Dec. 6: Syrian officials said to flee government buildings in southern Sweida province

US urges citizens to swiftly leave Syria ‘while commercial options remain available’

WASHINGTON — US citizens in Syria should immediately leave the country “while commercial options remain available,” the State Department says, as Islamist-led rebel forces continue their offensive against President Bashar al-Assad’s troops.

“The security situation continues to be volatile and unpredictable with active clashes between armed groups throughout the country. The Department urges US citizens to depart Syria now while commercial options remain available,” the department says in a security alert posted on social media.

Syrian rebels take over southern city of Daraa in deal with army — rebel sources

Syrian rebel factions took over the key southern city of Daraa — which became “the cradle of the revolution” in 2011 — after they reached a deal with the army to secure its orderly withdrawal, rebel sources tell Reuters.

They say senior security and army officials serving in the city have been given safe passage to Damascus.

While Aleppo and Hama, the two other main cities taken from government control in recent days, fell to an Islamist-led rebel alliance, Daraa fell to local armed groups, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

“Local factions have taken control of more areas in Daraa province, including Daraa city… they now control more than 90 percent of the province, as regime forces successively pulled out,” says the Britain-based Observatory, which relies on a network of sources around Syria.

Daraa province borders Jordan.

Despite a truce brokered by Assad ally Russia, it has been plagued by unrest in recent years, with frequent attacks, clashes and assassinations.

Syrian rebels say they have reached the city limits of Homs

Syrian rebels have reached the city limits of Homs, making last call for Syrian forces to defect, rebels say on Telegram.

20 civilians killed in Russia, Syria strikes near Homs city: monitor

Russian and Syrian strikes killed 20 civilians, including five children, near Homs today, a war monitor says, as rebels advanced towards the country’s third-largest city in a lightning advance.

“Russian air strikes and Syria air raids and shelling killed 20 people near Homs city, including five people from the same family,” says Rami Abdel Rahman, of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Syrian officials reportedly flee government buildings in Sweida province

Syrian officials left government buildings in Sweida and fled the mainly Druze southern province, a war monitor says, as a rebel offensive dealt Damascus a series of heavy blows.

“The Sweida governor, the police and prison chiefs, and the local Baath Party leader left their offices in the city of Sweida, as local fighters took control of some checkpoints in the province,” says Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The Suwayda24 news outlet showed footage of staff leaving the police headquarters building and a clip of fighters destroying a picture of President Bashar al-Assad.

Pair of progressive Zionist groups in US merge to become ‘New Jewish Narrative’

Americans for Peace Now, the US wing of the dovish Israeli group, and Ameinu, an offshoot of the Labor Party, announce that they have merged.

The union will be called the New Jewish Narrative.

“We are American Jews, deeply rooted in the story of our people and the history of our struggle for peace and justice. In our narrative, peace and justice are the birthright of Israelis, of Palestinians and of all people,” the group says in a statement.

Syria minister denounces plan to ‘divide’ region

Syrian Foreign Minister Bassam al-Sabbagh denounces “regional and international interference” in his country, which he said aimed to “divide” the region.

“Regional and international interference in everything that is currently happening in Syria…aims to divide the region anew and redraw the political map,” Sabbagh says in a meeting in Baghdad with his Iraqi and Iranian counterparts.

Unconfirmed report: IDF recently struck chemical weapons cache in Syria

Channel 12 reports that the IDF recently struck a Syrian chemical weapons cache.

The network cites “foreign reports,” though no such reports appear to exist, indicating that the citation is a tactic by the network to get around Israel’s military censor.

Earlier this week, Haaretz reported that the Israeli military fears that amid the Syrian rebel assault and their taking over of military sites belonging to the Assad regime in the country, chemical weapons could fall into the wrong hands.

If such weapons fall into the hands of the rebels or Iranian militias, Israel would have to act in a way that “may affect Syria and the entire Middle East,” according to Haaretz.

The report adds that Israel recently conveyed messages to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, via Russia, demanding that he “uphold his sovereignty and not allow Iran to operate in his territory.

Herzog holds call with Musk, aiming to recruit Trump confidant to hostage deal cause

President Isaac Herzog held a phone call with Elon Musk earlier this week to raise the plight of the hostages in Gaza with the confidant of US President-elect Donald Trump, CNN reports.

Herzog made the call at the request of hostage family members who hope Musk will be able to use his influence to pressure the parties involved to make a deal, CNN says, citing a source familiar.

Sara Netanyahu formally recognized as crime victim over flares thrown at home when she wasn’t there

Sara Netanyahu arrived to attend her husband Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to a joint meeting of Congress at the US Capitol on July 24, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew ANGERER / AFP)

The Israel Police have recognized Sara Netanyahu as a victim of a crime, Channel 12 reveals, three weeks after three flares were fired at the Netanyahus’ private residence in Caesarea last month. The prime minister and his wife were not home at the time of the incident.

Victims of a crime are by law entitled to be asked by prosecutors for their position regarding any plea bargain that might be proposed to those indicted over the incident, and the punishment that they might be given by the court. Crime victims are also entitled to financial benefits from the state.

Defense attorneys for the four suspects charged for involvement in the launching of the flares slammed the decision.

“The Israel Police’s decision to consider Mrs. Sara Netanyahu a ‘victim of a crime’ in an event in which her house was not damaged at all and she was not at home at the time of the incident indicates poor and puzzling judgment. It seems that instead of acting to promote the public interest, the police were motivated by a desire for personal advancement,” the lawyers say in a joint statement, indicating that the prime minister or National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir will be willing to promote them for ruling in their favor on the matter.

