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Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party will nominate incoming MK Matan Kahana (Yashar) as the next Knesset speaker, the party announced on Tuesday morning.

He previously held the role of Religious Services minister from 2021 until 2022. He remained an MK until July 2025, when he resigned his seat.

Kahana is an IDF Colonel (res.) who served in the General Staff Reconnaissance Unit (Sayeret Matkal), serving concurrently with former prime minister and B’Yachad party leader Naftali Bennett. He later went to the Israel Air Force’s Flight Academy and became an F-16 pilot, including during the Second Lebanon War.

Yashar also said it will nominate incoming MK Roy Folkman (17th on the party list) as chair of the Knesset’s Arrangements Committee, incoming B’Yachad MK Liran Avisar Ben-Horin as chair of the Finance Committee, and Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman as chair of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.

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Jerusalem’s L3 light rail line will be extended from HaTurim station to Damascus Gate, passing through the city center, beginning on Tuesday, the Finance Ministry, the Transportation Ministry, Jerusalem Municipality, Transportation for Jerusalem, and Cfir Light Rail announced.

The extension will provide passengers with direct access to downtown Jerusalem while increasing the frequency of light rail service along Jaffa Street.

Five additional stations shared with the L1 line, which runs between Neve Yaakov and Hadassah Ein Kerem, will be added to the L3 route. The new stops will connect passengers to major destinations in central Jerusalem, including Mahane Yehuda Market, City Hall, the Mamilla shopping district, and the entrance to the Old City.

The extension of the L3 line will also prevent the need to switch to the crowded L1 line for service to downtown Jerusalem, instead spreading out the crowd between the two lines.

L4 line nears opening as test runs in final phases

Meanwhile, the L4 line, which will connect the southern Jerusalem neighborhood of Gilo and surrounding areas to the city’s light rail network, is nearing the completion of its testing phase.

The line is expected to open to the public in the near future, pending the required safety approvals.

Jerusalem plans more light rail lines, extensions

Several additional lines and extensions are planned for the city, according to a master plan map on the Cfir website.

The L3 line is set to eventually extend to Hadassah-University Medical Center, on Jerusalem’s Mount Scopus, along with the upcoming L4 line. From there, the future L4 line is expected to run along the now under-construction Blue Line and join the L3 near Malha, stopping in downtown, the First Station, and Talpiot along the way.

L4 is one of two lines that will include underground stations in the Mea She’arim area; the second is L6, which will run from Ramot to join the L4 before splitting off to serve the Har Homa area, then running along Hebron Road to terminate alongside the L6 in Gilo.

A crosstown line, L8, is also under development, set to depart Armon Hanatziv in East Talpiot and terminate at Hadassah-University Medical Center, in Jerusalem’s Ein Kerem, alongside the L1, connecting with L3, L4, L6, and L7 at several different stations along the way.

Also being added to the Hadassah Ein Kerem terminal is L2, which will run as a supplement to L1 to HaTurim station to increase capacity on the crowded original line.

One additional line, the L5, is expected to run from Hadassah Mount Scopus to Har Nof, with infrastructure already in place to allow it to split from the Green Line and cross the Red Line near the Chords Bridge, adjacent to the Central Bus Station and Yitzhak Navon rail station.

At the time of writing, it was unclear when these new lines would open or whether their routes were finalized.

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Britain would prefer to have additional channels of communication with Russia, particularly at a military-to-military level, to reduce the risk of miscalculation, British defense minister Wes Streeting said, according to a Financial Times interview published on Tuesday.

“We have our embassy in Moscow. That is an important channel … I would much prefer there to be additional channels too, particularly military-to-military level,” Streeting told the FT.

“There is always a risk of miscalculation, and that’s why having that direct communication is important,” he said.

Russian, Ukrainian officials set to meet for US-brokered talks

Streeting’s comments come as Russian and Ukrainian officials planned to meet on Tuesday for two days of US-brokered talks – their first since February – after US President Donald Trump suggested last week that a broad peace deal was possible in their 4-1/2-year-old war, which could incorporate Europe’s security.

