Live updates (closed)
The Times of Israel liveblogged Sunday’s events as they unfolded.
Hitting back at Netanyahu, Shin Bet chief defends probe into leaked intel, slams ‘conspiracies’ aimed to weaken his agency
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) and Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, on April 4, 2023. (Kobi Gideon/GPO/File)
Ronen Bar, the head of the Shin Bet, has written a furious letter defending its investigation of the scandal regarding the theft and leaking of classified IDF intelligence material, Channel 12 news reports, and accusing critics of peddling conspiracies and seeking to weaken the agency at a time of war.
In the letter, reportedly written in reply to complaints made by rabbis from the religious Zionist community about the treatment of the suspects in the case and the probe itself, Bar responds to a series of bitter allegations, many of which were made publicly eight days ago by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the handling of the case, but does not mention Netanyahu by name.
Netanyahu has been widely reported to be contemplating dismissing Bar, as well as the current IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, though he has not publicly acknowledged that.
The Shin Bet probe led to the November 21 indictments on grave national security charges of Eli Feldstein, an aide to Netanyahu, and an unnamed IDF reserves officer. On November 23, Netanyahu issued a lengthy video, in which he accused investigators of treating the suspects “like the worst terrorists, handcuffed for days,” claimed that there was selective investigation of alleged leaks, and asserted that vital intelligence material was deliberately being kept from him.
Netanyahu is not a suspect in the case.
In his letter to the rabbis, as quoted by Channel 12, Bar notes that the Shin Bet has looked into 19 cases of leaked material relating to the IDF, Shin Bet, and Mossad since the Hamas invasion and slaughter on October 7, 2023. He makes clear that the probe of the leaked material that led to Feldstein “began inside the IDF” — debunking the notion that the Prime Minister’s Office had been targeted by the investigators in some way. “It only reached where it reached as it developed,” he writes of the probe.
Some of those 19 probes are completed; “some ended with indictments and sanctions,” he writes.
Bar stresses that the Shin Bet investigates its own people using the same methods it uses when investigating other hierarchies, “without torturing those who are investigated” and “under external and judicial supervision.”
Implicitly criticizing Netanyahu for not definitively acknowledging personal responsibility for the failures surrounding October 7, and for refusing to establish a state commission of inquiry into the disaster, Bar reportedly goes on: “As far as I know, members of the defense establishment, myself included, were the first (and to date almost the only) people to admit to their responsibility [for October 7].
“The first to call for the opening of a state commission of inquiry that would put an end to the conspiracies, that would give a little comfort to those who lost those most dear to them, and that would lead to the necessary correction — was the Shin Bet, immediately after the war erupted.”
In a further implied response to criticisms of the probe by Netanyahu and some of his supporters, Bar continues: “To my sorrow, people with particular interests, commentators and others, are choosing to skew realities, if not to manufacture conspiracies, to fire arrows, to weaken and delegitimize the organizations that are fighting to defend the [national] home. The Shin Bet, out of a statesmanlike restraint, chooses to remain silent. So it is important that opinion leaders from across the spectrum, who are trusted and followed by the many and the good, make sure their words are well-founded.”
Bar directly responds to the prime minister’s castigation of the treatment of the suspects — echoing Netanyahu’s own language, again without naming him — by stating that the accusation of mistreatment of suspects, “that they are humiliated and handcuffed as though they are terrorists, borders on incitement. It is apparently intended to weaken the organization. Even at a time of war.”
The Shin Bet, Bar vows, “will continue with its work in accordance with the law.”
Responding to the allegation of selective investigations, Bar further writes: “The Shin Bet was not called in to investigate the theft of documents and the leaking of information from them because of what was written in them, but in order to protect the process by which the [classified intelligence] was obtained.” The damage caused by the incident was immeasurable, he writes, “in lives, in the wellbeing of the hostages, in achieving the aims of the war and protecting the soldiers.”
Furthermore, he adds, “The probe has shown that if we had not intervened, the damage would have been even greater.”
Condemning the investigation as though it was skewed from the start because of where its conclusions led it, he writes, “defies common sense and besmirches the entire ranks of investigators, whose work has thwarted thousands of terror attacks and espionage activities.”
Top German diplomat says Israel has ‘no excuse’ for hampering delivery of aid to Gaza
Israel has no excuse for hampering the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, a top German diplomat says, ahead of a conference in Cairo on the subject next week.
The country must “at last keep its promises to fluidify humanitarian aid into Gaza and to allow sufficient humanitarian access at any moment,” says Tobias Lindner, the deputy foreign affairs minister, in a statement published ahead of his trip to Egypt.
“There is no excuse for that. Israel’s right to legitimate self-defense finds its limits in international humanitarian rights.”
The UN agency that deals with Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, announced earlier today that it was suspending the delivery of indispensable aid into Gaza through a key crossing point because the situation had become “impossible,” due to looting.
Israel says it allows enough aid into Gaza and blames UNRWA and other agencies for failing to deliver it. It accuses UNRWA of having allowed Hamas to deeply infiltrate its ranks, including dozens who actively took part in the October 7 massacre in southern Israel, and passed legislation to sever ties with the agency last month.
Netanyahu’s ex-defense minister Ya’alon says IDF ‘not most moral army in the world,’ stands by accusation of ‘ethnic cleansing’
Former defense minister Moshe Ya'alon speaks to Channel 12 about his recent comments accusing the government of dragging Israel down path of 'ethnic cleansing,' in the Gaza Strip, December 1, 2024. (Screenshot/Channel 12)
Moshe Ya’alon tells Channel 12 that he will not apologize for his comments accusing Israel of carrying out “ethnic cleansing” in the northern Gaza Strip, and counters the oft-repeated statement that the IDF is “the most moral army in the world.”
In the sit-down interview, Ya’alon says, “I don’t say anymore [that the IDF is] the most moral army in the world,” precisely because of “the interference of politicians, who are corrupting the army.”
“It’s not the most moral army today,” he repeats. “And it’s hard for me to say that.”
Then which army is? he is asked. “Leave that aside. What difference does it make? I’m not making comparisons,” he replies.
Doubling down on his comments from the previous evening, he says he believes his assessment to be “accurate,” and that there is “no other word for it” but ethnic cleansing, given that government lawmakers speak about how “the Strip will be cleansed of Arabs.”
Asked whether he wants to take back his use of the phrase, given that it is “extremely harsh,” Ya’alon reiterates that he spoke the way he did “on purpose, to sound the alarm.”
When it is put to him that one of the definitions of ethnic cleansing is “mass murder as a means of diluting the population of a specific group in a specific area,” Ya’alon says, “I’m not talking about mass murder” but rather about “a different definition… evacuating a population from its homes, destroying their homes — that’s what’s happening in Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahiya.”
