Jan. 15: Iranian Guards vow to continue attacks ‘until avenging the last drops of martyrs’ blood’

US denounces ‘reckless’ Iranian missile strikes in Iraqi Kurdistan

This image taken from video provided by Rudaw TV shows authorities and others near the site where missiles hit in an area near the US consulate in Erbil, Iraq, January 15, 2024. (Rudaw TV via AP)

The US condemns tonight’s Iranian attacks in Iraqi Kurdistan.

“We oppose Iran’s reckless missile strikes, which undermine Iraq’s stability,” says US State Department spokesman Matt Miller in a statement.

“We support the Government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government’s efforts to meet the aspirations of the Iraqi people,” Miller adds.

Trump wins Iowa caucuses in crucial victory at the outset of GOP presidential campaign

Republican presidential candidateDonald Trump arrives to pick up pizza at a Casey's in Waukee, Iowa, January 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

DES MOINES, Iowa — Donald Trump wins the Iowa caucuses Monday, a crucial victory at the outset of the Republican primary that reinforces the former US president’s bond with his party’s voters even as he faces extraordinary legal challenges that could complicate his bid to return to the White House.

The magnitude of Trump’s success is still coming into focus, but the former president’s supporters endured a historic and life-threatening cold snap to participate in caucus meetings that unfolded in schools, churches and community centers across the state.

The results are just the first in what will be a monthslong effort for Trump to secure the GOP nomination a third consecutive time. But they send an unmistakable message to the Republican Party that the nomination is Trump’s to lose and crystalize the challenge facing his GOP opponents.

Former UN ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis are Trump’s most prominent primary rivals. They are aiming for a second-place finish in Iowa that would give them at least some momentum heading into future races. Both are already pivoting their focus, with Haley poised to compete vigorously in New Hampshire, where she hopes to be more successful with the state’s independent voters heading into the January 23 primary. DeSantis, meanwhile, is heading straight to South Carolina, a conservative stronghold where the February 24 contest could prove pivotal, before then going to New Hampshire.

Iowa is an uneven predictor of who will ultimately lead Republicans into the general election. George W. Bush’s 2000 victory was the last time a Republican candidate won in Iowa and went on to become the party’s standard-bearer.

Iowa caucuses begin, kicking off 2024 Republican presidential primary

Andy Swanson adjusts a flag at precinct 227 as voters wait to caucus at the Marriott Hotel in West Des Moines, Iowa, January 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

DES MOINES, Iowa — Voting begins in the Iowa caucuses, where former US president Donald Trump is aiming for a victory that sends a resounding message that neither life-threatening cold nor life-changing legal trouble can slow his march toward the Republican Party’s 2024 nomination.

The opening contest in the monthslong Republican primary process is unfolding inside more than 750 schools, churches and community centers where participants are gathering to debate their options before casting secret ballots.

The findings from AP VoteCast suggest that Trump is in a strong position as the caucuses began. He shows significant strength among urban, small- town and rural communities. Trump also performs well with evangelical Christians and those without a college degree. And a majority of caucusgoers say that they identify with Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement.

One relative weakness for Trump comes in the suburbs, where only about 4 in 10 support him.

AP VoteCast is a survey of more than 1,500 voters who said they planned to take part in Monday’s Republican caucuses in Iowa. The survey is conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Philadelphia police investigating swastika spray-painted next to Holocaust memorial

PHILADELPHIA — Police have opened a vandalism investigation into the spray-painting of a swastika on a wall adjacent to a Holocaust memorial in Philadelphia over the weekend.

Authorities say the symbol, measuring about two feet by two feet and scrawled with green spray-paint, was reported Sunday on the wall adjacent to the Horowitz-Wasserman Holocaust Memorial Plaza next to the Ben Franklin Parkway a few blocks away from City Hall.

Surveillance video captured images of a man wearing a black mask and a dark jacket with a stripe across the chest and down the arms who appeared to scrawl the symbol on the wall at about 1:30 a.m. Sunday, officials said. The symbol was removed later in the day.

Eszter Kutas, executive director of the Philadelphia Holocaust Remembrance Foundation which manages the memorial, says news of the vandalism was “very, very upsetting, but not shocking for our community.”

Seeing rising antisemitism anywhere was very concerning, “but to have a hate symbol at a Holocaust memorial plaza is especially upsetting,” she tells WCAU-TV.

The memorial, perhaps the oldest public Holocaust monument in the United States, was commissioned in the 1950s by Holocaust survivors and other Jewish community members. The monument was erected in 1964 and the site was redesigned in 2018 with new educational installations and artifacts added.

IDF says soldier lightly hurt after being struck in firefight along Egyptian border

The Israel Defense Forces announces that a soldier was wounded in a firefight with suspected drug smugglers along the border with Egypt earlier tonight.

A statement from the military says the soldier was moderately hurt and taken to a hospital, adding that her condition has since improved and she is now listed as lightly wounded.

Iraqi officials say 4 civilians killed in Iranian missile attack, including Kurdish businessman

ERBIL, Iraq — A missile attack by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on targets in Iraq’s Erbil killed at least four civilians, officials say.

The Kurdistan security council says four people died and six others were wounded in the attack, while the Kurdistan Democratic Party says “a massive ballistic missile attack” has killed a number of civilians “including Peshraw Dizayee, the prominent Kurdish businessman.”

Iran’s IRGC claims missile strike targeted Mossad ‘espionage headquarters’ in Iraqi Kurdistan

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps says a missile strike it launched targeted “the espionage headquarters of Israel’s Mossad in Iraq’s Kurdistan,” according to a statement carried by the IRGC-linked Fars news agency.

The statement claims the ballistic missiles destroyed the facility.

According to the Revolutionary Guards, the attack was a “response to the recent evil acts of the Zionist regime in martyring IRGC and resistance commanders,” apparently referring to a strike in Syria that killed high-ranking IRGC Brig. Gen. Razi Mousavi and a pair of separate attacks in Lebanon that killed Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri and senior Hezbollah military commander Wissam al-Tawil. Both Arouri and Tawil had close links with Iran.

“We assure our nation that the Guards’ offensive operations will continue until avenging the last drops of martyrs’ blood,” the IRGC statement says.

US officials: American facilities not affected by Iranian missile strike on Iraqi Kurdistan

WASHINGTON — Missile strikes in Iraq did not affect any US facilities and there are no US casualties, two US officials tell Reuters, as Iran’s Revolutionary Guards takes credit for a strike near Iraq’s northern city of Erbil.

The US officials decline to further comment.

Explosions were heard in an area some 40 kilometers northeast of Erbil in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, local sources said, in an area near the US consulate as well as civilian residences.

TV station in Egypt says Egyptian forces arrested 6 drug smugglers along border with Israel

CAIRO — Egypt thwarted a drug smuggling attempt on the Egyptian-Israeli border, Egypt’s Al Qahera News TV reports, citing security sources.

Six drug smugglers were arrested in the process, south of Al-Awja border crossing — known in Israel as the Nitzana crossing, the television channel adds.

The report comes minutes after the IDF said troops engaged in a gun battle with a group of apparent gun smugglers along the border.

IDF says troops hit several suspects in firefight with apparent drug smugglers from Egypt

The IDF says some 20 suspects, some of them armed, arrived at the Egyptian border apparently attempting to smuggle drugs into Israel.

Troops engaged in a gun battle with the apparent smugglers, hitting several of them, the IDF says.

The military does not immediately release information on potential casualties to Israeli forces.

Drug smuggling incidents on the Egyptian border are frequent, and at times include shooting by the smugglers at Israeli forces.

IRGC says it also targeted ISIS sites in Syria in night of unprecedented strikes

A strike in Aleppo, Syria on January 15, 2024. (Screen capture/X)

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted the Islamic State in Syria in response to a deadly attack carried out by ISIS near the grave of former IRGC commander Qassem Soleimani, Iranian state media reports.

The strikes in Aleppo, Syria take place around the same time as reported IRGC strikes in Iraqi Kurdistan. The targets of those strikes have not yet been confirmed.

Reports of gunfire during apparent drug smuggling attempt from Egypt

Illustrative: Egyptian drug smugglers on ladders are seen throwing their goods to Israeli Bedouin smugglers across the border in footage from 2018. (Channel 13 screenshot)

There are reports of gunfire during an apparent attempted drug smuggling from Egypt into Israel a short while ago.

According to the Kan public broadcaster, dozens of smugglers, some armed, tried to bring contraband over the border. The smugglers engaged in a gunfight with IDF troops, the report says.

Drug smuggling incidents on the Egyptian border are frequent, and at times include shooting by the smugglers at Israeli forces.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF on the incident.

16-year-old remains in serious condition after surgery for spine and head injuries sustained in Ra’anana attack

Israeli police forensics personnel inspect the area around a damaged car following a terrorist ramming attack in the central town of Ra'anana, on January 15, 2024. (JACK GUEZ / AFP)

The hospitals treating the victims of the terror attack in Ra’anana earlier today provide updates on their condition.

At Schneider Children’s Medical Center, a 16-year-old boy, who underwent surgery for spine and head injuries, remains in very serious condition and is now being cared for in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Eight more children are still at the hospital, four of them in light to moderate condition and admitted to the hospital’s surgical ward. The other four are still in the emergency department undergoing assessment.

Three victims with varying degrees of injury are at Beilinson Hospital. A man in his 60s is unstable and in life-threatening condition, sedated, and intubated in the ICU. A man in his 30s is in serious condition and is currently undergoing orthopedic surgery. A female victim has very light injuries.

Meir Medical Center reports that it is treating four victims of the attack, two of them in very serious condition. One is a woman who is sedated and intubated and recently came out of surgery for a broken pelvis and extremities. Two more people are in moderate condition. A boy who was lightly injured was treated in the pediatric emergency department and has already been discharged.

At Ichilov Hospital, a 47-year-old man has had surgery on his leg and has been transferred to the orthopedic department. A man in his 20s is also hospitalized in the orthopedic department and is expected to undergo surgery later this evening. Both men are said to be in light to moderate condition.