Relations between Moscow and most European capitals, including London, have been frozen since Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

However, the foreign ministers of Russia and Germany met in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September in the first such talks since the invasion.

Last week, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not travel to a G20 summit in Britain because of UK sanctions against him.

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Israel’s 26th Knesset will convene for its inaugural session and swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday, with President Isaac Herzog, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in attendance.

Avi Harush, the father of the late Sgt. Reef Harush, who was killed in combat in the southern Gaza Strip in April 2024, will recite Psalm 122 from the Book of Psalms during the ceremony.

Excerpts from Israel’s Declaration of Independence, read in the voice of Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, will be shown on screens in the Knesset plenum. The session will conclude with a performance of Israel’s national anthem, “Hatikvah,” by the Pirchei Ashkelon children’s choir.

The day’s events will begin at 8:00 a.m., when the newly elected lawmakers arrive at the Knesset. Each member will receive a ceremonial flower to pin to their lapel before posing for commemorative photographs with family members in a designated area.

The lawmakers will then have their official portraits taken. The photographs will be used throughout their terms in office, appearing in official Knesset publications and on attendance boards throughout the building.

The incoming lawmakers will also be welcomed by “Mr. Weil” and “Mrs. Chagall,” two robots that recently joined the Knesset Visitors Center’s team of guides.

At 3:20 p.m., an official ceremony will begin in the Knesset plaza, attended by lawmakers and their guests. Ohana will welcome Herzog, who will arrive with a motorcycle escort and mounted horsemen.

The Knesset Guard will hold a ceremonial parade in the president’s honor, accompanied by trumpet fanfares performed by the IDF Orchestra.

The presidential flag will then be raised, after which Herzog and Ohana will inspect the honor guard. The president will also lay a wreath at the memorial to Israel’s fallen soldiers and the monument commemorating victims of terrorist attacks, both located in the Knesset plaza.

Herzog and Ohana will then proceed to the entrance hall of the Knesset speaker’s office, where the president will sign the President’s Book, a specially bound volume in which Israel’s presidents write messages to each incoming Knesset.

The lawmakers will then enter the plenum for the swearing-in ceremony, with family members and senior government officials watching from the galleries.

Knesset swearing-in ceremony to begin at 4:00 p.m.

At 4:00 p.m., Knesset Secretary-General Dan Marzouk will announce the president’s entrance with the words “Mr. President.” The audience will rise as three trumpet fanfares sound.

Herzog will formally open the session with three strikes of the gavel before delivering remarks. He will then invite Ohana to take the oath of office and hand over the responsibility of presiding over the session to him.

After Ohana delivers his remarks, Marzouk will call the names of all 120 lawmakers individually. Each will rise in turn and declare: “I pledge.”

The traditional group photograph of the leaders of the elected parties will then be taken in the Chagall Hall.

Ohana and Netanyahu will also address the gathering, while Israeli singer Harel Skaat will perform “Hineni Kan” (“Here I Am”) and “Derech Aruka” (“A Long Road”).

The event will conclude with Ohana reciting a blessing over wine, followed by a toast to the new Knesset.

New lawmakers attend orientation ahead of swearing-in

Newly elected lawmakers attended an orientation day on Monday to learn parliamentary procedures, the Knesset’s administrative structure, and the responsibilities of their new roles.

The program introduced lawmakers to the legislative process, the parliamentary tools available to oversee the government, and the work of the Knesset’s various departments.

The incoming lawmakers were also offered a guided tour of the building and the opportunity to have photographs taken for their official profiles on the Knesset website and their parliamentary identification cards.

Meanwhile, several right-wing organizations are planning to demonstrate outside the Knesset during the swearing-in ceremony.

The participating groups include Im Tirtzu, the Mothers’ March, and the Reservists Generation of Victory movement, among others.

The protest is being held under the slogan: “We do not replace a Knesset speaker with the votes of Hamas supporters.”

The Knesset Guard, already on heightened alert for the ceremony, is preparing for the demonstrations. However, authorities are not aware of any plans to block lawmakers or other individuals from entering the building.