UN says at least 370,000 people displaced by Syria fighting

At least 370,000 people have been displaced by fighting in Syria since November 27, the UN secretary-general’s spokesman says, as rebel forces continue to gain ground.

“Since the escalation of hostilities, at least 370,000 men, women and children, boys and girls, have been displaced, including 100,000 who left their homes more than once. Most of the displaced are women and children,” Stephane Dujarric says.

Iran enrichment increase serious escalation, harms diplomacy – German source

Iran’s increase in the amount of uranium enriched to up to 60% purity is a serious escalation and worsens diplomatic efforts to resolve disputes over its nuclear program, a German foreign ministry source says.

“This is a serious escalatory step by Iran, which we strongly condemn. It is obvious that such measures significantly worsen the framework for diplomatic efforts,” the source says.

IAEA: Iran sending ‘message’ by ramping up enriched uranium production due to global pressure

Iran’s decision to accelerate production of enriched uranium is a “clear message” in response to recent censure by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), its chief Rafael Grossi tells AFP.

“This is a message. This is a clear message that they are responding to what they feel is pressure,” the UN nuclear watchdog’s head says at the Manama Dialogue conference in Bahrain.

Katz, Halevi hold another assessment on developments in Syria

Defense Minister Israel Katz and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi held another assessment today on the developments in Syria.

The Defense Ministry says that Katz “instructed the IDF to maintain a high level of readiness and continue to monitor the developments.”

Earlier today, the IDF said it was bolstering forces on the border with Syria in the Golan Heights.

“The IDF is prepared for any scenario, and is determined to protect the citizens of Israel and protect Israel’s security interests at all times,” the ministry says.

Iran FM says Syria rebel offensive poses ‘threat’ to whole Middle East

Iran’s top diplomat Abbas Araghchi says that the lightning rebel offensive in Syria against its ally President Bashar al-Assad posed a threat to the whole Middle East.

“If Syria becomes a safe place for terrorists with the return of ISIS and other terrorist groups, it will create a great threat to the region,” Araghchi tells reporters in Baghdad.

Three killed in clashes between Druze militias and Syrian security forces in Sweida

At least three people have been killed in clashes between Druze militias and security forces in the southern Syrian city of Sweida, two witnesses and a local activist say.

They said anti-government fighters also took control of the main police station and the biggest civilian prison hours after hundreds of people protested in a main square demanding the downfall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

“People are seeing what is happening in the rest of Syria as liberation of Syria and a chance to bring down the regime,” activist Ryan Marouf, editor of Suwayda 24, a website that covers the province, tells Reuters.

Iran multiplying pace of uranium enrichment to near bomb grade – IAEA report

Iran is multiplying the pace at which it is enriching uranium to close to bomb grade, mainly at its Fordow site dug into a mountain, the UN nuclear watchdog says in a confidential report to member states on Friday seen by Reuters.

The International Atomic Energy Agency verified on Thursday that Iran had started feeding uranium hexafluoride gas enriched to up to 20% instead of the previous 5% into two interconnected cascades of IR-6 centrifuges at Fordow enriching to up to 60%, close to the roughly 90% of weapons grade, the report says.

That means the pace at which Iran would enrich to 60% would increase dramatically, the report shows, naming a monthly production rate of over 34 kg at Fordow alone.

Iran plans to “significantly increase” production of highly enriched uranium, the report says.

An updated design of Iran’s Fordo plant showed that the effect of the change “would be to significantly increase the rate of production of uranium enriched up to 60%,” it adds.

A quarterly IAEA report last month showed Iran’s total production rate at that level at two sites including Fordow was roughly 6 kg a month.

Kurd-led fighters say moved into parts of east Syria evacuated by army

Kurdish-led fighters, who already controlled most of northeastern Syria, say they had moved into eastern areas formerly held by the government as Syrian troops withdrew.

“In order to protect our people, our Deir Ezzor Military Council fighters were deployed in Deir Ezzor city and west of the Euphrates River,” the Arab-majority council affiliated with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) says in a statement.

Trump stands behind pick to head Pentagon despite accusations

Donald Trump continues to back Pete Hegseth to head the Pentagon despite multiple reports that the former military officer and Fox News presenter has a history of sexual aggression and excessive drinking.

“Pete is doing very well,” the US president-elect says on his Truth Social platform, in his first public comment on the matter since Hegseth began a round of visits seeking Senate support.

In his post, Trump calls Hegseth “a WINNER,” adding that “there is nothing that can be done to change that!!!”

Amid reports that the Hegseth nomination is in peril, Trump seemed intent on shoring up Republican support for the 44-year-old military veteran as his pick to head a department with three million employees and a defense budget surpassing $800 billion.

Top presidential nominations require confirmation by a majority of the Senate. And according to NBC News, perhaps six Republican senators are lining up against Hegseth — enough to scupper his nomination in a chamber where Republicans hold a slim 53-47 majority.

IDF denies striking Kamal Adwan Hospital in north Gaza; says it targeted nearby

People check the damage outside the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, following a reported Israeli strike that hit the medical complex on December 6, 2024. (AFP)

The Israeli military denies reports it had struck or entered the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, saying it was operating “adjacent” to the facility.

“Contrary to the reports made over the past day, the (military) did not strike the Kamal Adwan hospital or operate within it,” the IDF says in a statement. It says it would “continue to operate against terror infrastructure and terrorists” in northern Gaza, including “adjacent to” the hospital.

Australia police search for two suspects in arson attack on Melbourne synagogue

The aftermath of an arson attack at Adass Israel Synagogue in the suburb of Ripponlea, Melbourne, December 6, 2024. (SkyNews Australia/YouTube/; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Australian police say they’re looking for two people suspected of deliberately starting a fire at a Melbourne synagogue that injured one and caused widespread damage.

The fire at the Adass Israel synagogue began early on Friday and police say the suspects were wearing masks.

Victoria state police say a worshiper at the synagogue for morning prayers had seen two people who appeared to be spreading accelerant inside the building before setting it on fire.

“We believe it was deliberate. We believe it has been targeted. What we don’t know is why and we’ll get to the why,” Detective Inspector Chris Murray tells reporters.

“There was some banging on a door with some liquid thrown inside and was lit alight, the few people inside the synagogue ran outside the back door, one of them got burnt,” Adass Israel Synagogue board member Benjamin Klein told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

“The whole place took alight pretty quickly.”

Australia has seen a rise in antisemitic incidents since Hamas’s October 7 onslaught and the ensuing war Israel launched against the terror group in Gaza.

Israel says it transferred thousands of bags of flour to north Gaza’s Beit Hanoun

A truck delivering flour to Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza on December 6, 2024. (COGAT)

The Israeli military body responsible for facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip says it helped transport thousands of bags of flour to the town of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza earlier today.

Large parts of northern Gaza have been cut off from aid as the IDF operates in those areas against Hamas insurgencies. Most of the civilians there have evacuated but thousands remain under dire conditions.

US-backed Syrian Kurds seize control of Syria’s Deir Ezzor, sources say

The US-backed Syrian Kurds have seized control of the eastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor, two security sources tell Reuters.

“Syrian forces and their Iran-backed allies completely withdrew from areas they control in Deir Ezzor province and Kurdish forces are advancing towards their areas,” says Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Deir Ezzor province is split between Kurdish forces to the east of the Euphrates and Iran-backed Syrian government forces and allies to the west.

Beside Deir Ezzor, the Suadi news oulet Alhadath reports that Syrian rebels have also taken control of Albukamal on the Syria-Iraq border, thereby effectively cutting off the land supply line from Iran to Lebanon through Iraq and Syria.

IDF says it killed Hamas commander who planned Oct. 7 aerial infiltration

The commander of Hamas’s aerial forces in Gaza City was killed in a recent airstrike, the IDF and Shin Bet announce.

According to the military, Nidal al-Najjar was among the Hamas terrorists who planned the aerial infiltration into Israel during the October 7 onslaught.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists flew over the border in paragliders and carried out a massacre in southern Israel.

Al-Najjar was killed in an airstrike on Tuesday, the military says.

The IDF says he was also responsible for Hamas’s air defenses, and during the war carried out explosive-laden drone attacks against troops operating in Gaza.

Jordan closes border with Syria as insurgency expands to country’s south, approaches Israeli border

Jordan has closed its only passenger and commercial border crossing into Syria, the country’s interior ministry says.

A Syrian army source tells Reuters that armed groups had been firing at Syria’s Nassib border crossing into Jordan.

“Armed groups who infiltrated the crossing attacked Syrian army posts stationed there,” the source adds.

He says dozens of trailers and passengers were now stranded near the area.

Jordan’s interior minister said Jordanians and Jordanian trucks would be allowed to return via the crossing, known as the Jaber crossing on the Jordanian side, while no one would be allowed to cross into Syria.

The Saudi Alhadath news channel reports that gunmen have taken control of a number of villages and military checkpoints around the southern city of Deraa, near the Nasib crossing, including the town of Nawa, located only about 15 km, or nine miles, from the Israeli Golan.

Separately, Syrian rebel commander Hassan Abdul Ghany urges top military officers to defect, in a video statement aired today.

Iran’s enrichment to near bomb grade set to rise ‘dramatically’ – IAEA chief

Iran's domestically built centrifuges are displayed in an exhibition of the country's nuclear achievements, in Tehran, Iran, February 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

The UN nuclear watchdog will announce that the rate at which Iran can enrich uranium to up to 60% purity, close to the roughly 90% of weapons-grade, is “increasing dramatically,” the watchdog’s chief Rafael Grossi tells Reuters in an interview.

“Today, the agency is announcing that the production capacity is increasing dramatically of the 60% inventory,” International Atomic Energy Agency chief Grossi says, adding that it was set to rise to “seven, eight times more, maybe, or even more” than the previous rate of 5-7 kg a month.

Orthodox rabbi in Melbourne said to allow Jews to carry phones on Shabbat after synagogue arson attack

The aftermath of an arson attack at Adass Israel Synagogue in the suburb of Ripponlea, Melbourne, December 6, 2024. (SkyNews Australia/YouTube/; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

A leading Orthodox rabbi in Melbourne has reportedly ruled that Jews in the Australian city can carry their phones, on silent, to be used in an emergency over Shabbat, after masked assailants this morning set fire to a synagogue.

According to a message circulating on social media and in local WhatsApp groups, the rare Jewish warning is only temporary, “during current uncertain times.”

