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Key updates, 19 August 2026:
After remains returned to Israel, long-missing soldier from 1982 Lebanon battle to be buried in Jerusalem
The IDF announces that a funeral will be held on Friday in Jerusalem for Sgt. First Class Yehuda Katz, whose remains were returned to Israel on Tuesday after he went missing in the First Lebanon War’s 1982 battle of Sultan Yacoub.
A funeral procession will depart from the Kerem Yeshiva in Yavneh at 8:30 a.m., and eulogies will be read at 10 a.m. at Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives cemetery, where Katz will be buried.
US to provide $206 million for Gaza peacekeeping force, letters show
Soldiers from Kosovo visit a military base in southern Israel as they prepare to join the Board of Peace's International Stabilization Force (ISF) for Gaza on July 12, 2026. (Board of Peace)
US President Donald Trump’s administration has told Congress it is sending more than $206 million for a proposed Gaza peacekeeping force, the first significant funding for Washington’s stalled plan to rebuild the devastated enclave.
In two July 30-dated notifications seen by Reuters, the State Department informed Congress it will provide $200 million for the International Stabilization Force’s (ISF) equipment, infrastructure, vehicles and operational costs. An additional $6 million would repurpose US armored vehicles to support the force.
The notifications, which were addressed to key appropriations and foreign affairs committees in Congress, have not been previously reported.
The funding is the first concrete US spending on the peacekeeping force and signals the administration’s determination to press ahead with Trump’s Gaza roadmap even as both Israel and Hamas have balked at conditions needed to advance the plan.
“The ISF will lead security operations, support comprehensive demilitarization, and enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid and reconstruction material to Gaza,” one of the notifications says, while noting the final composition of the force was still being negotiated.
The administration has not said how much money will ultimately be needed to fund the force.
Trump set up a Board of Peace to oversee his ambitious plan to end Israel’s war in Gaza and rebuild the shattered territory. His plan envisioned that the peacekeeping force would deploy to Gaza to secure areas after Israeli forces withdraw and would train new Palestinian police forces, support aid deliveries and assist with Hamas’s disarmament.
While Hamas agreed to the Board of Peace’s disarmament plan on July 30, the effort has stalled amid Israel’s rejection of the plan.
Trump’s envoy and son-in-law Jared Kushner held meetings with Hamas officials on Sunday and Israeli leaders on Monday in Jerusalem but left without a breakthrough.
An official from the Board of Peace claims the last two weeks as a period of “significant advances” and says the board had sought additional funding pledges as a result.
The official says the funding was needed for the construction of a base for forces inside Gaza, among other reconstruction projects.
Member countries had initially pledged $17 billion for reconstruction efforts inside Gaza, but only a tiny fraction of the funds have been received.
UN chief blasts Ben Gvir’s ‘appalling’ call to kill 30-40 Gazans a day
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres slams remarks by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir who suggested that Israel should kill “30 or 40” people every night in Gaza.
“These remarks are appalling. They’re outrageous. They’re dehumanizing, and they’re dangerous. And we condemn them unequivocally,” says Guterres’s spokesman Stephane Dujarric.
Palestinians say they’re still trapped in homes, 11 days after settler siege commenced
Israeli soldiers gather in front of the house of Palestinian-American landlord Louai Abu Ridi, which was besieged by Israeli settlers, in the West Bank village of Qusra, south of Nablus, August 19, 2026. (AP/Majdi Mohammed)
Some 11 days after settlers commenced a siege of several Palestinian homes on the outskirts of the northern West Bank village of Qusra, residents of those houses tell The Times of Israel that they are still trapped inside.
It took soldiers about a week just to clear several illegal outposts that settlers established adjacent to the three besieged homes on August 9.
The army declared the area a closed military zone, but soldiers have largely refrained from enforcing the directive against settlers, who have continued roaming the area every day to intimidate Qusra residents.
No settlers have been arrested for taking part in the siege, which appears to be a repeat of the strategy used to coax a Palestinian family to flee their home in the nearby village of Jalud last month. The building was subsequently taken over by settlers.
Residents of two of the three besieged Qusra homes tell The Times of Israel that troops operating in the area have told them that they’re not allowed to leave their homes unless they coordinate the exit with the army ahead of time.
However, they said they’re hesitant to leave, even briefly, due to concerns that the settlers, whom the IDF refuses to arrest, will seize the opportunity to take over their homes.
“We still can’t go to work or go to the [center of the] village. We are still besieged,” says Qusay Abu Ridi, who lives in one of the homes.
That home is owned by his brother Louai Abu Ridi, who arrived on Tuesday from Ohio after watching the siege via security cameras he had set up on the Qusra home.
“The settlers are still here. We feel the same [as we have in recent days],” adds Yusuf Hassan, the owner of the second home targeted by settlers.
The two families’ attorney, Roni Pelli of Yesh Din, sent a letter to the IDF on Monday regarding the restrictions imposed on the residents and the failure to remove the settlers from the entire area, but has not received a response.
The IDF has not responded to requests for comment.
Key Update
IDF says Hamas operatives were at police station it targeted in strike that killed 9, including teen girl
At least four Hamas operatives and a member of a smaller terror group were present at a police station in Gaza City when it was struck by the Israeli Air Force earlier today, the military says.
Palestinian media reported that the strike killed nine people and wounded another 15, including a 13-year-old girl.
In a statement, the IDF says that it targeted the police station while terror operatives were gathered there to advance attacks on troops stationed in the Strip.
“At the time of the strike, at least four terrorists from the military wing of the Hamas terror group and a terrorist from the Popular Resistance Committees terror organization were present,” the military says, adding that it will provide an update on the strike once the results are clear.
Half an hour before the Gaza City strike, the IDF struck in central Gaza, killing a Hamas terrorist who invaded Israel during the October 7, 2023, onslaught, according to the IDF.
PM: IDF strike came after Turkey wasn’t heeding warning against military buildup in Syria
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserts in a Wednesday podcast interview that Israel will not tolerate a Turkish military buildup “that descends south because it threatens us.”
The comments come a day after the IDF targeted an airbase near Idlib, which is 185 miles from Israel’s border with Syria.
Netanyahu warns Turkey against such military activity in Syria.
“Don’t,” he says in English.
“The message was conveyed but apparently they didn’t hear it, so we made sure they understood it better,” he says.
US said to believe Israeli intel on Turkish military buildup in Syria is legitimate; Trump mum on IDF strike
US President Donald Trump’s administration increasingly trusts Israeli intelligence that purportedly shows Turkish military buildup in Syria is legitimate, Channel 12 reports.
The intelligence was used by Israel to justify a rare strike at a military airbase in northern Syria, which was condemned by Damascus and Ankara.
While US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack also called out the Tuesday strike, Trump has refrained from doing so.
Asked about it during an interview with Channel 12, Trump again avoided criticizing the strike, as he apparently seeks to maintain publicly warm ties with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
A US official tells Channel 12 that even though Washington is inclined to believe the Israeli intelligence on the matter, he still wishes that Jerusalem had addressed the matter through non-military means and is increasingly frustrated with Netanyahu’s overall aggressive policies in the region.
Moreover, the US official laments Israel’s refusal to activate a deconfliction mechanism that it had agreed to establish with Syria in January in order to prevent Tuesday’s strike.
Report: Mossad director, Syria foreign minister discussed Turkish military deployments before IDF strikes
The head of Israel’s Mossad spy agency, Roman Gofman, held a phone call with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani last week in which they discussed Turkey’s military presence in Syria, three people familiar with the matter tell Reuters..
The call, which the sources say took place on August 14, came days before Israel launched airstrikes on a Syrian military airbase in the north of the country on Tuesday.
It marks one of the highest-level contacts yet between Israel and the new Syrian government since the fall of former dictator Bashar al-Assad in December 2014.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, which handles queries regarding Mossad, does not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor does a spokesperson for Shaibani.