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The US military evacuated multiple aircraft from the UK’s RAF Mildenhall air base due to a threat from Iran on Monday, according to a Wall Street Journal report citing individuals familiar with the matter.

The details and nature of the threat, according to the report, are still under discussion between US officials.

Two refueling aircraft were diverted to Germany on Monday morning, and several other US refueling tankers were evacuated to Germany and other locations later in the day.

This is a developing story.

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A private plane carrying six foreign nationals crashed in the southern Philippines on Tuesday, a disaster official said.

Rescue operations were underway, and responders could not yet determine whether the passengers and crew had been killed, said Jomar Calledo, a disaster agency official in the southern city of Digos in Davao del Sur.

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Eleven years ago, just after departing the Obama administration, I traveled to a Jewish community center in Brooklyn to defend the Iran nuclear deal on a panel organized by US Rep. Hakeem Jeffries. I had just left the State Department, where I advocated for the nuclear deal to Congress, specifically in the House of Representatives. 

What I saw that night from the presumptive speaker of the House, Jeffries, is that he should give all Jewish Americans confidence that he’ll be a great leader on issues related to Israel and antisemitism.

That night in Brooklyn, I experienced in full force what Jeffries had been confronting from his Jewish constituents-an angry, nervous crowd that wanted him to oppose the deal. There was much vitriol at that event, which I tried to subdue by mentioning that my father was born in Brooklyn. That didn’t do me much good. One audience member called me a “kapo” and compared me to the Jewish people who she claimed, “marched in Manhattan in support of Adolf Hitler.”

To say the audience’s reaction to the deal was overwrought would be an understatement. But you know who wasn’t overwrought? Hakeem Jeffries.

What I saw at that event was a preternatural calm in a politician who was still new to this issue. Instead of bending and breaking to the restiveness of the crowd, and instead of dismissively rejecting the crowd’s concerns, Jeffries asked for calm. He spoke to the audience with openness. He was empathetic toward them and their concerns. He spoke about the weightiness of the decision before him. In a word, he was a statesman.

Jeffries supported Obama-era Iran nuclear deal

Weeks later, Jeffries publicly supported the deal. I’d like to think that the panel played a small role in his positive decision. But that is not the most important consideration as we assess his qualifications and fitness for the speakership. Jeffries showed, in the midst of a highly contentious political debate over a complex policy decision, a respect for his constituents, a seriousness about the task at hand, and a thoughtfulness that demonstrated tremendous leadership skills.

After his decision, which was not popular in the district, he was overwhelmingly reelected in the next election. I believe he won over constituents who disagreed with him because of the serious, courteous way he engaged on the issue. They knew that he understood them, heard them, and respected them.

As an American Jew who has worked intimately with Congress over the course of my career, on Jewish community concerns and in foreign policy, I’m incredibly bullish about the upcoming tenure of Jeffries as speaker, especially on the thorny issue of America’s relationship with Israel and how to confront antisemitism.

We all know that there’s been a vibrant debate – no, an intense argument – inside the Democratic Party about what it means to be pro-Israel and what constitutes antisemitic language and behavior. This past election cycle, multiple Democratic candidates entered the political fray making an argument that Israel should be treated as an American adversary, that language that targets American Jewish supporters of Israel isn’t antisemitic, and that the threat from Iran isn’t real. As a result, the Jewish community raised legitimate concerns about the party’s direction on these issues.

That’s why I’ve spoken out extensively against the rising tide of antisemitic, anti-Israel language inside the Democratic tent. My arguments have been well taken at Democratic gatherings, even by those who disagree with my concerns. I firmly believe that the Democratic Party is a big tent, and that the bigger the tent, as we have just seen, the bigger the majority for Democrats. We are having an argument inside the party that must be had; we cannot walk away from the party and expect to shape it.

Midterm results heartening on issues of Israel, antisemitism

This is why on the issues of Israel and antisemitism, the midterm results are so heartening. The massive Democratic victories last week elevated a diverse set of lawmakers from every corner of the party to office. American Jews of diverse viewpoints all still have a seat at the Democratic table. 

