All News (Page 49)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced MK Zvi Sukkot’s (Religious Zionist Party) unauthorized destruction of a Palestinian monument in the West Bank on Tuesday.

“The IDF is the sovereign authority in Judea and Samaria and is responsible for implementing the decisions of the political echelon,” he stated.

“Taking the law into one’s own hands – particularly by public figures – is unacceptable and hinders the IDF from focusing on its missions against terrorism and incitement.”

‘Violent provocateur’: Opposition leaders decry MK Sukkot’s destruction of West Bank monument 

Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot called Sukkot a “violent provocateur” who “claims to represent ‘religious Zionism’ is doing an injustice to an entire sector” in a statement condemning Sukkot for destroying a monument in Kafr Madama near Nablus on Tuesday.

Sukkot’s behavior is a “disgrace” to public leaders, Eisenkot stated. “He lied and deceived the IDF and its commanders, harmed security and tarnished the entire State of Israel.”

התנהגותו של צבי סוכות היא בושה למי שמתיימר לייצג ציבור ולהיות מנהיג.
הוא שיקר והטעה את צה״ל ומפקדיו, פגע בביטחון והכתים את מדינת ישראל כולה.

הפרובוקטור האלים שמתיימר לייצג את ״הציונות הדתית״ עושה עוול למגזר שלם.

נתניהו, שפירק בהסכם קואליציוני את המערכת שאיפשרה ביטחון ומשילות…

— Gadi Eisenkot – גדי איזנקוט (@gadi_eisenkot) August 25, 2026

“[Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, who dismantled the system that enabled security and governance in Judea and Samaria through a coalition agreement, allows anarchists Zvi Sukkot and his ilk to do whatever they want, endangering security in the settlement and harming Israel’s standing in the world,” he wrote. “They must not be allowed to hold the reins of power for another day.”

Bennett: Coalition endangers soldiers’ lives for election videos

B’Yachad leader Naftali Bennett accused Netanyahu’s government of “undermining Israel’s security and Israel’s standing in the world just to rack up views on TikTok,” stating that the way to fight terror is with actions, not “pathetic provocations.”

“Smotrich and his agents weren’t content with being the architects of the evasion law and abandoning IDF fighters alone under the stretcher; now they’re also undermining their missions and endangering their lives for election videos. Netanyahu knows they’re dragging Israel to an unprecedented low, but he can’t do a thing about it because he has no government without Ben Gvir and the anti-Zionist Haredi parties.”

ממשלת הכאוס פוגעת בביטחון ישראל ובמעמד ישראל בעולם כדי לקושש צפיות בטיקטוק – בטרור נלחמים במעשים, ולא בפרובוקציות עלובות.

לסמוטריץ׳ וסוכות לא הספיק להיות אדריכלי חוק ההשתמטות ולהפקיר את לוחמי צה״ל לבד מתחת לאלונקה, עכשיו הם גם פוגעים במשימותיהם ומסכנים את חייהם על סרטוני…

— Naftali Bennett נפתלי בנט (@naftalibennett) August 25, 2026

Sukkot demands Golan remove post calling for his arrest

“This is a person who should be behind bars and bolts, not in the Knesset of Israel,” The Democrats Party leader Yair Golan wrote, stating that Sukkot is the reason the IDF was diverted to the West Bank on the eve of the October 7 massacre.

“In the upcoming elections, the Kahanists and messianists must be removed from centers of power, and Israel returned to its track. They want eternal war. We will fight for a secure, democratic, and sane state,” he stated.

צבי סוכות, אותו אדם שבגללו כוחות צה״ל עלו ערב ה-7.10 לשטחים במקום להישאר בדרום. אותו אדם שפרץ לבסיסי צה״ל. והיום הוא מנסה במו ידיו להבעיר עוד אש ועוד מלחמה.

זה אדם שצריך להיות מאחורי סורג ובריח, לא בכנסת ישראל.

אצל הקואליציה הזאת, הלהבות הן שיטת עבודה. עוד עימות, עוד הסתה, עוד…

— Yair Golan – יאיר גולן (@YairGolan1) August 25, 2026

In response, Sukkot threatened Golan with a lawsuit should he not remove the X post within half an hour.

MK Gilad Kariv (The Democrats) also decried Sukkot’s actions and the IDF’s involvement, stating the military had denied consistent requests to escort him to Kusra, citing a lack of available forces.

“It turns out there are available forces to escort the arsonist to the heart of a Palestinian village,” he wrote. “Just yesterday, it was reported that the Central Command’s commander warned that it would take just one match to ignite the West Bank.  Zvi Sukkot charges into the role with glee.”

Gantz: This is not Right-wing, this is anarchism

Blue and White leader MK Benny Gantz stated that the citizens of Israel “deserve Knesset members who uphold the law. “

“This is neither right-wing nor nationalist – this is anarchy that only a broad and Zionist government without the extremists will be able to stop.”

This post was originally published on here. 

A coalition of progressive rabbis is recruiting fellow Jewish clergy to endorse H.R. 3565 – Block the Bombs Act, which calls for a partial arms embargo on Israel.

The coalition, called ‘Rabbis for Block the Bombs, ‘ launched publicly on 23 August and so far has 92 signatories.

It is centered on support for the Block the Bombs Act (H.R. 3565): a proposed US bill that aims to block the sale and transfer of seven of the most lethal offensive weapons to Israel. These are BLU-109 bunker-busting bombs, MK80 series bombs, GBU-39 small-diameter bomb variants, Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs), SPICE gliding bomb assemblies, 120mm tank ammunition, and 155mm artillery ammunition, including white phosphorus munitions.

The new website features a mission statement alongside the words ‘You shall not murder’ from Exodus 20:13.

The statement reads “we, the undersigned Jewish clergy, implore members of Congress to support H.R. 3565 […] a necessary step toward ending US complicity in the Israeli military’s excessive violence, and in moving towards a just peace and true safety for both Palestinians and Israelis.”

Jewish Voice for Peace, IfNotNow, New Jewish Narrative support bill

This stance, the coalition says, is guided by the Jewish values of Pikuach Nefesh, the obligation to save lives, and B’tzelem Elohim, the belief that all humans are made in the image of the Divine.

“Our horror at the deadly and ongoing assaults in Gaza and the West Bank and the realization that we as Americans have a hand in enabling those assaults lead us to support the Block the Bombs Act.”

“Supporting the Block the Bombs Act is both a moral imperative and a strategic step toward protecting lives in Gaza,” it continues.

While the campaign is unbranded, its FAQ lists Jewish Voice for Peace,  Center for Jewish Nonviolence, IfNotNow, Jews for Racial & Economic Justice, New Jewish Narrative, Rabbis for Ceasefire, as groups supporting the bill. These groups are widely disavowed by mainstream Judaism, and several have attracted significant controversy for their anti-Israel campaigning and BDS support.

Among the signatories are Rabbi Alissa Wise – former co-director of organizing for Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and founder of Rabbis for Ceasefire – Rabbi Brant Rosen – Co-founder of the JVP Rabbinical Council – Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb – longtime activist with JVP – and Rabbi David Mivasair – prominent activist with JVP and Independent Jewish Voices Canada.

Alissa Wise was previously photographed hugging Rasmea Odeh, who planted a bomb in a Jerusalem supermarket, killing two and injuring 9.

This post was originally published on here. 

Israel has “abandoned” its haredi students by allowing decisions about education to be made outside the public sector, former Beit Shemesh mayor and Unity Party member Aliza Bloch told The Jerusalem Post, arguing that reforming the education system must begin in kindergarten.

Bloch, an educator who recently joined former UN ambassador Gilad Erdan and MK Yuli Edelstein’s new Unity Party, said the education system requires better teachers, greater professional authority for principals and more respect for educators.

“I want to be involved in education, of course, because I believe that most of our problems in Israel begin in kindergarten, in the classroom and in the school,” Bloch said.

She also criticized the structure of Israel’s education system, arguing that the government has ceded too much responsibility for decisions affecting students to bodies outside the public sector.

“I have to say that we’ve abandoned the haredi students because many of the decisions in their education are not made by the public sector,” she said.

Children must learn to feel they are a part of Israeli society

For Bloch, education and conscription cannot be separated. She argued that the state cannot wait until young people reach 18 to ask them to take responsibility for the country if they have not previously been given the opportunity to understand Israeli society and their place within it.

“From kindergarten, students need to learn about Israel. They need to feel that they are part of society and that they need to take responsibility for our lives,” she said.

“When they reach 18, we tell them they need to go to the army, but they don’t know enough about our society.”

Bloch said that changing this would require starting much earlier.

“If we want to make a change, we need to work from kindergarten, to give them the option to learn about Israel, to feel that they are part of the society, to feel that they need to take responsibility about our life,” she said.

She argued that young Israelis should not be able to reach adulthood without a basic sense of civic responsibility.

‘Living with different people makes us better people’

Bloch’s stance on education reflects a broader political philosophy that Bloch said she developed during her time as mayor of Beit Shemesh, a city she described as one of Israel’s most diverse.

“I believe that living with different people makes us better people,” she said. “When I was mayor, all of my work was about helping people live together and respect everyone. It doesn’t matter if you are secular, Orthodox, or Modern Orthodox. Everybody is a person.”

Her experience governing the city also shaped her belief that political cooperation between groups with sharply different views is possible.

“We don’t need to agree on everything, but we must respect everyone,” she said.

That belief now forms the basis of Bloch’s argument for a broad Zionist government, rather than another narrow coalition dependent on small political factions.

The Unity Party was launched earlier this month by Erdan and Edelstein as a new right-wing political framework committed to universal military service and a broad coalition rather than a narrow bloc government. Erdan and Edelstein have presented the party as an alternative for right-wing voters dissatisfied with the existing political camps. The party was formally launched in early August.

“I think Gilad Erdan and Yuli Edelstein are examples of people who have values and work according to their values,” she said.

Asked about potential coalition partners, Bloch tied her red lines directly to national service and support for the state.

“If the government sends my son to the army, it must be that all of their children go to the army as well,” she said.

“I can’t sit with people who support Hamas or who don’t understand that serving in the army is not a question of whether I want to or don’t want to. It is a responsibility for everybody.”

Bloch supports a broad government coalition, PM ‘not important’

Bloch did not rule out sitting in a government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying the identity of the prime minister was less important to her than the composition and mandate of the government.

“For me, it’s not important who will be the prime minister. I believe that we must build a very broad government,” she said.

“After the war, our society needs a very broad government to take responsibility and make changes in education, the economy and the army.”

For Bloch, a broad coalition is not simply one possible political arrangement.

“It’s not an option. It’s a must,” she said.

“We are after several very difficult years, and we saw what happened with a narrow government. A narrow government can’t do anything in Israel.”

She argued that the need for a broad government that is willing to compromise has become more urgent following the war, as Israel attempts to rebuild trust between communities that have become increasingly divided.

“I think compromise makes you stronger. I believe all the citizens of Israel want it because we are very tired. We are tired of the conflict,” Bloch said.

“Being prime minister is very important, but building our society is more important.”

Bloch’s call for cooperation extends beyond the political system to Israel’s security challenges.

On Gaza, she avoided proposing a detailed political arrangement, instead saying that the central test of any postwar policy should be whether Israelis can live safely.

“For me, the end of this story is that our citizens must feel safe,” she said. “We can’t give them a situation where every day they are afraid to live there.”

She said the same principle applies to the North and to the country as a whole.

“We have a very strong army and a strong citizenry. After the war, we must give people security,” she said. “For me, this is very important in the North, in Gaza and in all the country.”

Ultimately, Bloch said, the cooperation Israelis have demonstrated during wartime needs to become part of everyday life.

“We learned that in the army. Our children work together in Gaza. Now we must learn to live together here in Israel, in peace, not in war,” she said.

“In war, we know how to do it. Now we must learn to do it here in our life, in education, in economy, in politics, in all the subjects.”

“We must learn to do it.”

This post was originally published on here. 

Oklahoma grassroots activist N’kiyla Jasmine Thomas is facing off on Tuesday against centrist Jim Priest in a Democratic Senate race that has become the latest litmus test for progressive politics in a conservative stronghold. 

The two candidates are battling at the ballot box for the second time this summer after neither of them secured the needed majority to win the June primary contest. Thomas, a nurse who has been vocal against AIPAC, earned 45% of votes in the June five-person matchup, while Priest, a lawyer and ordained minister, accrued 24%. 

Both Thomas and Priest would be underdogs in the general election against Republican candidate Rep. Kevin Hern, who swept his primary and clinched the endorsement of US President Donald Trump. Oklahoma hasn’t sent a Democrat to the Senate in more than three decades. 

Nonetheless, Tuesday’s runoff will serve as a referendum on the potency of progressivism in a deep-red state, just a week after democratic socialist Angie Nixon knocked out her moderate opponent in Florida’s Democratic Senate primary. 

Unlike Nixon, Thomas is not a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. She has, however, openly identified with socialist policies, while her opponent, Priest, calls himself a moderate. 

Neither candidate has a wealth of political experience. Priest, 70, made a failed bid for Oklahoma attorney general in 2010 and was previously the CEO of two nonprofit organizations. His campaign priorities center on reducing the cost of living, making healthcare more accessible and inspiring confidence in government. 

Thomas, meanwhile, is a 31-year-old citizen of the Chickasaw Nation, who says she represents “the next generation of leaders.” Among her key focuses are women’s health and safety, civil rights, and LGBTQIA+ protections. She has also repeatedly pledged to never take money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

Although the pro-Israel lobby has not been involved in this race, a November social media reel showed Thomas pulling a giant red trash bin, adorned with the labels “AIPAC Funds” and “Corporate PAC Funds.” Alongside the reel is a caption that reads, “Just taking out the trash.”

“I am a sole grassroots candidate,” she said in the reel. “And we are not accepting AIPAC or corporate PAC funds. It’s garbage.”

Asked about her rhetoric on AIPAC, Thomas told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that “My concerns have NEVER been about Jewish people, Judaism, or Israel’s existence,” saying that she instead prioritizes human rights, civilian lives, and the accountability of all governments.

Some voters see it differently. David Howman, a 30-year-old Jewish banker in Tulsa, said that although he’s “a fairly progressive Democratic voter,” he considers Thomas’s usage of AIPAC to be “a pretty cheap political tactic.” 

“It’s kind of like a little grenade you get to toss out in there,” Howman told JTA. 

“If AIPAC were funneling a bunch of money into the Jim Priest campaign, maybe that’s a conversation that is worth having,” he added. “But they’re not even touching this race.”

Though Howman voted for Priest in Tuesday’s runoff, he noted that a different candidate, Troy Green, was his favorite in the June primary. 

Both candidates claim genocide occurring in Gaza

When asked at a Saturday debate about Israel’s military actions, both candidates confirmed their belief in the existence of a “genocide” in Gaza. Only Priest, however, linked the word to Israel, while Thomas connected it to the actions of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 

Priest recognized that Hamas “committed atrocities,” noting that “they kidnapped people, they killed people, they tortured people” and that “they should be held accountable.” But he also deemed Israel’s retaliation “disproportionate to the threat.”

“In response, Israel is committing genocide,” he said, accusing the Jewish state of preventing medical supplies and food from getting to people. 

