August 6: Iran’s chief negotiator mocks Trump’s repeated U-turns

Poll: Segalovitz joining Ra’am would give 2-seat bump; plurality of opposition voters back party joining gov’t

MK Mansour Abbas (left) in the Knesset, July 15, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90); MK Yoav Segalovitz (right) speaks at a Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee meeting, June 16, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

A new poll from Channel 13 shows that Yesh Atid MK Yoav Segalovitz joining Mansour Abbas’s Ra’am party would boost the Arab-majority party by two seats from five to an unprecedented seven.

Segalovitz has reportedly been in talks with Abbas about a merger, with an announcement expected in the coming days.

The move has the potential of boosting Abbas’s legitimacy as a coalition partner in the eyes of opposition parties, who have been campaigning on not sitting with Arab-majority factions.

Ra’am was part of the coalition during the previous government headed by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, but such steps toward coexistence in Israel have been delegitimized since Hamas’s October 7 attack, which Abbas has repeatedly condemned, while also recognizing Israel as a Jewish state.

The Channel 13 survey also shows that a merger between the hardline Arab nationalist party Balad and fellow Arab-majority party Hadash-Ta’al would win eight seats — a better result than if they ran separately, in which case Balad wouldn’t cross the electoral threshold, while Hadash-Ta’al would receive six seats.

Channel 13 also asked respondents whether they would support a Ra’am headed by Abbas and Segalovitz being part of the coalition. Forty-five percent of respondents said no, 29% said yes and 26% were unsure.

But among opposition voters, a plurality of 37% said they’d back such a coalition, while 32% said they wouldn’t and 31% said they weren’t sure.

The poll offered bad news for the various new right-wing parties that are trying to make it into the Knesset. All three of them — one headed by former ministers Yoaz Hendel and Chili Trooper, another headed by former Likud ministers Gilad Erdan and Yuli Edelstein and another headed by Benny Gantz and Dedi Simhi — failed to cross the electoral threshold.

Channel 13 polled 961 people, with a sampling error of 3.7%.

IDF says interceptor accidentally fired toward Israeli forces in south Lebanon; none injured

The IDF says one of its interceptor missiles was fired at a target, which was later revealed to have been fire by Israeli forces during operations in southern Lebanon this evening.

There are no injuries in the incident, which is under further investigation, the military adds.

Tanker reports hearing explosions in Hormuz but vessel and crew safe — UK maritime agency

A tanker reported hearing two explosions while transiting the Strait of Hormuz off Oman, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency says, adding that the vessel and its crew are safe.

UKMTO says in an advisory that the incident occurred about 9 nautical miles southeast of Oman’s Kumzar, and that no environmental damage has been reported.

Vance denies report Netanyahu ‘confronted’ him, says their meeting was ‘pleasant, but direct’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left), US President Donald Trump, and Vice President JD Vance (right) meet in the Oval Office on July 28, 2026. (GPO)

US Vice President JD Vance denies that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confronted him last week in Washington over his recent criticism of Israel.

“He didn’t confront me. We had a nice and frank conversation,” Vance tells Fox News in an interview when asked about an Axios report that used the word “confronted” in the headline, but not in the story itself.

A “senior Israeli official” briefing reporters in Washington last week said Netanyahu had a “good” and “honest” conversation with Vance, days after the vice president called out Jerusalem for funding an online influence campaign that allegedly saw paid activists criticize the Vance-led US efforts to negotiate an end to the Iran war.

A senior White House official subsequently characterized the Netanyahu-Vance meeting as “a cordial and productive conversation about Middle East issues that are important to both countries. [With the pair] agreeing to continue pursuing opportunities for Israel and the United States to cooperate in areas of mutual interest and shared goals.”

Elaborating on the meeting, Vance reiterates to Fox News that he views Israel as a “great partner” but that that doesn’t mean their interests are always aligned.

“The American media is fascinated by this dynamic. But the simple reality is that my job is to pursue the interests of no other nation on earth except for the United States of America,” he continues. “So when our interests are aligned with Israel, we talk about how to accomplish those shared objectives.”

“When my viewpoint is averse to that of the prime minister of Israel, we have a frank conversation about that. I would frankly describe it as a pleasant, but direct conversation. I didn’t feel confronted,” Vance adds.

IDF announces 2 reservists killed, 4 seriously wounded by IED blast in south Lebanon

Maj. (res.) Harel Birenstock (left) and Sgt. Maj. (res.) Tamir Vaknin, who were killed in southern Lebanon on August 5, 2026. (Courtesy)

Two reservist soldiers were killed, and four were seriously wounded after being hit by an explosive device in the southern Lebanon town of Majdal Zoun yesterday, the IDF announces.

The slain troops are named as: Maj. (res.) Harel Birenstock, 34, a company commander from Nokdim; and Sgt. Maj. (res.) Tamir Vaknin, 33, from Eilat. Both served in the 55th Paratroopers Brigade’s 2855th Battalion.

According to an initial IDF probe, at around noon on Wednesday, troops of the reserve brigade entered a structure in Majdal Zoun, during efforts to demolish Hezbollah infrastructure. As they entered the building, an explosion occurred, killing and injuring the forces.

The wounded troops were taken to a hospital and their families were notified, the army adds.

Following the explosion, the IDF carried out strikes on Hezbollah targets in the area.

Reports: Settlers attack Palestinians, set homes on fire in West Bank; several injured

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reports that a group of armed settlers entered the hamlet of Khirbet a-Tuba in the South Hebron Hills overnight. According to the report, the settlers set several homes on fire, and a number of residents, including women and children, suffered from smoke inhalation.

بغطاء من الاحـ'تلال تتواصل جرائمهم ..
مشاهد من إحراق المـ'ستوطنين عدداً من مساكن الفلسطينيين في "خربة الطوبا" بمسافر يطا، جنوب الخليل. pic.twitter.com/UPNGJO5E0m

— فلسطين بوست (@PalpostN) August 5, 2026

A local resident, who requested anonymity, tells The Times of Israel that six residents were injured after being attacked by settlers wielding sticks and throwing stones. According to him, the injured included a 6-year-old girl and a 36-year-old woman.

He says that around 30 settlers entered the community and fled a short time later. Residents subsequently filed a police complaint, he adds.

Media reports also say that Hebrew graffiti reading “Eretz Yehuda” (“Land of Judea,” a reference to the geographic region where the hamlet is located) was spray-painted at the scene.

#صور | مستوطنون يخطون شعارات معادية في خربة الطوبا بمسافر يطا جنوب #الخليل pic.twitter.com/kZw0Yr9rSQ

— المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام (@PalinfoAr) August 5, 2026

Report: Trump lashed out at Hegseth, said White House misled on state of munitions stockpiles

US President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, May 27, 2026, in Washington, as Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, looks on. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

US President Donald Trump clashed with his defense secretary last week, telling Pete Hegseth the White House had been misled about the state of American munitions stockpiles amid a potential return to major combat operations in Iran, The Washington Post reported overnight.

The exchange reportedly took place at Camp David, on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting. According to the newspaper, which cited two people familiar with the exchange, Trump told Hegseth he thought the problem — a shortage of long-range and interceptor missiles — “had been fixed.”

The defense secretary punted the blame to his deputy, Stephen Feinberg, the report said.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt denied the report completely, telling The Post it is: “100% fake news. Literally never happened. And President Trump has the utmost confidence in Secretary Hegseth.”

Likewise, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said: “Secretary Hegseth did not mislead anyone about our munitions posture, and he did not blame Deputy Secretary Feinberg.”

“These claims about depleted stockpiles, internal disagreements, the Secretary’s position on Iran… are equally fictional,” he said.

Body found near Petah Tikva during searches for missing person

A body was found this morning near Petah Tikva’s Yarkon Interchange during searches for missing Dimona resident Eldar Dayan, according to Hebrew media reports.

The body, in a state of advanced decomposition, was taken to the National Institute of Forensic Medicine for identification.

The identity of the person is unknown at this point.

Gulf shipping traffic down after Houthis say they attacked Saudi tanker

A bulk cargo ship sits at anchor in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, May 2, 2026. (Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA via AP)

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab-el-Mandeb strait, the key maritime chokepoints in the Gulf, reduced significantly yesterday from the previous day, shipping data shows.

Just two vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz, including a Panama-flagged coal-laden carrier entering the waterway and another commodity Marshall Islands-flagged vessel exiting, shipping data from Kpler shows, down from eight vessels a day earlier.

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.

In the Bab el-Mandeb, only one commodity vessel, a Bahamas-flagged dry bulk carrier, crossed the strait on Wednesday, Kpler data shows, down from 20 the previous day. Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said they had 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.

Former Iranian women footballers ‘proud’ to become Australian

Two former Iranian women footballers say they are “proud” to have been granted Australian citizenship after being branded traitors at home for refusing to sing the national anthem before a game.

Fatemeh Pasandideh and Atefeh Ramezanisadeh were members of a group of seven from Iran’s delegation who asked for Australia’s protection following the high-profile protest during the women’s Asian Cup in March.

With their demands for protection an embarrassment for Iran’s leaders but lauded by US President Donald Trump, five later changed their minds and returned home.

Pasandideh and Ramezanisadeh stayed, however, and were granted Australian citizenship at a ceremony yesterday overseen by interior minister Tony Burke.