Which brings me back to Jeffries. As speaker, Jeffries will have a caucus large enough to grant him significant leeway to manage the harsh internal debates about Israel policy and antisemitism, just as he did in that town hall a decade ago. 

The numbers prove this point. While there will be a dozen far-left Squad members and Democratic Socialists of America-aligned candidates who are hostile to Israel, there will also be roughly 15 conservative Blue Dog members balancing them out. 

And the broadly liberal Congressional Progressive Caucus will have roughly 125 members, while the broadly moderate New Democrat Coalition will have roughly 140 members. We don’t know the final tally yet, but Democrats may get upwards of 260 seats. A large majority would give Jeffries considerable negotiating latitude. 

The size of Tuesday’s victory should hearten American Jews about the future direction of the Democratic Party. It is not being consumed by a far-left anti-Israel faction, as many Republicans would like us to believe. In fact, our community’s willingness to fight for our values and push back against antisemitism and the Israel haters has made an impact. It has isolated extremists and backed those who want to chart a more productive path. We need to keep up this fight. It’s working.

So now we get to see soon-to-be Speaker Jeffries work his magic. This is a man who cares deeply about the Jewish community, about America’s relationship with Israel and about taking on antisemitism. The fight inside the Democratic Party on these issues will continue, but now we can safely say that those most hostile to the Jewish community will have to sit down at the table and make their case to a statesman like Jeffries. And they will see us there too.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of JTA or its parent company, 70 Faces Media.

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Ahmed Moor, a Palestinian-American writer who has worked with anti-Zionists, is the first Democrat to challenge Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman in the 2028 primary. 

Fetterman, who has faced sharp criticism from within the Democratic Party for his staunch support for Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, has yet to announce whether he plans to run in 2028. A defeat or retirement would remove one of the Democratic caucus’s most pro-Israel voices.

Moor, 42, enters the playing field with radically different positions on Israel and on foreign policy in general from those Fetterman has promoted. Claiming that the United States “funds wars based on corruption and lies and has turned its back on its own people,” Moor pledged on his campaign website to ensure “this never happens again.” 

Moor, born in Gaza, moved to Philadelphia as a child, where he earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He completed a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard. He switched from finance to journalism, reporting in Beirut and Egypt for The Guardian and other outlets, and co-editing the book After Zionism: One State for Israel and Palestine. He also spent many years in Jordan, where he launched a peer-to-peer lending organization, before moving back to Philadelphia in 2021. 

“A few years ago my birthplace was turned to rubble in a genocide funded by our tax dollars,” Moor stated, saying that this has occurred “with the support of politicians on both sides of the aisle who can’t find money for transit or removing asbestos from our schools.”

Moor, who has served on the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee, has never held public office. He says he is determined to address corruption, affordability, foreign policy and constitutional authority, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer, which first reported his candidacy. 

Moor says ‘not really running against Fetterman,’ but running for ‘rule of law’

Moor told the Inquirer that he was “not really running against Fetterman” but instead “running for the rule of law.” He acknowledged that he would face an “uphill battle” against Fetterman, who took office in January 2023. 

Fetterman has irked some fellow Democrats by siding with Republicans on numerous issues, especially on Israel. He has also drawn praise from the pro-Israel community and Israel’s leadership. With Democrats securing a Senate majority of at least 54 seats, including two independents who caucus with the party, Democratic leadership will be less dependent on Fetterman’s vote when the new Congress convenes in January. 

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Thirty-two years after the terrorist attack on the Jewish community center in Buenos Aires that killed 85 people, the victims will be commemorated in a memorial at the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council.

During his visit to Argentina, Binyamin Regional Council head and Yesha Council chairman Israel Ganz visited the AMIA Jewish community center, where he reached an agreement with the organization’s president, attorney Osvaldo Armoza, to cooperate on establishing a memorial in Binyamin to honor the victims.

During the visit, Ganz went to the memorial, lit a memorial candle, and recited Psalms in their memory. He then met with the president of AMIA, and the two delivered a joint statement announcing an initiative to establish a memorial site in Binyamin that would reflect the connection between the Jewish community in Argentina and the settlements in Judea and Samaria.