Melbourne, Australia – leading Orthodox Rabbi allows Jews to carry their phones this Shabbat as a security precaution

This is extraordinary Jewish law ruling

It follows this morning’s horrific firebombing of Adass Israel Synagogue@theheraldsun @australian @SkyNews @ECAJewry pic.twitter.com/URvfzkEsjD

— Menachem Vorchheimer (@MenachemV) December 6, 2024

Hebrew media publishes names of 5 Israeli men killed in Morocco car crash

Clockwise from top left: Moshe Gallant, Yosef Tefilinski, Natan Shapira, Israel Meir Shasha and Shimon Tefilinski, who were killed in a car crash in Morocco on December 6, 2024. (Courtesy)

Hebrew media reports the names of five Israeli men killed in a car crash in Morocco earlier today.

The fatalities are named as Natan Shapira, 37, Shimon Tefilinski, 33, his brother Yosef Tefilinski, 20, Moshe Gallant, 18, and Israel Meir Shasha, 25.

According to the reports, Shapira and the elder Tefilinski brother each leave behind eight children.

Moroccan news site Hespress reports that the crash occurred on the road between Zagora and Tinghir, when the vehicle veered off course and flipped, killing all five passengers instantly.

IDF bolstering forces on Israel’s border with Syria in light of civil war developments

The IDF says it is bolstering forces on Israel’s border with Syria, amid the developments in the civil war.

The move comes following fresh assessments held yesterday by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi and the head of the Northern Command, Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin.

The IDF says it is deploying additional ground and air forces in the Golan Heights in light of the developments in Syria.

It says troops are deployed to the border in the Golan Heights and are “raising their readiness according to the various scenarios.”

In a video released by the IDF, troops are seen fortifying a barrier along the border with Syria.

“The IDF is following the events and is prepared for any scenario in attack and defense,” the military says, adding that it “will not allow a threat near Israel’s border, and will work to thwart any threat to the citizens of the State of Israel.”

IDF troops with the  210th  “Bashan” Regional Division are seen on the Israel-Syria border in the Golan Heights, in a video issued on December 6, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

Security cabinet said to schedule two follow-up meetings to assess developments in Syria

An official quoted by Israeli journalist Barak Ravid says the security cabinet will hold two follow-up meetings on the unfolding conflict in Syria, on Saturday evening and Sunday evening.

The military said last night that Defense Minister Israel Katz and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi had held an assessment on developments in Syria, as jihadist rebels rapidly advanced through parts of the country.

Israel is reportedly preparing for the possibility that the Syrian army may collapse in the face of rapidly advancing rebel forces.

Germany rejects Amnesty International’s accusation Israel committing ‘genocide’ against Palestinians in Gaza

BERLIN – The German government rejects Amnesty International’s accusation that Israel is committing “genocide” against Palestinians in its military campaign in Gaza.

Asked for a response to Amnesty’s report, German foreign ministry spokesman Sebastian Fischer tells reporters: “The question of genocide presupposes a clear intention to eradicate an ethnic group. I still do not recognize any such clear intention and therefore I cannot share the conclusions of the report.”

Netanyahu blames ‘anti-Israeli attitude’ of Australian government for Melbourne synagogue arson

The aftermath of an arson attack at Adass Israel Synagogue in the suburb of Ripponlea, Melbourne, December 6, 2024. (SkyNews Australia/YouTube/; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blames the “anti-Israel attitude of the Labor government in Australia” for the arson of a Melbourne synagogue earlier this morning.

In a post expressing “shock” at the “classic, despicable, antisemitic incident,” the prime minister points to Australia’s vote in favor of a UN General Assembly resolution calling on Israel to withdraw from the West Bank and Gaza earlier this week, along with its refusal to grant a visa to a former Israeli minister last month.

“I expect the authorities in [Australia] to exert all their weight to prevent such antisemitic attacks in the future,” the prime minister says.

After Melbourne synagogue arson, Sky News host slams Australian PM for ‘lack of leadership on antisemitism’

Removal of holy books following an arson attack at Adass Israel Synagogue in the suburb of Ripponlea, Melbourne, December 6, 2024. (SkyNews Australia/YouTube/; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Sky News Australia host Sharri Markson slams Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for his “glaring lack of leadership on antisemitism,” after masked assailants set fire to a Melbourne synagogue early this morning.

“Australia is meant to be the epitome of a successful multicultural society but we have watched that erode before our very eyes as racism against Jews has been tolerated,” Markson says in an editorial.

“The Jewish community has warned repeatedly that antisemitic incidents are exploding. We have begged political leaders and police to take this more seriously.”

Markson gets emotional as she calls Albanese out for saying “Antisemitism is something that has been around for a long period of time.”

“That is abdicating his leadership on this issue,” she says. “[Antisemitism] has been around for thousands of years, but not in Australia it hasn’t. Not in my lifetime.”

Palestinians say several Israeli strikes hit north Gaza hospital over past day; no comment from IDF

People check the damage outside the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, following a reported Israeli strike that hit the medical complex on December 6, 2024. (AFP)

The director of north Gaza’s Kamal Adwan Hospital and the Hamas-run territory’s civil defense agency says Israel conducted several strikes today that hit the facility.

“There was a series of airstrikes on the northern and western sides of the hospital, accompanied by intense and direct fire,” Hossam Abu Safieh says, adding that four staff were killed and no surgeons are left at the site.

The IDF has not yet responded to AFP requests for comment on the strikes.

Israel has said it seeks to minimize civilian fatalities and stresses that Hamas uses Gaza’s civilians as human shields, fighting from civilian areas including homes, hospitals, schools, and mosques.