“Yesterday was a truly special and unforgettable day for me. I feel proud and deeply grateful to become an Australian citizen,” Ramezanisadeh said in a statement.

“After everything we’ve been through and all the challenges we faced, this moment means more than words can express,” Pasandideh added.

A week after seeking asylum, the pair was pictured smiling and training with Australian club Brisbane Roar, which on Wednesday congratulated the pair.

“What they have been through since February is more than most people deal with in a lifetime,” a spokesman for the club said.

IDF says settlement activists who entered Lebanon all brought back

The military says the settlement activists who illegally crossed the border into Lebanon yesterday were all returned to Israel by troops.

According to the IDF, around 15 Israeli civilians arrived at the border community of Ghajar, damaged the border fence, and entered Lebanon.

Soldiers and Border Police forces dispatched to the area searched for the civilians and eventually returned them all to Israel, the military says, adding that they were handed over to the police.

“The IDF strongly condemns the incident, which constitutes another case of severe interference with operational activity and a danger to the security of IDF troops operating in the area,” the army says.

The army says that “law enforcement authorities are required to bring those involved to justice, to prevent these civilians from repeatedly engaging in this phenomenon, which constitutes a criminal offense.”

Pakistan hopes Hormuz agreement will lead to resumption of Iran-US talks

Pakistan hopes an agreement over the Strait of Hormuz will lead to the United States and Iran resuming talks under a memorandum of understanding Islamabad helped mediate, the foreign office says.

“We hope that the agreement on the Strait will pave the way for continuing dialogue, particularly the resumption of technical-level talks between Iran and the United States,” foreign ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi tells reporters.

British ex-neo-Nazi withdraws as Conservative candidate for local council, will serve as anti-radicalization adviser

Screenshot of Joshua Bonehill-Paine, a former convict and neo-Nazi, and recently selected local Conservative Party candidate, in an interview with Channel 4, February 10, 2026. (Channel 4/YouTube)

A British former neo-Nazi who was convicted of harassing a Jewish lawmaker has withdrawn from the race for the Somerset local council as the Conservative Party candidate after intense backlash to his nomination.

Joshua Bonehill-Paine says he will instead serve as a party adviser on extremism.

Bonehill-Paine, 33, was jailed in 2015 for more than three years for posting antisemitic material in advance of a neo-Nazi rally. He was later convicted of harassing Luciana Berger, who is Jewish and was then an MP for the Labour Party, calling her a “rodent” and an “evil money-grabber.”

Bonehill-Paine, who has disavowed his past views, says on X he “had thought that getting involved in my local council and working hard for my community was a good way to show how much I have changed and that I want to give something back.”

But, he said, he now realized that “I need to show the Jewish community how much I regret my previous actions and how hard I will work to fight to help destroy antisemitism and rebuild trust.”

“Since leaving prison, I have now spent years fighting antisemitism and extremism,” he adds.

He says Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has offered him to “become an adviser to the Conservative Party’s Culture and Integration Commission, specifically focusing on how young men become radicalized.”

He says he is saddened by the refusal of Jewish leaders to meet with him. “My offer to talk still remains. I am on their side, and I am actively trying to help people susceptible to radicalization and Jew hatred from heading down that path.”

20-year-old shot and killed in northern Israel, 160th Arab homicide victim this year

A young man was shot and killed in the northern Arab town of Muqeible this morning, medics say. He is identified as Ayman Jaramneh, 20.

Jaramneh was rushed in critical condition to Afula’s Ha’emek Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to the Magen David Adom ambulance service.

ضحية جريمة القتل في المقيبلة صباح اليوم الشاب أيمن جرامنة❗️❗️تم اقرار وفاته قبل قليل اثر تعرضه لجريمة إطلاق نار في المقيبلة صباح اليوم،الشرطة:"نحقق في الملابسات" … pic.twitter.com/nypwBHg9lZ

— |فرات نصار|פוראת נסאר|FURAT NASSAR (@nassar_furat) August 6, 2026

He is the 160th Arab homicide victim in Israel in 2026, the Abraham Initiatives coexistence watchdog says.

Last night, 57-year-old Ziyad Bashara was shot dead in Taibe, in central Israel.

IDF shells southern Lebanon town, day after soldiers killed

Lebanese media reports Israeli artillery shelling in the southern Lebanese town of Mansouri this morning.

Yesterday, the IDF ordered the residents of the village, located inside the military’s south Lebanon buffer zone, to evacuate.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency says Israeli artillery shells struck Mansouri this morning and overnight, and fighter jets also struck the town overnight.

Also overnight, Israeli shelling hit the nearby town of Majdal Zoun — also located in the IDF’s buffer zone — according to NNA. Yesterday, two soldiers were killed and four were wounded by a bomb in Majdal Zoun.

NNA also reports an overnight Israeli airstrike in Burj al-Shamali, next to Tyre, resulting in injuries.

The IDF has not yet commented on the purported strikes.

IDF says settler arsonists fled before troops arrived at West Bank village, police investigating

The military says Israeli settlers who carried out an arson attack in a Palestinian village in the southern West Bank overnight fled before troops arrived.

In a statement, the army says it dispatched troops to Khirbet a-Tuba in the South Hebron Hills after receiving a report of Israelis who raided the hamlet and set fire to homes and attacked residents.

“As a result, several Palestinians were injured, including a girl and a woman. Several structures were also set on fire,” the IDF says.

Footage captures last night’s Israeli settler attack on Khirbet al-Tuba in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron. pic.twitter.com/Jxhv4ugfNm

— Government Communication Center (@pal_gcc_en) August 6, 2026

The military says that as the troops arrived, they scanned the area and “identified burned structures, graffiti, and damaged property.” However, the “suspects had fled before their arrival.”

Police officers entered the village overnight with IDF escort to collect evidence and testimony for the investigation.

The IDF says that it “strongly condemns incidents of this kind, including harm to residents, among them women and children.”

“The IDF expects law enforcement authorities to bring the suspects to justice,” the army adds.

70% of Israelis fear for integrity of 2026 election, minority upbeat on democracy — poll

A voter casts a ballot in Tel Aviv during Israel's parliamentary elections on November 1, 2022. (Jack Guez/Pool Photo via AP)

Nearly three-quarters of Jewish Israelis are concerned over possible danger to the integrity of the 2026 election, while only 43 percent are optimistic about the future of democratic rule, a new poll has found.

According to the Israel Democracy Institute’s July 2026 Israeli Voice Index, 70% of Israelis (72% of Jews and 58.5% of Arabs) “think that there is danger to the integrity of Israel’s elections” which are slated to be held on October 27.

Among respondents, 90% of Jews on the political left, 76% in the center and 66% on the right expressed concern about the issue.

The poll also found that a minority — 40% of Israelis — are optimistic about the future of Israeli democracy (up from 37% last month), with 43% of Jews and only 24.5% of Arabs expressing optimism about the future of democratic rule.

The institute’s pollsters asked about election integrity following last month’s speech by President Isaac Herzog in which he warned of “violence rearing its head” and pleaded with Israelis not to “cross red lines” during campaign season, noting that past periods of Jewish sovereignty were destroyed by internal hatred.

The president warned of “internal and external” threats to the integrity of elections, and urged law enforcement to act against all such threats.

Some experts have warned that attacks against the Central Elections Committee by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party could potentially presage a challenge to the results of the election. The coalition has opposed the placing of polling stations in old age homes, whose residents are generally more liberal than the general population.

Meanwhile, senior officials in Likud Transportation Minister Miri Regev’s office have been reported to discuss ways to limit the number of flights coming into Ben Gurion Airport in the days leading up to election, in order to thwart the arrival of voters for parties opposed to Netanyahu. Israelis living overseas have told the Ynet news site that they have had trouble confirming their voter eligibility online.

Israelis abroad cannot cast absentee ballots and must come home to vote. There have been indications of a mobilization of opposition supporters living abroad to travel to Israel to vote.

The Knesset Finance Committee cut the Central Elections Committee’s budget by NIS 50 million ($16.9 million) in February, despite significant concerns that both foreign interference and the emergence of generative artificial intelligence could adversely affect the election.

North Korea fires short-range ballistic missile, South Korea’s military says

This undated picture released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on December 19, 2023, shows the test launch of a Hwasongpho-18 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at an undisclosed location in North Korea. (KCNA VIA KNS / AFP)

North Korea has fired a short-range ballistic missile toward the sea east of the Korean Peninsula, South Korea’s military says, marking the latest in a series of weapons tests this year.

Japan’s government says Pyongyang launched what could be a ballistic missile.

The launch follows a series of tests this year, including short-range ballistic missiles, artillery rockets and other tactical weapons designed to bolster the isolated state’s military capabilities.

The most recent confirmed weapons test, in late June, involved an upgraded 240-mm multiple-launch rocket system, tactical ballistic missiles and a 155-mm self-propelled howitzer, North Korean state media KCNA said.

The South Korean military says in a statement that it has heightened its alert for further firings, closely sharing information with the United States and Japan.

The missile test could be related to recent criticism by Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, of Japan’s firing of Tomahawk missiles and its military ambitions, according to Lim Eul-chul, a professor at Kyungnam University’s Institute for Far Eastern Studies.

It also comes ahead of South Korean-US joint military drills expected to be held soon, Lim adds.