Board of Peace mum on IDF’s Gaza strikes, days after Kushner asked PM only to target imminent threats
Mourners attend the funeral of Palestinians who were killed in an Israeli army strike on a cafe at the Gaza port the previous day, at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, August 19, 2026. (AP/Jehad Alshrafi)
The Board of Peace has yet to weigh in on this week’s deadly IDF strikes in Gaza, which have come immediately after its envoys met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and urged him to only respond to threats deemed imminent.
The day after that meeting — which also included US special envoy Jared Kushner — Israel carried out a strike on a Gaza cafe, targeting a gathering of Hamas Nukhba fighters. Four of them were killed but so were two others, including a child.
One Tuesday, the IDF struck a Hamas police station, killing nine officers, including a 13-year-old girl.
The Board of Peace rarely comments on IDF strikes, but its Gaza envoy Nickolay Mladenov did so earlier this month, while being careful not to explicitly call out Israel, instead only lamenting the civilian casualties that the strikes have caused.
A Board of Peace spokesperson does not immediately respond to a request for comment.
PM said to weigh giving reserved spot to Dichter after poor primary showing
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) and chairman of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Avi Dichter attend a committee meeting in Jerusalem, November 19, 2018. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering appointing Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter to one of the reserved spots on the Likud electoral list recently given him to fill by the party’s Central Committee last month.
According to the Kan public broadcaster, Netanyahu is mulling the move after Dichter, whom he backed, failed to secure a realistic spot in Monday’s party primary, although he does not want to use up one of his reserved spots at the expense of bringing in an outsider, such as, potentially, Religious Zionism chairman Bezalel Smotrich.
“After we placed our trust in your desire to refresh the Likud list with eight reserved spots, it turns out that alongside Haim Katz, who received an exemption from the primaries, you intend to reserve a spot for Avi Dichter, who failed in the primaries,” writes firebrand MK Tally Gotliv in a harsh post on X addressing Netanyahu.
Accusing Netanyahu of ignoring the will of the party’s members, Gotliv insists that Netanyahu should at least put those who failed in the primary in reserved spots lower on the list and calls on him to give more positions to women in order not to “play into the hands of the left with a campaign about the exclusion of women in Likud.”
The prime minister’s push to secure the reserved spots was reportedly based on concerns that the primary would elevate candidates, such as Gotliv, who are highly popular among the Likud base, but whom internal party polling suggests are less appealing to moderate right-wing and swing voters.
Gotliv ended up finishing in 12th place in the primary, with Netanyahu’s control of reserved slots likely pushing her down to slot 19 on the final list.
IDF says 4 of 6 people killed in Gaza cafe strike were Nukhba fighters
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a cafe at the seaport of Gaza City on August 18, 2026. (Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto)NO USE FRANCE
Four commanders in Hamas’s elite Nukhba Force were killed in an Israeli strike in Gaza City yesterday, the military announces.
Palestinian media reported that the strike on a cafe near the city’s port killed six — including a child — and wounded 14, including an elderly woman.
The IDF says it was able to confirm that the strike killed four Nukhba Force commanders in Hamas’s Beit Lahia Battalion.
They are named as: Muhammad Hamdi Ahmed al-Masri, a company commander; Samad Samir Harb Abu Jabal, a platoon commander who invaded Israel during the October 7 onslaught; Muhammad Attar, a platoon commander; and Muhammad Fathi Hussein Nasser, also a platoon commander.
The military says the operatives were involved in advancing attacks on troops.
“The commanders’ activities posed a threat to IDF troops, and they were therefore eliminated in an aerial strike to remove the threat,” the army adds.
Key Update
‘Lowest of lows’: NY governor warns about scam targeting Holocaust survivors
New York Governor Kathy Hochul participates in a ribbon cutting ceremony at the new JPMorgan Chase offices in New York, October 21, 2025. (AP/Seth Wenig)
New York Governor Kathy Hochul issues a warning about a financial scam targeting Holocaust survivors.
An entity calling itself the “Jewish Holocaust Claims Center,” or “JHCC,” has sent unsolicited fraudulent messages to survivors and their families, Hochul says.
The messages urge the recipients to submit claims for compensation, Hochul’s statement says.
It wasn’t clear how the scam worked or how many victims there were.
The state’s Holocaust Claims Processing Office helps survivors and their heirs recover assets, such as artwork and bank deposits, that were lost during the Holocaust, but does not charge for its services.
The state’s Department of Financial Services was unable to verify the identity or legitimacy of the Jewish Holocaust Claims Center and referred the scam to law enforcement, Hochul says.
The department has also issued a consumer notice to survivors and their families to be cautious when contacted about restitution services.
The entity’s website was reported to its hosting provider and has been removed, the statement says.
“Scamming and stealing from Holocaust survivors and their families is the lowest of lows,” Hochul says. “I’m committed to ensuring New York State protects survivors.”
UN rights chief: Fresh US sanctions on ICC ‘unacceptable’
The United Nations rights chief slams Washington’s decision to slap fresh sanctions on International Criminal Court officials as “unacceptable,” urging countries to protect court officials against such “reprisals.”
“Unacceptable new sanctions imposed by the USA against the International Criminal Court’s President and a prosecution staff member must be lifted,” Volker Turk says on X.
Trump says he may renew talks with Iran, day after declaring that he wasn’t interested
US President Donald Trump says he might be open to renewing talks with Iran, just one day after he declared that his administration was not holding such talks and reportedly ordering his aides to cut ties with Iranian negotiators.
Asked whether he may renew negotiations, Trump tells reporters, “Maybe at some point, but right now the situation is so good. But maybe at some point.”
Key Update
US warns Siemens devices can be hacked amid fears Iran is breaching water plants
Visitors are seen at the booth of German industrial conglomerate Siemens during the Hannover industrial trade fair for mechanical and electrical engineering and digital industries, in Hannover, northern Germany on April 20, 2026. (RONNY HARTMANN/AFP)
Several US government agencies are warning that unidentified hackers are trying to breach devices made by Siemens that are used to monitor and operate water facilities and other critical infrastructure systems, according to a cybersecurity advisory.
The warning comes amid widespread cyber incidents targeting local water systems in multiple states in recent weeks in attacks cybersecurity experts suspect are linked to Iran.
The advisory describes an “active threat” to all Siemens S7 Series programmable logic controllers across multiple critical infrastructure sectors, including manufacturing, energy, water and wastewater, chemical, food and agriculture facilities, according to the warning issued by the National Security Agency, FBI, Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
Depending on specific circumstances, compromises of these devices could lead to disruption of critical processes, safety incidents, downtime or equipment damage, compromise of sensitive data, compliance violations and cascading impacts across interconnected systems, the government warned.
Siemens does not immediately respond to a request for comment.
According to the advisory, the hackers are using AI to dramatically reduce the technical expertise and time required to develop exploits that can successfully compromise the systems, the agencies said.
Health Ministry says West Nile fever diagnoses rose in past week from 13 to 17
The Health Ministry announces that the number of people diagnosed with West Nile fever in Israel has climbed from 13 last week to 17.
One of those people is hospitalized, while another died earlier this month due to complications of the disease.
The Environmental Protection Ministry says that mosquitoes infected with the West Nile virus have been captured in the Petah Tikva area, Kafr Qasim, Kafr Bara, the Ben Gurion Airport area, and the Brenner and Central Arava regional councils.
The Health Ministry says that most of the patients suffered from symptoms typical of the disease, including fever, rash and altered state of consciousness.
Trump says will meet North Korea’s Kim later this year; says Pyongyang has 57 nukes
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (right) and US President Donald Trump prepare to shake hands at the border village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone, South Korea, June 30, 2019. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
US President Donald Trump says he will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this year, in what would be their first encounter of Trump’s second term.
“Yeah, I will be,” Trump tells reporters during a tour of a new helipad he is building at the White House, when asked if he planned to meet Kim later in 2026.
“I get along with him great. He has 57 very powerful nuclear weapons. He’s gonna be fine,” Trump adds.
