April 2: Qatari lobbyist reportedly used WhatsApp group to coordinate with Netanyahu aides

Netanyahus board plane to depart for Hungary; PM refrains from giving press statement

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara board Wing of Zion for their trip to Hungary, April 2, 2025. (Lazar Berman/Times of Israel)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara board Wing of Zion for their trip to Hungary.

Netanyahu waves to the traveling press corps, but does not give a statement.

Shin Bet rejects Netanyahu accusation that Ronen Bar was guest at Qatar World Cup

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) and Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, on April 4, 2023. (Kobi Gideon/GPO)

The Shin Bet rejects a claim by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the head of the security agency, Ronen Bar, was a guest of Qatar during the 2022 World Cup.

The agency clarifies in a statement that Bar’s presence in the stadium where the games were held was part of strictly professional security preparations to ensure the safety of Israelis attending the World Cup and that his trip was approved by Netanyahu in advance.

“This was not a case of watching a game, but rather a tour and series of work meetings, some of which were held in the stadium during the World Cup matches,” the statement reads.

Ahead of the event, an international command center was established by Israeli security agencies, requiring the heads of the Mossad, the Shin Bet, and IDF Intelligence to conduct a work trip to monitor the operations of their agencies and the protection of Israelis in the arena, says the Shin Bet.

Certain professional meetings with relevant experts and officials were held, “at the request of the hosts,” within the stadium where the games were held, the statement continues.

The statement comes in response to a comment made by Netanyahu earlier this evening in a video he posted defending one of his top aides arrested in the ongoing Qatargate investigation, in which the premier and members of his inner circle are suspected of accepting bribes from Doha.

In the video, the premier says Bar repeatedly visited Qatar due to his role in Israel’s hostage negotiating team and that the Shin Bet chief repeatedly praised Qatar’s role in those hostage talks. Bar also visited Qatar before the Gaza war and was invited into the honorary guest box at the World Cup — a ticket that Netanyahu claims would typically cost tens of thousands of dollars.

PM aides Urich, Feldstein to remain behind bars overnight, as police will ask judge to extend remand tomorrow

(L) Jonatan Urich, adviser to Benjamin Netanyahu, in Tel Aviv on October 3, 2022 (Avshalom Sassoni/ Flash90/ File) and (R) Eli Feldstein arrive for a court hearing at the Tel Aviv District Court on March 11, 2025. (Yehoshua Yosef/ Flash90)

Police are seeking to extend the detention of Netanyahu aides Jonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein, central suspects in the so-called Qatargate scandal, says a law enforcement spokesman.

The pair will be brought tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. to the Rishon LeZion Magistrate’s Court for a hearing on the police’s request to lengthen their remand.

Police detained Urich and Feldstein for questioning on Monday. They suspect both of having taken money to spread pro-Qatari messaging to reporters, with the goal of boosting the Gulf state’s image as a mediator in hostage talks between Israel and Hamas, while in the prime minister’s employ.

Hamas willing to release all hostages at once for permanent ceasefire, Palestinian official tells ToI

Israelis protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government, calling for a deal to free the hostages near the Knesset in Jerusalem, March 31, 2025.(Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Hamas is prepared to release all of the remaining hostages at once, in exchange for a permanent ceasefire, a senior Palestinian official familiar with the ongoing truce talks tells The Times of Israel.

Amid Israel’s longstanding rejection of this type of trade, Hamas is still prepared to release a number of hostages in exchange for an extension of the temporary ceasefire.

However, it wants guarantees from the mediators that Israel will agree to subsequently enter negotiations for a permanent ceasefire — something Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has, to date, refused to do, the senior Palestinian official says.

Hamas has insisted on sticking to the original terms of the January deal, which envisioned a transition to phase two on March 2. This phase is supposed to see the return of all remaining living hostages in exchange for the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and a permanent end to the war. While Netanyahu signed onto the deal, he has long rejected those latter two clauses of phase two, arguing that this would allow Hamas to remain in power. Accordingly, the Israeli premier has largely refused to hold talks regarding phase two of the deal, which were supposed to begin on February 2. Israel resumed intensive military operations throughout Gaza on March 18.

While Hamas for months had refused to accept proposals to extend phase one of the deal, the senior Palestinian official tells The Times of Israel that the group recently submitted such a proposal.

Asked why Hamas was willing to propose an extension of phase one after long insisting that it would only agree to release additional hostages in phase two, the senior Palestinian official responds, “We had no other choice. The situation in Gaza is terrible” — an apparent indication that Israel’s military pressure and ban on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza have taken a toll.

The senior official said the latest Hamas offer was very similar to the one US special envoy to the Mideast Steve Witkoff presented last month and would secure the release of five Israeli hostages.

However, the proposal also included guarantees from the mediators that Israel would agree to hold talks on the phase two permanent ceasefire once the truce extension is in place.

Smoke billows on the horizon, east of the Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip, following an Israeli strike on April 2, 2025. (Eyad BABA / AFP)

But Israel rejected the latest Hamas offer and countered with its own proposal that demands the release of 11 hostages and does not include a commitment to hold talks on a permanent ceasefire, the Palestinian official says, adding that this was not acceptable to Hamas. “The talks are now at a standstill.”

“The number of hostages is not the issue. If Israel demonstrates its intention to reach a permanent ceasefire, [Hamas is] prepared to release all of the hostages,” the Palestinian official says. “Israel only wants a partial agreement so that it can continue fighting. It wants [Hamas] to give up all the hostages without entering the second phase.”

While Hamas leaders will not agree to leave Gaza or disarm, the group is prepared to cede governing control of the Strip to independent Palestinian technocrats and agree to a years-long truce with Israel that includes “security arrangements,” the senior Palestinian official claims.

Hamas “will never disarm” before a Palestinian state has been created “because [it is] a resistance movement,” the official says.

The senior Palestinian official then calls into question what he describes as the erratic conduct of the Trump administration in the ongoing hostage negotiations, pointing to its willingness to dispatch hostage envoy Adam Boehler to meet directly with Hamas officials earlier this year before abruptly ending those talks, in light of Israeli pushback.

“How can you reach an agreement without speaking directly to [Hamas]? They were willing to do this with the Taliban,” the senior Palestinian official notes.

Witkoff appeared to principally argue in favor of direct talks with anyone the US is dealing with during an interview last month, but he ordered Boehler to halt his talks with Hamas shortly after they were leaked to the media last month, according to a US official familiar with the matter.

The senior Palestinian official says US President Donald Trump is the only one capable of ending the war, but has in the meantime decided to “give Netanyahu a green light to open the gates of hell on Gaza.”

IDF confirms Syrian airstrikes, saying it struck ‘remaining military capabilities’ at Hama military airport, T-4 airbase

The IDF confirms launching a series of airstrikes in Syria in the last hour, saying it struck “remaining military capabilities” at the Hama military airport and T-4 airbase.

The strikes targeted the runways, fuel depots, and radars at the air bases, according to military sources.

Israeli Air Force aircraft also struck “military infrastructure” in the Damascus area, the IDF says. According to Syrian media, the Barzeh scientific research center, just outside Damascus, was hit.

Saudi Arabia blasts Ben Gvir for ‘storming’ Temple Mount

#Statement | The Foreign Ministry expresses the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's condemnation in the strongest terms possible of the Israeli Minister of National Security's storming of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque under the protection of the occupation police and the expulsion of… pic.twitter.com/51ybk1cyZX

— Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦 (@KSAmofaEN) April 2, 2025

Netanyahu: Qatar is not an enemy state; Urich did not have access to classified intel

A day after he released a video accusing police of holding two of his aides “hostage” in the Qatargate investigation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posts a video stressing that Qatar is not an enemy state.

“Qatar is a complex country, not a simple country,” he says. “It’s not an enemy country, and many praise it.”

He defends Jonatan Urich, one of his top aides arrested in the investigation.

“Jonatan is a dedicated employee,” says Netanyahu. “He’s my political adviser in the Likud. He doesn’t have access to any classified intelligence material, but they say he praised Qatar.”

“Do you know who really praised Qatar?” Netanyahu asks.

He points at Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, who praised Doha for their role in hostage talks after meeting a “senior Qatari official” in Paris in January.

National Unity chairman Benny Gantz also praised Qatar many times, says Netanyahu, adding that he flew to Qatar to try to sell spy software for his company Fifth Dimension before he entered politics.

Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, whom Netanyahu is working to fire, visited Qatar many times as part of hostage negotiations, and praised them, Netanyahu points out. He also claims that Bar was a guest of Qatar during the 2022 World Cup.

Netanyahu claims that police are holding Urich in order to coax him to testify against the premier.

“You know why they are doing this,” Netanyahu says. “First of all, in order to prevent the firing of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, whom the government unanimously decided to oust.”

“And, as always, to bring down a right-wing government,” he claims.

“We see you. You’re not fooling anyone.”