Expressing skepticism about both one-state and two-state solutions, Priest declared that “what’s needed is a 24-state solution,” in which the whole Middle East unites “in something like the Abraham Accords.” 

The Priest campaign did not respond to JTA’s request for comment. 

Thomas, meanwhile, emphasized that “we can be for our Jewish brothers and sisters, and we can be against Netanyahu and what he is doing.” 

“He is committing genocide. He is absolutely murdering children,” Thomas said. “We have to stop providing funding for these wars.”

She also backed the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israeli leaders, noting that the US should “not be on the side of another country that we don’t even have any ties to, outside of allyship.”

Thomas had previously refrained from using the word genocide in public statements, instead expressing “solidarity with Palestine” and calling for an end to “unconditional funding of Israel’s military.” 

Thomas says she stands with Jews against antisemitism amid criticism of Israel

In her response to JTA’s request that she clarify her stances on AIPAC and Israel, Thomas provided a lengthy written statement. 

“I stand with my Jewish brothers and sisters against antisemitism, hate, and discrimination in all forms,” she said, referring to Judaism as one of the “most enduring faith traditions.” 

Reiterating remarks she made at the debate, Thomas noted that “two things can be true at the same time,” and advocated for both the security of the Jewish people and a willingness to criticize “any government, including the current leadership of Israel.”

Thomas also voiced support for a two-state solution, explaining that “both Israelis and Palestinians deserve the opportunity to live in peace, security and self-determination.”

“When I discuss political influence or organizations, my focus is on the broader role of money, lobbying, and special interests in our political system, not on any one religion or community,” she added. 

Regardless of who comes out victorious on Tuesday, Howman said that many Democrats will be heading to the ballot box this November with a pessimistic outlook. 

“That’s kind of the challenge that we have here in Oklahoma,” he added. “There’s definitely a sense of defeatism on the Democratic side.” 

This post was originally published on here. 

Lego sales jumped 21% in the first half of 2026 as soccer World Cup and Formula 1 sets attracted new customers, the Danish toy brand said on Tuesday.

Lego has gained market share as its growth outpaces rivals like Mattel and Hasbro, helped by tie-ups with film and entertainment franchises and by producing more sets for adults as well as children.

Lego’s revenue was 41.9 billion Danish crowns ($6.54 billion), up from 34.6 billion in the first half of 2025. Operating profit rose 22% to 10.9 billion Danish crowns, while net profit rose 32% to 8.6 billion Danish crowns.

The company also reported free cash flow of 2.1 billion Danish crowns, up from 1.7 billion in the same period in 2025, as it increased “investments in long-term growth, including factory capacity and the acquisition of LEGO and LEGOLAND® Discovery Centres.”

Lego also made “significant continued investments in sustainable materials and solar capacity expansion,” it added, as well as “continued its multi-year transition to paper-based bags, aiming to convert the remaining packaging lines across all factories by 2027.”

It is also planning to construct a large solar park featuring “160,000 panels able to produce 99 GWh per year,” near its Billund, Denmark headquarters, which will be operational in 2027, according to Lego’s website.

“The product portfolio is really, really strong and it hits new passion points in this first half,” Lego CEO Niels Christiansen told Reuters in an interview.

Lego CEO notes increased child customer base

“We also see more kids in the brand, which is really exciting for us that we managed to grow both the number of kids and consumers active, and also the total amount that they’re buying,” Christiansen said.

“We are very pleased with our strong start to 2026 and the excitement we see for the LEGO brand. Our product portfolio offers something for everyone, and culturally relevant brand experiences continue to drive demand across the globe. Our success in the market means we can maintain high investment levels in growth and sustainability for both the short and long term,” Christiansen said in a public statement released by LEGO.

“It’s been a real highlight to see the passion and commitment of our 34,000 colleagues in our organization who work to inspire kids and fans everywhere,” he added.

Lego launched more than 330 new sets in the first half, including a $199.99 replica of the official FIFA World Cup trophy, Pokemon sets using its new interactive bricks, and K-Pop Demon Hunters sets that Christiansen said were particularly popular with girls.

The surge in oil prices caused by the Iran war has driven up the cost of plastics Lego uses to make its bricks, and Christiansen said the company might see an impact in the second half, but so far it has not been significant.

Increased oil prices due to Iran war trigger higher costs due to higher plastic prices

“We are impacted by higher oil prices, but because we purchase so much non-fossil-fuel-based material that is less correlated to the oil price, we’ve actually been able to manage relatively well,” said Christiansen. Lego is in the process of shifting towards renewable and recyclable materials to make its bricks.

Global oil prices rose during the Israeli-US strikes on Iran and the subsequent blockade of the Strait of Hormuz during operations Roaring Lion and Epic Fury.

As it aims to produce closer to its main markets, Lego is building a factory and distribution center in the US state of Virginia, aiming to open by the middle of 2027.

This post was originally published on here. 

Yisrael Beytenu, founded in 1999, is one of many parties vying for citizens’ votes in the election for the 26th Knesset, to be held on October 27.

Led by founder and seasoned political operator Avigdor Liberman, Yisrael Beytenu sits on the right of the political aisle on security and national issues but leans secular-liberal on matters of religion and state.

Originally founded as a Likud splinter party to represent olim from the former Soviet Union, particularly Russian-speaking Israelis, Yisrael Beytenu has increasingly sought to broaden its appeal beyond its traditional immigrant base.

Liberman has increasingly presented Yisrael Beytenu as a potential bridge between right-leaning voters dissatisfied with both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the broader opposition, positioning the party as a key component of the opposition’s “state-oriented Zionist” bloc ahead of the 2026 election.

In the 25th Knesset, Yisrael Beytenu held six seats and is currently polling at eight to 10 seats.

Liberman’s transformation from Netanyahu’s protégé to political rival

Born in Moldova, Liberman made aliyah in 1978 and began his political career as a parliamentary adviser to Netanyahu. He rose through Likud’s ranks to become the party’s director-general before serving as director-general of the Prime Minister’s Office during Netanyahu’s first term as prime minister in 1996.

Liberman went on to serve in key security and diplomatic positions in previous governments, including as defense, foreign, and most recently as finance minister in the government led by former prime minister Naftali Bennett.

In 2018, he resigned as defense minister from Netanyahu’s government in protest over a ceasefire agreement with Hamas following a round of heavy rocket fire from the terrorist group toward Israel. Liberman has since maintained that Israel must take a tougher stance toward Iran and its proxies.

His resignation helped trigger new elections and deepened his growing rift with Netanyahu, eventually leading Yisrael Beytenu to rule out joining any government led by him and contributing to the political crisis that saw Israel hold five elections in just three years.

Since October 7, Liberman has called for Israel to move from “cycles without resolution” to “decisive outcomes,” with the “top priority” being the defeat of “Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas.” Yisrael Beytenu has also supported legislation calling for the death penalty for terrorists.

Liberman has advocated for separating religion and state, which he called Israel’s “most important issue” before the Israel-Hamas War. Yisrael Beytenu has repeatedly sponsored or supported legislation on civil marriage, public transportation on Shabbat, expanded conversion options, increased haredi enlistment, and removing restrictions on businesses operating on Shabbat.

At the same time, Yisrael Beytenu remains firmly on the right on territorial and settlement issues. The party has supported expanding construction in the West Bank, while Liberman worked to advance settlement housing as defense minister. Yisrael Beytenu initiated legislation in 2025 to apply Israeli sovereignty to Ma’aleh Adumim and had previously introduced legislation on applying sovereignty to the Jordan Valley.

Liberman sees himself as the ‘pragmatic Right’ – and the next prime minister

Liberman has often described Yisrael Beytenu as representing the “pragmatic Right,” combining “diplomatic flexibility and tough on security.” He has stressed the need for what he calls the “serving bloc” – the state-oriented Zionist bloc – to replace Netanyahu’s coalition, which he labels the “evaders bloc.”

According to Liberman, Yisrael Beytenu’s primary goals in the next Knesset are to replace the Netanyahu government, achieve decisive military outcomes against Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah, impose universal conscription, combat organized crime, and resolve Israel’s constitutional crisis.

He has summarized his political ambitions as “replacing the October 7 government and becoming prime minister.”

Liberman has repeatedly ruled out sitting in a government led by Netanyahu, saying he would not serve under him as prime minister “even if the world turns upside down.” He has, however, said he would not rule out joining a Likud-led government if Netanyahu were no longer its leader and the party agreed to Yisrael Beytenu’s principles.

He has also ruled out joining a coalition with the haredi parties Shas and United Torah Judaism, citing his support for universal conscription, core curriculum studies, public transportation on Shabbat, and other secular reforms. Liberman has likewise rejected the possibility of joining a coalition with Arab parties, saying such a move would be anti-Zionist. 

What a vote for this party is likely to produce

Yisrael Beytenu is part of the opposition bloc, but a vote for the party is not necessarily a vote for every coalition that could emerge from that bloc.

Its projected strength gives Liberman significant potential leverage in coalition negotiations, while his red lines restrict the coalitions he could join, ruling out a Netanyahu-led government, coalitions reliant on Arab parties, and coalitions including the haredi parties.

Yisrael Beytenu has called for a government centered on Zionist parties, universal military service, a secular approach to religion and state, a hawkish security policy, and opposition to Netanyahu’s continued premiership.

If the opposition bloc reaches 61 seats without the Arab parties, Liberman could be an important coalition partner. If it falls short, however, his refusal to sit with Arab parties sharply constrains the coalition math and could make it difficult for the opposition to form a government without outside support. 

That said, Yisrael Beytenu was part of the Bennett-Lapid government which relied on the support of Ra’am, led by Mansour Abbas, to maintain its parliamentary majority.

At the same time, Liberman has left open the possibility of cooperating with Likud if Netanyahu is no longer its leader. But his opposition to sitting with the haredi parties would still complicate any attempt to recreate the current coalition under a different Likud leader.

This post was originally published on here. 

Hamas and groups affiliated with the group must end extrajudicial executions of suspected collaborators with Israel, Amnesty International demanded on Friday, accusing the organization of unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests, and reprisals against Palestinian families.

The organization, which has frequently criticized Israel’s actions in Gaza, Lebanon, and the West Bank, demanded that Hamas end impunity for extrajudicial killings and reprisal attacks against Palestinian families.

“The Hamas authorities must immediately halt all unlawful killings, acts of vigilantism, and arbitrary arrests. 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,” Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy, and Campaigns, said, while also taking the opportunity to condemn “Israel’s ongoing genocide against Palestinians.”

In July, the Al-Qassam Brigades publicly confirmed the execution of one man for allegedly collaborating with Israel and their intention to kill another “informant” within days. The first man had allegedly informed Israel on the location of high-ranking Hamas commanders, including the “Ghost of Al-Qassam” Izz ad-Din al-Haddad.

Neither man received a fair trial, Amnesty said, noting that the group had said only that “revolutionary procedures” and internal investigations were carried out before the murder.

The execution was announced by the “Resistance Security” and, after his execution, the man’s full name and details were circulated on social media by accounts affiliated with Hamas. This action, Amnesty said, put the deceased’s family at risk.

Between August 2024 and early 2026, Hamas-affiliated forces were responsible for at least 60 of the 249 cases of extrajudicial killings, according to a UN report published in June. Amnesty reported that some of these executions were carried out in public, filmed and announced on social media pages affiliated with Hamas.

Hamas alleged that the group opened preliminary internal investigations into the killings, though Amnesty confirmed that it received no evidence to suggest those responsible were held accountable.

“Those responsible for ordering and carrying out extrajudicial executions as well as arbitrary arrests, torture, and other ill-treatment must be held accountable. Despite its announcement of the dissolution of the governing committee that administers Gaza, Hamas remains fully responsible for preventing serious violations by its agencies and individuals under its control, including Al-Qassam Brigades and the ‘Resistance Security System,’” Guevara-Rosas said. “The new leadership of the political bureau of Hamas must break with the long-standing impunity for abuses committed by its forces and its affiliates and take urgent, concrete steps to ensure truth and justice for victims and their families.”

Hamas kills ten members of family accused of Israel collaboration

Amnesty documented nine extrajudicial executions and one unlawful killing, all taking place after the ceasefire-hostage deal in October 2025. Those killed were members of the Dughmush family, from the Al-Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City, and were accused by Hamas of collaborating with Israel.

Hamas-affiliated forces tried to remove members of the Dughmush family from a field hospital near Al-Sabra, Gaza City, and had initially accused them of looting the hospital and using it to store weapons and explosives. A week-long standoff saw at least four members of the family killed, in addition to one Hamas member, and Hamas, along with its affiliates, looted, burned, and vandalized homes in the area.

Amnesty confirmed it had received footage of two homes in the neighborhood that showed the aftermath of the damage and looting.

Additionally, on 13 October, 2025, eight unarmed, shackled members of the Dughmush family, some only partially dressed, were extrajudicially executed in public on allegations of collaborating with Israel. The executions were recorded and circulated online by Hamas-affiliated media. Amnesty noticed that the footage suggested the men had been injured prior to their execution in a major street in Gaza City, matching reports offered by families that the bodies showed signs of torture when examined for the funeral.

“The eight men had turned themselves in after being promised a fair trial, only to be publicly executed two hours later,” a relative of one of the victims told Amnesty.

Two additional sources also told the NGO that the men had gone willingly with Hamas when they were first detained under the promise that they would not be harmed.

“Both my husband and son were executed. My son was tortured before his execution, and his nails were broken… My husband was a kind, honorable man who always resisted the Israeli occupation… I want everybody to know that our family are not collaborators and those who ordered their killing should be brought before justice,” a wife of one of the victims said.

Speaking with 11 family members of people killed, two health workers, and having analyzed statements and social media posts published by Hamas and affiliated groups, Amnesty established that Hamas has operated a parallel force. This force has acted outside any legal norms, carried out and filmed summary punishments against Palestinians, interrogated dissidents and criminal suspects, raided civilian homes and threatened family members of their opponents.

Hamas’ Mousa Abi Marzouk claims group investigating public executions

The head of Hamas International and Legal Relations Department, Dr. Mousa Abu Marzouk, told Amnesty that the group had opened an internal preliminary investigation into the Dughmush family incident, asserting that the security forces had acted as an “immediate reaction without referring to higher authorities.”

Hamas has previously justified what it has called “exceptional measures” by invoking the “principle of state of necessity,” blaming Israel for the destruction of judicial and security institutions and asserting the absolute need to address chaos and “criminal gangs.”

“Unlawful killings can never be justified. The rights to life, freedom from torture, and a fair trial and due process must be respected at all times, including in emergency situations or even where the judicial system has collapsed as a result of active military hostilities. Anyone suspected of a criminal offense, including treason or collaboration, must be afforded full respect for human rights, including the rights to life, security of person, and to a fair trial, without resort to the death penalty,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas.

Hisham al-Saftawi, a 57-year-old man, was also killed in October by individuals who identified themselves as members of the Al-Qassam Brigades. His wife said that 30 masked men stormed their home in the Al-Bureij Refugee camp and shot Saftawi in the back for refusing to comply with an arrest order.

His wife claimed she heard a man, who appeared to be the group’s commander, question the shooter, “Who ordered you to shoot?”

Saftawi’s brother told Amnesty that his family had no faith Hamas would properly investigate the incident. “You cannot trust the executioner to investigate itself. We call for an independent investigation and for those who shot my brother and those who ordered his arrest to be held accountable,” he said.

