Live updates (closed)
The Times of Israel liveblogged Tuesday’s events as they unfolded.
More than 10,000 join opposition rally in Istanbul
Dilek Kaya Imamoglu (R), the wife of Istanbul's arrested mayor Ekrem Imanoglu, and Ozgur Ozel (2L), leader of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) wave during a rally called by CHP in support of Imanoglu in Maltepe, on the outskirts of Istanbul on March 29, 2025. (KEMAL ASLAN / AFP)
At least 10,000 people join an opposition rally at Istanbul City Hall on the 100th day since the city’s popular mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, was jailed in what critics say was a politically-motivated graft probe.
The rally came hours after police rounded up more than 120 people linked to City Hall in Izmir, an opposition stronghold and Turkey’s third city, in the latest move targeting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s opponents.
The early-morning arrests were part of a probe into alleged graft, and followed similar lines to the March 19 operation in opposition-run Istanbul when hundreds were arrested, including Imamoglu, Erdogan’s main political rival.
Imamoglu’s removal sparked a wave of mass protests with hundreds of thousands rallying outside City Hall, also known as Sarachane, at the urging of the main opposition CHP, which also called Tuesday’s protest.
“Today, we are all together at the very place where everything began… this struggle is against fascism, this is the fight for freedom,” CHP leader Ozgur Ozel shouts, addressing the crowd in his trademark husky voice. “On March 19, you stood shoulder to shoulder in Sarachane. You shouted for justice. You stood for your will. You stood behind the one you elected… I am proud of every one of you.”
Arab diplomats deny Qatar has submitted a new hostage deal proposal
Families of Israelis held hostage in Gaza, rally outside the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on July 1, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
Two Arab diplomats from separate countries deny reports in Hebrew media that were attributed to anonymous Israeli officials claiming that Qatar has submitted a new hostage deal proposal.
The diplomats tell The Times of Israel that the mediators are still waiting for an Israeli response to a proposal from two weeks ago, which sought to bridge between the Israeli-influenced Witkoff proposal and Hamas’s response to that offer.
Australian nurses who said they’d kill Israeli patients handed 2-year ban
Screen capture from an undated video of Israeli influencer Max Veifer during a conversation with two nurses from a hospital in Sydney, Australia. (X: Used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
Two Australian nurses who threatened to kill Israeli patients in a viral video earlier this year have been banned for two years from working under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
The two had been suspended from work in February after the video first surfaced. They have also been charged with federal offenses and are due to appear in court on July 29.
On February 12, Israeli influencer Max Veifer posted online a video chat he had with a male and a female nurse at a Sydney hospital, identified as Ahmad Rashad Nadir and Sarah Abu Lebdeh.
After Veifer told them he was from Israel in the chat, Nadir responded, “I’m so upset that you’re Israeli… eventually you’re going to get killed and go to [hell].”
Abu Lebdeh said she would not treat any Israeli patients and instead would kill them. Nadir, with a threatening gesture, said he had already sent many “Israeli dog[s],” who visited the hospital, to “Jahannam,” the term for Islamic hell in Arabic.
The video sparked outrage across Australia and the Jewish world after it was released.
NDIS provides medical services for Australians with significant and permanent disabilities under 65 years old.
Two NSW healthcare nurses from Bankstown Hospital were stood down and are under investigation by police after claiming on camera they killed Israeli patients. This horrific incident raises urgent concerns: How many individuals like this work in other Australian hospitals?… pic.twitter.com/F0ywNhQdtK
— Piazza Victoria (@Piazza_VIC) February 11, 2025
EU says negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program should ‘restart as soon as possible’
This handout picture provided by the Iranian foreign ministry shows Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi at the funeral of Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Hossein Salami and other military commanders, who were killed in Israeli strikes, on June 28, 2025. (Iranian Foreign Ministry / AFP)
The EU’s top diplomat tells Iran’s foreign minister that Brussels is willing to facilitate a return to negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program after US and Israeli strikes.
“Negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program should restart as soon as possible,” and “cooperation” with the International Atomic Energy Agency must resume, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas writes on X after a phone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. “The EU is ready to facilitate this.”
Kallas further warns Tehran that “any threats to pull out of the non-proliferation treaty don’t help to lower tensions.”
The call came after Araghchi ruled out a quick resumption of talks with the United States and said Tehran will first need assurances it will not be attacked again.
The United States and Iran were holding nuclear talks when Israel hit Iranian nuclear sites and military infrastructure. The United States joined the campaign by bombing three nuclear sites — Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan — on June 21.
IDF military court judge questioned over sexual harassment claims
A judge at an IDF military court has been questioned over accusations of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior, the military confirms, declining to provide any further details.
A military source says that the judge in question has not been arrested, and that his identity is under a gag order. He was released following his questioning.
According to Hebrew media reports, the judge is the president of a military court with the rank of colonel, and is married with young children.
After missile attack, Katz threatens Houthis: ‘Yemen will be treated like Tehran’
Defense Minister Israel Katz speaks to reporters at the site of an Iranian missile impact in Holon, June 19, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Following tonight’s missile launch from Yemen — which was successfully intercepted by the Israeli Air Force — Defense Minister Israel Katz issues a stark warning to the Iran-backed Houthis.
“Yemen will be treated like Tehran. After striking the head of the snake in Tehran, we will also strike the Houthis in Yemen,” Katz says, adding, “whoever raises a hand against Israel — that hand will be cut off.”
After quitting his party, Gadi Eisenkot says he believes he can hold ‘any role in the State of Israel’
Outgoing National Unity MK Gadi Eisenkot holds a press conference in Tel Aviv, July 1, 2025. (Erik Marmor/Flash90)
Speaking with reporters in Tel Aviv following his decision to leave Benny Gantz’s National Unity party, outgoing MK Gadi Eisenkot says that while the two former IDF chiefs of staff have worked together for many years and respect each other, their differences eventually drove them apart politically.
“For many months now, I have been working in every way to organize and strengthen the bloc of Zionist, national, liberal and statesmanlike parties, to present a governing alternative and bring about elections and victory, as soon as possible,” Eisenkot says.
“My joint service and friendship with Benny Gantz goes back many years, but there are also differences of opinion,” he continues, adding that his former party “needed a transparent and deep democratization process.”
“Unfortunately, this did not happen,” and contributed to his decision to quit, he says, calling his former colleagues “wonderful people” whom he is convinced he will “continue to work together with to create a better future.”
National Unity recently announced that it would hold leadership primaries, although these would not extend to choosing the party’s electoral list.
“My thought was that we needed to build a leadership alternative that would bring about victory in the next elections,” Eisenkot continues, dismissing media reports about deep ideological differences with Gantz, including over whether or not to boycott Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or eventually sit with him in a government.
When asked if his exit from Gantz’s party was related to a dispute over whether or not they would consider sitting with Netanyahu in the future, Eisenkot replies that “it has nothing to do with Prime Minister Netanyahu,” adding that “everyone who was in a central position [on October 7] must resign.”
“I decided to resign from the Knesset and do the right thing to return the mandate as should have happened in clean politics,” Eisenkot says, noting that fellow party MK Matan Kahana, who is sitting nearby, had chosen to do the same.
Asked if he sees himself as fit to serve as prime minister, Eisenkot replies that he believes he “can fill any role in the State of Israel.”
Queried regarding reports that he is in talks with both former prime minister Naftali Bennett and Yesh Atid chairman Yair Lapid, Eisenkot replies that he respects both and that he “meets regularly” with Bennett.
However, he has not spoken about a political union with either, and “they were not connected in any way to this process,” he says, adding that he wants “to lead a process that will bring together all the democratic Zionist parties.”
Asked by The Times of Israel if he intends to establish his own party, he hedges, merely stating that “the goal is to replace this bad government and establish a Zionist, national, statesmanlike, democratic alternative” and that he “will do whatever it takes to achieve the goal.”
UN special rapporteur on Palestinian territories accuses Israel of ‘economy of genocide’
UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights Situation in the Palestinian Territories Francesca Albanese holds a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark on February 5, 2025. (James Brooks / AFP)
The UN’s special rapporteur on the Palestinian territories issues a report accusing Israel of an “economy of genocide,” and accuses major US and international corporations of ostensible complicity.
“Israel’s settler-colonial occupation has transformed into an insidious, bureaucratic and militarized regime of destruction — a calculated economy of genocide,” writes Francesca Albanese in “From Economy of Occupation to Economy of Genocide.”
Albanese has come under harsh criticism from both the Biden and Trump administrations. She has said that the “Jewish lobby” controls the US, repeatedly compared Israelis to Nazis, rejected antisemitic motivations for Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, blamed Israel for the invasion, rejected Israeli security concerns, condemned Israel’s killing of Hamas terror chief Yahya Sinwar, and denied Israel’s right to self defense, among other inflammatory statements.
Albanese names defense giants Lockheed Martin, RTX Corporation, General Dynamics, BAE Systems and Boeing for their sale of weapons to Israel. She singles out Caterpillar and Hyundai for selling engineering equipment used to demolish Palestinian homes.
Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft, IBM and Palantir supply AI platforms, analytics and cloud infrastructure that aid Israeli intelligence gathering, she claims.
She also points at major banks — Bank of America, BlackRock, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase and Barclays — for investing in Israeli bonds, allowing Israel to wage war.
“Ms. Albanese’s report is yet another example of her repeated misuse of her mandate to advance a political agenda rather than to uphold the universal principles of human rights,” the World Jewish Congress says in a statement.
“The report promotes a deeply biased narrative that ignores the complex realities on the ground — including the ongoing threat of terrorism faced by Israeli civilians and the continued captivity of over 50 hostages held by Hamas — and lacks the neutrality, rigor, and fairness expected of any UN report,” WJC adds. “Particularly outrageous is the targeting of companies operating within Israel’s internationally recognized borders, which is a clear attempt to delegitimize the very existence of the Jewish state under the guise of human rights.”
Trump threatens to arrest anti-Israel NYC mayoral candidate Mamdani
Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani speaks at his primary election party, in New York City, June 25, 2025. (AP/Heather Khalifa)
US President Donald Trump threatens to arrest New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani.
Trump is asked at a press conference about Mamdani’s plan to oppose Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activities in New York City.
“We’ll have to arrest him,” Trump says. “We don’t need a communist in this country, but if we have one, I’m going to be watching over him very carefully on behalf of the nation.”
“We send him money, we send him all the things that he needs to run a government,” Trump says.
President Trump on if Zohran Mamdani doesn't cooperate with ICE: "Well, then we'll have to arrest him. We don't need a communist in this country, but if we have one I'm going to be watching over him very carefully on behalf of the nation." pic.twitter.com/oqV7POiClL
— CSPAN (@cspan) July 1, 2025
The president also threatens to reduce federal funding to New York City.
“We’re going to be watching that very carefully and a lot of people are saying he’s here illegally. We’re going to look at everything and ideally he’s going to turn out to be much less than a communist but right now he’s a communist, that’s not a socialist,” he says.