The joint police and Shin Bet probe was launched following revelations that Netanyahu’s former spokesman, Eli Feldstein — who has been charged with harming national security in a separate case involving the theft and leaking of classified IDF documents — worked for an international firm contracted by Qatar to feed Israeli journalists pro-Qatar stories, all while employed in the Prime Minister’s Office.

For his part, Urich is suspected of having a role in a convoluted chain of business figures and other officials involved in transferring payments from Doha to cover up their origin.

Israel reportedly striking scientific research center, two airbases in Syria

Syrian media reports Israeli airstrikes in the Damascus area, as well as against two airbases elsewhere in the country.

The Sham TV outlet says strikes were carried out at the Barzeh scientific research center, just outside the capital, as well as against the Hama military airport in western Syria and the T-4 airbase near Palmyra.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF.

غارات اسرائيلية جديدة على مطار حماة pic.twitter.com/tM4ovL3aXn

— Annahar النهار (@Annahar) April 2, 2025

The IDF struck the T-4 base twice in recent weeks, saying it destroyed “strategic military capabilities.”

Turkey has reportedly shown interest in taking over the T-4 base to train the new Syrian army.

Amit Soussana: Government hasn’t internalized what hostages are enduring in Gaza

Amit Soussana, attorney and Israeli hostage survivor of the October 7th, 2023, attack by Hamas, speaks during the International Women of Courage Awards Ceremony at the State Department in Washington, DC, on April 1, 2025. (Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)

Released hostage Amit Soussana laments in a Channel 12 interview that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has not internalized what the remaining hostages are going through in Gaza.

Speaking after winning the State Department’s 2025 International Award for Women yesterday, Soussana says it was hard for her to see the Trump administration’s commitment to the plight of the hostages, only to get back to her hotel after the ceremony and see that the IDF was further intensifying its military operations in Gaza, putting the hostages at risk.

The Israeli government is supposed to understand the plight of the hostages better than any other government, and yet it is acting against their interests, Soussana says.

“I don’t want want to imagine what they’re feeling there,” Soussana says, adding that the hope that the government is working to secure their release is the only thing that keeps hostages going and realizing that they are not being freed after two hostage deals breaks the heart of those left behind.

“To survive for so many days only to be killed by bombing, specifically by the IDF, breaks the heart,” Soussana says.

She reveals that Netanyahu has not reached out to her since she came forward in March 2024 about the sexual assault she endured while in captivity, and that, other than the foreign minister, no one from the government has.

Soussana says she thought coming forward would change the government’s approach, “but in practice, it didn’t change anything.”

IDF intercepts two rockets launched from northern Gaza at Sderot

Two rockets launched from the northern Gaza Strip at Sderot were intercepted by air defenses, the military says.

There are no reports of injuries or damage in the attack.

Palestinians say one killed in Israeli raid on West Bank

The Palestinian Authority health ministry says that one man was killed during a raid in the West Bank by Israel’s military, which did not confirm the killing.

“The young man, Hamza Muhammad Saeed Khammash (33 years old), was shot and killed by occupation (Israeli) forces in the Old City of Nablus,” the ministry says in a statement.

Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military says “the incident is under review.”

Official Palestinian news agency Wafa reports that Israeli forces arrested three people, including Khammash’s brother during the raid.

An AFP journalist reports that hundreds of Palestinians marched through the narrow streets of Nablus’s Old City for Khammash’s funeral earlier today.

Khammash’s body was covered in a Palestinian flag and his head wrapped in a keffiyeh scarf as men carried him through the streets ahead of crying relatives including his mother.

Since the start of the Gaza war, violence has soared in the West Bank.

Israeli troops or settler attacks have killed at least 915 Palestinians in the West Bank since then, according to the PA health ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Israel is in the midst of a months-long counter terror campaign in the West Bank.

Palestinian attacks and clashes during military raids have killed at least 32 Israelis, including soldiers, over the same period, according to official figures.

Rocket sirens triggered in Sderot, nearby towns; IDF says it’s investigating

Rocket sirens are sounding in the southern city of Sderot and nearby towns, close to the border with the Gaza Strip.

The IDF says it is looking into the details.

Qatari lobbyist reportedly used WhatsApp group to coordinate with Netanyahu aides

After Israeli businessman Gil Birger revealed that Qatari lobbyist Jay Footlik had asked him to pay Netanyahu aide Eli Feldstein for his work on behalf of Qatar, Feldstein insisted that the funds were actually for his work for the Prime Minister’s Office.

However, Channel 12 reveals the existence of a WhatsApp group between Footlik, Feldstein and Yisrael Einhorn — Urich’s partner at a PR firm who also served as a campaign adviser for Netanyahu.

The group was used by Footlik to coordinate Feldstein and Einhorn’s PR work to boost Qatar’s image, the network says.

This would appear to contradict Feldstein’s claim that his only connection to foreign agents for Qatar was payment for his work in the Prime Minister’s Office.

The revelation also calls into question claims that Footlik did not know that Feldstein, Urich, and Einhorn worked for the Prime Minister’s Office, when the three of them — of all possible PR agents — were chosen for this job to boost Qatar’s image.

Channel 12 says it is not clear how intense the communication between Footlik and Netanyahu’s aides was.

Kan reports that police are in contact with Footlik about reaching him in the US in order to question him regarding his role in Qatargate. Footlik has agreed to be questioned and the interrogation is expected to take place soon, Kan says.

Meanwhile, Jerusalem Post editor Zvika Klein was released to a five-day house arrest following his interrogation today. Klein is suspected of illicit ties with a foreign agent.

According to Channel 12, Klein told investigators that his ties to Qatari officials were forged through his work at the Jerusalem Post. The paper hosted a conference to which a Qatari diplomat was invited. Subsequently, he flew to Qatar in order to interview Qatari officials as part of his journalistic work, Klein told interrogators.

After Urich, Feldstein gave contradicting Qatargate testimonies, police reportedly interrogating them together

Earlier today, police held separate interrogations of the two main suspects — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s top aides, Jonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein, — along with two others implicated in the case, Israeli businessman Gil Birger and Jerusalem Post editor Tzvika Klein, Channel 12 reports.

Subsequently, police held a joint interrogation with Feldstein and Urich after realizing that the two were giving contradicting testimonies regarding their ties to Qatar.

Police will then determine whether to release the pair to house arrest later tonight or request that their remand be further extended during a hearing tomorrow at the Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court.

During his own questioning yesterday, Netanyahu insisted to police that he did not know that his top aides were simultaneously working for Qatar.

Police are working to verify Netanyahu’s assertion during their questioning of Urich and Feldtsein.

Russian, Iranian deputy foreign ministers discuss negotiations on Tehran’s nuclear program

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht Ravanchi discussed ongoing negotiations regarding Tehran’s nuclear program with Russian counterpart Sergei Ryabkov, the Russian Foreign Ministry says.

The sides addressed joint steps to stabilize the situation and “reduce the tensions artificially and unreasonably inflamed by Western countries.”

The ministry says that using military force against Iran and threatening to strike its nuclear infrastructure would be “illegal and unacceptable” as they would cause “large-scale and irreversible radiological and humanitarian consequences” for the Middle East and the world.

Earlier this year, the Kremlin offered to mediate between the United States and Iran, with which Moscow signed a strategic partnership treaty in January.

US President Donald Trump, in his first remarks since Iran rejected direct negotiations with Washington, told NBC News over the weekend that Tehran could face bombing and secondary tariffs if it did not reach an agreement over its nuclear program.

IDF says it struck 50 terror sites in Gaza last night, ahead of major ground op in southern Strip

Overnight, the Israeli Air Force carried out strikes on over 50 sites belonging to Hamas and other terror groups, ahead of a major ground push into the southern Gaza Strip, the military says.

During the day, dozens more strikes were carried out across Gaza, according to the IDF.

The goal of the latest offensive in southern Gaza is to surround Rafah and establish the so-called Morag Corridor, located between Rafah and Khan Younis.

The area between Rafah and Khan Younis is one of the few locations in Gaza where ground troops have not yet operated.

The IDF issued evacuation warnings for Palestinians in the area, ahead of the offensive.

Meanwhile, in the Strip’s north, the IDF says it operating to expand its buffer zone along the border.

The military stresses that the ultimate goal of the new ground push in southern Gaza’s Rafah is to pressure Hamas to release the hostages, as IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said this evening.

Responding to ex-hostage interview, Herzog says Israel has ‘no luxury’ for internal conflict

President Isaac Herzog issues a video message on March 20, 2025. (Screenshot/ President’s Residence)

President Isaac Herzog calls for increased national unity and strong action to ensure the return of hostages in Gaza after viewing yesterday’s interview with freed captive Eliya Cohen.

On a visit to Tiberias, Herzog calls Cohen’s interview “deeply unsettling” and says that “we must be united and do everything in our power to bring [the remaining hostages] back,” according to a readout from his office.

“I believe in the people of Israel. I believe in our cohesion and unity,” says the president, while meeting with the city’s local youth, adding that “we have no privilege, no luxury, to fight among ourselves.”

