Aug. 5: IDF chief said to slam ‘warped’ Haredi draft law, accusing gov’t of ignoring army’s views

Iran threatening to hit Gulf states if US launches new strikes

Iran has warned Gulf states that any new US attack on its territory would trigger retaliation against critical energy infrastructure across the region, according to five sources, as Tehran seeks to raise the cost of military action by threatening Washington’s closest regional allies.

The warning was delivered through a flurry of high-level diplomatic contacts after US President Donald Trump threatened on July 28 to strike Iran’s energy network and infrastructure, the sources say.

Two senior Iranian officials, two Gulf sources and a senior regional diplomat with knowledge of the discussions said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi spoke with his Saudi, Turkish and Qatari counterparts, as well as Pakistan’s army chief.

Araqchi urged Washington’s Gulf allies to use their influence with Trump to dissuade him from launching renewed strikes, the senior diplomat says, warning that any attack on Iran would prompt retaliation against US assets and energy facilities across the Gulf.

His message was consistent in every conversation, the diplomat says: “We’re ready to retaliate, but finding a diplomatic solution is the best way to avoid wider escalation and destruction across the region.”

“The Iranian warning was unequivocal: if America targeted Iran’s infrastructure, they would retaliate by striking Gulf energy facilities and other regional targets,” one Gulf source says.

The diplomatic maneuvering underscores how Iran is attempting to use the threat of wider regional destruction as leverage against further US strikes, putting Gulf states that host US military bases and depend on energy exports in a difficult position between Washington and Tehran.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman subsequently spoke with Trump, urging him to delay military action, return to negotiations, secure a ceasefire and pursue a diplomatic settlement, the senior diplomat and Gulf sources say.

The warning was intended for every Gulf state, another Gulf source says, but was conveyed primarily through Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Iran has in recent years repaired ties with its Gulf neighbors, including former regional rival Saudi Arabia.

Qatar, Oman and Saudi Arabia have all urged Washington to resume talks with Tehran and avert renewed conflict amid Iranian warnings that another round of U.S. strikes could “turn the region into a fireball”, the second Iranian official says.

“Saudi Arabia believes further escalation will only bring more destruction,” the first Gulf source says. “That is why it urged Trump to give diplomacy a chance.”

While urging Washington to pursue diplomacy, Riyadh also made clear it would defend itself if threatened. The second Gulf source says Saudi Arabia warned that any attack on its territory would be met with a military response.

According to one Iranian official, Tehran’s warning made clear that any new US strike would be met with attacks on energy facilities, refineries, electricity grids, water infrastructure, transport networks and oil fields across the Gulf.

“The enemy continues to threaten Iranian infrastructure. If Iran suffers damage, it will inflict far greater damage in return,” the official says.

“They still remember Saudi Arabia’s Aramco,” he adds, referring to the September 2019 drone and missile attacks on the Abqaiq and Khurais facilities that temporarily knocked out more than half the kingdom’s crude oil production and exposed the vulnerability of Gulf energy infrastructure.

From Tehran’s perspective, Trump now faces two unpalatable choices, the senior Iranian official says: escalate a conflict that could engulf the Gulf and disrupt global energy supplies, or accept a negotiated outcome that falls short of the decisive victory Washington seeks.

One of the principal obstacles to an agreement, the senior regional diplomat says, is Washington’s reluctance to allow Tehran to emerge claiming victory.

“The United States wants something it can present as proof that it won the war,” the diplomat says.

Iran’s president says communication with supreme leader is currently ‘very difficult’

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian says in an interview aired by state TV that communication with the country’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is currently “very difficult.”

Mojtaba has not made any public appearances since he became supreme leader, replacing his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in one of the first strikes launched against Iran by the US and Israel.

Man in his 50s shot dead in Arab community’s 159th homicide of 2026

A man in his 50s was shot dead a short while ago in the central Arab town of Taibe, first responders say.

Police say the victim is a resident of nearby Tira who was apparently killed as part of an “ongoing blood feud.” No arrests are reported.

Local sources cited by the Arab48 news site say the victim was killed in front of his wife and daughter.

He is the 159th Arab homicide victim in Israel since the start of 2026, according to figures from the Abraham Initiatives coexistence group.

3-year-old hit by car and killed in Wadi Ara; suspect arrested

A 3-year-old boy was fatally run over in the northern Arab town of Wadi Ara this evening, police say.

Officers arrested a suspect after conducting an assessment at the scene of the ramming, according to police.

The boy was critically wounded and rushed to the Hillel Yaffe hospital in nearby Hadera, where he was pronounced dead, police say.

Yemen’s Houthis say they attacked Saudi oil tankers in Red Sea, Gulf of Aden

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis say they launched a missile attack on a Saudi oil tanker off the coast of the kingdom’s Red Sea port city of Yanbu and another missile attack on a Saudi oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden.

There is no confirmation from Saudi Arabia on either incident.

The Houthis’ military spokesperson, Yahya Saree, does not say when the attacks took place.

The Houthis have imposed a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea since last month in response to what they described as a Saudi siege on Yemen, an allegation Riyadh has denied.

IDF chief said to slam ‘warped’ Haredi draft law, accusing gov’t of ignoring army’s views

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir reportedly told his fellow generals that the government had repeatedly ignored the military’s viewpoint in passing a law that froze the arrest of ultra-Orthodox draft dodgers and called the legislation “warped from its very foundations.”

“We presented our position on the issue many times in the various committees, but no one listened,” Zamir is quoted by Channel 12 as telling a meeting of the General Staff some two weeks ago.

“This law is warped from its very foundations. The Supreme Court has already frozen its implementation, and I’m not sure it will pass,” the leaked remarks quote Zamir as saying.

The law passed last month banned the police and IDF from arresting ultra-Orthodox draft dodgers for what in practice would be a seven-month period.

The law was one of several pieces of legislation pushed through by the government aimed at appeasing the ultra-Orthodox parties, who want to see widespread draft exemptions enshrined in law.

Some 72,000 ultra-Orthodox men aged 18 to 24 are currently eligible for military service, but have ignored conscription orders. The IDF has said repeatedly in recent months that it urgently needs 12,000 new recruits amid the ongoing multifront conflict.

Report: Iran, Oman nearing deal that will restore US truce, give Tehran some control over Hormuz

Channel 12 reports that Iran and Oman are on the verge of an agreement that would fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz, claiming that it could be signed as soon as tonight.

The US is not directly involved in the negotiations, but the US special envoy has been in regular contact with the foreign ministers of Iran and Oman.

The deal coming together would see the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz for 60 days, with the possibility for extensions.

The ceasefire between the US and Iran would be renewed.

Vessel traffic entering Hormuz toward the Gulf will pass through the Iranian side of the strait, while traffic exiting the channel toward the Arabian Sea will use the Omani side.

During the 60-day period, no tolls will be charged by any side.

During the first 30 days, the parties will work to clear mines from the strait — something that may well take longer, given that there are an estimated 70 to 100 explosive devices planted in Hormuz.

After the main lane of the strait is cleared, it will be used for both incoming and outgoing vessel transit.

Oman and Iran will use the 60-day period to negotiate a permanent arrangement for ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

While the deal doesn’t give Iran everything that it wanted, it still gives it a degree of control over the strait — something that it did not have before the US and Israel launched a war against the Islamic Republic in February.

Rebel Likud MK Dan Illouz joins Yisrael Beytenu

Freshman MK Dan Illouz, who quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party last month, will run in the upcoming election with Avigdor Liberman’s hawkish Yisrael Beytenu opposition party.

The Canadian-born attorney previously served as a Jerusalem City Councillor before entering the Knesset in 2023 and became known for his opposition to the coalition’s efforts to legislate draft exemptions for the ultra-Orthodox.

In a statement, Illouz says that he is joining Yisrael Beytenu “because it is the party that today represents the national and liberal values in which I believe.”

פרסום ראשון: ח"כ דן אילוז שעזב את הליכוד מצטרף לליברמן – וישובץ במקום ריאלי

אילוז לצד ליברמן: "הליכוד הפך להיות קבלן ביצוע של דרעי וגולדקנופף"@amit_segal pic.twitter.com/TcgDOSvOrb

— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) August 5, 2026

Welcoming Illouz, Liberman calls him “a principled person who throughout his public career has demonstrated courage, integrity and a willingness to pay a personal price to stand up for his principles.”

Ilouz was unlikely to make it into the Knesset with the Likud Party in the coming election, as he had previously been granted a slot on the slate that is reserved for new immigrants.

After Netanyahu fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in 2024 over his opposition to coalition efforts to legislate Haredi draft exemptions, among other things, Illouz, along with fellow former Likud MK Yuli Edelstein, became the party’s sole holdouts against what they saw as the government’s near-complete surrender to its Haredi partners.

After Gallant was axed, the party came after Illouz, stripping him of committee assignments as punishment, barring him from submitting private legislation for weeks and increasingly marginalizing him inside the party.

A committed right-wing ideologue, Illouz backs West Bank annexation, spearheaded a controversial law that earned international ire for barring UNRWA from operating inside Israel and sharply restricting its activities in the West Bank and Gaza, and pushed another law prohibiting the establishment of diplomatic missions in Jerusalem that are not embassies, aimed at entrenching Israel’s claim over the city.

Illouz also opposed hostage deals to free Israelis held in Gaza in exchange for ending the war against Hamas.