Mamdani was born in Uganda to Indian parents and became a US citizen in 2018. He is a member of the far-left Democratic Socialists of America party that has made anti-Israel activism one of its planks.
Trump praises New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who will compete against Mamdani in the city’s general election in November.
“Mayor Adams is a very good person. I helped him out a little bit, he had a problem and he was unfairly hurt over this question,” he says, calling corruption allegations against Adams a “phony indictment.”
Adams has friendly ties with Trump, who is unpopular in New York City. Federal corruption charges against Adams were dismissed in April, which the judge in the case said “smacks of a bargain” between Adams and the Trump administration.
After latest Houthi missile, Huckabee suggests ‘B2 bombers need to visit Yemen’
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee attends a special ceremony for a new bulletproof ambulance donated by the Harvest Christian Fellowship to Magen David Adom, at the Tower of David, in the Old City of Jerusalem, June 1, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
After the latest Houthi missile launch at Israel, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee writes, “Maybe those B2 bombers need to visit Yemen!”
Huckabee has stated in the past that he doesn’t seek to set policy for the Trump administration, but rather aims to implement whatever the president decides.
Trump reached an agreement with the Houthis last month whereby the US agreed to halt its attacks against the Yemeni rebel group in exchange for an end to the latter’s targeting of American vessels.
The US used B-2 bombers to carry out strikes early last week against several targets in Iran.
Putin tells Macron Iran has the ‘right’ to develop ‘peaceful’ nuclear program
French President Emmanuel Macron, left, talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting at the fort of Bregancon in Bormes-les-Mimosas, southern France, on August 19, 2019. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin tells his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron in a phone call that Moscow’s ally Iran has a “right” to develop a peaceful nuclear program, the Kremlin says.
Putin emphasizes “the lawful right of Tehran in developing a peaceful nuclear [program],” according to the Kremlin transcript of the call.
It adds that both presidents agreed that the conflict over Iran’s nuclear program and other Middle Eastern conflicts should be solved “exclusively” by diplomatic means and that the two leaders would “continue contacts” on this.
Macron “emphasized the urgent need” for Iran to comply with its obligations under the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty,” in particular by cooperating fully with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), whose inspectors must be able to resume their work without delay,” the French readout says.
The French leader also “expressed his determination to seek a diplomatic solution that would allow for a lasting and demanding settlement of the nuclear issue, the question of Iran’s missiles and its role in the region.”
The two leaders held their first telephone conversation since 2022, and their conversation largely centered on Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Netanyahu said finally showing signs he is ready to end Gaza war; IDF chief said to tell ministers, ‘Hamas is dead’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seen outside his office at the Knesset on June 11, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
For the first time, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is showing signs that he prefers a deal to end the war in Gaza soon, cabinet members tell Channel 12.
The network reports that indirect talks with Hamas could restart in the coming days, while Netanyahu is in Washington, meeting with US President Donald Trump.
There is real, tangible US pressure on Qatar, and Qatari pressure on Hamas, officials tell Channel 12. “We are more optimistic. There are solutions being put together, and more positive approach to moving forward,” says the official.
Israel is showing more flexibility now about wording on the end of the war, according to the outlet.
In the cabinet discussion on the Gaza war earlier today, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir engaged in a spirited debate with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir over the future of the campaign.
Zamir told them that “Hamas is dead” after it fired only one rocket during the campaign against Iran, Channel 12 reports. They pushed for a more aggressive implementation of Trump’s relocation plan for Gazans.
Zamir told the two ministers that conquering the entire Gaza Strip would endanger the lives of the hostages, in addition to possible violations of international law.
In the debate, according to the outlet, Netanyahu insisted that the war would not end before Hamas is defeated. However, Netanyahu could define a defeat of Hamas in a way that allows him to end the war in the coming weeks, says the report.
Missile fired from Yemen was intercepted by Israeli Air Force, says military
The IDF reports that a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted by the Israeli Air Force a short while ago.
Sirens sounded in multiple areas across the country, including most of Jerusalem, Ben Gurion Airport, Modiin, Rishon Lezion and some West Bank settlements, as air defense systems responded to the threat.
According to the military, the alerts were activated in line with established policy. No injuries or damage have been reported.
Sirens triggered across country, as IDF works to intercept Houthi missile
The IDF says rocket sirens were activated in several areas across central Israel, following a missile launch from Yemen.
The circumstances are currently under investigation, and defense systems remain on high alert.
Residents are advised to continue following Home Front Command instructions.
Missile launched from Yemen toward Israel, sirens expected, says IDF
The IDF reports that a missile was launched from Yemen toward Israeli territory a short while ago. Air defense systems have been activated in response and are working to intercept the threat.
Residents are urged to follow the instructions of the Home Front Command as the situation develops. Further updates will be provided as more information becomes available.
After quitting Gantz’s party, Kahana confirms he’s in talks with Bennett
MK Matan Kahana attends a plenary session at the Knesset on May 7, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Speaking with The Times of Israel ahead of a press conference in Tel Aviv, National Unity MK Matan Kahana says that he is in touch with former prime minister Naftali Bennett, in whose party he used to serve, and will try to broker a political alliance between him and fellow National Unity lawmaker Gadi Eisenkot.
Both Kahana and Eisenkot announced their resignations from Benny Gantz’s centrist party over the past day and Eisenkot is slated to deliver a message to the press shortly.
IDF intercepts two rockets fired from Gaza at southern Israel
Following the rocket sirens that sounded earlier in communities near the Gaza border, the IDF says the Air Force successfully intercepted two rockets launched from southern Gaza.
No injuries were reported in the incident.
IDF chief in Syria: We must ‘keep our eyes open at all times’
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir (center) tours Syria alongside senior commanders from the IDF's Northern Command, July 1, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir conducted a field tour and security assessment in Syria, alongside senior commanders from the IDF’s Northern Command, including chief of the Northern Command Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin and commander of the 210th Division Brig. Gen. Yair Palai, the military says.
“We must remain highly alert and keep our eyes open at all times,” Zamir says, stressing the importance of proactive defense in the Golan Heights. “We will strike wherever needed against any real or emerging threat.”
The chief of staff also notes Israel’s ongoing multi-front campaign against Iranian forces and proxies in the region, reaffirming the military’s determination to continue targeting terrorist groups such as Hezbollah.
During the visit, Zamir meets with reservists stationed along the border and praises their dedication.
“I view the reserve force as a national asset,” he says. “When people ask me about our strength, I know that a significant part of our national power lies in the reserve forces — you show up time and again.”
The IDF says it continues to hold key strategic positions beyond the Syrian border and will act as needed to ensure the country’s security.
German appearance by Bob Vylan canceled after rap duo’s ‘death to the IDF’ chant
The Bob Vylan duo performs on the West Holts Stage, during the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset. England, June 28, 2025. (Yui Mok/PA via AP)
A German music venue says that a planned performance by rap duo Bob Vylan will not take place after its frontman led an anti-Israel chant at the Glastonbury festival.
The group were due to open for the band Gogol Bordello on a European tour this autumn, but the venue in Cologne, the Live Music Hall, says in a post on its Instagram account: “The band ‘Bob Vylan’ will NOT perform as a support act on 13.09.2025!”
An employee at the venue who did not wish to be named tells AFP that “we decided together with local organizers that [Bob Vylan] will not perform here after the media uproar,” which followed their set at Glastonbury.
The concert by Gogol Bordello “will, according to our information, still take place,” she says.
Yesterday, British police said they were launching a criminal investigation into remarks made by Bob Vylan and fellow rap group Kneecap at the festival in southwestern England.
London-based Bob Vylan, who often tackle racism in their tracks, were slammed by international and British politicians after they led the crowds in chants of “Death to the IDF.” The BBC, which broadcast the festival, later apologized for not pulling the live stream of the band’s set.
Air raid sirens sound in several communities near Gaza border
The IDF says sirens were activated a short while ago in communities near the Gaza border, including Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak and the town of Mivtahim.
The circumstances behind the alerts are currently under investigation. Further details to follow.
High Court pushes AG and PM’s office to find solution to rift over appointing next Shin Bet chief
Supreme Court President Isaac Amit (center), Justice Alex Stein (left) and Justice Gila Canfy Steinitz at a Supreme Court hearing on petitions over whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can appoint the head of the Shin Bet, July 1, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
The High Court of Justice tells Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs and the Attorney General’s Office to take extra time to find a mutually-agreeable solution to the question of whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may nominate the next Shin Bet chief.
The judges order the two sides to appear before them again in a hearing on July 6 to update the court on where they stand.
Following the end of a lengthy hearing in the court today, Fuchs relayed information regarding security issues pertaining to the appointment of a new head of the Shin Bet to the three judges presiding over the case, and in the presence of representatives of the attorney general.
The court says following that closed-door session that it agreed to the request of both sides to allow more time to reach an agreement.
“We are hopeful that an agreed-upon resolution will be found which will avoid a ruling on the petitions under consideration,” the court says.
During the hearing, Judges Alex Stein and Gila Canfy Steinitz were strongly critical of the attorney general’s position that Netanyahu cannot nominate a new Shin Bet chief due to a conflict of interest she said he has owing to the ongoing criminal investigations into his close aides being conducted by the Shin Bet and the police.
The two judges said that other solutions were available other than barring the prime minister outright from making the nomination. High Court President Isaac Amit said, however, that he was troubled by the involvement of the prime minister in the nomination process due to the conflict of interest.
Netanyahu continues discussions on ceasefire deal ahead of Washington trip
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the start of a cabinet meeting on July 1, 2025 (Screen grab/GPO)
Discussions in the Prime Minister’s Office are ongoing this evening on attempts to reach a hostage release deal with Hamas, as Israel sees some progress.
“There is a positive dynamic and lively activity on the issue of negotiations,” a senior official tells The Times of Israel.
No decision has yet been made on sending a delegation to talks in Cairo, an Israeli official tells Israel Hayom.
Channel 12 also reports that there is “some progress” in contacts with mediating countries around a potential ceasefire deal with Hamas.
The discussions take place as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is planning to fly to Washington next week to meet with US President Donald Trump at the White House.
Dermer in White House for meetings ahead of Netanyahu visit
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer speaks at the Jewish News Syndicate conference in Jerusalem, on April 28, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer is meeting today with senior Trump administration officials in Washington, a White House official confirms.
“Ron Dermer visits the White House regularly. This will continue as President Trump pursues a path to peace for Israel and Gaza,” the official tells The Times of Israel.
Dermer is reportedly slated to meet with US special envoy Steve Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Vice President JD Vance.
Knesset committee votes to advance bill expanding authority of rabbinical courts
The Tel Aviv Rabbinical Court seen on August 3, 2017. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90)
The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee votes to advance a bill expanding the authority of rabbinical courts to arbitrate between litigants in civil matters for the first of the three readings needed for it to pass into law.
The legislation, sponsored by lawmakers from the ultra-Orthodox Shas and United Torah Judaism parties, would allow religious courts to arbitrate if the parties involved consent. Committee chairman Simcha Rothman (Religious Zionism) argues that expanding the courts’ authority would bring them in line with private rabbinical courts and arbiters.