Cohen, who was held captive by Hamas terrorists for 505 days, said yesterday that Hamas-led terrorists intentionally starved him, and that they killed another captive who tried to escape as they were being taken to Gaza on October 7, 2023.

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in recent weeks to demonstrate against the government and demand the return of the 59 hostages still held in Gaza following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to resume fighting in Gaza and his moves to fire the head of the Shin Bet and attorney general.

Amid growing societal tensions and strong statements from officials on both sides of the political spectrum, Herzog says he “utterly reject[s] any thought of civil war,” and that “we must act responsibly and call on all our public representatives to lower the tone and behave responsibly as well.”

“We have a sacred mission: to safeguard Israel and not slide into division or the disasters that have struck our people in generations past,” says the president.

Herzog says that returning the hostages must be placed as the “highest priority,” and that doing so is “a deeply significant foundation in the psychology of our people, a nation that dreams, prays, and yearns to see our sisters and brothers return home.”

During his visit, Herzog visited the tomb of major Jewish scholar Maimonides, where he prayed for the swift return of the hostages, the safety and success of IDF soldiers, and for the memory of those who fell or were murdered during the ongoing war, the President’s Office says.

‘No contradiction between Torah and army service,’ says bereaved father at rally for enlistment

Bereaved father Hagay Lober speaks at rally for universal enlistment in Jerusalem on April 2, 2025. (Rossella Tercatin/Times of Israel)

“There is no contradiction between Torah and army service,” bereaved father Hagay Lober says in an emotional speech at a rally demanding universal enlistment in the IDF, calling for all citizens to share the burden of military service.

The initiative is promoted by bereaved families and leading reservist organizations, including El HaDegel, the Forum of Reservist Wives, Shotafut LeSherut, and the Religious Zionist Forum of Reservists.

Lober’s son reserve Staff Sergeant Elisha Yehonatan Lober was killed during fighting in Gaza in December 2023.

“Look at the picture of my son,” he said, holding the photograph high as he spoke. “He has a beard. He has peyot. He was a man of Torah.”

Hamas warns those who ‘spread chaos’ following killing of its police officer

A Gaza family’s open admission this week that they killed an officer from the Hamas-run police force after they said a relative was shot dead has added to signs of popular dissent against the terror group after 18 months of war with Israel.

It has now also drawn a warning from the Hamas-run interior ministry that it will not tolerate actions that undermine public order.

“We will not allow any party to spread chaos in Gaza Strip or take the law into its hands,” Hamas says in a statement, adding that it had begun measures to bring those involved to justice.

In a separate statement, Hamas says the killing of the officer was a crime that only “serves Zionist goals in breaking the internal Palestinian front and spreads chaos and anarchy.”

Hamas deployed thousands of police and security forces across Gaza after a ceasefire in January, but its armed presence has sharply reduced since Israel’s large scale attacks have resumed in the past weeks.

Military confrontation seems inevitable if no new Iran nuclear deal, France says

The window to reach a new deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program is narrow and if it is not achieved, then a military confrontation seems “almost inevitable,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot says.

“We only have a few months until the expiration of this (2015) accord,” he tells a parliamentary hearing. “In case of failure, a military confrontation would seem to be almost inevitable.”

Barrot adds that new European Union sanctions on Iran linked to the detention of foreign citizens in the Islamic Republic would also be approved in the coming weeks.

Minister: Unlike Israeli ultra-Orthodox, Haredim who make aliyah serve in the army

Immigration and Absorption Minister Ofir Sofer welcoming new immigrants at Ben Gurion airport, August 1, 2024. (Tomer Neuberg/ Flash90)

While Israeli Haredim refuse to serve in the army, ultra-Orthodox men who move to Israel do enlist, Aliyah Minister Ofir Sofer tells The Times of Israel, at a march in Jerusalem demanding universal enlistment.

“I am here to support one of the most important moves that we need to make in this time,” Sofer says.

The rally takes place during a time of deep social and political crisis, as the ultra-Orthodox community refuses to relinquish the blanket military exemptions its young men have received for decades.

Asked what the government is planning on doing, Sofer says that “we need to find a way to increase the number of soldiers and especially combat soldiers.”

Sofer is a member of the Religious Zionism party, a group that aspires to represent the values of the national religious community in Israel, which tends to be disproportionately present in combat units, and many in the community also devote time to Torah studies.

In June, the High Court of Justice ruled that the exemptions could no longer be extended to Haredi youth studying in yeshiva and that the IDF must begin drafting Haredi 18-year-olds. However, ultra-Orthodox parties — key members of the governing coalition — have resisted any compromise to implement the ruling. The government has shown little political will to solve the issue.

Most of those who attend the march in Jerusalem sport knitted kippahs and colorful head coverings that are typically worn by national religious community members.

“I am here first of all to stand with our people, especially with the bereaved families,” Sofer says.

He acknowledges that Haredim abroad have a very different approach to the issue.

“Those who make aliyah do enlist,” he says. “It’s a different type of Haredim.”

“I believe that we can find a solution to the problem, and we will,” he adds.

US sanctions Russia-based network for helping Yemen’s Houthis

The United States has imposed sanctions on Russia-based people and entities working to help procure weapons and commodities — including stolen Ukrainian grain — for Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis, the Treasury Department says.

The operatives, who included Russia-based Afghan businessman Hushang Ghairat and his brother, Russia-based Afghan businessman Sohrab Ghairat, helped senior Houthi official Sa’id al-Jamal, procure millions of dollars’ worth of commodities from Russia for shipment to Houthi-controlled Yemen, Treasury says.

The goods included weapons and sensitive goods, as well as stolen Ukrainian grain, the department says in a statement.

“The Houthis remain reliant on Sa’id al-Jamal and his network to procure critical goods to supply the group’s terrorist war machine,” says Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “Today’s action underscores our commitment to degrading the Houthis’ ability to threaten the region through their destabilizing activities.”

IDF chief visiting Rafah: The only thing that can stop us from advancing is release of hostages

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir (center) and Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar (right) during an assessment in southern Gaza's Rafah, April 2, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and soon-to-be ousted Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar visited troops in the Tel Sultan neighborhood of southern Gaza’s Rafah today, as the military expanded its offensive against Hamas.

During the visit, Zamir says that “the only thing that can stop us from advancing is the release of our hostages.”

Bar says that “Hamas will continue to pay the price as long as the 59 hostages are not returned.”

After meeting PM, rebel Otzma Yehudit MK said to accept deputy ministerial post in exchange for Knesset resignation

Otzma Yehudit MK Almog Cohen attends a meeting of the Knesset Labor and Welfare Committee, January 8, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/ Flash90)

After meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, rebel Otzma Yehudit MK Almog Cohen has reportedly accepted an unspecified deputy ministerial position so that he can resign as a lawmaker under the so-called Norwegian Law, Hebrew media reports.

Such a move removes Cohen from the Knesset, allowing the return of former Religious Zionism MK Zvi Sukkot, and preventing the planned resignation of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich — who on Tuesday announced he would reclaim his own Knesset seat — pushing out Otzma Yehudit lawmaker Yitzhak Kroizer.

Smotrich’s tactical move was set to see him swiftly reappointed to the role, with the Knesset scheduled to vote on his resignation and reappointment on Wednesday evening.

When Otzma Yehudit’s Amichai Eliyahu became heritage minister in 2023, Kroizer became an MK under the Norwegian Law, which allows ministers and deputy ministers from large factions to resign from the Knesset and for their seats to be filled by the next member on the party list. Otzma Yehudit and Religious Zionism ran on a joint slate in the 2022 national election but subsequently split — largely due to personal disagreements between their two far-right chairmen.

When Otzma Yehudit quit the coalition in January over the government’s approval of a ceasefire-hostage release deal, Eliyahu’s resignation from the cabinet forced the ouster of Sukkot, who held a lower spot on the two parties’ joint electoral list than Kroizer.

Following Otzma Yehudit’s return to the coalition, none of its ministers resigned under the Norwegian Law in order to bring back Sukkot, angering Religious Zionism, which accused Otzma Yehudit of violating an agreement between the parties.

Since returning to the coalition, Otzma Yehudit had been pressuring Cohen to accept a deputy ministerial position in order to remove him from the Knesset, something he had initially rejected outright.

In a WhatsApp message to The Times of Israel last week, Cohen dismissed the idea of accepting such a role, stating that “jobs and positions are less interesting to me.”

Responding to reports of Netanyahu’s meeting with Cohen, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid condemned the possible creation of “another unnecessary and fabricated political job that will cost millions at the expense of citizens who pay taxes and serve in the reserves.”

According to Channel 12, Cohen’s appointment as a deputy minister will cost taxpayers an estimated NIS 3.4 million ($918,000).

PM: IDF seizing ‘2nd Philadelphi’ route, cutting off Rafah from Khan Younis to squeeze Hamas into freeing hostages

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a video statement on April 2, 2025. (Screen capture)

Israel is “shifting gears” in Gaza and creating a “second Philadelphi” route, says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, referring to the corridor on the Gaza-Egypt border.