Iran Revolutionary Guard says it struck ‘spy HQ, anti-Iranian terror group’ after explosions rock Iraqi Kurdistan

A strike in Iraqi Kurdistan on January 15, 2024. (Screen capture/X)

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announces that it targeted a “spy headquarters” and a “gathering of anti-Iran terrorist groups” with ballistic missiles, moments after explosions rocked several areas of Iraqi Kurdistan.

Three security sources tell Reuters that the airport in Erbil, which is the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, has stopped air traffic following the explosions.

There is no immediate confirmation of what was struck, but the IRGC announcement appears highly rare and significant.

Initial unconfirmed video reportedly from one of the impacts in Erbil, Iraq.

If confirmed and judging by the other videos circulating it is suggestive of a ballistic missile attack. pic.twitter.com/Y24A3OWOKy

— Aurora Intel (@AuroraIntel) January 15, 2024

IDF says it carried out another airstrike targeting a Hezbollah site in Lebanon in response to border attacks

Footage of an IDF airstrike in Lebanon on January 15, 2024. (Screen capture/X)

The IDF says it carried out an airstrike on a Hezbollah site in southern Lebanon, in response to the terror group’s attacks on the border today.

The site hit by a fighter jet in Maroun el-Ras is described by the IDF as “operational infrastructure” belonging to Hezbollah.

Earlier today, the IDF says it launched interceptor missiles at several “suspicious aerial targets” over the southern Lebanese villages of Yaroun and Rmaych. The IDF says the incidents are over, without elaborating.

The IDF says it carried out an airstrike on a Hezbollah site in southern Lebanon, in response to the terror group's attacks on the border today.

The site hit by a fighter jet in Maroun el-Ras is described by the IDF as "operational infrastructure" belonging to Hezbollah.… pic.twitter.com/LSmn8EB3TT

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) January 15, 2024

Report: Gilad Shalit met with families of hostages, shared how he endured captivity

Gilad Shalit at a memorial ceremony for Yoni Netanyahu at the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery, in Jerusalem on July 12, 2016. (Kobi Gideon / GPO /File)

Gilad Shalit recently met with the families of several hostages and shared with them how he endured five years in Hamas captivity, Channel 12 reports.

Shalit expressed his support for the families and told them that their loved ones will be able to survive and recover, despite the difficulties, according to the report.

Chairman of Swiss engineering group ABB sees limited impact from Houthi Red Sea disruptions

Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen publish a video showing how the group hijacked an Israeli-linked shipping vessel in the Red Sea on November 20, 2023. (Screen capture/X)

Swiss engineering group ABB sees limited impact from disruptions in the Red Sea on its supply chains, Chairman Peter Voser says in an interview ahead of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) annual meeting in Davos.

“I think for ABB, it has less of an impact because our components and products are produced where we are selling them,” Vosser tells the Reuters Global Markets Forum in the Swiss ski resort.

When asked about which market will grow at the fastest pace by value and size, Voser highlighted India, calling it a key market for ABB, followed by the US and China.

In 2022, the maker of industrial robots, motors and controllers posted sales of $1.14 billion in India.

Voser remains confident on China despite the current geopolitical tensions and slower economic growth, saying ABB does not plan any strategy changes there.

He was also positive on the future of artificial intelligence (AI). “There is certainly a disruptive element, but that is not part of my vocabulary. I see (it as) an opportunity,” he says, adding that AI needed regulation.

ABB recently bought Sevensense — a company specializing in boosting the mobility of industrial robots — by using artificial intelligence and 3D vision to move around factories and warehouses.

Yemen’s Houthis hit US-owned dry bulk ship, no injuries – US Centcom

A ship struck by a Houthi missile on January 15, 2024. (Screen capture/X)

Houthi forces in Yemen struck the US-owned and operated dry bulk ship, Gibraltar Eagle, with an anti-ship ballistic missile, US Central Command says, although there were no reports of injuries or significant damage.

The vessel’s US-based operator Eagle Bulk Shipping says that it was hit by an “unidentified projectile” while sailing 100 miles off the Gulf of Aden, and suffered limited damage to its cargo hold. No seafarers were injured.

“As a result of the impact, the vessel suffered limited damage to a cargo hold, but is stable and is heading out of the area,” Eagle Bulk says in a statement, adding that it was carrying a cargo of steel products.

Two young French citizens injured in Ra’anana attack, says Paris in condemnation of incident

Israeli security forces work at the site of a Palestinian car-ramming and stabbing attack at a bus stop, in Ra'anana Monday, Jan. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Two young French nationals were injured in today’s terror attack in Raanana, the French foreign ministry says in a statement, condemning the attack.

Seventeen people were injured and one woman was killed in the attack.

227 trucks of humanitarian aid entered Gaza today — COGAT

A truck carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza on January 15, 2024. (COGAT)

Israel’s COGAT military liaison to the Palestinians says that 227 trucks carrying humanitarian aid were inspected and transferred to the Gaza Strip today, with 111 going through Egypt’s Rafah Crossing and 116 entering via Israel’s Kerem Shalom.

“There is no limit to the amount of humanitarian aid that can be transferred to the people of Gaza,” COGAT tweets.

But Tania Hary, who heads the Israeli rights group Gisha, disputes the COGAT assertion.

“‘No limit,’ but after you limit the kinds of goods that go in, where they can go, who is allowed to ship them in and from where, while not engaging in real deconfliction with humanitarian actors distributing aid, does it really matter? In practice you are limiting the amount of aid,” she tweets.

Victim in Ra’anana terror attack identified as 79-year-old Edna Bluestein

Ra'anana resident Edna Bluestein, 79, was killed in a terror attack in the central city on January 15, 2024. (Courtesy)

The victim in today’s Ra’anana terror attack has been identified as 79-year-old Edna Bluestein, a resident of the central town.

IDF says it notified families of 2 hostages with concerns over their wellbeing after Hamas propaganda video

People attend a 24-hour rally calling for the release of the hostages taken by Hamas terrorists into the Gaza Strip, in Tel Aviv, on January 14, 2024. (AP/Ohad Zwigenberg)

IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari says that several days ago, the military notified the families of two hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip that it has concerns regarding their well-being.

Hamas over the past day published videos showing hostages Itay Svirsky, Noa Argamani, and another hostage, whose family asked not be named. The latest propaganda video, published this evening, raises concerns regarding Svirsky and the other hostage. Argamani is believed by the IDF to be alive.

Hagari says Hamas’s claim that the military targeted a building where three Israeli hostages were being held, killing Svirsky, is a lie. However, he indicates that it is possible that the hostages were located close to a building that was targeted by the IDF and may have been endangered.

“Itay was not killed by our forces. This is a Hamas lie,” Hagari says. “The building where they were held was not a target and was not attacked by our forces.”

“We did not know their exact location in real-time. We do not strike where we know there are hostages. In retrospect, we know that we attacked targets close to the location where they were held,” Hagari says.

He adds that the IDF is investigating the footage published by Hamas.

“In recent days, IDF representatives met with the families of Itay and the other hostage, and expressed grave concern for their fate, due to information we had,” he says.

Svirsky, 38, was abducted from his parents’ home in Kibbutz Be’eri, where he had been to celebrate the Simchat Torah holiday. Both his parents were murdered by Hamas terrorists.

Itay Svirsky, presumed taken captive on October 7, 2023, from his mother’s house in Kibbutz Be’eri, when Hamas terrorists assaulted the community (Courtesy)

Argamani, 26, was abducted from the Supernova music festival on the morning of October 7, and a video of her abduction was one of the first to be published online as Hamas terrorists massacred some 360 partygoers and abducted dozens more.

In the video shared online, Argamani is seen on the back of a motorcycle being driven by her captor, screaming “Don’t kill me!” As she is driven away, she attempts to reach for her boyfriend Avinatan Or, who was also taken captive.

Hostage Noa Argamani, in a poster for a planned Israeli government billboard campaign in the Netherlands that was rejected by local advertising companies, January 11, 2023. (National Public Diplomacy Directorate)

“Even in these difficult times, we are in constant contact with the families, updating them with the details we know about their loved ones. We will continue to update them with every detail of verified information we have, and then the public as well,” Hagari says.

He says Hamas is “trying to take advantage of the fact that Israeli society sanctifies the lives of its people to sow fear.”

“Yes, Israeli society sanctifies the lives of its people, this is our strength, our concern for our citizens, and how we are determined to return the hostages. We work on all the means to return them home and avoid harming them. This is our compass, this is our moral duty,” Hagari added.

He also asked the public to avoid sharing rumors and unverified information.

US condemns ‘abhorrent’ Ra’anana terror attack

The scene of a terror attack in Ra'anana on January 15, 2024. (United Hatzalah)

“We condemn the abhorrent terrorist attacks in Ra’anana that killed one Israeli and wounded others and send our deepest condolences to the victims’ families,” State Department spokesman Matt Miller tweets.

Rocket sirens triggered in Sderot, Gaza border towns

Rockets are fired toward Israel from the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, December 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Rocket sirens have been triggered in the southern town of Sderot and in other Israeli towns near the Gaza border.

There are no immediate reports of injuries or damage, and most Israelis living along the border evacuated after October 7.

Jewish man says couple backed out of accepting his sperm, citing his ‘identity’ after his pro-Israel posts about Oct. 7

Jay Lazarus. (Jay Lazarus/Instagram)

A Jewish man in Australia says a couple who had agreed to accept his sperm donation withdrew from the process, citing his “identity” after he began posting pro-Israel material on social media amid the war in Gaza.

“After October 7, I started sharing a lot of pro-Israel material on social media and from what I understand, the couple didn’t like that,” Lazarus tells the Australian Jews.

They stressed that they are “about love and kindness,” but did not feel that they had “the capacity to navigate parts of your identity in this donor relationship so we are respectfully ending this now,” he writes in an Instagram story going public with the couple’s decision to reject him.

“Prejudice is still persuasive, even in progressive circles that champion ‘kindness and love,’” he writes. “Antisemitism is not just a relic of the past but a living, breathing prejudice that continues today.