Police summon left-wing activists over protest outside Religious Zionism HQ

Three activists from the Israeli-Palestinian socialist group Standing Together received summonses for a police interrogation after protesting inside the Religious Zionism party headquarters in Shoham this morning, says anti-government attorney Gonen Ben Yitzhak, who is representing the three pro bono as part of the Protest Detainee Legal Support Front.

The activists are suspected of trespassing and property damage, Ben Yitzhak says, accusing police of conducting a “political as well as legally and factually baseless” investigation.

Police said earlier that officers arrived at the party headquarters only after the protesters had left, and that an investigation was launched into “the circumstances of the incident.”

פעילי תנועת "עומדים ביחד" הפגינו במטה מפלגת הציונות הדתית

צילום: עומדים ביחד pic.twitter.com/BHcAAJsKRZ

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) August 5, 2026

Loud explosion heard in close proximity of vessel 95 miles from Yemen’s Aden

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) says it received a report of an incident 95 nautical miles southeast of Yemen’s Aden.

It says the master of a tanker reported hearing a loud explosion in close proximity to the vessel, adding that all crew were safe.

Defense Ministry says test of long-range Arrow missile system was successful

This image released by the Defense Ministry on July 17, 2025, shows an Arrow air defense system launching a missile during the Israel-Iran war in June. (Defense Ministry)

The test of the long-range Arrow missile defense system today was successful, the Defense Ministry says.

The ministry says the test was part of a multi-year program for “the development and upgrade of the system.”

“The successful test represents another significant milestone in Israel’s operational ability to defend itself from current and future threats,” the ministry adds.

US says Israel-Lebanon talks ended early for the day due to ‘events on the ground’

A US State Department official confirms that talks between Israel and Lebanon in Rome ended early today.

However, the official cites “events on the ground,” as opposed to leaks by the Lebanese delegation, which were the reason that Israel has given for the abruptly ended talks.

Israel has been carrying out strikes on southern Lebanon at a level not seen in several weeks following what it said was a ceasefire violation by Hezbollah.

The US State Department official tries to downplay the nature of the development, stressing that talks will reconvene tomorrow as planned.

“Discussions focused on a range of political and military issues and were extremely productive. The technical teams made progress on determining key details on implementation of the Trilateral Framework,” the State Department official claims.

IDF chief visits Gaza, says army will continue ‘operating proactively’ against Hamas

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir (center) is seen in the Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

During a visit to the Gaza Strip today, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir says the military has been “systematically striking Hamas.”

“We have significantly weakened [Hamas] and changed the security reality,” he says, according to remarks provided by the army.

“The IDF will continue to operate proactively. We will not allow a threat to emerge on our borders as we experienced on October 7,” Zamir adds.

Erdan, Edelstein tease plans to unveil new right-wing party on Thursday

Former Likud minister Gilad Erdan and Likud rebel Yuli Edelstein announce their plans to form a new party on August 5, 2026. (Screen capture/X)

Ex-Likud minister Gilad Erdan and Likud rebel MK Yuli Edelstein announce that they will hold a special event tomorrow evening to announce the establishment of “a new right-wing party” under Erdan’s leadership.

In a video posted to X, Erdan can be seen watching the Knesset Channel as lawmakers pass legislation halting arrests of ultra-Orthodox draft evaders before turning to the camera and addressing rumors and media reports regarding the imminent launch of his new party, stating that he is “here to tell you that it’s happening soon, very soon.”

Afterward, the camera pulls out to show the former Israeli ambassador to the UN with Edelstein, the former head of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and a fierce opponent of efforts to exempt yeshiva students from conscription. Edelstein quit Likud in July after decades in the party to forge a “new political path.”

אוטוטו pic.twitter.com/19YwqpAT1l

— Gilad Erdan גלעד ארדן (@giladerdan1) August 5, 2026

After the slogan “rightwing, conscription, unity” appears onscreen, the video shows the pair ignoring a phone call from United Torah Judaism chairman Yitzhak Goldknopf, with Edelstein saying that he’s “not relevant.”

In May, Erdan told Radio 103FM, after months of unconfirmed media reports, that he was considering establishing a new right-wing political party to compete against Likud, stating that he sees himself as a potential premier once Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaves politics.

Speaking with The Times of Israel in May, a political source with knowledge of the discussions about the formation of the new party — dubbed “Likud B” and seen as a more “statesmanlike” alternative to the Likud — said that it aimed to establish a right-wing Zionist coalition focused on economic recovery, security and settlements, which could “rein in the extremists” and include centrist elements as well. The new party would also support a more moderate judicial reform without the “political dispute” inherent in Justice Minister Yariv Levin’s approach.

The Likud B would be willing to sit with former prime minister Naftali Bennett and Yashar chair Gadi Eisenkot — but not The Democrats’ Yair Golan, who is “not Zionist,” the source, who is no longer privy to details regarding the new party, claimed at the time. Golan is a former IDF deputy chief of staff. The source added that its members would also be willing to partner with Netanyahu and far-right figures like Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir.

This willingness, the source explained, is based on an assessment that they would be able to moderate the worst impulses of the far-right by taking the kingmaker role currently held by the Haredi parties, which they do not want in a coalition.

According to Channel 12, Erdan has been in contact with former Beit Shemesh mayor Aliza Bloch regarding her possible involvement in the new party.

A poll published by The Times of Israel’s Hebrew sister site Zman Yisrael last week found that a new party headed by Erdan and Edelstein would win five Knesset seats if elections were held today, but would fail to end the electoral stalemate.

Iran and Oman agreed on route coordinates through Hormuz, Iran’s foreign ministry says

The geographic coordinates for a shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz have been agreed upon by Iran and Oman, and a joint announcement is being finalized, provided no third parties interfere, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei says.

Baghaei adds that any such agreement between Iran and Oman will not, by itself, guarantee security in the strategic waterway.

Israel-Lebanon talks end abruptly for the day amid allegations of ‘misleading leaks’

US-mediated talks between Israel and Lebanon and Rome have ended several hours early.

Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter is accusing the Lebanese delegation of repeatedly leaking false information to Lebanese media, an Israeli source tells The Times of Israel.

Because of the leaks, Leiter asked the US mediators to suspend today’s talks before their scheduled conclusion, the source says, while clarifying that talks are still slated to pick back up on Thursday.

Female settler activists illegally enter Lebanon, are returned by IDF; no arrests reported

A group of around 10 settlement activists, all young women, illegally crossed the border into Lebanon this afternoon, near the village of Ghajar, according to the military.

The IDF says most of the activists have been located and escorted back to Israel by troops, although the army is still searching for some of them.

They will all be handed over to the police for further questioning. The group belongs to the Uri Tzafon Movement, a Religious Zionist organization that calls for settlement in southern Lebanon, in areas it claims belong to the Jewish people.

Members of Uri Tzafon have illegally crossed into Lebanon multiple times in recent months, while receiving support from coalition lawmakers.

Israeli authorities have rarely filed any charges against these settler activists, despite the repeated illegal infiltrations into Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank.

Israel conducts pre-planned test of long-range Arrow missile system

A pre-planned test of the long-range Arrow missile defense system was just conducted, the Defense Ministry announces.

Further details on the test by the ministry, IDF and Israel Aerospace Industries will be provided later, the statement adds.

IDF confirms ‘limited’ Qalandiya raid aimed at ‘thwarting terror’

Amid foreign media reports about an IDF raid of the Qalandiya refugee camp in the West Bank, an Israeli military source confirms the operation, while insisting that it is “limited.”

“The operation is intended to undermine and thwart the organizational capabilities of terror groups in the area, expand the security forces’ freedom of operation following numerous incidents of violence during recent entries into the area, and increase security in the sector,” the official adds.

After winning Michigan Senate primary, El-Sayed stresses commitment to safety of Jews

In his first public remarks after being widely declared as the winner of the Democratic primary in Michigan, progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed takes a moment to address Jewish constituents directly.

El-Sayed expresses gratitude for having been given, during the campaign, “The opportunity to break bread with you at Seder, to worship with you at shul, to be embraced by you.”

“Listening to sisters and brothers who said, ‘I want to join this movement because AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) doesn’t speak for me, because I understand that self-determination for one people does not require the quenching of self-determination for another people. That unless all of us are free, none of us are free. I want to tell you the great gift that you’ve given me,” he adds.

“To all of my sisters and brothers of the Jewish faith… I want you to know that… my commitment to Jewish safety is the same commitment that I have to the safety of my own daughters.”

El-Sayed specifically addresses Michigan Jews. Full remarks from just now: pic.twitter.com/et282JEkth

— Alex Kane (@alexbkane) August 5, 2026

Herzl’s grandparents’ remains reinterred in Jerusalem

(L-R) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, and World Zionist Organization Chairman Yaakov Hagoel at a state ceremony marking the reinterment of the remains of Theodor Herzl's grandparents, August 5, 2026.(Screen capture/Facebook)

Zionist visionary Theodor Herzl learned his commitment to creating a Jewish State from the deeds of his grandparents, President Isaac Herzog says at a state ceremony marking the reinterment of their remains on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem.

“Dreams are not inherited in writing,” Herzog says. “They are passed down at the Sabbath table.”

The bodies of Shimon and Rivka Herzl were buried next to their grandson’s grave on Mount Herzl in a ceremony exactly 77 years after Herzl was reburied there on August 5, 1949. Their bodies were exhumed last week from their graves in Belgrade, Serbia.