Mahmud Bassal, a spokesman for the Hamas-run civil defense agency in Gaza, tells AFP that the IDF entered Kamal Adwan Hospital this morning, evacuated patients, and arrested several Palestinians.

The city of Beit Lahiya has been the site of an intense IDF operation aiming to stop Hamas from regrouping in northern Gaza for the past two months.

Senior Iranian official says Tehran likely to send missiles, drones to Syria to help Assad fight rebels

DUBAI – Iran aims to send missiles and drones to Syria and increase the number of its military advisers there to support Syrian President Bashar Assad in his battle against jihadist-led rebels, a senior Iranian official tells Reuters.

“It is likely that Tehran will need to send military equipment, missiles and drones to Syria… Tehran has taken all necessary steps to increase the number of its military advisers in Syria and deploy forces,” the official says on condition of anonymity.

“Now, Tehran is providing intelligence and satellite support to Syria.”

Five Israeli men killed in car crash in Morocco — reports

Five Israelis have reportedly been killed in a car accident in the Moroccan town of Zagora.

Hebrew media reports that five young Israeli men were traveling in the car when the driver apparently lost control of the vehicle.

The Kan broadcaster reports that the single-car accident took place in a wooded area and that there were no signs of foul play.

Israeli search and rescue organization ZAKA is in touch with local Jewish authorities to arrange for the bodies to be brought back to Israel for burial, according to Hebrew media.

The Foreign Ministry releases a statement saying that Israeli authorities are involved in the incident.

IDF says troops in southern Lebanon found, destroyed several rocket launchers aimed at Israel

A rocket launcher found by IDF troops in southern Lebanon, in a handout photo issued on December 6, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

Troops of the 146th Division during operations in the western sector of southern Lebanon located several rocket launchers aimed at Israel, the military says.

During scans, the IDF says the troops found and destroyed launchers, mortars, dozens of rockets, ammunition crates, and assault rifles.

“The IDF operates in accordance with the understandings between Israel and Lebanon, while maintaining the terms of the ceasefire,” the military says.

Troops are still deployed to southern Lebanon, and the military says it will “act in the face of any threat to the State of Israel and its citizens.”

Hezbollah sent some ‘supervising forces’ overnight to Syrian city of Homs — Lebanese security sources

Lebanese security sources tell Reuters that Hezbollah has sent a small number of “supervising forces” from Lebanon to Syria overnight to help prevent anti-government fighters from seizing the strategic city of Homs.

A Syrian military officer and two regional officials close to Tehran also tell Reuters that elite forces from the Iran-backed terror group had crossed over from Lebanon overnight and taken up positions in Homs.

The comments come after Israeli fighter jets struck several border crossings and land routes between Syria and Lebanon overnight, which the IDF says were used to transfer weapons to Hezbollah.

Emanuel Fabian contributed to this report. 

Knesset speaker tells court Netanyahu’s graft trial testimony must be coordinated with him

Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana attends a plenum session on the appointment of Israel Katz as defense minister and Gideon Sa'ar as foreign minister at the Knesset in Jerusalem, November 7, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana complains to the Jerusalem District Court that the schedule for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s criminal defense trial was not coordinated with him.

Citing the Knesset Members (Immunity, Rights and Duties) Law that says the speaker must consent to timing for MKs to give testimony, Ohana writes that the legislation intends to ensure that “one authority (the judiciary) does not interfere with the work of another authority (the legislature).”

His letter comes after the court yesterday rejected Netanyahu’s request to testify in his criminal defense trial two days a week instead of three, a request he made due to his busy schedule, security meetings, and the need for communication with officials abroad amid the ongoing multifront war.

Ohana says that Knesset plenum sessions are scheduled for Mondays at 4 p.m. and Wednesdays at 11 a.m.

“True, the presence of all 120 MKs is not always required, but that is what the coordination and agreement mechanism is intended for,” he writes.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Jerusalem District Court, June 29, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Specifically, he notes that Paraguay’s President Santiago Peña is set to address the Knesset this Wednesday, followed by a special Knesset ceremony with Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, Ohana and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid.

“The prime minister’s summons to testify at this particular time harms the status of the event and diminishes the historic debate,” he says, asking that the court coordinate with him so that Netanyahu can attend the event.

Peña will be in Israel to fulfill a campaign promise and reopen the country’s embassy in Jerusalem.

The court asks for the State Attorney’s Office and the Knesset legal adviser for their responses to Ohana’s petition by Sunday.

The premier is set to begin giving testimony in an underground hall in the Tel Aviv District Court on Tuesday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

IDF update: ‘Suspicious aerial target’ identified over Galilee Panhandle a short while ago was ‘false identification’

The IDF, in an update, says that the “suspicious aerial target” identified over the Galilee Panhandle a short while ago was “false identification,” meaning not a threat.

Interceptor missiles were launched amid the incident.

IDF says ‘suspicious aerial target’ intercepted by air defenses over Galilee Panhandle

The IDF says a “suspicious aerial target” was intercepted by air defenses over the Galilee Panhandle a short while ago, setting off sirens in several towns.

Further details are under investigation, it adds.

Thousands flee central Syrian city of Homs as rebel forces push lightning offensive further south

Residents take to the streets of Hama, to welcome anti government fighters after they took control of Syria's west-central city on December 5, 2024. (Bakr Alkasem/AFP)

Thousands of people are fleeing the central Syrian city of Homs, a war monitoring group and residents say, as rebel forces seek to push their lightning offensive against government forces further south.