Ra’anana terror suspect said to tell interrogators he decided to carry out attack after Gaza war started

The scene of a terror attack in Ra'anana, on January 15, 2024. (JACK GUEZ / AFP)

Channel 12 publishes a quote from the Shin Bet interrogation of one of the suspects in today’s Ra’anana terror attack that was ostensibly leaked by the security agency.

“When the war in Gaza began, my cousin and I decided to carry out an attack and become martyrs,” the Palestinian suspect is quoted as having said.

“We got a ride to Ra’anana from Hebron three days ago. Our plan was first to stab Jews. Then we decided to run over as many Jews as possible.”

Sa’ar: West Bank Palestinian workers must not be allowed in

MK Gideon Sa'ar attends a faction meeting of the National Unity Party at the Knesset in Jerusalem, February 20, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Former justice minister Gideon Sa’ar (National Unity), a minister without portfolio in the current emergency coalition, rejects the idea of allowing Palestinian workers from the West Bank to enter Israel for work, despite warnings from security chiefs of a West Bank eruption of violence and terrorism, in part because of economic conditions there.

“Letting workers from the territory of an enemy population into Israel during a war is a terrible mistake that will cost blood,” he says.

The focus, Sa’ar stresses, in the wake of today’s terror attack in Ra’anana, needs to be on ensuring that Palestinians cannot cross illegally into Israel from the West Bank.

Today’s deadly attack was carried out by two Palestinians who were illegally working in Israel, the Shin Bet says. The security establishment has been pushing to return legal Palestinian workers who have undergone background checks to jobs in Israel.

Sa’ar also rules out a permanent ceasefire as part of a deal for the release of hostages held in Gaza. Halting the war without defeating Hamas is unthinkable, he says.

“As things stand, as far as I know, Hamas’s positions require Israel to surrender to its dictates and I don’t believe for a second that we can do this.” At present, he says, “there is no alternative but military pressure.”

Gallant insists ongoing military pressure will free hostages despite families’ rising doubts

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant gives a press statement on January 15, 2024. (Screen capture/GPO)

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in a press conference says only military pressure on Hamas will bring about a new hostage deal.

“If the fire stops, the fate of the hostages will be sealed for many years in the captivity of Hamas. Without military pressure, no one will talk to us. Only from a position of strength can the hostages be freed,” he says.

“We will reach [all of the hostages] and defeat Hamas; our enemies and our friends alike look at the results and test us,” he says.

Gallant makes the comment at a time of growing frustration with the government from the families of the hostages, who argue that this policy has proven ineffective, given that no hostages have been released in over a month, since Israel resumed its ground offensive after a seven-day truce that saw over 100 hostages released.

Gallant: High-intensity fighting finished in northern Gaza, will soon end in Khan Younis too

IDF troops operate inside the Gaza Strip, on January 13, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says the “intensive phase” of the ground offensive in northern Gaza has ended, and it will soon end in the Khan Younis area of the Strip’s south as well.

Troops have been carrying out operations at a lower intensity in northern Gaza, after defeating all of Hamas’s battalions in the area. The soldiers have been working to locate the remaining Hamas sites and kill or capture the terror group’s last operatives.

“In the south of the Gaza Strip [the intensive phase] will end soon,” Gallant says, referring to the Khan Younis area, without giving an exact timeline.

In southern Gaza, Gallant says “IDF troops are focused on the head of the snake, the Hamas leadership. As part of this action… the Khan Younis Brigade is gradually disintegrating as a fighting force.”

“We also cut off the roads that lead to Rafah above and below ground,” he says.

He also warns that “political indecision may harm the progress of the military operation.”

“The future government in Gaza must grow from the Gaza Strip, Gaza will be ruled by Palestinians. The end of the military campaign must be anchored in a political act,” he says.

Hamas hails Ra’anana terror attack, but doesn’t claim responsibility

The scene of a terror attack in Ra'anana, on January 15, 2024. (JACK GUEZ / AFP)

Hamas praises the car-ramming and stabbing terror attack in the central Israel city of Ra’anana early this afternoon, but stops short of claiming responsibility for it.

The assault, in which an elderly woman was killed and at least 17 people were injured, was carried out by two West Bank Palestinians from the Hebron area, working in Israel illegally.

In a statement, Hamas says that the attack was a “natural response” to Israel’s operations in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and hails the perpetrators as “heroes of our people.”

The terror group calls on young Palestinians throughout the West Bank and Jerusalem to escalate attacks against Israelis “until our land and holy sites are liberated.”

IDF says it carried out strike on Hezbollah cell that fired anti-tank missile at Israeli border town

Smoke billows following an IDF strike on the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila near the border with Israel on January 9, 2024. (Rabih DAHER / AFP)

The IDF says it carried out a strike on a Hezbollah cell that fired an anti-tank missile from Lebanon at the northern community of Malkia.

The strike was carried out within an hour of the attack, the IDF says.

Projectiles were also fired at Mattat, Margaliot, Adamit, and Zar’it. Some of the attacks were claimed by Hezbollah.

The IDF says it struck the launch sites.

Most wastewater treatment plants reaching capacity, state comptroller warns

Treated wastewater flows into the Jordan River south of the Alumot Dam, February 21, 2023. (Sue Surkes/Times of Israel)

Israel is a world leader in the quantity of wastewater it recycles for use in agriculture, yet most of the wastewater is treated in facilities that have reached their capacity, the state comptroller says in his annual report.

About a third of the treated wastewater does not meet quality regulations. As it is used for irrigation, it could endanger the environment and public health, the report warns.

The increase in wastewater alongside the slow development of wastewater treatment plants has resulted in sewage being discharged into streams without proper treatment, causing environmental and sanitary hazards.

Furthermore, 40 percent of the wastewater in 2021 (the most recent year for which the state comptroller found data) had not received a level of treatment that would enable it to be used on all fruit and vegetables.

The report notes that recent years have seen a rise in the number of malfunctions in the sewage treatment system that were not reported to the public.

Second Israeli soccer player detained and released by Turkish authorities, slated to return to Israel

Maccabi Tel Aviv's Israeli midfielder Eden Kartsev controls the ball during the UEFA Europa League group I football match between Villarreal CF and Maccabi Tel Aviv at La Ceramica stadium in Vila-real on November 5, 2020. (Photo by JOSE JORDAN / AFP)

A second Israeli soccer player in Turkey has been detained by Turkish authorities over expressing solidarity with the hostages in Gaza.

Eden Kartsev has subsequently been released and is slated to return to Israel, Hebrew media reports.

Istanbul’s top-flight side Basaksehir said earlier that it was launching a disciplinary investigation into Kartsev for reposting a social media message about the hostages reading: “Bring Them Home Now.”

The development is reported shortly after another Israeli playing in the Turkish league landed in Israel after being arrested and deported by Turkish authorities over similar circumstances.

Sagiv Jehezkel celebrated his equalizer goal in Sunday’s 1-1 draw against Trabzonspor in the top Turkish league by making a heart sign with his hands to the camera and showing his wristband, which bore the words “100 days. October 7” along with a Star of David symbol. The 132 hostages remaining in captivity in the Strip have been held there for 100 days after being kidnapped by Hamas-led terrorists on October 7.

State comptroller raps Israel over vehicle-caused pollution

Unrecognized Bedouin villages around the Ramat Hovav industrial area in southern Israel suffer from a high level of air pollution from nearby chenical evaporation ponds and an Israel Electric Corporation power plant on December 28, 2017. (Yaniv Nadav/FLASH90)

Air pollution is the biggest environmental killer in Israel, the state comptroller says in his annual report, yet buses and trucks weighing more than 4.5 tons, which are responsible for 61 percent of the cost of traffic-related air pollution, carry no purchase tax.

Furthermore, only two Israeli cities operate clean air zones – Jerusalem and Haifa. This is in contrast to 400 cities in 17 EU countries.

At the end of 2022, there were more than 40,000 electric vehicles in the country, but as of July 2023, there were only 219 fast charging stations available to the public. Just 4% of garages were authorized to handle electric vehicles.

The state comptroller calls for a unified effort by ministries and agencies to better prepare for the widespread entry of electric vehicles and the handling of heavy polluting vehicles that use gasoline or diesel.

Sagiv Jehezkel lands in Israel after being ousted from Turkey over solidarity with hostages

Sagiv Jehezkel (hat) lands at Ben Gurion Airport on January 15, 2024. (Screen capture/Channel 12)

Israeli soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel has landed at Ben Gurion Airport after he was suspended from his team in Turkey, then arrested and deported by local authorities over an on-field gesture he made in solidarity with the hostages held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza.

Government office for Jewish culture strips funding from Shavuot event over Arab headliner

Arab Israeli journalist Lucy Aharish attends the Israeli 67th Independence Day Ceremony at Mount Herzl in Jerusalem on April 22, 2015. (Hadas Parush/Flash 90)

The Jewish culture division of far-right lawmaker Orit Strock’s Settlements Ministry has walked back on its agreement to help fund a Shavuot holiday event that took place last year because the headline speaker — Arab Israeli journalist Lucy Aharish — is not Jewish, the Ynet news site reports.

The government office is tasked with funding such holiday events around the country and agreed to do so for the Megiddo Regional Council. In a letter uncovered by Ynet, the office says it wasn’t aware that Aharish was the headliner when it agreed to fund the event and argues that an office promoting Jewish culture cannot promote a woman who “represents mixed marriages.” Aharish is married to Jewish Israeli actor Tzachi Halevi.

The Megiddo Regional Council blasts the decision to strip it of NIS 15,000 ($4,000) in funding after the fact, arguing that Aharish discussed Jewish issues at an event marking a Jewish holiday and that such dismissal of her identity by the Jewish culture office goes against the values of Judaism.