Herzog traces how Rabbi Shimon Leib — a humble synagogue gabbai — absorbed the proto-Zionist teachings of the local Rabbi Yehuda Alkalai, the proto-Zionist leader who led the family’s synagogue and unwittingly set in motion a dream that his grandson would later transform into a movement.

When Alkalai’s granddaughter and Herzl’s grandson both appeared at the First Zionist Congress in Basel in 1897, Herzog says, “it was not a coincidence, it was the product of tradition.”

“Not every person gets to found a state,” Herzog says, “but every person can be the one who carries the vision home and places it on the table of their home.”

Herzl, who died in 1904, is widely seen as the founder of the modern Zionist movement.

Conceding Michigan race, Stevens endorses opponent El-Sayed

Hayley Stevens has conceded in the Democratic primary race to fill a Michigan Senate seat and has offered her endorsement to Abdul El-Sayed.

“I want to congratulate Abdul El-Sayed on winning the Democratic nomination for US Senate. He is a doctor, a community health official, a Rhodes Scholar, and a dedicated Michigander. I am proud to offer my support as he takes on (Republican) Mike Rogers in the general election,” Stevens says in a statement.

“This was a thorough and rigorous campaign that brought out the full span of views within the Democratic Party – and that is why we have primaries. I am proud to have put up my hand to serve, and prouder to continue to work together to make sure this Senate seat remains blue, that we flip the United States Senate and continue the work for Michigan,” she continues.

I love Michigan and am so proud to have put up my hand to serve. I spoke with Abdul a few moments ago to offer him my full support as we work to defeat Mike Rogers this November.

Thank you, Michigan. https://t.co/xVnIAFBqLl

— Haley Stevens (@HaleyforMI) August 5, 2026

Netanyahu tells High Court no legal justification to remove Ben Gvir from office

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir attend a vote at the plenum hall of the Knesset in Jerusalem, on July 16, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tells the High Court of Justice that he remains of the opinion that there is no legal problem with his appointment of Otzma Yehudit leader Itamar Ben Gvir as national security minister and therefore rejects the position of the attorney general and petitioners that he must remove the far-right politician from office.

Netanyahu files his update to the court after Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara filed her own update last month in which she maintained that legal efforts to prevent National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir from undermining police independence had failed, effectively endorsing petitions asking the court to order Netanyahu to fire him.

“After the prime minister considered the matter and after receiving a detailed response from [Ben Gvir] regarding the events referred to in the petitions… the prime minister’s position remains unchanged: the appointment of Minister Ben Gvir as national security minister was made lawfully, and there are no grounds for either his administrative dismissal or his removal by judicial order,” Netanyahu’s lawyers write to the court.

The prime minister asserts in his response that there are no legal grounds for the court to intervene in his cabinet appointments and says that he should therefore not even need to address the specific points made by the petitioners or the attorney general alleging that Ben Gvir has undermined police independence.

Netanyahu also notes that Ben Gvir said in his own response to the court that he agrees with the principle of police independence.

Last month, Baharav-Miara highlighted to the court, among other concerns, recent public comments made by Ben Gvir alleging that an ongoing criminal investigation into a senior police officer was politically motivated; public comments about the police’s use of stun grenades during ultra-Orthodox protests; and ongoing intervention by the minister in police personnel appointments as examples of his actions violating the principle of police independence.

Bereaved Oct. 7 survivor says he ‘unhesitatingly’ rejected Netanyahu offer of reserved spot on Likud slate

Avida Bachar who came to the funeral on the wheelchair, lost a leg the day of the attacks, attends the funeral with other family members and friends, of his wife Dana and his son Carmel, at Gan Shlomo cemetery, central Israel, October 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

October 7 survivor Avida Bachar — who lost his wife Dana and 15-year-old son Carmel during Hamas’s attack on Kibbutz Be’eri — has rejected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s offer for a reserved spot on the Likud’s party list in the upcoming election, telling Channel 12 that he “didn’t hesitate” to say no.

When terrorists forced their way into his home and shouted at his family to come out of their safe room on October 7, Bachar held the door closed but the attackers opened fire and managed to hit both him and his son. The terrorists then threw grenades into the room, two of which exploded, and fatally shot Dana. Daughter Hadar was wounded and Bachar lost one of his legs.

Speaking with Radio 103FM, Bachar says that he rejected the offer “out of hand because I am not entering politics anywhere at all, and certainly not with a Likud [party] that failed on October 7 and continues to tear us apart to this day.”

Bachar charges that Netanyahu for years treated Hamas as an “asset” and only now is trying to claim that he is protecting Israelis from the terror group.

In apparent critique of government, Herzog says diplomacy must follow military victories

As Israel pumps the brakes on US-backed road maps in Gaza and Lebanon, President Isaac Herzog stresses the need for diplomacy after military success.

“At this time, as we stand after nearly three years of a multifront war, it is precisely the figure of Herzl the statesman that should guide us,” he says at a burial ceremony for the grandparents of pioneering Zionist visionary Theodor Herzl.

“After every military victory and achievement, the work of diplomacy and statesmanship must also follow,” he says, in what could be seen as a slight knock at the government, which has been accused of rejecting diplomatic off-ramps in favor of continued military operations throughout the region.

“We must ensure Israel’s security under all circumstances on the security front, but there can be no complete victory without the work of diplomacy at the end.”

In Gaza, Israel is refusing to withdraw or officially halt military operations before Hamas is completely disarmed, rejecting a Board of Peace proposal that envisioned a phased process where verified weapons handovers and withdrawals unfold in parallel.

Meanwhile, in Lebanon, Israel is pushing back against Beirut’s desire for a more significant military pullback, as direct talks with the Lebanese government continue in Rome.

Trump: El-Sayed ‘hates Jews and Israel’; his win is ‘great news’ for GOP

US President Donald Trump says Abdul El-Sayed’s apparent victory in the Michigan Democratic Senate primary is “great news” for his Republican party.

“El-Sayed, a communist loser who hates Jews and Israel, is the projected winner in his race with the socialist,” Trump writes on Truth Social, referring to El-Sayed’s moderate challenger Haley Stevens.

US lifts sanctions on Iraqi airline linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards

The United States has lifted sanctions targeting Iraq’s Fly Baghdad airline, a company it had previously designated for alleged links to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

In an update to its website, the US Treasury lifted sanctions on Fly Baghdad and two of its aircraft, but maintained its sanctions against a man previously identified as the company’s owner, Basheer Abdulkadhim Alwan al-Shabbani.

Washington had originally designated the airline, its aircraft and owner in January 2024, alleging that it provided support to the IRGC’s Quds Force and its proxy groups in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon.

A US Treasury official, speaking on condition of anonymity, tells AFP the airline had been removed after going through the department’s administrative reconsideration process.

“FBA (Fly Baghdad Airlines) has demonstrated major changes to their operations such that their listing is no longer warranted,” the official says.

They clarify that the removal was “not indicative of any shift in US policy toward the Government of Iran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps—Qods Force, any designated terrorist organization, or any person who supports or acts on behalf of any of these.”

1 said killed, 11 wounded in IDF strike on prayer room in south Lebanon town of Tebnine

Lebanese media reports one dead and 11 wounded in an Israeli strike in the southern Lebanese town of Tebnine a short while ago.

The state-run National News Agency says the strike hit a prayer room in the town’s cemetery.

The IDF said earlier that it launched strikes against Hezbollah in response to a violation of the ceasefire by the terror group.

IDF raids Palestinian refugee camp near Jerusalem, arresting 20 and taking over homes

Palestinians walk past Israeli security forces deployed on a street during a military raid in the Qalandiya refugee camp, south of Ramallah in the West Bank, on August 5, 2026. (Zain JAAFAR/AFP)

Israeli forces have raided a Palestinian refugee camp next to Jerusalem where tensions have been growing as residents fear eviction, the military and local leaders say.

AFP journalists saw about a dozen armored military jeeps going into the Qalandiya camp, which Israeli soldiers did not allow press or residents to enter, in the West Bank.

“Security forces are operating in the Qalandiya camp area in order to thwart terror and apprehend wanted individuals,” a military official tells AFP.

COGAT, the Israeli Defense Ministry body in charge of civilian matters in the Palestinian territories, says in an Arabic-language statement that the large-scale operation targeted “terrorist elements, terrorist infrastructure, and the possession and trafficking of weapons.”

“We will not allow the camp to become a center of terrorism or a safe haven for terrorists and criminals, just as we do not allow this in other camps throughout Judea and Samaria,” the statement added, using the biblical name for the West Bank.

Mohammad Aslan, spokesman for the committee that runs the affairs of Qalandiya camp, tells AFP that the Israeli army arrested at least 20 people and took up positions on the roofs of a number of houses inside the camp.

Footage shared by the Jerusalem Governorate, the Palestinian local authority for the region encompassing Qalandiya camp, shows alleys inside the camp blocked off by rubble and boulders to impede movement, with furniture and other property strewn across the interior of one raided house.

In 2023, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government advanced plans for the construction of a 9,000-unit settlement on the grounds of Jerusalem’s former Atarot airport, adjacent to Qalandiya.

Palestinian residents have since voiced fear that raids and home demolitions could be tied to a strategy of eviction ahead of settlement construction, without any official word from Israeli authorities.

Networks calling Michigan Senate Democratic primary for El-Sayed start to compound

Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive candidate in the Democratic primary for US Senate in Michigan, speaks during a primary election night event August 5, 2026, at the Majestic Theatre in Detroit. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

The Decision Desk HQ American election data organization has joined those calling the Michigan US Senate Democratic primary for progressive, anti-Israel candidate Abdul El-Sayed.