IDF forces are seizing the “Morag axis,” says Netanyahu. The route, which separates Rafah from Khan Younis to its north, is located where the Israeli settlement once stood before it was evacuated during Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from Gaza.

Netanyahu has made continued Israeli control of the Philadelphi route a top priority in the ongoing ceasefire negotiations, insisting that IDF withdrawal from the corridor will allow for the smuggling of weapons into the Strip. Nonetheless, he agreed as part of the January hostage deal to fully withdraw Israeli troops from the Philadelphi Corridor by the 50th day of the deal — a clause Israel has gone on to violate. Israeli troops remain in the corridor and have expanded their presence there as well.

The move is part of an escalating IDF military campaign to press Hamas into accepting Israeli terms for a ceasefire and hostage release deal, Netanyahu says.

Israel is pushing forward from the north and south, evacuating civilians toward central Gaza.

“We are now cutting off the Strip and we are increasing the pressure step by step… so they will give us our hostages. The longer they refuse to give them up, the more the pressure will increase until they do,” Netanyahu says.

‘We are tired of waiting for the next call-up notice,’ reservist wife says at rally for universal enlistment

Yael and one-year-old daughter Atalia take part in rally for universal military enlistment in Jerusalem on April 2, 2025. (Rossella Tercatin/Times of Israel)

Speaking with The Times of Israel at a march demanding ultra-Orthodox conscription, a young mother expresses her frustration at the current situation that sees tens of thousands of eligible ultra-Orthodox men refusing to serve in the IDF.

“My husband is in his third round of service,” says Yael from Or Yehuda, as she holds her one-year-old Atalia.

“He was away in the last months of my pregnancy and after our baby was born, Yael adds. “Everyone needs to enlist so that there are more people who can take turns in serving.”

Several thousand people join the march as it leaves Mount Herzl in the direction of the Knesset. The march is promoted by bereaved families and leading reservist organizations, including El HaDegel, the Forum of Reservist Wives, Shotafut LeSherut, and the Religious Zionist Forum of Reservists.

The rally takes place amid a deep social and political crisis, as the ultra-Orthodox community refuses to relinquish the blanket military exemptions its young men have received for decades.

In June, the High Court of Justice ruled that these exemptions could no longer be extended and that the IDF must begin drafting military-age Haredi men. However, ultra-Orthodox parties — key members of the governing coalition — have resisted any compromise to implement the ruling.

The government, for its part, has shown little political will to resolve the issue, even as Israel remains embroiled in a prolonged war triggered by Hamas’s brutal October 7 attack. With the IDF stretched thin on multiple fronts, the demand for soldiers, especially in combat positions, has significantly increased in the past 18 months.

Polish member of EU parliament sanctioned for disrupting moment of silence for Holocaust victims

A Polish MEP who disrupted a moment of silence for victims of the Holocaust at the European Union Parliament has been suspended from plenary activity for 30 days.

During the official Holocaust commemoration at the European Parliament on January 29, Grzegorz Braun of the far-right Confederation party disrupted the moment of silence by yelling twice in English, “Let’s pray for the victims of the Jewish genocide in Gaza.”

“Let’s pray for the victims of the Jewish genocide in Gaza.”

Poland’s MEP, Grzegorz Braun, was expelled from the EU Parliament today for daring to speak these words—calling out the hypocrisy and double standards of its members. pic.twitter.com/I7Fj0pwadd

— sarah (@sahouraxo) January 29, 2025

At the time, Braun was expelled from the chamber when the moment of silence ended — a decision that was applauded by participants.

EU President Roberta Metsola has now also imposed a 30-day penalty on Braun, saying his disruptive actions and improper behavior “inflicted severe damage on the dignity and reputation of parliament.” Braun is suspended from participating in all plenary activities of parliament and has forfeited his daily subsistence allowance. The penalty, which went into effect on March 10, was publicly announced yesterday.

Braun was also suspended from participating in next year’s International Holocaust Remembrance Day memorial session at the European Parliament, the announcement says.

The outburst was not the first for Braun in a diplomatic forum. In December 2023, he disrupted a Hanukkah event at the Polish parliament, taking a fire extinguisher to the menorah candles and forcing security guards to rush people out of the area.

Mass protest calling for Hamas’s ouster, end to the war held in Gaza’s Beit Lahiya

A mass protest is being held amid the ruins of northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya, with crowds seen filling the streets, calling for the removal of Hamas and an end to the war.

The anti-Hamas protests were held for three consecutive days last week before appearing to die down amid reports that the terror group was threatening — and even killing — those who participated in the demonstrations.

למרות המקרים של הוצאה להורג של מפגינים בידי חמאס – בהפגנה בבית לאהיא: נשמעות קריאות "חמאס החוצה, החוצה" pic.twitter.com/CFbP2A0KXT

— ספיר ליפקין | Sapir Lipkin | سابير ليبكين (@sapirlipkin) April 2, 2025

New massive anti-Hamas demonstrations in northern Gaza are demanding an end to the war that the terror group started. They want Hamas to step down and "get out" – Men, women, the elderly, children, and wounded folks came out, desperate to make their voices heard! pic.twitter.com/pqWZJixeym

— Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib (@afalkhatib) April 2, 2025

Sa’ar says PA’s payment to terrorists and other policies prevent trust in governing body

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar meets with UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Sigrid Kaag in Jerusalem, April 2, 2025. (Mordechai Gordon/Foreign Ministry)

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar says in a meeting with UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Sigrid Kaag that financial support provided by the Palestinian Authority to families of terrorists, as well as other policies, prevent reliable cooperation with the organization.

“The Palestinian Authority must stop payments to terrorists,” Sa’ar tells Kaag in Jerusalem, adding that the PA’s “current patterns of action do not allow for trust in it,” according to Sa’ar’s office.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas did sign a decree in February canceling legislation that conditioned payments to Palestinian security prisoners on the length of their sentence — a policy dubbed by critics as “pay-to-slay.”

The old system has remained in place in the two rounds of payments since the decree was signed, but a Palestinian official familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel this month that this is because those stipends were for months that preceded the decree.

Sa’ar emphasized during the meeting that the PA must “cease incitement — especially within the education system, mosques, and media — and halt the legal warfare it conducts against Israel in international forums,” the Foreign Ministry says in a statement.

The meeting also focused on the ongoing war in Gaza and the likelihood of reaching a hostage deal, as well as IDF counter-terror operations in the West Bank, says the minister’s office.

205 out of 10,000: Just 2% of Haredi call-ups have enlisted since High Court struck down their exemptions

Only two percent of all the ultra-Orthodox men who have been called up for service since the High Court struck down their exemptions from military service last year have actually joined the Israeli army, a senior IDF official tell lawmakers.

The IDF sent out 10,000 initial draft orders to members of the Haredi community in several waves between July 2024 and March 2025.

Addressing the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Lt. Col. Avigdor Dickstein, head of the Haredi branch of the IDF’s Personnel Directorate, states that out of 10,000 people who have received conscription orders, just 205 actually enlisted.

Arrest warrants have been issued for 1,096 who ignored their second draft orders. The IDF Military Police does not plan to actually carry out arrests, but will instead wait until they are declared “draft evaders” by the IDF’s Personnel Directorate and leave it to law enforcement.

After receiving an arrest warrant, those recruits will receive an immediate call-up order, and if they ignore it, they will be declared as draft evaders. The consequences of being declared a draft evader include receiving a “no exit order” — barring recipients from leaving the country. In addition, such individuals can be arrested in any police encounter.

In total, 1,721 Haredim have joined the army since the beginning of the current recruitment cycle last year, according to Dickstein. Currently, approximately 66,000 Haredi men between the ages of 18 and 24 are eligible for military service but have not enlisted.

Addressing the committee, Rabbi Jeremy Stavistki, the former principal of Jerusalem’s Himmelfarb School, says that if the committee does not pass an enlistment law mandating sanctions on draft dodgers, “people will not refuse [to report for reserve duty], their wives simply will not let them come.”

“Who would let their husband leave for a third or fourth time? This would collapse the reserve system and we all know that without reservists, there is no army.”

The Himmelfarb High School is among the most prominent academies in Israel for religious Zionists, ten of whose graduates have fallen in the Gaza war. Stavistki’s own son-in-law, Sgt. First Class (res.) Yinon Fleishman, was killed in a tank accident on the northern border on October 29, 2023.

While Dickstein and Stavistki address the committee, hundreds of Israelis march outside the Knesset building, demanding universal enlistment in the IDF and calling for all citizens to share the burden of military service.

Bar association demands Hadad explain how it’s not a conflict of interest for him to simultaneously represent PM and his aides

From left to right: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's adviser Jonatan Urich (Avshalom Sassoni); Netanyahu's attorney Amit Hadad (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90); former Netanyahu aide Yisrael Einhorn (KAN screenshot).

The Israel Bar Association’s ethics committee sent a letter to Amit Hadad demanding that he justify his decision to represent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the same time he is representing two other individuals involved in the Qatargate probe — Netanyahu’s top aide Jonathan Urich and another adviser Yisrael Einhorn, Einhorn reports.