However, critics assert that the bill would create a power imbalance that’s harmful to weaker segments of society.
“We welcome the opportunity for those who choose to resolve civil disputes in rabbinical courts to do so within a clear legal framework. However, the present legislation doesn’t ensure that participation is fully voluntary, that no one — especially employees or vulnerable individuals — is pressured into religious arbitration,” Rabbi Seth Farber, the director of the ITIM nonprofit, which helps Israelis navigate their country’s religious bureaucracy, tells The Times of Israel.
“Safeguards that guarantee equality and fairness are necessary. At a time when rabbinical courts are overwhelmed by their present responsibilities and people are more and more disaffected by the divorce process, we should not be expanding their jurisdiction,” he continues.
Rabbinical courts were allowed to act as arbitrators in financial disputes until 2006, after a court determined that they had no standing to do so. A survey released by ITIM earlier this year found that more than half of Israelis who appeared before a rabbinical court in the past five years feel they have been wronged during the procedure.
Hamas unlikely to cede demand that war can’t be restarted after ceasefire, says diplomat
Palestinians check the rubble at the grounds of the Yaffa School building in the Tuffah neighbourhood of Gaza City following overnight Israeli strikes, on June 30, 2025. (Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
Hamas is unlikely to budge from its demand for guarantees from the mediators that Israel cannot restart the war once a ceasefire has been reached, an Arab diplomat familiar with the matter tells The Times of Israel.
The diplomat says characterization of a split between a more hardline Gaza-based Hamas leadership and a more moderate leadership abroad is exaggerated, as both are in agreement about the need for a permanent ceasefire.
Talk of Israeli flexibility on other issues will mean little if Israel insists on maintaining an ability to resume fighting once a ceasefire is in place, the Arab diplomat says.
Iran warns against ‘destructive approach’ of European countries
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks during a press conference at on the sideline of the 51st session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), in Istanbul on June 22, 2025. (OZAN KOSE / AFP)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warns in a phone call with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas against what he calls the “destructive approach” of several European countries, he says in a statement on Telegram.
Araghchi also criticizes the stance of some European countries over the recent 12-day war between Israel and Iran, saying they were supportive of Israel and the United States. He does not specify which countries he had in mind.
Trump says he will be ‘very firm’ with Netanyahu on ending the war in Gaza
US President Donald Trump speaks with the media outside a new migrant detention facility, July 1, 2025, in Ochopee, Florida. (AP/Evan Vucci)
US President Donald Trump tells reporters he’s going to be “very firm” with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the need to end the war in Gaza during the Israeli premier’s visit to the White House next week, “but he wants it too.”
Trump reiterates his belief that a ceasefire and hostage release deal will be reached shortly. “I think we’ll have a deal next week,” he says. Last week, he predicted that a deal would be reached this week.
Trump also says Netanyahu’s visit, set for Monday, will be a celebration of the US and Israeli strikes on Iran during the 12-day conflict, which ended last week.
The US president says questions about just how big an impact the operations had in setting back Iran’s nuclear program are demeaning to the US pilots who carried out strikes on three key nuclear facilities: “We should celebrate these heroes,” Trump says.
Government approves compensation plan for businesses impacted by Iran conflict
The scene where a ballistic missile fired from Iran hit and caused damage in Tel Aviv, June 16, 2025. (Erik Marmor/Flash90)
The government greenlights a plan for compensating businesses and their employees who were financially impacted by Israel’s 12-day war with Iran.
Spearheaded by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the plan provides grants for small businesses and partial reimbursements for expenses and wages at medium and large companies that suffered revenue losses during May or June.
Businesses with an annual revenue of NIS 12,000 ($3,552) to NIS 400 million ($118 million) will be compensated. According to earlier reports, businesses that saw a 25% decrease or more in revenues during the war would be compensated from the Property Tax Compensation Fund.
The plan also includes tailored adjustments to the model to support employees placed on unpaid leave due to the war. They are to receive payments from the National Insurance Institute and not be forced to use any of their vacation days.
The Finance Ministry says the goal is to provide “as broad a safety net as possible” and ensure continuity, particularly for smaller businesses.
“Our message to the citizens of Israel is clear: we defeated Iran on the battlefield and we will win economically as well,” says Smotrich in a statement. “A strong economy is an inseparable part of national security, and the implementation of this compensation plan for businesses across the country proves that the State of Israel not only stands firm — it stands with its citizens. We will continue to strengthen our economic resilience and act with responsibility, determination and solidarity.”
The Knesset still needs to approve the plan, but once it does so, and VAT reports are submitted for the relevant period, the Tax Authority will open the online system for filing claims.
After two MKs quit, Gantz’s National Unity party to revert to Blue and White name
Then-defense minister Benny Gantz leads a Blue and White faction meeting at the Knesset on June 6, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/ Flash90)
Following the resignations of MKs Gadi Eisenkot and Matan Kahana, the National Unity party will revert to the original name of Benny Gantz’s Blue and White faction, a spokesman announces.
The rebranded party will begin a new advertising campaign focused on “the need for agreements and unity between all parts of Israeli society” and will feature the tagline “Israel is moving toward agreements.”
“We are continuing the journey we have been on from day one — to connect and unite the entirety of Israeli society. Especially now, after the tragedy of the October 7 attacks, after [wars against] Hezbollah and Iran — it is time to move toward agreements and heal the wounds. No more camps, we are all blue and white,” says Gantz.
Eisenkot and Kahana are set to be replaced in the Knesset by Eitan Ginsburg and Yael Ron Ben-Moshe.
4 Arab Israelis arrested in Ramallah on suspicion of murdering security guard in Lod
Security forces last night arrested four Arab Israelis who fled to Ramallah after allegedly murdering a security guard in Lod last week, police announce.
The four are suspected of involvement in the shooting of 54-year-old Pavel Rozov, who was on his way to work at the city’s police station Friday evening when he was hit with a round of bullets, killing him instantly.
IDF soldiers and police officers in the police force’s Yamam counterrorism unit arrested the four suspects based on intelligence provided by the Shin Bet, a law enforcement spokesman says.
Officers detained the suspects for interrogation in the Central District police’s investigations and intelligence unit. They will be brought to court later today where cops will request to extend their remand.
Police previously announced Saturday that they arrested five others on suspicion of involvement in the murder, including two women, who were probed for allegedly aiding Rozov’s killers.
Berlin summons Iranian ambassador over alleged spying on Jewish targets
The German foreign ministry says it has summoned the Iranian ambassador in Berlin after a man was arrested in Denmark on suspicion of spying on Jews in Germany.
“We will not tolerate any threat to Jewish life in Germany,” the ministry says in a post on X, adding that the allegations need to be “thoroughly investigated.”
The Iranian embassy denied any such plot.
Police reportedly questioning Likud officials as part of Qatargate probe
Police summoned the Likud party’s director-general Zuri Siso to provide testimony regarding the Qatargate affair around a month ago, the Walla news outlet reports today.
Investigators also reportedly plan to summon Alon Haliva, the deputy director of security in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), to give testimony regarding Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s employment of suspects Eli Feldstein, Jonatan Urich and Yisrael Einhorn.
Urich, a close Netanyahu aide, along with the prime minister’s former security spokesman Feldstein, are suspected of being paid to boost Qatar’s image while in his employ. Though they worked for the premier, their status as civil servants is uncertain, since both lacked proper security clearance to qualify as PMO employees.
Only those in the civil service can be charged with the criminal violations of fraud and breach of trust, money laundering, and taking a bribe, of which Urich and Feldstein are suspected. Both are also being investigated for contact with a foreign agent, a crime which can apply to any citizen.
Einhorn, a former Netanyahu aide who now lives in Serbia, is also involved in the affair due to his public relations firm Perception, which he ran alongside Urich. The two spearheaded a pro-Qatari campaign to cast the Gulf state in a positive light ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, hosted in Doha, according to Hebrew media reports at the time.
The judicial inquiry into pro-Qatari American lobbyist Jay Footlik is also scheduled for next week, according to Walla, and is expected to bring investigators and prosecuting attorneys one step closer to deciding whether or not to indict Urich.
Footlik, through his lobbying firm The Third Circle, is suspected of directly financing Urich’s alleged pro-Qatari activities, and indirectly paying Feldstein towards the same end through Gulf-based businessman Gil Birger.
French diplomat visits two French nationals imprisoned in Iran
A supporter holds a placard bearing a portrait of French teacher Cecile Kohler, detained along with her partner Jacques Paris (right) in Iran, during a rally in their support in Paris, France, on May 14, 2023. (Thomas SAMSON/AFP)
A French diplomat visits two French nationals detained in Iran today, Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris, the country’s foreign minister says, after their families demanded proof they were alive following Israeli strikes.
“We obtained a visit today from our charge d’affaires in Iran,” Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot tells lawmakers, without specifying where the visit took place.
During its 12-day conflict with Iran, Israel carried out a strike on the gates of the notorious Evin Prison in Tehran, saying it was targeting “repressive authorities,” though families of those being held in the jail expressed fear for their relatives.
2 Palestinians reported killed by Israeli troops in West Bank; IDF says it is investigating
In response to reports earlier today by the Palestinian Health Ministry that Israeli forces killed two individuals in separate incidents in the West Bank, including a 15-year-old boy in Ramallah, the IDF issues statements addressing both cases.
Regarding the incident in Ramallah, the military says that during an overnight operation in the central West Bank, several suspects hurled stones at Israeli troops. In response, soldiers fired warning shots into the air. No Israeli forces were injured, and the incident is under investigation.
In a separate incident near the town of Ramadin, southwest of Dhahiriya, the IDF says troops identified a suspect attempting to cross the security barrier overnight and opened fire in accordance with the rules of engagement. The IDF says the suspect was struck, and the incident is currently under further investigation.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, 15-year-old Amjad Nassar Abu Awad was killed in Ramallah, and 24-year-old Samer Bassam Zagharneh was killed near Dhahiriya.
Trump: New Yorkers would be ‘crazy’ to elect Zohran Mamdani mayor
US President Donald Trump talks to members of the press as he departs from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC on July 1, 2025. (Jim Watson/AFP)
US President Donald Trump says New Yorkers would be “crazy” to elect Zohran Mamdani as mayor.
Trump calls the Democrat a “communist” and says, “the last thing we need is a communist.”
Mamdani claimed victory over former Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on election night last week in the Democratic mayoral primary. Final results will be announced later today.
The 33-year-old democratic socialist and New York state assemblyman would be the city’s first Muslim mayor and its first of Indian American descent if elected.
The Republican president, who grew up in New York, also mentions Mamdani’s campaign promise to open government-run grocery stores.
Trump says that if New Yorkers elect Mamdani as the next mayor, “I think they’re crazy.”
US gave Lebanon until today to respond to demand Hezbollah relinquish weapons, sources say
People drive on a street past portraits of slain Lebanese Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and buildings damaged in Israeli strikes in the recent war, amid the first round of municipal elections, in the Ghobeiry neighbourhood of Beirut's southern suburb on May 4, 2025. (ANWAR AMRO / AFP)
Lebanese officials are drafting a response to US demands for Hezbollah to relinquish its weapons across the country by November in exchange for a halt to IDF operations there, say two sources briefed on the matter.
