Dec. 26: African Union ‘rejects any recognition of Somaliland’ after Israeli declaration

African Union ‘rejects any recognition of Somaliland’ after Israeli declaration

NAIROBI, Kenya — The African Union says it “rejects any recognition of Somaliland” after Israel declared it viewed the breakaway Somali territory as a sovereign state.

In a statement issued by its head, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, the AU calls for African borders to be respected and says: “Any attempt to undermine the unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Somalia… risks setting a dangerous precedent with far-reaching implications for peace and stability across the continent.”

The chief of the pan-African body, which counts Somalia as a member, says he “firmly rejects any initiative or action aimed at recognizing Somaliland as an independent entity” and states that Somaliland “remains an integral part of the Federal Republic of Somalia.”

Somaliland residents celebrate recognition of sovereignty; Israeli flag projected in capital

Thousands of residents take to the streets of Somaliland to celebrate Israel’s decision to recognize the breakaway region as an independent state.

In the capital, Hargeisa, an image of the Israeli flag was projected onto a building as crowds gathered in celebration.

Footage circulating online shows locals waving Somaliland flags while singing in the streets. Similar celebrations unfolded across other cities, as the recognition was met with widespread enthusiasm from Somaliland’s population.

WATCH: Downtown Hargeisa is illuminated with the Israeli flag as residents of Somaliland’s capital celebrate Jerusalem’s decision to recognize their sovereignty. pic.twitter.com/FgkD13iNK1

— Ariel Oseran أريئل أوسيران (@ariel_oseran) December 26, 2025

Somalia denounces Israeli recognition of Somaliland

A man holds a flag of Somaliland in front of the Hargeisa War Memorial monument in Hargeisa on November 7, 2024. (Luis Tato/AFP)

Somalia’s foreign ministry denounces Israel’s “deliberate attack” on its sovereignty by recognizing its northern region of Somaliland as an independent state, warning that this would “undermine regional peace.”

“Illegitimate actions of this nature seriously undermine regional peace and stability, exacerbate political and security tensions,” the ministry says in a statement.

Saudi Arabia rejects Israel’s recognition of Somaliland, affirms support for Somalia

Saudi Arabia expresses strong opposition to Israel’s recognition of Somaliland as an independent state, following Israel’s historic announcement earlier today.

In a statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry reaffirms the Kingdom’s “full support for the sovereignty of the sisterly Federal Republic of Somalia and the unity and territorial integrity of its land.”

Saudi Arabia rejects the mutual recognition between Israeli authorities and Somaliland, describing it as a “unilateral separatist” move that violates international law.

Report: Soldier’s weapon stolen on bus in Upper Galilee; suspect arrested

An IDF soldier’s firearm was stolen this morning in the Upper Galilee after he fell asleep on a bus, Channel 12 reports.

Upon waking, the soldier discovered his weapon was missing and alerted the bus driver, who reported seeing a man carrying the gun exiting the bus.

The suspect, a resident of Majd al-Krum, was later spotted walking through the northern Arab town with the firearm. Following a police search, the suspect was arrested, and the weapon was recovered.

The incident occurred alongside a deadly attack in the area of Beit She’an along northern Israel’s Route 71, in which Aviv Maor, 19, and Samson Mordechai, 68, were killed in a ramming and stabbing attack.

Mar-a-Lago meet to test whether Trump feels same way about PM as president’s exasperated staff

US President Donald Trump (L) holds hands and speaks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, in Jerusalem on October 13, 2025. (SAUL LOEB / POOL / AFP)

US President Donald Trump is planning several major announcements on Gaza in early January, but the direction of the peace process hinges on his meeting Monday at Mar-a-Lago with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Axios reports.

According to the report, Trump’s team believes Netanyahu is delaying the Gaza ceasefire framework and could ultimately resume the war against Hamas, even as the Israeli leader seeks to persuade Trump himself to adopt a more hawkish approach.

“Bibi is trying to convince a one-man audience,” a senior Israeli official tells Axios, referring to Trump, clarifying that members of Trump’s administration, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, no longer favor Netanyahu. “He has lost them.”

Axios says the White House wants to move quickly to unveil a Palestinian technocratic government for Gaza, backed by an International Stabilization Force, and is even considering convening a Trump-led Board of Peace at the World Economic Forum in Davos later in January.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner have been coordinating closely with Egypt, Qatar and Turkey to advance phase two of the deal, which would involve Hamas handing over weapons and Israeli forces pulling back.

Netanyahu, however, has expressed skepticism — particularly regarding the demilitarization of Gaza — and has clashed with Witkoff and Kushner over the plan, Axios reports.

According to the report, White House officials also voice growing frustration over Israeli actions they see as undermining the ceasefire, including IDF operations that Washington believes violate its terms.

“Sometimes we feel the IDF commanders on the ground are just trigger-happy,” one White House official says.

Axios reports, Witkoff and Kushner recently met with the prime minister of Qatar, the head of Egyptian intelligence and the Turkish foreign minister — guarantors of the Gaza deal — to map out issues to be raised with Netanyahu ahead of the Florida meeting, including calls for Israel to adhere to the ceasefire and avoid civilian casualties.

Trump is also expected to raise concerns over the West Bank, including fears of a Palestinian Authority collapse, settler violence and withheld Palestinian tax revenues.

Report: Somaliland president made secret Israel visit two months before state recognition

Somaliland's President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi (left) speaks to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a photo released on December 26, 2025, by the Israel Government Press Office; Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) signs Israel's declaration to recognize the Republic of Somaliland as an independent state, December 26, 2025. (Amos Ben Gershom/GPO)

Somaliland’s President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi made a secret visit to Israel about two months ago, in October, meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Mossad chief David Barnea and Defense Minister Israel Katz, Channel 12 reports.

The report comes as Israel becomes the first country to recognize Somaliland, a breakaway of Somalia, as an independent state.

According to the report, the relations initially emerged against the backdrop of discussions on the potential resettlement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Somaliland, an issue that surfaced publicly in August. However, Channel 12 says the relationship later broadened well beyond that topic, developing into what Israeli officials view as strategic cooperation.