IDF chief visits troops in Syria after strike on airbase, says he won’t allow ‘hostile forces’ along Israeli border
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir speaks with officers in southern Syria, August 19, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)
After the IDF’s strike on a Syrian airbase where Israel says Turkey was planning to deploy forces, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir says the military “will not allow hostile forces to establish themselves along our borders.”
Zamir visited troops in the Israeli-held buffer zone in southern Syria this morning, during which he held an assessment with senior officers.
“We see what is happening and are monitoring the changes on the Syrian front. We must prepare for them accordingly,” he says, according to remarks provided by the IDF.
“We will not allow hostile forces to establish themselves along our borders, and we will know how to use our power precisely where it is needed and when it is needed,” Zamir says.
The IDF chief adds the military “must prevent the development of terror threats, while at the same time preventing the emergence of a significant military threat along our borders.”
Key Update
ICC says US sanctions ‘flagrant attack’ on court independence
Presiding judge Antoine Kesia-Mbe Mindua, center, Judge Tomoko Akane, left, and Judge Kimberly Prost, right, prepare to deliver the verdict in a case at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)
The International Criminal Court lashes out at the United States after Washington slapped sanctions on ICC President Tomoko Akane, calling it a “flagrant attack” on the court’s independence.
The US sanctioned Akane of Japan and trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye of Senegal on Tuesday, as part of Washington’s campaign against what it calls a “corrupt and fatally politicized” body.
The EU’s top officials immediately threw their support behind Akane, saying they “stand firmly” with the ICC president and her top officials.
In twin statements on X, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and European Council head Antonio Costa the court “must be able to act independently and without external pressure.”
Germany echoed the stance, with its foreign ministry calling the court’s independence “of central importance.” The Netherlands, which hosts the court at The Hague, also voiced its disapproval.
Slamming the US move, Spain described the court as “the cornerstone of the international criminal justice system.”
Japan also objected to the sanctions, saying the country has “consistently supported the ICC… in its efforts to prosecute and punish the most serious crimes of concern to the international community and to uphold the rule of law.”
Japan is the biggest funder of the ICC and a close ally of the US — which is not a party to the international treaty that established the court.
The court says in a statement: “These sanctions are a flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution.”
“Such measures targeting judges, prosecutors and staff… undermine the rule of law,” it adds.
Hamas official: Latest Gaza strike a ‘brazen message’ from Israel to Board of Peace
Hamas official Basem Naim, second right, speaks to journalist as Nelson Mandela's grandson Mandla Mandela, center, watches on during a march to commemorate the 10th Anniversary of the death of former South African president Nelson Mandela at Union Building in Pretoria, South Africa, Dec. 5, 2023 (AP Photo)
Senior Hamas official Basem Naim says today’s IDF strike targeting a Hamas police post in Gaza City was a “brazen message” by Israel.
“It was delivered by fire, but it was not directed at us, but at the Board of Peace and its leadership,” Naim, who is based outside of Gaza, writes.
The Board of Peace has been pushing Israel to refrain from strikes in Gaza that are not against threats deemed imminent. Jerusalem has largely bucked the request, saying in some cases its targets were planning attacks rather than posing an imminent threat.
“This situation is not sustainable,” Naim adds.
13-year-old girl among those killed in IDF strike on Hamas police post — health officials
13-year-old Dana al-Jamasi, who was among those killed in an Israeli strike on a Hamas police post on August 19, 2026. (Screen capture/X)
Health authorities in Gaza have identified 13-year-old girl Dana al-Jamasi among the nine people killed in an Israeli strike today targeting a Hamas police post in Gaza City.
Israel says it takes measures to avoid civilian casualties, while Hamas fighters operate among civilians.
An Israeli strike on Monday killed a young boy and severely wounded several women.
One of the victims of israel’s terrorist attack in Gaza an hour ago was 13-year-old Dana al-Jamasi. I just found this video of her on her school’s page in 2021 singing with her class an alphabet song. She was in 3rd grade. pic.twitter.com/GCu9U9obK8
— Mosab Abu Toha (@MosabAbuToha) August 19, 2026
Central Elections Committee orders Bennett to remove ad showing soldiers
The Central Elections Committee orders B’Yachad party chairman Naftali Bennett to remove video clips of soldiers engaged in operational activity from a campaign video in which he slams the ultra-Orthodox for evading the draft.
According to the committee, chairman Justice Noam Sohlberg determined that the video constitutes “the use of public assets in connection with election propaganda” and that only the offending imagery should be deleted rather than the entire video.
Over the past several weeks, the committee has also ordered Yashar chairman Gadi Eisenkot to take down a campaign video featuring AI-generated images of IDF soldiers “engaged in various military activities,” and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to remove a video posted online featuring him meeting and taking selfies with children at the Malha Mall in Jerusalem.
Arab-majority Hadash, Ta’al and Balad parties agree on joint run after Tibi comes back in
MKs Ahmad Tibi (left) and Yousef Jabareen in the Knesset, November 19, 2019. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)
The Arab-majority Hadash, Ta’al and Balad parties announce that they have agreed to run on a joint list in the upcoming Knesset election.
Hadash chairman Yousef Jabareen will head the list, followed by Ta’al chief Ahmad Tibi and Balad chair Sami Abou Shahadeh.
The three parties have been in talks for weeks, but Tibi had been holding out, as he sought better terms for himself and a second lawmaker from his party. Ta’al is seen as the least popular of the three parties.
Balad is a secular, hardline, nationalist party, while Ta’al and Hadash are seen as more moderate, with the latter also being socialist.
As Ta’al held out on joining the joint list, it reportedly explored a potential merger with Makom Lekulanu, a fledgling left-wing party that prides itself in being a true partnership between Arab and Jewish activists.
However, internal polls indicated that such a party would barely cross the electoral threshold, leading Tibi to agree to join Hadash and Balad.
The three parties last ran together in 2021, when the then-Islamist Ra’am party headed by Mansour Abbas decided to break off and run independently.
They still kept the name, Joint List, which was born when the four Arab-majority parties first ran together in 2015.
Polls have indicated that Arab Israelis would be more likely to vote in higher numbers if the parties representing them run together as opposed to splintering into several different factions.
Key Update
France says latest unchecked settler violence justifies its sanctions against Ben Gvir
France's Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noel Barrot gives a press conference after a crisis meeting in Paris on March 2, 2026. (Thibault Camus / POOL / AFP)
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot condemns violence in the West Bank by Israeli settlers against Palestinians and adds that this justifies France’s recent sanctions against far-right National Security Itamar Ben Gvir.
“What is happening today in the West Bank is utterly disgraceful and should fill us all with revulsion,” Barrot writes on X.
“This is why we have sanctioned Israeli minister Ben Gvir, whose recent comments are unacceptable and inhuman,” adds Barrot.
In May, France announced it was banning Ben Gvir from French territory.
Barrot reiterates that new sanctions could be implemented against Israeli settlers deemed to be involved in violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
In June, Britain, Canada, France and Norway announced coordinated sanctions against Israeli networks involved in financing, enabling and carrying out violence in the West Bank.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry rejected the June measures and said the governments imposing them had failed to control antisemitism and were fueling it with such sanctions.
Breslov sect draft evaders said planning to trick authorities into letting them fly to Uman pilgrimage
Jewish men seen outside the tomb of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov in Uman, ahead of the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah, October 1, 2024.(Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Draft dodgers from the Breslov Hasidic sect reportedly plan to evade travel restrictions in order to fly to the annual Rosh Hashanah pilgrimage in Uman, Ukraine, by lying to authorities about their intent to enlist in the IDF.
According to Army Radio, activists and rabbis belonging to the ultra-Orthodox group held an emergency meeting to discuss the issue and decided that those wishing to leave the country for the High Holidays should report to recruitment centers and state their intent to enlist in order to get the ban lifted. However, they will subsequently refuse to continue the conscription process and will not join the military.
Every year, tens of thousands of Jewish pilgrims, mainly Hasidim, head to Uman from all around the world to visit the tomb of Rabbi Nachman, a Hasidic luminary and founder of the Breslov Hasidic movement who lived at the turn of the 19th century, for Rosh Hashanah — the Jewish New Year — celebrated this year on September 11-13.