The deadline has turned up the heat on the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group, which was struck hard by Israel during last year’s war, is suffering a financial crunch, and faces pressure in Lebanon to disarm.
Washington’s demands were conveyed by Thomas Barrack, US special envoy to Syria and ambassador to Turkey, during a trip to Beirut on June 19.
The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, tell Reuters Barrack had shared a written roadmap with Lebanese officials and told them he expected to hear back by July 1 (today) on any proposed amendments.
The six-page document centers on the disarmament of Hezbollah and other terror groups, and urges Lebanon to improve ties with neighboring Syria and implement financial reforms, they say.
They say Barrack had urged Lebanese officials to seize the opportunity laid out in the roadmap as it “may not come up again.” He is set to return to Lebanon next week.
Barrack had not yet gotten Israeli approval for the roadmap, the sources say. There was no immediate response from the US State Department, Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office, or Israel’s Foreign Ministry to Reuters requests for comment.
Iceland says Israel should only be allowed to compete at Eurovision under a ‘neutral flag’
Israeli singer Yuval Raphael parades during the flag ceremony at the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, at the St. Jakobshalle arena in Basel on May 17, 2025. (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
The president of Iceland’s national broadcaster says Israel should only be allowed to participate in next year’s Eurovision under a “neutral flag,” similar to Olympic athletes from Russia and Belarus.
Stefán Jón Hafstein makes the comments ahead of a meeting later this week in London of European Broadcasting Union member states to discuss next year’s competition. He says that Iceland will support any bid to kick Israel out of the competition, but would agree to a compromise that would see an Israeli artist compete without representing the country.
The EBU has promised to address complaints about this year’s contest from some countries, which have expressed outrage over Israel’s participation and also made allegations about voting irregularities. Iceland, Spain, Slovenia, and Belgium are among the EBU members who have called to bar Israel from the competition.
Some of the country’s public broadcasters may also face rebukes or fines over anti-Israel broadcasts or commentary during the Eurovision broadcast this year, which violates EBU rules.
Meanwhile, some Israeli government officials are pursuing legislation that would shut down Israel’s public broadcaster, which would render the debate moot, as Israel would no longer qualify to compete at the Eurovision.
Iranian embassy in Berlin denies planning attack on Jewish institutions in the city
Iran’s embassy in Berlin rejects as unfounded accusations concerning what it described as “an alleged planned attack on Jewish institutions” in the German capital.
“These unfounded and dangerous accusations appear to be part of a deliberate campaign to divert public attention,” says the embassy in an emailed statement.
Earlier, German prosecutors said a Danish national had been arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran with the aim of collecting information on Jewish sites and individuals in Berlin.
IDF troops targeting Hamas infrastructure in eastern Gaza City, says military
The IDF's Commando Brigade operates in the Gaza Strip in a photo cleared for publication on July 1, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
The IDF says it has launched a new ground operation in Gaza City, with the 98th Paratroopers Division joining the 162nd Armored Corps Division in the northern part of the Strip.
Troops are operating in the city’s eastern areas, targeting underground infrastructure and eliminating terrorist operatives. The Commando Brigade and 7th Armored Brigade are leading the ground maneuver, following a wave of Israeli Air Force strikes.
The military says around 100 terror targets have been struck so far, including weapons depots, command centers and observation posts. Operations are ongoing.
IDF investigating vandalism of Palestinian property in West Bank town
Israeli security forces say they have launched an investigation after Palestinian property was set on fire and vandalized overnight in the northern West Bank town of Bazariya.
According to the IDF, Hebrew graffiti was also sprayed on a separate home in the town.
Troops arrived at the scene this morning following a report of the incident.
Photos circulating on social media show graffiti reading, “You made a mistake — you don’t shoot Jews,” leading security officials to believe it was likely a revenge attack carried out by extremist settlers.
Almog Cohen withdraws resignation from government just before it takes effect
Otzma Yehudit MK Almog Cohen at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, July 1, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Deputy Minister Almog Cohen (Otzma Yehudit) withdraws his resignation from the government only hours before it is set to take effect.
Cohen, a deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, wrote to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to announce his resignation on Sunday, saying he aimed to return to the Knesset in order to advance legislation to establish an airport in the southern town of Nevatim.
Cohen, a resident of the southern city of Ofakim, has long been a proponent of establishing a civilian airport in the Negev. Despite reservations from security officials, a bill sponsored by Cohen and other lawmakers calling for the establishment of an international airport in Nevatim, already the site of an Israel Air Force base, is currently making its way through the Knesset.
However, Israel’s National Planning and Building Council is said to be discussing an alternate location in the Jezreel Valley, angering Cohen, who lashed out at an alleged “deep state” which he said was undermining his efforts.
According to national broadcaster Kan, Cohen rescinded his resignation after speaking with Netanyahu, whom a representative for the far-right politician said had agreed to “hold an urgent discussion with the army on the issue of promoting an airport in the Negev.”
The resignation came on the heels of “the cancellation of discussions on the Ramat David Civil Airport today in the National Planning and Building Council,” a representative for Cohen tells Kan.
Trump: I hope a Gaza ceasefire will be reached ‘sometime next week’
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 27, 2025. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)
US President Donald Trump says he hopes a Gaza ceasefire will be reached “sometime next week.”
Three days ago, Trump told reporters a deal would be reached “within the next week.”
Trump says he will discuss Gaza and “the great success we had with Iran” during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the White House next week.
“We want to get the hostages back,” he adds.
Trump says will discuss Gaza, Iran at White House meeting with Netanyahu
US President Donald Trump talks to members of the press as he departs from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC on July 1, 2025. (Jim Watson/AFP)
US President Donald Trump says he will discuss the situations in Gaza and Iran when he meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday.
Trump is speaking to reporters as he leaves the White House for a visit to a migrant detention center in the Florida Everglades.
UK chief rabbi criticizes BBC for ‘airing of vile Jew-hatred at Glastonbury,’ says it’s ‘a time of national shame’
Britain's Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, addresses the crowd during a 'Vigil for Israel,' opposite the entrance to Downing Street, in London, October 9, 2023. (HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP)
Britain’s chief rabbi criticizes the BBC for airing a Glastonbury arts festival performance that saw the crowd chanting “death to the IDF” as a moment of “national shame.”
“The airing of vile Jew-hatred at Glastonbury and the BBC’s belated and mishandled response, brings confidence in our national broadcaster’s ability to treat antisemitism seriously to a new low,” writes Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis on X.
“It should trouble all decent people that now, one need only couch their outright incitement to violence and hatred as edgy political commentary, for ordinary people to not only fail to see it for what it is, but also to cheer it, chant it and celebrate it,” he writes.
“Toxic Jew-hatred is a threat to our entire society.”
On Baltic trip, Sa’ar says Israel in dialogue with EU on Gaza aid, desires peace with Syria and ‘all neighbors’
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar addresses a joint press conference with his Lithuanian counterpart at the Foreign Ministry in Vilnius on July 1, 2025. (Petras Malukas / AFP)
During a three-day visit to the Baltic states, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar calls Israel an “asset” to Europe and the Western world, and addresses potential cooperation on the humanitarian situation in Gaza as well as efforts to expand normalization between Israel and its neighbors.
At a joint press conference in Vilnius with Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys, Sa’ar says, “Israel is a strategic partner for Europe – especially for Lithuania. Israel is an asset for Europe and the Western world in the Middle East.”
Sa’ar says Israel’s campaign against Iran last month is part of “a broader struggle between the free world and the radical axis of terror” led by Tehran and its proxies, including Hamas, Hezbollah, and other regional terror groups, and backed by “the authoritarian axis: China, Russia, and North Korea.”
He says Israeli and US strikes set back Iran’s nuclear program “by many years,” and damaged missiles “capable of reaching Europe” and Iran’s drone supply, which he noted is “the very same technology being used by Russia, with Iranian help, in its war against Ukraine.”
On the humanitarian situation in Gaza, Sa’ar says Israel is today holding talks with European Union representatives in Israel about the issue: “I can say that today… a dialogue is beginning in Jerusalem between the EU delegation in Israel with an effort to not only exchange views but maybe to see how we can work together to improve the situation. We are open… we don’t want Hamas to use the humanitarian aid as an economic asset…but we want it directly to go to the people of Gaza, and since we share the same goals, we might find, maybe, new ways to do it.”
Asked about ongoing talks for a potential peace deal with Syria, Sa’ar says, “We would like to have all our neighbors… in the camp of normalization and peace in the region and with Israel. That includes Syria, as much as it includes [Saudi Arabia], as much as it includes Lebanon.”
“It is too early to judge what will happen,” he adds, noting that Israel has certain “security needs” and demands, “but… all the nations in this region have a lot to gain from normalization and good relations between us and them.” He cites strong ties with the United Arab Emirates as an example: “We have great trade relations, growing even through this war.”
“Israel has much to contribute to Lithuania,” Sa’ar adds, noting cooperation in trade, tech, and defense as a handful of pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrate outside the venue.
His trip includes visits to Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, where he will meet senior officials, including the Estonian prime minister and Latvian president.
IDF says troops dismantled sprawling 3 kilometer tunnel network in south Gaza
Paratroopers operating in Khan Younis in a photo released on July 1, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
In one of the largest tunnel discoveries in recent weeks, IDF Paratroopers operating in Khan Younis have dismantled a sprawling underground network used by terror operatives in the southern Gaza Strip, the military says.
The troops uncovered roughly three kilometers of interconnected tunnels, used by terror groups to stage attacks, store weapons, and move undetected. The operation was carried out in coordination with the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit.
According to the IDF, dozens of terrorists were killed in close-quarters battles during the ongoing operation, which also included Israeli Air Force strikes.
The IDF says that its troops have destroyed hundreds of above and below-ground terror sites, including tunnel shafts, command centers, and fortified hideouts designed for long-term use.
High Court justices criticize both petitioners in hearing over appointment of Shin Bet chief
Supreme Court President Isaac Amit (center), Justice Alex Stein (left) and Justice Gila Canfy Steinitz at a Supreme Court hearing on petitions over whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can appoint the head of the Shin Bet, July 1, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
The judges in the High Court hearing over the appointment of a new Shin Bet chief are critical of both petitioners in the case who have challenged the attorney general’s position, from opposite perspectives, that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cannot nominate the next Shin Bet head and that he must delegate the authority to another minister.
Attorney Itamar Meron, representing the Choose Life organization, which demands that Netanyahu be allowed to nominate the next Shin Bet chief, argues that the attorney general made no effort to find a solution in which the prime minister could make the nomination while avoiding the conflict of interest the attorney general said he has due to the Shin Bet security service’s investigations into his close aides.
Meron points out that Netanyahu himself proposed that the incoming Shin Bet chief he chooses would not be involved in those investigations in order to resolve the problem.