From Israel’s perspective, the channel reports, a central motivation for deepening ties is Somaliland’s geographic proximity to Yemen, and by extension to the Iran-backed Houthis, making the relationship particularly significant amid Israel’s ongoing regional security concerns.

Houthi leader warns future rounds of conflict with Israel are ‘certain’

Houthi supporters chant slogans and hold pictures of Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the Houthi movement, during an anti-US and anti-Israel rally in Sanaa, Yemen, March 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)

Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi warns of future rounds of conflict with Israel, accusing “enemies” of seeking “to create rifts in Muslim nations,” Arab-language media reports.

“The Zionists are killing, abducting Palestinians on a daily basis,” al-Houthi says in a speech broadcast from an undisclosed location. The leader of the terror group has remained in hiding for years.

“Future rounds of confrontation with the Zionist enemy are certain, and there is no doubt about this,” al-Houthi adds. “Therefore, the Islamic nation must be in a state of complete wakefulness.”

UNIFIL reports Israeli gunfire near its patrols in south Lebanon, one peacekeeper lightly injured

A French UN peacekeeper stands beside an armored vehicle at his base, waiting to move with his unit for a patrol along the Lebanese-Israeli border in Deir Kifa, southern Lebanon, August 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL says that Israeli gunfire near the Blue Line, separating Lebanon from Israel and the Golan Heights, lightly injured one of its personnel during two separate incidents in southern Lebanon earlier today.

According to UNIFIL, heavy machine-gun fire from IDF troops positioned south of the UN-mapped Blue Line struck close to a UNIFIL patrol inspecting a roadblock in the village of Bastarra, following a nearby grenade explosion.

While no UNIFIL equipment was damaged, the blast and gunfire left one peacekeeper suffering from a mild ear concussion.

In a separate incident in the southern village of Kfar Shouba, UNIFIL says another patrol conducting a routine operational task reported machine-gun fire from the Israeli side of the Blue Line in immediate proximity to its position.

UNIFIL says it had informed the IDF in advance of the patrols’ activities in both areas, “following usual practice for patrols in sensitive areas near the Blue Line.”

“Attacks on or near peacekeepers are serious violations of Security Council resolution 1701,” referring to the 2006 measure that called for an end to hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah following the Second Lebanon War.

The force urges the IDF “to cease aggressive behaviour and attacks on or near peacekeepers working for peace and stability along the Blue Line.”

The IDF does not immediately comment on the incidents.

Likud downplays Netanyahu’s ties to Feldstein after ex-aide implicates PM in intel leak

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Knesset, December 8, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party issues an unusual statement addressing recent reports about the premier and his office, including an interview with Eli Feldstein aired on the Kan public broadcaster earlier this week.

“Contrary to the false claims, Feldstein never served as the Prime Minister’s spokesperson and was not employed in the Prime Minister’s Office,” the statement reads. “The Prime Minister had almost no contact with him, did not share discussions with him, and certainly did not include him in meetings or classified discussions.”

Instead, the party asserts, “Feldstein was employed by the director general of the Prime Minister’s Office, and after his employment there ended, he worked as an external advisor for the National Cyber Directorate.”

Regarding the Prime Minister’s stance on Qatar, the statement says, “Since the beginning of the war, the Prime Minister has issued sharp statements and briefings against Qatar despite criticism from security officials and left-wing journalists who claimed he was ‘jeopardizing the hostages.'”

“Senior officials in the security systems occasionally tried to praise Qatar in the Prime Minister’s speeches, but the Prime Minister firmly rejected this,” the Likud adds.

In contrast, the party points out that several left-wing figures maintain ties with Qatar, noting, “Former senior officers, left-wing leaders, hostage negotiation team members and businessmen from the left have extensive ties with Qatar.”

However, the Prime Minister’s Office has praised Qatar in the past, including a July 2025 announcement thanking Doha for its role in mediating a ceasefire deal with Hamas. Earlier, in March 2024, Netanyahu’s office also said Qatar was pressuring Hamas to agree to a deal for the release of hostages.

Sara Netanyahu, the premier’s wife, also reached out to the Emir of Qatar’s mother, writing during Ramadan of last year, “Your involvement could be decisive in bringing them home, offering a beacon of hope for their families and taking a significant step toward peace and reconciliation.”

‘A loving daughter and devoted sister’: Parents of terror victim Aviv Maor reflect on their loss

Aviv Maor, 19, from Kibbutz Ein Harod. (X, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Einat and Tal Maor — the parents of Aviv Maor, the 19-year-old woman killed in a terror attack on Route 71 in northern Israel — describe Aviv as a nature lover with a deep affection for both people and animals, according to Hebrew media.

“Avivi was a child of nature, loving of both humans and animals, and had a passion for horseback riding for many years,” they say. “She cared for all the injured animals in the valley. A talented photographer, a caring and loving daughter to her parents and a devoted sister.”

“The Kibbutz Movement is mourning and deeply saddened by the murder of Aviv Maor, member of Kibbutz Ein Harod, in today’s brutal attack,” the movement reportedly says.

Maor is survived by her parents and two brothers, Nitzan and Itai. Funeral details are expected to be shared at a later time.

IDF said to arrest Palestinian after he reported settler trespassing and harassment

Palestinians from the West Bank town of Duma say one of the residents was arrested yesterday after he called the cops on a group of settlers who had been trespassing with their flock.

Eid Zawahra, a 52-year-old Bedouin Palestinian, was detained by IDF forces after a group of settlers, one of them armed, encroached on lands in the eastern part of the village, his nephew, Abu Sliman, tells The Times of Israel.

The group had brought their flock to graze between the makeshift houses. In footage from the incident, one of the settlers is heard arguing with the man, threatening him: “Do you want a bullet in the head?” One of the settlers allegedly fired into the air.

When IDF troops eventually arrived at the scene, they arrested Eid on suspicion of stone-throwing. He was handcuffed, blindfolded and escorted into the military jeep. However, his nephew denies that the detained man threw stones at the settlers.

Before his arrest, Zawahra told an Israeli left-wing activist present in the town that police still hadn’t arrived, after he had called them over two hours ago. According to his nephew, he was handed over to police forces at the Binyamin station, then transferred to Ofer Prison overnight.

