish troops to deploy from the base, which is near Aleppo.

“Israel repeatedly warned Syria that such a deployment would pose a threat to Israel’s security,” Netanyahu’s office said Tuesday night. “Syria chose to ignore these warnings. Israel will not tolerate threats to its security, and would welcome a return to the status quo.”

On Wednesday, Turkey called these allegations from Israel “untenable,” arguing that they are “intended to legitimize Israel’s unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

“The imputations voiced stem from Netanyahu’s intent to pursue expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region ahead of the elections in Israel,” Turkey’s government said in a social media post.

“Türkiye, like the vast majority of the international community, stands for the consolidation of lasting peace in our region. The sole path to this objective lies in Netanyahu’s abandonment of his aggressive and coercive policies and in his respect for international law,” it continued.

“Türkiye will resolutely continue to cooperate with the Syrian Government on a legitimate basis for the establishment of peace, stability, and prosperity in Syria, and will never allow the destabilization of Syria,” the statement concluded.

The strike on the Syrian airbase, which caused damage but no casualties, also drew criticism from U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, despite a senior Israeli official telling Fox News that “highly sensitive intelligence was shared with the United States in advance” of the attack.

But Turkey, which has been training Syria’s soldiers to rebuild the country’s armed forces, has routinely accused Israel of trying to destabilize the region.

Since al-Assad was deposed in December 2024, Israel has repeatedly struck targets within Syria seeking to prevent the new government from building up its military capabilities near the border.

Netanyahu reiterated in July that he wants the region south of Damascus to remain demilitarized, while also professing a desire to protect the Druze population, an ethnoreligious minority that lives in Syria.

fox news 

Day 1,048 — Wednesday, August 19

After months of relative quiet, the Syrian front came back into focus in Israel in recent days, as Jerusalem confirmed having struck an airport in northern Syria on Tuesday to prevent Turkey’s military from establishing itself there, rejecting criticism from the United States.

At the same time, the government in Damascus announced its intention to retain nuclear material left over from the Assad regime, asserting its right to pursue a civilian nuclear power program. The announcement came shortly after new video footage emerged showing Syrian military units chanting antisemitic slogans.

These recent incidents highlight Israel’s concern that the new Syrian government of former terrorist Ahmad al-Sharaa continues to pose a serious threat, particularly because its close ties to the Turkish government, despite American efforts to legitimize the government and integrate it into its regional alliance system.

Following the unusual public criticism from the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) responded late on Tuesday: “Israel will not tolerate threats to its security,” accusing Syria and Turkey of trying to breach the status quo.

“Israel and Syria agreed to a status quo in security matters, which Syria was on the verge of breaching by permitting Turkish troops to deploy at an airbase near Aleppo. Israel repeatedly warned Syria that such a deployment would pose a threat to Israel’s security. Syria chose to ignore these warnings,” the PMO stated, adding that Jerusalem would “welcome a return to the status quo.”

Early on Tuesday, Israeli fighters had reportedly bombed Syrian targets in the Abu al-Duhur Airbase in Idlib province, some 300 kilometers (188 miles) from the Israeli border.

Targets reportedly included the runway and several warehouses. Israeli security think tank Alma Research Center assessed that “the objective was to strike advanced equipment or weapons with potential threat capabilities. In addition, the purpose of striking the runway would be to temporarily prevent its use and, in any event, to send a message to the al-Sharaa regime – and possibly also to a third country – that their actions cannot be tolerated.”

In its analysis, Alma also noted, “reports of Turkish plans to deploy air defense systems in Syria, such as the Hisar system. Israel was previously reported to have warned Turkey against transferring advanced military capabilities to Syria that could disrupt the Israeli Air Force’s freedom of operation. It was also reported in April 2025 that Israel had struck the T4 airbase to prevent Turkey from establishing capabilities there.”

Barrack later argued that the Israeli strikes raised a significant danger of a direct confrontation with the Turkish military. Speaking to Reuters, he said Turkey “observed the aircraft heading north toward its territory and therefore could have reasonably prepared its own response.”