“A situation would be created here in which the person in the conflict of interest is saying he will have someone else [deal with the investigation],” remarks Supreme Court President Isaac Amit.
“The prime minister, whose close associates are being investigated, is announcing who will be the investigator, what the boundaries of the investigation will be; this is a problematic situation,” adds Amit.
The Supreme Court president also criticizes Netanyahu for having nominated Maj. Gen. David Zini just a day after the attorney general told him to wait while she draws up parameters for how the appointment can be made, following a High Court ruling in May that Netanyahu had a conflict of interest in firing former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.
“In a more practical approach by the government, it would have been possible to appoint a Shin Bet chief without getting to this courtroom. That’s what the attorney general tried to do, but the prime minister didn’t wait a few days and rushed to announce the appointment,” says Amit, although he adds, “maybe the gates have not been locked and the matter can be resolved.”
But the court also has extremely tough words for Attorney Ran Shprintzak, who is representing the BaShaar – Academic Community for Israeli Society, which demanded in its petition that an independent, non-governmental selection committee be appointed to select the next Shin Bet chief instead of the prime minister and the government.
“Why should I not reject this petition outright since what you are asking for is not written in any law,” demands Judge Alex Stein, pointing out that nowhere in the Law for the Shin Bet is there any mention of convening such a committee to make the appointment.
“There is a limit to how long we can debate something which has no connection whatsoever to the law. What you are asking is outside the law, it just doesn’t exist,” insists Stein.
Democrats chief: ‘Rioting’ coalition MKs at High Court show Israel could see a ‘storming of the Capitol’ after elections
The Democrats party chairman Yair Golan holds a press conference in Tel Aviv, May 20, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
The Democrats chairman Yair Golan slams coalition lawmakers for taking part in disturbances at the High Court of Justice, asserting that their actions are only a preview of what they will do if they lose the next election.
“The rioting of Likud MKs and the mouthpieces of Netanyahu’s poison machine at the Supreme Court today is a preview of the ‘Storming of the Capitol’ that will take place at the Supreme Court after the right’s defeat in the upcoming elections,” he tweets, referring to the January 6, 2021 riots in Washington, DC after Donald Trump lost the US presidential election.
The “poison machine” is the name some avowed critics of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu use for what they say is a network of pundits, journalists, influencers, and activists dedicated to besmirching the premier’s political rivals.
Over 165 major aid groups call for end to Gaza Humanitarian Foundation operations
Palestinians gather at an aid distribution point set up by the privately run Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) near the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on June 25, 2025. (Eyad BABA / AFP)
More than 165 major international charities and non-governmental organizations, including Oxfam, Save the Children, and Amnesty, call for an immediate end to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
“Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families,” the group says in a joint news release.
There have been repeated instances of Palestinians being shot near aid distribution sites. The IDF has said it is investigating and denies that troops are ordered to open fire on civilians.
The call by the charities and NGOs was the latest sign of trouble for the GHF — a secretive US- and Israeli-backed initiative headed by an evangelical leader who is a close ally of US President Donald Trump.
GHF started distributing aid on May 26, following a nearly three-month Israeli blockade amid a war that has already seen shortages, plunging Gaza into a humanitarian crisis.
Responding to the aid groups, GHF calls on them to join their operations.
“Instead of bickering and throwing insults from the sidelines, we would welcome other humanitarian groups to join us and feed the people in Gaza,” the statement says. “We are ready to collaborate and help them get their aid to people in need. At the end of the day, the Palestinian people need to be fed.”
Lapid: Attempts to disrupt High Court hearing on Shin Bet chief a ‘product of government’s ongoing incitement’
Protests outside a discussion of petitions over whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can appoint the head of the Shin Bet, at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, July 1, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid condemns efforts to disrupt today’s High Court hearing on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ability to nominate the next Shin Bet chief, blaming them on the government’s harsh rhetoric against the judiciary.
“The shameful attempt to blow up today’s court hearing is a product of the government’s ongoing incitement against the High Court of Justice and a direct threat to democracy,” says Lapid. “In the next government, we will pass a constitution that will prevent such phenomena and end the internal conflict in Israeli society.”
Several members of the audience, including bereaved parents whose children were killed in terror attacks, refused to leave and were forcibly removed from the courtroom.
After the hearing reconvened, Supreme Court President Isaac Amit called the disruptions “an attempt to thwart a judicial process.”
“I don’t know of another Western country where this happens. This is a real injury to the heart of democracy,” he added.
Netanyahu confirms will fly to Washington to meet Trump, top US officials next week
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the start of a cabinet meeting on July 1, 2025 (Screen grab/GPO)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he expects to fly to Washington next week for meetings with US President Donald Trump and top US officials.
Speaking at the start of a cabinet meeting, Netanyahu says he will also meet with Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, US special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
He will also meet with senior lawmakers, says Netanyahu.
According to reports, the prime minister is expected to fly to the US on Saturday night and meet with Trump at the White House on Monday.
“These things come in the wake of the great victory we achieved in Operation Rising Lion,” Netanyahu tells his ministers. “Exploiting the success is no less important than achieving the success.”
After Israel’s 12-day operation against Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, there has been a new focus on the potential for an agreement with Syria, as well as reports about a broad arrangement that would see the war in Gaza end and Israel normalize ties with Saudi Arabia.
Netanyahu also indicates a new trade agreement with the US is close. “We have a few things to close before then in order to reach the trade agreement,” he says.
Man accused of gathering information for Iran on Jews in Berlin arrested in Denmark, officials say
German police officers stand guard in front of the building complex of the Kahal Adass Jisroel community, which houses a synagogue, a kindergarten and a community center, in the center of Berlin, Germany, October 18, 2023. (AP/Markus Schreiber)
A man suspected of gathering information on Jewish locations and individuals in Berlin for Iranian intelligence, possibly with a view to carrying out attacks, has been arrested in Denmark, German prosecutors say.
The Danish national, identified only as Ali S., was arrested on Thursday in the Danish city of Aarhus, federal prosecutors say in a statement.
They say that the man was tasked by an Iranian intelligence service early this year with gathering information on “Jewish localities and specific Jewish individuals” in Berlin and spied on three properties in June.
Arab mayors tell MKs they’re under increased threat from criminal gangs: ‘People are afraid to leave their homes’
Yisrael Beytenu MK Hamad Amar speaks at a Knesset National Security Committee meeting on July 1, 2025. (Charlie Summers/Times of Israel)
Arab mayors say they are coming under increased threat from criminal organizations at a Knesset committee meeting today, as the murder rate continues to soar in Arab society.
The meeting was requested by Yesh Atid MK Yoav Segalovich —- a former high-ranking police officer who was put in charge of fighting Arab crime under the Bennett-Lapid government -— after a bomb was found at the entrance to the city hall in Rahat, a southern Bedouin city.
He says he received a letter from Rahat mayor Talal Alkernawi documenting “34 separate instances of harassment toward him personally, toward his family members and toward the city of Rahat.” The lawmaker notes that the bomb was found just two days after he received the letter.
Alkernawi, also present at the meeting, tells the committee that the bomb is only the latest in a string of dozens of attempts on his life since taking office.
“I promised residents personal security, but I am not able to guarantee that promise,” he says, calling on police to up their crime-fighting efforts in Arab locales.
Hatem Shibli, who heads the Shibli-Umm al-Ghanam local council, says that he has security guards accompanying him around the clock for fear he will be harmed. He adds that mayors and local council heads are the “most vulnerable and threatened figures.”
Concurring with Shibli over Zoom, Arraba mayor Ahmad Nassar says that last winter, police raised the threat level against him from 4 to 6 after criminals shot at his house several times.
“If we can get to an officer in Iran, can we not get to a criminal who shot at a mayor or placed a bomb?” asks MK Hamad Amar, a Druze lawmaker for Yisrael Beytenu.
He laments the absence of senior police officers in the room and calls for a follow-up meeting in which Israel Police chief Danny Levy and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir are present.
“Arab society lives in fear. Personal security is zero, people are afraid to go out of their houses,” he says, insisting that the rising number of murder victims in Arab society is “no longer interesting, because the number changes every day.”
“Every murder that we don’t catch, that we don’t solve, invites the next murder,” he says, accusing police of inaction and failing to deter violent crime in Arab society.
Chief justice clears High Court audience after repeated interruptions to Shin Bet chief hearing: ‘An attempt to thwart judicial process’
A man is removed during a discussion of petitions over whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can appoint the head of the Shin Bet at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, July 1, 2025 (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
After further interruptions to the High Court hearing on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ability to nominate the next Shin Bet chief, Supreme Court President Isaac Amit halts proceedings again and orders court security to remove all members of the audience.
Several members of the audience, including bereaved parents whose children were killed in terror attacks, refuse to leave and are forcibly removed from the courtroom.
“We were witness to an attempt to thwart a judicial process,” says Amit after the hearing is restarted.
“I don’t know of another Western country where this happens. This is a real injury to the heart of democracy,” the court president adds.
בג"ץ מינוי ראש השב"כ- השופטים קיבלו החלטה שהקהל יצא, גם משפחות שכולות, משני הצדדים. חברי כנסת, עוד לא הוחלט לגביהם.
משמר בתי המשפט הוציא את האנשים, מי שסירבו לצאת בהוראת השופטים, הוצאו בכוח. מקבץ תיעודים pic.twitter.com/iZtEnCaRID— Or-ly Barlev 🎗 אור-לי ברלב (@orlybarlev) July 1, 2025
Kahana announces resignation from Gantz’s National Unity party, day after Eisenkot says he’s leaving faction
MK Matan Kahana attends a plenary session at the Knesset on May 7, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
National Unity MK Matan Kahana announces his resignation from Benny Gantz’s National Unity party, less than a day after fellow MK Gadi Eisenkot announced his imminent departure from the faction and the Knesset.
“MK Matan Kahana has informed National Unity chairman Benny Gantz that he intends to leave the party and the Knesset. Gantz thanked Kahana for his partnership and decency and wished him success,” the party says in a statement.
Kahana represented the right wing of Gantz’s center-right party.
According to national broadcaster Kan, Kahana has met multiple times with former prime minister Naftali Bennett, on whose advice he reportedly resigned from Gantz’s party.
This has sparked speculation that Kahana, a close confidant of Bennett and a former member of his now-defunct Yamina party, will join the former prime minister’s recently registered party.
Bennett has been out of office since the 2022 collapse of his diverse coalition government, which in 2021 ousted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from the premiership after 12 consecutive years during which Israel underwent unprecedented political turmoil, including four national elections in three years.
His newly established Bennett 2026 party does not have a Knesset list yet but does have a platform, which is focused on strengthening Israeli security and integrating the ultra-Orthodox into the military and workforce.
Yesterday evening, Eisenkot, National Unity’s No. 2, informed Gantz that he was set to leave and would “return his mandate to the party” by resigning from the Knesset, with the apparent intention of finding a new political home ahead of the next national election.
Sources close to Eisenkot were quoted in Hebrew-language media reports as saying that the party leadership primaries proposed by Gantz were not sufficient to keep Eisenskot in the fold, and that though he has good personal ties with the National Unity leader, remaining in the party “would not allow him to realize his ideas and ideology.”