1994 AMIA bombing

On July 18, 1994, a massive explosion rocked the AMIA building in the heart of Buenos Aires. The terrorist attack is believed to have been carried out by Iran-backed Hezbollah. 

The building was completely destroyed, and a new building was built in its place. 

The building was inaugurated in 1999 and continues to serve as a center of Jewish communal life in Argentina.

Two stones recovered from the remains of the building were preserved in the new structure. 

The possibility of incorporating a commemorative element in Binyamin’s memorial that would connect it to the original building and the story of the attack is being explored. 

The visit took place as part of Ganz’s trip to South America, during which he also met with Argentine President Javier Milei. Alongside his diplomatic meetings, Ganz sought to deepen ties with the local Jewish community.

“I was moved to come here and meet a strong and vibrant Jewish community that rebuilt its home after one of the worst terrorist attacks the Jewish people have experienced. We came here to tell our brothers and sisters in Argentina: You are not alone. The Jewish people are one family, and even when thousands of kilometers separate us, we are connected by memory, destiny, and our shared future,” he said. 

“We agreed together to establish a memorial site in Binyamin in memory of the 85 people murdered in the AMIA terrorist attack. Precisely here, in the place where the terrorists tried to strike at the heart of the Jewish community, we seek to convey a message of remembrance, continuity, and unity.”

Ganz continued, “Thirty-two years ago, and today as well, Iran, Hezbollah, and Israel’s enemies continue to try to harm Jews in Israel and around the world. But our response has not changed: We will not surrender to terrorism, and we will not allow our enemies to determine our future. We will continue to build, establish settlements, strengthen Jewish communities, and stand together against every threat.”

Victims will have a place in the heart of Binyamin, Ganz says

“The memory of those murdered will not remain only in Buenos Aires, but will also have a place in the heart of Binyamin. We are waiting for you in Israel, and we will continue to strengthen the ties between our communities. The Jewish people are always together.”

Following the event, Armoza said it was “a pleasure” to host Ganz. “His determination and steadfast commitment to securing Israel’s territory and security, alongside his dedication to the values of Judaism and the Torah that are passed down from generation to generation, give us confidence,” he said. 

“From here, in Argentina, we express our support and will work determinedly to advance cooperation between us. I thank Israel for its efforts and look forward to our next meeting in Israel.”

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In a slip of the tongue, President Isaac Herzog had mistakenly vowed to “keep (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu united” instead of “keep Israel united” in 2015.

He now seems to mistake “Israeli unity” for “Jewish unity” in his consultation with the parties to form a government, thereby saving Netanyahu instead of Israel.

In a gloomy video at the end of Shabbat, right before Herzog appointed Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot to form a government, Netanyahu forcefully called for “national unity” and the rejection of a government supported by “terror supporters.”

He did not call for unity when he had a majority, as in 2022, when he preferred a “Full right-wing government.”

Unity is a way for him to stay in power after losing in the last election, by changing the playing field from an Israeli one to a Jewish one, delegitimizing the Arab votes, and taking into account only the Jewish ones.

In this Jewish playing field, Netanyahu’s camp is the biggest, with him at the top.

The maneuver is as transparent as it is logical for a politician who has built his entire career on racism, delegitimization, and fear of Israel’s Arab citizens, from “Netanyahu is good for the Jews” in 1996 to “The Arabs are coming out in droves” in 2015.

It is more surprising to see Herzog somewhat complicit in Netanyahu’s maneuver by calling for unity as well.

It is especially disappointing after the campaign of fake news against the Arab vote orchestrated before, during, and after the elections by Netanyahu’s Likud party, with the help of an obedient Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and Israeli “journalists” who disseminated these lies under the pretext of just “asking some questions,” as conspiracy theorists do.

When Herzog lectures the Democrats’ delegation about their rejection of Netanyahu and calls for “unity,” he actually means “Jewish unity,” not “Israeli unity.”

This is very troubling for a man who is supposed to be the president of all Israelis, not only the Jewish ones.

Herzog is not suspected of any racism or willingness to delegitimize the Arabs, and he gracefully welcomed the Arab parties at the President’s Residence. He also had some strong words about full equality and criticized the bogus investigation about Arab “fraud” to delegitimize the vote.

In other words, Herzog is a decent man who wants to soothe the divisions in Israeli society. Precisely because of these good intentions, he should understand that buying Netanyahu’s nonsense unity narrative is not what Israel needs right now, but instead his full repudiation.

“Unity” with Likud, until Netanyahu leaves the political scene, is a non-starter, given how divisive he has been for Israeli society and how he has lied time and again to disband unity governments each time they stopped being useful to him.

Real unity in Israel

Herzog has rightly pointed to the dangers of Israel’s isolation, and he probably knows that Netanyahu is a major hurdle to the reset of the Israel-US relationship, badly damaged by his neglect of the Democratic Party and his full embrace of US President Donald Trump, especially after the latest midterms’ blue wave.

He’s also probably aware that the best potential hasbara (public diplomacy) to debunk the “apartheid” narrative in the West, major participation of the Arabs in the electoral process, is ruined by Netanyahu’s effort to delegitimize it.

The president’s role is honorific most of the time, but it bears a special weight during the formation of a government.

Herzog can either help the panicked ultimate divider-in-chief with a fake unity among Jewish Israelis, or push for a real unity among all Israelis.

The writer, who was born and raised in France, is the correspondent of French Jewish radio, Radio J, and of the French paper librejournal.fr in the US, where he has been living for 16 years. He also holds US and Israeli citizenship. The opinions expressed are his own.

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Later today, Israel’s 26th Knesset will convene for the first time, with newly elected members taking their oaths alongside veteran parliamentarians returning to familiar seats.

However bitter the election campaign, the swearing-in ceremony reminds us that the public has entrusted 120 citizens with the serious business of representing it and governing the country.

It also offers an opportunity to restore some order to an institution whose standing has suffered from years of political confrontation, and every faction shares responsibility for setting that tone.

The previous Knesset saw too many sessions descend into shouting matches, personal attacks, and procedural disputes. While such scenes may generate headlines and social media clips, they do little to improve legislation or encourage public confidence. Israelis have every right to expect better from those whose salaries they pay and whose decisions shape their lives.

The new parliament begins its work amid political uncertainty. President Isaac Herzog has tasked Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot with forming a government, but the election produced no straightforward coalition majority, and negotiations are ongoing. These could take weeks, with no guarantee they will succeed. The absence of a settled government is no excuse for parliamentary paralysis or disorder.

Knesset speaker question overshadows inauguration

Already, the issue of the Knesset speaker’s position has threatened to overshadow the inauguration.

Eisenkot’s Yashar party has approached Shas and United Torah Judaism for support in replacing incumbent Speaker Amir Ohana of Likud. UTJ chairman Yaakov Asher has argued that a new speaker should be chosen when a government is formed, which in many ways is a fair and logical argument. Ohana himself has said he will arrange a vote within a week if 61 MKs submit a formal request, while ruling out holding it on inauguration day.

Replacing Ohana would give the opposition bloc greater control over the parliamentary agenda, including votes, legislation, and committee appointments, even if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remains in office as head of a caretaker government.

The 2020 precedent, when the High Court intervened after then-speaker Yuli Edelstein refused to convene a vote on his replacement, should remain a warning. A speaker presides over the whole Knesset, including his political opponents, and is bound by the institution’s procedures.

Reports of alleged plans to disrupt a future speaker vote are disturbing, although the allegations remain unsubstantiated. All parties should make clear that intimidation, blocking access to the chamber, or preventing elected representatives from voting has no place in Israel’s democracy.

Parliamentary responsibility, however, goes far beyond the speaker. MKs are elected to scrutinize government decisions, examine budgets, serve on committees, and produce laws that withstand proper debate. Opposition members are obligated to challenge the government seriously, while coalition members must be willing to answer criticism and exercise independent judgment.

In a country confronting the threats that Israel faces, both from within and without, these duties are especially important. Families of reservists, small business owners, and citizens waiting for public services need a functioning legislature, whatever the outcome of the coalition negotiations.