The interviewer charges that the use of the phrase ethnic cleansing will lead people to associate the IDF with “what happened in Germany in the 1930s,” to which Ya’alon replies that it is “not the IDF” he is charging with carrying out ethnic cleansing, but “the politicians,” notably those on the far right of the coalition, who he says are instructing the IDF to “carry out what are defined as war crimes” and ordering it to “evacuate the population for [ostensible] operational activities,” but are acting out of ulterior motives such as the desire to revive Jewish settlement in the strip.
He warns IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi to “pay attention” to what is happening around him, when given orders to evacuate the population of large swathes of the Gaza Strip.
Asked if he thinks the arrest warrant put out by the International Criminal Court for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was justified, Ya’alon says simply that he will “let them judge.”
“I think that, morally, some bad things have happened here from our point of view,” he says.
He suggests that the ICC has a list of other officials, both from the defense establishment and the political echelon, who will be investigated at a later date for war crimes, and says that if it were up to him, far-right ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir would have been arrested “some time ago” already.
Presented with a clip of a statement he issued in 2003 when serving as IDF chief of staff, in which he said that the IDF does not “harm innocent people,” Ya’alon says he stands by what he said at the time, to which the interviewer asks if “something has changed” since that 21-year-old clip.
“Do you not live in this country?” Ya’alon retorts. “Do you not hear Ben Gvir encouraging [people] to kill?”
Challenged that Israel’s enemies are now using Ya’alon statements to back up their own accusations against Israel, the former defense minister says, “First of all, let’s take care of ourselves and make sure we don’t do these things” before worrying about what other people say. “That’s what’s more important.”
Iranian plane suspected of ferrying arms to Hezbollah blocked by IAF over Syria overnight
An Iranian flight suspected to be ferrying arms to Hezbollah was blocked by the Israeli Air Force over Syria overnight between Saturday and Sunday, The Times of Israel has learned.
IAF fighter jets flew up to the Iranian plane over Syria and ordered it to turn around, and it did a short while later.
The incident was first reported by Ynet, although the news site showed a screenshot of flight data from an unrelated Iranian Mahan Air plane that landed in Latakia in the afternoon hours on Saturday.
The interception of the flight comes as part of Israel’s efforts to prevent Iranian weapons from reaching the Lebanese terror group, during a ceasefire.
In recent months, the IDF has caused a number of Iranian flights to make U-turns over Syrian or Iraqi airspace, when they were suspected of carrying weapons to Hezbollah.
AG tells court to reject petition demanding Netanyahu recuse himself from office while testifying in criminal trial
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and Justice Minister Yariv Levin at a farewell ceremony for retiring acting supreme court president Uzi Vogelman, at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, October 1, 2024. (Oren Ben Hakoon/POOL)
Attorney General Gali Baharav Miara tells the High Court of Justice that she believes it should reject a petition calling for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to recuse himself while he testifies in his corruption trial later this month.
In an opinion filed after Netanyahu issued his own response against the petition earlier today, Baharav Miara writes that it should be rejected, as “the prime minister maintains that in the event of a change in the factual basis whereby his public position does not allow for the trial to be conducted, or if the trial harms his ability to function as prime minister, he will make it clear.”
Netanyahu in his own response to the petition said that it should have been rejected outright, and stated that “the Honorable Court (and of course the attorney general) is not authorized to ‘declare’ incapacity and thus create it, since there is no such ‘declaration’ in law.”
“The examination of incapacity will be made in a factual manner by the office holder himself (or his trustee), based on the simple factual question of whether he is able to fulfill his role or not,” he stated. “That is all.”
Report: Dermer to visit US, meet with Biden, Trump advisers on hostage deal efforts
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer will visit the US this week for talks with advisers of President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump, an Axios correspondent reports, citing two unnamed sources.
According to the report, the talks will focus on the war in Gaza and the negotiations for a hostage deal, as well as matters pertaining to Iran.
IDF says paratroopers killed armed Hezbollah operatives near a church in southern Lebanon
Last night, the military says soldiers of the Paratroopers Brigade spotted a group of armed Hezbollah operatives close to a church in southern Lebanon, a site previously known to have been used by the terror group.
The paratroopers opened fire at the gunmen, killing them, the IDF says.
“The terrorists who were eliminated were active in [Hezbollah’s] ground defense, anti-tank and artillery arrays in the area, and took part in the fighting while using the church,” the military says in a statement.
After the operatives were killed, the IDF says soldiers scanned the church today and located a tunnel shaft that was used to store weapons.
צה"ל פעל במהלך היום בעקבות מספר פעולות בלבנון שהיוו איום על מדינת ישראל, תוך הפרת הבנות הסכם הפסקת האש>> pic.twitter.com/bSdK1bsXH8
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) December 1, 2024
The IDF is still deployed to southern Lebanon, and it has until late January to withdraw under the ceasefire deal.
Father of Edan Alexander speaks at NY hostage deal rally, calls on Biden, Trump to ‘act now’
Adi Alexander, father of Hamas hostage Edan Alexander, speaks at a hostage deal rally in New York, December 1, 2024. (Hostages Families Forum)
Adi Alexander, the father of Hamas hostage Edan Alexander who appeared in a propaganda video released by the terror group yesterday, calls on US President Joe Biden, President-elect Donald Trump and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to work together for a deal to release the 101 hostages from captivity in Gaza.
Addressing a hostage deal rally in New York, Alexander asks that the leaders “do not let politics or bureaucracy stand in the way of humanity.”
“Today, I speak as not just a father, but as the voice of my son and the other hostages whose lives hang in the balance,” he says at the top of his remarks. “Every day in captivity is an eternity of suffering for him and every hostage both physically and emotionally.”
“President Biden, President Trump, Prime Minister Netanyahu, I call on all of you to act,” he says. “This is not a moment for politics or hesitation. This is a moment for courage, collaboration, and decisive actions.”
He urges Biden to use the last weeks of his term to negotiate a deal, reminding him that “the tools and influence of the United States are at your fingertips.”
Turning to Trump, he tells him that he does not need to wait until he enters office in January “to make an impact.”
“The world is watching,” he says. “Act now.”
Adi Alexander, father of hostage Edan Alexander (US citizen from Tenafly NJ): “President Biden, President Trump, Prime Minister Netanyahu I call on all of you to act” pic.twitter.com/57pzWf7NrZ
— Gil Zussman (@gil_zussman) December 1, 2024
Netanyahu responds to petition demanding he recuse himself during corruption trial testimony this month
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issues a response to a petition requesting that he be ordered to recuse himself from office while testifying in his criminal trial later this month.
He decries the petition as a “very serious attempt” to drag the judicial system into politics, “contrary to the law and contrary to the decision of the elected democratic institutions on whether the prime minister can continue to serve in his petition.”
The High Court of Justice ordered him to respond to the petition by December 1, as he was slated to begin testifying in court on December 2. The start of his testimony was later pushed back until December 10.
