Nov. 4: IDF receives casket with apparent body of hostage from Red Cross in Gaza

Israeli officials fear restrictions on IDF in Trump’s UN proposal for Gaza force — report

Illustrative: IDF troops deployed along the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip take position in their armored personnel carriers near the border fence on October 21, 2025. (Jack GUEZ / AFP)

Israeli officials strongly dislike certain clauses of the Trump administration’s draft United Nations Security Council resolution on establishing an international force in Gaza, Channel 12 reports.

A senior US official tells the network that “the Israelis gagged” over certain parts of the resolution – mainly because the deployment of the force will require another stage of IDF withdrawal from Gaza and limit the IDF’s freedom of action in the territory going forward.

Beyond the military implications, some Israeli officials view the proposal as a dangerous “internationalization” of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, fearing it could lead to undesired international oversight not only in Gaza but also in the West Bank, the network continues.

Channel 12 adds that Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer worked behind the scenes with American officials on the proposal.

IDF troops cross into Israel with casket containing apparent body of hostage

The casket containing the apparent remains of a dead hostage has been brought out of the Gaza Strip by troops, the military says.

The body is now escorted by the police to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Tel Aviv for identification, a process which officials have said may take up to two days.

Hamas did not provide the identity of the hostage it handed over.

If the body is confirmed to belong to a hostage, it would mean that the remains of seven hostages are still held in Gaza.

IDF says it received casket from Red Cross in Gaza with apparent body of dead hostage

Red Cross vehicles carrying the bodies of three deceased hostages handed over by Hamas make their way toward the border crossing with Israel, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, November 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

IDF troops in the Gaza Strip have received a casket, with the apparent body of a dead hostage, from the Red Cross a short while ago.

The casket had been collected by the Red Cross from Hamas in Gaza City.

The IDF is set to inspect the casket before draping it in an Israeli flag and holding a short ceremony led by a military rabbi.

The remains will then be taken to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Tel Aviv for identification.

Yair Netanyahu said pressuring his father to cancel Itai Ofir’s appointment as top IDF lawyer

Yair Netanyahu (left) and Sara Netanyahu listen to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deliver a speech at the 80th session of The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 26, 2025, in New York City. (Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images/AFP)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s son, Yair Netanyahu, is exerting pressure on the premier to cancel Defense Minister Israel Katz’s appointment of Itai Ofir as the next military advocate general after the resignation of Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi last week, Hebrew media outlets report.

“This is an appointment from within the legal junta,” Yair told the premier after Ofir’s appointment was announced earlier today, according to Channel 12.

According to the Hebrew network, the premier’s son cited multiple grievances against Ofir, claiming that he was a fellow of the Wexner Foundation philanthropy group, which has been criticized by government officials for promoting “radically left-wing” views; that he worked alongside Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara – whom the government is working to dismiss; and that his wife, who was appointed as a judge by former justice minister Ayelet Shaked, had ruled in favor of leaders of protests against the government’s judicial overhaul.

During a pre-scheduled security discussion this evening, Prime Minister Netanyahu reportedly expressed anger at Defense Minister Israel Katz that he hadn’t been informed of the decision to appoint Ofir in advance, and that he instead found out from the media.

Nevertheless, the premier supports the appointment and believes it is “an excellent choice,” Channel 12 reports.

Israel said to believe it will be possible to recover all remaining bodies of hostages

Israel reportedly believes that it will be possible to return all the bodies of the remaining hostages held in Gaza, with “strenuous work and cooperation” with Hamas and other parties.

Channel 12 news says Israel knows the locations of at least four of the dead hostages. The network cites three defense officials as saying that the remaining three can also be returned, though it will take time. (The tally apparently does not include the body being returned tonight, which has not yet been identified.)

“This can take time, and there are further moves that need to be carried out on the ground, but in the end, it will be possible to return them all for burial in Israel,” a defense official is cited by Channel 12 as saying.