Citing unnamed political sources, Ynet reported that Yesh Atid party chair Yair Lapid, the opposition leader, is looking to offer Eisenkot the leadership of his party for the next election.
Sabon to close main manufacturing, logistics operations in Israel; stores expected to remain open
Israeli-founded maker of natural bath and body products Sabon, owned by French cosmetics giant Yves Rocher, is planning to close its main operations in the country, putting the jobs of more than 270 workers at risk.
Sabon says it will shutter its manufacturing plant in Kiryat Gat by June 2026, unless ongoing advanced negotiations for the sale of the factory with a potential unnamed buyer materialize.
Starting in early 2026, the producer of soap and cosmetic products will also gradually close its Israel-based global headquarters, while its logistics center is expected to close in October of this year, “due to the expiration of the lease agreement at the facility.”
In Israel, Sabon employs 212 unionized employees, while around 60 employees work under individual contracts. Globally, Sabon has about 1,000 employees and operates 180 stores in 14 countries.
“These changes to Sabon’s operations in Israel stem from the fact that Sabon currently operates two manufacturing centers — one in Israel and one in France — each handling different production processes,” Sabon says. “This division has created redundancies and business complexities.”
“Under these circumstances, it was decided to consolidate all manufacturing activities in France, which consequently entails changes to other business segments in Israel,” Sabon adds.
Simultaneously, Yves Rocher-owned Sabon is in advanced discussions with Israel’s Golf Group regarding the sale of its online and retail operations, which comprise 22 stores spread across the country, and are expected to continue to operate.
Court president halts hearing on Shin Bet chief nomination after Likud MK interrupts proceedings
Likud MK Tally Gotliv at a High Court hearing on petitions on the appointment of the Shin Bet chief at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, July 1, 2025 (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
Supreme Court President Isaac Amit halts the High Court hearing on the attorney general’s determination that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cannot nominate the next Shin Bet chief after Likud MK Tali Gotliv shouts out and interrupts the proceedings.
Members of the audience call out chants of “shame” after Amit pauses the hearing.
Gotliv has repeatedly interrupted recent high-profile High Court hearings and was removed from the court during a hearing in April over the government’s dismissal of previous Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.
Shortly before Gotliv’s interruption, a member of the audience was removed from the hall after he shouted out to Amit that he had a conflict of interest in hearing the case.
His interruption came following the court president’s comments to the attorney for the petitioners that he should concentrate on the attorney general’s assertion that Netanyahu has a conflict of interest in appointing a new Shin Bet chief, due to the security agency’s ongoing investigation into the Qatargate and leaked documents scandals involved the prime minister’s close aides.
Amit had warned at the beginning of the hearing that anyone interrupting the proceedings would be immediately removed.
IDF says it hit more than 140 terror targets in Gaza strikes over past 24 hours
Palestinians inspect the rubble of a home destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in Al-Zawaideh, Gaza Strip, on July 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
The Israel Defense Forces says it carried out airstrikes on more than 140 terror targets across the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, as part of ongoing operations against Hamas and other terror groups.
According to the military, the strikes targeted terror group operatives, anti-tank launch sites, weapons depots, military buildings, and underground infrastructure threatening Israeli troops.
Ground forces from multiple divisions continued operating in various parts of the Strip. The 99th Division directed an airstrike that killed two operatives attempting to plant an explosive device, while the 162nd Division eliminated eight operatives in an operational command center. The 36th Division reported dozens of terrorist operatives killed and hundreds of targets destroyed in recent days.
Meanwhile, naval forces struck several targets in southern Gaza under direction from the 143rd Division.
IDF says reviewing deadly strike on seafront Gaza internet cafe
Palestinians inspect the damage at Al-Baqa cafe, which was hit by an Israeli strike on the Gaza City seafront on June 30, 2025 (Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
The Israeli army says that it launched a review into a strike Monday on a seafront Gaza cafe it says targeted operatives from terror groups.
In a statement to AFP regarding the incident, the army says it struck “several Hamas terrorists – in the northern Gaza Strip.”
Gaza’s Hamas-linked civil defense agency said at least 24 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded in the strike on the Al-Baqa cafe, a prominent venue along Gaza City’s coastal promenade. The figure could not be independently verified.
An army spokesperson says that “prior to the strike, steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians using aerial surveillance.”
“The incident is under review,” he adds.
The cafe and restaurant, which had so far survived more than 20 months of war sparked by the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack, had become a gathering spot for those not displaced by the conflict.
“There’s always a lot of people at that spot, which offers drinks, spaces for families, and internet access,” says Ahmad al-Nayrab, 26, who was walking on the nearby beach when he heard a loud explosion.
“It was a massacre,” he tells AFP. “I saw bits of bodies flying everywhere, bodies mangled and burned. It was a bloodcurdling scene; everybody was screaming.”
Man forcibly removed from High Court hearing on Shin Bet chief after yelling at chief justice
A man is removed during a discussion of petitions over whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can appoint the head of the Shin Bet at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, July 1, 2025 (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
A man is forcibly removed from the High Court hearing for petitions against the attorney general’s ban on the prime minister nominating the next Shin Bet chief, after he shouted at court president Isaac Amit.
Amit had warned at the beginning of the hearing that anyone interrupting the proceedings, as has happened during several recent hearings on fraught issues, would be removed from the court.
Shouts of “shame” are also made by members of the audience in the courtroom, although the judges are currently not present since they are holding a closed-door session to receive an update on the status of the Qatargate investigation.
The man yelled at Amit as the justice left the room. It is unclear what he said.
A petition to the court requests that it overrule Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara’s determination that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cannot nominate the next Shin Bet chief due to what she said was his conflict of interest over the Qatargate and leaked documents investigations being conducted by the Shin Bet and the police into the prime minister’s close aides.
Katz announces task force, social programs aimed at curbing settler violence toward Israeli troops
A West Bank security installation that was torched overnight by settlers on June 30, 2025 (Israel Defense Forces)
Following an emergency meeting with top security officials last night, Defense Minister Israel Katz announces a series of measures aimed at curbing settler violence against Israeli troops and security forces in the West Bank.
“We will not allow or accept such serious incidents in any form,” Katz said in the meeting, according to a Defense Ministry statement, vowing significant police enforcement and the creation of a joint task force led by the police in coordination with the IDF and Shin Bet to address the phenomenon.
The meeting came after a string of recent attacks by Jewish extremists, including a riot outside an army base and the arson of a nearby security installation. Senior IDF and police commanders, Shin Bet officials, and the Defense Ministry’s legal adviser attended the session.
While participants stressed that the majority of settlers and youth are not involved in such violence, they warned of a radical fringe deliberately targeting security forces and Palestinians, the statement says.
Katz also approved tens of millions of shekels for social programs aimed at integrating extremist settler activists into normative educational frameworks and said a follow-up meeting would be held in three weeks to assess progress.
High Court hearing petition demanding Netanyahu be permitted to nominate Shin Bet chief, despite AG’s position
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) and IDF Maj. Gen. David Zini at the Tzeelim training base in southern Israel, May 8, 2025. (GPO)
The High Court of Justice begins a hearing on a petition demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu be able to nominate the next Shin Bet chief, despite the attorney general’s determination that he cannot do so due to a conflict of interest.
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara issued a position paper in May stating that since the High Court of Justice found Netanyahu to have had a conflict of interest in firing previous Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, he therefore has the same legal difficulty in hiring his replacement.
That conflict of interest stems from the criminal investigations the Shin Bet security service is conducting, together with the police, against the prime minister’s close aides in the leaked documents and Qatargate scandals.
The attorney general determined that, therefore, Netanyahu must delegate his authority to another cabinet minister to nominate the next Shin Bet chief and that the Attorney General’s Office should supervise the entire process.
Netanyahu nevertheless went ahead and nominated Maj. Gen. David Zini to be the next Shin Bet chief, with the Attorney General’s Office swiftly declaring that the nomination was severely flawed.
A right-leaning grouping of families bereaved by terror attacks called Choose Life petitioned the High Court against the attorney general’s position, arguing that it was harming Israeli security by preventing the swift appointment of a new Shin Bet chief.
A second petition was filed to the court against the attorney general’s position by an organization called the Civil Democratic Movement which makes the opposite argument, that the attorney general’s solution is too accommodating of the government, and that the entire process for nominating the next Shin Bet chief should be put in the hands of a non-governmental, professional committee.
Supreme Court President Isaac Amit, a liberal, will preside over today’s hearing for both petitions, together with Judge Alex Stein and Judge Gila Canfy Steinitz, both moderate conservatives.
Amit was head of the three-judge panel which ruled in May that Netanyahu had a conflict of interest in firing Bar.
Couple from Ra’anana arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran
Items seized from the Ra'anana home of a couple accused of spying for Iran in an image released July 1, 2025 (Israel Police)
A couple from Ra’anana have been arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran, Israel Police and the Shin Bet announce.
Police say in a statement that law enforcement officers searched the pair’s apartment in the town in the center of the country yesterday, seizing several phones, computers, and other technological devices, in addition to correspondence suspected of being between the couple and their Iranian handler.
The unnamed pair is due in court today for a hearing on their detention.
It is the second announcement within 24 hours of the arrest of suspected spies for Iran.
Yesterday, police and the Shin Bet said they had arrested three Israeli citizens in two separate cases on suspicion that they carried out tasks for Iranian agents.
In one investigation, 33-year-old Mark Morgein, who lives in the Jordan Valley in the West Bank, was arrested on suspicion of moving a grenade from a hidden location to another at the request of his handler, with whom he maintained contact over the course of June.
He was also enlisted to film a video of a missile interception during the war between Israel and Iran and send it to his handler.
Security forces also arrested two Tiberias residents, Yoni Segal, 18, and Nehorai Omri Mizrahi, 20, whom an Iranian agent allegedly tried to recruit into murdering an unnamed Israeli citizen in exchange for hundreds of thousands of shekels.
The agent offered to fly the pair to another country, train them, and then give them the identity of their target. The plan never came to fruition.
The two are also suspected of filming shopping malls and hospitals across the country and sending their handler information on each mall’s layout, number of security guards and number of stores. They allegedly sent information on malls in Haifa, Tiberias and Tel Aviv, as well as Tel Aviv’s Ichilov hospital.
Senior Hamas official: No meetings currently planned for Gaza ceasefire-hostage deal talks
People calling for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip protest outside the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem, June 28, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Senior Hamas official Taher Nunu tells Egyptian newspaper Al-Shorouk that while Hamas has no objection to meeting with mediators as part of negotiations for a ceasefire-hostage deal in Gaza, no such meeting is currently planned.
However, Nunu states that contacts with mediators are ongoing.
Nunu adds that Hamas would sign an agreement that includes an end to the war, but refuses to discuss the terror group’s disarmament or the potential departure of senior Hamas leaders from the Gaza Strip.
Egypt and Qatar, backed by the United States, have begun a new ceasefire effort to halt the 20-month-old conflict and secure the release of hostages being held by Hamas.