The prime minister has been charged with fraud and breach of trust in two cases and with bribery, fraud and breach of trust in a third. He was indicted in January 2020, and a trial encompassing all three cases began in May of that year.
Katz tells IDF to cancel call-up orders for anti-government activist Eyal Naveh
Defense Minister Israel Katz says he has instructed the military to cancel a call-up order for anti-government activist Eyal Naveh, who had been issued a notice to appear for reserve service.
“Anyone who called for mass absences and refusal to serve is unworthy of training the next generation of IDF fighters,” Katz says of Naveh, a senior figure in the Brothers in Arms protest movement and veteran of the elite Sayeret Matkal special forces unit.
Trump announces Massad Boulos as senior adviser on Arab and Middle East affairs
Donald Trump, right, signs autographs as Massad Boulos watches during a visit to Dearborn, Michigan on November 1, 2024. (AP/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
US President-elect Donald Trump says Lebanese American businessman Massad Boulos will serve as his senior adviser on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs.
Trump made the announcement on Truth Social, touting Bolous as a “highly respected leader in the business world, with extensive experience on the international scene.”
“He has been a longtime proponent of Republican and Conservative values, an asset to my Campaign, and was instrumental in building tremendous new coalitions with the Arab American Community,” Trump continues.
“Massad is a dealmaker, and an unwavering supporter of PEACE in the Middle East,” the president-elect declares.
Boulos, the father-in-law of Trump’s daughter Tiffany, met repeatedly with Arab American and Muslim leaders during the election campaign.
He will likely work alongside Steve Witkoff, who Trump last month appointed as his special envoy for the Middle East. A source familiar with the matter tells The Times of Israel that Witkoff will focus more primarily on Israel, while Boulos’s portfolio will prioritize Arab countries.
It was the second time in recent days that Trump chose the father-in-law of one of his children to serve in his administration.
On Saturday, Trump said that he had picked his son-in-law Jared Kushner’s father, real estate mogul Charles Kushner, to serve as US ambassador to France.
In recent months, Boulos campaigned for Trump to drum up Lebanese and Arab American support, even as the US backed Israel’s military campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Boulos has powerful roots in both countries.
His father and grandfather were both figures in Lebanese politics and his father-in-law was a key funder of the Free Patriotic Movement, a Christian party aligned with Hezbollah.
His son Michael and Tiffany Trump were married in an elaborate ceremony at Trump’s Florida Mar-a-Lago Club in November 2022, after getting engaged in the White House Rose Garden during Trump’s first term.
Boulos has been in touch with interlocutors across Lebanon’s multipolar political world, three sources who spoke to him in recent months say, a rare feat in Lebanon, where decades-old rivalries between factions run deep.
Particularly notable is his ability to maintain relations with Hezbollah, they say. The Iranian-backed Shi’ite Muslim party has a large number of seats in Lebanon’s parliament and ministers in the government.
Boulos is a friend of Suleiman Frangieh, a Christian ally of Hezbollah and its candidate for Lebanon’s presidency. He is also in touch with the Lebanese Forces Party, a vehemently anti-Hezbollah Christian faction, the sources say, and has ties to independent lawmakers.
Aron Lund, fellow at the Century Foundation think tank, said Boulos was well placed to influence Trump’s Middle East policy after playing a small but significant role in expanding Trump’s appeal to Arab American and Muslim voters during the campaign.
“Boulos’ Lebanese political past gives no real indication of a geostrategic or even national vision, but it demonstrates ambition and a set of political allies that will stand out in Trump’s circle like a sore thumb,” Lund wrote.
IDF says drone strike near Jenin killed Hamas terrorist behind shooting attack earlier this year, three other gunmen
The IDF says that a drone strike near the West Bank city of Jenin this morning killed a Hamas terrorist responsible for a deadly shooting attack in the Jordan Valley in the summer, along with three other gunmen.The IDF says that a drone strike near the West Bank city of Jenin this morning killed a Hamas terrorist responsible for a deadly shooting attack in the Jordan Valley in the summer, along with three other gunmen.
According to the military, the cell of four gunmen killed in the airstrike was responsible for several shooting attacks against Israeli towns bordering the northern West Bank.
The head of the cell, Wael Lahlouh, 31, from Qabatiya, carried out a shooting attack on August 11 at the Mehola Junction on Route 90, the main north-south artery in the Jordan Valley, killing Yonatan Deutsch, 23, and wounding Anas Jaramana, 32.
The IDF says that following the attack, Lahlouh worked to recruit additional terrorists in Jenin for “imminent” attacks.
After the four gunmen were targeted in the drone strike, troops raided the site and seized three guns on their bodies, the military says.
Additional weapon parts and military equipment were also captured, the army adds.
חוסל המחבל שרצח את יהונתן דויטש ז״ל ועמד בראש חוליית מחבלים שביצעה מספר פיגועי ירי במרחב הגלבוע, שלושה מחבלים נוספים חוסלו בתקיפה >> pic.twitter.com/5XU8mwEcTu
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) December 1, 2024
White House working on Gaza ceasefire-hostage deal but ‘not there yet’
The White House is working on a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza but is “not there yet,” the US national security adviser tells NBC, with fighting raging on as regional leaders meet to discuss the crisis.
“We are working actively to try to make it happen. We are engaged deeply with the key players in the region, and there is activity even today,” says Jake Sullivan, according to a transcript released by the broadcaster.
“There will be further conversations and consultations, and our hope is that we can generate a ceasefire and hostage deal, but we’re not there yet,” he adds.
Sullivan tells NBC that US President Joe Biden has been closely coordinating with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“He also spoke with Prime Minister Netanyahu that day (of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire), and Prime Minister Netanyahu told him he agreed, the time is right. The moment is now,” says Sullivan, referring to the need for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
PA health ministry says four killed in IDF drone strike near Jenin, in the West Bank
Israeli security forces operate in the town of Sir, near the West Bank city of Jenin, December 1, 2024. (Nasser Ishtayeh/ Flash90)
The Palestinian Authority health ministry says four Palestinians were killed in this morning’s IDF drone strike near the West Bank city of Jenin.
The ministry says it was informed of their deaths, indicating their bodies are being held by Israeli authorities.
Gantz: Forgoing a hostage deal for ‘political reasons’ cost the lives of 30 hostages
National Unity chair Benny Gantz attends Israel Hayom security conference in Jerusalem, December 1, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
National Unity chair Benny Gantz estimates that around 30 hostages who have died or been killed in Gaza since they were abducted on October 7 last year would still be alive today had the government not chosen to forgo a hostage deal for “political reasons.”
Speaking at the Israel Hayom conference, Gantz argues that if Israel was able to come to an agreement with Hezbollah in Lebanon, it should have also been able to make a deal with Hamas, which he says is “the most dismantled” of Israel’s enemies.
“The return of the hostages is at the core of the values of the State of Israel,” he adds. “It is the most important thing.”