Nobody expects the Knesset to be free of heated arguments, nor should it be. Political disagreements are an essential part of any healthy democracy, and the issues facing Israel will inevitably produce fierce debate. But there is no reason why those disagreements should so frequently descend into personal attacks, shouting matches, and disputes that bring parliamentary proceedings to a halt.

MKs must fulfill their duties to the people

The oath taken on Tuesday should therefore mean more than photographs and congratulations. New MKs will have to learn the responsibilities of their office, while returning members should ask whether the example they have set is one worth following.

The Israeli public has just participated in an emotional and important election, with a strong turnout, despite exhaustion and uncertainty. Voters have fulfilled their democratic responsibility; now it is the turn of those elected.

As the new MKs take their oaths, they have the opportunity to demonstrate that parliamentary standards can be upheld, political differences debated with respect, and the Knesset restored to its rightful place as an institution serving the entire country.

For the 26th Knesset, and for the Israeli public that elected it, that would indeed offer a new hope.

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US President Donald Trump’s close relationship with Nvidia Jensen Huang came under renewed scrutiny on Monday, after the company said its board was investigating whether the tech executive has been the target of a foreign intelligence effort.

Huang is one of Trump’s closest allies in Silicon Valley, and the relationship between the two dates back to at least 2025. Over the past two years, he has repeatedly voiced support for the administration’s agenda and has become a regular presence in Washington as Nvidia sought to sell advanced chips to the Chinese market.

Advanced chips are the backbone of the US AI boom, and government officials have previously tried to restrict China’s access to them through export controls to stifle its AI capabilities.

Nvidia’s board launched its probe after a New York Times report said Huang had a close relationship with Chinese businesswoman Alice Huang, who US intelligence officials believe passed information to the Chinese government. Nvidia shares closed down more than 4% on Monday.

“I’m pushing to investigate Jensen Huang and Nvidia to determine whether our national security was compromised,” said Senator Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat, in a post on X. “We need answers about the relationship between AI billionaires and the Trump administration, who’s making these decisions, and who’s really got their hand on the wheel.”

Democrats on the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee wrote to US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, calling on the Commerce Department to halt exports of advanced AI chips to China.

US Representatives Gabe Amo, Gregory Meeks and Sydney Kamlager-Dove sought answers by December 1 on whether top officials at the Commerce Department were aware of US intelligence linking Alice Huang, a former executive of Singapore-based ⁠Megaspeed who is not related to the Nvidia CEO, to Chinese efforts to obtain Nvidia chips.

They also asked in their letter whether the top officials communicated with Secretary of State Marco Rubio regarding Alice Huang and Megaspeed.

“If Commerce was not briefed, we need to know why. If it was briefed, we need to know how it responded. And if the Department knowingly permitted these exports despite credible national-security concerns, the American people deserve an explanation,” the letter added.

Jensen Huang, the Nvidia CEO, has a direct line to the US president. A Reuters reporter saw Huang’s full name pop up on Trump’s phone in December 2025.

Huang flew with Trump to China on Air Force One in May, the first visit by a US president to China in nearly a decade. Huang attended a high-profile state dinner in September for Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House. The company committed $25 million for Trump’s planned White House ballroom, according to media reports.

The NYT reported that Trump had been briefed on Huang’s relationship with the woman and on intelligence that she was giving information to the Chinese government, and that he chose not to act on the information.

The White House press office on Monday declined to comment further on Trump’s relationship with Huang.

Trump said he was looking into Nvidia CEO’s affair with alleged spy

Trump said on Monday the FBI was looking into the Nvidia CEO’s affair with the Chinese businesswoman alleged to be a spy for Beijing. Trump said he had spoken to the CEO, who told him that he had no idea that the woman was a spy. Trump said he believed the CEO.

China’s foreign ministry said the spy accusations were “groundless.” Reuters could not determine Alice Huang’s location to seek comment from her on Monday.

Huang’s relationship with Trump has coincided with several favorable policy developments for the company. In April 2025, the administration backed off plans to restrict exports of certain Nvidia AI chips to China after Huang attended a dinner at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

In December 2025, Trump said the US would allow Nvidia to export its H200 processors, its second-best AI chips, to China and collect a 25% fee on such sales.