They have already captured the key cities of Aleppo in the north and Hama in the center, dealing successive blows to Syrian President Bashar Assad, nearly 14 years after protests against him erupted across Syria.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, says thousands of people began fleeing last night towards western coastal regions, a stronghold of the government.

A resident of the coastal area says thousands of people have begun arriving there from Homs, fearing the rebels’ rapid advance.

Russian bombing overnight also destroyed the Rustan bridge along the key M5 highway, the main route to Homs, to prevent rebels using it, a Syrian army officer tells Reuters.

Rebels led by the Islamist faction Hayat Tahrir al-Sham have pledged to press on southward to Homs, a crossroads city that links the capital Damascus to the north and Assad’s heartland along the coast.

A rebel operations room urges Homs residents in an online post to rise up, saying: “Your time has come.”

Sirens sound in Galilee Panhandle towns; IDF investigating cause

Rocket sirens sounded a short while ago in the Galilee Panhandle towns of Kafr Yuval and Maayan Baruch.

The IDF says it is looking into the cause.

Residents of the area report seeing an interceptor missile launch as the sirens sounded.

The alerts come amid a shaky truce between Israel and Hezbollah that came into effect last week.

???? Rocket Alert [10:49:47] – 2 Alerts:

• Confrontation Line — Ma'ayan Baruch, Kfar Yuval

Population: 1,400 pic.twitter.com/3ZImHwHBTq

— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) December 6, 2024

IDF commandos killed Palestinian gunman who opened fire at them during Nablus raid — military source

Overnight, troops of the IDF’s Duvedevan commando unit killed a Palestinian gunman who opened fire at them during an operation in the Balata camp near the northern West Bank city of Nablus, a military source says.

Meanwhile, four weapons were seized by troops in the village of Qarawat Bani Hassan, also near Nablus, according to the source.

Six wanted Palestinians were also detained across the West Bank overnight.

Father, son from northern Druze village arrested for spying on behalf of Iran’s IRGC Quds Force

Security forces arrest two residents of the northern Druze village of Mas'ade on suspicion spying for Iran's IRGC Quds Force, in a photo cleared for publication on December 6, 2024. (Israel Police)

Two residents of the northern Druze village of Mas’ade have been arrested for carrying out surveillance missions on behalf of Iran’s IRGC Quds Force, the Shin Bet and police say.

The suspects, Tahrir Safadi and Bassem Safadi, a father and son, were detained in November over suspicions they were “recruited by Iranian elements and committed crimes of espionage and contact with a foreign agent during the war,” the Shin Bet says.

The investigation found that Tahrir, 21, a software engineering student, was involved in surveillance missions for Iran and the so-called Axis of Resistance in recent years, at the request of his father, Bassem.

The Shin Bet says he would collect information on IDF activity in his area, the Golan Heights, which was then handed over to Hussam as-Salam Tawfiq Zidan, a journalist with the Iranian state-owned Al-Alam News Network.

Zidan lived in Damascus and simultaneously worked for the Palestine division in the Quds Force, according to the Shin Bet. The unit is responsible for aiding Palestinian terror groups in carrying out attacks.

Tahrir and Bassem were both instructed by their Quds Force handler Zidan to carry out various missions, including taking photos of troops, tank movements, equipment, and other details, the security agency says.

Today, an indictment was filed against Tahrir Safadi, accusing him of “grave crimes of espionage.”

His father, Bassem, will be held in administrative detention due to “the absence of a criminal proceeding alternative, and given his high risk to state security and public peace,” the Shin Bet says.

The Shin Bet in recent months has announced a series of alleged Iranian plots, in which Tehran had tried to trick Israelis online into carrying out missions, or recruited Israelis to gather intelligence on high-profile figures, military targets, and other sites.

“The investigation of the case revealed once again the fact that elements of the Axis, led by Iran, work to advance terror activity in Israel and exploit the residents of the State of Israel for espionage activities,” the agency says.

The Shin Bet and police add that they view the case, and any other contact by Israelis with Iranian elements, “gravely.”

Melbourne police ramp up presence around synagogues, Jewish schools after synagogue set ablaze

Damage is seen to the Adass Israel Synagogue in the Melbourne suburb of Ripponlea after an arson attack on December 6, 2024. (YouTube screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Melbourne police are ramping up their presence around synagogues and Jewish schools after a Melbourne synagogue was set ablaze by mask-wearing arsonists in a predawn attack, 7NEWS Australia reports.

Tensions are running high in the Jewish community. Synagogue members heckle Victorian state Premier Jacinta Allan as she visits the Adass Israel Synagogue after the attack, accusing her of playing politics and losing control of the situation.

Allan offered 100,000 Australian dollars ($64,300) to help repair the synagogue, located in Melbourne’s Jewish heartland of Ripponlea. An online fundraiser has also been organized within the community.

Victoria Premier Jacinta Allan pledging $100,000 to rebuild the Synagogue which was firebombed this morning at Ripponlea. @SkyNewsAust #springst pic.twitter.com/F1zPQZjuRE

— Simon Love (@SimoLove) December 6, 2024

Police say there is not enough evidence yet to suggest terrorism, but haven’t ruled it out as a possibility. They are working with counter-terrorism experts to track down the suspects, who have not yet been identified, 7NEWS Australia notes.

Hamas commander who led Kibbutz Nahal Oz massacre on Oct. 7 killed in recent Gaza strike — IDF, Shin Bet

One of the Hamas commanders who led the attack on Kibbutz Nahal Oz during the October 7 terror onslaught last year was killed in a recent airstrike, the military and Shin Bet announce in a joint statement.