France said to have accused Israel of violating terms of ceasefire in Lebanon
A French diplomatic source tells the Kan public broadcaster that Paris has warned both Israel and Hezbollah “against actions that endanger the implementation of the ceasefire agreement.”
According to the report, the warning comes after France privately accused Israel of failing to follow the correct procedure when striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon since the start of the ceasefire last week.
Israel has carried out several strikes against Hezbollah operatives and targets since the ceasefire came into effect, all apparently in line with the reported “side letter” from the US that accompanied the agreement and affirmed Israel’s right to defend itself against renewed threats.
According to reports regarding the contents of the letter, Israel reserves the right to act at any time, should the terms of the agreement be broken in southern Lebanon. Beyond southern Lebanon, however, it is reportedly only permitted to act if the Lebanese Army is unable or unwilling to deal with the violations.
In all instances, however, Israel is reportedly required to notify the US wherever possible when it is required to take action in response to threats inside Lebanon.
According to Kan, Paris has privately accused Hezbollah of violating the terms of the ceasefire as well.
Ben Gvir instructs police to prevent mosques from using loudspeakers to broadcast call to prayer
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City, after his visit to the Temple Mount, during Tisha B'Av, August 13, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir confirms a Channel 12 report that he has instructed the Israel Police to ban mosques from broadcasting the Adhan, or Islamic call to prayer, over loudspeakers.
According to the report, the new policy would allow the police to enter mosques and confiscate loudspeaker equipment if found to be in use. The mosques found to be broadcasting the call to prayer would also be fined.
In a post on X, the ultranationalist minister says he is “proud” to introduce the policy, which he says will put an end to the “unreasonable noise from mosques, which have become a hazard for the residents of Israel.”
The policy has been condemned by members of Israel’s opposition, including Labor MK Gilad Kariv, who writes in a post on X that Ben Gvir “endangers the State of Israel” and warns that he “won’t stop until in the end, a match sets the barrel on fire.”
The policy is also condemned by Hadash-Ta’al MK Ahmad Tibi, who charges that Ben Gvir “builds his base on hatred and persecution of Arabs,” and says that Netanyahu “bears responsibility for the pyromaniac minister’s rampage.”
Netanyahu says Israel closely monitoring events in Syria
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to new recruits at the IDF induction center at Tel Hashomer, December 1, 2024. (Amos Ben Gershom/GPO)
Israel is closely monitoring what happens in Syria, says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and will defend its interests.
Speaking at the IDF induction center at Tel Hashomer after rebels capture the city of Aleppo from government forces, Netanyahu also promises to enforce the ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon firmly, “and any violation will immediately meet a strong response from the IDF.”
Netanyahu is joined by Defense Minister Israel Katz, his top political and military aides, and the IDF’s chief tanks officer.
Syrian rebel officer to Channel 12: Offensive against Assad regime will stop Hezbollah members fleeing to Syria
A senior member of a Syrian rebel group tells Israel’s Channel 12 that the surprise offensive launched against Syria’s military last week coincided with the start of a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, after the rebels assessed that members of the Iran-backed terror group were likely to flee across the border from Lebanon into Syria.
The officer, who was identified by Channel 12 only as “Y,” says that the renewed fighting against Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces is necessary to ensure that “Hezbollah members from Lebanon, who have come to Syria and have stood by the Assad regime, will not have a permanent foothold.”
He says that the rebel group realized the offensive was necessary and that “this is the right time” to carry it out.
“We will not allow them [Iran’s proxies] to fight in our areas, and we will not allow the Iranians to settle there and support the Iranian militias in carrying out hostile actions against the regions we liberated, whether in Idlib or the Aleppo province,” the rebel officer adds.
He says that the rebels’ dream is to “overthrow the Assad regime and create a climate for all Syrians, and all ethnicities and nationalities,” and to form strong relations “with all neighboring countries.”
“It will be a country based on equality and justice for all Syrian citizens without exception, where there will be peace and security with the entire region, including with Israel,” he tells Channel 12.
Also speaking to Channel 12 is exiled Syrian opposition leader Fahad Al Masri, who urges Israel to act against Iran in support of the Syrian rebel groups.
“We call on the Israeli leadership to launch intensive attacks against the positions and troops of the Iran-backed militias in Syrian territory,” he says. “It will be necessary to strike sites in Homs, Damascus and on the Lebanon border. This will help rid Syria’s territory of the Lebanese presence and Hezbollah’s weapons and the octopus tentacles of Iran.”
Couple return to Metula home and find rocket in their bedroom after direct hit
Hezik and Chayele Sandler, who found a rocket in the bedroom of their Metula home, speak to KAN News, November 29, 2024 (Screen grab/KAN News)
A couple say they returned to their home in Metula after having been evacuated to find it had suffered a direct hit during a Hezbollah barrage, and a rocket was in their bedroom.
Hezik and Chayele Sandler say they did not know their home had been damaged until they arrived back after the start of a ceasefire between Israel and the Hezbollah terror group.
Hezik and Chayele Sandler show KAN News the rocket they found in their bedroom, when they returned to their Metula home, November 29, 2024 (Screen grab/KAN News)
“We saw it for the first time when we got here,” Hezik tells Channel 12.
Chayele says that it was a shock as they thought their home was intact.
“The neighbor could not see what had happened from their property, so everyone told us the house was okay,” she says.
Hezik and Chayele Sandler show KAN News the rocket they found in their bedroom, when they returned to their Metula home, November 29, 2024 (Screen grab/KAN News)
AG: ‘Serious concern’ Feldstein Law is ‘improper political interference’ in case involving PM’s associates
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and Justice Minister Yariv Levin at a farewell ceremony for retiring acting supreme court president Uzi Vogelman, at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, October 1, 2024. (Oren Ben Hakoon/POOL)
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara comes out against the so-called Feldstein Law, saying there is serious concern it is “improper political interference” in a criminal case concerning individuals close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“There is serious concern that this is personal legislation, aimed at improper political interference in a criminal proceeding concerning those close to the prime minister,” Baharav-Miara says in a statement.
Ministers advanced the law granting immunity to members of the defense establishment who pass classified information to the prime minister or defense minister without authorization.
Charges have been brought against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s spokesman Eli Feldstein and an unnamed IDF reservist relating to their alleged involvement in the leak of classified intelligence information to the foreign press in a bid to sway public opinion against a hostage deal.
Ministers advance ‘Feldstein Law’ granting immunity to defense establishment members who pass classified intel to PM
Eli Feldstein, a spokesman in the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is the main suspect in an investigation launched in late October 2024 of alleged illegal access and leaking of classified intelligence material. (Kan screenshot, used in accordance with clause 27a of the copyright law)
Ministers advance the so-called “Feldstein Law” that would mean members of the defense establishment cannot be prosecuted for giving classified intelligence to the prime minister or defense minister without authorization.