Trump has lavished Huang with praise, awarding him the nation’s highest honor for scientific achievement in October. The same day Trump gave Huang the award, the president disclosed buying up to $1.6 million and selling up to $1 million in Nvidia stock during the summer.

White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told Reuters at the time that third-party financial institutions independently manage the president’s portfolio.

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Palestinians and Jewish settlers set fire to property in tit-for-tat arson attacks in the West Bank on Monday, according to a report on Army Radio via Telegram.

The incidents began with Palestinian rioters setting fire to an Israeli vehicle near Kibbutz Mitzpe Shalem, a Jewish settlement overlooking the Dead Sea. 

The IDF imposed a curfew in response in the West Bank village of Azzun, located in the Kalkilya Governorate. 

In retaliation for the attack, Jewish rioters entered an area near the village of Beita, located near Nablus, and set fire to construction equipment and vehicles in a commercial area, the report added. 

Numerous arson sites were documented in the area, it added, with no arrests having been reported to date. 

The IDF has yet to issue a statement regarding the attacks. 

The incidents are part of a series of arson attacks recorded earlier this month. 

Last week, Arab residents of Beit Ummar reportedly set fire to an Israeli vehicle near the settler farm Gafen Ami. 

The attack was allegedly in response to Jewish rioters having entered the Palestinian town and setting fire to Palestinian-owned vehicles, according to Army Radio.

IDF prevents stone-throwing terror incidents

In a separate incident overnight on Monday, the military conducted an operational activity with the goal of preventing stone-throwing and terror incidents near the Palestinian village of Burqa in the West Bank, according to a statement released by the IDF. 

IDF soldiers identified several Palestinians preparing to throw stones at a highway utilized by Israelis, where previous stone-throwing attacks have been recorded. 

Soldiers responded with gunfire, neutralizing the threat, according to the IDF’s statement. 

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US President Donald Trump said on Monday that Washington was seeing a “very strong inclination” towards ending Russia’s war in Ukraine and that both sides were “tired of fighting.”

“We’re having a very good conversation about that in Abu Dhabi,” Trump told reporters at the White House on the eve of US-led, three-sided talks scheduled in Abu Dhabi.

Trump had vowed to end the conflict when he took office in January 2025, but the goal of ending the war that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 has remained elusive.

“We’re also seeing a very strong inclination to end Russia and Ukraine (war). We’re involved in that,” Trump told reporters.

Both Russia and Ukraine were showing some flexibility privately on the possible exchange of territory ahead of the talks in Abu Dhabi this week, a US official said earlier on Monday.

The official, briefing reporters ahead of talks that begin on Tuesday, said security guarantees for Ukraine will be a major topic for the discussions, including the potential for a NATO-style Article 5 defense for Kyiv.

Both Ukraine and Russia have been adamant about territory. Ukraine wants Russia pushed back to the original border between the two countries, while Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to obtain all of the Donbas region.

But the US official said both sides are privately showing some potential for a compromise. Any territorial agreement would likely come at the end of negotiations once other items are agreed upon, including a postwar security architecture, the official said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday that Ukrainian battlefield successes and mounting Russian losses were strengthening Kyiv’s position in negotiations.

First mediation talks since February aimed at ending the war

The talks will be the first since February aimed at bringing closer an end to the war, which has now been going for more than 4-1/2 years.

US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are to lead US mediation efforts in the Abu Dhabi talks, which are scheduled for two days. The official said it was possible the envoys would travel to Russia at some point after the talks in order to meet with Putin.

While noting that the negotiations would take some time, the official said there was cautious optimism on the US side that progress can be made.

Zelensky has clashed with Trump in recent weeks over decisions by the US president to buy Russian diesel, suspend some sanctions and call on Kyiv to halt attacks on Russian oil refineries. Trump has also called for Zelensky to be replaced.

The 1,200-km front line in the war has remained fairly static for many months, with Russian forces holding about 20% of Ukrainian territory.

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