Report: IDF’s former top lawyer maintains her disappearance was not staged, she had intended to end her own life

Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP/Oren Ben Hakoon)

Former military advocate general Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi is maintaining that she had intended to end her own life during her hours-long disappearance on Sunday, even as police suspect she staged a crisis in order to dispose of her phone and any incriminating evidence on it.

Tomer-Yerushalmi is suspected of obstruction of justice over the leak of footage purportedly showing the abuse of a Palestinian prisoner at the Sde Teiman detention camp by IDF reservists last year, and an alleged subsequent cover-up.

“I couldn’t withstand it anymore, the public pressure, the slander and humiliation, the threats to my life and the lives of my family,” she is said to have told police investigators. “Over the past week, my life became hell, so I decided to end my life. I left a letter to my children.”

The police investigator is said to have told the former top military lawyer that he believes she was “bluffing” and that she “simply tried to evade arrest.”

“You put on a great show,” he told her, according to Channel 12.

Tomer-Yerushalmi nevertheless continued to insist that she was telling the truth, telling the investigator that “none of you understand what I’ve been going through recently. I really intended to do it.”

Separately, Ynet reports that Tomer-Yerushalmi has been summoned for additional questioning regarding the leak of the classified Sde Teiman video, the Ynet news outlet reports.

According to the report, Tomer-Yerushalmi was brought back in for another session of questioning after she expressed “repeated interest” about the results of a polygraph test taken by former chief military prosecutor Col. Matan Solomosh.

It says she is being interrogated at a Defense Ministry facility to ensure that the contents of her testimony remain confidential.

Report: Zamir suggests conditioning safe passage of Hamas operatives out of IDF-held areas on return of Hadar Goldin’s body

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir reportedly tells political officials that he will only recommend allowing the estimated 200 trapped Hamas operatives in southern Gaza’s Rafah — which is under Israeli control — to return to Hamas-held areas of the Strip, if the terror group returns the body of Lt. Hadar Goldin.

Goldin was killed during the 2014 Gaza War, and his body was abducted by Hamas.

“No terrorist will leave Rafah alive. I am willing to consider the release of terrorists [from Rafah], on one condition — returning Hadar Goldin. Otherwise, no terrorist will leave Rafah alive,” Channel 12 news cites Zamir as telling Israel’s political echelon.

IDF says Red Cross headed to troops inside Gaza to hand over apparent body of hostage

The IDF says the Red Cross has notified the military that it has collected a casket, with the apparent body of a slain hostage, from Hamas in Gaza City a short while ago.

The Red Cross is now bringing the casket to IDF troops inside the Strip, where a small ceremony, led by a military rabbi, will be held.

Red Cross headed to handover site in Gaza City to collect apparent hostage body from Hamas

Red Cross vehicles are now heading to a handover site in Gaza City to collect the apparent remains of a deceased hostage from Hamas, the IDF says.

Hamas did not identify the hostage whose body it is set to hand over.

The terror group said that it had “retrieved” the body today in Gaza City’s Shejaiya neighborhood.

IDF says it is investigating soldiers’ conduct after drone injures volunteer helping with West Bank olive harvest

The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit issues a correction to an earlier statement in which it claimed that volunteers who were assisting with the Palestinian olive harvest in the West Bank had downed a drone with rocks, after footage showed the drone hitting a volunteer, injuring them and falling to the ground.

The footage also showed uniformed soldiers pointing their weapons at the volunteers and firing into the air in their direction.

Contrary to the previous statement, which claimed that the drone was brought down after volunteers threw stones, the IDF now says that: “The drone was not brought down by stones. The incident is under investigation.”

“The earlier response was based on initial reports and footage received, which will be included in the IDF’s internal investigation of the matter,” it adds.

It says that this was an “exceptional incident involving unprofessional conduct that will be investigated. Disciplinary measures will be taken against those involved accordingly.”