The law is approved by the Ministerial Committee for Legislation and will be brought to the Knesset for its preliminary reading on Wednesday.
The laws proponents — Likud MKs Hanoch Milwidsky and Amit Halevi — claim the legislation is necessary because “even during the war, critical documents regarding the enemy’s intentions did not reach the desks of decision-makers in the political leadership.”
The military and defense establishment have denied accusations that senior politicians have been kept out of the loop, and have opposed the bill.
An official tells the Ynet news site that the Prime Minister’s Office already had access to the documents in question in the Feldstein case, indicating the legislation is unnecessary.
The case comes in response to charges against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s spokesman Eli Feldstein and an unnamed IDF reservist relating to their alleged involvement in the leak of classified intelligence information to the foreign press.
Feldstein is accused of leaking to the German newspaper Bild a document stolen from an IDF database by the other defendant, an IDF noncommissioned officer (NCO), in a bid to sway public opinion against a truce-hostage deal in Gaza.
The unidentified NCO was charged with transferring classified information, an offense that is punishable by seven years in prison, as well as theft by an authorized person and obstruction of justice.
While the law has been dubbed the “Feldstein Law,” Eli Feldstein is not a soldier and there has been no evidence to suggest that he gave the stolen documents to any lawmaker, including Netanyahu.
‘Nothing new’ on efforts to reach hostage-ceasefire deal with Hamas, Israeli official says
Protesters call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas terror group, in Tel Aviv, November 30, 2024.(AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
There is “nothing new” on efforts to reach a hostage and ceasefire deal with Hamas, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel, despite statements from Hamas officials indicating possible flexibility on some of their demands.
“I haven’t seen any change, not even in Hamas terminology,” says the official.
The official adds that an Israeli pilot plan to use private US company to hand out humanitarian aid in a small part of the northern Gaza Strip has not yet begun.
Israel ready for ‘any scenario’ regarding developments in Syria, official says
Anti-government fighters pose for a picture on a tank on the road leading to Maaret al-Numan in Syria's northwestern Idlib province on November 30, 2024. (Muhammad Haj Kadour / AFP)
Israel is “paying close attention all the time to what is happening in Syria, and is ready for any scenario,” an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel after Syrian rebels take the city of Aleppo and push beyond.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a discussion on the rebel offensive on Friday, says the official, adding that there might be another this week.
The official says that in recent conversations with Russia, which backs the Syrian Assad regime militarily, Israel “made clear to them that it is in their interest to stop the movement of weapons through Syria to Lebanon, because it that happens, we will continue to attack Assad regime targets on the border, but also beyond.”
The conversations took place before last week’s offensive.
“We told them that if [weapons transfers] keep happening,” says the official, “we will attack Assad targets more intensely, and they have to take that into account so the Assad regime will survive.”
Iran-backed Houthis claim responsibility for firing ballistic missile at Israel this morning
The Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen take responsibility for this morning’s ballistic missile launch at Israel.
In a statement, the group claims to have targeted a “vital target” in central Israel.
The IDF says the missile was successfully intercepted by air defenses.
The Houthis vow to continue attacks on Israel until “the aggression on the Gaza Strip stops.”
Russian, Syrian jets carry out 2nd day of intensive bombing in Syria’s rebel-held northwest
People check the damage at the scene of a pro-regime forces strike that targeted a neighborhood in Syria's rebel-held northern city of Idlib on December 1, 2024 (MUHAMMAD HAJ KADOUR / AFP)
Russian and Syrian jets strike the rebel-held city of Idlib in the second day of intensive bombing in northern Syria aimed at pushing back insurgents who swept through to the city of Aleppo, Syrian army sources say.
Residents say one of the raids hit a crowded residential area in the center of Idlib, which is the largest city in a rebel enclave near the Turkish border where around four million people live in makeshift tents and dwellings.
At least four people were killed and dozens injured, according to rescuers at the scene.
The Syrian army and its ally Russia say they target the hideouts of insurgent groups and deny attacking civilians.
Supreme Court increases sentence of man convicted of rape of girl, 13, at coronavirus quarantine hotel
Yarin Sherf, suspected of raping 13-year-old girl at a quarantine hotel, is seen on a screen via a video link during a court hearing at the Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court, March 1, 2021. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
The Supreme Court increases the sentence of a man convicted of the rape of a 13-year-old girl at a state-operated coronavirus quarantine hotel in Jaffa in 2021.
Yarin Sherf’s sentence is increased from six and a half years to eight years, after the justices accept an appeal by prosecutors.
Sherf, aged 21 at the time of the attack, did not deny he had sex with the girl but had initially claimed it was consensual, leading to initial charges of a forbidden consensual relationship, sexual harassment, making threats, assault, and giving an intoxicating drink to a minor.
However, the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court approved upgrading the charges to rape after a public outcry, including from the victim’s mother who said she felt as though her daughter had been raped again.
UK maritime agency reports incident south of Yemen’s Aden
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency says that it received a report of an incident 80 nautical miles south of Yemen’s port city of Aden, adding that authorities are investigating.
The Houthis have waged an armed campaign against shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden during the Gaza war, severely disrupting the vital trade route.
Houthi rebels, part of Iran’s “axis of resistance” against Israel and the United States, have fired over 220 ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones at Israel since the outbreak of the Gaza war.
A ballistic missile launched at Israel from Yemen was successfully intercepted by air defenses outside of Israel’s borders this morning. Sirens were triggered across central Israel.
Defense Ministry, IDF sign NIS 1.2 billion deal for over 10,000 bomb shelters in homes near Lebanon border
A man unloads construction materials in front of a damaged building in Metula, November 27, 2024. (David Cohen FLASH90)
The Defense Ministry and IDF Home Front Command sign a NIS 1.2 billion deal with the treasury to install over 10,000 bomb shelters in homes near the Lebanon border.
The effort to build bomb shelters in the northern towns — dubbed Shield of the North — began several years ago, though it has seen limited progress.
As part of the agreement, the treasury and Defense Ministry will allocate NIS 875 million to allow residents living in 28 communities at a distance of one to five kilometers from the Lebanon border to independently build a bomb shelter in their homes, with a grant of up to NIS 132,000.
The grants, for at least 10,000 bomb shelters, will begin in April 2025, the Defense Ministry says.
Separately, the ministry says its Engineering and Construction Division has begun work to build 1,700 bomb shelters in homes in 21 communities adjacent to the border, up to one kilometer away.
“In the last few days, the procedure for obtaining the permits and recruiting contractors was completed. The works will start in the near future,” the ministry says.
According to the ministry, hundreds of bomb shelters have been built in homes in recent months, amid the fighting in Lebanon.
The reinforcement plan comes after years of promises to improve the shelters in northern communities, which were regularly found to be lacking, despite the high probability that these areas would be hit by barrages from Hezbollah.