The panel asks Hadad to explain how there isn’t a conflict of interest in representing all three of them at the same time, given that they’re all involved in the ongoing investigation into Netanyahu’s office’s allegedly illicit ties to Qatar. Of the three, only Urich is currently a suspect, though, and he’s currently under arrest.

The IBA’s bylaws bar members from representing a client “if there is a concern that he will not be able to fulfill his professional duty to him” or due to “an obligation or duty of loyalty that he has towards another.” The bylaws also bar a lawyer from representing “parties with conflicting interests in the same matter.”

During Netanyahu’s separate corruption trial on Monday morning, Hadad left the Tel Aviv courthouse to assist Urich after the latter was arrested in the Qatargate probe.

Hadad asked the court to cancel Netanyahu’s testimony planned for Tuesday in order to be present for Urich — a request that was accepted.

Last November, it was reported that Urich and Einhorn did public relations work for Qatar ahead of the 2022 World Cup as part of the latter’s PR firm Perception, corresponding to the start date of the probe’s time frame.

Police have been seeking to question Einhorn, who now resides in Serbia as an adviser to the country’s President Aleksandar Vučić, as part of the investigation but have struggled due to his living abroad.

Sa’ar flies to Paris to meet with counterpart on Iran, regional threats

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar will depart to Paris today to discuss Iran and other regional issues with his French counterpart, according to the Foreign Ministry.

Sa’ar will meet with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot about regional developments in Iran, Lebanon and Syria, says Sa’ar’s office in a statement.

Yesterday, Sa’ar said that during his Paris visit he will focus on “the challenges and threats of the radical axis in this region to all of us, mainly Iran.”

The foreign minister will also address “the situation in Gaza and the hostages, as well as bilateral relations” between Israel and France, according to today’s statement.

Sa’ar will also meet with senior officials in the French government and with French Jewish community leaders, the Foreign Ministry adds.

Earlier today, Sa’ar met with Secretary-General of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Mathias Cormann, and stressed that regional stability is tied to “defeating the radical axis led by Iran,” including preventing Iranian nuclear development and US attacks on the Iran-backed Houthis, “who harm the freedom of navigation and international trade,” according to a statement from Sa’ar’s office.

Tesla shares tumble after disappointing Q1 auto sales

Tesla shares sank around five percent early today after the electric car maker released lackluster sales figures, as US markets opened lower awaiting details on US President Donald Trump’s latest tariff plans.

Around five minutes into trading, Tesla shares were down about five percent while the S&P 500 was off 0.9 percent. Trump is expected to announce details of the tariffs later Wednesday.

This year’s Ramadan sees 80% drop in terror attacks — IDF

The IDF and Shin Bet report a significant decrease in terrorist attacks in the West Bank during Ramadan, with an 80% drop compared to last year, according to a joint statement.

Security forces arrested 401 wanted suspects, eliminated 13 terrorists and seized 105 weapons during Ramadan this year as part of ongoing counterterrorism operations, the statement details.

According to the statement, last Ramadan saw 27 major attacks originating from the West Bank, while this year, only three occurred, attributed to intensified security efforts.

The IDF and the Shin Bet say that they will continue operations to prevent further threats and ensure the safety of Israeli citizens.

Report: Netanyahu twice asked Shin Bet to act against political opponents

Lawyer Amit Hadad speaks to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the courtroom of Tel Aviv District Court, March 31, 2025. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has twice reportedly asked the Shin Bet to act against political opponents.

The first incident took place in 2014, Israeli reporter Ben Caspit says on 103FM radio.

Netanyahu called then-Shin Bet chief Yoram Cohen and told him that he had information that then-security cabinet minister Naftali Bennett had been kicked out of the elite Sayeret Matkal unit. Netanyahu told Cohen to verify if the information was true and revoke Bennett’s security clearance — a move that would have likely ended Bennett’s career. Cohen refused Netanyahu’s request.

Last month, Cohen told Channel 12 that Netanyahu had asked him more than once during his tenure to carry out “illegitimate acts” and voiced concern that the next head of the security agency would not stand up to him in the face of such demands.

A second incident in which Netanyahu asked the Shin Bet to intervene in political affairs came in 2019, according to Caspit. It was the eve of the Knesset election and Netanyahu realized his right-wing bloc would not have enough seats to form a coalition due to the strong performance by then-Blue and White party chair Benny Gantz.

Netanyahu phoned then-Shin Bet chief Nadav Argaman and demanded that he declare Gantz unfit to be prime minister due to reports that the Blue and White chief’s phone had been allegedly hacked by Iranian operatives. Argaman refused, Caspit says.

Ramat Hasharon mall ordered to close on Saturdays, drawing outcry from secular lawmakers

After the legal adviser to the Ramat Hasharon municipality declares that the BIG Fashion Glilot mall must legally remain closed on Saturdays, the Jewish sabbath, both local and national secular politicians declare their support for keeping the shopping center open.

Mayor Yitzhak Rochberger declares that “Ramat Hasharon is a free city that respects the lifestyles of all its residents” and that his administration intends to take steps to allow the mall to remain open and to “promote a policy document to protect the right of all its residents to live their lives according to their own path and faith.”

In a letter, legal adviser Micha Blum writes that municipal inspectors must enforce the law and will be empowered to fine businesses at the mall this coming weekend.

“There is no need to close BIG in Ramat Hasharon on Shabbat, just like there is no need to open a shopping mall in Bnei Brak on Shabbat,” tweets Opposition Leader Yair Lapid. “Live and let live. Stop interfering in the lives of secular people, there is no reason in the world to close the complex on Shabbat.”

“Labor laws in the State of Israel are not a recommendation, they are a civil obligation to preserve the rights of workers. The Working Hours and Rest Law in the State of Israel clearly states that it is strictly forbidden to employ Jewish workers on Shabbat without a special permit,” counters Labor Minister Yoav Ben-Tzur, a member of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party.

“I will not let monopolies exploit workers from disadvantaged populations in violation of the law. Accordingly, the Enforcement Division at the Ministry of Labor has increased enforcement. As Minister of Labor, my policy is clear and firm. In the Jewish state, neither the Sabbath nor the rights of workers will be trampled underfoot.”

After infiltration siren sounded in Gaza border town, IDF says incident over

After sirens warning of a suspected drone infiltration sounded in the Gaza border community of Kissufim, the IDF says the incident over, without elaborating.

8 said killed in IDF strike on UNRWA clinic in Jabalia; army says site used by terrorists

Palestinian media reports at least eight dead in an Israeli airstrike on a UNRWA clinic in northern Gaza’s Jabalia this afternoon.

The military says the site was being used by terror operatives as a command center to plan attacks, as well as a meeting point.

Liberman says police must act against Haredi leaders encouraging draft evasion

Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman calls on police to enforce laws prohibiting the encouragement of draft evasion against senior Haredi leaders, including former Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef and Rabbi Dov Lando, the chairman of the Degel HaTorah party’s ruling Council of Torah Sages.

Alongside the Hasidic Agudat Yisrael, Degel Hatorah is one of two factions comprising the coalition’s United Torah Judaism party.

Lando, the 94-year old spiritual leader of the so-called Lithuanian stream of ultra-Orthodoxy, “ordered yeshiva students not to report to the recruitment offices” while Yosef “called for draft orders to be torn up and thrown down the toilet, [while] at the same time, dozens of demonstrations and calls for evasion are taking place,” Liberman tweets.

Citing clauses in the Israeli penal code stipulating that a person inciting others to evade service during wartime is liable to a prison term of 15 years, Liberman calls on law enforcement “to act in accordance with the law, and not to evade its enforcement.”

In response, UTJ MK Yaakov Asher suggests “that if difficulties arise for the Israel Police in enforcing the matter, it would be possible to use the good services of the KGB.”

Hundreds of Israelis march to demand all citizens share burden of IDF service

Hundreds of Israelis join a march in Jerusalem demanding universal enlistment in the IDF, promoted by bereaved families and leading reservist organizations, on April 2, 2025. (Screenshot from El HaDegel Livestream on Facebook)

Hundreds of Israelis join a march demanding universal enlistment in the IDF, calling for all citizens to share the burden of military service. The initiative is promoted by bereaved families and leading reservist organizations, including El HaDegel, the Forum of Reservist Wives, Shotafut LeSherut, and the Religious Zionist Forum of Reservists.

“This march is meant to show our elected officials that the Zionist bloc, which serves Israel unconditionally, knows how to unite in ensuring the country has a strong army where everyone plays a part,” Lt. Col. (res.) Yitzhaki Glick, co-founder of El HaDegel said in a statement ahead of the march.

The march began at the Castel National Heritage Site, a strategic hill west of Jerusalem that saw some of the fiercest battles of the Independence War.

The rally takes place amid a deep social and political crisis, as the ultra-Orthodox community refuses to relinquish the blanket military exemptions its young men have received for decades. In June, the High Court of Justice ruled that these exemptions could no longer be extended and that the IDF must begin drafting Haredi 18-year-olds. However, ultra-Orthodox parties — key members of the governing coalition — have resisted any compromise to implement the ruling.