IDF: Troops found rocket launch site, destroyed vast Hamas tunnel on Israeli side of Gaza’s ‘Yellow Line’

Troops of the Yiftah Reserve Brigade operate in Gaza City's Shejaiya neighborhood, in a handout photo issued on November 4, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

Amid the ongoing ceasefire in Gaza, the IDF says troops deployed to the Strip’s north — on the eastern side of the Yellow Line — destroyed a Hamas tunnel spanning hundreds of meters and located a rocket launching site.

Reservists of the Yiftah Brigade who are operating in Gaza City’s eastern Shejaiya neighborhood found a site with several launchers, rockets and launch posts, according to the IDF.

Meanwhile, in the Jabalia area, the IDF says troops of the 188th Armored Brigade and the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit located and destroyed a Hamas tunnel that was hundreds of meters long and dozens of meters deep.

The tunnel had been used by Hamas operatives for residing in for long periods and preparing to launch attacks against troops, according to the military.

This video, published by the IDF on November 4, 2025, shows a Hamas tunnel in northern Gaza’s Jabalia being destroyed. (Israel Defense Forces)

Two measles patients traveled by public transport last week, Health Ministry says

The Health Ministry states that two patients with measles traveled by public transportation last week.

The patients took a bus from Petah Tikva to Bnei Brak at 7:16 a.m., and then returned from Bnei Brak to Petah Tikva at 2:45 p.m. on October 28 and October 29.

Also, on October 29, one of the patients was in an event hall in Jerusalem, 6 Dover Shalom Street, starting at 7 p.m.

On October 30, the patients took a bus from Jerusalem to Bnei Brak at 12 a.m., and then a bus from Bnei Brak to Petah Tikva. At 9 a.m., the patients took a bus from Petah Tikva to Tel Aviv, and then the train from Tel Aviv to Herzliya at 1:15 p.m.

Passengers who were in those places are asked to ensure that they are vaccinated in accordance with the ministry’s recommendations.

Individuals can update their vaccination status via the government’s personal website through the digital vaccination register.

Comptroller pans government’s handling of wartime economy

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich attends a press conference held on "Operation Rising Lion" at the Finance Ministry in Jerusalem on June 23, 2025. (Oren Ben Hakoon/FLASH90)

In a scathing report, the state comptroller finds that the government had made insufficient preparations for future emergencies following the coronavirus pandemic, which would have made it easier to protect the Israeli economy during the war in Gaza.

According to the comptroller’s office, the past two years of war will end up costing NIS 250 billion ($76 billion) by the end of 2025, with all Israelis “paying this enormous price, and future generations will pay it as well.”

In the two years prior to October 7, 2023, the government did not deal at all with the issue of economic emergency preparedness, the comptroller’s office found. Moreover, the Finance Ministry did not prepare any plans for an extended war lasting longer than a month, and “there was no emergency surplus in the state budget that would allow for immediate financing of military and civilian needs.”

The comptroller also found that the disbursement of war budgets in 2023 and 2024 was also “significantly delayed.”

In addition, the ministry did not create a “contingency plan that would allow for the rapid distribution of grants to affected populations” nor “finish mapping the needs of government ministries in times of emergency,” the comptroller found, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to appoint a figure to develop a strategy for dealing with economic risks arising from emergencies such as wars, epidemics, and natural disasters.

The government has struggled to provide a response to the needs of the home front, such as the reconstruction of the north, and fundamental issues such as dealing with the shortage of workers in the economy remained without a comprehensive systemic response, the comptroller’s office stated.

In a video statement, State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman called out Netanyahu, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, as well as former finance minister Avigdor Liberman for failing to address emergency preparedness.

Moreover, the government failed to adequately curtail coalition spending, with an audit revealing that despite a Finance Ministry decision in late 2023 to divert NIS 1.6 billion ($489.5 million) in coalition funds to war needs, only NIS 860 million ($262.9 million) ended up diverted.

Environment minister unveils plan to combat waste burning in the West Bank

Smoke from waste fires in the West Bank near northern Israel's Harish in an undated photo from 2025. (Dolev Hilell)

Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman announces key elements of a strategic plan to address pirate waste burning in the West Bank and the increased pollution it is causing in Israel.