Hamas told Amnesty that there was an official investigation into the killing of Saftawi, but that it found the gunman had “accidentally shot ” Saftawi when Saftawi was attempting to flee.

“There must be independent and impartial investigations into all the killings that took place in the context of the armed confrontation between Hamas and the Dughmush family, including killings that appear to have been committed outside any exchange of fire, as well as the public execution of the eight Dughmush family members. The family of Hisham al-Saftawi must also see justice for the unlawful killing of their relative,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas. 

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The Jerusalem Municipality began renovation work on a new educational and community complex at an UNRWA facility in Kafr Akab on Tuesday, according to the Foreign Ministry.

More than NIS 40 million is being invested in the initial stage of the project, including a municipal boys’ high school scheduled to open next week with the start of the school year. The longer-term plan includes additional schools, a mosque, and sports, community, and healthcare facilities intended to serve thousands of Arab residents of the neighborhood.

The site is the Kalandia Training Centre, a vocational education facility operated by UNRWA for more than 70 years.

UNRWA says the center provides vocational training to approximately 350 young Palestinians in subjects including vehicle maintenance, plumbing, carpentry, renewable energy, and information technology.

The compound lies beside the Kalandia refugee camp but, according to the boundaries recognized under Israeli law, is located within Jerusalem’s municipal territory. Kafr Akab is in the northernmost part of the capital, on the other side of the security barrier.

The Foreign Ministry said the land has been owned by the Jewish National Fund since 1937, was allocated to the municipality, and that UNRWA has no property rights there. It accused the agency of fencing off land needed by local residents for schools and public services.

UNRWA disputes that account. It says the Jordanian government made the land available to the agency before Israel captured east Jerusalem in 1967 and argues that the training center is a protected UN installation. The agency has described previous Israeli entries into the compound as unauthorized and warned that its closure would eliminate an important vocational institution for young Palestinians from across the West Bank.

A 2022 government decision instructed the Israel Land Authority to allocate land in Kafr Akab for a municipal educational campus teaching the Israeli curriculum. The municipality has since advanced a broader plan for public and educational facilities in the area.

Ben-Gvir announces further legislation against UNRWA activity

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir arrived at the site on Tuesday morning and portrayed the municipal work as a police operation to take control of the compound and remove UNRWA.

“Today we are making history,” Ben-Gvir said. “This morning, we are beginning the work to remove UNRWA from Kafr Aqab.”

He said police were working with other authorities to enforce legislation restricting UNRWA’s activities in Israel and accused the agency of providing cover for Hamas.

Israel Beytenu MK Yulia Malinovsky, who initiated the legislation, accused Ben-Gvir of attempting to claim credit for the operation. The work began five days after she, B’Tsalmo, and Yaakov Samerano petitioned the High Court against Ben-Gvir and other ministers over their failure to implement the law.

Malinovsky argued that the petition had forced action after more than six months of warnings, adding that “without my High Court petition, and if we were not in an election period, he would have continued sleeping.”

Samerano is the father of Yonatan Samerano, who was murdered during the October 7 massacre and whose body was taken into Gaza by an UNRWA employee, according to footage presented by Israel. His body was later returned to Israel.

The petition says the government missed a 30-day deadline set by a December 2025 amendment to take possession of the Kafr Akab site. The municipality requested security assistance in January, but the operation was delayed because of constraints on the forces needed to carry it out.

The petitioners are asking the High Court to require police and the IDF to provide those forces, or to set a binding deadline. The court has not yet ruled.

Tuesday’s work may resolve the case, but only if the state confirms that it has formally taken possession of the site, rather than merely allowing municipal contractors to enter.

Knesset bars UNRWA from operating in Israeli territory

UNRWA was established by the UN General Assembly in 1949 to provide education, healthcare, and other services to Palestinian refugees across the region.

In 2024, the Knesset prohibited UNRWA from operating in territory over which Israel claims sovereignty – including east Jerusalem – and barred state authorities from maintaining contact with the agency. A December 2025 amendment extended the restrictions and authorized the state to take possession of designated UNRWA sites in Kafr Akab and Ma’alot Dafna. The Ma’alot Dafna compound was taken over in January.

The legislation followed Israeli allegations that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad had infiltrated UNRWA and used its facilities. UNRWA denies any institutional affiliation with Hamas.

A UN investigation found that nine of 19 employees investigated may have been involved in the October 7 attacks and terminated their employment. It found insufficient or no evidence against the others. A separate review identified weaknesses in UNRWA’s neutrality safeguards but said Israel had not provided evidence supporting its broader claims about the agency’s workforce.

A separate High Court challenge to the laws ended last week without a ruling on their legality. The petitioners withdrew the case after the justices expressed skepticism about their arguments, and the court deleted it without deciding whether the laws were valid.

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The government of the Dominican Republic will adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism, President Luis Abinader declared on Monday at the Combat Antisemitism Movement’s sixth-annual Latin American Forum Against Antisemitism in Santo Domingo.

This will make the Dominican Republic the seventh Latin American nation to officially embrace the IHRA framework, following Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Panama, and Uruguay.

In front of hundreds of attendees at the gala dinner, President Abinader said, “Antisemitism is not a problem that concerns only the Jewish people. It is a threat to democratic coexistence and to the rights and freedoms of us all. This fight must be guided by universal principles, not by temporary political circumstances.”

“Rejecting antisemitism does not mean taking a position regarding a particular government or conflict,” the president stated. “It means stating unequivocally that no political disagreement, no cause, and no circumstance can justify hatred, discrimination, or violence against an individual or a community.”

With this in mind, he announced the adoption of IHRA and confirmed that he has instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to formalize the decision and make it public.

“Through this decision, the Dominican Republic reaffirms its commitment to the memory of the Holocaust, to the protection of Jewish communities, and to the eradication of antisemitism in all its forms. It likewise reaffirms its rejection of every manifestation of hatred, religious intolerance, discrimination, and violence against any people or community,” he said.

Donation toward the Jewish Museum of Sosúa

Abinader also announced the allocation of 50 million pesos toward the construction of a new building for the Jewish Museum of Sosúa on the Dominican Republic’s northern coast.

US Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Rabbi Ambassador Yehuda Kaploun called it a “historic moment.”

“Latin America is in the middle of a very transformative time, rejecting a socialist path in favor of prosperity and freedom,” he added. “It is my privilege to represent the president and the secretary of state to tell everybody that America stands ready to support our friends in this effort to bring a new Latin America with religious liberty and freedom for everybody.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said it welcomes the Dominican Republic’s adoption of the IHRA definition, calling it “an essential tool for identifying and combating antisemitism in all its forms.”

The ministry expressed hope that more countries in the region will follow suit.

According to the World Jewish Congress, there are about 100 Jews living in the Dominican Republic, with the majority in Santo Domingo and about 30–40 in the historic Sousa. 

Despite the small size of Dominican Jewry, the community has two synagogues: one in Santo Domingo and the other in Sosúa. Though there is no permanent resident rabbi at either, both often host rabbis from around the world, including Miami and Colombia. Jewish life is organized by the Centro Israelita de la Republica Dominicana.

There is a Jewish cemetery, a mikveh, and chuppah services offered to foreign couples in coordination with the event planners at their resort of choice. 

The Dominican Republic was one of the few countries prepared to accept large-scale Jewish immigration before and during the Holocaust. At the Evian Conference on Refugees, which was organized by the Roosevelt Administration in 1938, the Dominican Republic offered to accept up to 100,000 Jewish refugees.

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Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah called on Islamic countries to take “coordinated and decisive measures” against Israel during a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Tehran on Sunday, according to Iran’s Foreign Ministry and Lebanese media reports.

Fadlallah, a senior member of Hezbollah’s Loyalty to the Resistance parliamentary bloc, complained of Israel’s alleged “expansionist ambitions” and expressed gratitude for Iran’s “efforts to support the Lebanese people’s resistance through diplomatic efforts,” Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar reported.

Fadlallah also called for coordinated action against Israel over what he described as its crimes in Lebanon, Gaza, and the West Bank.

🔴 Footage shows Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi receiving Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah. pic.twitter.com/VZAbhZ4DpO

— This Is Beirut (@ThisIsBeirut_) August 24, 2026

Despite presenting Hezbollah as a Lebanese resistance movement, Fadlallah has repeatedly opposed efforts by the Lebanese state to disarm the group. In June, following the signing of a US-brokered framework agreement between Beirut and Jerusalem, he warned that the Lebanese government could not implement the agreement without going to civil war and said Hezbollah would resist any measures to disarm it.

Araghchi praises Lebanese people for standing against Israel

Responding to Fadlallah’s thanks to the Islamic Republic, Araghchi praised the “resistance and steadfastness of the Lebanese people in the face of the brutal aggression by Israel” and reaffirmed the Islamic Republic’s “comprehensive support for the Lebanese people in defending their country’s territorial integrity, dignity, and national sovereignty.”

The meeting comes as Iran has faced increasing criticism in Lebanon over its involvement in the country’s internal affairs, despite Tehran’s repeated declarations of support for Lebanese sovereignty.

The meeting also came weeks after senior Hezbollah officials appeared in Iran during the funeral ceremonies for former supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a US-Israeli strike in February. At the time, Iran’s Foreign Ministry said that Araghchi expressed that Iran would continue its “commitment” to the resistance.  

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The White House posted a photoshopped image to its official X/Twitter account on Monday depicting the school bus from the PBS animated show “The Magic School Bus” while linking to a news story about the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) arresting dozens of people in the Washington area.

The post was captioned “Please let this be a normal field trip…” while showing the teacher from the educational show, “Ms. Valerie Frizzle,” the class mascot chameleon “Liz Ard,” and five illegal immigrants aboard the iconic school bus, which was renamed “The Magic Deportation Bus.”

“The Magic School Bus” was initially broadcast on PBS from September 1994 until October 1997, the public broadcaster’s first fully animated TV show, and was nominated for several awards for its educational content and high-quality voice acting. It followed a fictional science class consisting of a teacher and eight schoolchildren from various ethnicities and backgrounds, exploring several science-themed topics by traveling on the “Magic School Bus,” which was able to shrink and grow in size at will and could also travel through time and space.

White House’s post with photoshopped image linked to Fox News article praising ICE raids near DC

The post was linked to a Fox News article also published Monday that discussed how ICE agents “quietly arrested more than 1,000 illegal immigrants” in the Washington area.

Federal sources cited by Fox also described it as “one of the agency’s most successful operations to date.”

The arrests of “1,328 illegal immigrants” took place over the first 14 days of August, including in Virginia and Maryland, “both of which have sanctuary-type policies in place,” Fox noted, citing “multiple ICE sources” for the information.

“Almost 400” of those arrested “had criminal convictions or pending criminal charges,” including a murder warrant, attempted murder, rape and other forms of sexual assault, kidnapping, robbery, and more.

ICE officers also arrested alleged members of the powerful MS-13 and Tren de Aragua cartels, and the 18th Street Gang, Fox noted.

Homeland Security secretary, ICE official praise immigration raids

“The brave men and women of ICE are hard at work every single day getting these dangerous illegal aliens out of our country,” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told Fox.

“Over the course of just two weeks in Virginia and Maryland, they arrested sexual assailants, kidnappers, drunk drivers, robbers, and gang members,” Mullin added.

“While sanctuary politicians in Virginia and Maryland keep putting the needs of illegal aliens over the safety of the American people, the Trump Administration will always put American citizens first,” Mullin stated.

“By arresting and removing illegal aliens from our communities, we will make America safe again,” he said.

“Our officers are the best in the world at finding people who do not want to be located,” ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Acting Assistant Director Patricia Hyde said.

“That’s exactly what we did throughout this operation,” she added.

“Removing these criminal alien offenders from Virginia and Maryland neighborhoods makes for much safer communities, and that is exactly what the men and women of ICE work to accomplish every day across our great nation,” Hyde stated.

The Department of Homeland Security also clarified that all those arrested will remain in ICE custody pending removal from the US, Fox reported.

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Jonathan Pollard, flanked by Sharren Haskel and Lt. Col. (Res.) Roi Danino, was the only person to speak in a video filmed near the Western Wall. Looking into the camera, he compared his three decades in an American prison with Israel’s failures on October 7.

“My abandonment and betrayal was not the exception,” he said in the recording, published Sunday by Israel First and Haskel. “On October 7th, I saw that the entire country had been abandoned and betrayed.”

In an interview with The Media Line, Israeli lawmaker Sharren Haskel, a former deputy foreign minister and the founder and leader of Israel First, said the party is not organized around a personal campaign to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“We don’t run for the prime ministership. We run to fix the broken system of our ministries here in Israel,” she said. Her objective is to win enough seats to demand specific changes in military service, government spending, and coalition policy rather than compete directly with Netanyahu and other party leaders for the premiership.

Haskel said the next stage in building the party’s slate would come Wednesday, when Israel First plans to introduce candidates with senior military backgrounds. She did not disclose their names or prospective places on the list but described them as high-ranking officers who had served during the past three years “in the most dangerous situations.”

Their experience, she said, should qualify them for national leadership after years in which soldiers, reservists and their families paid much of the cost of the war.

“Those people need to serve in the highest leadership roles as well, especially after all the prices they’ve paid,” Haskel said. She added that the party was in discussions with several other prospective candidates as it tries to assemble a list before Israel’s October 27 election.

Different from ‘white Ashkenazi men’ dominating political race

Haskel established Israel First on July 15, one day after resigning from her government position. She left after the passage of legislation freezing arrests and criminal proceedings against ultra-Orthodox draft evaders, a measure she had described as a betrayal of Israelis serving during wartime. The new party presents itself as a home for right-wing voters who support a hard security policy and a liberal economy but will not accept continued military exemptions for the ultra-Orthodox.

Haskel also presents herself as a different kind of figure in a race she described as dominated by white Ashkenazi men.

She said she is currently the only woman leading a party and pointed to her background as a Mizrahi former combat soldier, emphasizing her role as a mother. 

After three years of war and the political disputes surrounding military service, she said Israelis need leaders who approach public responsibility with the determination of a parent protecting a child.

“The country needs more mothers that will fight for them, that will defend them and that will do everything in their capability, no matter what the price is, to protect them,” Haskel said.

“We are a right-wing party that refuses to compromise on exemption bills,” Haskel said. “We want real solutions that will recruit the ultra-Orthodox.”

People who choose not to serve, she added, should not receive the same public privileges as those carrying the military burden. The party’s announced priorities also include education, civil liberties and Zionist unity, but Haskel placed military service at the center of her explanation of how Israel First differs from other right-wing and center-right parties.

She said Israel First would make two pieces of legislation a condition for joining the next government. The first would establish what she called “border yeshivas” at 15-kilometer intervals along Israel’s frontiers.

Under Haskel’s proposal, students would remain within their ultra-Orthodox frameworks while undertaking security roles near Israel’s borders. She said those roles could include patrols, guard duty, intelligence-related work, and efforts to prevent infiltrations or weapons smuggling. Haskel said she first presented the plan more than two years ago and tried to persuade colleagues in parliament to advance it.

The second proposal would deny government benefits to people who did not serve. If such a person entered a government or municipal position, including as a lawmaker, minister or mayor, their salary during the first three years would be limited to the amount received by a soldier completing three years of service, Haskel said.