Sayed is edging out AIPAC-backed moderate Haley Stevens by less than one percent of the vote.

Decision Desk HQ projects Abdul El-Sayed wins the Michigan US Senate Democratic Primary#DecisionMade: Wed, Aug 5, 8:35 AM EDT

Follow live results here: https://t.co/82nmXqN8dZ pic.twitter.com/wjeoCaunXi

— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) August 5, 2026

Iran state oil company’s bank accounts reportedly frozen over debt

The National Iranian Oil Company’s bank accounts have been frozen by a state-owned lender over mounting debt, the semi-official Fars news agency reports, underscoring the strain being felt by the country’s most important source of revenue.

The Bank of Industry and Mine does not provide details on the amount owed or the accounts affected, according to Fars, which adds that the move came despite provisions in Iran’s budget law that deferred repayment of certain NIOC debts until the end of the Iranian calendar year in March 2027.

Separately, the head of the National Development Fund (NDF) says NIOC will not be able to repay the fund a nearly $17 billion debt using proceeds from the Azadegan oilfield, one of the country’s largest, as its development has been slowed by bureaucratic delays and administrative obstacles.

“The repayment of NIOC’s debt via this route (Azadegan) won’t work… There was hope for payment of debts via moves such as the cession of other oilfields but there is leniency and postponing due to the current conditions,” Mehdi Ghazanfari is quoted as saying by the semi-official Borna news agency.

“We hope that with the end of the war and a return to normal, this issue will be solved,” he says, referring to the US-Israeli war with Iran.

The developments highlight mounting financial strains on NIOC as sanctions, years of underinvestment and reliance on domestic financing have increased pressure on its balance sheet.

With foreign investors largely absent from the country’s energy sector due to US sanctions, NIOC has increasingly relied on domestic institutions, including the NDF, to finance field development. This has turned the NDF, which was intended as a sovereign wealth fund, into a source of project financing and left the oil company with mounting debts.

IDF says it launched strikes in south Lebanon after alleged ceasefire violation by Hezbollah

The Israeli military says it has launched “precise strikes” in southern Lebanon in response to a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire by Hezbollah.

The IDF has not yet provided details on the violation of the truce by the terror group.

A short while before launching the strikes, the IDF issued an evacuation warning for the village of Mansouri, which is located inside the military’s south Lebanon buffer zone.

Lebanese civilians had entered Mansouri under the protection of the Lebanese army, which also set up a roadblock in the area in violation of the agreements, according to the IDF.

The military says the village was evacuated for the residents’ safety, as military operations are still taking place there.

Internal police watchdog to charge officer who killed Bedouin man in January raid touted by Ben Gvir

Mourners partake in a funeral procession for Muhammad Hussein Tarabin, a Bedouin man who was killed by police gunfire, before he is laid to rest in Tarabin al-Sana on January 5, 2026. (Charlie Summers/Times of Israel)

The Department of Internal Police Investigations has informed an officer that he will be charged, subject to a hearing, with negligent homicide for the killing of 36-year-old Muhammad Hussein Tarabin during a raid in the southern Bedouin town of Tarabin al-Sana on January 4, DIPI confirms to The Times of Israel.

The officer, whose identity is under a gag order, said in a DIPI interrogation that Tarabin had charged him “with a weapon like a knife,” but a person involved in the investigation says no object fitting the description was found at the scene of the killing, Haaretz reports.

Police raided the Bedouin town as part of an operation launched at the time in response to the arson and vandalism of vehicles in two neighboring Jewish towns.

At the time, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir lauded the police conduct in Tarabin, amid allegations that he was spearheading an incitement campaign against Bedouin citizens.

Bennett’s slate picks up MK who left Gantz’s party

MK Eitan Ginzburg and B'Yachad chair Naftali Bennett pose for a photo released on August 5, 2026. (B'Yachad)

MK Eitan Ginzburg, who left Benny Gantz’s centrist Blue and White party amid a wave of defections in May, will run on former prime minister Naftali Bennett’s B’Yachad list in the upcoming Knesset election, the latter party announces in a statement.

Bennett calls Ginzburg “a professional, dedicated and exceptionally talented elected official” with extensive experience in leadership roles and a “proven ability to execute.”

The 49-year old was elected as Israel’s first openly gay mayor in the central Israeli city of Ra’anana in 2018 and entered national politics on the Blue and White ticket in 2019. He was appointed communications minister under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2021 and lost out on reelection to the Knesset in 2022.

However, with the breakup of the Blue and White alliance, Ginzburg returned to the Knesset in July 2025, replacing then-Blue and White MK Gadi Eisenkot, who resigned in order to establish his current Yashar party.

Ginzburg announced he was leaving Blue and White in May during a wave of defections from the party, sparking early speculation that he would join Bennett and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid’s B’Yachad party.

IDF tells residents of south Lebanon village to leave ahead of strikes on Hezbollah

The IDF issues an “urgent” evacuation warning for residents of the southern Lebanon village of Mansouri, ahead of planned strikes on Hezbollah.

“In light of the Hezbollah terror organization’s violation of the ceasefire agreement, the IDF is compelled to operate against it with force,” says Lt. Col. Ella Waweya, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokeswoman.

No details are immediately provided by the IDF on the Hezbollah violation of the ceasefire.

She instructs residents of Mansouri to evacuate at least 1 kilometer north of the village.

“Anyone located near Hezbollah operatives, facilities, or weapons is putting their life at risk!” she adds.

Katz says he told IDF not to reduce reservists in Gaza border town defense squads

Defense Minister Israel Katz speaks at a pilots' graduation ceremony at the Hatzerim Airbase, July 9, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

Defense Minister Israel Katz says he has instructed the army not to carry out a planned reduction in the number of active duty reservists in the Gaza border communities’ civil defense squads.

The IDF has sought to release from reserve duty members of local security teams on all fronts, as their service is superfluous and costly.

The military has two divisions operating in Gaza, and the civil defense squads in the border communities remain armed even outside of active reserve duty.

Katz says the IDF will not carry out any further reduction in forces until it’s been decided otherwise, “in order to preserve the residents’ sense of security.”

Haifa court exonerates man detained for poster calling PM a ‘Hamas funder’

The Haifa Magistrate’s Court exonerates a man who was arrested and placed under house arrest yesterday for holding up a sign that read “Hamas funder” alongside pictures of a Hamas flag and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The protester, Guri Lotan, was detained and questioned yesterday on suspicion of behavior that could disrupt public order, according to the Protest Detainee Legal Support Front, a group of lawyers who represent anti-government activists pro bono.

Lotan, who waived his right to counsel in the interrogation itself, contacted the lawyer group after he was questioned and handed five days’ house arrest as well as a 15-day restraining order to keep away from Haifa’s Horev Center, a protest hotspot, the group says.

In an appeal to the court, Tomer Ben Hemo of the Legal Support Front said police had “no authority to interrogate or detain” Lotan, let alone restrict his movement. Police did not challenge the appeal.

Judge Maria Ficus Bogdanov scraps the restrictions on Lotan, finding that “there was no basis to detain the petitioner, and the conditions imposed on him are disproportionate.”

מוחה מחיפה עומד מזה זמן עם השלט שבתמונה, מצא עצמו היום בחדר החקירות, נחקר בחשד של התנהגות העלולה להפר את שלום הציבור.
הוא סרב לעו״ד ויצר קשר עמנו רק בצאתו מהחקירה
בתנאים של ….מעצר בית 5 ימים והרחקה של 15 יום מחורב.
עו״ד תומר בן חמו ממערך עוטף עצורים עובד ברגעים אלו על ערר.
שוב… pic.twitter.com/phZUGm0yT1

— מערך עוטף עצורים (@AtzurimHafganot) August 4, 2026

German court hands jail sentences to young members of neo-Nazi ‘Last Wave of Defense’

A German court hands prison sentences of up to five years to seven members or supporters of a far-right militant group called the “Last Wave of Defense.”

The men, all in their teens or early 20s, were convicted of crimes including membership in a terrorist organization, attempted murder and arson for plotting attacks on refugees and left-wing activists.

The presiding judge in Hamburg says the adolescents and young men had absorbed far-right ideology and sought to “create chaos.”

Some of them had carried out initial attacks, including setting fire to a cultural center in the eastern German town of Altdoebern in October 2024 and hurling fireworks into a refugee shelter in the town of Schmoelln in January 2025, also scrawling Nazi symbols at the crime scene.

It was “only by chance” that no one inside was injured in those attacks, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said the extremists had chosen the name because they cast themselves as “the last line of defense for the ‘German nation.'”

The case has fueled debate over the increasing radicalization of youths and a resurgence of neo-Nazi activity in Germany, often accelerated through social media.

Golan says Haredim unsuitable for IDF service, Ben Gvir calls for banning party over racism

Democrats Party Chairman Yair Golan gives a statement to the media outside the Channel 12 News studios in Tel Aviv, after the building’s entrance doors were smashed by an unidentified person overnight, July 28, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir pledges to petition the Central Elections Committee to disqualify Yair Golan, the chairman of the Democrats party, from running in the upcoming election on grounds of racism after the pro-government Channel 14 publishes a clip of the left-wing politician calling members of the ultra-Orthodox community unsuitable for military service.