As The Times of Israel reported on Sunday, the Citizens for Clean Air organization logged 1,800 complaints last month, nearly triple those submitted in August.

Complaints are now coming not only from communities along the Green Line separating Israel and the West Bank, but from cities further inside Israel, such as Yehud, Kiryat Ono, Petah Tikva, and even Tel Aviv on the coast.

Silman’s announcement comes after a meeting she chaired in the central city of Modiin with the mayor of Modi’in-Maccabim-Reut and chairman of the Local Government Center, Haim Bibas, senior ministry officials, heads of Jewish local authorities in the West Bank, and representatives from the Israeli side of the Green Line.

The plan, which still requires input from the Defense Ministry and government approval, includes long-term steps, for which funding will need to be found, as well as immediate actions, for which the funding exists.

The immediate actions include increased steps to prevent the smuggling of waste from Israel into the West Bank and Gaza Strip; rehabilitating the waste site in Al-Minya, located near the West Bank settlements of Ma’ale Amos and Tekoa; making available engineering tools to extinguish fires that ignite within piles of waste; funding a waste transit station in Abu Dis, near Jerusalem; upgrading sites where equipment can be confiscated; and funding positions for investigators, prosecutors, and monitoring teams in the field.

Longer-term steps include passing nine pieces of legislation, five within the framework of regional orders and four in local council regulations, to strengthen supervisory and enforcement powers and increase fines for environmental offenders; boosting enforcement in Areas C and B of the West Bank, where Israel has full external security control; and integrating the police, the IDF and the security establishment in environmental protection missions.

Additional proposals are to create a 24/7 center that will coordinate inquiries and reports on environmental hazards in cooperation with the fire and rescue services, the Civil Administration — Israel’s civil arm in the West Bank — and the Israel Police; expanding waste treatment infrastructure, which will include sorting, treatment, and landfill facilities, energy recovery facilities, transit stations, and organic waste treatment sites; establishing air monitoring stations in the West Bank; and encouraging the international community and donor countries to finance environmental projects among residents of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Bibas says the affected local and regional authorities are preparing to file a petition with the High Court of Justice to force the state to deal with the waste fires.

IDF chief says he welcomes Katz’s appointment of Itai Ofir as military advocate general

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir says he “welcomes the appointment of attorney Itai Ofir” as the next military advocate general.

According to the IDF, Ofir was Zamir’s “leading candidate for the position.”

“The chief of staff sees utmost importance in appointing a military advocate general who comes from the ranks of combat officers in the IDF, with extensive legal experience and a deep understanding of both the challenges of combat and of law,” the military says, adding that Zamir will “continue to work to stabilize the Military Advocate General Corps as soon as possible for the protection of IDF soldiers.”

IDF claims volunteers helping with Palestinian olive harvest downed military drone, despite contradictory footage

The IDF claims that volunteers aiding with the olive harvest in the West Bank downed a drone by throwing rocks at it, after The Times of Israel inquired about an incident earlier today in which a Rabbis for Human Rights volunteer was injured, reportedly by the drone.

In response to the Times of Israel inquiry into the incident and about footage that appeared to show soldiers from a regional defense unit pointing their weapons at the volunteers, with one firing into the air, the IDF says: “Israeli civilians arrived to harvest olives near the settlement of Revava, in the Ephraim Brigade sector. An IDF unit launched a drone that struck the harvesters, who then downed it by throwing stones.”

This account contradicts the footage, which shows the drone falling to the ground after hitting the volunteer who had come to assist Palestinians in harvesting their olives near the village of Deir Istiya in the West Bank.

“The force arrived at the location to retrieve the drone,” the IDF statement continues. “A violent disturbance then broke out between the Israeli civilians and the troops, who responded with live fire to remove the threat.”

“The conduct of the forces in the incident is under investigation,” it adds.