לאחר שחייג למשטרה לדווח על פשיטת מתנחלים על ביתו – מזה כיממה פלסטיני עצור במקום לא ידוע. תגובת המשטרה וצה״ל טרם נמסרה.

עיד (52) ממגורשי קהילת עין רשאש שליד מאחז ׳מלאכי השלום׳ עבר עם משפחתו בתחילת המלחמה לאדמות שמזרחית לדומא עם מפונים נוספים. מאחז שהוקם בסמוך לביתם החדש ממרר מדי… pic.twitter.com/K6Lkio526N

— Matan Golan (@MatanGolanPhoto) December 26, 2025

Police have not yet responded to a request for comment.

Zawahra and the rest of his family work as shepherds. They previously lived in a small Bedouin hamlet, Ein Rashash, just south of Duma, which no longer exists after its residents left en masse, under duress from Malachei HaShalom, a nearby illegal outpost.

IDF commences operation in Qabatiya following ramming-stabbing attack in northern Israel

IDF troops operate in the home of the assailant in a ramming and stabbing attack in northern Israel, December 26, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

The IDF says that Israeli forces entered Qabatiya after a Palestinian from the northern West Bank town killed two people and wounded two others in northern Israel today.

Israeli forces raid the assailant’s home and arrest his father.

The IDF says that its elite Duvdevan unit and a special paratroopers’ unit are taking part in the operation alongside the police’s Metzada special operations unit.

#صور| قوات الاحتلال تواصل فرض حصار على بلدة قباطية جنوب جنين، وتستمر باقتحامها وإغلاق مداخلها وعدد من الشوارع الداخلية فيها. pic.twitter.com/fuVclGaoqI

— شبكة فلسطين للحوار (@paldf) December 26, 2025

According to Palestinian media, military bulldozers were setting up roadblocks inside Qabatiya as troops and other military vehicles patrolled the streets and snipers deployed on some rooftops. The military is also reportedly blocking the entrances to the town of some 25,000.

According to the army, IDF troops and Shin Bet officers “are mapping out the area in preparation for the demolition of the terrorist’s home.”

“At this time, forces continue to search for additional suspects in the village and are working to arrest wanted individuals and locate weapons,” the IDF adds.

In a statement posted on X, IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin says that troops are “now operating in the village of Qabatiya to thwart terrorism and raiding the home of the terrorist who carried out the attack earlier today.”

Yemen separatists say Saudi strikes will not deter them

Yemen separatists say they will not be deterred from pursuing their objectives after strikes they blame on Saudi Arabia hit their positions earlier today, in the latest escalation since they seized large swathes of territory last month.

Emirati-backed separatists seeking to revive the formerly independent state of South Yemen have in recent weeks made territorial gains, while regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia, the government’s main backer, has warned them to pull back.

There are no immediate reports of casualties in the airstrikes, which came amid a dramatic escalation in a conflict that, for more than a decade, has plunged Yemen into a humanitarian catastrophe.

DEVELOPING: 🔴

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Yemen separatists accuse Saudi Arabia of launching airstrikes against their forces; kingdom does not acknowledge attack. pic.twitter.com/ZuVRtd5mMa

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) December 26, 2025

“The Council affirms that such actions will not serve any path of understanding and will not deter the people of the South from continuing to move forward toward restoring their full rights,” the separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC) says, referring to the Saudi strikes.

The strikes came as a Yemeni government official in Riyadh told AFP that Saudi Arabia may be considering military action against the separatists if talks fail.

Around 15,000 Saudi-backed fighters amass near Yemen border: Yemen official

Supporters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a coalition of separatist groups seeking to restore the state of South Yemen, hold South Yemen flags and a poster of their leader, Aidarous al-Zubaidi during a rally, in Aden, Yemen, December 25, 2025. (AP)

A Yemeni military official from the internationally recognized government tells AFP that around 15,000 Saudi-backed Yemeni fighters have amassed in strategic areas bordering Saudi Arabia since separatists seized swathes of territory last month — but they were not ordered to advance.

All the areas where they are deployed are located at the edges of territory seized in recent weeks by the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council separatist group.

“We have not received military instructions to move towards the two provinces,” the official says, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

Somalia, Egypt, Turkey and Djibouti condemn Israel’s recognition of Somaliland, Egypt says

The foreign ministers of Somalia, Egypt, Turkey and Djibouti condemn Israel’s recognition of Somaliland, Somalia’s breakaway region, Egypt says.

“The ministers affirmed their total rejection and condemnation of Israel’s recognition of the Somaliland region, stressing their full support for the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia,” Egypt’s foreign ministry says in a statement following a phone call between Egypt’s foreign minister and his Somali, Turkish and Djiboutian counterparts.

Fuel shortage forces Gaza hospital to suspend most services

An injured Palestinian child in Al-Awda Hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, as casualties are brought into the medical facility following Israeli strikes, November 22, 2025. (Eyad Baba/AFP)

A major Gaza hospital says it has suspended several services because of critical fuel shortages in the enclave.

Ravaged by more than two years of war, the Al-Awda Hospital in central Gaza’s Nuseirat district cares for around 60 inpatients and receives nearly 1,000 people seeking medical treatment each day.

“Most services have been temporarily stopped due to a shortage of the fuel needed for the generators,” says Ahmed Mehanna, a senior official involved in managing the hospital.

“Only essential departments remain operational: the emergency unit, maternity ward and pediatrics.”

To keep these services running, the hospital has been forced to rent a small generator, he adds.

Under normal conditions, Al-Awda Hospital consumes between 1,000 and 1,200 liters of diesel per day. At present, however, it has only 800 liters available.

“We stress that this shutdown is temporary and linked to the availability of fuel,” Mehanna says, warning that a prolonged fuel shortage “would pose a direct threat to the hospital’s ability to deliver basic services.”

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

Somaliland president hails Israel’s recognition as independent state

Somaliland’s president welcomes Israel’s announcement that it was recognizing its statehood and said the decision marked the beginning of a “strategic partnership.”

“This is a historic moment as we warmly welcome… the Prime Minister of the State of Israel’s recognition of the Republic of Somaliland and affirm Somaliland’s readiness to join the Abraham Accords,” normalizing relations with Israel, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi posts on X.

This is a historic moment as we warmly welcome @netanyahu the Prime Minister of the State of Israel’s recognition of the Republic of Somaliland and affirm Somaliland’s readiness to join the Abraham Accords. This step marks the beginning of a strategic partnership that advances… pic.twitter.com/z48DNZKr5q

— Cabdiraxmaan Cirro (@Abdirahmanirro) December 26, 2025

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said earlier that the country formally recognized Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia in 1991, as an “independent and sovereign state.”

Report: Israeli official warns Somaliland recognition undermines stance on Palestinian statehood

Somaliland's President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi speaks on the phone with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while he signs Israel's declaration to recognize the Republic of Somaliland as an independent state, December 26, 2025. (GPO)

Israel’s decision to recognize Somaliland as an independent state draws criticism from a senior Israeli official, according to Channel 12, who warns that the move undermines Israel’s long-standing argument against recognizing a Palestinian state.

The news outlet reports that the official, speaking anonymously, points out that while Israel is the first country to grant recognition to Somaliland, the rest of the world considers the breakaway region an integral part of Somalia. This, the official argues, calls into question Israel’s stance on Palestinian statehood, a position consistently opposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials.

The report comes amid Israel’s historic decision to formally recognize Somaliland as an independent state. Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar signed the declaration for Israel, while Somaliland’s President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi signed for his country.

Somaliland, which declared independence in 1991, has not been recognized by any other country. However, several nations, including the UK, Ethiopia, and the UAE, have maintained liaison offices there.

The move followed reports in August that Somaliland was among several countries in talks with Israel regarding the potential resettlement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.

Islamist militant group claims responsibility for Syria mosque bombing

Armed security officers cordon off the area following an explosion inside Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dahab neighborhood of Homs, December 26, 2025. (Omar Haj Kadour/AFP)

An Islamist militant group claims responsibility for the bombing of a mosque in an Alawite-majority area of Syria’s Homs earlier today, which killed at least eight people.

In a statement on Telegram, the Saraya Ansar al-Sunna says its fighters “detonated a number of explosive devices” in the Imam Ali Bin Abi Talib Mosque, which is located in an Alawite area.

The group was formed after the ouster of ruler Bashar al-Assad, who is a member of the Alawite community. The militant group had claimed responsibility for a Damascus church bombing in June.

Israel becomes first nation to recognize Republic of Somaliland as independent state

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks on the phone with Somaliland's President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi while signing Israel's declaration to recognize the Republic of Somaliland as an independent state, December 26, 2025. (Amos Ben Gershom/GPO)

Israel becomes the first country to recognize the Republic of Somaliland as an independent state, more than three decades after it broke away from Somalia.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar sign the declaration for Israel, while Somaliland’s President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi signs for his country.

Somaliland, a Sunni Muslim country, enjoyed five days of independence in 1960, during which time it was recognized by Israel and 34 other countries before uniting with Somalia. Somaliland formally broke away in 1991, and while no other countries recognized it, several powerful countries — the UK, Ethiopia, Turkey, UAE, Denmark, Kenya and Taiwan — maintained liaison offices.

Speaking to Abdullahi by phone, Netanyahu says the friendship between the countries is “seminal and historic.”

“We intend to work together with you on economic fields, on agriculture, in the fields of social development,” Netanyahu says.

Netanyahu invites Abdullahi for an official visit to Israel, and says he will communicate to US President Donald Trump Somaliland’s desire to join the Abraham Accords.

Abdullahi says he will come “as soon as possible.”

Netanyahu “thanks Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, Mossad Director David Barnea and the Mossad for their contribution in advancing recognition between the two countries, and wishes the people of Somaliland success, prosperity and freedom,” says his office.

Sa’ar writes on X that embassies will be opened in both countries and ambassadors appointed.

The move comes after reports in August that Somaliland was among several countries in talks with Israel regarding the potential resettlement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.

Ben Gvir urges Israelis to arm themselves, pushes death penalty after fatal ramming-stabbing attack

Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir calls on Israelis to arm themselves and pushed for the death penalty for terrorists while speaking to the press at the scene of the deadly attack in northern Israel earlier today.

“I call on the citizens of Israel: arm yourselves,” Ben Gvir urges.

Ben Gvir says the ramming and stabbing attack, in which two people were killed and at least two others wounded, proved that “weapons save lives,” pointing to the fact that the attacker was shot and neutralized by a civilian passerby. He further encourages Israelis to take advantage of eased gun licensing criteria to join civilian emergency response squads.

“The second thing that I believe will save even more lives is a law imposing the death penalty for terrorists,” he adds, arguing that attackers do not seek to die but to survive and serve prison sentences.

“We must pass a death penalty law for terrorists, and I am doing everything to make that happen.”

אנחנו מתפללים על המשפחות, מתפללים על הפצועים. אני באתי לכאן לחבק את תושבי עפולה, תושבי בית שאן, תושבי העמק.

אני חושב שהוכח שוב שנשק מציל חיים, המדיניות הזאת שגם הקפיצה 20 כיתות כוננות שגרמה לכך שאנשים מסתובבים עם נשק, שאיש כוחות ביטחון מנטרל את אותו מחבל – היא מדיניות חשובה.… pic.twitter.com/fS0XsrMISn

— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) December 26, 2025

Ben Gvir heads the Otzma Yehudit, which is attempting to pass a bill allowing those convicted in deadly terror attacks to be put to death. Currently, capital punishment is reserved for extremely rare cases and has only been used a single time in the country’s history, the 1962 hanging of Nazi officer Adolf Eichmann, one of the architects of the Holocaust.

He concludes by praising the security forces that responded to the ramming and stabbing attack, also emphasizing that he is praying for the victims’ families and for the recovery of the wounded.

Shimshon Mordechai, 68, named as second victim of stabbing-ramming terror attack

Shimshon Mordechai, 68, from Beit She'an. (X, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

The second victim killed in the terror attack in northern Israel is named by Hebrew-language media as Shimshon Mordechai, 68, from Beit She’an, a city near the West Bank’s northern border.

The first victim, identified as 19-year-old Aviv Maor from Kibbutz Ein Harod, was stabbed to death near a bus stop on Route 71, apparently while attempting to hitchhike.

Large crowd of supporters join Gvili family at Hostages Square

Talik Gvili, mother of deceased hostage Ran Gvili, speaks at Hostages Square on December 26, 2025. (Uriel Even Sapir/Hostages Forum)

Hundreds gather in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, calling on the government not to proceed to phase two of the ceasefire until the body of Ran Gvili is released from Hamas captivity.

Gvili, a member of the Yamam police unit, was awaiting scheduled surgery on his shoulder when he fought Hamas terrorists in their October 7, 2023, attack and was killed. His body was then taken hostage to Gaza, where it is reportedly held by Islamic Jihad.

At the Kabbalat Shabbat gathering hosted by the Kibbutz Movement, Gvili’s mother, Talik Gvili, thanks those in attendance, noting that the gathering grows from week to week.

With only one remaining hostage body, the Hostages Forum closed and stopped organizing the weekly Saturday night rallies that had been held at Hostages Square throughout the war.

Instead, the Gvilis, with the support of the Kibbutz Movement, are present at pre-Shabbat gatherings at the Square.

Released hostage Eitan Horn and other former hostages’ family members join the Gvilis at the gathering.

Talik Gvili thanks all those present, noting their mutual responsibility that strengthens her and her family.

“And if Rani can see us now — from above, or from below, or from wherever he is — he would say: Wow. This wasn’t for nothing. It wasn’t in vain. Because this is exactly what unity looks like,” says Gvili.

IDF chief Zamir hold situational assessment after deadly terror attack

The IDF says Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir is currently holding a situational assessment following a deadly ramming and stabbing attack in northern Israel earlier today.

The attack began in the Beit She’an area, near the northern West Bank, and continued in Ein Harod and Afula. Two people were killed, and at least two others were injured. The assailant, whom the military has identified as an illegal Palestinian entrant from the West Bank village of Qabatiya, was shot by a civilian passerby while fleeing and was taken to a hospital in moderate condition.

According to the IDF, Zamir is meeting with both army commanders and officials from other security bodies.

Aviv Maor, 19, from Kibbutz Ein Harod, named as victim of stabbing-ramming terror attack

Aviv Maor, 19, from Kibbutz Ein Harod. (X, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

The young woman killed in the terror attack in northern Israel is named by Hebrew-language media as Aviv Maor, 19, from Kibbutz Ein Harod.

She was stabbed to death near a bus stop on Route 71, apparently while trying to hitchhike.

The identity of the second victim of the attack, a 68-year-old man, has not yet been made public.

IDF: Terrorist in deadly attack infiltrated Israel illegally; troops prepare operation on assailant’s home village

Senior officers of the IDF's 417th Regional Brigade conduct a situational assessment at the scene of a deadly terror attack in Beit She'an, on December 26, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

The IDF says a preliminary investigation indicates that the terrorist who carried out the deadly ramming and stabbing attack in northern Israel earlier today is an illegal Palestinian entrant who infiltrated Israel several days ago.

According to the military, the attack began in the area of Beit She’an, a city near the West Bank’s northern border, and continued in Ein Harod and Afula. IDF forces were dispatched to the scene in Beit She’an, while commanders carried out situational assessments across multiple areas.

Two people were killed in the attack, and two others were injured. The assailant was shot by a civilian passerby while fleeing and was taken to a hospital in moderate condition.

The IDF says additional troops are reinforcing the seam line, a swath of West Bank land on the Israeli side of the security barrier, and are preparing to enter the attacker’s home village of Qabatiya for operational activity, following Defense Minister Israel Katz’s instruction to act “forcefully and immediately” against the village.

Separately, it says the chief of the IDF’s 417th Regional Brigade and senior commanders within the brigade conducted a situational assessment at the scene of the attack in Beit She’an.

Reports name terror attack perpetrator as Ahmad Abu al-Rub, from Qabatiya

The perpetrator of today’s fatal ramming-stabbing attack is named Ahmad Abu al-Rub, a 37-year-old from the northern West Bank town of Qabatiya, Hebrew outlets report.

He had been working illegally in Israel for an unknown period, the Kan public broadcaster reports.

Abu al-Rub killed two people and injured two others while traveling westward in his employer’s car in northern Israel, towards the direction of Afula.

Police chief says investigation into ‘very grave’ terror attack ongoing

Speaking to reporters at the scene of a fatal ramming-stabbing attack in northern Israel, police chief Danny Levy calls the attack a “very grave incident” and thanks the “security officer” who neutralized the assailant.

“The incident is over, the terrorist was neutralized. We are continuing to operate regarding the terrorist and his family, to investigate the facts together with the Shin Bet and other security officials,” he says.

The attacker killed two people, ramming a 68-year-old man and stabbing a young woman, at two separate sites in northern Israel. He injured at least two others, according to Hebrew outlets.

He was reportedly shot by armed passersby who happened to be in the area, near Afula, at the time of the attack.

Katz orders IDF action against terrorist’s home village after deadly attack in northern Israel

Following a deadly ramming and stabbing attack in northern Israel, Defense Minister Israel Katz says he has instructed the IDF to act “forcefully and immediately” against the northern West Bank village of Qabatiya, from which the attacker originated.

A statement from Katz’s office says security forces are to work to “locate and thwart every terrorist and strike terror infrastructure in the village,” warning that anyone who assists or provides backing to terrorism “will pay the full price.”

Katz also extends condolences to the families of those killed in the attack, calling the loss “unimaginable,” and praises security forces for acting “swiftly, decisively and professionally” to neutralize the attacker.

A police spokesperson has said that the attacker was shot and injured by a civilian passerby.

Police confirm ‘multi-phase terror attack’ after two people killed, two others injured in northern Israel

Police confirm after a preliminary investigation that the string of incidents in which two people were killed was a “multi-phase terror attack” that began in Beit She’an, a city near the West Bank’s northern border, and ended in Maonot Junction near Afula, where the suspected assailant was shot.

Attacker behind string of possible terror attacks shot by civilian passerby

The suspected terrorist in a string of fatal ramming and stabbing attacks was shot and injured by a civilian passerby while fleeing towards Afula, police announce.

Over the past hour, two pedestrians were killed and two others injured by the assailant, whom police say is a Palestinian from the West Bank.

He crashed into one of the victims, a 68-year-old pedestrian, killing him, then sped westward on Route 71 and pulled over near a bus station, where he fatally stabbed a young woman.

The assailant continued towards Afula but was shot by a passerby, and is now being taken to a hospital in moderate condition.

Two killed in stabbing-ramming attack in northern Israel; police probing possible terror motive

Paramedics arrive to the scene of a stabbing near Ein Harod in northern Israel on December 26, 2025. (Magen David Adom)

Two people have been killed in a possible terror attack in northern Israel, emergency services say. Police say they have “neutralized” the suspected assailant.

The suspected perpetrator carried out a string of three separate attacks, killing a 68-year-old pedestrian in a hit-and-run and fatally stabbing a young woman near a bus stop on Route 71.

Hebrew outlets report that the slain woman is 19 years old. She had apparently been trying to hitchhike in the area when the attacker exited his car and fatally stabbed her.

Before that, he had collided with another driver, lightly injuring the young man at the wheel.

After stabbing the woman, the suspect fled towards Afula but was stopped and neutralized by law enforcement.

Police update that Chief Commissioner Danny Levy is currently en route to the scene of the string of attacks in the north.

Authorities are checking whether the suspected assailant is a Palestinian resident of the northern West Bank town of Qabatiya, near Jenin, Kan reports.

Explosion at mosque in Alawite neighborhood of Syria’s Homs kills 3, injures 5

Three people have been killed and five injured in an explosion at a mosque in an Alawite neighborhood in the Syrian province of Homs, a local official said.

Syrian state media says security forces have imposed a cordon around the area and are investigating.

Local officials tell Reuters it may have been caused by a suicide bomber or explosives placed there.

Nigerian FM says country gave intel to US for strikes on ISIS targets

Nigeria says it provided the United States with intelligence on jihadists before the Christmas Day strikes by US forces against what President Donald Trump said were Islamic State militants in the northwest of the country.

The US strikes come after Abuja and Washington were locked in a diplomatic dispute over what Trump characterized as mass killings of Christians amid the West African country’s myriad armed conflicts.

“It’s Nigeria that provided the intelligence,” Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar tells broadcaster ChannelsTV, saying he was on the phone with US State Secretary Marco Rubio.

“We spoke twice. We spoke for 19 minutes before the strike, and then we spoke again for another five minutes before it went on,” Tuggar says.

He adds that they spoke “extensively” and that President Bola Tinubu gave “the go-ahead” to launch the strikes.

The strikes would be an “ongoing process” that would also involve other countries, he says, without disclosing details.

He stresses that Nigeria’s approach to the fight against terrorism was not influenced by the religion of the victims, “whether they are Muslims or Christians, and irrespective of what type of terrorism.”

Trump said on social media he had “previously warned these Terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughtering of Christians, there would be hell to pay, and tonight, there was.”

The Department of Defense’s US Africa Command said “multiple ISIS terrorists” were killed in an attack in Sokoto state, using an acronym for the Islamic State group.

Former Hadash MK Issam Makhoul dies at 72

Former Israeli lawmaker and Hadash chairman Issam Makhoul, who served as a Member of Knesset from 1999 until 2006, has died at the age of 72.

He is survived by his wife, Suad, and their two children.

Makhoul was a member of the far-left Hadash party, and, following a merger, of the Hadash-Ta’al party. He belonged to the communist Maki faction of the majority-Arab party.

While in the Knesset, Makhoul was a vocal opponent of Israel’s alleged nuclear weapons program — the existence of which Israel has never publicly acknowledged — and proposed a bill to shut down the Dimona nuclear reactor.

His time in the Knesset wasn’t without controversy. In 2002, he was barred from three plenum sessions after comparing then-prime minister Ariel Sharon to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.

He was the target of a failed assassination attempt in 2003, when anti-Arab extremists planted a homemade bomb under his wife’s car, which exploded when the car’s ignition was turned on. Neither Issam nor Suad were harmed in the blast.

In 2005, Alexander Rabinovitch and Eliran Golan were convicted of trying to murder Arab public officials, including Makhoul.

Even after leaving the Knesset, Makhoul remained active in Hadash.

At an event hosted by the party in October, he denounced US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the Gaza war as the “continuation of the war of annihilation,” given that it does not include a concrete path to Palestinian statehood.

עיסאם מח׳ול, יו"ר חד"ש: תוכנית טרמפ "לשלום" היא המשך של מלחמת ההשמדה ושערי הגיהנום בכלים דיפלטמטיים, כל עוד לא מובילה לסיום הכיבוש והקמת מדינה פלסטינית שבמסגרתה עזה, הגדה ומזרח ירושלים הן חלקים במדינה פלסטינית אחת. pic.twitter.com/H8CMoOlfIk

— חד״ש Hadash (@Hadash_org) October 25, 2025

“This morning we received the difficult news of the death of a leader, a fighter, a gifted writer, a thinker and a doer, a member of Knesset, and a friend,” the Hadash party says in a statement mourning Makhoul’s passing. “May his memory be a revolution.”

IDF arrests suspect after ramming attack on military vehicle in the West Bank, injuring 4 soldiers

The IDF says a suspected ramming attack was carried out a short while ago near the Adorayim area in the southern West Bank.

According to the military, the suspect accelerated his vehicle and rammed a military vehicle carrying IDF troops. The suspect was detained at the scene and transferred to the Shin Bet for interrogation, while forces set up roadblocks in the area.

The IDF says four soldiers who were in the vehicle at the time suffered “non-urgent” injuries and were transferred to the hospital for treatment.

Security prisoner Mahmoud Atallah placed in solitary confinement after intel suggested he was planning riot

This photo sent out by an Israel Prison Service spokesperson shows terror convict Mahmoud Atallah laying on the ground after guards stormed his prison cell on December 26, 2025. (Courtesy)

Prisons chief Kobi Yaakobi ordered Mahmoud Atallah, a Palestinian security prisoner indicted on sexual assault charges, to solitary confinement earlier today.

The top warden gave the orders after receiving intelligence that Atallah was planning on sparking riots in Israel’s security prisons. Female guards broke into Atallah’s cell to take “immediate and severe” preventative action against him.

He is placed in solitary confinement shortly after it was reported that the five women Atallah is accused of sexually assaulting would be compensated millions of shekels by the state, as part of a settlement agreement.

Atallah, who was slated to go free in a January hostage-prisoner exchange, remained behind bars after Yaakobi and National Security Itamar Ben Gvir, who oversees the Prison Service, pressed against his release.

The Gilboa Prison ‘pimping’ affair first surfaced in 2018, after several female soldiers serving as prison guards accused the security inmate of sexually assaulting them. The women were alleged to have been “pimped” out to Atallah by then-prison intelligence officer Rani Basha.

Earlier this month, Yaakobi claimed that the security inmates who remain in Israeli prisons, having largely lost hope of being freed in a hostage-prisoner exchange, may attempt to take matters into their own hands through prison riots or even a mass jailbreak.

Speaking to the Knesset National Security Committee, he warned lawmakers that jails are “on the brink of something happening.”

IDF says it struck Hezbollah Radwan Force training site, weapons depots in Lebanon

The IDF says it carried out airstrikes a short while ago on Hezbollah targets in “several areas of Lebanon,” including a training compound used by the terror group’s elite Radwan Force.

According to the military, the site was used for training operatives, conducting live-fire drills and planning attacks against IDF forces and Israeli civilians.

The IDF says it also struck several Hezbollah weapons depots, additional terror infrastructure and military buildings used to “advance terror plots against IDF forces and the State of Israel.”

The Israeli Air Force has launched a wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah military infrastructure in Lebanon within the last hour, with most strikes targeting sites in the Baalbek-Hermel Governorate of Northeastern Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/wouGQ4CVkm

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) December 26, 2025

Lebanese media reports the strikes are concentrated in the northeastern region of Hermel. It is unclear if there were any casualties.

The military says the targets and Hezbollah’s ongoing training activity constitute a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon and pose a threat to Israel, adding that it will continue operating to remove any such threats.

Iran seizes foreign oil tanker it says was carrying smuggled fuel in the Gulf

Iran has seized a foreign oil tanker near the Iranian island of Qeshm in the Gulf, saying it was carrying 4 million liters of smuggled fuel, state media reports.

Authorities do not name the vessel or disclose its nationality, and they do not say when it was seized. They say 16 foreign crew members had been detained on criminal charges.

Iranian news websites publish video footage and photographs of what they say is the seized tanker.

Iran said last week it had seized another foreign tanker carrying 6 million litres of what it described as smuggled diesel in the Gulf of Oman without identifying the vessel or its nationality.

Iran, which has some of the world’s lowest fuel prices due to heavy subsidies and a sharp fall in the value of its national currency, has been seeking to curb widespread fuel smuggling by land to neighboring countries and by sea to Gulf states.

IDF reservist who rammed ATV into Palestinian in the West Bank placed under house arrest

A settler rams an ATV into a Palestinian man as he prays in the West Bank, December 25, 2025 (Video screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

A settler and IDF reservist who was caught on video ramming an ATV into a Palestinian in the West Bank yesterday has been placed under house arrest.

The suspect was detained last night and placed under house arrest for five days. That the police had detained him was not announced until he had already been released to house arrest.

Footage published by Palestinian media yesterday showed the reservist driving an ATV into a Palestinian kneeling for prayer on the side of the road near the village of Deir Jarir, north of Ramallah in the West Bank.

The silent video showed the Palestinian falling over and lying in a heap as the settler, who had a semi-automatic rifle slung over his back, got off the tractor and yelled at him, gesturing for him to leave the area. The settler could then be seen walking over to a Palestinian taxi and yelling at the driver before getting back on the ATV and driving away.

חייל מילואים על טרקטורון דרס פלסטיני בזמן שהתפלל לצד הכביש מוקדם יותר היום, ליד דיר ג'ריר באזור רמאללה. בצה"ל מתחקרים את האירוע pic.twitter.com/SjVDddBHmR

— Nurit Yohanan (@nurityohanan) December 25, 2025

The IDF said following the incident that the reservist’s weapon had been confiscated and his service suspended.

Mezuzahs stolen from Toronto apartment building in suspected hate crime

The Toronto Police Service is investigating a suspected hate crime after mezuzahs were removed from the doors of apartments in North York yesterday, The Canadian Jewish News reports.

A mezuzah is a rolled-up scroll of parchment that Jewish families hang on the frame of their front doors, usually in a decorative case.

According to the report, mezuzahs were removed from three doors, all on the same floor of a residential apartment complex. One of the mezuzahs, which belonged to a Holocaust survivor, was found discarded on the floor, it adds.

The incident comes after some 20 mezuzahs were stolen from residents of an apartment building in the same area of North York earlier in December.

Neighborhood Councilor James Pasternak says that the “disturbing incident” is “another example of the hate that has infected [Toronto], often as a result of incitement from the mobs on the streets and online hate.”

He calls for “universal condemnation” of the incident, and “consequences” for the perpetrators.

Former prison guards reach settlement agreement with state in Gilboa Prison ‘pimping’ affair

Five women who served as Israel Prison Service guards during their mandatory military service, and who alleged that they were sexually assaulted by a Palestinian security prisoner during their service, have reached a settlement agreement with the state, the Ynet news outlet reports.

The women will receive financial compensation worth millions of shekels, Ynet reports, without disclosing the exact sum.

The case dates back to 2018, when reports first surfaced of a security prisoner, Mahmoud Atallah, sexually assaulting several female soldiers serving as prison guards.

The women were alleged to have been “pimped” out to Atallah by then-prison intelligence officer Rani Basha.

Their case was initially closed without charges and failed to garner significant public attention until, in 2022, new allegations emerged during an investigation into a prison break at Gilboa. An appeal to reopen the case was accepted in March 2023.

Atallah was indicted on charges of sexual assault in September 2024 and his criminal trial is ongoing.

Two found dead in suspected double murder near Khawaled, in northern Israel

Two men have been found dead in a suspected double murder incident near the Bedouin village of Khawaled in northern Israel, Hebrew media reports.

The men, both in their 30s, were found unresponsive, with penetrating injuries, and were pronounced dead at the scene.

