News Update

The U.S. is reportedly demanding that Israel take physical and financial responsibility for removing the debris caused by the war in Gaza, which is expected to cost hundreds of millions of shekels. Israel has agreed in principle. The first area to be cleared will most likely be the Rafah area, where rebuilding would then begin.

Believe it or not, Amnesty International published a report this week saying that Hamas committed crimes against humanity during its attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023 and against hostages it took to Gaza. Its investigation found that the crimes against humanity included murder, extermination, imprisonment, torture, rape and other forms of sexual abuse and inhumane acts. Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the report did not cover the full extent of what it called “Hamas’ horrific atrocities”. Of course Hamas denied all the allegations. In this world of anti-Israel hatred and pro-Palestinian euphoria, we’ll take this report by the premier international “human rights” watchdog as a victory. Truth still does exist in this world, although it’s getting harder and harder to come by.

A video of 6 hostages lighting the Hanukkah candles during their captivity in Rafah was released. The video, captured by IDF forces during the war, was filmed by Hamas as part of their psychological warfare campaign. The 6 hostages – Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Carmel Gat – were all murdered by Hamas in the tunnel, after being tortured and starved for months. To watch the video, click here.

The holiday of Hanukkah begins on Sunday night. The holiday represents the willingness of the Jewish People, and all good people regardless of their religion, to fight for the freedom to live according to their beliefs. It is also a time of miracles, the kind that we can all recognize and the kind that we pass off as coincidence or luck. The video of the hostages lighting the candles in the darkest place imaginable reflects both the struggle for freedom and the belief in miraculous salvation. The last 2 years of wars against our enemies does the same. After it all, we can light our Hanukkah lights in freedom, strengthened in our faith that truth and justice will continue to triumph over lies and terror.

Happy Hanukkah!

News Update

Prime Minister Netanyahu appointed Roman Gofman to replace David Barnea as head of the Mossad, starting in June of 2026. Born in Belarus in the former USSR, Gofman is a Major General in the IDF. He served as Netanyahu’s military secretary last year. According to commentator Amit Segal, “In the past 13 months, the prime minister has replaced the heads of the IDF and Shin Bet, as well as his defense minister. And now, with the appointment of Roman Gofman to lead the Mossad, Netanyahu has finally finished remaking the top brass of Israel’s security establishment in his image.” Meanwhile, the IDFstruck Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon today.

The body of Thai hostage Sudthisak Rinthalak was returned to Israel overnight, leaving the body of just one Israeli hostage, Ran Gvili, still in Gaza.

Yesterday, Israeli and Lebanese officials held direct talks in Lebanon for the first time in decades. Following the meeting, the Prime Minister’s Office announced that “the meeting was held in a positive atmosphere, and it was agreed that ideas would be formulated to advance possible economic cooperation between Israel and Lebanon. Israel made clear that dismantling Hezbollah’s military capabilities is required regardless of progress on economic cooperation. The sides agreed to continue the dialogue.” For more, click here.

Yasser Abu Shabab, the militia leader who oversaw eastern Rafah and had been cooperating with Israel in recent months, was killed today. Abu Shabab was reportedly killed in an internal dispute between rival families, and not by Hamas.

News Update

Prime Minister Netanyahu has formally requested a pardon from President Herzog. Netanyahu did not admit any guilt, but rather cited the “increasing burden” of his role in the trial proceedings, which preclude him from focusing fully on his duties as prime minister, as the main reason for his request. He also cites his lifelong public service to the state and his leadership in defeating Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran and in bringing home the hostages. He said the emerging understandings between the United States, Israel, Arab states and other countries “require significant preparation, intensive diplomatic and security efforts and constant attention” and that “there is a compelling public interest in allowing the prime minister to dedicate his full time and energy to these weighty responsibilities.” He added that a pardon was vital for “national unity and healing”.

President Herzog responded that he would carefully consider the request. It is assumed that there will be some form of negotiation between the president, prime minister, justice minister, attorney general and supreme court justices. To read more, click here. 

IDF troops killed 4 Hamas terrorists who emerged from a tunnel in Rafah. Among the 4 were the commander of the East Rafah battalion, a coordinator of “hostage‑release ceremonies”, and the son of a senior Hamas political bureau member. Around 40 terrorists have been killed in the area in recent weeks, as they attempted to flee tunnels in Israeli controlled territory.

The head of the Directorate of Defense Research & Development, Brig. Gen. (Res.) Dr. Danny Gold, announced today that the directorate, together with Rafael and Elbit, will deliver the new laser weapon system Iron Beam (known in Hebrew as “Eitan Or” in memory of fallen soldier Eitan Oster) to the Air Force’s air‑defense branch by the end of the year. The laser system is expected to be a game changer on the battlefield.

News Update

Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad announced today that they will hand over the body of an Israeli hostage at 4 p.m. local time.

The police’s Yamam counterterrorism unit, operating in Nablus, killed the terrorist who ran over and killed two IDF soldiers in May of last year. The terrorist had been on the run for 18 months. Shortly after the terror attack, he surrendered to the Palestinian Authority police, but was released after claiming the incident was a traffic accident.

In an executive order yesterday, President Trump set the groundwork for the designation of chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations, which would prohibit American from doing business with them and allow their assets in the U.S. to be frozen.

A 10 year report by non-profit Leket Israel reveals that approximately NIS 211 billion worth of food has been wasted in Israel over the past decade, with 2.6 million tons discarded in 2024 alone, valued at NIS 26.2 billion and representing about 39% of domestically produced food. Approximately 1.5 million Israelis face food insecurity.

News Update

Five of the Hamas terrorists stuck in the tunnel in Rafah were eliminated by the IDF this morning while trying to escape to the Gazan side of the yellow line. There are thought to be around 80 still in the tunnels. Meanwhile, IDF forces arrested 60 terror suspects, including 18 Hamas members, in counter-terror operations in Judea and Samaria this week.

Over 100 senior military representatives from nearly 20 countries in a 5 day program hosted by the IDF, to learn from the IDF’s recent experience during 2 years of war. Topics covered included advances in the military use of data and AI, the co-ordination of drones and artillery to protect advancing troops, and how to increase the chances of injured soldiers surviving their wounds. The countries represented included the United States, Canada, Germany, Finland, France, India, Greece, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Austria, Estonia, Japan, Morocco, Romania, Serbia, and Slovakia. [Wait, didn’t most of them say that the IDF was carrying out “genocide”?]

Twenty six former hostages met with President Trump in the White House yesterday to thank him. Trump said, “You are not a hostage anymore — today, you are heroes, you’re truly heroes.”