Army Radio quotes a senior Breslov rabbi involved in the annual pilgrimage as saying that “every year they try to prevent Hasidim from traveling to Uman, and every year we manage to reach Uman one way or another” and “this year we will succeed as well.”
Last September, dozens of ultra-Orthodox men were arrested at Ben Gurion Airport trying to fly to Uman, according to numbers released by the extremist Jerusalem Faction, an ultra-Orthodox group stridently opposed to the military enlistment of yeshiva students.
Currently, approximately 80,000 Haredi men between the ages of 18 and 24 are eligible for military service and have not enlisted. On Tuesday, the Attorney General’s Office called for the state to strengthen its enforcement of draft orders, including by arresting draft evaders. Despite the vast majority of those evading conscription being members of the Haredi community, the Attorney General’s Office noted that only 34 of the 348 indictments filed for draft dodging so far this year were against Haredim — just under 10% of the total.
“In order to continue reducing the phenomenon of draft evasion and respond to the urgent security need to grow the army, it is necessary to expand the basket of personal economic enforcement measures as soon as possible, and the army and police must also return to carrying out proactive operations and arrests against draft evasion from all segments of the population,” said the Attorney General’s Office’s statement.
Ben Gvir expands gun license eligibility in 9 Tel Aviv-area communities ahead of election
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir attends an event to deliver weapons to local volunteer security group members in Ashkelon, October 27, 2023. (AP/Tsafrir Abayov)
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has extended gun license eligibility to nine small communities near Tel Aviv, his office announces, amid its push to expand civilian possession of firearms ahead of the upcoming Knesset election.
The decision applies to Kfar Chabad, Tzafria, Mishmar Hashiva, Zeitan, Nir Zvi, Hemed, Yagel, Ahiezer and Ganot. Kfar Chabad is home to about 7,000 people, Ganot is home to roughly 500 people and the other communities have about 1,000 residents each.
Residents of the nine communities may now apply for a firearm license in accordance with legal criteria, regardless of whether they served in the armed forces.
Ben Gvir, who has long touted his bid to put guns in the hands of civilians, said in the statement from his office, “My policy is clear: Guns in the right hands save lives.”
According to the statement, since Ben Gvir took office in late 2022, his office has designated 250 communities as eligible for firearms, 126 of them this year alone.
More than 280,000 people have received gun licenses following his push to expand eligibility, Ben Gvir’s office says.
Requests for gun permits surged in Israel following the Hamas-led onslaught of October 7, 2023.
The National Security Ministry granted temporary authority to Ben Gvir’s personal staff, Knesset employees and others to hand out gun licenses in the wake of the onslaught. Five people who previously worked in Ben Gvir’s office were subsequently investigated by police on suspicion that the ministry inappropriately issued licenses.
Charlie Summers contributed to this report.
IDF says latest strikes targeted Hamas operatives, seemingly rejecting US request to only hit imminent threats
Mourners attend the funeral of Palestinians who were killed in an Israeli army strike on a cafe at the Gaza port the previous day, at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, August 19, 2026. (AP/Jehad Alshrafi)
The Israeli military says its strikes in the Gaza Strip a short while ago targeted a Hamas terrorist who invaded Israel during the October 7, 2023, onslaught and another commander in the terror group.
The first strike, in central Gaza’s Nuseirat, targeted a Hamas company commander who invaded Israel on October 7, according to the military.
Palestinian media reported that one person riding a motorcycle was killed in that strike.
Less than half an hour later, the military struck a police station in Gaza City, killing nine people according to Palestinian media.
The IDF says the target of that strike was a Hamas commander and several more operatives alongside him.
The military justifies the strikes amid the ceasefire by claiming that the terror operatives had planned to carry out attacks on Israeli troops operating in the Strip.
The US has asked Israel to only respond to imminent threats as it seeks to advance its Hamas disarmament plan, but Jerusalem has largely bucked those calls.
Death toll in Gaza police station strike up to at least nine
Gazan authorities raise the toll in an Israeli strike on a Gaza City police station to nine killed, with 15 injured, according to Palestinian news outlets operating in the Strip.
The Hamas-controlled interior ministry accuses Israel of attempting to sow chaos in the Strip by targeting the police force.
The military says terror operatives were targeted in the strike.
Netanyahu to brief Lapid on security issues for first time in months — PM’s office
File: Then-opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu (left) has a briefing with then-prime minister Yair Lapid, August 7, 2022. (Haim Zach/GPO)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid will meet this evening for a security discussion, the Prime Minister’s Office confirms to The Times of Israel, following Hebrew media reports on the matter.
The last meeting between the two took place on April 15.
The leader of the opposition is traditionally briefed once a month by the prime minister on sensitive national security issues, although Netanyahu and Lapid have not kept to this schedule.
The meeting is set amid stalled US-Iran negotiations, ongoing talks between Israel and Lebanon on disarming Hezbollah, and Netanyahu’s meeting this week with Board of Peace officials on advancing Washington’s postwar plan for Gaza.
ראש הממשלה נתניהו וראש האופוזיציה לפיד יפגשו הערב לעדכון ביטחוני@glick_sh
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) August 19, 2026
Gazans report 7 killed in strikes as Israel says terrorists targeted
Palestinian media reports six dead and several more wounded as a result of an Israeli airstrike targeting a police station in Gaza City a short while ago.
A separate strike targeting a motorcycle in the Nuseirat area of central Gaza killed one person, according to Palestinian media.
The IDF tells The Times of Israel that in both cases it struck terror operatives, with further details to be provided later.
Turkish delegation visited Syrian air base hours before strikes, officials say
Decommissioned Syrian Air Force planes are seen at the Abu al-Duhur military airport, east of Idlib, following the takeover of the area by Syrian opposition fighters on December 7, 2024. (AP/Omar Albam)
A Turkish delegation had visited an air base in northern Syria the day before it was hit by Israeli airstrikes, Syrian officials say, offering the first confirmation of Israeli claims of a Turkish presence there.
The Israeli strikes hit the Abu Duhur base early Tuesday, hours after the delegation had left, causing damage but no casualties. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement overnight that Israel had attacked the base because Syria was “on the verge of breaching” an agreed-upon “status quo in security matters” by allowing Turkish troops to deploy there.
Two Syrian officials say the Turkish delegation had visited the air base in the northwestern province of Idlib on Monday to review rehabilitation work underway at the facility.
Turkish and Syrian officials have not publicly commented on Turkey’s role there but have condemned the attack, as did the US ambassador to Turkey who also serves as special envoy to Syria, and a number of Arab countries.
Turkish officials have not yet commented on the reported presence of a Turkish military delegation. Turkey’s communications directorate has responded to Netanyahu’s overnight statement by accusing the prime minister of making “untenable allegations… intended to legitimize Israel’s unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
It also charges that Netanyahu aims “to pursue expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region ahead of the elections in Israel.”
Turkey “will resolutely continue to cooperate with the Syrian Government on a legitimate basis for the establishment of peace, stability, and prosperity in Syria, and will never allow the destabilization of Syria,” it says.
Turkey has been supporting Syria’s effort to rebuild its armed forces by training Syrian personnel at Turkish military schools and bases, and by supplying equipment and logistical support. Officials have not disclosed the types of equipment involved. The two countries signed an agreement last year that formalized their military cooperation.
Earlier this year, Syrian troops also took part in military exercises held in Turkey.
Israel has remained suspicious of the new authorities in Damascus led by former Islamist insurgents, and sees Turkey as a potentially hostile regional rival.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is an outspoken critic of Israel’s policies toward the Palestinians and has offered support to the Hamas terror group.
Both countries have sought to curb each other from gaining influence in Syria, which neighbors both.
Germany, France condemn Ben Gvir over ‘inhumane’ call to kill 30-40 Gazans per night
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemns remarks by National Security Minister that Israel should kill 30 to 40 people every night in Gaza, a government spokesman says.