This past week, Israeli fighter jets struck and killed several top commanders in Hamas’s Shati Battalion in Gaza City, the military says.

Among those killed was Majdi Aqilan, who the IDF says was the deputy battalion commander and a company commander.

On October 7, 2023, Aqilan was one of the commanders who led the massacre and taking of hostages at Nahal Oz, according to the military.

The destruction caused by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Nahal Oz, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, October 20, 2023 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Additionally, the strike killed Mamdouh Mehna, who the IDF says is a senior tunnel specialist in Hamas’s Gaza City Brigade. On October 7, 2023, Mehna also raided Nahal Oz.

Another terrorist killed in the strike is named by the IDF as Ahmed Suwaidan, a company commander in the Shati Battalion, who was involved in kidnapping Israeli civilians and taking them to Gaza on October 7.

The Hamas operatives were also involved in attacks on Israel and troops in Gaza amid the war, the army adds.

IDF confirms overnight strikes on Syria-Lebanon crossings, which it says are used to transfer arms to Hezbollah

Israeli fighter jets struck several border crossings and land routes between Syria and Lebanon overnight, which the military says were used to transfer weapons to Hezbollah.

The strikes were carried out against the Arida Crossing between northern Lebanon and Syria, as well as several routes in the al-Qusayr area.

Syria’s state news agency says the Arida Crossing is out of service following the strikes.

The military says the strikes were part of a campaign against Hezbollah’s Unit 4400, which is tasked with delivering weapons from Iran and its proxies to Lebanon.

The strikes come just over a week into a fragile truce between Israel and Hezbollah. The IDF has said that amid the truce it will continue to act to prevent all weapons deliveries to the Iran-backed terror group, including by striking shipments anywhere in Lebanon or Syria.

מטוסי קרב של חיל האוויר תקפו במהלך הלילה צירי העברת אמצעי לחימה ותשתיות טרור בסמוך למעברי הגבול של המשטר הסורי בין סוריה ללבנון, אשר שימשו להעברת אמצעי לחימה לארגון הטרור חיזבאללה>> pic.twitter.com/iTjY0Zie3R

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) December 6, 2024

Melbourne police remove man wielding hammer from Jewish bakery near synagogue that was set on fire

Victorian police have removed a man wielding a hammer and verbally abusing community members at a Jewish bakery in Melbourne, hours after masked assailants set fire to a nearby synagogue.

A Jewish community security organization says its personnel “assisted Glick’s staff and remained on site until police arrived.”

Posts on social media say the bakery was put on “lockdown.”

The incident took place at the Balaclava branch of Glick’s bakery, an iconic Jewish institution founded by Holocaust survivor Mendel Glick in 1960.

Meet Mendel Glick, the Holocaust survivor who founded Australia’s largest and finest kosher bakery chain, @glickscakesandbagels. Born in 1924 in a Polish town near the Czech border, Glick was in 6 concentration camps, including Auschwitz and Buchenwald. He was the sole survivor… pic.twitter.com/V6BaM4gjeY

— Humans of Judaism (@HumansOfJudaism) February 9, 2024

Iran claims successful launch in space program believed to improve Tehran’s ballistic missiles

MANAMA, Bahrain — Iran claims to have conducted a successful space launch, the latest for its program the West alleges improves Tehran’s ballistic missile program.

Iran says it conducted the launch using its Simorgh program, a satellite-carrying rocket that had seen a series of failed launches. The launch took place at Iran’s Imam Khomeini Spaceport in rural Semnan province.

There is no immediate independent confirmation the launch was successful.

Intercontinental ballistic missiles can be used to deliver nuclear weapons. Iran’s nuclear program has now enriched uranium closer than ever to weapons-grade levels after the collapse of its nuclear deal with world powers.

We have successfully launched the Saman-1 space tug, along with two additional payloads, into orbit aboard the Simorgh launch vehicle from the Imam Khomeini Space Center.

???????? ???? pic.twitter.com/KyK3oHHj1O

— Iran Military (@IRIran_Military) December 6, 2024

‘Jew-hatred, left unchecked, endangers all Australians’: Jewish leader decries Melbourne synagogue arson

The president of the Zionist Federation of Australia says the “firebombing” of a Melbourne synagogue overnight is “another shocking escalation of the hate that we have seen brazenly displayed on the streets of Melbourne every week for over a year.”

Mask-wearing arsonists set a synagogue ablaze in a predawn attack this morning in the southeast Melbourne suburb of Ripponlea, reportedly destroying the building.

No serious injuries have been reported in the incident.

“Jew-hatred, left unchecked, endangers all Australians. Enough is enough, this is a stain on our nation,” ZFA president Jeremy Leibler says in a statement. “It’s time for all levels of government to turn their words into actions to stamp out this Jew-hatred.”

The attack came as the Australian Jewish community reported a fourfold increase in antisemitic incidents since the devastating Hamas-led attack on Israel last October, which sparked the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. Physical attacks on Jews spiked from 11 the previous year to 65.

THIS IS ANITSEMITIC TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA

Confirmed torching of the large orthodox Jewish Adass synagogue in Melbourne.

This is the flow on from the most hostile Federal government in Australia's history to the Jewish community and the most anti-Israel. Since 9 October 2023,… pic.twitter.com/qF9ICXz5k9

— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) December 5, 2024

Trump names former PayPal COO David Sacks as White House ‘AI and crypto czar’

David Sacks, CEO of Yammer, speaks during the first day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, July 15, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP)

WASHINGTON – US President-elect Donald Trump names former PayPal chief operating officer David Sacks as the White House “AI and Crypto Czar.”