“If you didn’t serve, you will not receive benefits,” she said. She did not specify which benefits would be affected, whether civilian national service would qualify, or what exemptions would remain available.

The party’s economic program follows the free-market positions Haskel promoted during her years in Likud and New Hope. She called for lower taxes, fewer regulations and a smaller, more efficient state budget, arguing that Israel’s bureaucracy places an excessive burden on families and business owners who have also carried much of the cost of the war.

“We have to cut down massively on the amount of bureaucracy and regulations that Israel has,” she said, advocating for directing government spending toward Israelis who work, serve and pay taxes.

Haskel’s proposed coalition does not follow the usual division between parties committed to keeping Netanyahu in office and those promising to remove him.

“I’m not in the pocket of anyone,” she said. Israel First would try to form a broad Zionist government that does not depend on the ultra-Orthodox parties or Arab parties, while bringing together right-wing and centrist factions that currently refuse to sit with one another.

Her treatment of controversial political figures, however, is not uniform.

Asked about National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Haskel said some of their statements during the war had damaged Israel’s international position and complicated its work abroad. She nevertheless rejected a blanket boycott of either man, saying she agreed with some of their policies and opposed others.

“There are certain things I agree with and certain things I disagree with,” Haskel said. “You need some critical thinking and to see what policy needs to happen and what doesn’t.”

She said judging every proposal according to the identity of the person presenting it had produced an inflexible political system in which parties construct their entire ideology around membership in one camp.

Haskel drew a sharper boundary around The Democrats leader Yair Golan and former prime ministers Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert. She accused them of making allegations against Israel and its soldiers that created more damage in foreign media than the remarks by Ben-Gvir and Smotrich. As deputy foreign minister, she said, she repeatedly had to answer questions from international reporters about those statements.

She singled out Golan as someone she would not rely on in a future government, arguing that a politician whom she accused of making false accusations against Israeli soldiers during wartime cannot serve as a Zionist coalition partner.

That distinction leaves Israel First potentially open to cooperation with Netanyahu’s right-wing partners while closing the door on at least one prominent figure in the opposition bloc.

Before it can shape a coalition, Israel First must cross Israel’s 3.25% electoral threshold.

A Maariv poll conducted August 12-13 placed the party at 0.6%, leaving it without parliamentary representation. Haskel’s announcement that senior officers will join the slate is therefore not only an attempt to establish its security credentials, but also part of the immediate effort to give voters more recognizable candidates before the election.

Danino, the first prominent recruit announced by Israel First, joined on August 2. A reserve lieutenant colonel, businessman, and security and economic commentator, he has served more than 600 days of reserve duty during the war, according to the statement announcing his entry.

The party said he would focus on reducing regulation, lowering the cost of living, and helping reservists and small businesses that suffered financially while their owners were called up.

Jonathan Pollard joins Israel First

Pollard adds a more familiar and controversial name.

The former US Navy civilian intelligence analyst pleaded guilty to passing classified information to Israel and received a life sentence in 1987. He was released on parole after serving 30 years and moved to Israel in 2020 after his parole restrictions ended.

Haskel said Pollard would contribute a security perspective, support for free-market reforms, and an interest in education policy, an area she said they had discussed repeatedly. 

“He understands how much bureaucracy and regulation Israel has and how much taxes need to be reduced,” Haskel said. “Most of all, he is really passionate about education.” She said his experience in the United States had influenced his view of the Israeli education system and the reforms he believes could be introduced quickly.

Haskel nevertheless rejected one of Pollard’s most controversial positions as Israel First policy. Earlier in the election campaign, Pollard said he favored removing Gaza’s Palestinian residents, annexing the territory and repopulating it with Israelis.

“It’s not the stand of Israel First,” Haskel said. She said she understood the argument that relinquishing territory had failed to resolve the conflict and that different options for Gaza should be discussed, but defined the party’s immediate position more narrowly.

“Without the destruction of Hamas, without the complete and full disarmament of Hamas, there is absolutely no step Israel can take in order to continue and advance to the second stage in Gaza,” she said.

Pollard did not address that difference in the Western Wall video.

Instead, he praised Haskel for helping him without seeking public attention and said Israel needed officials willing to accept responsibility.

“You were quiet, you were loyal, and you were effective,” he told her. “And that’s what we need now with a new Knesset.” Pollard said that was why he had decided “to join you and help you,” adding that he hoped to see Haskel in the next Knesset.

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Finance Minister and Religious Zionist Party (RZP) leader Bezalel Smotrich scolded MK Zvi Sukkot following his destruction of a monument in Kafr Madama near Nablus, Israeli media reported on Tuesday.

Smotrich reportedly told him he should not have acted without proper authorization and authority, and demanded that he not do it again.

Additionally, KAN News reported that RZP member Ohad Tal decried Sukkot’s actions in the party’s WhatsApp group, asking, “Was this move coordinated with the campaign? Is there some sophisticated strategy here that I’m not grasping, or have we simply decided to commit political suicide?”

Sukkot, in his own Tuesday morning X/Twitter post, argued his justification for the action, saying that  “every child who sees every day a giant monument that glorifies murderers of Jews will dream of being a terrorist.”

He claimed that he had taken action after appealing to the IDF several times to remove the “terror monuments throughout the area,” and that destroying the monument in the village was”a small taste.”  

“There is no place for support of terror in the State of Israel!” he wrote.

Several other non-RZP government officials decried Sukkot’s actions, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, B’Yachad leader Naftali Bennett, and several others.

IDF escort became cover for Sukkot’s unauthorized demolition of Palestinian monument 

The IDF also condemned Sukkot’s actions, though it confirmed that troops were diverted from standard operational duties to guard Sukkot and his aides on what he called a ‘memorial tour’ in several villages in Areas A and B in the West Bank.

It noted that “Contrary to the coordination, the participants acted deceitfully and manipulatively, without authority and in complete violation of the approved framework, and began demolishing one of the memorials in the village of Madama,” the IDF stated, claiming the soldiers spoke with their commanders after seeing what was happening and were instructed to intervene and remove the group from the village.

The footage shared did not show soldiers intervening.

A spokesperson for the IDF told The Jerusalem Post that the soldiers had not been sent with a photographer, as these assignments typically don’t require one, and therefore were unable to provide footage of the soldiers intervening.

The Post has reached out to RZP for clarification.

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Azerbaijan is mediating between Israel and Turkey to reduce tensions over Syria and prevent military friction between the two countries, Israeli sources said, as the United States pursues a parallel effort to contain the dispute. 

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev initiated direct dialogue between Israel and Turkey a year ago, resulting in an operational coordination mechanism intended to prevent the two countries from coming into conflict in Syria. 

Baku’s latest diplomatic efforts are focused on maintaining communication between the two sides and preventing military miscalculations, including potential incidents involving aircraft, Daily Sabah reported.

A source involved in the discussions said Azerbaijani officials are particularly concerned because both Israel and Turkey are allies of Azerbaijan. 

The United States is also seeking to reduce tensions, although Israeli sources described significant distrust of US envoy Tom Barrack, who characterized a recent Israeli strike in Syria as an “unnecessary escalation” and claimed Israeli strikes were politically motivated ahead of October elections. The diplomatic efforts come as Israel has raised concerns about an expansion of Turkey’s military presence in Syria. 

Netanyahu warns Turkey against increasing Syria presence

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned following an Israeli strike that an increased Turkish military footprint in southern Syria would pose a threat to Israeli security and alter the existing regional balance. 

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani denied that Turkey intended to establish a military base at Abu al-Duhur, saying the facility was being rehabilitated for the Syrian Air Force. 

Separate diplomatic efforts have sought to reduce tensions involving Israel and Syria. Mossad Director Roman Gofman and al-Shaibani held high-level talks in Jordan aimed at easing tensions and reviving security negotiations. 

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A prosecutor’s statement has been filed against the man suspected of fatally shooting attorney Arbel Feldman inside his Rishon Lezion office earlier this month, police announced on Tuesday, bringing the case a step closer to an indictment.

The Central District Attorney’s Office filed the statement after police completed their investigation into the August 4 killing. Police said a serious indictment is expected in the coming days, together with a request to keep the suspect detained until the end of the proceedings.

A prosecutor’s statement formally notifies the court that prosecutors intend to file charges and need a short period to prepare them. 

The investigation began after police received an emergency call reporting gunfire at an office on Moshe Levy Street in Rishon Lezion.

“They shot my office partner,” the caller told the police emergency line, according to the police account.

Officers who reached the office found Feldman after he had been shot. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police said their investigation found that the suspect, who knew Feldman, came to the lawyer’s office and shot him several times during their meeting before fleeing.

Investigators launch manhunt for suspect in murder of lawyer

Central District Commander Amir Cohen assigned the investigation to the Shfela Central Unit after holding a special assessment at the scene, police said. Investigators then launched a manhunt across several police districts, using operational, intelligence, and technological measures to trace the suspect’s escape route. The suspect eventually surrendered, according to police.

Police said investigators and forensic officers collected evidence from the office, analyzed surveillance footage, and carried out additional investigative steps before transferring the case to prosecutors.

The suspect, whom police described as an Ashdod resident in his 20s, has remained in custody since his arrest. His detention has been extended several times as the investigation progressed.

The suspect was a former client. Investigators were examining a dispute over compensation from a personal-injury case in which Feldman had represented him. 

Feldman, a Rishon Lezion resident and father of three, was remembered by friends and colleagues as quiet, courteous and devoted to his family. The morning after his killing, lawyers and Israel Bar Association employees stood for two minutes of silence outside courthouses across the country.

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The US State Department is preparing to return diplomats to Middle East embassies that were evacuated before and during the war with Iran, the New York Times reported on Tuesday, citing an internal State Department document.

Foreign Service officers could begin returning to their posts as early as this week, according to the report. Emergency measures introduced at US diplomatic missions across the region could also begin to be scaled back.

The planned redeployment would mark a shift in Washington’s diplomatic security posture after months in which US missions operated with significantly reduced staffing because of the conflict. The report did not indicate that all affected embassies would immediately return to normal operations.

Earlier in August, the State Department was reported to have asked US embassies across the Middle East to prepare reduced-operations plans. At the time, officials were considering a prolonged period with smaller numbers of personnel on the ground as the war with Iran continued and diplomats displaced from their assignments faced uncertainty over when they could return.

The drawdown began after the US and Israel launched their military campaign against Iran on February 28. As the conflict intensified and American diplomatic facilities faced missile and drone threats, Washington ordered nonemergency personnel and family members to leave missions in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Israel and Lebanon had already been operating under departure arrangements before the wider regional drawdown.

Iran subsequently retaliated against targets across the Middle East, including Gulf states and US military facilities. The regional confrontation has continued despite periods of reduced military activity, with Washington maintaining military and economic pressure on Tehran.

Tensions remain unresolved as US heavily sanctions Iran

The apparent easing of restrictions on diplomatic personnel comes as tensions between Washington and Tehran remain unresolved. On Tuesday, the US imposed additional sanctions connected to Iranian military activity and petroleum exports, while US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Washington had not ruled out further military strikes around Iran or the Strait of Hormuz.

The Strait of Hormuz remains a central point of friction. US President Donald Trump said last week that no negotiations with Iran were scheduled and that the US naval blockade remained in effect, as efforts to reach a lasting arrangement over the strategic waterway remained stalled. 

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The IDF on Tuesday confirmed it diverted troops from standard operational duties to guard MK Zvi Sukkot (Religious Zionist Party) on what he called a ‘memorial tour’ in several villages in Areas A and B in the West Bank.

However, the military claimed Sukkot acted “deceitfully and manipulatively, without authority and in complete violation of the approved framework, and began demolishing one of the memorials in the village of Madama.” 

The IDF stated that the soldiers spoke with their commanders after seeing what was happening, and were instructed to intervene and remove the group from the village.

“The IDF views the MK’s conduct and lack of coordination as serious, and as an exploitation of the protection provided by security forces in order to act in complete excess of his authority,” the military added, while emphasizing that the IDF does regularly demolish memorials and symbols of incitement with required approvals and in coordination with the Civil Administration.

The footage shared did not show soldiers intervening. 

A spokesperson for the IDF told The Jerusalem Post that the soldiers had not been sent with a photographer, as these assignments typically don’t require one, and therefore were unable to provide footage of the soldiers intervening.

Sukkot confirms destruction of Madama monument 

Sukkot confirmed he had destroyed a monument in Kafr Madama near Nablus, after footage circulated on social media and was shared by Israeli outlets on Tuesday morning. 

The monument appeared to be in honor of members of the al-Aqsa brigade and Palestinians killed in the intifada.

“Every child who sees every day a giant monument that glorifies murderers of Jews will dream of being a terrorist,” Sukkot said in a post to X/Twitter.

He claimed that he had taken action after appealing to the IDF several times to remove the “terror monuments throughout the area,” and that destroying the monument in the village was”a small taste.”  

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National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir turned Monday’s Altalena commemoration into a political humiliation for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, appropriating one of the most powerful symbols of Menachem Begin, the Likud, Herut, the Revisionist movement, and Jabotinsky’s ideal of hadar.

“The holy cannon,” as it was called, was the artillery used by the fledgling IDF after receiving the order to fire on the Altalena. The argument over that episode will never end, as is the way with old historical disputes. What matters is that the event did not turn into a civil war.

Begin deserves much of the credit for that. Perhaps, deep down, the Irgun commander knew that David Ben-Gurion was right. But even if he did not, he decided to prevent a civil war at any cost, and that was, in my view, the most important decision he ever made. I am almost certain he would agree.

What a disgrace: From Ben-Gurion’s “holy cannon,” nearly eight decades later we have arrived at the Davidka. For those who do not remember, the Davidka was a typical Palmach invention from the darkest days of the War of Independence, when there were no real cannons. It did not cause much damage, its range was short, and the destruction it caused was limited, but it made an enormous noise that sometimes succeeded in driving away the Arab gangs.

As you have probably guessed, today’s Davidka is named Itamar Ben-Gvir. He knows how to make noise and commotion. He also knows how to pull political maneuvers.

On Monday, Ben-Gvir gave Netanyahu a lesson in politics and managed to snatch from under the prime minister’s nose the greatest symbol of the ruling party, may it rest in peace, the greatest symbol of the Likud, of Herut, of the Revisionist movement, and of Jabotinsky’s hadar.

Netanyahu scrambles to salvage stolen celebration

The event was both funny and sad, both grand and ridiculous. To see the prime minister of Israel rushing around, armed with an army of security guards, clearing swimmers from the Tel Aviv beach, positioning himself outside so as not to encounter Ben-Gvir inside, and trying to parachute his own spin into the heart of the stolen celebration and the hijacked ship taken over by the heir to Meir Kahane. What a disgrace.

Meanwhile, inside the Irgun Museum, Itamar Begin, or Menachem Ben-Gvir, was having a grand celebration of his own. He even hinted that “Begin also knew persecution,” just like him. Ben-Gurion used to call Begin “the man sitting next to Yohanan Bader,” and now Benjamin Netanyahu is unwilling to be photographed with Ben-Gvir.

