As ceasfire talks stall in Doha, Blinken says agreement could happen
Katz not present at IDF HQ during Yemen strike • CAIR leader praised October 7 massacre • IDF ordered to conclude October 7 probes by end of January
Lapid to police: Allow Kaplan hostage protest or face legal challenges
Yair Lapid wrote a letter to Police Commissioner Danny Levy questioning the police's decision to "thwart" planned demonstrations on Kaplan in Tel Aviv on Saturday night.
Lapid stated he wondered whether the police's decision "stems from directives from above or the influence of the Prime Minister's Office."
Go to the full article >>CIA chief leaves Qatar as hostage talks fail to make progress - Washington Post
Current progress in the talks remains stuck for the time being, as the two sides remain at an impasse over a couple of Israeli demands.
No progress was made towards the completion of a hostage deal/ceasefire agreement on Thursday, and CIA Director William J. Burns, who was in Doha for the talks, left Qatar after being there for a day, a US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told The Washington Post on Friday.
Burns is no longer in the Middle East, the official told the American news outlet. Nevertheless, negotiations are still underway as Israel, Hamas, and American, Egyptian, and Qatari mediators “want to prepare the ground for Trump,” a member of a diplomatic mission in the Middle East told the Post.
Go to the full article >>Sweden will no longer fund UNRWA aid agency, minister says
Sweden will no longer fund UNRWA, the UN refugee agency for Palestinians, and plans instead to provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza via other channels, the Nordic country's aid minister, Benjamin Dousa, told Swedish TV4 on Friday.
Go to the full article >>Netanyahu, Katz approved Yemen strikes without cabinet input - KAN
The Wednesday night Israeli strikes on Yemen were approved by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yisrael Katz but not by the cabinet, Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported on Friday.
Cabinet ministers were reportedly only made aware of the general details but, according to KAN's sources, were not presented with either the targets of the attack or its purpose.
Go to the full article >>Blinken: Hamas realizes 'cavalry not coming,' should agree to a ceasefire and 'do it now'
If Hamas truly cares about the Palestinian people, they will "they will say yes and do it now," Blinken said.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas "logically" could happen in a Thursday interview with Bloomberg.
"I say that with all of the caution that comes with that statement because we've been very close before," he told The Big Take on Thursday.
Go to the full article >>IDF managing Second Intifada-levels of West Bank terror better despite fewer soldiers
Is PA crackdown on terror too little, too late; Jewish extremist violence still high; confronting the Iranian smuggling threat from Jordan
Palestinian terror from the West Bank is at lower levels than it was during the Second Intifada despite the IDF having much smaller forces there and an environment of a continuous regional war, the IDF said on Thursday.
Go to the full article >>IDF publishes new footage detailing strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen
The military noted that jets flew 2,000 kilometers and used over 60 bombs to strike Houthi targets.
The IDF published new footage of its strike on Houthi terror targets in Yemen carried out in the early hours of Thursday.
Go to the full article >>UN seeks World Court opinion on Israel's Palestinian aid obligations
The Norwegian-drafted resolution was adopted by the 193-member body with 137 votes in favor.
The United Nations General Assembly voted on Thursday to ask the International Court of Justice for an opinion on Israel's obligations to facilitate aid to Palestinians that is delivered by states and international groups including the UN.
Go to the full article >>'Israel bragging about conquering the Syrian Hermon damages cooperation,' Arab diplomat warns
Israel’s presence on the mountain followed its recent takeover of the Syrian side to expand the demilitarized buffer zone along the Israeli-Syrian border.
“Israel bragging about conquering the Syrian Hermon damages efforts to promote cooperation in the region,” an Arab diplomat warned in a conversation with The Jerusalem Post, amid growing criticism of Israeli statements regarding its prolonged presence on the mountain.
Go to the full article >>Defense Minister Katz not present at IDF military HQ during Yemen strike - report
Katz arrived at the premises at 9:30 p.m., approved the operation, and left, according to the reports.
Defense Minister Israel Katz was not present at the operation room in the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv during the strike carried out by Israel Air Force jets on Houthi terror targets in Yemen in the early hours of Thursday, Israel's public broadcaster KAN News reported later in the evening.
Go to the full article >>What you need to know
- Hamas launched a massive attack on October 7, with thousands of terrorists infiltrating from the Gaza border and taking some 240 hostages into Gaza.
- Over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals were murdered, including over 350 at the Re'im music festival and hundreds of Israeli civilians across Gaza border communities
- 100 hostages remain in Gaza
- 49 hostages in total have been killed in captivity, IDF says
- The IDF launched a ground invasion of Lebanon on September 30
- The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire came into effect on November 27 at 4:00 a.m.