“The chancellor strongly condemns the inhumane appeals made by Minister (Itamar) Ben Gvir, which violate international law,” spokesman Sebastian Hille said. “They are unacceptable.”
Speaking to former Palestinian Islamic Jihad hostage Rom Braslavski in comments aired Saturday night, Ben Gvir said Israel’s military “should carry out targeted assassinations in Gaza, taking down 30 to 40 every night,” apparently referring to Hamas operatives and other enemies of Israel.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot also speaks out against Ben Gvir, calling his remarks “intolerable and inhumane.”
German Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil said yesterday that sanctions were being discussed at the European level.
Germany also condemns Israeli plans to build over 1,000 housing units in the so-called E-1 area of the West Bank, saying it jeopardizes the prospect for a two-state solution.
“Our message is clear: there must be no further steps toward annexation in the West Bank,” says Hille. “No formal ones, but also no political, structural, or other measures whose impact is increasingly and obviously leading toward annexation. They run counter to a two-state solution.”
Critics and proponents alike say development of the corridor will effectively cleave the West Bank into two parts, hurting hopes for a contiguous Palestinian state in the territory.
IDF head tours Israeli-held buffer zone in Syria, a day after rare strike
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir toured the Israeli-held buffer zone in southern Syria this morning, according to the military.
The IDF says Zamir was joined by senior officers, received a security briefing, and met with reservists operating in the area.
The visit comes a day after the IDF carried out a rare strike in Syria, targeting an airbase where Israel says Turkey was planning to deploy forces.
Bennett: Israel should attack Iran to retaliate for Hezbollah assaults
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett addresses a 'security concept conference' held by his B’Yachad party, August 19, 2026. (Courtesy Elad Gutman/B'Yachad)
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid say they will push for a hardline deterrence policy against Iran while seeking to rebuild frayed ties with American liberals and the European Union.
Bennett, a security hawk leading the B’Yachad party alongside Lapid, tells party members that attacks from Iranian proxies should be treated as if they came from Iran.
“If Hezbollah fires at us, we strike Iran. A strike by the Iranian octopus’s tentacles inside Israel’s borders will exact a price inside Iran’s borders,” Bennett declares.
While accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government of tearing “Israeli society to shreds” and thus being ineffective against foreign enemies, he echoes the premier’s insistence that Israel refuse to pull back in Gaza until Hamas is disarmed.
Bennett also says he will not allow Qatar or Turkey to have any role in postwar Gaza, calling again for Qatar to be labeled an enemy state.
And he backs the redefinition of rampant and deadly crime in the Arab community as a national security threat rather than a criminal one, urging the deployment of the IDF and Shin Bet in the fight against illegal weapons.
Lapid, who has served as both prime minister and foreign minister, says he’ll work to repair ties with the US and bring the relationship back “to the bipartisan status Israel enjoyed until four years ago.”
He slams Netanyahu for giving up American military aid, calling it “a grave mistake” and insisting that “we must fight for it.” Netanyahu has repeatedly said he would seek to end Israel’s reliance on US aid, which has become increasingly unpopular among Americans.
Israel must also focus on “rebuilding ties with the European Union, deepening connections with the NATO alliance, and addressing—despite the difficulty—public opinion in countries like Spain, France, and Ireland” while at the same time strengthen regional integration, including making a peace agreement with Saudi Arabia “a central goal in the coming years” so long as it prevents uranium enrichment by Riyadh, Lapid adds.
‘Blood’-covered activists protest systemic abuse of Palestinians in central Tel Aviv
Hadash activists protest outside a government building in Tel Aviv on August 19, 2026. (Courtesy Hadash)
Members of the Arab Hadash party are staging a demonstration on the steps of the Tel Aviv Government Complex, lying on the ground covered in fake blood next to one of the city’s busiest intersections to protest what they describe as the “genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank.”
Demonstrators wearing T-shirts reading “This is Israeli policy” and “Pogroms, ethnic cleansing, genocide, and extermination” lie on the steps outside the building as red paint is splashed on them, “symbolizing the blood spilled as a result of this policy,” the Arab-majority party says in a statement.
Participants also appear with numbers written on their forehead, referencing a recent incident in which Palestinian suspects detained by soldiers during a military raid in the northern West Bank village of Qabatiya had their faces marked with numbers.
“The destruction and extermination in Gaza, the ethnic cleansing, apartheid, and state terrorism in the West Bank are not a collection of isolated mistakes or individual failures. This is an official policy adopted and executed by the State of Israel. It is not a mistake. It is not a glitch. It is policy,” the party says.
Hadash party members protest outside a government building in Tel Aviv against what they call "the genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank." (Courtesy Hadash) pic.twitter.com/v8x3ppkVtn
— Sam Sokol (@SamuelSokol) August 19, 2026
The government complex, an office tower that houses several government offices, is across the street from the Kirya military headquarters.
On Tuesday, the IDF admitted that soldiers had marked the Palestinian suspects with numbers, despite previously acknowledging that the practice was inappropriate.
In a statement to The Times of Israel, the military said that commanders had stressed the seriousness of the conduct to the troops involved and that “lessons have been learned” — echoing remarks the IDF made in April.
NATO says it’s ready for any threat after Iran reported to mull targeting Europe
NATO is prepared to address any threat and will always do what is necessary to defend all allies, a NATO official says in response to questions about a report in the Financial Times that Iran has allegedly weighed attacking US military targets in Europe should President Donald Trump escalate the war.
“As demonstrated earlier this year when NATO air defenses successfully intercepted ballistic missiles heading to Turkey from Iran on four separate occasions, our deterrence and defence posture is strong and effective,” the official says.
Billboards tease coming political run by controversial ex-general Winter, jarring right
Brig. Gen. (res.) Ofer Winter speaks during a Jerusalem Day event in Ariel, in the West Bank, June 4, 2024. (Flash90)
Billboards along Tel Aviv’s highway cryptically teasing that Israelis will “soon have whom to vote for,” along with the date August 25, are being linked to Brig. Gen. (res.) Ofer Winter, a controversial former senior IDF officer who is thought to be mulling a Knesset run that could jog the right side of the political map.
Associates of Winter quoted by Hebrew media confirm that the hawkish ex-general is behind the signs, and that he is expected to announce the formation of a new party on August 25.
Polls indicate that Winter would do better than a smattering of other right-wing upstarts, many of them more moderate than the current government, but would largely pull support from the Religious Zionism party, leaving both himself and Religious Zionism short of the 3.25 percent of the vote needed to enter the Knesset and weakening the pro-Netanyahu bloc.
שלט שנתלה סמוך לנתיבי איילון רימז על הצטרפותו של תא"ל במילואים עופר וינטר למערכת הפוליטית. וינטר אמר בשיחות עם מקורביו: "אני בגוש הימין, אתמוך בנתניהו"@Ofer_Hadad pic.twitter.com/xUXc1BvIgn
— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) August 19, 2026
Associates of Winter tell Channel 12 that he told them that “I am in the right-wing bloc, I will support [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu.”
Winter, who has been the subject of controversy for a decade, was released from the military in 2024 after being passed over for promotion. Winter first came under criticism during the 2014 Gaza war, when he served as commander of the Givati Brigade, for a letter to his subordinate officers in which he described the operation as a religious war against a “blasphemous” foe.
The former Givati Brigade commander was also later accused of passing along sensitive information about the war effort to then-economy minister Naftali Bennett, bypassing the usual chain of command. There has been speculation for some time that he will enter politics.
Channel 12 also reports that Winter is in talks with right-wing Arab Israeli influencer Yoseph Haddad, who recently registered a party under the name Brave Israel, and Laly Derai, the mother of slain IDF soldier Staff Sgt. Saadia Derai, in order to establish a new joint political slate ahead of the October 27 election.
According to Channel 12, if the three come to an agreement, any announcement will be held off until the last minute to avoid pressure from Netanyahu to link up with another party and avoid competing with allies for the same pool of ballots. The deadline for parties to submit their candidate lists for the election is September 9.