A 2020 state comptroller report found that nearly 30 percent of Israeli citizens do not have access to functioning bomb shelters near their homes, including over a quarter of a million people who live near the borders with the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.
Herzog to family of hostage Edan Alexander: Deal negotiations taking place ‘behind the scenes’
President Isaac Herzog and first lady Michal Herzog meet the family of hostage Edan Alexander at the President's Residence in Jerusalem on December 1, 2024 (Kobi Gideon/GPO)
It is time for a deal to bring the hostages home, President Isaac Herzog and first lady Michal Herzog tell the family of Edan Alexander, the American-Israeli hostage who was featured in a video released by Hamas yesterday.
“Now, with an agreement reached regarding the northern border with Lebanon, it is time to finalize a deal and bring the hostages home” from Gaza, says the president, according to his office. “We are negotiating with a bitter and cruel enemy whose sole purpose in releasing this video was to try to break our spirit. On the contrary — I believe this video has strengthened us.”
Negotiations are taking place “behind the scenes,” says Herzog.
“Now is the opportunity to bring about a meaningful change that will lead to a deal to free the hostages.”
“This has been a sleepless night,” says Yael, Edan’s mother. “Edan — his voice and the video replaying endlessly. You can see in the video that Edan is going through hell. His eyes are crying out, full of sorrow, but it gave me so much strength. Edan strengthened us with his call to us.
“We released this video so that everyone can see — Edan is alive, and many other hostages are alive. It’s time to act and free them.”
Edan Alexander was taken captive by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023 (Courtesy)
Bank of Israel, Finance Ministry announce team to boost banking competition, ease credit for small businesses
Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in Jerusalem on December, 1, 2024 (Finance Ministry)
The Bank of Israel and the Finance Ministry are establishing an inter-ministerial team to introduce tools to increase competition in the banking system and the provision of credit to small businesses and households.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron say in a joint statement that the team will be tasked with removing barriers to boost competition, and lower financing costs for the retail sector.
The team, headed by the central bank’s supervisor of banks and the Finance Ministry’s budget division head, will focus on examining and easing the barriers for the entry of new players into the banking system.
“The way to promote competition is to remove barriers that prevent the entry of new players into the financial system and the development of new areas of activity,” says Yaron. “To significantly bolster competition, the entry of new banks is required.”
Among the goals of the team is to formulate an outline for the provision of banking licenses that would allow non-bank entities to offer deposits and credit to businesses and households.
“This is a defining moment in the struggle to lower the cost of living,” says Smotrich. “Opening the deposit market will inevitably lead to competition for credit.”
“We are determined to create a diverse, competitive, and accessible credit market that will save Israelis thousands of shekels and strengthen the entire economy,” Smotrich adds.
Jordan says developments in Syria are ’cause of concern’
Jordan says that developments in Syria are a “cause of concern” and that it rejects any action that threaten its northern neighbor’s security and stability.
In remarks on state television, Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi says the kingdom backed Syria’s “territorial integrity” and its sovereignty and calls for increased diplomatic efforts to reach a political settlement that would end the conflict.
Insurgents led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham took over most of Aleppo yesterday and claimed to have entered the city of Hama. There was no independent confirmation of their claim.
Rebel commander Col. Hassan Abdulghani said separately the insurgents also took control of Sheikh Najjar, also known as the Aleppo Industrial City, northeast of the city, Aleppo’s military academy, and the field artillery college to the southwest.
UNRWA chief says pausing aid delivery through key crossing due to looting by armed gangs in Gaza
A picture taken during a tour organized by the IDF shows a Palestinian worker unloading humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip from a truck near the Kerem Shalom crossing on November 28, 2024 (JACK GUEZ / AFP)
The UN agency for Palestinians say it is pausing the delivery of aid through the key Kerem Shalom crossing between Israel and Gaza because of looting by armed gangs in the Strip.
“We are pausing the delivery of aid through Kerem Shalom… The road out of this crossing has not been safe for months,” UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini says in a post on X.
“On 16 November, a large convoy of aid trucks was stolen by armed gangs. Yesterday, we tried to bring in a few food trucks on the same route. They were all taken,” Lazzarini says.
“This difficult decision comes at a time hunger is rapidly deepening. The delivery of humanitarian aid must never be dangerous or turn into an ordeal,” he writes.
The UN official does not specify who is carrying out the looting.
The Israeli military has said that attacking convoys and stealing aid is an ongoing problem in Gaza. COGAT, the military body in charge of humanitarian aid to Gaza, has said convoys are attacked by Hamas terrorists and known crime families.
2 Palestinians from Gaza died in Israeli custody, prisoner advocacy groups say
Two Palestinian detainees from Gaza have died in Israeli custody, prisoner advocacy groups say, bringing the number of detainees reported to have died in prison since the start of the war to 47.
They name the two men as Mohammad Idris and Muath Rayyan, both in their 30s.
The Israel Prison Service says the cases are not under its jurisdiction, and there is no immediate comment from the military, which runs detention facilities.
Israel has denied accusations from Palestinian and international human rights organizations that detainees have been mistreated and tortured in its jails and detention facilities.
Gallant slams Ya’alon for saying Israel on path of ethnic cleansing in Gaza: ‘Lie that helps our enemy’
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant attends a plenum session on the opening day of the Knesset's winter session, in Jerusalem, October 28, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Yoav Gallant, who was defense minister until a few weeks ago, attacks Moshe Ya’alon — who also served in that post as well as that of IDF chief of staff — for his comments that Israel’s leadership is taking the country down a path of ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip.
“Ya’alon’s words are a lie that helps our enemy and hurts Israel,” Gallant writes on X.
“I saw the IDF fighters and commanders up close as I led the difficult war against Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran,” he says.
“The IDF acted in accordance with the highest standards that can be applied in the complex and difficult war that was forced upon us,” Gallant writes. “The instructions and orders were always given in accordance with the law and in the spirit of the IDF.”
“I suggest that Ya’alon learn the facts, take it back, and apologize to IDF fighters,” Gallant writes.
Ya’alon, who, like Gallant, served under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said yesterday that “the path we are being dragged down is one of occupation, annexation and ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip.”
Journalist Lucy Aharish asked Ya’alon to confirm he believes Israel was on a path to ethnic cleansing.
“There is no Beit Lahiya, there is no Beit Hanoun, they are currently operating in Jabalia and are essentially cleaning the area of Arabs,” Ya’alon said.
In a Kan radio interview this morning, asked about his allegation of ethnic cleansing, Ya’alon said he “stands behind the expression” and added, “My issue is not with the soldiers of the IDF. On the contrary: I’m speaking on behalf of commanders who are active in northern Gaza and turned to me, because they are troubled, troubled by what is happening there. Their lives are being placed in danger; they are being faced with moral dilemmas… and ultimately, they will be vulnerable to legal complaints at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.”