Extremist settler accused of killing Palestinian civil rights activist indicted on charge of reckless homicide

Yinon Levy works on his farm in the South Hebron Hills, West Bank, May 12, 2024. (Maya Alleruzzo/AP)

Yinon Levy, an extremist settler activist, has been indicted by the State Attorney’s Office on a charge of reckless homicide over the killing of Palestinian civil rights activist Awdah Hathaleen during a confrontation in the southern West Bank village of Umm al-Khair on July 28, 2025.

He faces a maximum of 12 years in prison if convicted.

Levy runs an illegal farming outpost and a construction contracting business in the southern West Bank, and has been sanctioned by several countries for coordinating violence and harassment against Palestinians in the area.

According to prosecutors, while constructing a new neighborhood in the settlement of Carmel, Levy gave orders to break through a fence onto private property in Umm al-Khair, which led to a confrontation at the site, during which Levy shot “towards the area in which people were present, which caused the death of Awdah Hathaleen.”

According to the indictment, after Levy instructed a backhoe driver to create a new path on private land in Umm al-Khair, villagers tried to block the machine’s path, but the operator struck one of the protesters with the digger, wounding him in his head and shoulder. Levy insisted that the operator continue digging the new path, leading to further confrontations between him and protesters, some of whom threw rocks at the backhoe.

Levy then drew his pistol and shot one round parallel with the ground in the general direction of Umm al-Khair, which struck and killed Hathaleen, who was standing some 20 meters away from Levy inside a village courtyard, filming the incident, prosecutors say.

Levy is also charged with one count of trespass while armed, and one count of malicious damage.

Levy has been sanctioned by Canada, the UK, and the European Union for violence against Palestinians, and was also placed under sanctions by the Biden administration, although those sanctions were lifted by current US President Donald Trump.

Afghan man given life sentence for deadly Munich car-ramming

Emergency services attend the scene after a driver hit a group of people in Munich, Germany, February 13, 2025. (Peter Kneffel/dpa via AP)

A German court has handed a life jail term to an Afghan man for a car-ramming attack in Munich last year that killed a two-year-old girl and her mother and left dozens injured.

The Munich court rules that the crime carried “particular gravity,” a designation that will make it much harder for the 25-year-old man, named only as Farhad N., to ever win release from prison.

Third day of Lebanon-Israel talks begins in Rome after a day of deadly fighting

The third day of talks between Israel and Lebanon begins after two tense days of discussions in Rome.

The negotiations are taking place after deadly clashes in southern Lebanon yesterday, in which two IDF soldiers were killed and four wounded. In response, the IDF resumed strikes against Hezbollah.

According to the Lebanese Al Akhbar outlet, the US is taking Israel’s side on the pace of the Lebanese army’s disarming of Hezbollah.

American mediators told their Lebanese counterparts yesterday that they do not intend to pressure Israel to accelerate the IDF’s withdrawal, according to the report, and that the Lebanese Armed Force must take clear steps in disarming Hezbollah across Lebanon so that the pilot zones can be accelerated and expanded.

UAE joins Turkey, Saudi Arabia in accusing Israel of undermining Trump Gaza plan

Palestinians seen near buildings destroyed during the recent war between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, central Gaza Strip, July 31, 2026. (Ali Hassan/Flash90)

A group of Muslim countries — including close ally the United Arab Emirates and hostile Turkey — condemns Israeli “violations” in the Gaza Strip, and accuses Israel of undermining US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the fighting in Gaza.

Qatar, Jordan, the UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt say Israel’s conduct in Gaza “constitutes a clear breach of Israel’s obligations under international law and the Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict, undermines international and regional efforts aimed at implementing the second phase of the Plan, particularly following the announcement by US President Donald Trump that the Palestinian factions accepted the roadmap, including the provisions relating to the confinement of weapons.”

They say Israel’s policy in Gaza “threatens to derail the political process, reignite the cycle of escalation, and further deepen the humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip.”

Israel says it will not begin to withdraw its forces in Gaza until meaningful progress is made on Hamas disarmament.

Kuwait orders Iranian school shut after attacks by Tehran

Authorities in Kuwait have ordered the closure of a local Iranian school, a source at the education ministry tells AFP, after the country came under repeated Iranian attack during the Middle East war.

The source does not give a reason for the closure of the country’s only Iranian school, but Kuwait was one of several Gulf states hosting US forces to be targeted by Iran over the course of the war, most recently when a June ceasefire between the belligerents broke down.

“The Minister of Education issued a decision to revoke the educational license of the private Iranian school and close it down,” says the text of the decision, which was seen by AFP.

New admissions were suspended for the coming academic year, with the ministry urging parents to transfer their children to other schools, the decision reads.

Two Ashkelon residents charged with spying for Iran

Police and the Shin Bet announce the arrest of two Ashkelon residents accused of carrying out “espionage missions on behalf of Iranian intelligence” in exchange for cryptocurrency.

Israeli citizen Tamerlan Amshukov and Ukrainian citizen Alina Kushnirko were arrested last month by the police’s international investigations unit and Lahav 433 major crimes unit, and were indicted today at the Tel Aviv District Court, police and the Shin Bet say in a statement.

Amshukov was in contact with an Iranian agent “over the past few months” and received thousands of shekels to go to Eilat and buy an advanced phone with a high-resolution camera that he used to photograph “sensitive sites,” including the Eilat port and Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl military cemetery and museum, according to the statement.

He took the photos “at the instruction and on behalf of” an Iranian agent, the statement says.

Some of the missions were carried out by both Amshukov and Kushnirko, the statement adds, without specifying.

The statement also does not specify the amount the two allegedly received, or their alleged means of communication with the Iranian agent.

Dozens of people have been arrested in recent months on suspicion of spying for Iran, often in exchange for several hundred dollars from agents contacted via the Telegram chat app.

The alleged crimes typically start with vandalism and photographing locations, and have sometimes escalated to murder plots targeting current or former Israeli officials.

Security officials have recently warned some Israeli ministers and other officials that Iran was attempting to physically harm them, according to Hebrew media.

Europe heat wave puts all major Italian cities on red alert as Austria sets heat record

Tourists take shelter as they walk in front of Rome’s ancient Colosseum, August 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Italy placed all of its major cities under the highest heat alert today as a blistering heat wave grips Europe, setting a national temperature record in Austria, fueling wildfires in France and disrupting energy and transport systems across the continent.

The extreme weather has pushed temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in several countries, prompting health warnings for millions of people.

Across Europe, authorities are grappling with the consequences of extreme heat: health alerts for millions in Italy, record temperatures in Austria, drought-related disruptions to energy and shipping in Central Europe, and wildfires stretching from France to the Balkans.

Scientists and officials warn that such events are becoming more frequent and intense as the climate warms.

Health Ministry says 10 diagnosed with West Nile fever, one has died

The Health Ministry announces that a 70-year-old man who developed West Nile fever symptoms in mid-July has died after being hospitalized due to complications of the illness.

Ten people have been diagnosed with the disease in an ongoing outbreak this summer, and three of the patients are still hospitalized in good condition.

The Environmental Protection Ministry says that infected mosquitoes have been captured in central Israel, including Tel Aviv-Yafo, Tayibe, Tira, Qalansawe and the Lev HaSharon Regional Council. Since the beginning of the year, infected mosquitoes have also been captured in southern Israel.

The ministry has instructed local authorities to expand the prevention, monitoring, information and pest control systems.

The disease is transmitted to humans through the bite of mosquitoes that feed on infected birds, said Prof. Sigal Sadetzki, head of the Public Health Division at the Health Ministry.

It is usually a mild illness with no symptoms, but in exceptional cases, serious symptoms such as encephalitis or meningitis may also occur. The risk of severe illness is higher in people aged 60 and over and people with underlying diseases.

‘Pain that tears the soul apart’: Hundreds attend funeral of IDF commander killed in Lebanon

The parents of Maj. (Res.) Harel Birenstock, 34, who was killed in action during combat in southern Lebanon, mourn him at his funeral on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem. August 6, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)

Hundreds of people attend the funeral of Maj. (res.) Harel Birenstock, 34, an IDF company commander killed yesterday in an IED explosion in southern Lebanon.

A second soldier was killed in the blast, and four were seriously injured.

“My firstborn son. My beautiful boy. I can’t believe this is what happened to us. I never will,” Birenstock’s mother Yonat says. “You made me a mother, and then a grandmother. You built the sweetest family imaginable.”

She says that unlike past combat missions, she had not been overly worried for his safety now. “This time I stopped myself from worrying, and they came without my even noticing,” she says. “Now we’re learning what pain really is… God in Heaven, hold our hand and teach us how to live with this pain that tears the soul apart.”

Father Shmuel says Harel was “full of joy, full of mischief, but also deeply serious… I want to thank you for the years I was blessed to have you. You made us happier than we could ever have imagined as parents. This is a tremendous test of faith for me. I feel as though there’s a knife piercing my heart.

“The last time I led you somewhere, it was to your wedding canopy. Now look where we’re leading you.”

His wife Elia says: “My Harel, when you left on Simchat Torah [on October 7, 2023], after packing just a few pairs of underwear, you hugged me and said, ‘Be strong.’ Since then, I’ve tried to take on that role — to be strong for the children, to be the commander’s wife. But this time, I can’t be strong. I have no strength left.”