US-owned ship hit by missile off Yemen — UK security agency

Houthi military spokesman, Brigadier Yahya Saree, delivers a statement on the recent attacks against two commercial vessels in the Red Sea during a march in solidarity with the people of Gaza in the capital Sanaa on December 15, 2023. (Mohammed Huwais/AFP)

A US-owned cargo ship was hit by a missile off the coast of Yemen, a British security agency and maritime risk company says, a day after Houthi rebels fired a cruise missile at a US destroyer.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations security agency reports a “vessel hit from above by a missile” on its website, without providing further details.

According to Ambrey, a British maritime risk company, a fire broke out on board the Marshall Islands-flagged, US-owned bulk carrier, but it remains seaworthy and there were no injuries.

The company “assessed the attack to have targeted US interests in response to US military strikes on Houthi military positions in Yemen,” Ambrey says, adding that the vessel was “assessed to not be Israel-affiliated.”

There was no immediate comment from the Iran-backed Houthis, whose cruise missile targeting a US military ship was shot down on Sunday.

US and British forces on Friday launched strikes on rebel targets across Yemen, heightening fears that Israel’s war with Palestinian Hamas terrorists could engulf the region.

— with Times of Israel staff

UK to ban Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir for antisemitism, promoting terror, celebrating Oct. 7 attacks

Supporters of Hizb ut-Tahrir march in London in 2007. (Leon Neal/AFP)

Britain’s interior minister James Cleverly says he had begun the process of banning the Sunni Islamist political organization Hizb ut-Tahrir, saying it is antisemitic and promoted terrorism.

The group is already banned in Bangladesh, Egypt, Germany, Pakistan and several Central Asian and Arab countries.

“Hizb ut-Tahrir is an antisemitic organization that actively promotes and encourages terrorism, including praising and celebrating the appalling 7 October attacks (on Israel),” Cleverly says.

If a draft order laid before parliament by Cleverly is agreed on by MPs, the ban will come into force on January 19, making it an offense to support the group punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

It can also lead to an assets seizure.

“Hizb ut-Tahrir’s praise of the 7 October attacks and associated incidents, as well as describing Hamas as ‘heroes’ on their central website constitutes promoting and encouraging terrorism,” a government statement said.

“Hizb ut-Tahrir has a history of praising and celebrating attacks against Israel and attacks against Jews more widely. The UK stands strongly against anti-Semitism and will not tolerate the promotion of terrorism in any form,” it added.

Hizb ut-Tahrir’s long-term goal is to establish a caliphate ruled under Islamic law.

Founded in 1953, it is headquartered in Lebanon and operates in at least 32 countries including the UK, United States, Canada and Australia, according to UK’s Home Office.

Netanyahu meets with visiting Czech president

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with visiting Czech President Petr Pavel in Jerusalem on January 15, 2024. (Haim Zach/GPO)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with visiting Czech President Petr Pavel privately, then holds a broader meeting with their respective staffers.

Netanyahu is joined by National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, diplomatic advisor Ophir Falk, and ambassador to Czechia Anna Azari.

At least six oil tankers steer clear of Red Sea amid Houthi disruptions to shipping routes

Illustrative: In this image provided by the US Navy, the amphibious dock landing ship USS Carter Hall and amphibious assault ship USS Bataan transit the Bab el-Mandeb strait on August 9, 2023. (Mass Communications Spc. 2nd Class Moises Sandoval/US Navy via AP)

At least six more oil tankers are steering clear of the southern Red Sea, as disruptions on the vital route for energy shipping increase in the wake of US-led strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.

Following the strikes, the US-led Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) based in Bahrain warned all ships to avoid the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the south end of the Red Sea for several days on Friday, according to tanker body INTERTANKO.

Prior to the US and British strikes on Yemen, it had been mostly container ships which were avoiding the Red Sea, with oil tanker traffic largely unchanged in December.

But since the CMF’s warning, a growing number of oil tankers are avoiding the region, increasing the potential for disruptions to east-west oil supply via the Suez Canal.

Reuters counts six tankers that have altered their course today, making a total of at least 15 vessels to do so since the start of the strikes, ship tracking data from LSEG and Kpler showed.

The tankers Torm Innovation, Proteus Harvonne, and Alfios I appeared to have turned away from the Suez Canal in favour of the longer route around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope for voyages to Europe and the US.

The Pacific Julia and STI Topaz are also heading straight for the Cape route.

The Octa Lune performed a U-turn in the northern part of the Red Sea on Jan. 12 and has returned to the Mediterranean with a Taiwan-bound cargo of naphtha.

Tankers tracked by Reuters on Friday that had diverted or paused have either taken the longer Cape route or paused in the Gulf of Aden or northern Red Sea.

Taking the longer route around the Cape can add up to three weeks’ sailing time.

The list of diversions could grow as shipowners exercise policies of navigating away from the Red Sea.

Tanker owners including Torm, Hafnia and Stena Bulk said they would avoid Bab el-Mandeb from Friday, while Euronav reaffirmed its temporary suspension of transits through the Red Sea.

IDF withdraws one of four divisions from Gaza for R&R, training

IDF troops operate in central Gaza's Nuseirat, in an image published by the army on January 15, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

The IDF has withdrawn the 36th Division from Gaza for an R&R and training period, leaving three other divisions fighting Hamas in the Strip.

The withdrawal of the division comes as part of the IDF’s plans for a long war against Hamas, while maintaining the troops’ competence.

The division’s units will be given a short break, then will return for a training period, after which the IDF will decide if and where to redeploy them according to its latest assessments.

Over the past two months, the 36th Division operated in northern Gaza, dismantling Hamas’s battalions.

The 162nd Division remains in northern Gaza, carrying out clean-up operations to locate Hamas’s infrastructure and kill or capture its remaining operatives; the 99th Division is operating in the central part of the Strip; and the 98th Division is fighting Hamas in the Khan Younis area of southern Gaza.

Cabinet passes budget, adding $15 billion amid Gaza war

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, leads a cabinet meeting at the Kirya IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv, January 7, 2024. (Kobi Gideon/GPO)

The cabinet has passed an amended 2024 state budget adding 55 billion shekels ($15 billion) of extra spending, after three months of war against Hamas, the Finance Ministry says.

The extra funding includes money for defense and compensation for those impacted by the war, along with higher allocations for healthcare, police, welfare and education.

The measure passes only hours after an all-night meeting on the matter ended inconclusively in the face of ministerial opposition to across-the-board budget cuts.

“We reached an agreement, and we will now pass a very important budget. This is the war budget, which also takes care of the needs of our reservists, their families, the self-employed and government ministries and the needs of the public,” Netanyahu says ahead of the vote.

“We are increasing the health budget and adding a billion shekels to it for mental health, an important need. There are increases to the education budget, the welfare budget, the internal security budget, but most importantly the defense budget, which is simply essential for victory and for our future.”

“We are re-arranging our priorities,” declares Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.

Shin Bet identifies Ra’anana terrorists as relatives from West Bank working illegally in Israel

Israeli police forensics personnel inspect the area around a damaged car following a terrorist ramming attack in the central town of Ra'anana, on January 15, 2024. (JACK GUEZ / AFP)

The two Palestinians involved in the terror attack in Ra’anana today are identified by the Shin Bet as relatives Ahmed Zidat, 25, and Mahmoud Zidad, 44.

Both are residents of the southern West Bank town of Bani Naim, close to Hebron.

According to the Shin Bet, both were in Israel illegally, and had been blacklisted for entering Israel illegally numerous times in the past.

The pair are currently being interrogated by the Shin Bet.

Palestinian man reported killed as troops raid West Bank city

An IDF raid in the West Bank village of Dura on January 15, 2024. (Screen capture/X)

The Palestinian Health Ministry in Ramallah says a 22-year-old man was killed as troops carry out a raid in the West Bank Palestinian city of Dura, near Hebron.

The man is named as Hassan Ibrahim Abu Sebaa.

Another 10 people are reported injured in the rare daytime raid, which may be connected to today’s car-ramming and stabbing attack in Ra’anana. Both suspects in the deadly terror rampage were from the Hebron area, according to Israeli authorities.

A number of unverified videos shared on social media show troops operating in the town and arresting people. One video appears to show troops kicking a person crumpled in a street, while another shows a man being marched by soldiers at rifle point.

‼️ Zionist occupation soldiers assaulted the young man on the ground after shooting him in the center of the city of Dura in southwest #Hebron pic.twitter.com/wFePBuN3Bd

— Mawtini ???????? (@MawtiniLevent) January 15, 2024

⭕ Al-Khalil, #WestBank

Watch #ZionistTerrorists soldier pointing a gun at a Palestinian's head during the storming of the city of Dura. pic.twitter.com/IZT7Lo37sc

— Palestine Captives ???? (@Palestinecapti1) January 15, 2024

The IDF says troops were carrying out “proactive activity” in the area when some 100 Palestinians began to riot.

It says troops responded with riot dispersal means and live fire after they were attacked with cinderblocks and Molotov cocktails.

Cabinet gathers to vote on updated 2024 budget

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a cabinet meeting at the Kirya military HQ in Tel Aviv on December 24, 2023. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

Members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet are gathered at the Prime Minister’s Office to vote on approval of the amended 2024 budget, only hours after an all-night meeting on the matter ended inconclusively in the face of ministerial opposition to across-the-board budget cuts.

During the previous meeting, which started last night, tensions rose to the point that Education Minister Yoav Kisch, of the premier’s own Likud party, stormed out of the room in rage.

Since then, Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich appear to have been working to bring around opponents of the wartime budget, such as National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who announced that he had reached an agreement to secure billions of shekels in additional funding for his ministry.

Children’s hospital in Petah Tikva treating 7 wounded in Ra’anana attack

Schneider Children’s Medical Center's new 'Glass Building' ward (Courtesy of Schneider)

Schneider Children’s Medical Center in Petah Tikvah provides an update on seven child and teen victims of the terror attack in Ra’anana this afternoon.

A 16-year-old boy is in serious condition and is sedated and intubated and is undergoing surgery at Schneider for head trauma.

The six other young victims, ages 10-16, were brought to Schneider and nearby Beilinson Medical Center. They are in light to moderate condition and are undergoing medical evaluations in the emergency department for limb, head, and neck injuries.