In the clip, Golan can be heard telling a gathering that “there is no topic that is a victim of cheap populism quite like the drafting of the Haredim” and that it is “is impossible to draft all the Haredim tomorrow morning, even if an amazing law is passed an hour from now.”

Additionally, “we wouldn’t want to draft everyone tomorrow morning because we wouldn’t want to create an army where thousands of people arrive every enlistment cycle for whom gender segregation conditions must be set up. In short, it is impractical. We also wouldn’t want a population of people who lack education, lack motivation and lack physical capability,” Golan states.

Golan, who, like the rest of the leaders of the opposition, has been campaigning on a platform of Haredi conscription, adds that “drafting Haredim is a process.”

The former deputy IDF chief of staff, however, tweets this afternoon that there must be “conscription for all, period,” and that anyone who doesn’t enlist must complete national service.

Asked for comment, a spokesperson for Golan tells The Times of Israel that taken in its entirety, his remarks in the video do not contradict his previous statements on the issue: “He actually says that everyone needs to be recruited and it’s just a matter of process. This is not news,” the spokesperson asserts. “They’re just trying to come after us.”

Responding to Golan’s remarks, Ben Gvir calls him “an Israel-hater” who “spreads racist blood libels against the Haredi sector,” and pledges to petition the Central Elections Committee to disqualify him from running “due to his repulsive racism.”

Explosive drone found near Ukrainian plane at German airport, sparking alarm, collision

A video grab taken from a video footage by News5 from August 5, 2026 shows emergency services, police and firefighers deployed at German airport Leipzig-Halle in Schkeuditz, eastern Germany, after a drone was spotted nearby. (NEWS5/AFP)

A drone found near a Ukrainian cargo plane at a German airport overnight was fitted with an “explosive device,” say police and prosecutors.

“A drone carrying an unknown explosive device was discovered by an airport employee” at Leipzig-Halle airport, they say, adding that police used a robot to remove the detonator.

German state prosecutors have taken over the investigation of the drone incident, according to a statement.

German police deployed a bomb disposal robot after the drone was found, sparking alarm and forcing the diversion of numerous flights.

One aircraft that had to abort its scheduled landing at Leipzig-Halle airport then collided mid-air with an unknown object nearby but later landed safely elsewhere, a government spokesman says.

UK Conservative Party chief defends choice of antisemitic ex-neo Nazi candidate

Britain's Leader of the Conservative Party Kemi Badenoch speaks during a press conference in London, on April 17, 2026. (AP/Kin Cheung)

The leader of Britain’s opposition Conservative Party defends the selection of a former neo-Nazi who had been jailed for hate crimes as a local election candidate, saying that he was rehabilitated and could help fight antisemitism.

Joshua Bonehill-Paine in 2015 was convicted of racially aggravated harassment of Luciana Berger, then a Labour member of parliament, and had also been imprisoned for stirring up hatred against a north London Jewish community.

His selection as a candidate for an election to Somerset council in southwest England drew condemnation from other parties and Jewish groups.

Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative Party leader, said what he did was “appalling,” but he had disavowed his previous views and was fit to run for a local council, where he would be “looking at parking, sorting out bins.”

“It’s not a national platform… This man is showing that he’s more than contrite,” she tells the BBC, referring to his work with anti-radicalization program Prevent, adding she wants to build a movement against antisemitism in Britain.

Unidentified body washes up on beach near Zichron Yaakov, police say

A body washed up on the beach near Zichron Yaakov a short while ago, police say in a statement.

Officers have cordoned off the scene, and are investigating and working to identify the body, the statement says.

Fuel consumption rocketed after wartime slump even as prices surged, ministry data shows

Fuel prices displayed at a gas station in Tel Aviv, April 9, 2026. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90)

A government report shows a drop-off in gasoline consumption by Israeli drivers as the country went to war with Iran in March, followed by a sharp uptick in May and June as a ceasefire put travelers back on the road even as fuel prices rose to near-record levels.

The figures detailed by the Energy Ministry offer a window into the war’s effect on activity in the region, with many workplaces closed and most people staying close to home or bomb shelters, as well into as the lack of impact skyrocketing prices may have on demand among Israeli drivers.

According to data for the first half of 2026, drivers in January and February pumped 274,000 tons and 261,000 tons of unleaded 95 respectively. In March, as skies filled with ballistic missiles, fighter jets and tankers, volume fell to 234,000 tons, clawing back only slightly in April. In May, however, consumption jumped to 294,000 tons, despite the price of a liter of gasoline hitting NIS 8.07, one of the highest levels in decades and nearly 15 percent higher than prewar prices. The cost per liter fell back slightly in June and consumption rose to 299,000 tons, the second-highest level ever recorded for the month, bested only by June 2023.

The NIS 8.07/l price tag, which has risen to NIS 8.09/l for August, reflects the growing cost of fuel in the wake of Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has sent shockwaves through world energy markets. According to data from the ministry, which sets consumer energy prices, the cost of shipments of refined fuel products to the region rose by over 50% between March and April.

The ministry report, which does not cover July or August this year, includes Palestinian consumption of fuel, which is purchased from Israeli providers. For the last three weeks, West Bank Palestinians have been dealing with a territory-wide fuel shortage, though Palestinian Authority officials insist the issue is related to economic arrangements and does not reflect decreased volumes of gas bought from Israel or slackening demand.

The demand trends mirror similar figures seen last year, when consumption fell off sharply in June as Israel went to war, but rebounded beyond prewar levels in the following months. In that instance, however, prices remained steady.

UN says it’s ‘alarmed’ by surge in Iran executions since March

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk speaks to the media during a press conference in Beirut, Lebanon, July 27, 2026. (AP/ Hassan Ammar)

At least 56 people have been executed in Iran on national security-related charges since March 19, including 27 in cases linked to protests at the start of the year, says United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk.

“I am alarmed by the rise in executions and death sentences issued in Iran since March, and that capital punishment continues to be used to instil fear among the population and suppress dissent,” Turk says in a statement.

Iranian authorities killed thousands of people during anti-government protests in January, Iran’s worst domestic unrest in decades.

Rights groups say the government has continued to ​crack down on opponents during the war, sparked by US-Israeli strikes on Iran, since the end of February.

Turk says more than 100 people face the risk of execution on similar security-related charges, while executions for drug-related offenses are also continuing at an “alarming rate.”

He urges Tehran to halt all executions and move toward abolishing the death penalty, and raises concerns about what he described as failures to uphold fair trial and due process.

Likud MK calls for shutting down High Court after it froze Knesset fund transfer on procedural grounds

Finance Committee chair MK Hanoch Milwidsky leads a Finance Committee meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, July 29, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Coalition lawmakers slam the High Court of Justice after it froze the transfer of hundreds of millions of shekels in budgetary allocations made by the Knesset Finance Committee yesterday to ultra-Orthodox schools, the Settlements Ministry and the Religious Services Ministry due to what it says were “apparent procedural flaws” in the convening of the committee itself.

“Yesterday Judge Sohlberg and today Judge Stein. Both entered the Supreme Court as ‘conservatives.’ The High Court of Justice is beyond repair. The High Court of Justice needs to be closed down; the solution is a Constitutional Court,” posts Knesset Finance Committee chairman Hanoch Milwidsky on X.

Milwidsky appears to be referring to yesterday’s ruling by deputy court president Noam Sohlberg, in his capacity as chairman of the Central Elections Committee, to prohibit workers and party observers in the polls on October 27 from sharing information about who has voted.

Coalition whip Ofir Katz accuses the court of going “on a completely unbridled rampage” by blocking the transfer of the coalition funds, arguing that “today they call it a procedural flaw, but when Bennett’s deceitful government made budget transfers amounting to hundreds of millions a week before the elections, that was within the Knesset’s authority.”

The ultra-Orthodox Shas party makes a similar argument, asserting that the ruling proves that the court “has become a branch of the opposition” engaged in “a serious violation of democracy and the will of the legislature.”

“The previous government transferred coalition funds in the same way about a week before the elections – and the High Court did not intervene” and “neither the law nor the procedure has changed. Only the identity of the government and the public that receives the funding,” the party says.

Meanwhile, the decision is welcomed by opposition lawmakers, with The Democrats MK Naama Lazimi, who was one of the litigants who petitioned against the transfer, welcoming the court’s halting of what she described as “political bribery” and “corrupt funding transfers.”

In late 2022, ahead of that year’s election, the Knesset Finance Committee approved an NIS 2.73 billion ($908 million) transfer of surplus funds from the 2021 budget to the 2022 budget, with much of the money going to the defense and welfare ministries. Members of the then-opposition argued that the vote to approve the transfers was illegitimate on procedural grounds while the Bennett-Lapid coalition argued it was acceptable under parliamentary rules because of the urgency of the allocation.

Iran says it will support any decision by Palestinian leaders in Gaza negotiations

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian says Tehran will support any initiative or decision made by Palestinian leaders in ongoing indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel, Iranian state media reports.

US President Donald Trump announced last week that his Board of Peace had reached an agreement on the “complete disarmament of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza.”

The agreement was inked between negotiators from Hamas, the Board of Peace and Mideast mediating countries Egypt, Qatar and Turkey.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu finally responded to the news last night, saying that Israel has not agreed to the aforementioned plan.

El Al profit doubles in 2026’s second quarter despite fewer flights amid Iran war

An El Al plane takes off at Ben Gurion International Airport, outside of Tel Aviv, March 5, 2026. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

Israel’s flagship carrier El Al’s net profit in the second quarter of 2026 doubles despite reduced flight operations due to the US-Israel war with Iran, rising fuel prices and a negative impact of the sharp appreciation of the shekel.