The wealthy tech entrepreneur will take on a newly created role advising the Trump administration on cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence.

“David will guide policy for the Administration in Artificial Intelligence and Cryptocurrency, two areas critical to the future of American competitiveness,” Trump says in a social media post.

“He will safeguard Free Speech online and steer us away from Big Tech bias and censorship.”

Sacks will also lead a presidential council of advisors on science and technology, according to Trump.

The entrepreneur, whose wealth has been estimated in the billions of dollars, is considered part of a so-called “PayPal Mafia” cadre of influential tech entrepreneurs that includes Elon Musk and Peter Thiel.

Sacks backed J.D. Vance as Trump’s running mate in the recent US presidential election, hosting Vance on his podcast in the process.

Melbourne synagogue set ablaze by masked arsonists was ‘built by Holocaust survivors’ — Victorian premier

Victorian state Premier Jacinta Allan notes that a Melbourne synagogue that was set ablaze by masked arsonists this morning was “built by Holocaust survivors.”

Many of the synagogue’s original worshippers were post-World War II immigrants from Hungary.

Allan, the premier of the Australian state of Victoria, offers 100,000 Australian dollars ($64,300) to help repair the synagogue and said there would be an increased police presence in the area.

“Every available resource will be deployed to find these criminals who tried to tear a community apart,” Allan says.

“We stand against antisemitism now and forever,” she adds.

A synagogue in Melbourne, Australia was firebombed with Jews inside.

Remind me what year we’re living in?pic.twitter.com/1yjyAGJu49

— Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) December 6, 2024

Pro-Hezbollah TV reports Israeli strikes on pair of Lebanon-Syria border crossings

The pro-Hezbollah television station Al-Manar reports Israeli airstrikes on a pair of border crossings along the Lebanon-Syria border, where the IDF has recently operated to prevent weapons transfers to Hezbollah.

Synagogue member says several congregants were inside praying when the blaze began

An Adass Israel Synagogue board member in the southeast Melbourne suburb of Ripponlea says a few congregants were sitting and praying inside when the fire started.

“They heard loud banging,” Benjamin Klein tells AFP.

Liquid had been poured inside the synagogue and it was set alight, he says.

“If this had happened an hour later, there would have been hundreds of people inside,” Klein says.

The congregants “ran out the back of the synagogue. One man who ran out — his hand got burnt,” he says.

“The fire was extensive,” he tells AFP. “Inside is completely gutted.”

Holy books and furniture had been destroyed, he says, vowing that the community will “rebuild.”

Klein says the synagogue had increased security over the past 12 months following safety concerns but did not provide further details.

Melbourne synagogue sustains serious damage in suspected antisemitic arson attack

Australian police say they have launched an investigation into a “suspicious” blaze that broke out before dawn Friday in a Melbourne synagogue, which the country’s prime minister denounces as an antisemitic arson attack.

“No one was injured during the incident and the synagogue sustained significant damage,” Victoria state police say in a statement. Television images show firefighters hosing down the embers through the door of the Addas Israel Synagogue in the suburb of Ripponlea.

“I have zero tolerance for antisemitism. It has absolutely no place in Australia,” says Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. “The violence and intimidation and destruction at a place of worship is an outrage. The attack has risked lives and is clearly aimed at creating fear in the community.”

“The people involved must be caught and face the full force of the law.”

Albanese also says “this deliberate, unlawful attack goes against everything we are as Australians and everything we have worked so hard to build as a nation.”

????BREAKING: Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne, Australia, targeted in an arson attack. Two injuries and significant damage reported. pic.twitter.com/CsHZGVBRdn

— StandWithUs (@StandWithUs) December 5, 2024

Sky News Australia cites witnesses who say they heard banging on the synagogue’s door and when they opened it two masked men were dousing the front of the building with gasoline before setting it aflame.

The broadcaster also cites reports saying two people were lightly hurt.

“The firebombing of a synagogue in Melbourne appears to be another shocking escalation of the hate that we have seen brazenly displayed on the streets of Melbourne every week for over a year,” says the Zionist Federation of Australia’s head Jeremy Leibler. “No one should be surprised; this violent attack is a direct consequence of words turning into actions. Jew-hatred, left unchecked, endangers all Australians.”

France’s Macron vows to stay on, promises PM in ‘coming days’

French President Emmanuel Macron addresses the nation during a televised broadcast from the presidential Elysee Palace, December 5, 2024 (Ludovic MARIN / AFP)

President Emmanuel Macron vows to name a new prime minister in the coming days to prevent France from sliding deeper into political turmoil, rejecting growing pressure from the opposition to resign.

Macron adopts a defiant tone in an address to the nation, seeking to limit an escalating political crisis after Prime Minister Michel Barnier’s government was ousted in a historic no-confidence vote.

Contemporary France’s shortest-serving premier, Barnier resigned after Wednesday’s parliamentary defeat in a standoff over the budget forced his government to step down, the first such toppling of a French administration in over 60 years.

Macron now faces the task for the third time this year of selecting a new prime minister but did not come up with a name in his address.

“I will appoint a prime minister in the coming days,” he says, adding this person will be charged with forming a “government of general interest” with a priority of passing a budget.

He also lashes out at the French far right and hard left for uniting in an “anti-republican front” to bring down the government.