Interest in resolving the Gaza conflict has heightened in the wake of US and Israeli bombings of Iran’s nuclear facilities, with US President Donald Trump pushing Israel to return to the negotiating table in recent days.
Haredi leadership said mulling support for opposition bills until new draft exemption law advanced
Rabbi Moshe Hillel Hirsch, head of the Slabodka Yeshiva, delivers a lesson at a yeshiva in Jerusalem, October 22, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
A senior ultra-Orthodox rabbi told Haredi lawmakers yesterday that he was considering telling them to support opposition legislation as part of a widening rift within the coalition over draft exemptions, the Kan public broadcaster reports.
The outlet says a final decision has not been made on the matter.
Rabbi Moshe Hillel Hirsch, a member of the Council of Torah Sages of Degel HaTorah and a leader of the Lithuanian-Haredi community, reportedly told the lawmakers: “We did not stay in the government to save Netanyahu, but to save the people of Israel because of the war. Now we need to reconsider this.”
Yesterday, ultra-Orthodox lawmakers announced they will resume their boycott of private member bills submitted by coalition MKs until a new version of the draft exemption law is brought forward and passed.
The move increases pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is reportedly working to resolve the crisis and present an agreed-upon version of the law that would grant continued military service exemptions to yeshiva students.
Trump suggests US government efficiency department look at Musk’s companies to save money
US President Donald Trump (left) aboard Air Force One on May 4, 2025; Elon Musk in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 21, 2025. (Saul Loeb, Jim Watson/AFP)
US President Donald Trump suggests that his efficiency department should take a look at the subsidies that Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s companies have received in order to save the federal government “BIG” money.
Trump’s comments come after billionaire Elon Musk renewed his criticism of Trump’s sweeping tax-cut and spending bill, vowing to unseat lawmakers who backed it after campaigning on limiting government spending.
“Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa. No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE. Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!,” Trump says in a post on Truth Social.
In response to Trump’s post, Musk, in his own social media platform X, says “I am literally saying CUT IT ALL. Now.”
Mamdani expected to formally win NYC Democratic primary with release of vote count
Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani speaks during the National Action Network's rally at House of Justice in Harlem, June 28, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
The winner of New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary, between progressive Zohran Mamdani and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, is likely to be finalized today when the city’s board of elections announces the next round of results.
Mamdani already declared victory on election night last week after gaining a commanding lead over Cuomo, who swiftly conceded. But more results are needed to establish the victor due to the city’s ranked choice voting model, which allows voters’ second, third, fourth and even fifth preferences to be counted if their top candidate falls out of the running.
The board is scheduled to run through its first tabulation at noon, which may be enough for Mamdani to clear the 50% threshold needed. If so, he would move on to the November election to face a field including incumbent Mayor Eric Adams and potentially Cuomo again, if the former governor decides to run on an independent ballot line.
Mamdani’s defenders have said that too much emphasis has been put on his background as an advocate for Palestinians, a supporter of the boycott Israel movement, and a critic of Israel, saying his job will be to run New York, not foreign policy.
After Eisenkot, Kahana also considering leaving Gantz’s National Unity party – report
Then-Religious Services Minister Matan Kahana speaks during a Conference of the 'Besheva' group in Jerusalem, on August 1, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Following the announcement that MK Gadi Eisenkot, National Unity’s No. 2, will leave the party, a second member may leave the centrist faction, the Kan public broadcaster reports.
According to the outlet MK Matan Kahana may leave Benny Gantz’s party. Kahane is a close associate of former prime minister Naftali Bennett and entered politics on his slate.
“When I have something to announce, I will announce it,” Kahana tells Kan.
Kan reported last year that Kahana had held a meeting with Bennett to discuss the latter’s return to politics.
In a shakeup within the opposition, Eisenkot announced yesterday his imminent departure from the faction and from the Knesset, with the apparent intention of finding a new political home ahead of the next national election.
An Israeli Democracy Institute poll released in February showed that National Unity experienced a clear downward trend over the course of the past year, going from a 70 percent repeat voter share in April to 34% in December.
Opinion polls have consistently indicated mounting support for Eisenkot to replace Gantz at the helm of the faction, finding that following Bennett’s return to politics, the party would receive several more seats with Eisenkot in charge than with Gantz.
Argentina’s top soccer body investigates ‘abhorrent acts of antisemitism’ by All Boys fans
Fans of the All Boys soccer club in Argentina carry a mock coffin in the colors of the Atlanta football club, which hails from a predominantly Jewish neighborhood in Buenos Aires, and draped with the Israeli flag ahead of a match between the two teams on June 30, 2025. (Screen capture via X, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
Argentina’s soccer governing body launches an investigation after fans of the second division All Boys soccer club after they staged anti-Israel protests and carried around a coffin draped in the Israeli flag before a match against Atlanta in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood of Buenos Aires.
All Boys fans displayed a coffin painted in blue and yellow — Atlanta’s colors — draped with an Israeli flag near the Malvinas Argentinas stadium before Sunday’s 0-0 draw in the 20th round of the tournament, which determines promotion to the top flight.
Some carried Palestinian and Iranian flags.
Atlanta is historically linked to Argentina’s Jewish community, located in the Villa Crespo neighborhood, where Jewish immigrants settled in the early 1900s.
During the match, a drone with the Palestinian flag flew over the field and some fans made inflammatory chants.
The Argentine Football Association issues a statement expressing “its total and absolute condemnation of the abhorrent acts of antisemitism committed by fans of the All Boys club.”
“This is not folklore,” the AFA says. “This is discrimination.”
Police in Buenos Aires police have issued infractions for inciting disorder, among other crimes, against fans of the club.
Rockets fired at northern Iraq airport, one hits house; two lightly wounded
Two rockets struck the military section of Kirkuk airport in northern Iraq yesterday, slightly wounding two security personnel, a senior security official says.
Another rocket fell on a house in the city of Kirkuk, causing material damage.
“Two Katyusha rockets fell in the military section of Kirkuk airport,” slightly wounding two security personnel, the official says, requesting anonymity because he is not allowed to speak to the media.
One rocket did not explode, according to the official.
“A third rocket struck a house in the Uruba neighborhood,” causing material damage, the source adds.
The military sector of Kirkuk’s airport includes bases for the Iraqi Army, the federal police, and the Hashed al-Shaabi, a coalition of former pro-Iranian paramilitary forces now integrated into the regular armed forces.
A security source tells the official INA news agency that two rockets struck the military airbase at Kirkuk airport, one of which fell near the runaways, and another hit a house in the city.
There has been no claim of responsibility for the attacks.
Last week, hours before a ceasefire ended the 12-day Iran-Israel war, unidentified drones struck radar systems at two military bases in Baghdad and southern Iraq. The government said it launched a probe into the drone attacks, but it has not yet identified any perpetrators.
Bob Vylan dropped by agents after ‘Death to the IDF’ chant at Glastonbury – report
Bob Vylan perform on the West Holts Stage, during the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset, England, June 28, 2025. (Ben Birchall/PA via AP)
Rap punk duo Bob Vylan has been dropped by their agent after they led the crowd in a chant calling for “death” to the Israeli military at the Glastonbury Festival, the UK’s Jewish Chronicle reports.
Singer Bobby Vylan also ranted about Israel and “Zionists” in the music industry in an expletive-filled tirade.
The outlet says the decision to drop the band was made by executives at the UTA agency over the weekend, and that the duo has been removed from their website.
The report comes after the US State Department said it has revoked the US visas for Bob Vylan after their “hateful tirade at Glastonbury,” and with an announcement by British police that they are investigating the band.
The duo played Saturday afternoon right before Kneecap, another band that has drawn controversy over its stance on Middle East politics. Kneecap led a huge crowd in chants of “Free Palestine” at the festival.
They also aimed an expletive-laden chant at UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who had said he did not think it was “appropriate” for Kneecap to play Glastonbury, after one of its members was charged under the Terrorism Act. Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, was charged with supporting a proscribed terror organization for waving a Hezbollah flag at a concert in London last year. Kneecap are also under police investigation for their Glastonbury performance.
Iranian hackers, back at work since war, threaten to reveal more emails from Trump aides
Iran-linked hackers have threatened to disclose more emails stolen from US President Donald Trump’s circle, after distributing a prior batch to the media ahead of the 2024 US election.
In online chats with Reuters on Sunday and Monday, the hackers, who go by the pseudonym Robert, say they have roughly 100 gigabytes of emails from the accounts of White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Trump lawyer Lindsey Halligan, Trump adviser Roger Stone and porn star-turned-Trump antagonist Stormy Daniels.
Robert raises the possibility of selling the material but otherwise does not provide details of their plans or the content of the emails.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi describes the intrusion as “an unconscionable cyber-attack.”
Iran’s mission to the United Nations does not return a message seeking comment. Tehran has in the past denied committing cyberespionage.
Robert materialized in the final months of the 2024 presidential campaign, when they claimed to have breached the email accounts of several Trump allies, including Wiles.
The hackers then distributed emails to journalists.
The US Justice Department in a September 2024 indictment alleged that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards ran the Robert hacking operation. In conversations with Reuters, the hackers declined to address the allegation.
After Trump’s election, Robert told Reuters that no more leaks were planned. As recently as May, the hackers told Reuters, “I am retired, man.”
But the group resumed communication after this month’s 12-day air war between Israel and Iran, which was capped by US bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites.
In messages this week, Robert said they were organizing a sale of stolen emails and wanted Reuters to “broadcast this matter.”
American Enterprise Institute scholar Frederick Kagan, who has written about Iranian cyberespionage, says Tehran’s spies are likely trying to retaliate in ways that do not draw more US or Israeli action.
“A default explanation is that everyone’s been ordered to use all the asymmetric stuff that they can that’s not likely to trigger a resumption of major Israeli/US military activity,” he says. “Leaking a bunch more emails is not likely to do that.”
Idaho shooter drew swastika, former classmates say as police look for motive
The 20-year-old transient who started a wildfire and then fatally shot two firefighters and wounded another in northern Idaho drew swastikas in school and was obsessed with guns, former classmates tell USA Today.
Authorities say they do not yet know why Wess Roley staged the attack Sunday at Canfield Mountain, a popular recreation area just north of Coeur d’Alene, setting off a massive manhunt. He was found dead after taking his own life, police say.
“We have not been able to find a manifesto,” Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris told reporters earlier, adding a motive was still unknown.
“My good friend saw drawings of swastikas and guns in his notebook,” Harry Standley, who attended middle and high school with Roley, tells USA Today. “We were all pretty scared of him.”
A second classmate who also attended elementary school with Roley also recalled the swastika incident, USA Today reports, though he just thought Roley was trying to be “edgy.”
The report also includes an unattributed quote claiming he had “Nazi tendencies.”
“Everybody just thought he was weird,” Standley says, adding that “he was also obsessed with guns.”
Roley was living out of his vehicle, had once aspired to be a firefighter and had only a handful of minor contacts with area police, Norris said.
He had ties to California and Arizona and was living in Idaho “for the better part of 2024,” the sheriff added.