The government, for its part, has shown little political will to resolve the issue, even as Israel remains embroiled in a prolonged war triggered by Hamas’s brutal October 7, 2023, attack. With the IDF stretched thin on multiple fronts, the demand for soldiers, especially in combat positions, has significantly intensified in the past 18 months.

Currently, approximately 66,000 Haredi men between the ages of 18 and 24 have secured exemptions from military service.

“My son Saadia believed that God entrusted him with guarding his people, his city, and his land,” says bereaved mother Laly Derai, who has become a prominent face of the movement promoting equal enlistment since her son fell in Gaza in June 2024. “I continue in his path, marching with bereaved families, reservists, and their families.”

“Everyone is needed! The people of Israel expect it from you; our beloved land cries out for your protection, and our beloved Torah needs you!” she adds, in a direct appeal to the ultra-Orthodox men who have been avoiding serving in the military.

Sirens warning of drone infiltration sound in Gaza border community

Sirens warning of a suspected drone infiltration sound in the Gaza border community of Kissufim.

The IDF says it is looking into the incident.

‘Where were you?’: Bereaved families shout at army officials as Nova probe presented

The abandoned site of the Supernova music festival, near Kibbutz Re'im, where Hamas terrorists murdered and abducted numerous partygoers, October 12, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Chaos erupted today at the Expo Tel Aviv, where the IDF is meeting with the families of victims of the Nova party massacre to present them with the results of its investigation into events at the doomed rave.

Hundreds of young Israelis were mowed down at the party by terrorists on October 7, 2023, amid acts of sexual assault and other brutalities.

Media reports bereaved family members shouted at army representatives at the meeting. Some rejected the probe as unserious, while others accused the army of hiding details and trying to cover up the extent of the its failures.

Cries included “Where were you?” and “Liars” as well as “You haven’t given us answers for two and a half hours!”

Ofir Dor, the father of victim Idan Dor, tells Channel 12: “They came with a very general investigation, without going into details. I didn’t expect more. When I arrived, I said in advance that the presentation of the investigation would last five minutes, because this was the first time the parents could express themselves and say what was on their minds. It lasted five minutes, and then the shouting began. Also cries of anguish and weeping.”

The results of the probe are expected to be made public tomorrow.

Hamas says Ben Gvir’s Temple Mount visit is ‘dangerous escalation’

Hamas condemns the visit today by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir to the Temple Mount compound in Jerusalem, calling it a “provocative and dangerous escalation.”

In a statement, the terror group calls for Palestinians “and our youth in the West Bank to escalate their confrontation… in defense of our land and our sanctities, foremost among them the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.”

Hungary likely to withdraw from ICC during Netanyahu’s visit

File: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban holds a copy of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's memoir on November 3, 2022. (Viktor Orban/Twitter)

Hungary is expected to announce during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit this week that it is withdrawing from the International Criminal Court, The Times of Israel has learned.

It will be Netanyahu’s first trip to Europe since the ICC last year issued an arrest warrant for him and then-defense minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip, meaning that countries party to the Rome Statute — which include Hungary — would be obliged to take him into custody.

Netanyahu will meet tomorrow with Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who in November rejected the ICC decision to seek Netanyahu’s arrest and invited him to make an official visit without the fear of being detained.

Neither Israel nor the United States are party to the court, and the warrant has no enforcement mechanism, with the ICC instead relying on cooperation from its member states. ICC member countries are required to act on the court’s arrest warrants but have not always done so.

IDF says it struck Hamas terror operatives in Jabalia command center

The IDF and Shin Bet say they carried out a strike on Hamas terror operatives in the Jabalia area a short time ago.

“The operatives were in a command and control compound that served as terror infrastructure and as a central meeting point for the terrorist organization,” according to their joint statement.

“Additionally, the building was used by the Jabalia Battalion to advance [attacks] plans against Israeli civilians and IDF forces,” they add.

The military says various measures were taken ahead of the strikes to minimize the risk to civilians, including intelligence gathering and aerial surveillance.

Gantz says appointing temporary Shin Bet head during war indicates ‘lack of judgment’

National Unity party head MK Benny Gantz leads a faction meeting at the Knesset, March 24, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

National Unity chairman Benny Gantz slams Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his announcement that the deputy head of the security agency will serve as its acting head instead of the incumbent, Ronen Bar, until a permanent chief is appointed.

“The very notion of ​​appointing an acting head of the Shin Bet and changing the person in the position without an orderly transition during a time of war indicates a lack of judgment on the part of the prime minister and a preference for personal interests over national security,” Gantz posts on X.

“In a nation of laws, one awaits the High Court’s decision and acts accordingly — and does not seek shortcuts at the expense of the security of Israeli citizens,” he writes.

The PMO has insisted the Bar, who was formally fired by the cabinet earlier this month, must vacate the position by April 10. The High Court of Justice has issued a temporary injunction on his dismissal as it prepares to hear petitions against the firing.

Police arrest Eilat man on suspicion of murdering his elderly mother

Police say they arrested a 59-year-old resident of Eilat this morning on suspicion of murdering his elderly mother the day prior.

The 84-year-old victim was found dead in her home by police and paramedics, a spokesman for law enforcement says.

The suspect will be brought tomorrow before the Eilat Magistrate’s Court, where police plan to request judges extend his remand.

Kibbutz Nir Oz reaches deal with state for $95 million plan to rehabilitate community

A row of houses burned by Hamas terrorists at Kibbutz Nir Oz on September 30, 2024 ((Jessica Steinberg/Times of Israel)

The management of Kibbutz Nir Oz has reached an agreement with the state for an NIS 350 million ($95 million) plan to rehabilitate and develop the community.

The plan is expected to be approved in the coming days by the kibbutz members’ assembly.

The kibbutz was largely destroyed on October 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists entered all but six of some 100 homes in the small community and either murdered or kidnapped one of every four residents — 117 people. Of those abducted, 14 are still being held in Gaza.

Nir Oz is the last of 13 communities to agree on a rehabilitation plan with the Tekuma Directorate and the Finance Ministry. Among other things, the plan includes building a new neighborhood and community infrastructure, and supporting long-term rehabilitation processes.

Tekuma Director Aviad Friedman says, “Kibbutz Nir Oz is the core of the events of October 7, was hit the hardest, and is entitled to recognition, healing, and significant treatment.”

He adds that he hopes a cornerstone can be laid at the kibbutz for new construction on Independence Day on May 1.

“The people of Nir Oz who choose to return and build their homes are people driven by purpose and we need to give them the tools,” he continues. “This is a step that strengthens trust, and the issue of trust is the central and most important issue.”

“Along with this, we are also aware of the complexity that exists for the community members who are unable to return,” he adds.

Surviving members of Nir Oz are currently living in the Karmei Gat neighborhood of Kiryat Gat.

OECD expects Israeli economy to rebound in 2025, urges structural reforms

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) expects Israel’s economy to rebound this year but is more pessimistic about the pace of growth than local projections, citing the risk of war-related spending continuing to take a toll on the country’s finances.

In the Economic Survey report for 2025, the OECD urges Israel to focus on closing socioeconomic gaps by removing subsidies to yeshiva students, cutting bureaucratic red tape, and boosting competitiveness and productivity in its economy beyond its vibrant tech sector, to help bring down the high cost of living.

The OECD says Israel’s high cost of living continues to reduce welfare and spur social tensions. Israel is ranked fourth in the list of developed countries with the highest cost of living. The organization cites geographical factors, trade barriers, and stringent product market regulation as reasons that continue to contribute to the high prices of essential goods and services.

“The economy remains heavily influenced by the conflicts, which hit investment and exports while war-related expenditure soared,” the OECD says in the report. “Growth is set to pick up when the economic environment becomes closer to normal.”

On the assumption that Israel’s fighting in Gaza and Lebanon will ease, the OECD forecasts that the country’s economy will grow at a rate of 3.4% in 2025 and 5.5% in 2026, which is faster than the organization’s growth forecast for the global economy of 3.1% in 2025 and 3% in 2026. However, the OECD’s 2025 growth forecast is lower than the 4% projection by the Bank of Israel and the Finance Ministry’s 4.4%.

“Policies need to keep the economy steady, and securing solid growth requires curbing inflation and containing fiscal deficits while funding future spending needs,” the OECD says. “Economic performance would strongly benefit from reforms that address infrastructure gaps and improve educational outcomes and labor‑market participation among ultra‑Orthodox and Arab Israelis.”

Likud MK demands parliamentary hearing to discuss probe of Jerusalem Post editor

Jerusalem Post Editor Zvika Klein (via X)

Following the revelation that police are investigating Jerusalem Post Editor-in-Chief Zvika Klein on suspicion of contact with a foreign agent, as part of the so-called Qatargate affair, Likud MK Amit Helavi demands an “urgent” parliamentary hearing to discuss “the arrest of the editor of a major newspaper in Israel.”