In the April to June quarter, El AL reports a net profit of $132 million, up from $66 million during the same period in 2025. Damage ⁠from the war with Iran amounted to $55 million. The airline’s revenue in the second quarter increased 27 percent to $986 ⁠million from $777 million a year earlier.

When the war erupted on February 28, Israel initially closed its airspace to civilian traffic completely, forcing all airlines to cancel their flights. Since the April 8 ceasefire and the reopening of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport to more regular activity, El Al gradually returned to full operations in May.

“In the second quarter, we experienced high demand and improved our operational metrics,” says El Al chief financial officer Gil Feldman. “The quarter’s results reflect our ability to grow while improving profitability and cash flow, despite significant increases in input costs and fluctuations in foreign exchange rates.”

“We are entering the second half of the year from a position of financial strength, with a robust balance sheet and high liquidity,” adds Feldman.

El Al reports a record order backlog of $1.4 billion and expects ​seat capacity to increase by 6% to 10% in the July-to-August ​quarter.

High Court freezes controversial Knesset committee transfer of funds for Haredi schools, Settlements Ministry

Finance Committee chair MK Hanoch Milwidsky, right, speaks with MKs Moshe Gafni, center, and Yitzhak Pindrus during a Knesset Finance Committee meeting in Jerusalem, August 4, 2026, at which additional funding was approved for Haredi education. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

The High Court of Justice freezes the transfer of hundreds of millions of shekels in budgetary allocations made by the Knesset Finance Committee yesterday to ultra-Orthodox schools, the Settlements Ministry and the Religious Services Ministry due to what it says were “apparent procedural flaws” in the convening of the committee itself.

The temporary court order freezes the transfer of all funds allocated in yesterday’s hearing, apart from those for emergency civilian expenses.

The court says the issue will be brought for a hearing in front of three justices “as soon as possible.”

Opposition parties objected strenuously to holding the committee hearing and transferring the funds during the recess between Knesset terms, since the Knesset was dissolved last month and a national election set for October 27.

In yesterday’s hearing, NIS 267 million ($88 million) was approved for Haredi education including more than NIS 12.5 million ($4 million) for Haredi culture and some NIS 26 million ($8.5 million) for preventing Haredim from dropping out of yeshivas.

The committee also voted to give the Settlements Ministry NIS 157 million ($52 million) in direct funding as well as NIS 142 million ($47 million) in commitment authorizations for previously approved budget items.

IDF says troops recently destroyed tunnel in southern Gaza Strip

A tunnel is seen in the southern Gaza Strip, in a handout photo published by the IDF on August 5, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

A tunnel in the southern Gaza Strip that contained dozens of rockets was recently demolished by combat engineers, the military says.

The IDF publishes footage showing a dog of the Oketz unit scanning the tunnel, and another clip showing the site being blown up.

New school for illegal farming outpost youth inaugurated in Beit El

Illustrative: Israeli security forces clash with hilltop youth as they evacuate and demolish an illegal outpost built near the Jewish settlement of Metzad, east of the Palestinian city of Sa'ir in the southern West Bank on November 17, 2025. (Menahem Kahana/AFP)

A new school for youth living in illegal farming outposts in the West Bank is inaugurated in the settlement of Beit El, in the presence of Education Minister Yoav Kisch and other dignitaries.

Kisch says that the school, one of four such schools established by the government, will provide an “educational solution” for youths living in the illegal farming outposts and put them on the path of “action and contribution to the State of Israel.”

The schools have been established under the framework of a cabinet resolution designed to support minors living in the outposts, many of whom are school dropouts and at-risk youth.

Although the programs and funding for such youth under the cabinet resolution are supposed to help integrate them back into educational frameworks, provide them with social welfare, reduce their involvement in violence, and prepare them for military service, the support has been strongly criticized since the youths remain at the illegal farming outposts, which are frequently the sources of violence against local Palestinians.

It is unclear who, if anyone, will guarantee that such youths, who live in the outposts without their parents, will actually go to school, and how they will travel there given that they cannot drive.

“For years, it was mostly the problems [with hilltop youth] that were discussed, today we are presenting the solution,” said Beit El Mayor Shai Alon, who was also in attendance at the inauguration yesterday. “The establishment of the school is great news for the youths and their families, so instead of just making do with enforcement the state is investing in education, direction, and building a future for them.”

Illegal farming outposts are established by hardline settler activists, very often with the cooperation of local municipal councils and the IDF, and are designed to assert control over large tracts of land in the West Bank. They are not approved by the cabinet, however, meaning they are technically illegal.

IDF probe says too few troops responded to Tell gunfight, unclear who fired shot that killed Benayahu Mellet

IDF troops operate at the scene of a shooting near the West Bank village of Tell, July 24, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

An investigation by the Israel Defense Forces into last month’s deadly clash in the West Bank village of Tell has found that the hike by Israeli settlers in the area was not coordinated or approved by the army, and that officers did not respond to an ensuing clash with Palestinians with sufficient manpower.

According to the probe, the military learned of the July 24 hike the night before it took place but was unable to obtain details on the route or the organizers.

A military official says the hike would not have been approved anyway due to its route through areas A and B of the West Bank, including in a Palestinian village.

The hike began at 5:30 a.m., with dozens of settlers, including minors and two off-duty soldiers, setting off from Har Bracha. IDF surveillance soldiers first spotted the Israelis walking inside Area B near Tell at 7:27 a.m., and dispatched a small number of troops to escort the settlers out.

As the troops arrived, Palestinians hurled stones at the Israeli civilians, injuring one. The soldiers split up, with some dealing with the wounded Israeli, while a platoon commander worked to push back the Palestinians.

A short while later, Maj. Yuval Ezra, 27, began heading to the scene, while also dispatching the security coordinator for the nearby outpost of Havat Gilad and his deputy, civil defense squad member Benayahu Mellet, 32.

The three arrived at the scene at around the same time, as the clashes between the Israelis and Palestinians spun out of control.

At around 8:16 a.m., the security coordinator and Mellet engaged in a physical confrontation with the Palestinians, during which the security coordinator was seen in footage taking his gun off his shoulder to push the Palestinians back.

The security coordinator’s gun was snatched out of his hands by several Palestinians and then picked up by Tell resident Farouk Ramadan, who opened fire on the Israelis.

Amid the chaos, which lasted around 90 seconds, Ezra, Mellet, the security coordinator, the platoon commander, and the two off-duty soldiers — one of whom is a reservist — opened fire back at the Palestinians. The coordinator had fired with his handgun after his rifle was stolen.

According to the probe, Ezra was shot in the head by Ramadan and killed, while Ramadan was fatally wounded by a shot from Ezra.

Mellet, who was also killed, may have also been shot by Ramadan, although the military believes he was possibly hit by one of the soldiers. Neither scenario can be probed because his body was buried without an autopsy.

The IDF says the platoon commander and two off-duty soldiers killed another three Palestinians. Two other Palestinians who were seriously wounded during the clash were captured by Israeli commandos at a hospital in Nablus hours after the incident.

The investigation also noted that the soldiers were authorized to use fire, but said the force that responded to the scene “was too small relative to the scale of the violent incident, the number of hikers, and the number of attackers.”

Forces in the area “did not act optimally to develop a complete situational picture, dispatch additional forces, and deploy medical teams as required,” the probe found.

The IDF says that the investigation also revealed a “serious failure” by the troops who left Mellet’s body at the scene “for many minutes.”

Bar Association holds moment of silence for slain lawyer Arbel Feldman

Police at the scene of the murder of an attorney in an apparent targeted killing at his Rishon Lezion office, August 4, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/FLASH90)

The Rishon Lezion attorney allegedly killed by a disgruntled client yesterday is identified as torts lawyer Arbel Feldman.

He is survived by a wife and three children, according to Hebrew media. He was about 50 years old, according to medics.

The Israeli Bar Association observes a moment of silence in Feldman’s memory. A message to members called on attorneys across the country to exit courthouses at 10 a.m. and stand in silence for two minutes.

“This is a jarring incident that requires a change in decisionmakers’ approach to the violence that is wreaking havoc in Israeli society,” the bar says.

It announces that IBA head Amit Bechar and district heads have formed a team to assist threatened lawyers and help lawyers “identify threatening situations and safely separate from violent clients.”

Left-wing demonstrators with ‘bloody hands’ protest outside right-wing party’s HQ

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party announces that police have dispersed “far-left activists” who demonstrated at the far-right party’s faction’s headquarters in Shoham this morning.

The demonstrators, who are affiliated with the Arab-Jewish left-wing movement Standing Together — which recently launched a new Arab-Jewish political party, Makom Lekulanu (“A Place for Us All”) — had attempted to “violently break into” the office “with blood on their hands and shouting ‘Arabs want to live,'” Religious Zionism said in an initial statement, adding that that party staff were “trapped inside and have been instructed not to leave their offices.”

Videos shared by the party showed demonstrators with white T-shirts splattered in what appears to be red paint sitting outside the glass doors of the office, chanting slogans and holding up blood-red hands.

Police say in a statement that officers arrived on the scene within minutes but the protesters had already left.

“Israel Police won’t allow incitement, violence or any violation of the law under cover of protest,” the statement says.