Roley lived with T.J. Franks Jr. for about six months in Sandpoint, Idaho, while working for a tree service, Franks said on Monday. Franks had cameras in his apartment that caught Roley throwing gang signs at them one day, which worried Franks to the point that he called police.
“I didn’t know what to really think about it,” Franks said. “I just called the cops and had them talk to him.”
Two motorcycle riders killed in collision with bus near Tel Aviv
Two men in their 20s have died after the motorcycle they were riding on collided with a bus on the Ayalon freeway near Tel Aviv, Army Radio reports.
The Magen David Adom rescue service says the two, both men in their mid 20s, were transported to Wolfson Hospital in Holon in critical condition following the crash just after midnight. Medics attempted to revive the pair, who were both suffering from multisystemic failure.
A picture from the scene, near the Komemiyut interchange, shows the back of an Egged intercity bus badly dented, indicating that the pair slammed into the rear of the vehicle.
Earlier Monday night, a 5-year-old girl was pronounced dead after being hit by a car while riding a scooter in the southern town of Sderot, according to Magen David Adom.
The rescue service says a 9-year-old boy was also killed when he was hit by a tractor in the West Bank’s South Hebron Hills on Monday evening.
Iran says it needs time before talks with US, can start enriching again quickly
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi leaves after a meeting on Tehran's nuclear program, with Germany's Foreign Minister, France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Britain's Foreign Secretary at the Intercontinental Hotel in Geneva on June 20, 2025 (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says it will take time and assurances from the US before Tehran is ready to re-engage in talks on its nuclear program, insisting that the country will soon be ready to start enriching uranium again and “make up for lost time.”
“I don’t think negotiations will restart as quickly as that,” Araghchi is quoted telling CBS News through a translator, though he adds that diplomacy is not off the table.
“In order for us to decide to reengage, we will have to first ensure that America will not revert back to targeting us in a military attack during the negotiations,” Araghchi adds. “And I think with all these considerations, we still need more time.”
Speaking to a US outlet for the first time since Israel halted 12 days of bombings aimed at dismantling Iran’s nuclear program, Araghchi claims that the campaign, which included destroying centrifuge facilities and assassinating nuclear scientists, did not achieve its goal.
“One cannot obliterate the technology and science for enrichment through bombings,” Araghchi says. “If there is this will on our part, and the will exists in order to once again make progress in this industry, we will be able to expeditiously repair the damages and make up for the lost time.”
He appears to indicate that the military conflict only hardened Iran’s resolve to continue enriching uranium.
Iran’s “peaceful nuclear program has turned into a matter of national pride and glory,” he says. “We have also gone through 12 days of imposed war, therefore, people will not easily back down from enrichment.”
Iran has consistently denied seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, but has long enriched uranium to levels that have no peaceful application, and according to Israel, had recently taken steps toward weaponization.
Over 12 Palestinians arrested after trying to keep settler shepherd away, rights group says
Israeli security forces arrested over a dozen Palestinians Monday who sought to prevent a settler from grazing sheep on their land in the southern West Bank, the B’Tselem rights group says.
Siblings from a family in a-Rakeez whose parents were arrested by Israeli security forces on June 30, 2025, according to B’Tselem. (B’Tselem)
Members of the Palestinian hamlet of a-Rakeez, in an area known as Masafer Yatta, called Israeli Police upon spotting the Israeli settler on their agricultural land, B’Tselem says.
When Israeli troops and officers arrived at the scene, they arrested the Palestinians, while allowing the settler to continue grazing his sheep.
The detainees, including women, minors and the parents of two young children, are being held at a police station in the southern West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba, B’Tselem says.
Spokespeople for the Israel Police and the IDF did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Masafar Yatta is located in what Israeli authorities say is an IDF firing zone, exposing it to evacuation orders. Residents say they have lived their for decades and face regular demolitions by Israeli authorities and harassment from nearby settlers from nearby illegal outposts, who they say are spared the selective enforcement of the orders.
Harvard pushes back at Trump administration over antisemitism findings
Students, faculty and members of the Harvard University community rally, Thursday, April 17, 2025, in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo)
Harvard University says it strongly disagrees with the findings of a federal task force accusing it of being a “willful participant” in antisemitic harassment of Jewish students and faculty.
“Antisemitism is a serious problem and no matter the context, it is unacceptable,” the university says in a statement. “Harvard has taken substantive, proactive steps to address the root causes of antisemitism in its community.”
The government’s investigation largely relied on a campus antisemitism study commissioned by Harvard and released in April. Federal officials cited numerous details from that report, including accounts of Jewish students who said they were spit on and faced chants on campus including “Heil Hitler.”
It focuses heavily on last year’s protests over the Israel-Hamas war. In the letter to Harvard, federal officials say the campus was “overrun by an impermissible, multiweek encampment” that left Jewish and Israeli students fearful and disrupted their studies.
The task force threatens to refer the case to the Justice Department to file a civil rights lawsuit “as soon as possible,” unless Harvard comes into compliance.
Harvard has faced mounting sanctions after rejecting a list of federal demands calling for sweeping changes to campus governance, hiring and admissions. The formal finding could now jeopardize Harvard’s eligibility to accept federal loans or grants for students to attend the university — a penalty often referred to as a “death sentence” in higher education.
In a court filing Monday seeking to annul the freezing of federal funds over antisemitism claims, Harvard argues that the formal filing marks a concession by the government that it previously bypassed required procedural findings under Title VI.
It calls the administration’s previous use of antisemitism claims to justify the freeze “arbitrary and capricious,” with the government failing to investigate or document antisemitism on campus itself and relying instead on Harvard’s own study.
The filing also claims an “absence of any concrete evidence of antisemitism in the administrative record,” while accusing the government of ignoring the school’s efforts to combat hate.
“Harvard’s willingness to seek and publish a report harshly condemning antisemitism on its campus, and detailing actions to implement the report’s recommendations, show that Harvard did respond and is responding
forcefully to antisemitism,” the filing reads.
Turkey arrests cartoonists as protesters attack magazine over ‘Muhammad’ drawing
Turkish authorities have detained three cartoonists over a satirical drawing published by weekly magazine Leman that depicts a Muslim named Muhammad and a Jew names Moses shaking hands in the sky, while missiles fly below in a scene resembling war.
The cartoon has drawn strong condemnation from government officials and religious conservatives who say it depicts the Prophet Mohammad, with protesters attacking an Istanbul bar frequented by Leman staffers, provoking angry scuffles with police.
In several posts on X, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya says police arrested the cartoonist responsible for “this vile drawing,” the magazine’s editor-in-chief and its graphic designer.
“I once again curse those who try to sow discord by drawing caricatures of our Prophet Muhammad,” Yerlikaya wrote.
Peygamber Efendimizin (S.A.V) karikatürünü yaparak nifak tohumları ekmeye çalışanları bir kez daha lanetliyorum.
Bu alçak çizimi yapan D.P. adlı şahıs yakalanarak gözaltına alınmıştır.
Bir kez daha yineliyorum:
Bu hayasızlar hukuk önünde hesap verecektir. pic.twitter.com/7xYe94B65d— Ali Yerlikaya (@AliYerlikaya) June 30, 2025
Police had also taken over the magazine’s offices on Istiklal Avenue and arrest warrants had been issued for several other of the magazine’s executives, presidential press aide Fahrettin Altin writes on X.
In a statement on X, the Leman magazine apologizes to readers but says the cartoon sought to highlight “the suffering of a Muslim man killed in Israeli attacks,” and that there was no intent to insult Islam or its prophet.
“In this work, the name of a Muslim who was killed in the bombardments of Israel is fictionalized as Muhammad,” Leman editor-in-chief Tuncay Akgun tells AFP by phone from Paris. “More than 200 million people in the Islamic world are named Mohammed.”
“We would never take such a risk,” he adds.
🇹🇷
Turquie: Un groupe d’individus a attaqué le journal satirique Leman à Istanbul, en réaction à une caricature montrant le prophète de l’islam et Moïse (Moussa) se serrant la main sur les décombres de Gaza.La justice a lancé une enquête visant à la fois le journal et les… pic.twitter.com/eGXITX8cJy
— Restitutor Orientis 🇨🇭 (@restitutorII) June 30, 2025
An AFP correspondent says scuffles between police and protesters who attacked the bar in downtown Istanbul quickly degenerated into clashes involving between 250 to 300 people.
Earlier in the evening, video footage on social media showed a group of protesters marching to Leman’s office building in central Istanbul, chanting slogans and kicking its entrance doors.
Gaza ceasefire, Iran bombing to top agenda at Netanyahu-Trump meet — official
A US official says Gaza and Iran will be the top issues on the agenda when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits the White House, scheduled for July 7.
The official stresses US President Donald Trump’s desire to secure an end to the war in Gaza and a release of the remaining hostages. The president is also seeking to use the meeting as an opportunity to tout military achievements in the war against Iran, they say.
During the war, the US attacked three Iranian nuclear sites in support of Israel, including dropping massive ground-penetrating bombs on the hardened underground Fordo site.
Syria will also be discussed, as the Trump administration seeks to facilitate a gradual warming of ties between Damascus and Jerusalem, the US official adds.
They clarify that while Washington wants Syria to join the Abraham Accords, it recognizes that it will take more time.
Argentina charges soccer fans after ‘antisemitic acts’ during match against Jewish-backed team
Argentina’s security ministry says it has filed a criminal complaint after fans of the second division All Boys soccer club after they staged anti-Israel protests and carried around a coffin draped in the Israeli flag before a match against Atlanta in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood of Buenos Aires.
The complaint accuses fans of “demonstrations of violence, expressions of racial and religious hatred, and public intimidation.”
The Argentine Football Association also condemns what it describes as “antisemitic acts” by All Boys club fans during the Sunday match, which also included fans waving Palestinian and Iranian flags; flyers and pamphlets found outside the stadium read “Israel and Atlanta are the same crap,” and “Clear off to Israel” under a banner reading “Death to the genocidal state of Israel.”
"DAIA"
Porque salieron a llorar por los cánticos de la hinchada de All Boys https://t.co/f56T1pUXhw pic.twitter.com/fKUrDhtsxK
— Tendencias de Argentina (@Lolcitoo0) June 29, 2025
During the match itself, which ended in a 0-0 draw, a drone bearing a Palestinian flag flew over the stadium and some fans of the All Boys home team chanted anti-Israel slogans.
🇦🇷 En medio del partido de All Boys vs Atlanta apareció un DRON con una bandera de Palestina, por lo que se detuvo el encuentro.
En la previa, los hinchas estaban con un ataúd con los colores de Atlanta y una bandera de Israel, acompañado de cánticos hacia el pueblo judío.
📹:… pic.twitter.com/DfJJqckj2p
— Primera Nacional (@Primeranaciona) June 29, 2025
The Football Association expresses “its total and absolute repudiation of the abhorrent acts of antisemitism carried out by fans of All Boys yesterday, both before and during the match between the club and Atlanta.”
The association adds that it has filed a formal complaint with its disciplinary court.
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