In October, Israel ordered the remaining population of the northern third of Gaza, estimated at around 400,000 people, to evacuate to the south, and allegedly blocked humanitarian aid for weeks before allowing it back in, under pressure from the US and others.
The evacuation order came as the military launched a widescale operation in northern Gaza as it sought to destroy Hamas terrorists the military says have been regrouping around Jabalia, Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun.
Israel has repeatedly denied claims of ethnic cleansing, saying its intensive operations in northern Gaza were an operational response to Hamas’s efforts to regroup.
At the same time, far-right politicians have made no secret of their desire to see Gaza at least partly depopulated and Jewish settlements rebuilt, with Palestinians encouraged to “voluntarily migrate.”
High Court says reservist who died by suicide should receive military burial in civilian cemetery
Asaf Dagan with his mother, Miri. (Courtesy)
The High Court says a reservist who died by suicide in October should receive a military burial in a civilian cemetery, after a lengthy legal struggle between the army and the soldier’s family.
The decision ratifies the compromise offered by the Israel Defense Forces and the Defense Ministry after Maj. (res.) Asaf Dagan’s family refused to bury him until he received a military funeral.
Dagan shot himself with his handgun on October 23 while not in active service, which made him ineligible for a military burial.
The judges say that the matters of a military tombstone, Dagan’s inclusion on the military’s memorial website and the holding of an annual remembrance ceremony will be determined during a process of dialogue between the reservist’s family and the army.
Dagan was a combat navigator in the IAF for 20 years and served in the Second Lebanon War. Before then, he served in the Paratroopers Brigade.
When he was released from duty in the IAF, he served as a reservist in the Intelligence Directorate’s Unit 8200.
He suffered from PTSD but would regularly show up for reserve duty, according to his family.
Ben Gvir says he’s seeing ‘some openness’ from Netanyahu on ‘encouraging migration’ from Gaza
Illustrative: Likud leader MK Benjamin Netanyahu (left) with head of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party MK Itamar Ben Gvir at a vote in the Knesset plenum, December 28, 2022. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90/File)
Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is showing “some openness” over the idea of “encouraging migration” of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.
“Ideas like settlement in Gaza are welcome; the only times we defeated our enemies were when we took territory from them,” he tells Army Radio. “But that doesn’t satisfy me. I also want to encourage emigration [of Palestinians from Gaza].”
“I am working hard to promote the encouragement of migration from Gaza with the prime minister, and I am beginning to discover some openness on the matter,” he says.
When pushed, the minister will not definitively say the premier supports the so-called “transfer” of the Gaza population.
Ben Gvir also calls for the fighting to be intensified in Gaza.
“We have a historic opportunity to collapse Hamas. We have a historic opportunity to restore deterrence, reoccupy the Gaza Strip and encourage voluntary emigration. This is what will bring peace to the south,” he says.
The Israeli far right has been pushing for population transfer and “voluntary migration” of Palestinians from Gaza, and the reestablishment of Jewish settlements in their place.
Netanyahu has repeatedly said such actions are not the goal of the war, nor are they on the agenda.
Former defense minister and IDF chief of staff Moshe Ya’alon said yesterday that Israel’s leadership, driven by far-right elements who seek to resettle Gaza, was taking the country down a path of ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip, and warned that Netanyahu’s government was leading the nation to “destruction.”
Iran’s FM to visit Damascus in show of support for Assad regime
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks during a joint press conference in Tehran, on November 19, 2024. (AFP)
Iran’s top diplomat Abbas Araghchi says he will leave Tehran for Damascus to deliver a message of support for Syria’s government and armed forces, state media said, after a lighting advance by rebels.
“I am going to Damascus to convey the message of the Islamic Republic to the Syrian government,” Araghchi said, emphasizing Tehran will “firmly support the Syrian government and army,” the IRNA state news agency reports.
The Syrian army said yesterday dozens of its soldiers had been killed in a major attack led by Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebels who swept into the city of Aleppo.
The rebels’ assault, the boldest for years in a civil war where the front lines had largely been frozen since 2020, forced the army to redeploy in the biggest challenge to President Bashar Assad in years.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, once known as the Nusra Front, is designated a terrorist group by the US, Russia, Turkey and other states.
In hostage deal ultimatum, Ben Gvir says he opposes terms under discussion and PM ‘very much’ doesn’t want him to bolt coalition
National Security Itamar Ben Gvir attends a plenum session at the Knesset in Jerusalem, November 13, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir issues an ultimatum over the renewed push for a hostage-ceasefire deal, warning that the terms under discussion are not acceptable to him and that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “very much” does not want him to bolt the government.
“The terms that are currently being discussed are irrelevant as far as I am concerned, and the prime minister very much does not want Otzma Yehudit to leave the government,” Ben Gvir tells Army Radio.
Ben Gvir has long been a vocal opponent of a deal to bring the hostages home.
Hamas representatives arrived in Cairo yesterday for talks with Egyptian negotiators on a potential hostage-ceasefire deal in Gaza.
The New York Times reported last week that Hamas had been showing increased flexibility in long-stalled talks for a deal.
Report: Killers of UAE Chabad rabbi were planning to take him to Oman
Zvi Kogan, a Chabad rabbi who was murdered in the UAE in November 2024. (Courtesy: Chabad)
The Wall Street Journal reports that the killers of Chabad Rabbi Zvi Kogan in the United Arab Emirates had kidnapped him and planned to take him to neighboring Oman.
The report says the three suspects were driving the Israeli-Moldovan national toward the border until their plan was somehow disrupted.
While the cause of Kogan’s death has not been revealed, the outlet says he came to a “bloody end,” according to his friends and family.
Kogan, a 28-year-old UAE-based rabbi, went missing in Dubai at the end of last month and his body was found a few days later in the Emirati city of Al Ain, which borders Oman.
The UAE is holding three suspects over the murder — all of them Uzbek nationals who were arrested in Turkey.
According to Kan, Israeli officials believe that Kogan’s killing was not necessarily carried out on behalf of Iran, but that it was a terror attack.
Ahead of potential demolition, IDF maps West Bank home of terrorist who opened fire at civilian bus
IDF troops measure the home of a Hamas terrorist in the West Bank village of Einabus, near Nablus, October 1, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
Overnight, the IDF says troops operated in the West Bank village of Einabus, near Nablus, to measure the home of a Hamas terrorist ahead of its potential demolition.
The terrorist, Samir Muhammad Ahmad Hussein, opened fire at a civilian bus near the West Bank settlement of Ariel on Friday, before being shot dead by troops.
Eight people were wounded in the attack, including three in serious condition.
“The mapping was carried out in preparation for examining the possibility of demolishing the terrorist’s house,” the army says.
Children return to schools, kindergartens in north as Hezbollah ceasefire holds
Thousands of children and teens are returning to schools and kindergartens in the northern border communities after the IDF Home Front Command eased restrictions last night.