In a statement, Haddad tells the network that he “is considering entering political life and has been engaged with this idea recently. He is holding discussions and meetings with various figures and weighing his steps, and will make a decision soon.” A spokesman for Winter merely says “patience” and Derai denies any political involvement.
Officials from Netanyahu’s Likud party are leaning on the premier to thwart a joint Winter-Haddad-Derai gambit by offering Haddad a reserved spot on the ruling party’s electoral slate, the Maariv daily reports.
Army seals Hamas tunnels in central, southern Gaza
Two Hamas tunnels, spanning in total some two kilometers (1.2 miles) underground, were recently sealed by combat engineers, the IDF announces.
The IDF says the tunnels were found in central and southern Gaza, amid efforts to clear the Israeli-held portion of the Strip of Hamas infrastructure.
The army says it used concrete to close off the tunnels. Sealing tunnels with concrete can be a cheaper and less risky alternative to blowing them up, although it takes longer to carry out.
שני תוואים תת-קרקעים נוספים נאטמו ברצועת עזה: פעילות כוחות החטיבה הדרומית ויחידת יהל"ם
לכל הפרטים????https://t.co/ZbgtCjv4GD pic.twitter.com/uZelNFInFC
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) August 19, 2026
IDF chief meets with top Greek general as Turkey tensions rise
Amid recent tensions with Turkey, the IDF and the Greek military announce that Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir met with his Greek counterpart, who was in Israel for an official visit.
The IDF says the visit by the chief of the Hellenic National Defense General Staff, Gen. Dimitrios Choupis, “highlights the strategic importance and relevance of the military relationship already in place between Israel and Greece.”
“This relationship has been steadily encouraging a longstanding partnership between both countries,” the military adds.
Neither the IDF nor the Greek military say when the meeting took place.
???????????????????? The IDF Chief of the General Staff, LTG Eyal Zamir, met with the Chief of the Hellenic National Defense General Staff, General Dimitrios Choupis, who completed his official visit to Israel.
The visit highlights the strategic importance and relevance of the military… pic.twitter.com/4DxVhwjflm
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) August 19, 2026
Israel confirmed late Tuesday that it was behind overnight airstrikes against a Syrian military airport, where it claimed Turkey was planning to deploy forces, ratcheting up already high tensions with Ankara.
Israel has been seeking to prevent Turkish entrenchment and influence in Syria, and in the past has carried out strikes purportedly to stop Turkey from assisting in building up the new Syrian government’s air force.
Aegean neighbors Greece and Turkey are longstanding military and diplomatic rivals, and Jerusalem has in the past moved closer to Athens when its ties with Turkey slump.
Attorney general says decision on state probe into October 7 should wait for next government
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara attends a Knesset House Committee meeting in Jerusalem, June 9, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara says the government should hold off on forming an inquest into the October 7 massacre until after elections, while chiding the political leadership for failing to do so until now.
In an opinion on the matter submitted to the High Court of Justice, Baharav-Miara notes that elections are coming up and therefore, since so much time has passed already, she “proposes allowing the next government to address the issue and make a decision on the matter.”
The government has steadfastly refused to appoint a state commission of inquiry into the catastrophe, instead pushing for a government-backed probe with a mandate determined by the ruling coalition, giving it greater control over the potentially damning findings.
In the filing, Baharav-Miara says a state commission is “clearly the most appropriate legal tool for investigating the events of October 7 and the war,” but it should have been appointed long ago.
“It’s been two years and 10 months since the war broke out and the government still hasn’t made a decision,” she writes. “This state of affairs, extremely unusual in and of itself, raises many problems and could harm the effectiveness of a future inquiry and cause evidentiary damage.”
Elections are scheduled for October 27, though it can take over a month for a government to be formed.
Key Update
No gain for Likud in first post-primary poll
Campaign materials of candidates who ran in yesterday’s Likud primary are seen in Jerusalem, August 18, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud remains behind Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar in a poll published by the Kan public broadcaster, the first major poll since the party’s primary results were published yesterday.
The online survey of 588 eligible voters conducted yesterday gives Yashar 24 seats, followed by Likud with 23, Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid’s B’Yachad with 14 and Yair Golan’s The Democrats with 10.
Yisrael Beytenu and Otzma Yehudit get nine seats each, followed by United Torah Judaism with 8, Shas with 7, Hadash-Ta’al with 6, and Ra’am with 5.
Religious Zionism rounds out the simulated results, squeaking across the threshold with four seats.
None of the small center-right parties belonging to the so-called “third bloc,” including Blue and White, Zionist Home-The Reservists, and Unity make the cut. The Arab nationalist Balad party also fails to enter the Knesset.
Assuming that the pro-Netanyahu and anti-Netanyahu camps remain as they currently are, neither side would have enough seats to reach 61 without the support of Arab parties, though those opposed to the current government would be closer, with 57 seats to the Likud-led bloc’s 52.
Analysts believe maneuvering by Netanyahu to increase control over the Likud electoral slate and marginalize hardliners was designed to make the party more palatable to the general public and raise its haul in the general election, but the poll suggests the more moderate roster has yet to do the trick.
Asked for their views of the new electoral slate chosen by Likud primary voters this week, 18 percent say that it is better than the previous list from 2022 while 14% describe it as worse and 44% see no difference.
Among those who previously voted for Likud, however, 41% see the new list as an improvement.
Key Update
Iran warns Gulf neighbors not to help US military
Illustrative: A US military transport aircraft is pictured on the tarmac at the Al-Udeid air base southwest of Doha, Qatar, on March 21, 2024. (Giuseppe CACACE / AFP)
Iran’s armed forces warn Gulf countries against assisting the US military, saying it would be tantamount to joining American military operations.
“We wish to warn that any assistance or facilitation provided to the aggressor US military amounts to participation in the US military operation,” armed forces chief of staff Ali Abdollahi says, according to Iran’s Mehr news agency.
“It seems unlikely that such a large number of military aircraft, particularly refueling aircraft, could be present at regional bases without knowledge of host countries,” Abdollahi adds.
“The countries bordering the Persian Gulf, which have issued various statements saying they would not allow the United States to use their territory against Iran, should know that we are fully aware of the situation.”
Iran reportedly threatens to expand retaliatory attacks to Europe if US restarts war
Illustrative: An American F-16 on the Graf Ignatievo air base in Bulgaria, in a photo released on April 2, 2025. (Bulgarian Government via AP)
Iran has considered targeting US military sites or assets in Europe should fighting flare up again, the Financial Times reports, citing regime insiders.
According to the British news outlet, military assets in Bulgaria or Cyprus could be attacked, significantly expanding the reach of the regime’s retaliatory action, which has focused mainly on the Middle East until now. Both countries have military bases that have been available to US troops and equipment.
During the war that broke out on February 28, Iran managed to shoot a missile at the Diego Garcia air base some 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) away in the southern Indian Ocean, signaling its ability to fire at nearly anywhere in Europe, though analysts say the increased range would come at the cost of a smaller warhead, minimizing potential damage.
Israeli officials have repeatedly warned of the Iranian threat to Europe.
The regime insiders quoted in the report also raised the possibility of damaging fiber-optic cables running under the Strait of Hormuz, which could significantly impair telecommunications.
One is cited saying Iran would have “no limits” on its response should the US attack. “Should the US go too far, Iran will defend itself at any price, go beyond the region and hit Europe too,” they are quoted saying.
The second insider tells the paper that threatened US attacks on infrastructure would trigger the wider response, pointing to an attack on Jordan in which three US servicemembers were killed as proof of Tehran’s targeting capabilities.
“This was also a message to Europe: it can receive missiles, so it should know where it should stand in this war,” they are quoted saying. “A very big mistake, such as hitting our infrastructure, could make the war go beyond the region and reach Europe.”
Key Update
New Palestinian poll shows decline in support for Hamas
Mourners carry the body of Hamas terror group leader Mohammed Odeh, during his funeral in Gaza City on May 27, 2026. (Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP)
A poll by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research shows a decline in support for Hamas, particularly among Palestinians in the West Bank.