Religious Zionism party shares footage of what it says are protesters with hands painted blood red outside party headquarters pic.twitter.com/VqtFRdnM35

— Sam Sokol (@SamuelSokol) August 5, 2026

The Religious Zionism party claims however that the demonstrators left after the arrival of police and blames the leadership of the anti-Netanyahu opposition bloc for the incident.

“We demand that the police investigate the incident and ensure the safety of party workers in Israel. There is no place for violence in the political arena,” Religious Zionism states, calling on opposition figures Gadi Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett and Chili Tropper to “condemn the violence of the far-left, which is motivated by incitement against the settler community.”

In a post on X, Standing Together states that its activists had gone to the Religious Zionism headquarters because the party enables violence against Palestinians.

“We arrived this morning at the headquarters of the Religious Zionism party, a party that transfers funds and supports the activities of terror farms in the West Bank. Finance Minister Smotrich is transferring the money of Israeli citizens to settler terror that burns villages, dispossesses and expels people from their land and homes, and burns our future,” the group says.

“The Palestinians are the victims of this policy, but so are we, the citizens of Israel. With our money, they are funding terror instead of taking care of our welfare and rehabilitation. We will not stop fighting until they dismantle the farms and stop the terror. Until there is Israeli-Palestinian peace,” it adds.

Yemen’s Houthis say they attacked a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea

A commercial vessel passes through an international shipping lane off Yemen’s Hanish Island in the Red Sea on July 27, 2026. (Khaled ZIAD/AFP)

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis claim to have attacked a Saudi oil tanker off Yanbu, in the Red Sea, as the rebels press on with their declared maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia.

The group “successfully targeted the Saudi oil tanker ‘Wafa’ in the northern Red Sea, off the coast of Yanbu, with a number of ballistic missiles,” their military spokesman Yahya Saree claims in a video statement, adding that this is the eighth ship they have targeted since the start of the blockade on July 22.

Saree did not say when the attack took place.

More than 800,000 displaced Lebanese have begun returning home, says UN

Mahasen Faqih and her husband, Mohammed Sobeih, smile as they sit amid the rubble of their home after returning to it following a ceasefire in Zawtar al-Gharbieh, Lebanon, July 28, 2026. (AP/Hassan Ammar)

More than 800,000 people displaced by war in Lebanon have begun returning to their hometowns following a lull in violence amid the Israel-Hezbollah war, the United Nations says.

The announcement comes as Lebanon and Israel began a new round of US-sponsored talks in Rome aimed at ending the fighting, which are scheduled to run until tomorrow.

UN humanitarian agency OCHA says “821,077 people had begun the return to their areas of origin as of 30 July,” but adds that more than 360,000 remained displaced, around 26,000 of them in government shelters.

The OCHA says damage to water and electricity infrastructure from the war has severely affected access to water for more than 700,000 people in south Lebanon, home for most of those displaced by the war.

FM Sa’ar to visit Colombia for inauguration of new pro-Israel president

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar speaks during a signing ceremony for an agreement establishing the future permanent campus of the United States Embassy in Jerusalem, at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, July 1, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar is visiting Ecuador and Colombia as part of a diplomatic push in Latin America, according to the Foreign Ministry.

Sa’ar’s visit to Ecuador will be the first by an Israeli foreign minister in 44 years.

On Friday, Sa’ar will attend the inauguration of Colombia’s new president Abelardo de la Espriella, where he also meet with leaders from Central and South America.

Bogota’s relations with Jerusalem nosedived under Colombia’s first-ever leftist government led by President Gustavo Petro, an ardent critic of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, which he has cast as a genocide — a charge vehemently denied by Israel.

Petro severed diplomatic ties and suspended the purchase of weaponry from Israel — formerly one of Colombia’s main military partners.

De la Espriella has said he will reverse these decisions, and one of his main campaign pledges was to “renew a strategic alliance with the State of Israel,” open an embassy in Jerusalem, and “defend the Judeo-Christian principles that form the foundation of Western civilization.”

Colombia’s new right-wing government announced last month that the country will open an embassy in Jerusalem.

“We are continuing our effort to bring Latin America closer to Israel,” says Sa’ar in a statement. “Israel and its citizens will benefit from this in every sphere, diplomatically, economically, and through tourism.”

Magen David Adom issues urgent call for public to donate blood

Israelis donate blood following the deadly Mount Meron crush, on April 30, 2021. (Magen David Adom)

Magen David Adom spokesperson Zaki Heller says the blood stock in the national Blood Bank is at “an alarmingly low level,” and calls on the public to donate blood.

MDA lists locations on its website for the emergency blood drive or potential donors can call 03-530040 for more information.

Former MK among Likud figures detained for questioning in tax fraud probe

Michael Kleiner, president of the Likud's internal Supreme Court, arrives for a discussion on the proposal to remove former defense minister Yoav Galant from the party, September 29, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/FLASH90)

Michael Kleiner, a former member of Knesset and the current president of the Likud party’s internal Supreme Court, is among the officials detained by police earlier this week amid a probe into tax fraud.

Kleiner served in the Knesset on and off between 1982 and 2003.

Along with Kleiner, police detained David Appel — a Likud activist and building contractor who was convicted of bribery in 2010 — as well as siblings Yaffa and Yitzhak Dayan.

According to Hebrew media reports, the four suspects, who were arrested Monday morning, were questioned on charges of concealing real estate assets from authorities.

IDF says it destroyed Hezbollah tunnel in southern Lebanon

An IDF soldier is seen in a Hezbollah tunnel near the Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon, July 7, 2026. (Emanuel Fabian/Times of Israel)

A Hezbollah tunnel spanning dozens of meters in the southern Lebanon village of Srebbine was demolished by combat engineers in recent days, the military says.

The IDF says troops of the 300th “Baram” Regional Brigade and elite Yahalom combat engineering unit carried out “targeted activity” in Srebbine, during which forces demolished the tunnel, which had been used by Hezbollah to advance attacks.

Elsewhere in southern Lebanon, troops of the Kfir Brigade discovered and demolished a cache of weapons that included Hezbollah rockets and launchers, and reservists of the Kiryati Brigade located dozens more weapons, the army adds.

השמדת תשתית תת-קרקעית באורך של עשרות מטרים: כוחות אוגדה 91 פועלים להשמדת אמצעי לחימה ותשתיות במרחב הביטחוני בדרום לבנון

כוחות אוגדה 91 ממשיכים לפעול להסרת איומים על אזרחי מדינת ישראל במרחב הביטחוני בדרום לבנון.

במסגרת פעילות ממוקדת במרחב סרבין, כוחות חטיבה 300 וכוחות יחידת… pic.twitter.com/1LhKd2EDQC

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) August 5, 2026

Shipping traffic through Strait of Hormuz remains steady, with just 8 vessels transiting

This picture shows ships sailing near the Strait of Hormuz off the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates at Khor Fakkan on July 13, 2026. (AFP)

Shipping traffic at the key Middle Eastern maritime chokepoints of the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb was little changed yesterday from the previous day, ship-tracking data shows.

Eight vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz, including five tankers and three bulk carriers, shipping data from Kpler shows, the same as the previous day. Six of the vessels, three tankers and three bulk carriers, were entering the strait, while a gas carrier and a tanker were exiting.

Roughly 130 to 140 ships would typically transit the waterway before the US-Israeli war with Iran began on February 28 and Iran responded by closing the strait.

Hamas said to be moving some of its operations from Qatar to Turkey

Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya smiles during an interview with AFP at his office in Gaza City on April 21, 2021. (Emmanuel DUNAND/AFP)

The Hamas terror group is reportedly preparing to move many of its operations from Qatar to Turkey.

According to the Kan public broadcaster, Hamas will be relocating its behind-the-scenes operations to Turkey while leaving much of its public activity in Qatar.

The news outlet says the decision comes in part after Doha expressed dissatisfaction with the terror group’s decision to elect Khalil al-Hayya as its new leader.

Kan says that in the wake of that decision, Qatar has pressed Hamas to receive approval for all of its official activity carried out in Doha.

Report: US used up 80% of its THAAD missile interceptors in Iran war

In this image courtesy of DVIDS, a US Air Force Airmen offloads a THAAD launcher from a C-17 GlobeMaster III at Nevatim Air Base, Israel, for an exercise, March 1, 2019. (Robert DURR / DVIDS / AFP)

The CNN news site reports that the US stockpile of interceptors for the THAAD missile defense system is “dangerously low.”

According to the report, the US military has used up close to 80% of its interceptors for the THAAD anti-ballistic missile defense system and approximately 50% of its Patriot interceptors.

Sources tell the news site that the low stockpiles are among the reasons advisers convinced US President Donald Trump to hold off on a planned major strike against Iran over the weekend. The White House has pushed back on the claim, saying Trump held off due to pressure from Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia.

Last week, the Center for Strategic and International Studies published a report estimating that between February and July about 65% of Patriot interceptors were expended, and that the number of THAAD ballistic missile interceptors in US stockpiles was at least 38% lower than at the start of the war. Patriots and THAADs are systems that detect and destroy incoming missiles and are among the most effective in the country’s arsenal.

Trump says ‘all-day negotiation’ was held with Iran, deal could happen ‘tomorrow or next day’

US President Donald Trump talks to reporters before he boards Air Force One, August 4, 2026, at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles. (AP/Mark Schiefelbein)

US President Donald Trump says there was an “all-day negotiation” on Tuesday with Iran, characterizing the talks positively while also threatening to hit Iran “really hard” if a deal is not reached.