One killed, one injured in Haifa apartment fire

A man has been killed in a fire that broke out in a residential building in Haifa, Hebrew media reports.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

One other man was lightly hurt in the blaze and was transferred to Haifa’s Rambam Medical Center for treatment.

Herzog hails ex-hostage Romi Gonen’s ‘extraordinary courage’ after interview

Romi Gonen speaks to 'Uvda,' in a program aired December 25, 2025. (Video screenshot, Channel 12)

President Issac Herzog pays tribute to the “extraordinary courage” of Romi Gonen after the former Israeli hostage detailed the sexual assault she suffered at the hands of her captors in an interview with Channel 12.

“Romi Gonen’s testimony is heartbreaking,” the president writes on X above a clip of the interview. “In a trembling voice, yet with extraordinary courage, Romi revealed the hell she endured in Hamas captivity – sexual violence and… systematic attempts to crush the human spirit. Her story must be told everywhere, so that all will remember what we endured as a people, what the hostages endured, and what Romi endured.”

He adds, “Romi, you are a true hero. We salute your courage.”

Gonen was kidnapped from the Nova music festival during the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023. She was released during a ceasefire in January 2025.

In the interview, which aired on Thursday night, she described being sexually assaulted multiple times by her captors.

Bondi terror attack victims to be honored as Sydney-Hobart yacht race sets sail

Yachts compete at the start of the annual Sydney to Hobart yacht race at Sydney Harbour on December 26, 2025. (Saeed KHAN / AFP)

Skippers of 129 yachts set sail on a “bumpy” Sydney-Hobart ocean race, with many planning to scatter rose petals as they venture into rolling seas to honor the victims of the deadly terror shooting targeting a Jewish event at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on December 14.

On a cool, grey summer’s day at Sydney Harbour, crowds gather around the shore or watch from scores of boats as a starting cannon sets the fleet on its way for the race’s 80th edition.

Crews can expect waves of up to four meters (13 feet) and 25-knot winds on the first day of the 628-nautical-mile race from Sydney to the Tasmanian capital Hobart, a meteorologist warned in a final weather briefing.

“It’s going to be cold. It’s going to be wet. It’s going to be bumpy,” race committee chairman Lee Goddard says ahead of the race.

“People are going to get seasick, and there will be incidents, and there probably will be injuries.”

In last year’s edition, two sailors died in separate incidents as gale-force winds and big seas pummelled the fleet.

This year, scores of sailors will make a special tribute to those who died when terrorists attacked a Jewish festival on Bondi Beach, killing 15 people and wounding scores more.

As yachts pass the beach, they will spread rose petals on the ocean “out of respect for the tragic loss of life,” says Sam Haynes, commodore of the race organizer, the Cruising Yacht Club of Sydney.

Man reportedly shot dead in his car outside Nazareth, police investigating

A man was shot dead in his car in the town of Ilut outside Nazareth, Hebrew media outlets report.

The man is identified as Zaid Amara, 48. He was pronounced dead at the scene, where his car was pockmarked with dozens of bullet holes, the Ynet outlet reported.

The apparent murder on Thursday is the 251st of an Arab Israeli in 2025, the highest number in years.

*דוברות המשטרה*

משטרת ישראל פתחה בחקירת אירוע ירי לעבר רכב ביישוב עילוט, כתוצאה מהירי נקבע מותו של תושב כפר כנא בן 48.

השוטרים הוזנקו למקום האירוע, החלו בסריקות לאיתור חשודים בירי ופתחו בחקירת נסיבות המקרה.

הרקע לאירוע פלילי והנסיבות בבדיקה. pic.twitter.com/1kdX8bMRvJ

— מה חדש. What's new❓ (@Gloz111) December 25, 2025

Police are investigating his killing as a criminal act and searching for a suspect. The killing is suspected of being an act of revenge for another murder in which Amara’s son was allegedly involved, Ynet reported.

Meanwhile, another car was found torched in the nearby town of Kafr Kanna, where Amara is from. Police are examining whether that car was used in the shooting.

US launches strike against ISIS militants in northwest Nigeria

US President Donald Trump calls service members on Christmas Eve at the Mar-a-Lago resort on December 24, 2025, in Palm Beach, Florida. (TASOS KATOPODIS / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

The United States carried out an airstrike against Islamic State militants in northwest Nigeria at the request of Nigeria’s government, US President Donald Trump and the US military say, claiming the group had been targeting Christians in the region.

“Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!,” Trump writes in a post on Truth Social.

The US military’s Africa Command says on X that the strike was conducted at the request of Nigerian authorities and killed multiple ISIS militants.

The strike comes after Trump, starting in late October, began warning that Christianity faces an “existential threat” in Nigeria and threatened to militarily intervene in the West African country over what he says is its failure to stop violence targeting Christian communities.

Reuters reported on Monday that the US had been conducting intelligence-gathering flights over large parts of Nigeria since late November.

Nigeria’s government has said armed groups target both Muslims and Christians, and US claims that Christians face persecution do not represent a complex security situation and ignore efforts to safeguard religious freedom.

But it has agreed to work with the US to bolster its forces against militant groups.

The country’s population is split between Muslims living primarily in the north and Christians in the south.

Troops extract 2 Israelis who entered West Bank’s Area A near Hebron, Nablus

Illustration: Israeli Border Police in the West Bank city of Hebron, July 27, 2023. (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)

Troops extracted two Israelis who entered the West Bank’s Area A in separate incidents, according to the IDF.

In one instance, a Border Police officer got into a car with a Palestinian driver near the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba, adjacent to Hebron. Following a search, Israeli forces were able to locate her.

According to the Israel Hayom daily, the search lasted hours after the officer in question couldn’t be reached. The outlet reports that during the search, which made use of security camera footage, forces learned she had gone to visit her Palestinian romantic partner in Yatta, near Hebron.

In another incident, troops reportedly extracted an Israeli man who had gone to pray at Joseph’s Tomb, in the Palestinian city of Nablus in the northern West Bank.

Both locations are in Area A, the parts of the West Bank where, under the terms of the 1993 Oslo Accords, the Palestinian Authority has security and civil control.

Israeli law bars Israeli citizens from entering Area A, though Israelis have been evacuated from the area in a number of instances in recent days, including one woman who said she was kidnapped and was found by PA security forces.