The survey, conducted earlier this month, found that 42 percent of respondents expressed satisfaction with Hamas’s performance during the war with Israel, down from 60% in the previous poll conducted in late October 2025.
In the West Bank, 45% of respondents expressed satisfaction with the terror group, a sharp drop from 66% who were happy with Hamas 10 months ago. In Gaza, the fall-off was slightly less pronounced, going from 51% in October to 38% in the more recent poll.
In the previous poll, conducted in the immediate aftermath of the Gaza ceasefire deal, 39% of respondents overall said Hamas had emerged victorious. Today, that figure has fallen to 20%, with another 15% saying Israel won and 60% maintaining that neither side emerged victorious.
In the West Bank, the proportion of respondents who believe Hamas won the war fell sharply, from 48% in October 2025 to 21% in August 2026.
Asked which Palestinian political faction they support, 24% of respondents said Fatah and an identical 24% said Hamas. In the last poll, 35% said they supported Hamas, while 24% backed Fatah.
That decline was also particularly pronounced in the West Bank, where support for Hamas fell from 32% in October 2025 to 18% in the latest poll.
Seventy-two percent of respondents said the terror group should not give up its weapons before a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, while 20% said it should.
Nearly 50% of respondents say they believe Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas that Palestinian legislative elections will be held at the end of November. Elections have not been held since 2006, with plans for a vote repeatedly called off for Abbas in the last two decades.
Were presidential elections held, imprisoned Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti remains the most popular candidate, with 56% saying they would vote for him over Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya (26%) or Abbas (14%).
The poll, overseen by Khalil Shikaki, surveyed 830 Palestinians in the West Bank and 440 in the Gaza Strip between August 5 and 8. It carries a 3.5% margin of error.
Trump said to shift approach to waiting Iran out, ordering talks halted
US President Donald Trump has ordered negotiators to cut off talks with Iran indefinitely, halting “positive discussions” with the Islamic Republic, CNN reports, citing US officials.
Trump claimed as much on Tuesday, writing on his Truth Social platform: “There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
The comment came a day after his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a senior member of the negotiating team, spoke of “robust” conversations between the US and Iran, while acknowledging that Tehran wasn’t yet ready to make a deal that is satisfactory to Washington.
According to the CNN report, Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with Iran’s unwillingness to meet his demands, and has thus decided to shift strategies, cutting off engagement until Tehran shows it is willing to make a deal to his liking.
In talks with allies, administration officials described the shift as going from “’hammer Iran ASAP’ to ‘strangle them’ over time,” CNN reports, noting that the White House believes economic pressure will eventually lead Iran to fold on the Strait of Hormuz and other key issues.
UN says record numbers of aid workers attacked in 2025, with Gaza deadliest locale
Palestinians walk next to the closed humanitarian aid distribution center of UNRWA, the UN agency helping Palestinian refugees in Jabaliya, Gaza Strip on April 29, 2025. (Jehad Alshrafi/AP)
A record number of humanitarian workers were attacked last year, with Gaza accounting for over half of the 350 aid staffers killed, the United Nations says.
Some 907 aid workers were killed, injured or kidnapped in 2025 versus 833 the year before, according to the Aid Worker Security Database, a platform funded by Canada and Australia that compiles major security incidents affecting aid workers.
Of those, 350 were killed, down slightly from a record 387 in 2024.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says the level of violence is appalling and urges states to respect the rules of war and hold perpetrators accountable.
“Serving others has become more dangerous than ever,” he says, ahead of U.N. ceremonies planned for World Humanitarian Day with flags at half-staff in New York and Geneva in honor of those killed.
Gaza was by far the most deadly place for aid workers in 2025 with 186 humanitarian staffers killed there last year, the database showed, followed by Sudan. The UN Palestinian refugee agency has reported at least 393 staff killed there since the Israel-Gaza war began on October 7, 2023.
Israel has provided evidence of the refugee agency’s staffers taking part in the Hamas-led October 7 attack, in which some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, were killed and 251 more kidnapped. It has claimed that the agency is riddled with members of Hamas and other terror groups, and has said it goes to great lengths to avoid harm to aid workers and civilians.
Bushra Khalidi, global humanitarian policy lead at Oxfam, calls for greater protections for aid workers, saying: “We’re witnessing an assault on humanitarian action itself.”
Trump celebrates defeat of Vindman to DSA candidate in Florida Senate primary
US President Donald Trump is touting his endorsees’ victories in statewide Republican primaries with Truth Social posts, now standard fare, while also celebrating the defeat of Alex Vindman to a member of the Democratic Socialists of America in the Democratic primary.
“SleazeBag Vindman loses tonight to a Radical Left Lunatic. How cool is that???” Trump posts to his Truth Social platform.
Vindman, a Kyiv-born Jewish refugee from the former Soviet Union who was a member of the National Security Council in the US, rose to prominence in 2019 when he testified to Congress about a controversial phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during Trump’s first impeachment.
Despite raising 16 times more than his main opponent, Vindman, whose twin brother is a congressman in Virginia, was handily defeated by Angie Nixon, who has made noise in her party for pushing pro-Palestinian legislation on the state level.
Trump’s congratulatory posts, an attempt to burnish the power of his endorsement in Republican primaries, have been arriving in a steady beat every election night.
“A lot of great WINS tonight!!!” the president writes.
Florida Rep. Fine easily fends off primary challenge from antisemitic influencer
Rep. Randy Fine, Republican of Florida, leaves a meeting of the House Republican Conference in the US Capitol on Tuesday, November 18, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via JTA)
Jewish far-right firebrand Rep. Randy Fine secures a landslide victory in his Florida GOP primary, defeating a candidate who had used antisemitic messaging and endorsed killing Israelis.
Fine wins nearly 57 percent of the vote for Florida’s 6th District, easily besting mega-influencer Dan Bilzerian, who garners less than 19%.
Fine, who is currently serving his first term in Congress, was endorsed by President Donald Trump, the Republican Jewish Coalition and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. However, he has sparked anger in Congress on both sides of the aisle for comments disparaging Muslims — including comparing them to dogs — and saying that Gazans should “starve away” until the Israeli hostages were released.
Bilzerian, an influencer who has spread conspiracy theories about Jews, has previously said that he wants to “kill Israelis” and described his opponent as a “fat Jew.”
“District 6 understands the Jewish problem,” Bilzerian posted on X on Saturday, following up the next day with a message that “the Jew is scared.” A recent Bilzerian campaign music video referenced Adolf Hitler in a positive light, featuring the lyrics, “Should we revisit that Austrian painter’s opinions?”
Housing ministry issues tenders for over 1,200 units in controversial E1 settlement project
View of the area of the planned controversial E1 West Bank construction project between Jerusalem and Maale Adumim, August 21, 2025 (Jamal Awad/Flash90)
The Ministry of Construction and Housing has issued a tender to build 1,234 new housing units in the West Bank as part of the controversial E1 settlement expansion plan.
Bidding for the project — which both critics and proponents say will effectively divide the West Bank — will close on October 19, a week before the Knesset elections.
This is a last-minute maneuver that is part of the scorched-earth policy the government is pursuing at the end of its term to secure long years of conflict and bloodshed for Israel,” the Peace Now settlement watchdog says in a statement. “Building in E1 will ruin the possibility of reaching an end to the conflict and a peace arrangement based on two states. The government is trying to sign contracts with contractors before the elections so that it will be much harder for the next government to cancel the construction.”
Alex Vindman loses Senate Democratic primary in Florida to anti-Israel DSA candidate
Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, stands in front of a screen showing him before Congress testifying as a “whistleblower” against US President Donald Trump, as he speaks during a campaign event at the Broward County Democratic Clubs and Caucuses on February 9, 2026, in Sunrise, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP)
Florida State Representative Angie Nixon, a member of the anti-Israel Democratic Socialists of America, wins the Democratic nomination for US Senate, defeating Alex Vindman.