Likud petitions elections committee chief to reverse ban on parties tracking voters on election day

Justice Noam Sohlberg at a hearing on a petition demanding the formation of a state commission of inquiry into October 7 at the High Court in Jerusalem, April 23, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party petitions Deputy Supreme Court President Noam Sohlberg, who heads the Central Elections Committee, seeking to reverse his recent decision to ban party observers at election polling stations from sharing information about who has voted in the upcoming national election.

The longstanding practice has been utilized mainly by right-wing and ultra-Orthodox parties to maximize voter turnout.

According to the Haaretz daily, Likud party attorney Ilan Bombach decried the ruling as “changing the rules mid-game,” arguing that Sohlberg had rendered his decision months after a petition on the matter had been filed, “after the parties had already formulated their preparations in accordance with the rules that existed at that time.”

Sohlberg’s decision came in response to a petition by anti-corruption activist Shahar Ben Meir against parties’ use of apps to track who had come to the polls. The Central Elections Committee said the petition was opposed by Likud and its allied parties Shas, United Torah Torah and Religious Zionism, while other factions did not weigh in on the matter.

The deputy Supreme Court chief accepted the petition, saying that sharing voters’ identities “constitutes a violation of privacy and is not permitted under the provisions of the Privacy Protection Law.”

A senior Likud official initially responded to the ruling by telling Channel 13 that the move constituted a “targeted elimination of the right wing,” as the ruling party and allied factions have used dedicated apps to see which of their supporters had voted and which needed prodding.

The Ynet news site quotes Bombach as writing to Sohlberg that “we believe that the decision is wrong, and that the voters’ privacy and the essential secrecy of their vote are also preserved according to the arrangement that has been in place for decades.”

It further reports that the coalition is currently looking into drafting a bill allowing the practice (though any such bill could only be introduced after the election, as the Knesset has already dissolved ahead of the October 27 vote).

IDF says it struck Hezbollah weapons depots, other sites in south Lebanon

The military says it struck a series of Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon in the past day, in response to the bomb that killed two troops and wounded four others in Majdal Zoun yesterday.

The sites included weapon depots, command centers, and other Hezbollah infrastructure, according to the IDF.

במהלך היממה האחרונה: צה"ל תקף תשתיות טרור של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה בדרום לבנון

בתגובה לתקרית אתמול, בה נפלו רס״ן (במיל׳) הראל בירנשטוק ז״ל ורס״ם (במיל׳) תמיר וקנין ז״ל, ונפצעו ארבעה לוחמי צה"ל באורח קשה כתוצאה מפיצוץ במרחב מג'דל זון, צה"ל תקף ביממה האחרונה תשתיות טרור של ארגון… pic.twitter.com/J1htwL2NKs

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) August 6, 2026

There are ‘steps in right direction’ in Gaza as IDF shows restraint — foreign official

Illustrative: IDF troops operate in the southern Gaza Strip, in a handout photo issued on April 26, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

A foreign official involved in the attempt to implement the Board of Peace’s disarmament roadmap for Gaza says that there has been some progress in recent days as the IDF has shown restraint.

“After a challenging start, we’ve seen some steps in the right direction,” says the official.

“We are seeing restraint now and a pullback in the military operations that is important to getting the sequencing rolling,” the official says of the IDF.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared on Tuesday that Israel has not agreed to the Hamas disarmament proposal, which the terror group accepted last week. While pushing back against the plan’s call to stop IDF operations in Gaza, Netanyahu did not deny reports that Israel has agreed to tighten its rules of engagement, requiring the approval of the IDF chief of staff before any strike can go ahead.

“This calm and stability is important and offers a platform to start accelerating implementation,” says the official. “But it is of course a delicate situation in an environment with no trust. That is why the roadmap is so important as it builds the verification, the phasing, the sequencing to set expectations and incentivize compliance.”

The official adds, “We are currently working on setting up the precise mechanisms of the International Verification Committee, which will play a critical role in this process – not just in getting through the phase one commitments, but then moving on to the next stages and the bigger challenges with decommissioning [weapons] and a full transition of power, and the various steps those will trigger.”

Elections panel orders Eisenkot to take down AI campaign video showing IDF soldiers

Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot attends a conference in Tel Aviv on July 12, 2026. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

The Central Elections Committee orders Gadi Eisenkot, chair of the Yashar party, to take down a campaign video featuring AI-generated images of IDF soldiers “engaged in various military activities,” the committee says in a statement.

In its order, the committee says “the use of uniforms — which are intangible public property, and the images of IDF soldiers is a significant component of the video’s propaganda message — creates a connection between [Eisenkot] and the IDF, and therefore constitutes a prohibited use of public property for election propaganda purposes.”

The Central Elections Committee announced in January that it was setting up a dedicated team in conjunction with the Shin Bet to examine concerns about AI’s impact on the October 27 election.

Last month, it imposed a temporary measure requiring election campaigns to begin labeling AI-generated or AI-manipulated content that could be mistaken for authentic material.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party calls the ruling “a resounding victory for the Likud party against the cynical use of IDF soldiers for the benefit of the Yashar party’s campaign.”

Netanyahu recently came under intense criticism after he shared an AI-generated campaign ad depicting rival Eisenkot rejecting an embrace from a young man with a T-shirt proclaiming “Israeli unity,” in favor of Mansour Abbas of the Arab party Ra’am. Critics said the ad appeared to mock Eisenkot’s son, Gal, who was killed fighting in Gaza.

In February, the Central Elections Committee ordered Likud to take down a manipulated image that appeared to show Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid joining hands with Arab party leaders.

Nearly all Jewish college students in Canada experienced or saw antisemitism last year — report

Pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel students and activists protest at an anti-Israel encampment on the campus at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, on April 29, 2024. (Graham Hughes/AFP)

Nearly all Jewish university students surveyed across Canada said they experienced or witnessed antisemitism last year, according to a government-commissioned report released yesterday.

The report surveyed approximately 900 Jewish postsecondary students nationwide from November to December 2025, in what it said was the most comprehensive national study to date examining the experiences of Jewish students on Canadian campuses. Many reported harassment, intimidation, classroom bias and a lack of confidence that their universities would respond effectively.

The survey found that 95.7 percent of Jewish respondents said they had experienced or witnessed at least one antisemitic incident during the previous 12 months, while 84% described antisemitism as a serious problem on campus. Some 70% said their university does not take antisemitism seriously, and 68% said their campus is not a safe or inclusive place for Jewish students.

More than one in five respondents said they experienced or witnessed physical violence directed at Jews on campus “often or occasionally,” while 54% reported intimidation or threats and 71% reported antisemitic vandalism.

Students said concerns over safety were influencing their daily behavior, with 72% saying they limit what they say in class about being Jewish and 57% reporting that they avoid wearing or displaying Jewish symbols because they fear for their safety.

A quarter said they were considering leaving their university because of antisemitism, and 40% said it had harmed them academically.

Respondents described being chased while wearing a kippah, spat on for displaying a Star of David necklace, shunned by classmates after revealing they were Jewish, and encountering swastikas and other antisemitic graffiti across campus. Others said they were called “Zionist” as a slur, pressured to denounce Israel, or excluded from student groups and academic projects because of their Jewish identity.

Israel-Lebanon talks in Rome end

The seventh round of Lebanon-Israel talks in Rome has ended, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.

The meeting had three parallel tracks, according to the Saudi Asharq News: legal, political, and military.

The legal track dealt with Lebanese prisoners held by Israel, according to Asharq. The outlet calls the atmosphere on the prisoner issue “positive.”

Lebanese civilians detained by Israel will be handled separately from Hezbollah operatives captured by Israel, according to the report.

The political track discussed proposed pilot zones where the Lebanese Armed Forces will take over from IDF control, while the military track aimed to agree on common definitions of military operations.

UN experts urge Iran to end ‘targeting’ of minorities

A demonstrator wears a sticker over her mouth with the words "no execution" next to the portraits of alleged victims of crackdowns, during a silent march denouncing the deadly crackdown on anti-government protesters in the Islamic Republic, in Paris on January 31, 2026. (Sébastien DUPUY / AFP)

United Nations rights experts urge Iran to end what they call the escalating arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, torture and arbitrary executions of ethnic minorities.

The Kurdish and Baluch minorities are particularly affected, they say in a statement.

“Iran’s ethnic minorities must be able to live in safety and dignity, free from discrimination,” the experts say.

In late December, a protest movement initially sparked by the high cost of living rapidly evolved into widespread anti-government demonstrations that prompted a regime crackdown killing thousands of protesters.

The UN experts say that since the protests began, Iranian authorities had reportedly detained thousands of individuals.

“Reports point to a significant increase in arbitrary arrests, and what appears to be politically motivated sentences, including against individuals from ethnic minorities, who are often arrested under broadly defined national security charges,” the experts say.

Iranian authorities have claimed the violence was due to “terrorist acts” orchestrated by the United States and Israel.

Since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war with Iran in late February, arrests and executions have multiplied in the country, linked to both the conflict and the protests.

Last year, Iran put to death over 2,150 people, according to Amnesty International, making it again by a huge margin the world’s most prolific executioner after China.

The UN experts say that this year, at least 24 members of the Baluch minority and 22 members of the Kurdish minority have been executed, with many more at imminent risk of being put to death.

Minorities “continue to be targeted during periods of political and social unrest through narratives that portray them as threats to national security,” they say.

“The targeting of Kurdish and Baluch minorities extends beyond the country’s borders and includes campaigns of threats and surveillance against individuals living abroad,” they add.

Condition of 4 soldiers wounded in Lebanon has stabilized, hospital says

The condition of the four soldiers seriously wounded in southern Lebanon yesterday is now stable, says Dr. Asaf Miller, director of Critical Care Medicine at Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa.

One of the wounded soldiers has been taken off a ventilator, Miller says. He is conscious and talking with his family, who are with him. The three others are still unconscious.

“We hope that the condition of the three other wounded soldiers will also improve in the coming days, and that they will also regain consciousness,” he says.

The four were seriously wounded, and two reservist soldiers were killed, after being hit by an explosive device in the southern Lebanon town of Majdal Zoun yesterday.

According to an initial IDF probe, at around noon on Wednesday, troops of the reserve brigade entered a structure in the town during efforts to demolish Hezbollah infrastructure. As they entered the building, an explosion occurred, killing and injuring the forces.

At least 30 Yemeni government troops killed in Houthi attacks, sources say

At least 30 Yemeni government troops were killed in Houthi attacks on military camps in the provinces of Marib and Hadramout, government sources say.

The sources add that the death toll could rise.

US Senate committee votes to hold top COVID expert Fauci in contempt

Dr. Anthony Fauci appears before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee at the Capitol, July 29, 2026, in Washington. (AP/Allison Robbert)

A Republican-led US Senate panel votes to hold Anthony Fauci, the country’s former top infectious disease official who was the face of US efforts to combat COVID, in contempt of Congress, in an escalation of efforts to blame him for potential pandemic missteps.

On the advice of lawyers, Fauci last week had invoked his constitutional right to stay silent under antagonistic questioning from Republican senators, as they probed him over unsubstantiated claims that the origins of the pandemic were covered up.

‘Beauty Queen of Jerusalem’ star says she experienced antisemitism in Hollywood

Actress Swell Ariel Or (left) and writer-director Keren Nechmad of 'Kissufim,' a Netflix movie set in late 1970s in the southern kibbutz (Courtesy)

Swell Ariel Or, the star of the Netflix series “The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem,” says in an interview on Channel 12 that she has repeatedly experienced antisemitism in Hollywood.

“People in Hollywood interact with us with pretty significant antisemitism,” she says.

She can recall “many instances” of antisemitism in Hollywood, she notes.

She says that when she auditions, she assumes those who are evaluating her have searched her name online and can see that she served in the IDF and is an outspoken supporter of Israel.

“That’s what they see,” she said. “I think it will change in the future.”

She adds, “I think most of them are scared or ignorant but that’s still what they see before [they see] the acting, before the talent.”

Swell Ariel Or: "I care about honest representation of who we are. I care that the world will learn about Sephardic Jews, about Israeli women in combat." pic.twitter.com/9xfmtINBCd

— ICC (@israelcc) August 3, 2026

Earlier this week, she spoke out at a conference about how there should be more stories told about “Sephardic Jews, about Israeli women in combat.” She also said she would love to play the part of a college student facing antisemitism on campus.

“The reactions from people in the United States are a matter of debate,” she tells Channel 12 about those remarks. “Some of them are very supportive and understanding and some don’t understand the critique itself.”

She adds, “We must keep telling stories about the Holocaust and Ashkenazi Jews and Haredim but our history is so much broader than that.”

IDF says 2 Israelis who drove into West Bank’s Jenin were attacked by Palestinians, are unharmed

The West Bank city of Jenin during an Israeli counter-terror operation, July 3, 2023. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90)

Two Israeli civilians who mistakenly entered the West Bank city of Jenin were attacked by Palestinians, the military says.

The IDF says the pair entered Jenin in their car and had stones thrown at them. Damage was caused to the car, but the Israelis were unharmed.

The two civilians then met up with Israeli troops at the Gilboa Crossing, the army says.

The IDF says that following the incident, “troops were dispatched to detain wanted [Palestinians] in the Jenin area.”

Number of Palestinian minors in Israel’s administrative detention rises sharply, data shows

Illustrative: A Palestinian prisoner at Ketziot Prison in southern Israel, February 26, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

The number of Palestinian minors held in administrative detention in Israel rose sharply within roughly a year, rising from 103 in January 2025 to 191 in March 2026, according to Israel Prison Service data obtained by the organization Parents Against Child Detention.

Those under administrative detention are held without charge or trial. Under the controversial practice, which Israel says is needed to address urgent security threats, the detainee is not informed of the allegations against them, and the evidence is presented in court in classified proceedings.

In addition, the number of minors held in administrative detention for more than a year rose more than eightfold, from six in March 2025 to 50 in March 2026.

The figures also show that administrative detention has become an increasingly frequent form of incarceration for Palestinian minors. At the beginning of 2025, about a third of Palestinian minors held by Israel were in administrative detention. By March 2026, the proportion had risen to nearly half.

Titi Carmel, executive director of Parents Against Child Detention, says in a statement that the figures are alarming.

“While children in Israel and around the world are enjoying their summer vacation, a growing number of Palestinian children are being held in harsh conditions identical to those of adults. Particularly troubling is the sharp rise in the number of children held in administrative detention — imprisonment without charge or trial, based on secret evidence,” she says.

According to the Israel Prison Service, a total of 3,198 Palestinians are currently being held in administrative detention, the vast majority from the West Bank. The figure does not include Palestinians detained during the war in Gaza who are classified as “unlawful combatants.”

Defense Minister Israel Katz recently boasted of having ceased approving administrative detention orders against Jewish suspects, while significantly increasing the use of the practice against Arab suspects.

Proposed Hormuz passage deal not feasible for shipping industry, sources say

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)

A proposed deal between Iran and Oman that would give Tehran control over ships entering the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz is not easily workable due to US sanctions and restrictive insurance clauses on any payments, four industry sources tell Reuters.

Before the outbreak of the US-Israeli war with Iran in late February,  the narrow waterway between the Gulf and the Indian Ocean was the main route for about a fifth of world oil supplies and other vital goods. It was freely open to all ships with no fees.

Control of the strait has been the biggest sticking point in efforts to end the conflict.

Under the latest proposal, Tehran would be able to intervene if necessary with any inbound traffic, while outbound traffic would follow a route between Iran and Oman, with exit clearance granted through Oman after notifying Iran, a senior Iranian source told Reuters this week.

The ability of merchant ships to navigate international waterways “safely, predictably and without unnecessary impediment is fundamental to resilient supply chains, economic stability and energy security,” the world’s leading shipping associations said in an open letter this week.

Introducing compulsory charges through the strait for transit or service fees was “a toll in all but name,” the letter said, which was sent to the UN’s shipping agency.

“It would establish a precedent that could undermine the internationally recognized legal framework governing straits used for international navigation and transit passage.”

Iran is seeking fees of between 5% and 7% of the price of cargoes from ships using the strait, according to the senior Iranian official. Oman is discussing fees of around 3%, while Washington wants no fees at all.

The UN’s International Maritime Organization said it could not comment on reports of the proposals.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

ToI poll: If Jewish MK joins Ra’am, most opposition voters support including it in coalition

If Jewish lawmaker Yoav Segalovitz joins the Arab party Ra’am, most opposition voters would support including Ra’am in a governing coalition, according to a new poll from The Times of Israel’s Zman Yisrael sister site.

Recent reports have indicated that Segalovitz, an MK for the centrist Yesh Atid party, is exploring joining Ra’am. Ra’am is a historically Islamist party but has taken steps to depart from its religious roots and emphasize a civic identity.

The poll finds that 56% of opposition voters would support including Ra’am with Segalovitz in the coalition, while 30% oppose doing so.

Among voters for the current right-wing governing coalition, the numbers are flipped: 55% oppose including Ra’am while 11% would support doing so.

Overall, voters are split, with 40% who oppose including Ra’am and 38% in support of it. The remainder had no opinion.

The poll found that if Ra’am joined a governing coalition, it would give the anti-Netanyahu bloc a 63-seat majority in the 120-seat Knesset.

The poll found that if elections were held today, the centrist anti-Netanyahu Yashar party led by Gadi Eisenkot would win 23 seats, followed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud at 21, with Naftali Bennett’s B’Yachad (Together) on 15.

In total, the Jewish anti-Netanyahu parties would win 57 seats, short of a majority without Ra’am, while the pro-Netanyahu bloc would win 51. Ra’am would win six seats, as would the Arab party Hadash-Ta’al.

The poll included 500 respondents and was conducted on August 5-6, with a 4.4 percent margin of error.

Houthis say attacks on Yemeni forces were response to ‘Saudi military buildup’

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi terror group says it attacked government positions in response to an alleged military buildup by neighboring Saudi Arabia, while medical sources said at least 38 Yemeni troops were killed.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree accuses the kingdom of a “large Saudi military buildup” to prepare for attacks. “Therefore, our armed forces conducted a large-scale and precise military operation targeting Saudi enemy troop concentrations,” he adds, referring to the Saudi-backed government’s forces.

Navy conducts large-scale drill in Mediterranean and Red Sea

Israeli Navy sailors are seen participating in a drill, in a handout photo published on August 6, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

The Israeli Navy says it conducted a large-scale military drill this week, involving fleets of warships, submarines, and border security.

The maritime drill, in both the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, stems from “lessons from the fighting over the past three years,” the Navy says.

Hundreds of sailors aboard the Navy’s missile boats, corvettes, submarines, and patrol boats participated in the drill, according to the IDF.

Scenarios practiced as part of the drill in the Mediterranean included “maritime infiltration, multi-front combat, aerial threats, the use of firepower, and the defense of strategic assets, including gas rigs, Israeli ports, and national infrastructure,” the military says.

In the Red Sea, other scenarios were simulated by the sailors in cooperation with the Navy’s Operations Division, “to strengthen command capabilities, synchronization, and cooperation between the units,” the Navy adds.

בים התיכון ובים האדום: חיל הים מחזק את המוכנות המבצעית בתרגיל רחב היקף

תרגיל זרועי רחב היקף בהובלת שייטת ספינות הטילים, בשיתוף שייטת הצוללות, פלגות הביטחון השוטף 914 ו-916, המטה המבצעי וגורמים נוספים, התקיים השבוע. בתרגיל השתתפו מאות לוחמים וכלי שיט מגוונים.

התרגיל התקיים כחלק… pic.twitter.com/BP8N5NsAxx

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) August 6, 2026

Body found in Petah Tikva ID’d as Eldar Dayan, missing since last month

Police confirm that the human remains found near Petah Tikva’s Yarkon Interchange this morning belong to missing Dimona resident Eldar Dayan, 23.

Two Dimona residents in their 20s are under arrest on suspicion of involvement in Dayan’s death and tampering with evidence. The Beersheba Magistrate’s Court today extended the suspects’ arrest until August 12, police say.

Eldar’s family reported him missing to the police on July 25 after about a week without hearing from him. The suspects in custody were seen with him in Petah Tikva on July 18, according to police.

Uganda approves sending troops for international force in Gaza

Illustrative: Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) soldiers at Entebbe airport, March 8, 2007. (AFP/Peter Busomoke)

Ugandan authorities win parliamentary approval to deploy troops to Gaza as part of the international force proposed by US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace to secure the territory following the devastating Israel-Hamas war.

The successful motion, brought by the defense minister, is Uganda’s first public indication of its willingness to join the International Stabilization Force for Gaza. Morocco also has pledged troops for the mission.

It was not immediately clear why Uganda has agreed to deploy in Gaza, or if there was a quid pro quo involved, and some opposition lawmakers question Uganda’s motive in the decision. Lawmaker Hassan Kirumira says the deployment will raise “diplomatic concerns” for a country that is a member of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

The “big question” for supporters of the deployment to clarify is: “On which side is our army going to fight?” he says in parliament.

Defense Minister Kiryowa Kiwanuka, seeking the support of lawmakers, cites Uganda’s military capabilities stemming from its peacekeeping deployments in countries such as Somalia.

The force, proposed by Trump’s Board of Peace in February, would be led by American Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, who said in May that the envisioned 20,000-strong force would ensure “future prosperity and enduring peace.”

Last week Trump announced a deal for Hamas to disarm and for Israel to withdraw its forces from Gaza. According to that deal, the International Stabilization Force would be deployed to Gaza after the completion of a phased withdrawal of Israeli troops.

After the text of the agreement was released, Israel said it had “serious security concerns” about the deal.

New homes erected in evacuated settlement in preparation for repopulation this summer

Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council who is spearheading the campaign to resettle the Gaza Strip, points at a map of northern Samaria in his office in the Barkan industrial center in Ariel, November 20, 2023. (Mati Wagner / The Times of Israel)

Prefabricated homes have been erected in the previously evacuated northern West Bank settlement of Kadim, preparing the way for the settlement to be repopulated later this summer.

Cranes moved the prefabricated homes into position yesterday, after land was prepared for the new structures, access roads to Kadim and internal streets were paved, and electricity, water and sewage infrastructure were completed for the settlement.

Kadim was one of four settlements in the northern West Bank that were evacuated under the 2005 disengagement plan, which also saw Israel dismantle all its settlements in Gaza and pull out of the Strip.

Under the current government, two of those four West Bank settlements – Homesh and Sa Nur – have now been re-established and repopulated, with Kadim and Ganim set to be the third and fourth later this summer.

The government also plans to build another 15 settlements in the northern West Bank region as part of its efforts to massively expand the West Bank settlement project and thwart the establishment of a Palestinian state.

“We are erasing the disgrace of the expulsion from Kadim. The first trailers are the beginning of a large settlement, with thousands of residents, with children and with educational institutions, to the glory of the State of Israel,” says head of the Samaria Regional Council Yossi Dagan, who has helped advance the expansion of settlements in the region.

“Instead of four settlements there will be 19 settlements, and with God’s help many more beyond that… Those who did not want citizens of the State of Israel here, those who did not want this area to have Jews, will get 30 times, 40 times and 50 times more,” says Dagan, who himself was evacuated from Sa Nur in 2005.

EU says Gaza roadmap is crucial step to ensure Hamas never threatens Israel again

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas speaks with the media as she arrives for a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, July 13, 2026. (AP/ Marius Burgelman)

The European Union backs the Board of Peace’s Gaza disarmament roadmap, says EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, calling it “a crucial step to make sure that Hamas is disarmed and never again poses a threat to the security of Israel.”

She says in a statement that the bloc “welcomes the announcement of an agreement on the permanent decommissioning of weapons from Hamas and other non-state armed groups, the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and civilian transition in Gaza, and thanks the mediators for their tireless efforts.”

In an oblique swipe at Israeli pushback against the plan, she calls on “all parties to approve and implement the agreement without delay.”

She also says the EU will continue to back the Palestinian Authority, “so that it can securely take back effective control of Gaza.”

Ex-Likud ministers announce breakaway party aiming to be ‘new political home’ on right

Likud MK and ex-minister Yuli Edelstein (left) and former Likud minister Gilad Erdan hold a press conference in Tel Aviv to announce the establishment of a new right-wing party, August 6, 2026. (Oz Schechter)

Gilad Erdan and Yuli Edelstein, both former senior members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, announce the formation of a breakaway faction that will compete against their former party in the October election.

They say the new party, which doesn’t yet have a name, will support universal conscription while sticking to other longtime right-wing values.

“I’ve been a right-winger my whole life, I’ve never zigzagged,” Erdan says in a press conference, professing his support for West Bank settlements and opposition to a Palestinian state. But he says Likud has departed from other core values it once prized, like responsibility and mutual respect.

“I staunchly oppose the worldview of the left,” he says. “But I’ve never hated those who thought differently from me. I never spoke about their roots, their families or their way of life.”

Erdan emphasizes that his party won’t join a narrow coalition with left-wing parties.

Edelstein says he and Erdan are building “a new political home that will give voice to the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who feel they don’t have anyone to vote for anymore,” according to Hebrew media reports.

It will push for a quasi-constitutional Basic Law obligating all sectors of society to either enlist in the military or perform national civilian service.

The Haredi political parties, which are allied with Likud, have opposed any effort to halt the blanket exemptions from conscription that have long been afforded to ultra-Orthodox men. A Likud-backed bill proposed last year attempted to extend those exemptions for yeshiva students.

Arab Israelis are also not required to do national service.

“The law will establish a simple principle: In the State of Israel, every citizen has rights and also duties,” Erdan says. “Every citizen will serve in the military or national service.”

Previous elections have seen a succession of breakaway parties from Likud, some of which have ended up rejoining Netanyahu’s party down the line.

Citing Gaza war, pharma giant Teva doesn’t want US jurors in price-fixing trial to know it’s Israeli

Illustrative: The logo for Teva appears above a trading post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, October 21, 2019. (AP/Richard Drew)

Teva Pharmaceuticals asks a US judge to prevent insurer Humana from telling jurors it is an Israeli company at a major drug price-fixing trial, arguing that strong public views over the Gaza war could prejudice proceedings and affect its ability to receive a fair hearing.

In a filing in federal court in Philadelphia yesterday, Tel Aviv-based Teva said its national origin has no bearing on whether it took part in an alleged conspiracy to inflate generic drug prices, the central claim in the litigation.

Teva, one of Israel’s largest companies, is set to be one of several drug makers to face the first trial in the long-running case. The trial is scheduled to begin on September 15 and end by late October.

The filing underscores how far-reaching tensions over the war in Gaza have become in the United States, including potentially complicating a company’s ability to defend itself before randomly selected jurors.

“In the period of almost three years since the start of the Gaza War, anything connected with Israel has been subject to the highest levels of controversy, with emotions running high,” Teva says in its filing.

In a statement, it says its corporate origin is irrelevant to the case and that “references to a foreign parent company are potentially prejudicial.” Teva’s US-based subsidiary is a defendant in the lawsuit.

Teva has denied Humana’s allegations that it conspired with other drug makers to keep the prices of some drugs artificially high. The drugs include the muscle relaxant baclofen and blood pressure medication propranolol.

Louisville, Kentucky-based Humana declined to comment.

Companies and other parties in lawsuits routinely ask judges to limit what jurors can hear during trials, arguing that some evidence could unfairly sway a jury.

Teva pointed to a recent opinion poll that found 60% of Americans have a negative view of Israel. The drug maker also cited US campus protests over Israel and acts of violence against individuals and institutions deemed affiliated with the country.