At Meir Medical Center in Kfar Saba, director Dr. Yaron Mushkat announced the death of a 70-year-old woman brought in in critical condition.

“She died despite our efforts to resuscitate her,” he said.

Mushkat said that two other victims at the hospital are in serious condition and two are in moderate condition. The injuries they sustained were caused by a combination of stabbing and car-ramming.

Schneider has opened an information line: 1255136

Michaeli: Netanyahu endangering hostages to protect his political career

Labor Party chair MK Merav Michaeli announces that she will step down from the party leadership, at a press conference in Tel Aviv, December 7, 2023. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is endangering the Hamas-held hostages in order to protect his political career, Labor chief Merav Michaeli asserts at her party’s weekly faction meeting.

“At the beginning of the war, Netanyahu stated that the goals of the war are both to topple the Hamas government and to bring the hostages home,” she says.

“101 days have passed and the truth must be told – Netanyahu has failed. Neither of these goals have been achieved,” she argues.

“What is required to bring the hostages home now is an agreement that will include a cessation of hostilities. Every day that passes endangers our hostages. We must bring them home now,” she says.

“But the cessation of hostilities endangers the continuation of Netanyahu’s rule. His coalition wants to continue the fighting, and it is less urgent for them to return the hostages. So Netanyahu is endangering the hostages in order to preserve himself and his government. We must not allow that to happen.”

“The return of the hostages and bringing down Hamas means that we must talk about the day after, to promote a political agreement with a strong Palestinian Authority,” she continues, asserting that “Netanyahu’s refusal to do any of this means abandoning our hostages and abandoning Israel’s national security.”

Lapid: State comptroller appointed by PM cannot probe Oct. 7 failures

State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman, undated. (State Comptroller's Office)

State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman cannot be relied upon to adequately probe the government’s failures on October 7 because he was appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid declares, calling for the establishment of a state commission of inquiry.

“An auditor appointed by Netanyahu who did not publish any report on Netanyahu’s personal responsibility cannot investigate this failure,” Lapid tells reporters ahead of his Yesh Atid party’s weekly faction meeting in the Knesset, arguing that as a state employee Englman “cannot investigate the biggest failure in the state’s history.”

Following Hamas’s attack, during which over 1,200 people were killed and more than 240 taken hostage, Englman criticized the government over its lack of preparedness for the outbreak of war, telling Netanyahu that there was “no justification for the late awakening of the Israeli government.”

Late last month, Englman said his office would “leave no stone unturned” in its investigation into the multiple failures that occurred before, during, and after the Hamas terror group’s October 7 massacre, as he laid out the parameters of a gargantuan probe into the matter, including an examination of those with “personal responsibility” for the “failures on all levels – policy, military and civilian.”

Netanyahu and members of his government have expressed opposition to the formation of any independent probe into the government’s failures prior to the end of hostilities in Gaza.

Police: Two Palestinian men from Hebron area carried out terror attacks; were working in Ra’anana illegally

Israeli police forensics personnel inspect the area around a damaged car following a terrorist ramming attack in the central town of Ra'anana, on January 15, 2024. (JACK GUEZ / AFP)

The police Central District Commander Avi Bitton says the Ra’anana terror attacks were carried out by two Palestinians from the Hebron area who had been working in the city’s industrial zone recently.

Both are under arrest and are being questioned, he says.

Both were in Israel illegally.

“This was a very grave terror attack,” Bitton says.

Bitton says the terrorists took control of two cars and carried out attacks at three locations in the city.

He says the first was apprehended very quickly and the second a few minutes later.

The police are not ruling out other suspects and are continuing to search the wider area.

Kobi Shabtai, the national police commissioner, praises the rapid and professional police response, including the closing off of the area.

He says the two suspects are relatives.

Second suspect from Hebron arrested in connection to Ra’anana attack

Police say a second Palestinian suspect, also from Hebron and a relative of the alleged assailant who carried out the attack in Ra’anana, has been arrested.

It says the second man is also suspected of involvement in the apparent terror attack, during which the assailant rammed into people in the city, killing one and wounding at least 17 others.

Police and the Shin Bet security agency are jointly investigating.

Israel sends delegation to Ukraine peace conference in Switzerland for first time

For the first time, Israel sent delegates to a Ukraine peace conference, held Sunday in Davos ahead of the World Economic Forum.

Two representatives of the National Security Council were at the gathering, the Prime Minister’s Office confirms to The Times of Israel.

Some 83 nations were present to discuss Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky’s 10-point plan for ending the war with Russia.

Israel’s relationship with Russia has spiraled downward in the wake of Moscow’s stance in the wake of Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel.

Ukraine’s ambassador to Israel Yevhen Korniychuk told The Times of Israel last week that all the components of the civil air defense system Israel promised Kyiv last year have been delivered.

Woman dies from wounds sustained in Ra’anana car-ramming terror attack

One of the victims of the suspected car-ramming terror attack in Ra’anana has died, medical officials say.

Meir Hospital says a critically wounded woman brought to the medical center from the attack succumbed to her wounds.

The woman, in her 70s, is not immediately named.

At least 17 others were wounded in the attack in the central city, including several in serious condition.

Magen David Adom: 18 injured in total in Ra’anana terror attack

Magen David Adom reports that 18 people were injured in total in the Ra’anana stabbing and car-ramming attacks.

It says one of the victims is in critical condition — a woman in her 70s with stab wounds — while two are seriously hurt, nine have moderate injuries and six were lightly wounded. A Channel 12 reporter at Meir Medical Center, however, says that in addition to the woman in critical condition, five people are in serious condition.

Four children, teens moderately wounded in Ra’anana attack brought to Schneider hospital

Four children and teenagers wounded in the Ra’anana car ramming attacks have been brought to Schneider Children’s Medical Center in moderate condition and are undergoing evaluation in the emergency room.

The hospital is expecting more teens and children to be transferred from Beilinson Hospital, where they were initially taken.

Two men injured in car ramming arrive at Ichilov hospital

Ichilov Hospital says two victims of the apparent terror attack in Ra’anana have arrived at the hospital, both men in moderate condition and suffering from orthopedic injuries.

One of the men is in his 40s and the other in his 20s, the hospital adds. One of them will be taken into surgery for his injuries shortly.

Police say suspect in apparent terror attack in Ra’anana is Palestinian from Hebron

Police say the suspect who carried out the apparent terror attack in Ra’anana is a Palestinian from the West Bank city of Hebron and has been arrested.

In a statement, police say the man stole a total of three cars during the suspected car-ramming attack.

At least 14 people were wounded in the attacks, including one in critical condition. At least one of the victims is reported to have been stabbed.

A second man from Hebron, a relative of the suspect, has also been arrested.

Police say officers continue to search the area for potential additional threats.

Eyewitnesses describe stabbing, ramming attack

A passerby who witnessed the start of a suspected car-ramming attack in Ra’anana tells Army Radio that “it all happened in a second.”

“We heard the noise of a crash, like a car bumping into another car,” Eden Arzi says. “We saw the driver go to stab a woman and she ran away, and [the driver] went and stabbed a 60-year-old man while there were a bunch of screams in the background, until he fell on the ground.”

Another witness tells Haaretz: “I saw someone stab three people next to the mall, steal a car and run people over with it.”

Car-rammings in Ra’anana carried out by suspects who drove to multiple locations – report

The car-ramming and stabbing attack in Ra’anana was carried out by suspects who attacked people at multiple locations, Channel 12 reports.

According to reports, a suspect stabbed a driver before stealing the car and driving it into three people.

He then got stuck and abandoned the car, at which point he stole a second vehicle and continued on, driving down Ahuza Street and ramming into at least one other group of people, the report adds.

Ra’anana mayor Chaim Broyde tells the Kan broadcaster that it is still not confirmed that the stabbing and ramming scenes are linked.

14 wounded, one critically, in Ra’anana car ramming incidents at three locations

The scene of a terror attack in Ra'anana on January 15, 2024. (United Hatzalah)

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says 14 people are wounded in the car-ramming incident in Ra’anana, which took place at three separate locations.

The victims include a woman in her 70s in critical condition and a man aged 34 and a 16-year-old in serious condition, MDA says.

Another eight people are moderately hurt, and three others are lightly wounded.

MDA director-general Eli Bin says a total of 17 people were treated by medics at the scene, which may include those suffering from acute anxiety.

Police are still investigating the circumstances, but spokesman Eli Levy says it “increasingly looks like a terrorist incident.”

Ra’anana mayor: Stay inside until we know what’s going on

Ra’anana Mayor Chaim Broyde says people should stay inside as authorities deal with a suspected ramming attack and assess the situation.

“I am asking residents and school kids not to go around in the streets and to wait until there is a clear picture,” Broyde tells Channel 12 news.

The suspected attack occurred as many schools were dismissing students for the day.

Police yet to determine if ‘unusual’ Ra’anana incident is a terror attack

Police have not yet determined if the incident in Ra’anana is a terror attack;.

In a statement, it describes the suspected ramming as an “unusual incident.

Police say officers are at the scene and the circumstances are under investigation.

At least 11 people have been wounded, some of them in serious condition.

IDF expands offensive against Hamas as it begins operation in central Gaza’s Nuseirat

IDF troops operate in central Gaza's Nuseirat, in an image published by the army on January 15, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

The IDF says it has begun to operate on the ground in central Gaza’s Nuseirat, as the offensive against Hamas further expands.

It says troops of the 646th Reserve Paratroopers Brigade operating in Nuseirat located a mortar production facility, a rocket manufacturing factory, and weapons hidden in a building belonging to a humanitarian organization.

The IDF says reservists also raided a school in Nuseirat where eight Hamas operatives were holed up. The operatives were detained and taken to Israel to be questioned.

Also in the area of the school, the troops located a weapons depot, the IDF adds.

The IDF says it has begun to operate on the ground in central Gaza's Nuseirat, as the offensive against Hamas further expands.