“We’re having very good discussions,” he says, insisting that Iran is keen to find a way to bring an end to the conflict. “The only thing that matters is action. And they want to make a deal. We’ll see what happens.”

“I have plenty of time,” he adds.

Trump says he believes a deal could happen “tomorrow or the next day.”

The Axios news site, citing unnamed regional officials and a US official, said the deal on the table would be a 60-day arrangement for safe passage in the strait between Iran and Oman.

That deal — which would not involve the payment of tolls — could then be extended, the report said.

Trump claims Iran will be ‘hit very hard’ if Hormuz not reopened ‘very soon’

US President Donald Trump says that Iran will be “hit very hard” unless the strategic Strait of Hormuz is reopened “very soon,” in an interview with Fox News.

“We’re having very good discussions,” Trump says during a visit to California, insisting that Iran is keen to seal a deal to bring an end to months of conflict.

Anti-Israel Democratic candidate El-Sayed holds narrow lead in Michigan Senate primary

United Auto Workers Michigan Political Director Art Reyes III speaks during a primary election night event for Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive anti-Israel candidate in the Democratic primary for US Senate in Michigan, August 4, 2026, at the Majestic Theatre in Detroit. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

WASHINGTON — Progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed holds a narrow lead over US Representative Haley Stevens in Michigan’s Democratic US Senate primary, though the outcome of a race viewed as a major test of the Democratic Party’s future remains uncertain.

With 42% of the estimated vote counted, CNN shows El-Sayed leading Stevens by 49.8% to 46.5%.

The contest has emerged as one of the clearest tests yet of the direction of the Democratic Party, pitting El-Sayed’s campaign against Stevens, an establishment-backed moderate supported by Democratic leaders and pro-Israel groups.

The winner will face Republican Mike Rogers in November in a race critical to Democrats’ hopes of regaining control of the US Senate.

Man with ammo and a gun arrested at Trump golf course near LA ahead of US president’s visit

The entrance to Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles, in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., is seen in this photo, July 2, 2020. (AP Photo/John Antczak)

LOS ANGELES — A man carrying ammunition and with a gun in his car was arrested Sunday at US President Donald Trump’s Los Angeles-area golf course after appearing to monitor security preparations two days ahead of Trump’s fundraiser there, authorities reveal.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department says Jeanine John Taele, 38, was taking photos and video and had a 16-round magazine with ammunition in his pocket. Authorities recovered a loaded pistol in his car. Law enforcement searched his home in the nearby city of Downey on Monday and found a plethora of firearms, magazines and ammunition, body armor and notebooks with “concerning statements.”

The sheriff’s department announces the arrest as Trump is preparing to arrive for the Republican National Committee dinner at the Trump National Golf Course in the suburb of Rancho Palos Verdes just south of Los Angeles. The department doesn’t elaborate on what the notebooks’ “concerning statements” are or whether the man was planning an attack on the president or event.

Taele is charged with several felonies including second-degree robbery, receiving a large-capacity magazine and possession of a short-barreled rifle or shotgun. He is also charged with carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle, a misdemeanor.

He pleaded not guilty to all the charges Monday and was ordered to stay away from the golf course and not possess weapons. His bail was set at $250,000.

It wasn’t clear if he has an attorney, and family members cannot immediately be reached for comment.

The sheriff’s department says when they made contact with Taele on Sunday, they had determined he was being investigated by the El Segundo Police Department for robbery.

The sheriff’s department says there is “no credible threat to our communities.”

A jury in 2025 found a man guilty of trying to assassinate Trump at the president’s Florida country club.

Cori Bush loses primary bid to retake US House seat from AIPAC-backed Democratic incumbent

Former US representative Cori Bush, greets voters during a polling location visit on primary election day August 4, 2026, in Normandy, Missouri. (AP Photo/Michael Thomas)

US Representative Wesley Bell has won a rematch in a Democratic primary against former US representative Cori Bush.

Bell’s primary victory is likely to propel him to reelection in November in the heavily Democratic 1st Congressional District in St. Louis.

Bell, a former St. Louis County prosecutor, was backed by a political group affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. The pro-Israeli group also financed his ouster of Bush in the 2024 primary after Bush voted against a measure to deny entry to the United States to Hamas terrorists who perpetrated the October 7, 2023, onslaught, and declined to call Hamas a terror group on the campaign trail.

Bush, who had been a part of a progressive group of House members known as the Squad, said on the campaign trail that her reelection would be a “knockout” to AIPAC.

Antisemitic assaults in Britain surged by 82% in first six months of 2026 — report

People attend a rally organized by the Campaign Against Antisemitism, opposite Downing Street in central London on April 30, 2026, following the stabbing of two Jewish men the day before in the Golders Green neighborhood of northwest London (CARLOS JASSO / AFP)

Antisemitic incidents in the United Kingdom rose 21 percent in the first six months of 2026 compared to the same period last year, reaching the second-highest total on record for the first half of a year, according to a new report by the Community Security Trust.

The organization recorded 1,926 anti-Jewish hate incidents between January and June, up from 1,598 during the first half of 2025. The total comes out to an average of 321 monthly incidents, nearly double the figure from before October 7, 2023.

Physical attacks rose sharply, with 135 recorded antisemitic assaults, an 82% increase year-over-year. Incidents in schools jumped 59% to 178, while synagogue-related incidents surged by 31%, CST notes.

The most serious incidents included the terror stabbing of two visibly Jewish men in Golders Green on April 29, which fueled 71 further anti-Jewish incidents over the next three days, CST says. The period also saw a series of arson attacks targeting London synagogues and Jewish-linked properties, including the burning of Hatzola ambulances and strikes on multiple synagogues that were linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and claimed by an organization later proscribed by the UK government.

“Thousands of Jewish families living in fear in their own country, and it is completely unacceptable,” says Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp. “Antisemitism has no place in Britain and real action needs to be taken to stamp it out. This is a national emergency.”

Video shows skinheads gathering at Bulgaria hotel where Jewish youths were staying

Footage shared by Hebrew media shows an antisemitic incident in Bulgaria on Monday night, in which a group of skinheads descended on a hotel in Bansko after learning that a dozen Jewish youths were staying there.

The thugs located the group, who were part of a delegation of Jewish youth group leaders, and threatened them, including with shouts of “Sieg Heil,” according to a report in Israel Hayom.

Police dispatched to the area initially dispersed the neo-Nazi crowd, only for the assailants to return shortly thereafter, the report says.

“Sieg Heil”

A mob of neo-Nazi skinheads surrounded a hotel in Sofia, Bulgaria 🇧🇬 where a group of Jewish teens from Italy was staying.

The neo-Nazis blocked the exits and tried to break in, chanted Nazi slogans, and made Nazi salutes. The police drove them away, only for them… pic.twitter.com/fAm2cCpW0C

— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) August 4, 2026

Senior Hamas figure falsely claims terror group didn’t intentionally kill, abduct civilians on Oct. 7

Hamas spokesman Ghazi Hamad appears on Piers Morgan Uncensored, August 3, 2026. (Screenshot via YouTube)

Senior Hamas member Ghazi Hamad denies that the terror group targeted civilians and children in its October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

He makes his claim despite the fact that many of the atrocities were captured on camera by the terrorists themselves, and that Hamas held civilians whom it had kidnapped hostage in the Gaza Strip for years after the assault.

Appearing on the “Piers Morgan Uncensored” program, Hamid asserts that Hamas “never commit crimes; we never kill civilians.”

When pressed about the hundreds of civilians whom Hamas terrorists killed at the Nova music festival and in house-to-house assaults throughout the Gaza border area, Hamad says “maybe some mistakes happened.”

Morgan asks Hamad about the kidnapping of 9-month-old Kfir Bibas. The baby was taken hostage alongside his 4-year-old brother Ariel, and wife Shiri, all of whom were murdered in captivity. His father was also abducted.

The Hamas spokesman responds that, at the beginning of the war, the terrorist group “proposed to release all the civilians, but Israel refused that.”

Israel demanded, on a daily basis, the unconditional release of its hostages, however Hamas insisted on the release of thousands of terror convicts and an end to the war in exchange for returning them. At the time, Hamad himself vowed that the October 7 attack would be “just the first time, and there will be a second, a third, a fourth.”

Morgan also asks Hamad why, if Hamas did not target civilians, terrorists gunned down hundreds at a music festival. The terror spokesman says this “was not the plan.”

Then, Hamad cites a Haaretz report from shortly after the attack, that cited an unnamed police source as suggesting that an Israeli military helicopter “apparently harmed a few partygoers who were in the area.” More than 300 Israelis were gunned down by Hamas-led terrorists at the site, amid atrocities including sexual assault.

Asked about the Board of Peace’s disarmament deal, Hamad says that the terrorist organization has agreed to it due to the difficult circumstances in Gaza, but that its “mentality” has not changed, and argues with Morgan when the latter asserts that Israel should not be destroyed.

Soldier at Jordan Valley training base severely wounded by apparent accidental gunfire

A soldier at the Hasmonean Brigade’s training base in the Jordan Valley was severely wounded by an apparent accidental discharge this evening.

The IDF says the soldier in training was taken to a hospital in serious condition after being shot, and his family was notified

The Military Police has launched an investigation into the incident, and is probing the possibility that the accidental gunfire was the result of mishandling or playing with a weapon by a soldier.

The IDF says the investigation’s findings will be transferred to the Military Advocate General for review.