Report: Mossad chief removes 2 senior officials behind aborted Iran regime-change plan

Incoming Mossad Director Maj. Gen. Roman Gofman attends a ceremony marking the lighting of the first Hanukkah candle of the 7th Armored Brigade at the National Library in Jerusalem, December 14, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Roman Gofman, the recently appointed Mossad director, has removed two of the spy agency’s most senior officials who were closely involved in developing an unsuccessful plan to topple the Iranian regime, Channel 12 reports.

According to the report, one of the officials had served since December as the head of the Mossad’s intelligence directorate, and the other was the head of the agency’s Iran division.

Channel 12 says the two were among the architects of a written operational plan to bring down the Islamic Republic with the help of Iran’s minority groups, encouraging revived mass protests to oust the regime.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly discussed the plan when persuading US President Donald Trump to go to war in February against the Islamic Republic.

Security sources cited by the network say the two officials and Gofman had clashed from the outset, but stress that their departures are being carried out by mutual agreement as part of a broader reorganization of the Mossad and that both are expected to remain in the agency in other roles.

The Mossad plan reportedly envisioned Israeli strikes on Revolutionary Guard Corps positions along Iran’s border with Iraq, in Iranian Kurdistan. The strikes were designed to open the door for Kurdish fighters to cross into Iran, according to the report, and push into Kurdish cities in the country’s northwest.

The Mossad expected thousands of young Kurds to join the fighters, turning into a mass movement that could reach Tehran itself. It was further thought that this would help embolden a mass protest movement with millions of demonstrators to bring down the regime, according to multiple reports.

The Kurdish offensive was one of the key elements of the plan, which also reportedly envisaged installing former hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as Iranian leader.

The New York Times reported last month that Israel engaged in a multi-year effort to recruit Ahmadinejad, in a campaign that included a meeting with then-Mossad chief David Barnea on the sidelines of an academic conference in Hungary. Ahmadinejad’s office denied the story.

At the beginning of the war, Israel and the US did carry out heavy strikes against Iranian security forces – including regime officials, army bases, missile systems, police stations and Basij sites – in the country’s northwest in an effort to ease the Kurds’ path, but leaks to the media, lobbying by Turkey, and wariness among the Kurds themselves led Washington to pull the plug on the idea.

While Trump’s CIA chief and secretary of state would later characterize Netanyahu’s regime change prediction as “farcical” and “bullshit,” the president and many of his advisers were sold on the ideas that Iran’s leadership could be taken out and that its military arsenal could be destroyed, according to a New York Times report in April.

‘I don’t want to say kaddish for my son’: Tamir Vaknin, soldier killed in Lebanon, laid to rest

Sgt. Maj. (res.) Tamir Vaknin's family at his funeral in the EIlat miltary cemetery, August 6, 2026. (Screenshot/Channel 12)

Sgt. Maj. (res.) Tamir Vaknin, one of two soldiers killed yesterday by an explosive device in Lebanon, is laid to rest in the military cemetery in his hometown of Eilat.

Vaknin, 33, is survived by his parents and two brothers. He is described by Channel 12 as a talented tech worker who decided not to pursue a career in the United States because he wanted to remain close to his family. His brother tells Channel 12 that he served several tours in reserve duty in recent years.

“I don’t want to say kaddish for my son,” his father Shimon says through tears after reciting the mourning prayer at the funeral.

“Everyone loved you,” his father says in his eulogy, according to Hebrew media reports. “I told you, don’t be the first or the last. You laughed and said it didn’t work that way. You didn’t tell me when you went into Lebanon, you didn’t want to worry me.”

He continued, “How is it that I’m burying my son instead of walking beside him at his wedding?”

US State Department claims progress in today’s Israel-Lebanon talks

The US State Department claims progress was made in today’s negotiations between Israel and Lebanon in Rome after yesterday’s talks ended early amid another flare-up between Israel and Hezbollah.

“The two sides are a lot closer on what needs to be done to advance and expand the pilot zone process,” a State Department spokesperson claims.

Security officials said to warn of rise in attempts to deploy explosive drones within Israel

An explosive drone launched by Hezbollah is seen near the Israeli border with Lebanon during a Hezbollah attack in northern Israel, May 19, 2026. (Ayal Margolin/Flash90)

Israel’s defense establishment has identified a significant increase in attempts by terror groups to launch explosive drones – including fiber-optic drones – within Israel toward targets across the country, Channel 12 reports.

According to the report, officials warned during recent closed-door discussions that there is currently no effective operational solution to the emerging threat in the near term.

Defense Minister Israel Katz recently held an urgent meeting with senior defense officials on the subject, aimed at advancing “an immediate and comprehensive plan to provide an operational response to the drone threat,” according to a statement released by his office.

Fiber-optic drones, which are guided via a cable and therefore immune to electronic jamming, have posed a major challenge for the IDF during its operations in Lebanon, killing Israeli soldiers.

A security official cited by Channel 12 said that “buying a drone and attaching explosives to it is almost as easy as kicking a ball,” adding that “there is still a long way to go before we have an effective solution.”

Several killed in explosion in city outside Syria’s Damascus, state-run TV reports

Several people were killed or wounded in an explosion in a city on the outskirts of Syria’s capital Damascus, the state-run Ekhbariya TV reports.

A security source tells the channel that the blast in the city of Jaramana was caused by an explosive device planted on a vehicle, citing preliminary information.

The vehicle in question is reportedly a minibus.

An AFP photographer saw several ambulances heading to the scene of the explosion, where a main street had been closed to traffic.

Yemeni gov’t says it will respond to Houthi attacks ‘at appropriate time’

Yemeni authorities say they will retaliate against several Houthi rebel attacks earlier in the day, which medical sources say killed 38 government troops in the deadliest toll since a 2022 truce between both sides.

The defense ministry of Yemen’s internationally recognized government says in a statement that its armed forces will respond to the missile and drone attacks “at the appropriate place and time.”

Iranian parliamentary committee said to review draft bill to bar US, Israeli ships from Hormuz

An Iranian parliamentary committee is reviewing a preliminary bill that would bar US, Israeli and other “hostile” vessels from transiting the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reports, citing a lawmaker.

The draft bill would impose fines of up to 20 percent of a ship’s cargo value for violations of the proposed restrictions.

The lawmaker says the legislation is still under expert review and that parliament had invited specialists to submit recommendations before the draft is finalized.

Toronto police arrest 2 teens over latest US consulate shooting

Police investigate the site of North York's Temple Emanu-El after it was targeted by gunfire late on a Monday night, Toronto, March 3, 2026. (Nick Lachance/Toronto Star via Getty Images via JTA)

Toronto police announce two arrests in connection with a shooting at the US consulate last month, calling the accused “criminals for hire.”

The July 27 shooting was the second time this year gunfire had been directed at the US diplomatic building in the downtown core of Canada’s largest city.

No one was injured in either event, but police described both as “national security” incidents, and the initial shooting on March 10 prompted beefed-up protection for US and Israeli diplomatic buildings in multiple Canadian cities, shortly after the outbreak of the US-Israeli war.

Toronto police say those arrested included a 19-year-old and a minor, aged 15. Both have been charged with 11 offenses, including “an attack on premises of internationally protected persons.”

“We believe these offenses were carried out by criminals for hire, recruited and directed through encrypted messaging apps,” police chief Myron Demkiw says in a statement.

Two men, aged 18 and 19, were arrested in June as part of the investigation into the March shooting. Police said the men were recruited to carry out violent acts but did not provide further details.

Yair Golan won’t reserve spot on party’s list for hostage mother and activist Einav Zangauker

Einav Zangauker speaks during a conference at Reichman University in Herzliya, on January 13, 2026. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Yair Golan, chair of the left-wing Democrats party, will forgo his ability to reserve a spot on the party’s electoral slate for Einav Zangauker, mother of Matan Zangauker, who was held in Hamas captivity in Gaza for more than two years.

Golan has informed Zangauker that he wouldn’t be adding her to the slate, Hebrew media report.

Zangauker was among the most outspoken advocates for the hostages’ release during the years they were held in Gaza, and one of the most vocal critics of what she portrayed as the government’s neglect of the captives.

Trump denies reports he’s unhappy with Hegseth over depleted missile interceptors

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks alongside President Donald Trump during a cabinet meeting, July 31, 2026, at Camp David, the presidential retreat, near Thurmont, Md., July 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

US President Donald Trump denies mounting reports that he is unhappy with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the depleted stockpile of American missile interceptors.

“Pete is highly respected within the military and has made tremendous improvements,” Trump writes on Truth Social, citing Hegseth’s stopping diversity programs and his recruitment efforts.

“Iran, where the country has been decimated for the purpose of NOT ALLOWING IT TO EVER HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON, is going very well!” he claims, presumably referring to the war against Tehran.

Ilai David, brother of former hostage Evyatar David and prominent activist, weds

Yeela David, left, and Evyatar David perform at their brother Ilai's wedding, right, on August 6, 2026. (Courtesy screenshot)

Ilai David, the older brother of former hostage Evyatar David, who was among the most prominent voices calling for the captives’ return, gets married on Thursday night as Evyatar plays the guitar to accompany their sister, Yaela, who sings a love song.

Evyatar David was one of the final 20 hostages freed from captivity in October 2025.