In a letter to Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee chairman Simcha Rothman (Religious Zionism) Halevi says that the arrest is “no small matter,” and argues that it is imperative for law enforcement bodies to “carefully verify that the arrest is indeed a result of criminal offenses that are not covered by freedom of the press.”

Stating that he is not conversant with all of the details of the case, Halevi writes that it appears that Klein’s phone was “taken without a warrant,” a serious act which he complains has not prompted an outcry from members of the Israeli news media.

It is the duty of lawmakers “to monitor and ensure that enforcement bodies are acting lawfully” when investigating journalists, Halevi insists.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud-led coalition is currently advancing several bills that critics say are aimed at curtailing press freedom. These include bills to shut down Army Radio and national broadcaster Kan.

Klein was questioned under caution on Tuesday as part of an ongoing probe into alleged unlawful ties between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s senior aides and Qatar. After being questioned, Klein was released to five days of house arrest. A police source told Haaretz that law enforcement obtained the necessary clearance from the State Attorney’s Office to question Klein, as required for investigating journalists.

Report: Rubio orders scrutiny of visa applicants’ social media for criticism of US, Israel

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has instructed US diplomats to scrutinize visa applicants’ social media for criticism of the US and Israel, The New York Times reports.

Rubio’s directive, issued March 25, follows an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump in January requiring the US government to ensure that foreign nationals “not bear hostile attitudes toward its citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles, and do not advocate for, aid, or support designated foreign terrorists and other threats to our national security.”

Rubio told reporters last Thursday that since taking office in late January, he estimates that he has revoked at least 300 visas, many of them for students.

At court for his trial, Netanyahu calls Qatargate affair ‘one massive bluff’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives at the Tel Aviv District Court for testimony in his criminal trial, April 2, 2025 (Yair Sagi/Pool)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu derides the Qatargate affair and the investigation into his aides over their connections to Doha as “one massive bluff,” after being asked about the scandal by reporters before the beginning of his testimony in his criminal trial at the Tel Aviv District Court.

“How are you not ashamed?” he adds, addressing the assembled reporters, apparently referencing their coverage of the ongoing police and Shin Bet investigation.

Netanyahu has repeatedly attacked the police and other law enforcement agencies over the probe. In a Monday video, he called it a “political witch hunt” designed to stop him from firing Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.

The investigation began before he announced he was planning to remove Bar.

Ben Gvir visits Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, drawing criticism from Haredi leader

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir (2nd L) visits Jerusalem's Temple Mount, April 2, 2025 (Otzma Yehudit)

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visits Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, after a nearly two-week period of Ramadan during which access to the contested holy site was closed to Jews.

Ben Gvir’s visit elicits criticism within the coalition, as it has in the past. Tagging Ben Gvir in a tweet, ultra-Orthodox MK Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) writes that the visit is “an attack on the sanctity of the holiest place for the Jewish people and on the status quo” agreed upon by leading religious scholars.

Haredim believe it is forbidden to tread in the holy site due to its sanctity.

Ben Gvir’s visit “does not demonstrate sovereignty; on the contrary, it constitutes desecration of holiness and causes unnecessary incitement in the Muslim world,” he tweets, appealing to the minister to “stop ascending the Temple Mount.”

Ben Gvir has publicized multiple visits to the Temple Mount since taking office in December 2022.

The Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City is the holiest place in Judaism, as the site of the two biblical temples. Known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, it is home to Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam. Changes to the status quo on the Temple Mount evoke strong emotions and are frequently cited as a Muslim motivation for religious violence.

Jews are not officially allowed to pray at the Temple Mount, but the Israel Police, which comes under the purview of Ben Gvir’s ministry, has increasingly tolerated limited prayer there. Ben Gvir has said repeatedly that his policy is to allow Jewish prayer there, drawing rebukes from US and international officials, as well as warnings from the security establishment that renewed conflict over the site could pose a risk to national security.

The far-right minister has also rebuffed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s repeated insistence that the decades-old status quo remains in force.

US said considering Iranian offer of indirect nuclear talks

US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on March 31, 2025. (SAUL LOEB / AFP)

The White House is seriously considering Iran’s proposal for indirect nuclear talks, while significantly increasing US forces in the Middle East in case President Donald Trump chooses to conduct military strikes, Axios reports, citing sources.

The report says Tehran recently responded to Trump’s letter to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which allegedly included a two-month deadline for reaching a new nuclear deal.

In its response, Axios says Iran refused direct negotiations but was open to indirect talks mediated by Oman. Though the White House is less optimistic about the prospects of indirect talks, it is considering the matter, the report says.

US officials speaking to the outlet say no decision has yet been made.

IDF says troops shot and killed armed gunman who approached Gaza border fence

Israeli soldiers shot and killed an armed gunman who approached the security fence in southern Gaza a short time ago.

“IDF forces operating in the area fired at the gunman and eliminated him before he reached the fence,” the army says.

No soldiers were hurt.

Man rescued from rubble in Myanmar 5 days after quake

Rescue crews in Myanmar pulled a 26-year-old man out alive from the rubble of the capital city hotel where he worked early today, but most teams are finding only bodies five days after a massive earthquake hit the country.

After using an endiscopic camera to pinpoint Naing Lin Tun’s location in the rubble and confirm that he was alive, the man was gingerly pulled through a hole jackhammered through a floor and loaded onto a gurney nearly 108 hours after he was trapped in the hotel where he worked.

On the 5th day after the earthquake, a male survivor was rescued alive at 00:30 on April 2, 2025, from the collapsed lower two floors of the six-story Aye Chan Thar Hotel in Ottara Thiri, Naypyidaw.#MyanmarEarthquake #MyanmarFactCheck pic.twitter.com/Rnhj8oRqt0

— Thet Zaw (@msthetzaw) April 2, 2025

Shirtless and covered in dust, Naing Lin Tun appeared weak but conscious in a video released by the local fire department, as he was fitted with an IV drip and taken away. State-run MRTV reported that the rescue in the city of Naypyitaw was carried out by a Turkish and local team and took more than nine hours.

The 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit midday Friday, toppling thousands of buildings, collapsing bridges and buckling roads. So far, 2,719 people have been reported dead and another 4,521 injured but local reports suggest much higher figures.

Report: Israel cancels entry of Syrian Druze workers into Israel at last moment

The entry of Syrian Druze workers into Israel has been canceled in a last-minute decision by Israel’s political echelon, Kan news reports.

No reason has been reported as to why the decision was made.

Last month, Defense Minister Israel Katz announced that Israel would allow Syrian Druze to enter the country for work, months after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria.

Preparations were made to carry out the initiative, with plans drawn up by Maj. Gen. Ghassan Alian, who heads the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, and who is Druze himself.

Former hostage Romi Gonen: Every explosion in Gaza further shatters hostages’ hopes

Romi Gonen (right) and her mother, Meirav Leshem Gonen, embrace after Romi's return from Hamas captivity, January 19, 2025. (IDF)

Former hostage Romi Gonen laments “a difficult morning with the expansion of the fighting in Gaza.”

Gonen, who was freed from captivity on January 19 at the start of the now-defunct ceasefire, writes on Instagram: “Every explosion shatters the hostages’ hopes a little more. I was there. I know.”

Gonen adds: “I beg of the decision-makers. Don’t wait another moment. Bring back all 59 hostages before the Festival of Freedom.”

She is referring to Passover, which begins on April 12.

Germany evacuates 19 citizens from Gaza with Israeli cooperation

Some 19 Gazans with German citizenship and their immediate family members left Gaza today, the German foreign ministry says.

The Gazans entered Israel through the Kerem Shalom border crossing, Berlin says, adding that they flew on a charter flight from “an airport in southern Israel” — likely Ramon International Airport north of Eilat — to Germany.

The departure was arranged with the “close cooperation” of Israel, says Germany.

Businessman Gil Birger questioned by police under caution in Qatargate scandal

Businessman Gil Birger has been questioned by police under caution in the Qatargate scandal, Hebrew media reports, after a gag order on the matter was lifted.

In recordings aired last month, the Israeli businessman based in the Gulf said he transferred money from a Qatar-employed US lobbyist to a top aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Birger said he was approached by lobbyist Jay Footlik to give the money to the aide, Eli Feldstein, explaining that he was asked to make the payment for tax reasons.

In the scandal, aides to the prime minister are suspected of taking money to spread pro-Qatari messaging to reporters.

גיל בירגר, שהודה בריאיון כי העביר כסף לאלי פלדשטיין, הוא איש העסקים שנחקר באזהרה בפרשת קטארגייט@eli_zil @TamarShunami pic.twitter.com/WtUyn1QwSZ

— גלצ (@GLZRadio) April 2, 2025

Yemen’s Houthis say four killed in strikes blamed on US

Yemen’s Houthi rebels say overnight airstrikes on Hodeida province killed four people in an attack they blame on the United States.