It says troops of the 646th Reserve Paratroopers Brigade operating in Nuseirat located a mortar production facility, a rocket manufacturing factory, as… pic.twitter.com/kIDcWTvOKq

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) January 15, 2024

At least 11 wounded in suspected car-ramming, stabbing attack in Ra’anana

The scene of a terror attack in Ra'anana on January 15, 2024 (Magen David Adom)

At least 11 people are wounded in a suspected car-ramming and stabbing attack in Ra’anana, medics say.

The Magen David Adom ambulance service says a man aged 66 is moderately hurt with “penetrative wounds” and two pedestrians are lightly hurt on Haharoshet Street.

The scene of a suspected terror attack in Ra’anana on January 15, 2024 (Magen David Adom)

It adds that on Ahuza Street in the city, another eight people are wounded. Their conditions are not yet clear.

National Security Ministry to receive additional NIS 2 billion in 2024 budget

The National Security Ministry will receive an extra NIS 2 billion ($534 million) in its 2024 budget, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir says, announcing that he has reached an agreement with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.

This is on top of funds promised during a previous agreement, bringing the total amount of additional funding to NIS 9 billion ($2.4 billion), he says.

Ben Gvir had previously announced that he would not support the 2024 amended state budget due to cuts of hundreds of millions of shekels to his ministry.

“I thank the prime minister and the finance minister – Israel needs a strong police force that will take care of everone’s security,” Ben Gvir says.

Culture and sports minister agrees to budget cuts in light of war

Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar at his office in Jerusalem, January 2, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar reaches an agreement with the Finance Ministry on his 2024 budget, announcing that he has accepted a “horizontal cut in all sections of the ministry without exception in the amount of about 8% which is about NIS 180 million ($48 million).”

This comes on top of a NIS 245 million ($65 million) cut to the ministry’s facilities fund. In addition, “the library budget will be reduced in favor of the war effort to allow an increase in the defense budget and budgets for the needs of the war,” Zohar’s office says in a statement.

“Culture and sports are the basis of a normal and successful civil society and are a symbol of strength and stability in wartime,” Zohar says, following an all-night cabinet meeting that ended this morning after ministers failed to reach a consensus on budget cuts that would allow them to advance an amended 2024 state budget.

“During the night I fought so as not to harm the base of the budget and to prevent long-term damage to the worlds of culture and sports,” he says.

Turkish soccer club faces pressure to take action against second Israeli player

Following the arrest of Sagiv Jehezkel, the İstanbul Başakşehir soccer club is facing pressure on Turkish social media to take action against a second Israeli soccer player in the Turkish top league, Eden Kartsev, who published an Instagram story identifying with the Gaza hostages and echoing the slogan calling to “Bring them home now.”

Şaka gibi arkadaş, Başakşehir Kulübü, Sagiv Jehezkel ile benzer şekilde bir paylaşım yapan Eden Karzev'in savunmasını istemiş,

yol ver gitsin ne savunması ? @ibfk2014 pic.twitter.com/9XHByiqiaw

— Mehmet Ardıç ???????? (@MehmetArdic_) January 15, 2024

The fan club for Başakşehir, a favorite club of Erdogan’s, wrote on X: “We do not want Zionist supporters who disregard the values ​​and sensitivities of our country.”

After initially ignoring the issue, Başakşehir says in a statement that it has launched a “disciplinary probe” against Kartsev, alleging that he had “violated the club’s disciplinary rules by publishing an Instagram post that harms sensitive values of our country, and we expect a written defense by the player on the matter.”

Shin Bet reveals Iranian attempts to spy on Israeli defense officials via fake social media pages

This screenshot released by the Shin Bet on January 15, 2024, shows a fake social media page run by Iranian operatives. (Shin Bet)

The Shin Bet security agency reveals attempts by Iranian intelligence services to spy on Israeli defense officials and gather information on civilians by using fake social media pages relating to the ongoing war and the hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

According to the Shin Bet, Iranian operatives, using fake online profiles, tasked Israelis with photographing the residences of Israeli defense officials and other officials who appear frequently in the media and speak out against Iran publicly.

Using fictitious social media pages and websites, the Iranian operatives also initiated gatherings near the homes of the families of the Hamas-held hostages and had bouquets of flowers and messages sent to their homes, the Shin Bet says.

This screenshot released by the Shin Bet on January 15, 2024, shows a fake social media page run by Iranian operatives. (Shin Bet)

The agency says that the Iranian operatives took advantage of the protests to release the hostages by having Israelis hang signs relating to the issue that had been written by them, as well as asking them to photograph the demonstrators.

The pages also asked Israelis to fill out surveys, which would require victims to give out personal information. The Shin Bet says this was an attempt to collect further information on Israeli civilians, to later use them to carry out various tasks.

The social media profiles, on Instagram, Telegram, and TikTok, included pages posing as those of far-right activists and supporters of the hostages, as well as a page by the name of Kan+, impersonating the Kan public broadcaster.

This screenshot released by the Shin Bet on January 15, 2024, shows a fake social media page run by Iranian operatives. (Shin Bet)

Herzog to speak at World Economic Forum in Davos later this week

President Isaac Herzog will speak at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week, the WEF announces. He will be talking about “Achieving Security and Cooperating in a Fractured World,” with WEF executive chairman Klaus Schwab and president Borge Brende.

Herzog’s office has yet to officially announce the trip.

Australian foreign minister departs Adelaide ahead of visit to Israel

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong listens beside Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo during a joint press conference at a hotel in Makati City, Philippines on Thursday May 18, 2023. (Lisa Marie David/Pool Photo via AP)

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong takes off from Adelaide on her way to Jordan, before reaching Israel tomorrow evening.

Wong has irked Israel with her decision not to visit communities near the Gaza border in which Hamas carried out massacres, rape, and kidnapping.

All visiting senior officials, including foreign ministers, are invited by the Foreign Ministry to visit kibbutzim such as Kfar Aza and Be’eri, and many have toured the ruins. However, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has not visited during his six trips, nor did the Canadian and Japanese foreign ministers on their recent visits.

Wong will be meeting with families of hostages, as well as families of Palestinian victims of settler violence.

The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council expresses its disappointment in a statement, saying that “you need to see the sites of the October 7 pogrom to fully appreciate the appalling magnitude of these barbaric massacres.”

Australia also has yet to publicly criticize South Africa’s case against Israel in The Hague.

Wong will meet Foreign Minister Israel Katz, President Isaac Herzog, and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, but will not meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

She will be in the West Bank on Wednesday and is slated to fly from Israel to the UAE on Thursday.

Iranian journalists face new charges for violating hijab laws a day after their release from prison

This picture taken and released by the Sharq News Online on January 14, 2024, shows Iranian journalists Niloufar Hamedi (R) and Elaheh Mohammadi (L) flashing the sign of victory after they were released from Evin prison on bail in Tehran. (Photo by Sahand TAKI/Sharq news online/AFP)

Iran’s judiciary has opened a new case against two jailed female journalists for appearing without a hijab upon their temporary release from prison, the judiciary’s Mizan website reports.

Niloofar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi, respectively sentenced to 13 and 12 years in prison for their coverage of the death in custody of Kurdish-Iranian Mahsa Amini in 2022, were released temporarily on Sunday after paying bail.

“After footage of the defendants without hijab was released online, a new case has been filed against them,” Mizan says referring to a video widely shared on social media showing the two women celebrating their release with family outdoors.

The death of Amini after she was held by the morality police for allegedly violating Iran’s strict dress code, triggered months of nationwide anti-government protests, in one of the boldest challenges to the country’s clerical leaders in decades.

In meeting with Herzog, Czech president reiterates solidarity with Israel in face of Hamas terrorism

Czech President Petr Pavel meets with President Isaac Herzog, telling him, “We stand in solidarity with your right to fight terrorism.” Pavel also expresses concern over the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

He will meet later with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, war cabinet minister Benny Gantz, and other senior officials.

Pavel is also slated to meet families of hostages taken by Hamas. After his Israel visit, Pavel will head to Qatar, where he will meet the emir and prime minister.

Foreign Ministry worked through local Turkish authorities for release of detained soccer player

The Foreign Ministry worked through local authorities to take care of the technical and procedural obstacles to Sagiv Jehezkel being allowed to leave Turkey, The Times of Israel learns. The goal was to ensure that the episode did not become a full-blown diplomatic incident.

The ministry maintained a low profile until he was released, instructing its diplomats to remain quiet and waiting until he was allowed to head home before making a statement.

There was also interest on the part of Jehzekel’s team, Antalyaspor, and Turkey’s premier league, to limit the scope of the episode and see that it ended quickly, so as not to be seen as unsafe for foreign players.

Ben Gvir calls for Israelis to boycott Turkey, calls Erdogan a ‘full-on Nazi’

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, an ultranationalist politician, charges that “Turkey acts toward Israeli players, and toward anything with a scent of Israeliness, with Nazism.”

“Erdogan is a full-on Nazi,” he says. “I call on Israelis not to travel to Turkey, not to buy any Turkish products and not to financially support them. The State of Israel and Israeli citizens must not act with forgiveness toward Turkey. We won’t let ourselves be trampled on.”

טורקיה פועלת כלפי שחקנים ישראליים וכל דבר שמריח ישראליות בנאציזם. ארדואן הוא נאצי לכל דבר. אני קורא לישראלים לא לטוס לטורקיה, לא לקנות שום מוצר טורקי ולא לפרנס אותם. אסור למדינת ישראל ולאזרחי ישראל לנהוג בסלחנות כלפי טורקיה. לא ניתן שירמסו אותנו.

— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) January 15, 2024

Sagiv Jehezkel will return to Israel from Turkey later today – Foreign Ministry

Israeli soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel displays a message of solidarity with hostages held in Gaza while celebrating a goal for Turkish club Antalyaspor on January 14, 2024. (Antalyaspor/X; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Israeli soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel will return to Israel today from Turkey, the Foreign Ministry announces.

According to the announcement, the Foreign Ministry worked “with all relevant authorities in Turkey in order to bring about the speedy release” of the soccer player who was held for questioning yesterday.

“Turkey has become a dark dictatorship, which works against humanitarian values and the values of sports,” says Foreign Minister Israel Katz. “Anyone who arrests a soccer player over an act of identification with 136 hostages who have been held for over 100 days in the hands of a murderous terror organization represents a culture of murder and hatred.”

Katz calls for the international community and international sports bodies to punish Turkey over the episode.

Houthi official threatens: Yemen will turn into the graveyard of Americans

Fighters from the Iran-backed Houthi rebels stage a rally against the US and the UK strikes on Houthi-run military sites near Sanaa, Yemen, on January 14, 2024. (AP Photo)

In an interview with the Iranian state news agency IRNA, Houthi top official Ali al-Qahoum says that Yemen will turn into a “graveyard” for US forces.

“We tell the Americans that your actions against Yemen will be defeated and we will confront you with all of our power. After this aggression, Yemen will turn into the graveyard of the Americans and they will leave the region in humiliation,” al-Qahoum says, according to a translation provided by IRNA.

The statement comes after US and British forces launched two waves of strikes against Houthi-controlled sites on Friday, hitting over 60 targets in response to weeks of attacks by the Iran-backed Yemeni rebel group on commercial vessels.

The strikes reduced the Houthi’s offensive capabilities by 20 to 30 percent but failed to remove the threat, according to US officials who spoke with the New York Times.

Al-Qahoum adds that the US and its allies should expect “strategic blows and a more painful response,” and that Yemeni people and their leaders are ” fully prepared to enter a direct and all-out war with the Great Satan to defend Palestine,” referring to the United States.

Former IDF chief Kohavi says October 7 probe should examine decisions he made while in charge

Former IDF chief of staff Aviv Kohavi speaks during a ceremony at the Memorial hall for fallen soldiers on Mount Herzl, Jerusalem, January 15, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Former IDF chief of staff Aviv Kohavi, in his first remarks since the beginning of the war, takes responsibility for the actions he took as the military’s top general, saying they will need to be looked into as well as part of investigations into the October 7 onslaught.

“I am responsible for the decisions and actions taken in the IDF during my time as chief of staff, and I constantly ask myself what we could have done differently,” Kohavi says during a memorial event for the “Lamed Hey,” a convoy of 35 Hagana soldiers who were ambushed and killed in 1948.

“On October 7, the wall was completely breached, exposing cruelty the mind cannot comprehend. And hate that will not disappear in another generation,” Kohavi says.

“October 7 is both a shocking and a defining event, which requires a deep understanding and incisive investigations. The incident will have to be examined from all angles, in all areas, and with a multi-year perspective, and within that, of course, also the period in which I commanded the IDF,” Kohavi says.

“This is an incident that requires a learning process and professional and thorough investigations, which will have to take into account a broad and comprehensive view, looking into facts that are still missing, weighing classified details, and drawing reasoned, sharp and realistic conclusions,” he continues.

Kohavi says Israel will need to “re-examine the perception of war and security, along with peace and agreements.”

“This is not the War of Independence, but we will have to define and resurrect the national goals and their order of priority, and remember that security is the first and necessary condition for our existence here,” he adds.

Palestinian higher education ministry condemns arrest of Hamas-affiliated students in Nablus university

The Palestinian Ministry of Higher Education condemns the IDF’s overnight raid in an-Najah university in the West Bank city of Nablus, during which nine students affiliated with Hamas were arrested.

In a statement, the ministry says that Israel’s “continued violation of the sanctity of institutions of higher education is a violation of all international laws and conventions that guarantee the right to education in a safe environment.”

The ministry adds that the raid is the latest in a series of “crimes and violations” targeting universities and colleges in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and calls on regional and international organizations to “assume their responsibilities and limit the occupation’s infractions against academic students and staff.”

The IDF says that the suspects were nabbed by reservists of the elite Duvdevan unit and Border Police officers. In all, 17 wanted Palestinians were detained in overnight raids across the West Bank, the IDF says.

Since October 7, troops have arrested more than 2,650 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 1,300 affiliated with Hamas.

Turkey releases soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel pending trial

Israeli soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel has been released pending trial after he was arrested yesterday for a gesture he made to the Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza during a match, Turkish media reports.

In a statement to Turkish media earlier today, Jehezkel said he meant no disrespect and that he is “not a pro-war person.”

Gallant slams Turkey as hypocritical, ungrateful after arrest of Israeli soccer player

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant speaks with Israeli soldiers at a staging area not far from the Israeli-Gaza border, October 19, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant accuses Turkey of being ungrateful for Israeli aid the country has received in the past, following the arrest of Israeli soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel yesterday after he made a gesture in support of Israeli hostages held by Hamas during a match.

Jehezkel, who was arrested in Antalya, has said he “did not intend to provoke anyone” with his actions.

In a harsh criticism of Turkey, Gallant writes on X, formerly Twitter, “When there was an earthquake in Turkey less than a year ago, Israel was the first country to stand up and extend aid that saved the lives of many Turkish citizens.”

“The scandalous arrest of the soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel is an expression of hypocrisy and ingratitude. Through its actions, Turkey serves as the executive arm of Hamas,” Gallant adds.

Over 24,000 people killed in Gaza since start of war, Hamas-run health ministry says

A Palestinian looks at the destruction after an Israeli strike at a residential building in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, Sunday, January 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

A total of 24,100 Palestinians have been killed and 60,834 have been injured since the start of Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, the Hamas-run health ministry says.

It adds that some 132 Palestinians were killed and 252 injured in the past 24 hours.

The figures provided by the health ministry cannot be independently verified, and are believed to include both civilians and Hamas fighters killed in Gaza, including as a consequence of terror groups’ own rocket misfires.

The IDF says it has killed over 9,000 operatives in Gaza, in addition to some 1,000 terrorists inside Israel on October 7.

IDF says it arrested 9 Hamas-affiliated students at an-Najah University in Nablus

In an overnight raid in the West Bank city of Nablus, the IDF says troops detained nine Hamas members at an-Najah University.

The IDF says the suspects, members of Hamas student body at an-Najah, were nabbed by reservists of the elite Duvdevan unit and Border Police officers.

It says the arrests are part of efforts to foil planned terror attacks carried out by university students affiliated with Hamas.

◾ من اقتحام قوات الاحتلال لحرم جامعة النجاح القديم واعتقال الطلبة المعتصمين. pic.twitter.com/YEl9kFkQZx

— المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام (@PalinfoAr) January 15, 2024

In all, 17 wanted Palestinians were detained in overnight raids across the West Bank, the IDF says.

Since October 7, troops have arrested more than 2,650 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 1,300 affiliated with Hamas.

UK will ‘wait and see’ before deciding to conduct further strikes against Houthis in Yemen

Britain will “wait and see” before deciding to launch fresh military strikes against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen in order to protect international shipping, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps says.

“Let’s wait and see what happens because it’s not that we want to be involved in action in the Red Sea. But ultimately freedom of navigation is an international right that must be protected,” Shapps tells Sky News when asked if Britain would carry out more strikes.

Britain last week participated in US-led airstrikes across Yemen against Houthi forces in retaliation for months of attacks on Red Sea shipping, but was not involved the following day when US forces conducted a further strike.

Pacific nation of Nauru walks back recognition of Taiwan’s independence in win for Beijing

The tiny South Pacific nation of Nauru announces its decision to switch diplomatic ties from Taiwan to China, a move that bolsters Beijing’s ambitions in the region.

The Nauru government says it will no longer recognize Taiwan “as a separate country” but “rather as an inalienable part of China’s territory.”

China claims democratic, self-ruled Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to one day seize it, by force if needed.

Nauru will “sever diplomatic relations” with Taiwan immediately and “no longer develop any official relations or official exchanges with Taiwan,” the island state says in a presidential statement.

Following the switch, Taiwan’s foreign ministry says it is ending diplomatic relations with Nauru “to safeguard our national dignity.”

Nauru’s decision will likely be seen as a major coup for Beijing — it was one of the few countries left that officially recognized Taiwan on a diplomatic basis.

Advancement of Women’s Status Ministry to close, May Golan to fill role at Social Equality Ministry instead

Minister May Golan at the Knesset in Jerusalem on January 3, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

The government will shut down the short-lived Advancement of Women’s Status Ministry, Hebrew media reports, and appoint its minister, May Golan, to the role of social equality minister.

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli resigned from the Social Equality Ministry last week in an effort to limit government spending amid the ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.

The closure of the Advancement of Women’s Status Ministry will lead to the reopening of the Authority for the Advancement of the Status of Women, which prior to April 2023 was the sole government body responsible for women’s rights, reports add.

Senior Hamas officials flee Lebanon after killing of terror group deputy Arouri – report

Investigators stand in an apartment building where an alleged Israeli strike killed top Hamas terror chief Saleh Arouri, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Jan. 3, 2024. (AP/Hussein Malla)

Several Hamas officials who were living in Lebanon have fled to neighboring countries and other allies after Hamas deputy leader Saleh Arouri was killed in an alleged Israeli strike, the Kan public broadcaster reports.

Following the killing of Arouri in Beirut on January 2, some Hamas officials relocated to Turkey and Syria, the report states, while the terror group’s spokesman Ghazi Hamad has been in Cairo, Egypt since Arouri’s death and has supposedly not made any plans to return to Lebanon.

The explosion that killed Arouri has been widely attributed to Israel, while Israeli officials have declined to comment.

In addition to Arouri, six others were killed in the blast, including Hamas officials Mahmoud Shaheen, Muhammad Bashasha, Muhammad al-Rayes and Ahmed Hammoud.

IDF troops raid Hamas command center, destroy weapons depots in Khan Younis

IDF troops operate inside the Gaza Strip in this undated handout photo published on January 15, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

Troops of the 98th Division and Israeli Air Force foiled an attempt by Hamas to ferry weaponry in a truck to operatives in the Khan Younis area, the military says.

The IDF says the 98th Division spotted two Hamas operatives loading a truck with weapons and called in an airstrike. The truck was destroyed, along with the operatives who fled to a nearby building, it says.