She will face Senator Ashley Moody, who won the Republican nomination. They are competing in a special election to finish the final two years of Marco Rubio’s term, who became secretary of state.
Nixon was endorsed by Ms. Rachel, the anti-Israel YouTube content creator who makes toddler-oriented videos.
“Angie and I both see how hard it is for families to afford high quality childcare. It’s not ok!” wrote Ms. Rachel, before adding: “Our tax dollars should not be spent on the genocide in Gaza.”
Pro-Israel Democrats Wasserman Schultz, Moskowitz win primaries in new Florida districts
US Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz, left, greets voters while campaigning for Florida’s 20th congressional district in the Florida primary election, August 18, 2026, in Tamarac, Florida. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Debbie Wasserman Schultz has won the Democratic primary in her new Florida district.
The victory positions Wasserman Schultz to serve a 12th term in Congress. She switched districts after Republicans redrew the state’s congressional map to boost their chances in November.
Wasserman Schultz, a pro-Israel Jew, faced criticism for running in a district that has elected Black Democrats to Congress since 1992.
She defeats several opponents in the primary, including Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who wanted her seat back after resigning earlier this year while facing an ethics investigation.
The Associated Press also declares US Representative Jared Moskowitz, a fellow pro-Israel Jewish Democrat, the winner of his primary race.
Moskowitz, who likewise is running in a new district after Florida’s redistricting this year, fends off challenger Oliver Larkin, who was backed by the far-left Democratic Socialists of America.
After Israeli strike, Turkey denies ‘frivolous allegations’ about planned troop deployment to Syria
Turkey rejects Israeli allegations that it poses a threat by preparing to send troops to a base in Syria, where a military base was hit in a strike by Israel.
“The frivolous allegations put forward by the Israeli Prime Minister’s office aim to legitimize Israel’s unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Turkey’s Communications Directorate says in a statement quoted by the Anadolu state news agency.
Key Update
Netanyahu, Kushner clashed over PM’s insistence on continuing strikes against Oct. 7 terrorists
Left to right: White House adviser Jared Kushner, Board of Peace envoy Nickolay Mladenov, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP, Chaim Goldberg/FLASH90)
The main dispute during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting on Monday with US special envoy Jared Kushner was over the premier’s insistence that Israel continue carrying out strikes on Hamas operatives who allegedly took part in the terror group’s October 7 onslaught, an official present at the sit-down tells The Times of Israel.
Earlier this month, Israel acknowledged having established a special operation to hunt down and kill every single Palestinian terrorist involved in the October 7, 2023, invasion and atrocities.
The mission has resulted in violations of the ceasefire that Israel and Hamas inked in October 2025, but the US-controlled Board of Peace has not adamantly objected, as the Israel Defense Forces in most cases has said those targeted posed an imminent threat to troops.
For months, the Board of Peace prioritized coaxing Hamas to accept its disarmament proposal, which it finally did on July 30.
Once in place, the plan envisions both sides immediately halting all military operations, though Netanyahu has come out against the proposal and raised that specific issue during his meeting with Kushner, according to the official present.
While Kushner assured Netanyahu that he would not oppose IDF strikes against those who genuinely pose an “imminent threat,” US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior aide told the premier that the rationale should not be widely interpreted, the official says.
To the frustration of the Board of Peace delegation, Netanyahu insisted the strikes against participants in the October 7 attack would continue, according to the official, who added that no agreement was reached on the matter.
A second source briefed on the meeting confirms the official’s account.
Hours after Kushner left Israel, the IDF carried out one of its deadliest strikes in months, targeting what it said was a gathering of senior Hamas operatives. At least six people were reported killed, including a minor, and over 10 wounded in the strike.
In addition to violating the Board of Peace’s stalled disarmament plan, the policy laid out by Netanyahu could go against Trump’s 20-point plan for ending the Gaza war, which the premier accepted in September of last year.
That proposal states that Hamas members who “commit to peaceful co-existence and to decommission their weapons will be given amnesty.”
The official present at the Monday meeting says Kushner also took issue with Netanyahu’s refusal to allow recruits for the new Palestinian police force to leave the Strip for training in Egypt.
The Board of Peace disarmament plan envisions Hamas handing over its weapons to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza’s new police force, in a process facilitated by the International Stabilization Force.
Kushner said Monday that he wants Hamas to begin handing over its weapons within a month, but without a sufficient number of already trained police recruits, there won’t be anyone for Hamas to give its weapons to.
Report: UK Green Party group chat featured discussion of ‘killing Zionists,’ calling British Jews a ‘weapon’ of Israel
A WhatsApp group chat used by activists of the UK’s far-left Green Party featured a member discussing “killing Zionists,” with others calling antisemitism “understandable” or characterizing British Jews as a “weapon” for Israel, according to The Times.
The UK publication reports that the chat, named Greens Against Imperialism, is used by members for organizing, and to discuss foreign policy. Sophus Magill, a Green Party local official, created the group, The Times reports.
The chat features several instances of anti-Israel rhetoric and speech denigrating Jews, according to The Times.
In one instance, when asked if he wants Israel “wiped off the map,” Magill responds, “Yes, I would like that.”
He added afterward, “Obviously I believe Isreali [sic] citizens who are not war criminals and who agree to peacefully coexist with Palestinians have a right to live in Palestine as everyone should have the right to live where ever they want in the world so long as they are not a threat to the safety of others.”
In another instance, a member called Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps “part of a national liberation movement,” and said mass Iranian anti-regime protests in January, which were unarmed, were “instigated and armed by the Americans and the Zionists.”
In another exchange, someone wrote, “Its unfortunate but British Jews are a brilliant weapon for the israeli state to help with the use of antisemitism as a justification in the UK, one of they’re [sic] strong allies.”
Another person replied to that comment, “I suppose an extreme anti-zionist [position] could mean that you support killing Zionists,” which they called “wrong but not necessarily racist.”
That person added later that being “anti Jews, lumping all Jews in with the majority of Israeli Jews as Genociders,” is “wrong but understandable.”
A third person then wrote, “I can tell you if a state in the name of an ethnic group destroyed my village and killed my family, I might want to plough into a group of them too.”
The Greens’ leader, Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, is an outspoken opponent of Israel, and multiple Greens candidates have faced antisemitism allegations.
A Green Party spokesperson told The Times, “We do not comment on internal party forums or discussions on WhatsApp groups that are not official party group channels.”
After local indictment, man who allegedly attacked congregant at NYC synagogue hit with federal hate crime charges
Suspect Larry Montes (wearing blue) seen escorted out of Manhattan’s Central Synagogue after he allegedly attacked worshipers on August 14, 2026. (Screenshot/CBS New York)
The US Department of Justice announces federal hate crime charges against Larry Montes, who allegedly disrupted a New York City synagogue service on Friday.
Montes allegedly shouted at congregants during a Shabbat service at the Reform Central Synagogue in Manhattan, assaulted a congregant and a guard, and destroyed synagogue property.
He was previously charged with hate crimes in a New York City court.
The Department of Justice says the federal Southern District of New York court has charged Montes with two counts of committing hate crimes, each carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
He is also charged with one count of damage to religious property resulting in bodily injury, with a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
The federal statement says that Montes said during a post-arrest interview, “Fuck the Jews,” “I will never affiliate with no filthy fucking synagogues, either here or in fucking Israel,” and that the incident at the synagogue was “a racial thing” and “all religious motivated.”
He also hurled a racial slur at a Black security guard during the incident, the statement says.
Israel withdraws support for embattled FIFA chief Infantino amid World Cup sell-off plan — report
FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks during a reception at Trump Tower with US President Donald Trump in New York, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Israel has become the latest country to withdraw its support for the reelection of Gianni Infantino, the embattled chief of the global soccer body FIFA, over fallout from his controversial plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors, the Guardian reports.
Several other countries have withdrawn their support for Infantino’s reelection, and the group’s COO, Kevin Lamour, was fired after criticizing the plan.
Israel’s withdrawal was stated in a letter from Moshe Zuares, who leads the Israel Football Association, according to the report.
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