Anyone who knows Ben-Gvir knows how much he was enjoying those moments. Anyone who knows Netanyahu knew how much he was suffering at that hour. His pathetic speech, delivered in the backyard of the Irgun Museum, looked much like the situation itself. With astonishing gall, he repeatedly stressed that “there will be no civil war,” even though he has managed to bring us closer to civil war than at any point since the Altalena was sunk. And we have no Begin to prevent it.

At the end of his speech, Netanyahu pulled out a characteristically pompous promise: “I promise you that we will bring the Altalena up from the depths of the sea.” Yes, yes, Bibi. You just forgot to say when that will happen. After you appoint Nir Barkat finance minister, or after total victory?

Spoiler: The Altalena will not be raised from the depths of the sea. It is too complex, too complicated, too expensive, and probably not really important.

The Altalena wound has scarred over

Contrary to what was said on quite a few websites and television channels on Monday, there is no mystery surrounding the Altalena. Everything is clear and known. There is a rift there that our forefathers managed to heal. There is a wound there that had enough time to scar over.

Back then, this place had leaders worthy of the name. There was Ben-Gurion, and there was Begin. Their heirs now are, what a disaster, Benjamin Netanyahu and Itamar Ben-Gvir. I do not know which of the two Menachem Begin would despise more if he were alive now.

Begin’s successor, the revered Lehi commander Yitzhak Shamir, used to leave the Knesset plenum when Meir Kahane rose to speak. Begin himself would certainly have refused to be photographed with Ben-Gvir, but Netanyahu is the one he would truly mourn. After all, Netanyahu is his heir, and there can be no greater disgrace than that.

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Parents of children in the Gaza Strip have been warned to stop their children from flying kites after Israel threatened a forceful response if Hamas terrorists revive a tactic of launching incendiary kites over the border.

The “popular committees,” comprising representatives of local non-government organizations, issued the warning in a statement late on Monday.

The announcement was coordinated with Hamas authorities, a source in the terror group said.

“We are working tirelessly on the ground and doing everything possible to stop this practice, not to restrict the childhood of our children, who have already been deprived of the most basic rights to play and live in safety, but to protect their innocent lives,” the statement said.

In 2018, Gazans sent incendiary balloons and kites over the border, causing fires across hundreds of acres of open fields and farmlands, in what they said was in protest at the Israeli blockade of the territory.

In the past month, several kites that were not reported to be carrying incendiary materials were spotted drifting from Gaza into Israel, alarming Israelis who live in the nearby villages that came under attack by Hamas in the October 7, 2023 massacre that sparked the Israel-Hamas war.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Hamas that unless that stopped immediately, “those responsible” for launching kites, balloons, or drones toward Israel would be targets of assassination and that areas from which they are sent will be ordered to evacuate.

Umm Mohammed, a mother from Gaza City who spoke with Reuters over a chat app, said she was worried her son could be hurt.

“Every summer, my kid, Ahmed, 10, and the kids in the street fly those kites to entertain themselves, but I will not allow him to, not anymore,” she said.

Israeli defense official says Hamas aiming to provoke Israel

A senior Israeli defense official said that Hamas was trying to provoke Israel by encouraging Gazans to fly kites across the border.

A Hamas official told Reuters the group has complained to ceasefire mediators that “Israel was making fake pretexts to continue the war on Gaza.”

Israel complained to US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, which oversees the implementation of the 2025 Gaza ceasefire deal, about the kites, according to a second Israeli official.

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The Sam Spiegel International Film Lab will take part in the 83rd Venice International Film Festival, presenting 10 feature-film projects in development from Israel and around the world at one of the international film industry’s most prominent meeting points.

This is an especially auspicious honor at a time when anti-Israel sentiment is running high at many festivals. The Venice International Film Festival is one of the largest and most prestigious in the world, and Israeli films have been embraced there with enthusiasm in the past.

Samuel Maoz’s Lebanon, the story of a tank crew in the First Lebanon War, won the Golden Lion, the festival’s top award, in 2009, and Maoz was invited to meet Pope Benedict XVI. But in recent years, fewer Israeli films have been selected to participate.

The lab has been chosen to take part in the Venice Production Bridge, the festival’s industry platform, which connects filmmakers and producers with production and distribution companies, financiers, broadcasters, and major streaming platforms. The lab’s main event will take place on September 7 at the Hotel Excelsior on Venice’s Lido.

The 10 projects come from Austria, Brazil, Germany, Hungary, and Israel. In addition to the formal events, there will be plenty of time for the filmmakers to network at Venice, which is a major part of the development process for aspiring filmmakers. A reception for participants will be held the night before the presentation, attended by international film industry figures and festival guests.

Production prizes totaling $70,000, provided by the Beracha Foundation, will be awarded to outstanding projects.

The International Film Lab, run by the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School in Jerusalem, develops feature films by emerging filmmakers from around the world, including Israel. Dozens of films from the lab have been shown at film festivals across the globe, many of them winning major awards.

Its alumni include a number of acclaimed international filmmakers, among them László Nemes, the director of Son of Saul, which won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2016, as well as the Grand Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

Israeli film holds record for Ophir Award nominations

Israeli films developed at the lab have also been produced. This year, Tell Me Everything, by Moshe Rosenthal, a graduate of the lab, leads the Ophir Award nominations with a record 16 nods. Last year, The Sea, by Shai Carmeli-Pollak, another lab graduate, won five Ophir Awards, including Best Film and Best Screenplay.

“The presence of the Sam Spiegel Lab at the Venice Film Festival for the second year is testimony to the connecting power of international creation,” said Dana Blankstein Cohen, CEO and executive director of the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School.

“The lab continues to insist on intercultural dialogue and building international bridges, and to fight for freedom of expression and artistic freedom,” she said. “Cinema has a real power to shape reality, and not only to reflect it.”

Blankstein Cohen said that Sam Spiegel sees its role as providing “a place for courageous dialogue, particularly in the complex climate in which we find ourselves,” adding that open discussion and a diversity of authentic voices and stories can foster “change, growth, and deep human connection.”

Sam Spiegel attendance at Venice festival is culmination of months of development

Mor Eldar, director of the Sam Spiegel Film and Television Labs, said the Venice event is the culmination of about 10 months of development work.

“After about 10 months of development, the 10 projects that participated in the film lab will meet the international film industry at one of the three most important festivals in the field,” Eldar said. She added that she was proud of the filmmakers and confident that the intensive work would yield results, pointing to the continuing success of alumni from previous years.

The Sam Spiegel International Film Lab is supported by the Beracha Foundation, the Edmond de Rothschild Foundation, the Sam Spiegel Foundation, the Shuster Polakoff Foundation, the Austrian Film Institute, Germany’s FFA, the Hungarian Embassy, the Institut Français, and other partners.

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The IDF and officers from Israel Police’s Jordan Border Unit thwarted an attempt to smuggle weapons across the Jordanian border last night, police announced in a Tuesday statement.

Two Jericho residents in their 20s were arrested near Gesher Adam (Damiyah Bridge), located north of the Dead Sea. 

During their search of the area, police discovered 10 handguns buried in a bag near the bridge. 

Police transferred the suspects to the Judea and Samaria District’s police headquarters for further questioning.

The incident follows an infiltration alert in the Jordan Valley region on Monday night. In response to the suspected infiltration, the IDF set up blockades in the area to locate any suspects.

Israel’s border with Jordan vulnerable to terror infiltration, weapons smuggling

In July, N12 News reported that despite the ongoing construction of a new border security fence between Israel and Jordan, local residents are fearful that a Jordanian attack could face little in the way of defenses.

Central Arava Regional Council Head Meir Tzur pointed out the vulnerability presented by the current wire-fence setup.

“There’s nothing behind it,” he explained to N12. “There’s no problem crossing this twisted fence either. Here, for example, it’s completely open. There are no indicative measures on the fence. Any citizen can cross; they don’t even have to jump because it’s torn down.”

The border was also seldom patrolled by IDF forces, Tzus stated. “You can just walk into Jordan.”

“We really want the Israeli army to be stationed on the border line, and not just with remote technology,” he added. “We are afraid of this technology. Every Israeli knows that what starts with a small breach may eventually lead to a failure. A fence alone or technology is not the absolute solution.”

From across the border, a steady stream of illegal entrants and smuggled goods has flowed into Israel over the years, local residents stated, including illegal weapons.

One military source told N12 that the IDF catches around 50% of the smuggled weapons and goods. “If they succeed in smuggling weapons, they can also succeed in smuggling a terrorist.”

Tzvi Jasper contributed to this report.

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Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

For more news, analysis, and the latest updates, head to jpost.com.

Headlines edited by Shir Perets.

Hosted and produced by Gadi Zaig.

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Activists from the ‘Israel Envelope’ organization, together with residents of Gaza border communities, demonstrated near Amitai Camp adjacent to the Kerem Shalom Crossing on Tuesday, demanding that the entry of the International Stabilization Force (ISF) tasked with governing and managing the Gaza Strip be halted.

The protesters, some of whom were present in their communities during the October 7 massacre, asserted that only an Israeli security force can prevent a similar attack from occurring again.

“These forces [ISF] must not enter the strip. Allowing this is, once again, abandoning the local border residents,” said Shosh Moshe from Moshav Yesha, who was in her community on the day of the massacre. “Only the IDF can protect us,” she emphasized.

In addition to concerns about the presence of the ISF, residents expressed alarm over the return of kites launched from the Gaza Strip that landed in Israel last week, raising fears of future Hamas attacks on border communities.

“We will not allow others to protect us, while Hamas is celebrating the response to the kites inside the Strip,” one protester remarked, explaining the motivation behind the demonstration.

The protest took place shortly after ISF vehicles began moving toward the crossing. Police officers and IDF soldiers established a security presence at the site, and ISF trucks returning after unloading at the Kerem Shalom Crossing were instructed to slow down to prevent harm to the protesters who temporarily blocked the road.

‘Stop Hamas’s rehabilitation’

The demonstrators carried Israeli flags and signs that read: “Stop Hamas’s rehabilitation, ensure the security of residents in the South,” “The roadmap is dangerous for Israel,” and “Stop the entry of foreign forces into the Strip,” among others.

“We are expressing the will of the people,” one of the protesters said, adding. “Hamas must not be allowed to control the Strip, and the defense of the area must not be abandoned into their hands.” 

“Every day, 600 supply trucks pass through here, and Hamas profits from them within a week, with direct funding going to terrorism. If we do not stop these aid trucks, this assistance to terrorism will continue,” Yishai Spaz, a field director for the “Security for the Gaza Envelope” movement, stated.

“We will not allow Hamas to rebuild itself at our expense,” he added.

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From September 1, Luxembourg will no longer approve sale of Israel Bonds, and it remains unclear if Israel will be able to continue issuing them in the EU.

According to an official statement from Luxembourg’s financial authority, which is a major EU and euro zone financial center, it will stop approving the prospectuses required by EU law to offer Israel Bonds, which are aimed primarily at Diaspora Jews and pro-Israel Jewish organizations. Israel Bonds raising in the EU represents a minority of Israeli Bonds issued, but were used to raise more than $2.5 billion in 2025, and a similar amount in 2024, according to the Ministry of Finance.

Luxembourg replaced Ireland

Luxembourg’s announcement is an embarrassment for Israel, as the country was only chosen a year ago by the Ministry of Finance to replace Ireland, where sweeping criticism of Israel’s policy in Gaza and the administered territories led to unprecedented pressure on the central bank to stop approving prospectuses.

As of September 1, 2026, it is unclear which of the 27 EU member countries will approve prospectuses that allow debt to be raised through these non-marketable government bonds. The Central Bank of Ireland told the country’s media that it had not received a request from Israel to re-approve prospectuses, as of last week.

According to EU law, a member state of the EU is required to approve a prospectus for any issuance of non-marketable bonds by a country outside of it. Until the UK’s withdrawal from the EU in 2020, the UK was responsible for this in the Israeli context, and London was the financial center where the bonds received the required legal approval.

After Brexit, the underwriting process moved to Ireland. But following the Hamas massacres of October 7, 2023, and the war in Gaza, public opinion in Ireland — and the political system — became hostile towards Israel.

Over the past three years, successive Irish governments have called for the suspension of preferential trade relations between Israel and the EU, for sanctions on Israel, for the prosecution of senior Israeli officials on suspicion of involvement in the “genocide” in Gaza, and for the reduction of financial and trade ties between Ireland and Israel. In December 2024, Israel closed its embassy in Dublin.

Following the criticism of Israel, public pressure and media and political debate arose over Ireland’s involvement in approving prospectuses for raising debt in the form of bonds, and claims that this aids the “Israeli war machine” and raises “fear of involvement in war crimes in Gaza.”

Various parties demanded that the central bank stop the approvals, and Israel announced — in an attempt to preempt the blow — that it was transferring the approval of the prospectuses to Luxembourg. The decision was made in August 2025 by the then-Accountant General Yali Rothenberg. “Globes” was told at the time that this was not a crisis, and “if anything — this is an opportunity,” due to Luxembourg’s centrality as a global financial center in issuing bonds.

But Luxembourg was and remains one of the most critical countries of Israel in the EU. The decision to approve Israel Bonds there sparked criticism, but at the time Luxembourg’s financial authority announced that it “saw no reason” to reject the Irish-Israeli request to carry out the prospectuses for the State of Israel. However, now, a year later, and after public and political pressure on the issue, the authority has announced in recent weeks that it refuses to continue with this arrangement for another year. Luxembourg shared the Irish and Spanish position regarding the suspension of free trade agreements with Israel and is promoting maximum pressure on Israel through sanctions.

The technical reasoning

The reasoning given by the Luxembourg financial regulator was not political, but technical. It announced that, according to its interpretation of EU law, it could not grant a request to replace another country (Ireland) with the approval of the prospectuses year after year, because this would be “contrary to EU rules”.

However, when the “Luxembourg Times” contacted the EU regulator (ESMA) on the matter, the regulator stated, “There is no obstacle to accepting such a request year after year”.

The Luxembourg financial regulator subsequently told the newspaper that it disagreed with the position and that “such transfers are intended to be exceptional and should only be accepted in limited circumstances, in particular if the receiving national competent authority has a better understanding of the specificity of the financial product to be issued, or if the issuer already has a strong presence in the national market of the receiving national authority.

In any case, Luxembourg’s decision has been presented as final. It will only be responsible for approving prospectuses until August 31, and not one day later.

Who will help Israel?

It is unclear who will be the EU financial authority that will help Israel after this date. Will it be Ireland, which Israel left while criticizing its “anti-Israel” policy? The Irish media reports that the central bank has not received any such request from Israel, as required, by last week. Will the parties resort to legal proceedings that would oblige Luxembourg to grant the Irish-Israeli request? Or will Israel perhaps turn to a third, friendlier country, which would become the “home country” for future Israel Bonds approvals, or will it be forced to abandon the EU channel altogether.

Amnesty International has welcomed Luxembourg’s decision and called on all EU countries to join in refusing to approve prospectuses.

The Ministry of Finance says, “Debt management policy is based on a wide range of funding channels in local and international markets, in a variety of currencies and for different periods. As has been proven since the beginning of the war, the Accountant General’s department is prepared and knows how to fully finance all government activities and needs, while relying on a deep and liquid local market and excellent accessibility to global markets. “The extensive debt raising of over NIS 700 billion since the outbreak of the war reflects the strong expression of confidence by investors in Israel and around the world in the stability and strength of the Israeli economy.”