“The casualty toll of the American aggression targeting the Water Management building in… Hodeida governorate… rose to four martyrs and three wounded,” says Houthi health ministry spokesman Anees Alasbahi, updating an earlier toll of three dead.

Houthi media had reported US strikes on areas controlled by the Iran-backed rebels, including water infrastructure in Hodeida and three strikes in the northwestern region of Hajjah. Strikes also hit the group’s northern stronghold of Saada.

The United States has not confirmed it carried out these strikes.

PM says planning to appoint Shin Bet deputy as interim chief

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives at Tel Aviv District Court to testify in the criminal trial against him, March 24, 2025. (Reuven Kastro/POOL)

After withdrawing his selection of former Navy chief Eli Sharvit as the next head of the Shin Bet, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to interview candidates, his office says.

He is also speaking to candidates he has already interviewed, the PMO says.

The PMO insists it is sticking to the plan for current Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar’s term to end by April 10 — though the High Court of Justice has frozen the decision until it reviews petitions against it — and says that it will not be possible to submit a name to the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee on time.

Shin Bet deputy head “Shin,” identified only by his first initial, will thus be the acting head of the agency until a permanent chief is appointed, the PMO says.

The Times of Israel has been told that “Shin” will serve only as a temporary head of the spy agency.

Netanyahu is interviewing candidates from outside the organization for the post, but is focusing on candidates from within the Shin Bet or who served there in the past, The Times of Israel has learned.

Police find burnt corpse of woman in W. Bank, likely an Israeli; say it appears criminal

Police say they found the burnt corpse of a woman yesterday, likely an Israeli citizen, in the Palestinian town of Al-Ram, just north of Jerusalem.

After looking further into the circumstances of the woman’s death, police say “the woman apparently has an Israeli ID.” Officers suspect that she was killed in a violent criminal incident and not terror.

Many Israeli Arabs have ties to Palestinians and sometimes visit Palestinian towns. Police have not said whether the woman is believed to be Arab or what the circumstances of her death are thought to have been.

The body was transferred to police’s forensics department for further examination, a spokesman says.

Hostages families ‘horrified’ by expanded Gaza op, suggest captives being ‘sacrificed’

In response to the announcement of the expanding military operation in Rafah, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum issues a statement saying, “Has it been decided to sacrifice the hostages for the sake of ‘territorial gains?'”

It adds. “Instead of securing the release of the hostages through a deal and ending the war, the Israeli government is sending more soldiers into Gaza to fight in the same areas where battles have already taken place repeatedly.”

The Forum says families “were horrified to wake up this morning to the defense minister’s announcement that the military operation in Gaza would be expanded for the purpose of ‘capturing extensive territory.’

“The responsibility for the release of the 59 hostages held by Hamas lies with the Israeli government. Our grave concern is that this mission has been pushed to the bottom of its priorities and has become merely a secondary objective.”

IDF deploys another division in southern Gaza as offensive expands

A summary of overnight events in Rafah:

After extensive overnight strikes in the southern Gaza Strip, the IDF has deployed another division to the area as Defense Minister Israel Katz says the military is expanding its offensive against Hamas.

Palestinian media reported a large wave of strikes in Rafah and Khan Younis overnight, and this morning said troops were advancing in Rafah.

On Monday, the IDF issued an evacuation warning for the entire Rafah area and a large area of land between Rafah and Khan Younis, where the IDF has previously not operated with ground troops.

Last month, the IDF announced that its 36th Division had been sent to the Southern Command to prepare for operations in Gaza. The division’s forces entered southern Gaza early this morning, as part of the expansion of the offensive against Hamas.

Katz says troops will move to clear areas “of terrorists and infrastructure, and capture extensive territory that will be added to Israel’s security areas.”

Katz announces expansion of IDF operations in Gaza

Defense Minister Israel Katz announces that Israel is expanding operations in Gaza, saying that troops will move to clear areas “of terrorists and infrastructure, and capture extensive territory that will be added the State of Israel’s security areas.”

He also calls on Gazans “to act now to overthrow Hamas and return all the hostages.”

Israeli ground forces said to be operating in Rafah area

Israeli ground forces have begun operating in parts of Rafah, according to Palestinian reports that come after the military issued evacuation orders for the entirety of Gaza’s southernmost city on Monday.

Jewish Republican Randy Fine wins special election in Florida for US Congress seat

Rep. Randy Fine, R-South Brevard County, closes on a gambling bill during a special session, May 19, 2021, in Tallahassee, Florida. (AP Photo/Steve Cannon)

ORMOND BEACH, Florida — Republican state Senator Randy Fine wins a special election to represent Florida’s 6th Congressional District, defeating Democratic challenger Josh Weil and squashing efforts by national Democrats who spent millions of dollars on the race.

Fine had faced growing pressure during the race’s final days as some Republicans publicly criticized his campaign and fundraising efforts. His victory ends Democratic hopes to score a huge upset in a district that was heavily supportive of President Donald Trump in November.

The race to fill the seat vacated by Mike Waltz when he was tapped to become Trump’s national security adviser received national attention. Democrats poured money into Weil’s campaign to outraise Fine by nearly tenfold, attempting to flip a seat where the president won by more than 30 points.

Fine, a Jewish self-described “conservative firebrand,” ran with Trump’s endorsement.

Fine was first elected to the Florida House in 2016 and ran each year as a representative until 2024 when he successfully won his election to the Florida Senate. He is known for his support of Israel and his efforts to restrict LGBTQ+ rights.

Cory Booker sets US Senate record with 24-hour speech against Trump

US Senator Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, speaks on the Senate floor, April 1, 2025. (Senate Television via AP)

Democrat Cory Booker sets a record for the longest speech in US Senate history after speaking for more than 24 hours, a dramatic gesture highlighting what he says is President Donald Trump’s threat to US democracy.

Booker is still talking after 24 hours and 20 minutes on the Senate floor, breaking the record set in 1957 by Strom Thurmond in a speech opposing the Civil Rights Act.

When he was 19 hours into the marathon speech, Booker deployed his famous facility with Hebrew to proclaim, “Hineni,” I am here.

Princeton says US federal grants frozen, vows to ‘cooperate with government in combating antisemitism’

In this April 5, 2018, file photo, people walk through the Princeton University campus in Princeton, New Jersey. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

Princeton University says the US government froze several dozen research grants to the school, becoming the latest academic institution targeted by the Trump administration.

In a statement, Princeton President Chris Eisgruber says government agencies including NASA and the defense and energy departments notified the university of the move but gave no reasons for the action. Princeton doesn’t provide a dollar value for the grants.

The Trump administration has threatened to slash federal funding for other universities over their alleged tolerance of antisemitism and a failure to protect Jewish students during last year’s pro-Palestinian protests on campus.

“We are committed to fighting antisemitism and all forms of discrimination, and we will cooperate with the government in combating antisemitism. Princeton will also vigorously defend academic freedom and the due process rights of this university,” Eisgruber says in the statement.

The federal agencies have no immediate comment.

US judge rejects Trump administration’s bid to move Mahmoud Khalil’s case to Louisiana

Members of the Columbia University Apartheid Divest group, including Mahmoud Khalil, center, are surrounded by members of the media outside the Columbia University campus, April 30, 2024, in New York. (AP/Mary Altaffer)

NEW YORK — A federal judge has ruled that the legal battle over Mahmoud Khalil’s deportation should continue to play out in New Jersey, rejecting the Trump administration’s bid to transfer the Columbia University protester’s case to Louisiana.

In a written decision, US District Judge Michael Farbiarz in Newark says jurisdiction over the case should remain in New Jersey since Khalil was being held there at the time his lawyer’s filed their Habeas Corpus petition.

“The court’s jurisdiction is not defeated by the petitioner having been moved to Louisiana,” the judge writes, describing the government’s argument otherwise as “unpersuasive.”

The ruling does not guarantee that Khalil will be moved out of a detention facility in Louisiana, where he is being held as the government seeks his deportation for his role in campus protests against Israel. But it will allow his attorneys to make their arguments for his release before a judge in New Jersey.

If the case were to go forward in Louisiana, it may have ultimately ended up before one of the nation’s most conservative appeals courts, possibly allowing those judges to issue a precedent-setting ruling on both Khalil’s case and the Trump administration’s broader efforts to deport noncitizen student activists.

IDF said to carry out airstrikes in southern Gaza’s Rafah and Khan Younis

Israeli aircraft are carrying out airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, including in the southern cities of Khan Younis and Rafah, according to Palestinian media reports.

There is no immediate statement from the Israel Defense Forces.

Pentagon announces deployment of second US aircraft carrier to Mideast

In this handout image provided by the US Navy, the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) transits the Strait of Gibraltar, November 25, 2024. (Michael Gomez/US Navy/AFP)

WASHINGTON — The United States is increasing the number of aircraft carriers deployed in the Middle East to two, keeping one that is already there and sending another from the Indo-Pacific, the Pentagon says.

The Harry S. Truman will be joined by the Carl Vinson “to continue promoting regional stability, deter aggression, and protect the free flow of commerce in the region,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell says in a statement.