Archive for month: October, 2025

News Update

Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi submitted her resignation today to IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir. In her letter she admitted to approving the leaking of the damaging video, which allegedly showed soldiers abusing a Palestinian prisoner at a detention center. Zamir accepted her resignation immediately. The police are expected to question Tomer-Yerushalmi next week as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into the leak. The IDF is looking for a new Military Advocate General.

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright canceled a planned visit to Israel next week, after Energy Minister Eli Cohen declined to sign off on a $35 billion natural gas export agreement with Egypt, citing unresolved issues related to domestic pricing and national interests. The U.S. has been pressuring Israel to sign the deal, which would have Israel supply Egypt with 130 billion cubic meters of gas from the Leviathan reservoir through 2040.

Intelligence shows that Hezbollah is restocking rockets, antitank missiles and artillery, some of which are being smuggled in via seaports or Syria and some being manufactured by Hezbollah in Lebanon. This is in violation of the agreement that ended Israel’s brief war with Hezbollah, in which Hezbollah was severely weakened and militarily degraded. Since the agreement, Israel has carried out over 1,000 strikes against Hezbollah. The Lebanese government has made progress dismantling Hezbollah positions and weapons in the southernmost areas of Lebanon, with Hezbollah’s assent. But in other areas with significant Hezbollah influence, such as Beirut’s southern suburbs and the Bekaa Valley running through eastern Lebanon, Hezbollah has resisted any disarming efforts. THe Lebanese army is not strong enough to disarm Hezbollah by force.

The remains of hostages Amiram Cooper and Sahar Baruch were returned to Israel yesterday.

India’s Defense Procurement Procedure Administration, headed by Minister of Defense Rajnath Singh, will meet on November 23 to approve a series of defense deals with Israel worth about $3.762 billion. The deals include, among others, rockets for the ground forces and MR-SAM air defense missiles developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) with local company BDL. Both the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force are interested in procuring more than 300 units.

News Update

Hamas violated the ceasefire yesterday when it opened fire on IDF troops, killing Master Sgt. (res.) Efi (Yona Efraim) Feldbaum, 37, a combat engineering reservist in the Gaza Division and father of five from Zayit Raanan in the Binyamin Regional Council. He was a dual Israeli-American citizen. The IDF responded to the attack with extensive strikes against Hamas positions and targets, reportedly killing dozens of terrorists.

Hamas also attempted to trick Israel (and the world) by placing a white bag containing what appeared to be hostage Ofir Tzarfati’s remains in a pit, covering it with sand, and summoning Red Cross representatives within minutes to recover it. Tzarfati was killed on Oct. 7, 2023 and his body was retrieved by IDF forces last year. The entire Hamas ruse was captured on drone video.

Hamas accused Israel of violating the ceasefire and called on mediators to pressure Israel “to stop its massacres and commit fully to the terms of the agreement.”

Israel informed the U.S. prior to the strikes. President Trump said yesterday that the strikes wouldn’t jeopardize the cease-fire. “Hamas is a very small part of peace in the Middle East, and they have to behave…But they said they would be good, and if they’re good, they’re going to be happy, and if they’re not good, they’re going to be terminated. Their lives will be terminated.”

The ceasefire resumed this morning at 10am.

Defense Minister Katz announced today that he has signed an order barring International Red Cross representatives from visiting Palestinian prisoners defined as “unlawful combatants”, including Hamas terrorists who took part in the October 7 massacre. He said, “The intelligence presented to me leaves no doubt that Red Cross visits to imprisoned terrorists would severely harm Israel’s security. The safety of the state and its citizens comes first.”

Meanwhile, 154 Hamas terrorists released as part of the ceasefire deal have been staying at a 5 star luxury hotel in Cairo, but they reportedly have now been removed from there and transferred to another luxury hotel in a more remote location, about an hour from Cairo.

News Update

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited the U.S.-led command center in Kiryat Gat, which is responsible for monitoring the ongoing ceasefire, facilitating humanitarian aid and laying groundwork for a future stabilization force in Gaza. He reiterated that no state will allow the involvement of Hamas in managing Gaza’s future security. Rubio said that an international security force created to stabilize Gaza will only include troops from countries that Israel is comfortable with.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for sanctions and an arms embargo to be imposed on Israel, accusing it of violating the ceasefire in Gaza. [which is why Israel isn’t “comfortable” with Turkish troops joining the international force.]

Israel is awaiting the return of the bodies of 2 more hostages this weekend.

[Last week I proclaimed victory for Israel, and I believe that to be true. All the living hostages have been returned, Hamas has been severely degraded and the IDF still controls around half of Gaza, which serves as a security buffer along the Israeli border.

But has Hamas won as well? They seem to be in firm control of their part of Gaza, which includes the overwhelming majority of the Strip’s population, and they aren’t disarming, as they are meant to do per the ceasefire agreement. The fact that they lost thousands of fighters and caused the deaths of thousands of civilians and the destruction of most of Gaza doesn’t trouble them. Remember, they are a Jihadist organization whose mission is to destroy Israel at all costs.

Sinwar and the Hamas leadership knew very well the death and destruction that would occur as a result of their barbaric Oct. 7 attack — the IDF captured the files and documents that prove that — and yet they felt that it was well worth it if it could fulfill their Jihad. The late Egyptian President Ansar Sadat reportedly said, before the Yom Kippur War, that he was willing to sacrifice one million lives to destroy Israel. Hamas was more than willing to sacrifice 30 or 40 thousand.

The Arab countries also won. Israel removed their biggest threat, Iran, and they are now closer than ever to the U.S. and will undoubtedly getting lots of great gifts in exchange for their support of Trump’s peace deal, in addition to their growing influence in Washington.

For the time being, it doesn’t look like Hamas is exiting the plot of our story, and it seems to still have the support of Turkey and Qatar, and the tens of millions of university students and liberal revolutionaries who they and their allies have been growing and nurturing for decades and who demonstrated on their behalf throughout the war, and will continue to do so as needed.

At the end of the day, Israel is still surrounded by countries and populations who would rather it not exist, and the moment they can make that a reality, they will. Hezbollah is still around in the north and Hamas is looking like it’ll be sticking around in the south. Iran might be defanged for the moment, but they’ll bide there time and wait for a more “favorable” U.S. administration, and then pick up where they left off.

So in a way, everyone “won”, but Israel is still at war with its neighbors and much of the world. Maybe Trump can pull off his vision of peace in the Middle East? We can hope and pray. But when happens when he isn’t president anymore? More prayer…]

News Update

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said yesterday, during his visit to Israel, that the Trump peace plan was moving forward in a positive way despite violations of the ceasefire by Hamas. Jared Kushner stated that no financial aid or investment would flow into the part of Gaza that was still under Hamas control, until the terror group was disarmed and removed from rule.

Hamas said it would stop public executions after Trump warned in a TruthSocial post: “Numerous of our NOW GREAT ALLIES in the Middle East, and areas surrounding the Middle East, have explicitly and strongly, with great enthusiasm, informed me that they would welcome the opportunity, at my request, to go into GAZA with a heavy force and “straighten our Hamas” if Hamas continues to act badly, in violation of their agreement with us. The love and spirit for the Middle East has not been seen like this in a thousand years! It is a beautiful thing to behold! I told these countries, and Israel, “NOT YET!” There is still hope that Hamas will do what is right. If they do not, an end to Hamas will be FAST, FURIOUS, & BRUTAL! I would like to thank all of those countries that called to help. Also, I would like to thank the great and powerful country of Indonesia, and its wonderful leader, for all of the help they have shown and given to the Middle East, and to the U.S.A. TO EVERYONE, thank you for your attention to this matter! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP”

Unfortunately, while the public executions might have been halted, the off-camera executions are continue at scale, according to sources in Gaza. It’s also unclear what Arab countries would be willing to send in troops to forcefully stop Hamas, as none have publicly agreed to do so. Will Israel have to do the job?

Another 2 bodies of hostages were returned to Israel yesterday, bringing the total to 13 out of the 28 total. VP Vance reiterated that returning all of the hostages was a priority, but that it would take some time due to logistic challenges. Vance visited the newly created international command center for implementing the Trump Agreement, in Kiryat Gat, commanded by U.S. Central Command chief Adm. Brad Cooper and operated by 200 U.S. troops along with personnel from the UK, Canada, Jordan and the UAE. IDF officers of all ranks work alongside the foreign troops.

A senior adviser to the United Arab Emirates president said today that “maximalist” views on the Palestinian issue are no longer valid, stressing the need to balance Israel’s security with the creation of a viable Palestinian state. For more, click here.

Meanwhile, a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 59% of Americans, including 80% of Democrats and 41% of Republicans, think the US should recognize Palestinian statehood.

Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday dismissed National Security Council head Tzachi Hanegbi. The reasons reportedly include policy differences, tension with the Netanyahu family and personal reasons.

News Update

IDF troops opened fire on several terrorists crossing the “yellow line” and approaching soldiers near the Shijaiyah neighborhood in eastern Gaza City today. Yesterday, terrorists emerged from a tunnel and fired an RPG at an engineering vehicle, killing Nahal Brigade soldiers Maj. Yaniv Kula, 26, a company commander in the Nahal Brigade’s 932nd Battalion, and Staff Sgt. Itay Yavetz, 21, a combat soldier in the brigade’s Erez program. Both were from Modi’in. Other terrorist attacks against troops occurred in Rafah and Khan Yunis. In addition to returning fire and neutralizing the immediate threats, the IDF responded with dozens of airstrikes targeting Hamas strongholds and tunnels. Hamas denied involvement in any of the attacks, blaming rogue militants in the south that it lost contact with months ago, and reiterated its commitment to the ceasefire.

The IDF is placing yellow border markers to demarcate the “yellow line”, which actually leaves Israel controlling less than half of Gaza’s territory, despite earlier statements. Should negotiations for the second phase of the long-term arrangement collapse, those yellow markers could potentially become a permanent border. Instead of disarming, Hamas is now reportedly rebuilding its defenses around major underground bases, particularly in Gaza City and western Khan Yunis.

Despite the repeated violations of the ceasefire agreement, Israel is honoring the ceasefire. Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are in Israel today, and Vice President J.D. Vance will be landing in Israel on Tuesday. [Even though nothing about this ceasefire and “phase 2” of the Trump peace agreement is certain, let’s not forget that Trump got all the living hostages out, which means that the IDF can act freely if necessary. Let’s hope the rest of the plan comes together too.]