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The global satellite market, both civilian and military, is growing, and with it the fear of threats. Due to this, US Space Command commander General Stephen Whiting recently told a conference in Alabama that the development of anti-satellite weapons is high on the US list of priorities.

According to him, such means, some of which are expected to be based on satellites of various types, are essential for deterring enemies and dealing with attacks.

Space warfare weapons are expected to threaten satellites, and thus could also damage photography, communication, or any technology that is fundamentally dependent on space. Plans may also be uncovered to diversify the missile threats from space to Earth.

In Israel, the public was told about the field when Defense Minister Israel Katz said earlier this year that Israel aspires to be “one of the three leading countries in the world in the field of space offense,” but those who have long been in the space arms race are the superpowers: the US, Russia, and China.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX, for example, celebrated an impressive milestone last Friday, crossing the 11,000-satellite mark in space, far more than any other space operator. Starlink’s gap with the rest of the market is so large that, for comparison’s sake, OneWeb is in second place with “only” 650 satellites.

Air defense, space missiles, closely related fields

In general, the field of air defense and missiles in space, both inside and outside the atmosphere, are intertwined, as seen by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Arrow 3 system, which intercepts ballistic missiles outside the atmosphere. At the same time, there is concern that powers like Russia will use their nuclear weapons capabilities to place them in space, and that the development of the laser field will soon also be used outside against satellites. There is also the option of disruptions using space, as the average Israeli is familiar with from navigation applications like Waze during wartime. These fall into two categories: jamming, which blocks communication between an operator and an app, and spoofing, which disrupts satellite navigation signals.

Another player that has made no secret of efforts over the past 20 years to advance in the field is China, which concerns the US even more. Concerns about the Chinese are similar to those about the Russians on a professional level, but in terms of scale, China is many times more threatening than Moscow. While there are about 11,600 US satellites in space, there are more than 1,000 Chinese satellites – much more than Russia, which operates about 220, or Israel, which has 25, according to “Orbital Radar.”

US President Donald Trump’s executive order last year, designed to ensure US supremacy in space, devoted an entire chapter to space security and defense, including developing and demonstrating a prototype missile defense system by 2028 and examining the deployment of nuclear weapons in space.

Data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) shows that the US currently possesses about 3,700 nuclear warheads, compared with Russia, which possesses 4,400. China has about 620, much more than the European powers France (290) and Britain (225).

US claims Russia, China developing space-based weaponry, including nuclear

The threat of nuclear weapons and lasers placed on satellites in space sounds like something out of Star Wars, but US public statements illustrate how much of a threat is just around the corner, whether in the allegation by the US administration two years ago that Russia is developing anti-satellite nuclear weapons, or in official statements from the US on China.

The threats from space will only increase with the growth of the global satellite market, which Fortune estimated at $20.59 billion in 2025. In their view, the market is expected to grow to $23.17 billion this year, and at an average annual growth rate of 12.53%, it will reach $59.58 billion by 2034.

Israel is participating in that growth, launching two satellites in July and September 2025: Dror 1 and Ofek 19. The first, launched with the help of SpaceX’s Falcon 9, is Israel’s national communications satellite and is designed to provide an advanced communications solution for the State of Israel, including in the field of security. The second launch was a surveillance satellite to strengthen Israel’s capability in the Middle East.

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North Macedonia has made strengthening relations with Israel a priority of its foreign policy and is seeking to expand cooperation in areas ranging from defense and investment to tourism and water management, Foreign Minister Timčo Mucunski told The Jerusalem Post during his first official visit to Israel.

Mucunski spoke to the Post in Jerusalem on Monday following talks with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, during a short visit focused heavily on expanding bilateral ties.

“We have had a very strong relationship with Israel, but also myself with Gideon, over the last few years,” Mucunski said. “I think that this visit is an opportunity to move the bilateral relationship to the next step, to move from a place where we’re at right now, which is excellent bilateral relations, to having that relationship develop into various different areas of mutual importance.”

During their meeting, Sa’ar and Mucunski signed two cooperation agreements and discussed expanding ties in agriculture, water management, security, innovation, tourism, health, and education.

Expanding, investing in defense ties

Mucunski told the Post that the two sides also discussed cooperation between their defense industries, increasing investment and restoring direct air links between Israel and Macedonia.

“One of the first things that we talked about is if we can work together to establish a direct flight between Tel Aviv and Skopje, or Tel Aviv and Ohrid, which is our main tourist center and a city that I believe that every Israeli would love to visit at some point,” he said.

The two ministers also signed agreements focusing on education, culture, and sports, while tasking their teams with looking at further opportunities in water management, agriculture, investment, and defense.

Mucunski described a direct flight as an important first step toward increasing the movement of people and businesses between the countries.

“We would love to have more and more tourists from Israel visiting Skopje, visiting Ohrid, but as well as the entirety of our country,” he said.

The visit comes amid a noticeable increase in high-level contacts between Israel and North Macedonia – Skopje Mayor Orce Gjiogjievski visited for the MUNI EXPO in June, and MP Rashela Mizarahi led a parliamentary delegation from the Balkan nation in January. Mucunski said the trend reflects a deliberate policy adopted by the government of Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski.

Mickoski believes in stronger collaboration with Israel

“Prime Minister Mickoski himself believes that stronger collaboration with Israel is a necessity for our country to also be successful,” he said. “There are many things that we can learn from you. There are many common values that we share, both domestically and internationally.

“Since the formation of our government, we have made the bilateral relationship with Israel one of the priorities of our foreign policy,” he added.

Mucunski said he and Sa’ar communicate “on a fairly regular basis” and have remained in frequent contact despite Monday marking his first visit to the country.

Sa’ar, meanwhile, thanked North Macedonia for standing alongside Israel in international forums, particularly since the October 7 massacre.

“North Macedonia has demonstrated its friendship by standing up to these attempts in the international arena,” Sa’ar said. “We appreciate its voting record and its support for Israel. Israel values its friends who stand by it in difficult times.”

For Mucunski, one example of the relationship came following the deadly nightclub fire in Kočani in March 2025, which left 63 people dead, when Israel dispatched a medical delegation to Macedonia to help treat victims.

“Gideon Sa’ar was one of the first foreign ministers to call me,” Mucunski recalled. “I might not remember the content of the call, but I remember what happened very quickly after.”

A team of Israeli doctors arrived shortly afterward and began working alongside Macedonian medical teams, he said.

“They were performing surgery in our hospitals and helping our doctors with their experience and their in-depth knowledge, and helping to save the lives of many young individuals,” Mucunski said. “This situation was proof that Israel stands by my country.”

A European gateway for Israelis 

Mucunski said North Macedonia now hopes to position itself as a destination not only for Israeli tourists but also for Israeli companies seeking access to European markets.

“We want to be a gateway for Israelis who want to visit Europe,” he said. “But we want to be a gateway not just for tourists, but also for Israeli businesses.”

He pointed to Macedonia’s position along two major European transport corridors, investment in energy connectivity, and its efforts to attract foreign investment.

“We can also be a gateway for Israelis who want to invest in a European market that hasn’t been fully utilized by the Israeli business community,” Mucunski said.

Monday’s visit lasted only around 24 hours, but Mucunski said he expected it to be the first of more visits to Israel.

“This is my first visit,” he said, “but I am absolutely sure that it will not be my last.”

The Jerusalem Post will publish a longer, in-depth interview with Foreign Minister Timčo Mucunski later this week.

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The Philippines plans to expand its unmanned capabilities, including through the development and acquisition of drones as part of efforts to modernize its military, its defense chief said on Tuesday.

US defense ally the Philippines also plans to acquire additional guided-missile corvettes and other major defense assets to beef up its external defense capabilities, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told a budget hearing in the lower house of Congress.

The Philippines has shifted its security focus from internal threats to external security as tensions rise with Beijing in the South China Sea, where confrontations between them over disputed features inside Manila’s exclusive economic zone have grown in frequency in recent years.

The armed forces currently operate a fleet of unmanned aerial vehicles that provide intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, Teodoro said.

“As we mature on the cycle, then we can acquire more,” Teodoro said in pitching to lawmakers a 6.3% increase in the defense ministry’s budget for 2027, from the 305.5 billion pesos ($4.95 billion) spending plan approved for this year.

Drone expansion is part of a proposed 50 billion pesos ($810.4 million) allocation for the Philippines’ modernization program next year, 25% higher than that of the current budget.

Philippines seeking integration for drones

The priority was also developing the systems, connectivity, and operational know-how needed to use drones effectively, Teodoro added.

“More than the personnel, it is the integration into the operation, what do you do with them and how do you use them,” he said. Developing secure communications and network capabilities was crucial, he added.

Teodoro declined to identify specific systems under consideration, saying the details were classified and highly sensitive.

“They are very, very sensitive to compromise, particularly with AI,” he said, adding that the Philippines was in close contact with several countries with expertise in drone technology.

Yuliia Fediv, Ukraine’s ambassador to the Philippines, told Reuters in June that Kyiv has been in discussions with Manila over drone technology cooperation.

In June, the United States said it has given the Philippine military four solar-powered sea drones to boost its maritime surveillance.

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San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York pleaded no contest to reduced charges in Ohio on Monday after reaching an agreement with prosecutors following his Sunday arrest on suspicion of engaging in prostitution.

In a plea deal entered Monday, prosecutors amended the original charge to misdemeanor disorderly conduct and possessing criminal tools. According to reports, the criminal tool in York’s possession was believed to be a cell phone used to reply to a prostitution advertisement.

York, 46, was arrested in East Palestine. Court documents indicate agents for the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force intercepted communication in which York responded to a prostitution website.

York received one day in jail, fine after his no-contest plea

York, like other NFL owners, is subject to the league’s personal conduct policy. The NFL had not commented on the matter as of Monday afternoon.

As part of the reduced charges, York was sentenced to one day in the Columbiana County Jail for each count.

He was credited with time served on Sunday and paid a fine of $1,150, according to court records.

York, a native of Youngstown, Ohio, has been CEO of the 49ers since December 2008 and the team’s principal owner since 2024.

York also partially owns the UK’s Leeds United Football Club and Rangers Football Club, based in Glasgow, Scotland.

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MK Zvi Sukkot (Religious Zionist Party) confirmed he had destroyed a monument in Kafr Madama near Nablus, after footage circulated on social media and was shared by Israeli outlets on Tuesday morning. 

“Every child who sees every day a giant monument that glorifies murderers of Jews will dream of being a terrorist,” Sukkot said in a post to X/Twitter.

He claimed that he had taken action after appealing to the IDF several times to remove the “terror monuments throughout the area,” and that destroying the monument in the village was”a small taste.”  

“There is no place for support of terror in the State of Israel!” he wrote.

כל ילד שרואה מדי יום אנדרטת ענק שמפארת רוצחי יהודים, יחלום להיות מחבל.

יחד עם אנשי הקול היהודי פניתי לצה”ל מספר פעמים בשבועות האחרונים בבקשה שיסירו את אנדרטאות הטרור בכל המרחב כחלק מהמלחמה בטרור, ואני מקווה מאוד שזה יקרה בהקדם האפשרי.

בינתיים, טעימה קטנה מהבוקר בכפר מדמא… pic.twitter.com/HPIMzrP3Pa

— צבי סוכות (@tzvisuccot) August 25, 2026

Sukkot can also be seen filming the incident on his personal phone, while someone else struck the monument with a sledgehammer. Israeli forces can be seen guarding the MK and those accompanying him in the footage, with a military vehicle blocking the street.

תיעוד: חבר הכנסת צבי סוכות ניפץ אנדרטה בכפר מדאמא שליד שכם@HGoldich @glick_sh
צילום: סעיף 27א pic.twitter.com/t9zVBEXYiY

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) August 25, 2026

The IDF confirmed that it had diverted troops from standard operational duties to guard Sukkot and his aides on what he called a ‘memorial tour’ in several villages in Areas A and B in the West Bank.

“Contrary to the coordination, the participants acted deceitfully and manipulatively, without authority and in complete violation of the approved framework, and began demolishing one of the memorials in the village of Madama,” the IDF stated, claiming the soldiers spoke with their commanders after seeing what was happening, and were instructed to intervene and remove the group from the village.

“The IDF views the MK’s conduct and lack of coordination as serious, and as an exploitation of the protection provided by security forces in order to act in complete excess of his authority,” the military added, while emphasizing that the IDF does regularly demolish memorials and symbols of incitement with required approvals and in coordination with the Civil Administration.

The footage shared did not show soldiers intervening. 

The Jerusalem Post reached out to RZP for clarification.

Golan calls for Sukkot’s arrest following incident

“This is a person who should be behind bars and bolts, not in the Knesset of Israel,” The Democrats leader Yair Golan wrote, stating that Sukkot is the reason the IDF was diverted to the West Bank on the eve of the October 7 massacre.

“In the upcoming elections, the Kahanists and messianists must be removed from centers of power, and Israel returned to its track. They want eternal war. We will fight for a secure, democratic, and sane state,” he stated.

MK Gilad Kariv (The Democrats) decried Sukkot’s actions and the IDF’s involvement, stating the military had denied consistent requests to escort him to Kusra, citing a lack of available forces.

“It turns out there are available forces to escort the arsonist to the heart of a Palestinian village,” he wrote. “Just yesterday, it was reported that the Central Command’s commander warned that it would take just one match to ignite the West Bank.  Tzvi Sukkot charges into the role with glee.”

Protest breaks out in Rahat during Sukkot’s visit

About two weeks ago, clashes broke out in Rahat during an official visit by Sukkot to the city as part of an oversight tour by the Knesset committee, accompanied by police and Knesset security personnel.

During the tour, residents shouted insults at Sukkot, including calling him “a complete zero” and asking, “What do you have to teach our children?” He was called a “provocateur” and told, “In Rahat? Go teach yourself.”

The visit was part of a series of oversight tours by the Education Committee across the country, aimed at closely examining the activities of educational institutions, the implementation of committee decisions, and the education system’s handling of challenges including violence, crime, and incitement.

Despite attempts to disrupt and protest the visit, it took place under reinforced security, and Sukkot continued with his planned schedule.

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Alabama’s attorney general said on Monday the state had opened an investigation into OpenAI after its models hacked technology company Hugging Face last month, raising concerns about how artificial intelligence firms control their powerful systems.

Last week, IPO-bound OpenAI said it would slow the pace of model development while overhauling its research and training systems after company officials were caught unawares when an AI agent being tested hacked Hugging Face.

The agent went on a days-long hacking spree that OpenAI did not notice until well after the threat was contained and the FBI was alerted, Reuters reported.

The investigation comes after a multi-state coalition, including Alabama, sent a letter earlier this month to OpenAI demanding transparency and accountability regarding the incident, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office said.

The ChatGPT maker is conducting a thorough review with external advisers after the Hugging Face breach, an OpenAI spokesperson said, adding that the company will share a technical report with relevant government authorities and publish findings once the review is complete.

The probe seeks to address whether OpenAI‘s “inability or unwillingness to ensure the safety of its products violated Alabama’s consumer protection laws and poses an ongoing risk of substantial harm to the citizens of the state,” Marshall’s office added.

OpenAI asked to desist from testing until it can control its agents

The states demanded in their letter that OpenAI cease and desist from testing activities that led to the hack until “OpenAI shows that it can conduct such activities in a controlled and responsible way.”