“Thankfully, calm heads were able to prevent the situation from deteriorating further,” Barrack said, stressing that this incident “underscores the need for a deconfliction mechanism involving Israel, Syria and Türkiye. That ​is something we are actively working on to establish in order to prevent future miscommunication.”

“Turkey knew full well that it was provoking Israel,” assessed Dr. David Wurmser, a fellow at the Jerusalem Center for Foreign Affairs and Security.

“Turkey was the party responsible for what can only be seen as an escalation that it itself sought to provoke,” he argued, adding that Barrack should condemn the Turkish government instead of encouraging “Turkey’s imperial and destabilizing ambitions.”

On Sunday, footage showing troops from the new Syrian military chanting threats against Israel and the Jewish people went viral on social media.

The Foreign Ministry retweeted one news report, commenting, “Outside the historic Damascus Citadel last Saturday, Syrian soldiers chanted: ‘I am coming for you, Jew. I will make your blood flow in rivers.’ This is Syria’s new army. Same old antisemitic bloodlust.”

all israel news 

Day 1,048 — Wednesday, August 19

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on Tomoko Akane, a Japanese judge who is president of the International Criminal Court, according to the US Treasury Department website.

The move is the latest escalation in the Trump administration’s campaign against The Hague-based court, which was established in 2002 by the international community to prosecute war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. The US is not a member of the court.

Rubio said in a statement that he was imposing sanctions on Akane as well as Abdoulaye Seye, a senior trial lawyer and a Senegalese national, under a Trump executive order last year authorizing sanctions against the court.

“These individuals have directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction,” Rubio said.

The ICC condemned the move, saying in a statement that the measures undermine the rule of law.

“When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk,” the ICC said.

Japan’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday that US sanctions on the International Criminal Court and its president, Judge Tomoko Akane, were “very unfortunate.”

In a statement, the ministry said: “Japan has consistently supported the ICC … in its efforts to prosecute and punish the most serious crimes of concern to the international community and to uphold the rule of law.” It added that Japan would remain committed to strengthening the rule of law in the international community while maintaining communication with related countries.

Seye is a senior trial lawyer on the prosecution team that sought an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and has been nominated for election as an ICC judge.

jerusalem post

Day 1,047 — Tuesday, August 18

After the Memorandum of Understanding with Iran expired on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said the Islamic Republic should “put up the white flag of surrender.” 

In a phone conversation with Fox News’ Try Yingst, the president reiterated that the number one goal for his administration is preventing the Islamic Republic from obtaining nuclear weapons. 

“The number one Goal is, and always will be, that Iran cannot have, in any way, shape, or form, a Nuclear Weapon,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account shortly before the phone call with Yingst. 

Despite upcoming elections in the United States, the president said he feels no pressure to alter his current course of continued economic sanctions and a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz for Iranian traffic. 

“I have no time schedule,” President Trump told Yingst during the call. “I’m not in a hurry.” 

“Midterms have nothing to do with my thinking,” he added. 

While Hormuz remains a highly contested issue in the negotiations, President Trump issued an odd warning to Oman, which has been negotiating with Iran over the strait for the past several weeks. 

“If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the [expletive] out of them,” Trump was reported by Yingst as saying. 

“I don’t think they [Oman] behaved very well, but we’d handle them very easily, just like we do others,” the president told reporters in the Oval Office hours later. 

all israel news 

Day 1,047 — Tuesday, August 18

U.S. special envoy Jared Kushner delivered a stark ultimatum to Hamas on Monday, warning that the terrorist group must honor its commitments to disarm in Gaza or face an Israeli military operation to “finish the job.“

Speaking exclusively to Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst, Kushner also detailed high-stakes diplomatic meetings in Egypt and Israel over the last 48 hours aimed at advancing President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace roadmap as fighting and disagreements between Israel and Hamas persists.

“Time will tell whether [Hamas disarmament is] going to be implemented,” he added, before stating that Washington feels it could be “very close to knowing, and we’re making a lot of progress towards trying to get to the next steps.“

“If they don’t follow through now on their commitment, everyone will see that they’re not genuine about peace, and then Israel will have a lot more support from the U.S. and others to go and finish the job in the appropriate way,” Kushner also told Yingst of the militant group.