Gil Dickmann, the cousin of hostage Carmel Gat, who was murdered in captivity in August 2024, and was also deeply involved in the hostage struggle, is at the wedding and posts that the ceremony is taking place at the exact time of the weekly music jam held each week for months at Hostages Square in honor of Evyatar, a passionate music fan.

“Yaela and Evyatar David, siblings of the groom, dedicate the most moving song there is,” writes Dickmann. “After 738 days of struggle, now is the time for love.”

Erdogan to visit Saudi Arabia tomorrow, Turkish presidency says

File: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) hugs Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman before a meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, April 28, 2022. (Bandar Aljaloud/Saudi Royal Palace via AP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Saudi Arabia tomorrow for talks with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif, Erdogan’s office announces.

Pakistan has been acting as a mediator to try to end the US-Iran war that has drawn in several Gulf countries and paralyzed maritime traffic through the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

‘Theater diplomacy on loop’: Iran’s chief negotiator mocks Trump’s repeated U-turns

Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, in Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 11, 2026. (Pakistan Prime Minister Office via AP)

Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s chief negotiator in talks with the US, mocks US President Donald Trump for repeatedly threatening large attacks and then calling them off while citing a breakthrough in negotiations.

“‘Massive attack coming… wait, never mind, they want to negotiate.’ That’s theater diplomacy on loop,” Ghalibaf writes. “Using bullying + broken promises + fake news as leverage is a failed strategy. Acknowledge the facts and fulfill your commitments. We don’t need more theater.”

Most recently, earlier this month, Trump called off a major attack, citing progress in talks. In recent days, Iran and Oman have reportedly made progress on a deal to allow transit in the Strait of Hormuz.

“Massive attack coming… wait, never mind, they want to negotiate.”
That’s theater diplomacy on loop.

Using bullying + broken promises + fake news as leverage is a failed strategy.

Acknowledge the facts and fulfill your commitments. We don’t need more theater.

— محمدباقر قالیباف | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) August 6, 2026

Lapid announces Segalovitz leaving Yesh Atid, amid reports he’ll join Ra’am in political shakeup

Former deputy police commissioner Yoav Segalovitz together with Yesh Atid chair Yair Lapid after announcing he would be joining the party, May 29, 2016. (Courtesy)

Yair Lapid, chair of the centrist Yesh Atid party, announces that MK Yoav Segalovitz will be departing the party, a possible signal that the lawmaker will join the Ra’am faction in a political shakeup.

Recent reports have indicated that Segalovitz will move to Ra’am, making him the first-ever Jewish candidate on the Arab party’s slate. Ra’am, which is historically Islamist, has said it is departing from its religious roots to become a civic party.

Such a move may also increase Ra’am’s chances to join an anti-Netanyahu governing coalition, as the party did in 2021.

Lapid appears to welcome Segalovitz’s move, referring to him in friendly terms and noting his term of service as deputy internal security minister, when he fought crime in Arab Israeli communities.

“My friend Yoav Segalovitz announced today that he is concluding his role as a Knesset member for Yesh Atid,” Lapid says. “Across all of his years of service in Yesh Atid, in the Knesset and as deputy internal security minister, he acted with integrity and professionalism on behalf of Israel’s citizens and maintaining the rule of law.”

Lapid wishes Segalovitz success as he moves on from the party.

A Times of Israel poll released today found that if Segalovitz joins Ra’am, the party would win six seats, large enough to give the anti-Netanyahu bloc a majority in the Knesset if it joins the coalition.

US to vet social media of foreign journalists applying for visas, report says

A man looks at newspapers on sale showing headlines relating to the Epstein files in London, on February 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

The US State Department will vet the social media accounts of foreign journalists applying for visas to work in the United States, according to a report in the conservative news outlet The Daily Signal.

The report cites an internal memo that said an initiative by President Donald Trump‘s administration that requires applicants for many visa types to make their social media accounts public for screening was being expanded to include foreign media representatives.

Applicants for another type of visa for workers from Canada and Mexico also will now be included in the screening, it said.

The White House and the State Department’s official accounts on X share a link to the article, but the State Department declines to confirm the specifics of the report, citing a policy of not commenting on “purported internal documents.”

A State Department spokesperson says that what the department calls “online presence vetting” is used to ensure that applicants are eligible for a visa under US law.

“The Department of State is screening and vetting to the maximum extent possible every foreign national seeking admission to the United States to ensure they will respect US law including the terms of their admission and do not pose a threat to US security, public safety or national interests,” the spokesperson said.

“Officers use a variety of methods to make informed decisions that protect national security, prevent fraud and ensure a thorough review of applicants,” the spokesperson adds.

It is unclear when the reported new policy would take effect.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has said it will screen the social media posts of immigrants and visa applicants, including for what it deems antisemitic content and “anti-Americanism.” The administration has canceled the visas of foreign students in the United States who engaged in pro-Palestinian activism, in some cases attempting to deport those students.

Trump: Deal not yet reached to reopen Hormuz, but one could come soon

US President Donald Trump speaks before signing executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, August 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP/Alex Brandon)

US President Donald Trump says a deal has not yet been reached with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz but such an agreement could be reached soon.

In the meantime, the US will maintain its blockade of Iranian ports, Trump tells reporters in the Oval Office.

“We’re doing very well. I’m involved in the negotiation. I think we’re doing fine. It could be soon,” Trump claims.

Trump again claims that the US has an “unlimited supply” of missiles, amid mounting reports that Washington is actually running out of them.

“We’re in great shape, but we always want more,” Trump says, in an effort to explain the White House’s request from Congress for supplemental funding for the Iran war to the tune of over $30 billion.

Death toll rises to 58 in Houthi attacks on Yemen government forces

A military source tells AFP that at least 58 people were killed in attacks today by Iran-backed Houthi forces against Saudi-supported Yemen government troops.

The fighting is the worst in more than three years in Yemen’s civil war. A Houthi military spokesman said the ballistic missile and drone attack came in response to an alleged military buildup backed by Saudi Arabia. Medical sources had earlier spoken of at least 38 killed in the strikes on several military camps.

Sa’ar slams Turkish counterpart, defends Israel’s Syria buffer zone

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar during a press conference in Prague, Czech Republic, May 20, 2026. (AP/Petr David Josek)

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar slams his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, defending the buffer zone Israel’s military holds in Syrian territory and criticizing Turkey’s military activity in Syria.

Earlier in the day, Fidan had criticized Israel for its military presence in Syria.

“Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan accuses Israel of destabilizing Syria for taking the minimum measures necessary to protect Israeli citizens from attacks,” Sa’ar posts on X. “These are the same Turkish leaders who have spent decades violating the sovereignty of Syria while cynically lecturing others on international law.”

Sa’ar accuses Turkey, a former ally that has increasingly been seen in Jerusalem as a regional adversary, of wanting “to establish military bases inside Syria to undermine Israel’s security.”

The IDF has been deployed to nine army posts inside southern Syria since the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024, to protect Israeli border communities and halt the cross-border flow of weapons to terror groups. The posts are mostly within a UN-patrolled buffer zone on the border between the countries.

Syria has called on Israel to withdraw from its territory. Turkey also stations troops in Syria, but unlike Israeli forces, they are there with the consent of the Syrian government, a close ally of Turkey.

Sa’ar accuses Turkey of a variety of destabilizing activities, including attacks on Kurdish forces, its occupation of part of Cyprus, and human rights violations.

“What Minister Fidan wants is for Israel to stop protecting itself from threats to its security. This will not happen,” Sa’ar writes. “Israel will continue to take all measures necessary to defend its citizens against any threat.”

Saudi, Turkish, Pakistani leaders to hold Jeddah summit tomorrow, source says

A source close to the Saudi government tells AFP that the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey will hold a summit tomorrow in Jeddah.

An agenda for the talks between Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, Pakistani Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is not given.

But the meeting comes with Iran and the United States locked in a showdown on reopening the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

GOP Ohio Sen. Jon Husted says Rep. Max Miller should leave House after abuse allegations

Republican US Rep. Max Miller of Ohio speaks at an annual leadership meeting of the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas, Nevada, October 28, 2023. (AP Photo/David Becker)

Republican US Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio calls on US Rep. Max Miller to resign his House seat and abandon his fall reelection bid.

Miller is facing a congressional ethics investigation related to domestic abuse allegations leveled against him by his ex-wife, and anxiety over his electability this fall in the closely fought midterm election is growing within his party.

But the second-term, Cleveland-area congressman has continued to insist that he will hold the course. He is one of four Jewish Republicans in the House.

In a post on X, Husted says he knows Miller, his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, the daughter of Ohio Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno, and their daughter, and says, “I do not see how a campaign for Congress benefits any of them.”

“I believe Max would be making the right decision to step aside as a candidate and resign from Congress to focus on what is in the best interest of his daughter,” he writes. “Years from now, I believe he will look back and know it was the right choice for her.”

A message seeking comment was left with Miller’s spokesperson. He vehemently denies all allegations of domestic abuse leveled against him by his former spouse.

Husted’s comments add to the increasing pressure on Miller from both Democrats and fellow Republicans. Moreno, the state’s senior senator, reacted to Miller’s livestream on X Sunday by saying that Miller is unfit to serve — though he never specifically urged Miller to resign or end his November campaign.

Under Ohio law, Miller would need to withdraw by Saturday to allow enough time for the replacement process to play out before the 4 p.m. Monday deadline.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.