“This AI lab leak showed that Alabamians’ and Americans’ worst fears about artificial intelligence are not just theoretical,” Marshall said.

Similar incidents at rivals Anthropic and Meta have fanned concerns about how developers can control increasingly capable AI systems, and intensified US government efforts to improve AI safety as companies race to develop more capable models.

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Ben-Gurion Airport management had known for months about the employee shortage, which led to the recent severe disruptions earlier this month, Attorney Naomi Landau, who represents the Israel Airports Authority (IAA) employees’ union, said on the 103FM program Where’s the Money on Monday.

At the beginning of the discussion, Yael Ayalon, editor of Where’s the Money, addressed how the disruptions began and the Histadrut labor federation’s involvement.

According to her, “this time, these labor disruptions were initiated by or coordinated between the workers’ union and employees on the ground. The Histadrut discovered the dispute and the chaos only after it had already started. Although it gave formal support to the move, even in the official statement by the Histadrut chairman that same day, during the first hours of the chaos, it was stated that no such instruction or directive had been issued by the Histadrut for a strike or labor dispute.”

Ayalon also addressed the lack of an official labor dispute declaration, saying that, “The Histadrut chairman was abroad; the Histadrut was on recess. The chairman of the transportation workers’ union was also abroad. That does not prevent them from intervening, but the most significant point is that despite the Histadrut speaking out about the manpower shortage, it did not declare the issue a labor dispute. Essentially, the workers’ union had limited abilities from the outset, and it could not legally launch a strike, which is what happened in practice.”

Later, Attorney Landau joined the conversation and sought to demonstrate that the manpower shortage at Ben-Gurion Airport had been known for months. She quoted remarks made by Pinchas Idan last May, when he said, “I don’t know how we will get through August; we need another 400 workers. I say with full responsibility, there will probably be lines in the coming period. Management is doing everything to recruit. But right now, many more workers are still missing.”

Management faced difficulties recruiting for Ben-Gurion, despite known shortages

Landau argued that additional officials within the Airports Authority had also warned about the shortage in advance, emphasizing how difficult it was the recruit workers for the required positions. “The heads of departments warned about this, absolutely,” she added.

“I am already saying that management tried to recruit, and it is very difficult to recruit workers for these positions during this period. These are challenging jobs, because being a baggage handler or a firefighter at Ben-Gurion Airport during this period is very difficult. In addition, even if workers are recruited, they must undergo training, complete additional requirements, and receive security clearance to work there.”

Landau then pointed the finger at the Israel Airports Authority management, claiming that the decision that led to the closure of the counters was made by management.

“Management panicked,” she said, further explaining that “once those 18 workers collapsed and left after nine hours of work in the heat, instead of moving other workers from other areas of the airport who could provide support, management decided to close the counters, and only management has the authority to do that. Pinchas himself was shocked by the matter.”

Airport workers’ union preferred negotiation over dispute

Landau also addressed why the workers’ union did not declare a labor dispute, claiming that Idan initially preferred to negotiate with management. According to her, “We considered it, and Pinchas decided to negotiate with management. He received promises. You do not enter a labor dispute so easily, because once you enter one, there is only one path that leads to a strike, and then the workers say, ‘What did you do to me?’ Pinchas Idan did not want to close the airport. What exactly would closing it in August give him? What would it give the workers’ union? It gives them absolutely nothing.”

At the end of the interview, Landau addressed efforts to recruit additional workers and the dispute over responsibility for the events. “Management announced that it is recruiting nearly 100 workers who are currently on unpaid leave and will fill the ranks,” she added.

“And still, even when there is a fully staffed shift, there is still a manpower shortage under these conditions. There was no strike, and the ones who closed the counters were management. There was no dispute between management and the workers, except that management claimed there was no shortage of workers.”

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Since the recent wildcat strike at Ben Gurion Airport, staffing at the Israel Airports Authority (IAA) has become the main flashpoint between management and the workers’ union.

The union points to a critical deficit of roughly 500 employees across all departments, arguing that an unreasonable workload ultimately triggered the system’s collapse. Union Chairman Pinchas Idan claimed there are simply not enough porters to handle luggage loading and unloading, forcing staff into grueling, consecutive 12-hour shifts in unbearable heat under inhumane conditions. He added that the severe shortage is exacerbated by employees serving on active military reserve duty.

The numbers tell a different story

Anyone spending ten minutes outside at midday can sympathize with the grueling physical strain of hauling heavy baggage between aircraft and luggage carts in the summer heat. However, data obtained by Walla reveals a contrasting picture: The number of porters at Ben Gurion Airport has actually grown over the past six years, even as overall passenger traffic declined.

The baseline for comparison is 2019, widely regarded as a peak year for passenger volume at Ben Gurion. In August 2019, 2.807 million passengers passed through the airport, serviced by a workforce of 386 porters. By comparison, August 2026 is projected to see approximately 2.675 million passengers, whereas the porter workforce has expanded to 402. This reflects a net addition of 16 porters alongside a decrease of roughly 130,000 passengers.

Furthermore, a source familiar with the matter told Walla that the union never formally submitted a written request to management regarding a worker shortage.

“A union always wants more workers, and that’s fine,” says a source familiar with the matter. “But in this case, there is no shortage of porters because there are actually more of them. Besides, operational needs on the ground are no justification for shutting down a country.”

The workers’ union firmly rejects these assertions, insisting that continuous appeals were submitted to management over two months ago.

Tenured vs. temporary staffing friction

However, another source suggests the core issue stems not from total headcount, but from an imbalance between tenured and temporary staff: “In 2019, there were more temporary porters at Ben Gurion Airport. Over the years, the proportion of tenured staff increased while temporary staff declined. Temporary workers experience less burnout, are more flexible, and show higher motivation, whereas tenured staff are less willing to work. The operational model needs an overhaul – something that must be executed in cooperation with the workers’ union.”

Despite that structural challenge, the likelihood of Idan permitting a shift from tenured positions toward temporary hiring appears virtually non-existent – particularly amid reports that management intends to push for his removal as union chief.

Chairman of the Israel Airports Authority Yiftah Ron-Tal declined to confirm any efforts to oust Idan from leadership. “I am currently focused on managing the crisis and am not dealing with that,” he says. “I have established an inquiry team to investigate the incident and draw conclusions.”

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German investigators discovered a third drone and suspected explosives linked to this month’s attempted attack on the Leipzig/Halle airport, broadcasters NDR and WDR and the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper said on Tuesday.

The drone was found on August 14, 10 days after the incident, to the west of the airport, where investigators also discovered about 50 grams of a substance they suspected to be the military explosive hexogen, the media reports said.

The office of the prosecutor general did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Russia denies involvement in drone attack at German airport

Security sources cited in the reports suspect Russian intelligence involvement in the attempted attack, an accusation Moscow has denied.

On August 4, an explosives-laden drone was discovered near a Ukrainian Antonov cargo aircraft used for military supplies. Investigators also suspect a second drone may have collided with a DHL cargo plane soon after the airport’s temporary shutdown.

The airport is a cargo and military logistics hub used by NATO and Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines for military supplies.

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A private arbitrator has ordered The Washington Post to reinstate opinion columnist Karen Attiah with back pay, after the newspaper fired her in September over social media posts about conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination.

The ruling, made public by the Democracy Defenders Fund on Monday, comes as the Washington Post‘s opinion section faces scrutiny following a push by owner Jeff Bezos to focus on personal liberties and free markets.

Private arbitrator Sarah Miller Espinosa found the newspaper “did not have good and sufficient cause” to terminate Attiah and had “violated” its labor agreement. “The Washington Post failed to establish the grievant engaged in gross misconduct,” she wrote.

“This decision confirms what we’ve said from the start: I was doing my job as an opinion journalist, and doing that job is not misconduct,” said Attiah.

A Washington Post spokesperson said the newspaper respects the arbitration process and declined to comment further.

Attiah fired for posts about Charlie Kirk’s assassination

The dispute began after Attiah’s posts on social media platform Bluesky following Kirk’s September 2025 assassination, including one in which she noted Kirk’s past comments on black women.

The Post had said in its termination letter that Attiah’s posts violated its social media policy, which requires employees’ online activity to be respectful and not undermine the integrity of the newspaper’s journalism.

In February, The Washington Post began layoffs impacting a third of its employees across its international, editing, metro, and sports desks amid mounting financial losses.

The New York Times first reported the arbitration decision earlier in the day.

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The wife of a US Army sergeant was deported to Honduras on Monday, marking the latest example of the impact of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown on relatives of members of the US military.

Cristy Maryori Villafranca-Trejo “was removed from the United States” on Monday, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in an email. Army Sergeant Hedar Leonel Turcios Juarez told ABC News his wife, the mother of a 6-year-old, was deported to Honduras.

Villafranca-Trejo is at least the seventh spouse or parent of an active-duty US military service member to be deported under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, according to an Associated Press tally.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, which is part of DHS and has been the face of US President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and deportation drive, arrested her on July 11 after conducting what the DHS called a “targeted immigration enforcement operation.” The DHS said she received due process.

Turcios Juarez previously said ICE officers detained his wife outside a Walmart in July as their daughter watched. He said his wife left Honduras in 2016 due to violent crime in the country. The DHS alleged that she illegally entered the United States.

Turcios Juarez joined the military and became a US citizen in 2024 after a nine-month deployment to the Middle East, according to ABC News. He said he began pursuing citizenship for his wife, hoping his service would help expedite her naturalization process.

Father of USS Abraham Lincoln sailor detained amid Trump immigration crackdown

Over the weekend, the immigrant father of a US sailor on board the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, which was deployed in the Middle East during ​the Iran war, was taken into federal immigration custody and remains in detention.

Trump has pursued an immigration crackdown that ​includes visa and green card revocations and an aggressive deportation drive. He says ​the crackdown ⁠aims to improve domestic security.

Rights groups say the crackdown has violated free speech and due process rights and created an unsafe environment, particularly for ethnic minorities, who have raised concerns about racial profiling.

While Trump campaigned in ⁠2024 on ​a platform of stopping illegal immigration, his administration has also ​made legal immigration more difficult – for example, by imposing new and expensive fees for applicants of certain work visas.

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Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir held discussions with Iran that were focussed on measures including the prevention of a further escalation of the conflict and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the Pakistani military said in a statement on Tuesday.

Munir discussed regional peace and ways to reach a negotiated settlement to disputes, the statement added.

Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday morning to discuss “the steps needed by both sides for restoring the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding,” Naqvi said in a post on X/Twitter.

“The Iranian President candidly shared his Government’s perspective and concerns, and we had a very constructive exchange on the issues involved.”

Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir and I had a very positive and productive meeting with the President of Iran. Our discussion focused on the Iran US conflict, tensions in the Middle East and the way forward, as well as the steps needed by both sides for restoration of the Islamabad… https://t.co/jt1wtlESCa

— Mohsin Naqvi (@MohsinnaqviC42) August 24, 2026

Naqvi said that the talks were focused on decreasing tensions in the Middle East and creating a path to peace. He added that the meeting with the president ended on a “highly positive note.”

“We remain hopeful that this momentum will help pave the way for further progress and lasting peace in the region.”

Pakistan-Iran talks come after US began Operation Economic Outcast against Iran

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the start of “Operation Economic Outcast” on Iran in remarks at a press conference on Monday following earlier threats of an “economic D-Day” against the regime.

“Our objective is to sever every economic lifeline that sustains this tyrannical regime until Tehran stands alone,” said Bessent.

Following the announcement, the US State Department implemented sanctions against Iranian military activities, cyber threats, and illicit oil trade, according to a statement from US State Department Spokesperson Tommy Pigott on Monday evening.

“Today, the United States took sweeping action against multiple entities, individuals, and vessels enabling the Iranian regime’s destabilizing activities,” Pigott said.

“The measures target Iranian military officials responsible for procuring weapons and directing attacks against US servicemembers and regional partners, Iran-based entities that gathered intelligence for targeting US forces and allies, and a procurement ring supplying Iran’s military and missile programs,” he added.

Iran promised to retaliate to sanctions

Before the announcement, Iran threatened both a possible military response and further reduction in oil exports from the Gulf in response to any US economic measures. Afterward, Iranian Economy Minister Ali Madanizadeh said, “We are fully prepared for the US sanctions.”

“Naturally, the enemies intend to launch an economic terrorist attack on us, but we also have our own tools and know how to play the game. Our defense is no longer so defensive; the enemies should wait for an attack,” Madanizadeh told state television.

He also said neither China nor Russia had “accepted” the US measures, and predicted other countries would resist them.

Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi, a spokesperson for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, vowed heavy blows to US vital interests and energy chokepoints if Iran’s infrastructure is threatened, Press TV reported.

Aaron Glick contributed to this report.

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The Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), said Monday that drugs had been smuggled into the Gaza Strip inside food products intended as humanitarian aid for residents of the Strip.

In a post on X/Twitter, COGAT said the incident was based on a report by the World Central Kitchen (WCK). The post was published on the agency’s English language account, which is aimed at the international community.

Earlier today, @WCKitchen responsibly reported a smuggling attempt detected inside humanitarian aid supplies.

During food preparation in their kitchen, illegal drugs were found concealed inside canned pepper packages, including:
▪️ 6 packs of hashish (600g total)
▪️ Unidentified… pic.twitter.com/6oZVC4xMKp

— COGAT (@cogatonline) August 24, 2026

According to WCK, drugs were discovered concealed inside packages of canned peppers during the unloading of aid shipments and food preparation at the organization’s kitchens in the Gaza Strip.

The packages contained six bundles of hashish weighing approximately 600 grams in total, along with an additional 160 grams of other illegal substances.

“The incident demonstrates once again that Hamas will stop at nothing to exploit humanitarian aid for its own needs,” COGAT said.

Hamas ‘main obstacle’ to improved conditions in Gaza, COGAT official asserts

The agency added that it “strongly condemns the serious smuggling of drugs” and said it would continue working with all relevant parties against “any attempt to abuse humanitarian aid mechanisms.”

“The incident demonstrates once again that Hamas will stop at nothing to exploit humanitarian aid for its own needs.” 

The report came a day after COGAT published an analysis claiming that the volume of aid entering the Gaza Strip significantly exceeds humanitarian needs as defined by UN agencies, international organizations, and assessments conducted throughout the war.

“Hamas remains the main obstacle to further improving the situation in the Gaza Strip,” a senior COGAT official said.

The official added that “the organization interferes with humanitarian activity, exploits civilian infrastructure, influences distribution mechanisms and continues its repeated attempts to smuggle prohibited items under the guise of humanitarian aid.”

Forces destroy weapon depots in Gazan mosques, arrest West Bank terrorist

The IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) recently destroyed two Hamas weapons depots in northern Gaza, the military and ISA said in a joint statement on Monday.

The weapons, aid the statement, were stored inside two mosques in the Shati and Deir al-Balah areas. Among the weapons were “dozens” of Kalashnikov rifles, magazines, and other equipment, it said.

Additionally, advance warning was given before the strikes, which used precise munitions and aerial surveillance in an effort to reduce harm to civilians, the military said.

In another statement on Monday, the army announced that the elite undercover Duvdevan force arrested Hamam Khazem in Jenin, who was “planning to carry out an attack inside Israel.” 