The warning from Trump’s son-in-law followed the rare face-to-face meeting — only Kushner’s second known meeting with the group.

“They said all the right things, but obviously, it’s very, very hard to trust, you know, a terrorist organization that committed these terrible atrocities,” Kushner continued. “But we had a very cordial meeting, and they said all the right things, and so we’re going to give them a chance to perform. 

“It’s going to have to be based on actions and steps, and I hope it will be true.“

fox news 

Day 1,046 — Monday, August 17

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refered to Britain as an “Islamic republic” during a lengthy podcast interview with Army Radio.

Discussing Winston Churchill’s son Randolph Churchill and grandson Winston Spencer Churchill, who like the World War II-era UK prime minister were journalists, Netanyahu says the pair “came here and covered the Six Day War in a very positive way for us.”

“Try to find that now in Britain, which you could call the Islamic republic of Britain,” Netanyahu chuckles.

He then responds “yes” when the interviewer asks “if all of Europe isn’t already like that, no?” apparently referring to Muslim communities in countries there and many European governments’ increasingly critical postures toward Israel in recent years.

“The first nuclear Islamic republic will be the Islamic republic of Britain,” Netanyahu further stated. “We’re making sure there won’t be another one in Iran.”

Times of Israel 

Day 1,046 — Monday, August 17

Jewish men were permitted to bring prayer books onto the Temple Mount on Sunday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir confirmed to The Jerusalem Post, after right-wing journalist Arnon Segal shared a photo of Jewish men praying and reading from prayer books, claiming the photo was taken from the Temple Mount.

“Still no blanket permit, but an initial experiment aimed at ensuring the Middle East doesn’t lose its mind over this,” Segal claimed in his post. “History.”

“The Israel Police operates on the Temple Mount in accordance with the directives of the political echelon, the established rules governing the site, and operational assessments, with the aim of safeguarding public safety, security, and public order,” Israel Police said in response to the Post’s request for comment.

Under the longstanding status quo, Jews and Christians are permitted to visit the Temple Mount but are generally prohibited from praying there, while Muslims are permitted to worship.

In January, Israel Police began relaxing some restrictions on Jewish prayer at the site, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Jewish visitors may now enter with a single printed prayer page prepared in advance, although prayer books remain prohibited.

Times Of Israel

Day 1,046 — Monday, August 17

Hengli Group, a Chinese company that employs over 300,000 people and earns over $100 billion per year, is a primary importer of Iranian crude oil, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing industry analysts, shipping brokers, and the US Treasury.

Hengli is one of the largest companies in a network of “teapot” refineries in China that purchase sanctioned oil, according to the officials cited by WSJ.

Since 2023, Hengli has received at least five million barrels of Iranian oil from multiple ships sanctioned by the United States, the US Treasury and shipping brokers claimed.

Hengli Group, a Chinese company that employs over 300,000 people and earns over $100 billion per year, is a primary importer of Iranian crude oil, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing industry analysts, shipping brokers, and the US Treasury.

Hengli is one of the largest companies in a network of “teapot” refineries in China that purchase sanctioned oil, according to the officials cited by WSJ.

Since 2023, Hengli has received at least five million barrels of Iranian oil from multiple ships sanctioned by the United States, the US Treasury and shipping brokers claimed.

Iran has been evading US sanctions and the blockade using a system of ship-to-ship transfers in which sanctioned ships laden with Iranian oil offload their cargo onto another ship in the water before it is sent to China, the WSJ reported in May.

The ships receiving the oil are often part of Iran’s “shadow fleet,” a fleet of old, rusting tankers that obscure their owners and may switch their flags to those of countries with little shipping oversight to conceal their identities. Ships will often turn off their tracking device and may paint over identity numbers.

Jerusalem Post

Day 1,045 — Sunday, August 16

The Israel Defense Forces killed overnight Friday a commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force in the Ansar area in southwestern Lebanon, the military said.

The strike came in response to an attack earlier in the day on Israeli troops operating in the Security Zone in Southern Lebanon in accordance with the ceasefire agreement, the IDF said.