Also in Khan Younis, the IDF says the 7th Armored Brigade raided a Hamas command center in the southern Gaza city, locating a cache of weapons. The IDF says the troops seized assault rifles, handguns, grenades, RPGs, and diving equipment belonging to Hamas’s naval forces.

Two more weapons depots were destroyed by the IDF in Khan Younis, and other caches of weapons were found in various buildings, including the home of a Hamas operative, it says.

Meanwhile, in northern Gaza, the IDF says surveillance soldiers spotted five Hamas operatives in an area where ground forces were operating, and called in an airstrike, killing all five.

בחאן יונס כוחות אוגדה 98 זיהו שני מחבלים שמעמיסים אמל״ח על משאית. כלי טיס של חה״א, בהכוונת מרכז האש האוגדתי, תקף את המשאית, השמיד את האמל״ח וחיסל את המחבלים שנמלטו למבנה סמוך>> pic.twitter.com/2lgoeZqRGh

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) January 15, 2024

IDF raids An-Najah National University in Nablus – Palestinian reports

Israeli security forces arrested a number of students during a raid on the An-Najah National University campus overnight, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reports.

According to Wafa, the overnight raid marks the first time that Israeli forces have entered the university in over 30 years.

Footage shared on social media appears to depict a military vehicle arriving at what the posters say is the university, while other footage shows soldiers entering what is said to be the university campus.

IDF ???????? Forces in Nablus: ,,,,, pic.twitter.com/J7t0HZBtDJ

— Nagi N. Najjar (@NagiNajjar) January 15, 2024

According to reports, the two Palestinians who breached a roadblock and opened fire at troops near the West Bank settlement of Metzad yesterday were both students at the university.

There is no immediate comment from the Israel Defense Forces.

URGENTE: Fuerzas de ocupación israelíes irrumpen en la Universidad de Al-Najah, en Nablus, en la Cisjordania ocupada y secuestran a estudiantes palestinos. pic.twitter.com/ZnVDzCjiF6

— Palestina Hoy (@HoyPalestina) January 15, 2024

Israeli soccer player arrested in Turkey on incitement charges to be brought before judge

Israeli soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel who was arrested in Turkey last night over a gesture he made during a game to the Israeli hostages to mark a somber 100 days in Hamas captivity, will be brought before a judge this morning, Turkish media reports.

Jehezkel was arrested on charges of “inciting people to hatred and hostility,” after celebrating an equalizer goal in Sunday’s 1-1 draw for Antalyaspor against Trabzonspor in the top Turkish league by making a heart sign with his hands to the camera, and showed the words “100 days. October 7” along with a Star of David symbol on his wristband.

He was promptly suspended from the team, amid wider calls to terminate his contract, and the Turkish justice minister announced an incitement probe against the player.

Jehezkel was cited by Ynet as telling his team’s leadership that all he wanted to do was “offer a humanitarian gesture to the Israeli hostages in Gaza.”

“It was important for me to point out that they have been in captivity for 100 days. I had no intention of making a provocation or expressing a position… I know the sensitivity in Turkey,” he said, according to the report.

In a post on X Sunday night, Sinan Boztepe, the president of the Antalyaspor Turkish club, said that Jehezkel had “acted against the sensitivities of Antalya, Antalyaspor and our country.”

Australian FM calls for ‘sustainable ceasefire’ at start of Middle East tour

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong speaks in Jakarta, Indonesia, July 13, 2023. (Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana/Pool Photo via AP)

Australia’s foreign minister calls for a “sustainable ceasefire” in Gaza as she leaves for a Middle East tour on Monday that includes a visit to the West Bank and meetings with the families of Israeli hostages.

Penny Wong said she would use the visits to Jordan, Israel, the West Bank and the United Arab Emirates to advocate for a pathway out of the current conflict and a lasting peace in the form of a two-state solution.

Australia would also use its voice to push for more humanitarian assistance, greater protection of civilians and a de-escalation of regional tensions, she added.

“Our position is that we want to see a sustainable ceasefire and that we see an international humanitarian, immediate humanitarian ceasefire as a step towards that,” Wong said at a news conference ahead of her departure Monday.

“No ceasefire can be one sided and no ceasefire can be unconditional.”

Australia backed a UN resolution for a Gaza ceasefire in December in a rare split with its ally, the US.

During her first stop in Israel, Wong will meet with government officials and families of hostages and survivors of the October 7 Hamas onslaught, when terrorists killed 1,200 people and took some 240 hostages.

Australia supported Israel’s right to defend itself in response to “terrorism” but “the way it does so, matters,” Wong said in a statement that also called for the unconditional release of all hostages.

Wong will then travel to Jordan before visiting the West Bank, where she will meet representatives of communities affected by violence from Israeli settlers. Australia considers settlements illegal under international law.

“I will make clear Australia’s support for Palestinians’ right to self-determination and commitment to meeting humanitarian needs in Gaza and the West Bank,” she said.

“I will also emphasize Australia’s opposition to the forcible displacement of Palestinians and our view that Gaza must no longer be used as a platform for terrorism,” he said.

US says it shot down anti-ship cruise missile from Houthi-controlled areas

US fighter aircraft shot down an anti-ship cruise missile fired from Iranian-backed Houthi militant areas of Yemen toward the USS Laboon, which was operating in the Southern Red Sea, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) says.

There were no injuries or damage reported, according to CENTCOM.

Blinken: US will not rest until all remaining hostages brought home

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken vows the US “will not rest” until all remaining hostages taken from southern Israel by Hamas terrorists on October 7 are back home, marking the 100th day since their abduction to Gaza and the first day of the war.

“100 days of captivity in Gaza is far too long,” tweets Blinken. “The United States will not rest until all remaining hostages, including six Americans, are reunited with their loved ones.”

Earlier, US President Joe Biden said on the 100th day since October 7 that America is still working to bring home the “more than 100 innocent people, including as many as six Americans, who are still held being hostage by Hamas in Gaza.”

In a statement marking the somber anniversary, Biden said that “their families have lived in agony,” and at the same time, they have been “at the forefront of my mind as my national security team and I have worked non-stop to try to secure their freedom.”

Biden said his administration has “pursued aggressive diplomacy to bring the hostages home,” lauding the deal in late November under which more than 100 hostages were freed.

“I will never forget the grief and the suffering I have heard in my meetings with the families of the American hostages,” he added. “No one should have to endure even one day of what they have gone through, much less 100. On this terrible day, I again reaffirm my pledge to all the hostages and their families — we are with you. We will never stop working to bring Americans home.”

‘Shame on you’: Former PM Bennett slams Turkey over arrest of Israeli soccer player

Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett blasts the reported arrest tonight of Israeli soccer player Sagiv Jehezkel, of the Antalyaspor club, as part of an alleged incitement probe opened by Turkish authorities over a gesture made earlier by Jehezkel on TV for the Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

“This is Turkey 2024. Shame on you, Turkish government,” tweets Bennett, calling the arrest “unbelievable.”

Jehezkel, 28, was suspended from the team after he celebrated an equalizer goal in Sunday’s 1-1 draw against Trabzonspor in the top Turkish league by making a heart sign with his hands to the camera, and showing the words “100 days. October 7” along with a Star of David symbol on his wristband. 100 is the number of days the hostages have been in the Palestinian terror group’s captivity.

The gesture was met with fierce backlash from fans and Turkish media.

Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc announced an investigation against Jehezkel for charges of “inciting people to hatred and hostility.”

Hebrew media reported Sunday night that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been updated on the events and that the Prime Minister’s Office together with the Foreign Ministry and the Culture and Sports Ministry were working to push Turkey for Jehezkel’s release.

‘Irrelevant whether Houthis are designated’ as terrorists, Biden says, dampening speculation he’ll take step

Forces loyal to Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis take part in a mass funeral for fighters killed in battles with Saudi-backed government troops, in Yemen's capital Sanaa, on April 8, 2021. (Mohammed Huwais/AFP)

US President Joe Biden appears to dampen expectations that he will designate the Houthis as a terror organization two days after calling the Iran-backed rebel group ruling Yemen a terror group.

“It’s irrelevant whether they’re designated,” Biden tells reporters at an event in Pennsylvania in response to a question regarding whether he would take that step after intensifying his rhetoric against the Houthis.

During his first year in office, Biden removed the Houthis’ terror listing amid pressure from progressives who argued that it was harming efforts to deliver humanitarian aid in Yemen.

The administration said it decided to review that decision in November against the backdrop of repeated attacks by Houthis on international vessels in the Red Sea, which the rebel group claims are taken in solidarity with Palestinians after October 7.

No update has been offered since then, but Biden’s affirmation to a question regarding whether he considers the Houthis a terror group led many to assume the administration was leaning toward slapping the terror label back on. The president’s remarks came hours after the US led airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen for the first time in years.

China calls for large-scale peace conference on Israel-Hamas war

China Foreign Minister Wang Yi says the war in Gaza continues to escalate and China is calling for a larger-scale, more authoritative and effective international peace conference and a concrete timetable to implement a two-state solution.

Wang made the comments to reporters after talks with the Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry in Cairo, sharing his views on the Israel-Hamas war, according to a statement from the Chinese foreign ministry late on Sunday.

In a press conference with Shoukry, the top Chinese diplomat said “it is necessary to insist on the establishment of an independent, fully sovereign state of Palestine on the 1967 borders, with east Jerusalem as its capital.”

Shoukry and Wang called for “an international summit for peace to find a just, comprehensive and lasting solution to the Palestinian cause by ending the occupation and establishing an independent, contiguous Palestinian state.”

A joint statement from the two ministers urged an immediate end “to all acts of violence, killing and targeting of civilians and civilian establishments.”

Wang additionally discussed the conflict with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, according to Chinese state media Xinhua, with both sides agreeing a ceasefire “should be achieved as soon as possible to prevent the conflict from further spilling over.”

Chinese President Xi Jinping has previously called for an “international peace conference” to resolve the fighting.

China has historically been sympathetic to the Palestinian cause and supportive of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Wang is currently on an African tour that will see him also visit Togo, Tunisia and Ivory Coast.