Khazem’s father, Fathi Khazem was killed by IDF troops last week after the army said he tried to stab a soldier. Raad Khazem, Hamam’s brother, carried out the 2022 shooting at Dizengoff Center, murdering three Israeli civilians and resulting in his own death.

Moreover, the army said another terrorist “working to advance an attack” against Israelis was arrested in the West Bank village of Sanur on Sunday.

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A federal judge on Monday postponed the trial of the man authorities allege built the bomb that blew New York-bound Pan Am flight 103 out of the sky over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people in 1988.

Jury selection had been scheduled to begin on Wednesday in the trial of Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi, a Libyan intelligence operative who prosecutors allege once confessed to his role in the 1988 bombing.

In the decision to postpone the trial, US District Judge Dabney Friedrich cited the discovery of new evidence that defense attorneys want to examine.

The judge said “the newly discovered evidence, as well as evidence located in other countries” and “the need for the defense to determine how best to defend this case” made her reach the decision.

Friedrich did not schedule a new trial date but set a court hearing on September 1 to discuss next steps.

Mas’ud rejects allegations that he built the Lockerbie bomb

Mas’ud, now in his mid-70s, has pleaded not guilty to two criminal charges related to the destruction of the aircraft resulting in death and faces a maximum of life in prison if convicted.

The Boeing 747 exploded minutes after takeoff from London on December 21, 1988, killing all 259 people on board, including 190 Americans, and 11 people on the ground in Scotland.

The bombing made former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, whose government accepted responsibility for the attack in 2003, an international pariah.

Mas’ud has denied wrongdoing and his lawyers have challenged the credibility of evidence gathered by prosecutors, including Mas’ud’s alleged confession to a Libyan police officer in 2012, a year after rebel forces toppled Gaddafi’s government.

Mas’ud’s trial in Washington, DC federal court has been delayed by years of legal wrangling over the alleged confession and other issues that have exposed the complexities of a US prosecution over a decades-old attack in Britain with crucial evidence gathered in Libya.

Mas’ud, who was arrested in Libya and brought to the US in 2022, is accused of building a time-delayed bomb that was packed into a suitcase and placed in checked baggage in Malta. The explosive-laden suitcase eventually made its way to London Heathrow Airport, where it was stored in the hold of Pan Am flight 103.

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For the past week or so, residents of Israel’s Gaza border communities must have seen the sight of kites crossing from the enclave and thought, “Here we go again.”

Years before October 7, incendiary kites and balloons (including the bizarre incident of an incendiary condom) became one of Hamas’s favored methods of harassing southern Israel. Fields were burned, fires became routine, and what began as a seemingly crude tactic developed into an organized campaign that Israel struggled for years to contain.

That is why the appearance of kites over the border again cannot simply be treated as a curiosity while the IDF waits to establish whether they constitute a broader phenomenon.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz were therefore right on Sunday to warn Hamas that continued launches would bring an increased Israeli response. Katz went further, insisting that Israel would not return to the reality that existed before October 7.

That promise must be backed up with concrete action.

At least six kites crossed from Gaza into Israel over the past week, with other reports putting the number higher. None of those recovered so far carried explosives, and no Israelis were endangered. The IDF said it believes Palestinian youth, some only 12 or 13 years old, are being used to launch them, likely at the direction of Hamas terrorists.

The most troubling comment to emerge over the weekend came from a military official who said the IDF was taking the incidents seriously but needed to “wait and see if this becomes a trend.”

Israel must stop the trend before it becomes an even greater threat

Israel has already seen this trend before, and it must nip the issue in the bud this time.

In 2018, incendiary kites and balloons began appearing over the Gaza border. What initially looked primitive became an organized method of attack. Fields, forests, and nature reserves across southern Israel burned, and thousands of acres were destroyed. Explosives were attached to some of the airborne devices, and Israelis living near Gaza became accustomed to another form of terrorism that Hamas could calibrate according to its needs.

The IDF did respond at times, including by striking Hamas positions and squads preparing incendiary devices. Yet the pattern became painfully familiar during the years before October 7. Hamas would push, Israel would assess whether the latest provocation justified escalation, and life along the border would absorb another deterioration in what was considered normal.

Residents of the Gaza border communities have every right to be alarmed by language suggesting that Israel should again wait to determine whether something is a trend.

Uri Epstein, head of the Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Council, put the concern well. The issue is not whether a particular kite turns out to contain explosives. By the time soldiers discover that it does, the question has already been answered too late. Residents should certainly not be the people discovering unidentified objects from Gaza and then informing the military.

That does not mean Israel should launch a major military operation because a kite crosses the border. Proportionality and judgment remain necessary, but what has to disappear is the idea that Hamas is entitled to a certain number of provocations while Israel gathers evidence that a pattern has developed.

A border is either defended, or it is not. If Hamas permits organized launch sites to operate, it should understand there will be a price. The IDF should also have clear procedures for detecting, intercepting, and handling anything that crosses from Gaza before residents stumble across it.

Hamas adaptations to Israel’s threat classifications

Israel spent years drawing distinctions between rockets, incendiary balloons, border riots, and other forms of harassment emanating from Gaza. Hamas understood those distinctions and learned how to operate within them. It could apply pressure without necessarily provoking a response large enough to threaten its rule.

October 7 exposed the disastrous consequences of allowing Hamas to determine the tempo along the border.

Katz’s declaration that “a balloon is treated like a kite, and a kite is treated like a drone” therefore carries importance beyond the latest incidents. Hamas must understand that the old rules no longer exist.

Israel has paid far too high a price to relearn this lesson. The kites crossing the border today may contain nothing, but the next ones may not. We should not wait and see.

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As pro-Palestinian progressives find some success at the 2026 ballot box, the long-gestating Israel divestment campaign is looking to capitalize in Rhode Island.

Voters in Providence, the state capital, will vote on a referendum this November saying the city should refrain from investing in “foreign countries conducting ethnic cleansing, apartheid, illegal military occupation, or genocide.”

The language of the actual ballot petition does not mention Israel, nor any other country, by name. But the signature campaign was led by Providence for Palestine, a local activist coalition, and both its proponents and opponents have framed the measure as a referendum on Israel and the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. 

With the referendum’s ballot placement secured, Providence has become the largest American municipality ever to place divestment before the voting public.

“We’re in this moment when the general public at large, and particularly Democratic voters, very much understand what’s going on in Gaza and Palestine as genocide, as apartheid, and want their leaders to take action on it,” Zack Kliger, a lead organizer of the ballot initiative and member of the Rhode Island chapter of the anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

Israel has rejected accusations of genocide as baseless 

Kliger described the current divestment campaign as having “definitely been led disproportionately by Jewish organizers.”

To determine which countries are “conducting” any of its list of human rights abuses, the referendum would rely on “resolutions” from various bodies, including the United Nations Security Council, International Court of Justice and “any” US court ruling or UN body. Some, though not all, of those bodies have reached conclusions that would implicate Israel in the ballot language’s divestment campaign. 

Both Israel and the Trump administration have strongly rejected all genocide accusations leveled against the country. “Apartheid” can be considered an independent crime under international law, while “ethnic cleansing” has no formal legal definition.

Divestment from Israel has seen some success on the municipal level since the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks and Israel’s military response in Gaza, which has sunk the country’s popularity across the American electorate.

Last year a non-binding divestment resolution in Somerville, Massachusetts, a Boston suburb with less than half of Providence’s population, became the first such initiative to win at the ballot box. Over objections from Jewish groups, the city this summer began exploring the question of how to enact the measure into law. 

Critics of divestment measures argue that they force local governments to put undue focus on international issues; could prompt division and backlash against local Jewish communities, and jeopardize public pension programs.

The Providence campaign’s decision to avoid mentioning Israel in the ballot language sets it apart from similar initiatives, while also neutralizing claims, made against other resolutions, that such measures unfairly single out Israel. 

Yet local Jewish groups say the risk to the community remains.

“All this will do [is] stoke more division in our community, and potentially make Jewish people here feel more unsafe,” Stephanie Hague, chief strategy officer of the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island, told JTA.

Hague noted that the ballot language, as written, prompts questions about the authority of the international bodies making judgments about what constitutes genocide, ethnic cleansing and other terms in in the initiative. She said that the Alliance would campaign against the ballot measure and, if it passes, explore legal options for putting up roadblocks to it. 

Providence passed divestment proposal against Sudan in 2006

A 2024 proposal to the city council urged Providence, whose approximately 15,000 Jews make up around 7% of the population, not to invest in Israel bonds. The measure failed to make it out of committee.

Likewise, the board of Brown University, the Ivy League school located in Providence, voted on a divestment resolution as part of the demands of the school’s pro-Palestinian encampment movement in 2024. It failed.

Activists are more confident this time, citing the success in Somerville, where, unlike in Providence, Israel was mentioned by name as the target of the winning ballot measure. Also unlike Somerville, whose measure was non-binding, Providence’s initiative would mandate city action.

Supporters also note that Providence joined a 2006 divestment initiative against Sudan to protest ethnic cleansing in Darfur, a divestment campaign that was spearheaded by American Jewish groups.

“We’re really proud of the legacy of the American Jewish community and standing up on social issues,” Kliger, who grew up in the Conservative movement, attended a Jewish day school in Brooklyn and has family in Israel, told JTA.

Unlike in Pittsburgh, where a similar 2024 initiative was undone before the election following legal challenges to the signatures, the Providence activists were able to collect and verify more than enough signatures to qualify for the ballot.

The initiative’s supporters said they had identified around $2.5 million in city funds that would be affected by a divestment order. They cited American companies frequently targeted by pro-Palestinian activists, such as construction equipment manufacturer Caterpillar and weapons firm Axon Enterprise.

The city council of Portland, Maine, also passed a divestment proposal in 2024, though that city’s mayor, after initially endorsing the plan, later said he regretted having done so because of the divisiveness it spurred. 

Democratic primaries in Rhode Island have become centered on Israel

Some progressive Jewish professionals in Providence say the initiative is in keeping with their values.

“I know there are others out there who think that this is a situation where one would need to choose between their Jewish principles and other principles. I don’t perceive it that way,” Lex Rofeberg, senior Jewish educator with the alternative Jewish engagement network Judaism Unbound, told JTA about his support for the ballot campaign.

Rofeberg, a Providence resident, said it would be wrong for non-Jews to conclude that “it is a Jewish value to support human rights violations.”

“For those who see a ballot initiative that does not name Israel at all, but simply says we should not invest our dollars in atrocities, for people who see that as somehow threatening to Judaism, why would they think that?” he asked.

Hague, the Jewish Alliance staffer opposing the initiative, sees just such a threat to Jewish interests. She acknowledged that it can be hard to communicate to non-Jews, who would understandably oppose genocide and apartheid, the ways in which her group sees the BDS movement as “a calling card for antisemitism.”

She outlined what she saw as her group’s mission: “We have to do so much education in a short period of time, and helping people understand the Jewish community’s relationship to Israel, and then understanding this initiative’s relationship to the BDS movement and how those things are connected, and the real fear and isolation many Jewish Americans are already feeling, particularly after Oct. 7.”

The political environment, though, may be unfriendly to such efforts. Following broader national trends, the city’s Democratic mayoral primary, set for Sept. 9, is also pivoting to a large degree around Israel. 

Incumbent Mayor Brett Smiley, who converted to Judaism and held a bar mitzvah while in office, is a vocal Israel supporter who opposes the ballot initiative. His progressive challenger, state Rep. David Morales, has backed the ballot initiative.

So too have some local elected officials with Jewish heritage. “For any community that we are identified with, and for the sake of our soul and our humanity, we have to be able to say, ‘This is not OK,’” Rachel Miller, city council president, told JTA. 

Miller, who has a Jewish father and Catholic mother, said she considers herself “culturally” Jewish and objected to the idea that there is a single Jewish voice on the issue. She believes, she said, in “disconnecting the actions of a state against a group of people from my personal Jewish heritage, from my personal Jewish identity.”

Even if passed, it’s possible the ballot initiative could run afoul of a statewide ban on working with government contractors who openly boycott Israel, a so-called “anti-BDS law,” one of many such measures enacted in a range of states. 

Those laws themselves have been debated for years. This fall a ballot initiative in Oak Park, Illinois, a liberal Chicago suburb, will ask voters to register a formal objection to that state’s anti-boycott law. The initiative, which is opposed by local Jewish groups, survived a legal challenge on Monday.

Hague acknowledged current Jewish divisions on Israel, and the difficult political climate for pro-Israel Jewish groups. Facing down a ballot initiative like this, she said, takes work.

“I think we know public opinion is not supportive of Israel right now. I think it’s not an issue that people understand implicitly when they just read a ballot question,” she said. “So yes, of course, there’s reason for concern, and I think no matter what happens at the ballot, I still think it’s an important moment.”

This post was originally published on here. 

Mickey Berkowitz, widely regarded as Israel’s greatest basketball player and one of the country’s greatest athletes, is suffering from severe dementia, it was officially revealed Monday evening during the Channel 12 documentary Mickey Berkowitz’s Last Shot. His condition is considered complex.

In the documentary by Niv Raskin, the Berkowitz family agreed to reveal the secret they had kept for more than two years, shortly before Berkowitz received the Israel Prize for Outstanding Sports Achievement, regarding the illness affecting one of Israel’s biggest sporting icons.

Berkowitz has been living in a care facility away from his home in recent months, and the film documents his family’s efforts to cope with his condition.

Berkowitz’s basketball career

Berkowitz, whose parents immigrated from Romania, joined Maccabi Tel Aviv’s youth team at the age of 11, where he was discovered by legendary coach Yehoshua Rozin, who has since died. At 17, he joined Maccabi Tel Aviv’s senior team, and a year later led Israel’s youth national team to fourth place at the European Championship.

At age 21, Berkowitz spent a year at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, before returning to Maccabi Tel Aviv. In 1977, at the age of 23, he led Maccabi Tel Aviv to its first European Cup championship, helping secure a historic 78,77 victory over Mobilgirgi Varese in the final.

Two years later, Berkowitz led the Israeli national team to a silver medal at the 1979 European Championship, where he was named tournament MVP. After the tournament, he received an offer from the New Jersey Nets, but Maccabi Tel Aviv refused to release him.

In 1981, Berkowitz won another European Cup title with Maccabi Tel Aviv, scoring the game-winning basket in the team’s 80,79 victory over Sinudyne Bologna in the final. He also reached four additional European finals with Maccabi, though the team fell short in each of them.

Berkowitz represented Israel at the 1986 World Championship after his decisive basket against Czechoslovakia in the qualifying tournament secured the team’s place in the competition.

During 16 seasons with Maccabi Tel Aviv’s senior team, Berkowitz won two European Cups, 16 Israeli league championships and 13 State Cups.

In the summer of 1988, after making his final European Cup final appearance with Maccabi Tel Aviv, Berkowitz moved to Maccabi Rishon Lezion, where he played for five seasons. Alongside his close friend Motti Aroesti, who spent 13 seasons with him on Maccabi Tel Aviv’s senior team, Berkowitz helped lead the club to the playoff finals against Maccabi Tel Aviv.

He later played one season for Hapoel Jerusalem and half a season for Hapoel Tel Aviv before retiring. At the time of his retirement, he ranked second on the all-time Israeli Premier Basketball League scoring list, behind Doron Jamchi.

This post was originally published on here.