An IDF officer and two enlisted men were “severely injured” as a result of an explosive drone hit in Southern Lebanon, the military said later on Saturday.

The three were evacuated to a hospital and their families have been notified.

The military identified Ali Samir al-Haj Hassan as a battalion commander in the Radwan Force. Several other terrorists were killed in the IDF strike as well, the army continued.

The Israeli military addressed reports that the commander’s family members were harmed in the attack as well.

Hassan was targeted inside a military headquarters used to command Hezbollah’s operations in the area, the IDF said. “The strike was specifically directed at Hassan, who was a lawful target under international law,” the army emphasized.

“The terrorist used his family as human shields, hiding alongside them inside the military headquarters,” it added.

The Prime Minister’s Office said that the attack on the three soldiers was ordered from this headquarters, and that only later did the IDF learn that Hezbollah “deliberately” placed civilians inside it.

Lebanese media reported that Israeli strikes in the areas of Ali al-Taher Ridge, Ansar, and Nabatieh al-Fawqa killed nine people, among them women and children, according to Ynet.

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Saturday slammed Israel’s retaliation, saying on X in Arabic that it “undermines efforts to stabilize the situation in the south.”

He further stated that the responsibility for dealing with terrorist infrastructure, “if it exists,” on the Lebanese side lies with the Lebanese state.

Meanwhile, U.S Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa told reporters in Arabic that while no date for further Israeli-Lebanese negotiations has been set, “they will continue,” LBCI, the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International, reported.

Asked whether Washington supports Israel’s latest round of strikes, Issa replied, “I don’t know. You know more than I do.” Israeli operations in Southern Lebanon will stop when Hezbollah lays down its weapons, he continued. “Everything will stop,” he added.

Issa spoke with reporters after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri in Beirut.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee lashed out at Hezbollah, calling it “pure evil.”

Hezbollah wounds Israeli troops, then “rounds up children” in a military compound knowing that Israel will retaliate because Iran’s proxy group “want[s] them to be in harm’s way,” he said.

He equated Hezbollah’s conduct with that of Hamas.

JNS

Day 1,044 — Saturday, August 15

An Iranian official fired back Friday after President Donald Trump said he may eventually declare the Strait of Hormuz “territory of the United States,” insisting Tehran will continue enforcing its blockade of the strategic waterway.

“The Strait of Hormuz cannot be seized by tweet, nor by aircraft carrier, nor by issuing an order, nor by an election speech,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi wrote on X. “Iran neither fears threats nor cowers before displays of power.”

Gharibabadi then claimed the U.S. has suffered “strategic and heavy defeats” and asserted that “the Strait of Hormuz has been Iranian, is Iranian, and will remain Iranian.”

“This strait will only be closed and opened under Iran’s command,” he continued, adding that Tehran would maintain the blockade until the U.S. accepts what he characterized as the “reality of defeat.”

Trump said during remarks in Nassau County, New York, earlier Friday that after Iran is defeated, “pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States,” while touting the U.S. blockade and saying no ships pass through unless Washington allows it.

The Islamic Republic of Iran’s Foreign Ministry has previously publicly identified Gharibabadi’s X account among its official government accounts.

fox news 

Day 1,044 — Saturday, August 15

Israeli Consul General in New York, Ofir Akunis spoke at an event for young Jewish community leaders in New York and addressed the sharp rise in antisemitic hate crimes in New York City since Mayor Zohran Mamdani took office.

“The mayor is busy inciting against and promoting a boycott of the Jewish state. His method is the ‘well-known’ antisemitic one: ‘No matter what – blame the Jews.’ This is exactly the same method that was used a century ago by the Third Reich,” Akunis said.

He stated: “Data released by the New York Police Department points to a sharp increase in antisemitic hate crimes since he took office. This is further proof of his failure to protect the city’s Jewish community. Mamdani continues to incite and fuel his supporters to attack the State of Israel and its Prime Minister. This must stop before it is too late!”

His comments follow the release of the NYPD’s hate crime statistics for the month of July, which show that antisemitic hate crimes in New York City rose sharply in July, accounting for nearly 70% of all confirmed hate crimes reported during the month.

The NYPD recorded 33 confirmed hate crimes in July, including 23 targeting Jews, up 53.3% from the 15 anti-Jewish incidents recorded in July 2025. Muslims were the targets of five confirmed hate crimes, compared with two during the same month last year.

So far this year, the department has recorded 360 confirmed hate crimes, a 9.4% increase from the 329 reported during the same period in 2025. Of those incidents, 205 targeted Jews, 56.9% of the total, while 26 targeted Muslims. Anti-Jewish hate crimes have increased 8.5% year over year, while anti-Muslim incidents have risen 62.5%.

arutz sheva

Day 1,043 — Friday, August 14

Defense Minister Israel Katz has instructed the military to prepare a plan to transfer all civilian law-enforcement responsibilities in Judea and Samaria to the Israel Police, his office said on Friday.

Katz issued the directive following a meeting on Thursday with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the heads of the IDF’s Operations Directorate and Military Intelligence and other senior commanders.

Under the proposed plan, which is to be drawn up in coordination with the Israel Police and other relevant authorities, civilian law enforcement in Judea and Samaria would be transferred from the IDF to the police, as is the case elsewhere in Israel.

The police would establish a dedicated force to handle civilian matters and receive the necessary authority and funding, according to Katz’s office.

The IDF would continue to combat Palestinian terrorism and focus on defending Israeli communities and borders.

“It is not the IDF’s role, nor does it have the capacity, to deal with the enforcement of civilian matters in Judea and Samaria, given the welcome expected increase in the number of residents in Judea and Samaria following the decisions to establish 104 new communities and formalize the agricultural farms, on the one hand, and the growing security threats and challenges that the IDF is facing and is expected to face on the central front, on the other,” Katz said.

“The IDF’s role is to fight Palestinian terrorism, focus on defending the borders and communities against threats, deal with the borders and the territory itself, and address security threats to the communities and the State of Israel—not to chase teenagers on the hilltops. All responsibility for handling and enforcing matters relating to the communities, residents and civilian issues will be transferred to the Israel Police, which will be required to prepare accordingly.”

Katz described the move as “a significant step toward strengthening governance and enforcing law and order throughout Judea and Samaria,” while freeing the military to concentrate on its primary missions.

“The Israeli government and the IDF will delegate to the police all the powers necessary to carry out these missions,” he said.

The announcement came a day after Israeli security forces dismantled two unauthorized outposts near the Palestinian villages of Qusra and Jalud in Samaria.

Israeli forces overnight Thursday cleared Israelis from an unauthorized outpost and sheep pen next to Qusra and dismantled a second unauthorized outpost near Jalud. Both had been established in Area B, where the Palestinian Authority exercises administrative control and Israel retains security responsibility. One Israeli was detained during the operation.

The IDF had previously received reports of Israelis entering Palestinian homes and areas near the villages. The military described the activity as “illegal, obscene and unacceptable” and declared the area a closed military zone, barring anyone who was not a local resident.

The military said it “strongly condemns” such incidents and that those involved would be dealt with in cooperation with the security forces.

Yisrael Gantz, chairman of the Yesha Council, an umbrella organization representing Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, also condemned the actions.

He described the incidents as “serious and not our way,” saying, “There is no place to privately decide on establishing a hilltop in the yard of a house. There is no justification for violence against uninvolved parties or against security forces.”

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee also issued a condemnation, saying Israeli security forces had arrived at the scene at the request of the United States. “The actions of those who attacked this family’s home are criminal,” Huckabee said, describing the incident as “a shocking act of terrorism designed to intimidate and harass this family.”

In a subsequent post, Huckabee adopted a more conciliatory tone, stressing that a small minority carried out the actions and should not be attributed to Israeli residents of Judea and Samaria as a whole.

“‘Settlers’ are not the problem in Judea/Samaria. ‘Unsettlers’ are,” the ambassador wrote on X. “Very small minority who do great damage to Palestinian families & to Israel.”

He added, “Real settlers like Ysrael Ganz, Governor of Judea/Samaria condemn the actions of the few,” Huckabee wrote, using an alternate spelling of Gantz’s name. “Let’s hope the media gives attention to this & balances their stories.”

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Day 1,043 — Friday, August 14

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday that the United States is going to apply measures that have “never been seen” on Iran.

“Watch this space for more announcements coming next week because we are going to apply measures like have never been seen in the history of economic isolation on a country,” Bessent said in an interview on on Newsmax’s “Rob Schmitt Tonight” program.

“It will be a combination of economic isolation like the world has never seen before, and the continued blockade in the Strait of Hormuz that will keep anything from going in or out of the Iranian ports,” Bessent said.

jerusalem post

Day 1,042 — Thursday, August 13

The co-chair of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) group is receiving sharp backlash for saying on Friday that the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre in Israel was mostly “inevitable.”

During an interview with The New Yorker’s David Remnick, DSA co-chair Megan Romer was questioned about democratic socialist Darializa Avila Chevalier, who attended an anti-Israel, pro-Hamas rally the day after the Oct. 7 terrorist attack in 2023, and was pressed on whether she would have attended if she were in her position.

“You would have gone to that rally, had you been able?” Remnick asked.

“That’s a good question. I probably would have,” Romer replied. “Yeah, yeah. I don’t live in New York City, so I wouldn’t have —”

Remnick pressed further, asking, “One day after the slaughter of 1,200 people and taking of over 200 hostages, you would have come and rallied behind Hamas?”

“I think that Oct. 7 was largely inevitable,” she replied. “If you put people in an open-air concentration camp and you deprive them of rights, of dignity, of food, of the ability to live in safety, you have to expect that they are going to not take that for that long. And that is not defending any harm of civilians or of non-combatants —”

When Remnick accused her remark of being an expression of support for the violence, she pushed back and said “I’m saying that I think it was inevitable.”

Pro-Israel groups condemned her comments.

“I agree with DSA Co-chair Megan Romer that the October 7 attacks were in many ways inevitable — but not for the libelous reasons she cited,” Zionist Organization of America National President Morton A. Klein told Fox News Digital.

“When Gazans elected Hamas – a terror organization whose charter calls for murdering every Jew and destroying Israel, October 7 was the result,” he added. “When Qatar and Iran gave arms and hundreds of millions of dollars to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, gave sanctuary to Hamas leaders, and helped terror groups plan attacks on Israel, October 7 was the result.”

“When UNRWA (UN Relief and Works Agency) teaches children to hate and murder Jews, employs Hamas terrorists as teachers and principals, stores weapons for Hamas, and provides communications centers for Hamas, October 7 is the result. When Israel, under pressure from the Biden administration, issued thousands of work permits to enter Israel to Hamas terrorists and scouts, October 7 was the result,” he continued.

He warned that there may be even more October 7th-style violence in the future.

“And now, when Hamas is refusing to really disarm, and is vowing to commit more and more October 7ths, we must enable Israel to ensure its safety by retaining a buffer zone in Gaza and insisting on Hamas’ disarmament prior to any other peace plan steps,” he said. “Or else another October 7 will be the result. Regarding Romer’s lies, the parties ‘imprisoning’ Gaza are Hamas, PIJ and other terror groups. By contrast, Israel facilitated tons of food, water, medical and other supplies into Gaza — while Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad launched 30,000 rockets at Israeli civilians.”

fox news 

Day 1,042 — Thursday, August 13

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Wednesday vowed to “resolutely” work toward a “sovereign and geographically contiguous” Palestinian state with eastern Jerusalem as its capital, Turkish state-run news channel TRT reported.

Speaking at a joint news conference in Ankara with Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas, Erdoğan accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to “remove Palestine from the common agenda of humanity by profiting from chaos and new conflicts in the region.”

“They will not succeed,” he added.

Erdoğan said Ankara “strongly opposes” what he denounced as provocations aimed at changes to the status quo at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and other Jerusalem holy sites, and accused the Jewish state of “unlawful actions” in Judea and Samaria.

The Turkish leader also called for establishing conditions for Gaza’s reconstruction and vowed to continue efforts “to support the Palestinian people and defend their rights.”

Abbas arrived in Ankara on Tuesday afternoon for a two-day visit, Ramallah’s official Wafa agency reported.

Abbas was met at the airport by Turkish Trade Minister Ömer Bolat and the P.A.’s envoy to Ankara, Nasri Abu Jaish, according to the report.

Wafa said the P.A. delegation includes PLO Executive Committee member Ziad Abu Amr; Fatah Central Committee member Maj. Gen. Majed Faraj, who also heads Ramallah’s General Intelligence Service; and Abbas advisers Majdi al-Khaldi and Mahmoud al-Habbash.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich condemned Abbas’s visit, describing the P.A. leader as “an enemy at the head of a terror authority that encourages and funds terror against the State of Israel.”

Smotrich called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prevent Abbas from returning to Israel and Judea and Samaria, adding that the Palestinian Authority “must be dismantled.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday accused Erdoğan of military aggression “that knows no borders,” saying Ankara occupies roughly 36% of Cyprus, 5% of Syria and 2,000 square kilometers of Iraq, with thousands of Turkish troops stationed across the three countries.

The ministry made the comparison amid Turkish criticism of Israel, writing on X, “Turkey has the audacity to criticize Israel. But what are the facts on the ground?”

Israel, by contrast, “temporarily controls merely 0.1% of Syria,” the ministry said, describing it as “a buffer zone to protect its citizens from proven security threats.”

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Day 1,041 — Wednesday, August 12

Israel’s United Nations envoy told the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday the facts regarding violence in Judea and Samaria contradict the “rising settler violence” narrative.

The council held a briefing on Judea and Samaria, as requested by European members Denmark, France, Greece, Latvia and the United Kingdom, collectively known as the “E5.”

The briefing was purportedly to condemn the alleged rise of violence by Jewish residents in the region, which the United Nations refers to as “settlers.”

“This May, there were 348 Palestinian terrorist attacks in Judea and Samaria. Eight pipe bomb attacks, 282 stone-throwing incidents, 32 fire bomb attacks, 24 arson incidents and two serious car ramming attacks,” said Danny Danon, Israel’s U.N. ambassador, noting that the high figure was higher than even the 325 recorded attacks in April. Over 400 more attacks were stopped by Israeli security forces preemptively, Danon said.

“How many of you have condemned these terrorist attacks against Jews? None of these numbers were reported by the briefers, and none of these attacks were mentioned by any of you,” he continued. “This is the bias we are confronting today.”

Meanwhile, Danon said Israel is cracking down on attacks by Jews against Palestinians, with 354 investigations opened, 20 indictments filed and 35 residents arrested through the first quarter of this year.

“This has led to a decrease in extremist violence,” said Danon. “That is why calling it ‘settler violence’ is a provocation. It denies our connection to the land of Israel. It distracts from constant terrorist attacks against Israelis and it collectively labels entire innocent communities for the crimes of the marginal extremist minority.

He drew attention to the flow of Iranian weapons and funding into Judea and Samaria, and the Palestinian Authority’s dishonesty about its so-called pay-for-slay program, which rewards terrorists on a sliding scale based on the severity of their crimes.

“The Palestinian Authority is supposed to help us to mitigate this problem,” said Danon, while the U.S. State Department told Congress that the Palestinian Authority continues to administer the program, even as Ramallah said it was converted into a broader social welfare initiative.

Washington’s representative on Tuesday said that the United States “appreciates the Israeli government’s condemnation of, and the increased actions to counter, violence in” Judea and Samaria.

“Israel has taken specific steps, such as increasing law enforcement actions, to boosting the IDF presence and to allocating significant financial resources to counter the violence,” said Jennifer Locetta, U.S. alternative representative for special political affairs.

She doubled down on Danon’s pay-for-slay criticism, telling the council that Washington “will not accept compensation for terrorism under the guise of ‘welfare’ or through any other attempts to evade detection under a different name.”

But, Locetta took a veiled shot at Israel’s approval this week of the advancement of plans to build housing units in areas between northern Jerusalem and the P.A. cities of Ramallah and el-Bireh.

“The United States reiterates its opposition to annexation,” in the area, she said.

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Day 1,041 — Wednesday, August 12