Under the changes, schools in the northern frontier communities and the north Golan Heights are able to operate if adequate shelter can be reached in time.
In other areas of northern Israel, all restrictions on gatherings and schools have been lifted as the ceasefire with Hezbollah broadly holds.
IDF says it carried out drone strike against terror operatives in West Bank’s Jenin
The IDF says it carried out a drone strike against a group of terror operatives in the West Bank city of Jenin.
Further details will be provided later, the military adds.
4 injured running for shelter during sirens triggered by ballistic missile fired from Yemen
Four people were injured as they ran for shelter during sirens triggered by a ballistic missile fired from Yemen, the Magen David Adom emergency service says.
No details are given on their conditions.
An additional individual was treated for acute anxiety, MDA says.
The missile was successfully intercepted by air defenses outside of Israel’s borders. Sirens sounded in central Israel amid the incident.
IDF: Ballistic missile launched from Yemen successfully intercepted outside Israel’s borders
The IDF says a ballistic missile launched at Israel from Yemen was successfully intercepted by air defenses outside of Israel’s borders.
Sirens sounded in central Israel amid the incident.
Shrapnel from the interception reportedly fell within Israel. There are no immediate reports of injuries.
Rocket sirens sounding in several communities in central Israel; IDF says rocket fired from Yemen
Sirens are sounding in several cities and towns across central Israel, which the IDF says are triggered by a rocket fired from Yemen.
The sirens are sounding in communities in the Ayalon Valley including Latrun, Modi’in, Neveh Shalom, Nachshon, Mishmar Ayalon and Kfar Bin Nun.
There are no immediate reports of injuries or damage in the incident, which comes days after a ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon came into effect.
????Sirens sounding in central Israel following a launch from Yemen???? pic.twitter.com/5vujRHhkUB
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) December 1, 2024
Leader of Syrian rebel group killed in Russian airstrike in Aleppo — report
Islamist rebels celebrate in a street in Maaret al-Numan in Syria's northwestern Idlib province on November 30, 2024. (Abdulaziz Ketaz/AFP)
The leader of the Islamist group that swept into the Syrian city of Aleppo yesterday has been killed in a Russian airstrike, according to unconfirmed Arab media reports.
Earlier today, Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air force had carried out strikes on Syrian rebels in support of the country’s army, Russian news agencies reported.
Ahmed Hussein al-Shar’a, known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Julani (or Golani, indicating he was born in the Golan Heights), is wanted by the United States as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, with a $10 million bounty on his head.
His group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, once known as the Nusra Front, is designated a terrorist group by the US, Russia, Turkey and other states. Syrian President Bashar Assad is a close Moscow ally.
US says Syria’s Assad lost control of Aleppo because of his reliance on Russia, Iran
WASHINGTON – The United States says Syrian leader Bashar Assad lost control of Aleppo because of his reliance on Russia and Iran.
Syria’s “reliance on Russia and Iran,” along with its refusal to move forward with a 2015 peace process outlined by the UN Security Council, “created the conditions now unfolding,” National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett says in a statement.
He adds: “At the same time, the United States has nothing to do with this offensive, which is led by Hay’at Tahir al-Sham (HTS), a designated terrorist organization.”
The Syrian army says dozens of its soldiers were killed in the attack on the city of Aleppo, while Russia’s Defense Ministery reportedly said its air force carried out strikes on Syrian rebels in support of the country’s army.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
Trump taps loyalist Kash Patel as FBI director ‘to bring back fidelity, bravery and integrity’
Former chief of staff to the US secretary of defense Kash Patel speaks during a campaign rally for then-US Republican presidential nominee, former president Donald Trump at Findlay Toyota Center on October 13, 2024 in Prescott Valley, Arizona. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images North America/AFP)
WASHINGTON — US President-elect Donald Trump has picked Kash Patel to serve as FBI director, turning to a fierce loyalist to upend America’s premier law enforcement agency and rid the government of perceived “conspirators.”
It’s the latest bombshell Trump has thrown at the Washington establishment and a test for how far Senate Republicans will go in confirming his nominees.
“I am proud to announce that Kashyap “Kash” Patel will serve as the next Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” Trump posts on Truth Social. “Kash is a brilliant lawyer, investigator, and ‘America First’ fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending Justice, and protecting the American People.”
The selection is in keeping with Trump’s view that the government’s law enforcement and intelligence agencies require a radical transformation and his stated desire for retribution against supposed adversaries.
The child of Indian immigrants and a former public defender, Patel spent several years as a Justice Department prosecutor before catching the Trump administration’s attention as a staffer for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Trump also announces that he will nominate Sheriff Chad Chronister, the top law enforcement officer in Hillsborough County, Florida, to serve as the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Agency.
Report: Iran sees ceasefire as a chance to take stock, rebuild Hezbollah
Iran sees the four-day-old ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah as a chance to rebuild the Lebanon-based terror organization, according to sources close to the group quoted by the Washington Post.
The sources say that the truce gives Iran a chance to take stock of what was previously its strongest proxy in the region, rebuild, and try to restore deterrence.
The sources quoted by the Washington Post say that Hezbollah was expecting more support from Iran’s other proxies in the region during Israel’s military campaign against its sites across Lebanon in recent months.
“Lebanon was at its most vulnerable during heavy bombings, yet support from other members of the resistance axis, including Yemen and Iraq, was minimal at best,” one of the sources close to Hezbollah is quoted as saying.
Israel dealt several significant blows to Hezbollah during the war, including killing the group’s long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah in September, as well as many other top-ranking officials.
“Iran is prepared to allocate funds for reconstruction and to ensure Hezbollah’s survival, as well as to maintain support within the Shiite community,” the source adds.
Iran welcomed the ceasefire when it came into force on Wednesday, while also indicating that the development could influence its plans to avenge an October Israeli strike on the country.
White House: Biden administration has been in touch with Edan Alexander’s family after hostage video
The White House says that the propaganda video released today of American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander “is a cruel reminder of Hamas’s terror against citizens of multiple countries, including our own.”
National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett says the Biden administration has been in touch with Alexander’s family amid the release of the clip in which the 20-year-old can be heard pleading to the leaders of Israel along with the incoming and outgoing leadership of the US to act to secure a deal for his release.
“The war in Gaza would stop tomorrow and the suffering of Gazans would end immediately — and would have ended months ago — if Hamas agreed to release the hostages. It has refused to do so, but as the President said last week, we have a critical opportunity to conclude the deal to release the hostages, stop the war, and surge humanitarian assistance into Gaza,” Savett says in a statement.
“This deal is on the table now. President Biden and the United States will continue to work around the clock to secure the release of our citizens including through diplomatic efforts and by increasing pressure on Hamas terrorists through sanctions, law enforcement actions and other measures,” he adds.
“On behalf of the Alexanders and all the families of the hostages still being held by Hamas, we will never cease in our efforts to secure their immediate release,” Savett says.
read more: