Browsing: Israel News

The six-year-old boy ran up to a police officer. “There are terrorists,” he sobbed. “My father is dead.” His father, Yonatan Havakuk, was one of three men hacked to death by terrorists with an axe and a knife during an attack just as an Independence Day celebration was ending in central Israel. MAGEN DAVID ADOM, Israel’s emergency services organization, had multiple ambulances on the scene within minutes. Teams of paramedics and EMTs began treating the four other people who had been seriously wounded by the terrorists. Two were critically injured. As soon as the four victims had been stabilized, they…

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel plans to take control of Gaza, but that it does not intend to maintain permanent control over it in a Thursday interview with Fox News. “We don’t wanna keep it. We want to have a security perimeter, and we don’t want to govern it. We want to give it to Arab forces that will govern it properly and not threaten us.” This comes as the Security Council is expected to meet in a matter of minutes on the government’s potential plan to occupy Gaza. Continue reading this article on jpost.com

President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday visited the Gaza Strip for the first time since the start of the Oct. 7 “Iron Swords” War, where he met with military leaders and received a “full and detailed update” on humanitarian aid efforts in the enclave. Herzog was briefed on “the extensive efforts to ensure humanitarian aid reaches the people of Gaza – despite the danger, despite the pain of knowing our hostages are still held in brutal captivity,” he stated. President Herzog reiterated the position of the Israeli government emphasizing that “What is absolutely clear is that the true obstacle to humanitarian…

A suspected car-ramming attack occurred Thursday morning on Route 57 at the entrance to Kfar Yona, near the Beit Lid junction. A vehicle struck a group of people waiting at a bus stop, injuring eight individuals. According to Israeli authorities, all those injured were IDF soldiers. Two sustained moderate injuries, while six others were lightly hurt. The soldiers were evacuated to a nearby hospital, and their families have been notified. Emergency teams from Magen David Adom arrived at the scene within minutes. A man and woman in their 20s suffered chest and limb injuries. Three others sustained head and limb…

Israel will raise defense spending by NIS 42 billion ($12.5 billion) in 2025 and 2026, the finance and defense ministries said on Thursday, citing the ongoing wars and security challenges. The budget agreement will allow the Defense Ministry to “advance urgent and essential procurement deals critical to national security,” the ministries said in a statement. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the new defense budget “fully covers the intense fighting in Gaza, alongside comprehensive security preparations for all threats — from the south, the north, and more distant arenas.” Continue reading this article on timesofisrael.com

On Saturday, July 5, two American veterans working with the U.S.- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) were injured in an attack while distributing aid to Palestinians. The two veterans are reportedly receiving medical treatment and are in stable condition. GHF said the Americans were “highly decorated” veterans. “GHF has repeatedly warned of credible threats from Hamas, including explicit plans to target American personnel, Palestinian aid workers, and the civilians who rely on our sites for food. Today’s attack tragically affirms those warnings,” the organization wrote. GHF vowed that it was still committed to the mission of delivering aid to…

Romi Gonen, who was held captive by Hamas for more than a year, was released Thursday from Sheba Medical Center after five months of hospitalization and rehabilitation. Gonen, 25, was seriously wounded during the Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on Oct. 7 and abducted to Gaza, where she remained without proper medical treatment for over a year. Since her return to Israel as part of a hostage release deal in January, she has undergone two major surgeries at Sheba and is expected to return in the coming months for a third. “I’ve been in Israel for almost six months now,…

According to a state-sponsored news agency in Iran, the Iranian government has decided to ban IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi from entering the country, as well as any surveillance cameras at its nuclear facilities. “Iran will no longer allow Rafael Grossi, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), or the installation of surveillance cameras at its nuclear facilities, a top Iranian lawmaker announced,” the Mehr news agency reported. “Hamid Reza Haji Babaei, Vice Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, said on Saturday that Iran’s decision stems from the discovery of sensitive facility data within documents obtained from the…

As the war with Iran gives way to a tenuous ceasefire, Israel is entering a new phase of uncertainty. While the sirens have quieted, the long-term repercussions of the conflict continue to ripple across the country. For hundreds of thousands of Israelis, the ceasefire does not bring relief from food insecurity or economic hardship. The emergency may look different now, but the need is no less urgent. In response, Leket Israel, the country’s largest food rescue organization, is continuing full-force operations to ensure that vulnerable populations are not left behind. Throughout the crisis, Leket Israel has demonstrated the resilience and…

Nearly two months after his release from Hamas captivity, 21-year-old Edan Alexander is set to meet former U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington on Thursday. The visit, confirmed by the White House, comes after what officials describe as a deeply personal effort by Trump to help secure the dual Israeli-American citizen’s freedom. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that both Trump and former First Lady Melania Trump are “looking forward” to hosting Alexander and his family in the Oval Office. The meeting is scheduled to take place at noon. Continue reading this article on i24news.tv