After nixing Israel visit, US energy secretary to meet Israeli counterpart in Greece

After US Energy Secretary Chris Wright canceled his visit to Israel last week, Energy Minister Eli Cohen will meet him on Thursday at a regional energy summit in Athens, says Cohen’s office.

US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, will also be at the summit.

Wright backed out of his Israel trip last week after Cohen refused to sign off on a massive gas export agreement recently agreed upon between Jerusalem and Cairo.

This week’s energy summit will also be attended by the Greek and Cypriot energy ministers.

According to the Energy Ministry, the ministers will discuss “promoting regional interests, joint projects in the energy sector, creating an infrastructure corridor from the Middle East to Europe via the Gulf and Israel, and “land connections between Israel and Europe, including electrical cables and natural gas pipeline.”

Katz didn’t notify IDF chief Zamir before announcing pick for new military advocate general

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir found out through the media of Defense Minister Israel Katz’s appointment of Itai Ofir as the next military advocate general, The Times of Israel has learned.

Ofir was one of several recommendations that Zamir presented to Katz. However, Katz did not notify Zamir before making the announcement.

There has been no comment yet from the IDF on Ofir’s appointment.

Normally, the IDF chief of staff selects a candidate for a major general role, which is then approved by the defense minister. Katz has sought for months to take control of the IDF’s senior appointments.

Trump: Any Jewish person who votes for Mamdani ‘is a stupid person’

US President Donald Trump speaks during the 13th ASEAN - United States Summit as part of the 47th Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit in Kuala Lumpur on October 26, 2025. (Vincent Thian / POOL / AFP)

US President Donald Trump writes on his Truth Social platform that “Any Jewish person that votes for Zohran Mamdani, a proven and self professed JEW HATER, is a stupid person!!!”

Trump made the same argument about Jews who voted Democrat in the November 2024 US presidential election.

He urged voters yesterday to back former New York governor Andrew Cuomo over Mamdani in the New York City mayoral election.

Hamas says it will hand over hostage’s body at 8 p.m.

The military wing of Hamas announces that it will hand over the body of a hostage this evening at 8 p.m.

Earlier today, Hamas said it had discovered the body of a hostage during excavations in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City, “inside the Yellow Line” — that is, within the area under Israeli control.

World on catastrophic 2.5°C warming pathway this century, UN warns

A person walks on sand dunes on August 3, 2025, in Death Valley National Park, California. (AP Photo/John Locher)

National commitments to slash heat-trapping pollution would limit global warming up to 2.5°C this century — nowhere near enough to avoid devastating climate impacts, the UN warns.

The world’s collective commitments to tackle climate change, if enacted in full, would result in 2.3°C to 2.5°C of warming by 2100, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) says in its annual Emissions Gap report.

Jews targeted in 62% of all hate crimes in New York City last month

Jews were targeted in 62% of all hate crimes in New York City last month, according to police data.

There were 29 antisemitic hate crimes reported to police and 47 total hate crimes.

Jews are targeted in hate crimes more than other group in the city, but last month saw a higher proportion of antisemitic incidents than usual.

There were four anti-Asian incidents, one incident targeting Black people, two Islamophobic incidents, three based on other religions, and eight motivated by sexual orientation.

The figures are released as New Yorkers head to the polls for the mayoral election.

Swaths of the Jewish community are alarmed by the expected win of far-left anti-Israel activist Zohran Mamdani because they fear his anti-Israel rhetoric will spur hatred against Jews.

The NYPD figures are preliminary and subject to change if, for example, an incident that appeared to be discriminatory turns out to have had other motives.

Hate crime prosecutions are relatively rare because prosecutors need to prove bias, a high legal bar.

Dick Cheney ‘just loved Israel,’ recalls former ambassador to Washington

Then-US vice president Dick Cheney (L) and prime minister Ehud Olmert shake hands after delivering statements on March 22, 2008, from inside the prime minister's residence in Jerusalem. (Paul J. Richards/AFP)

Former US Vice President Dick Cheney “just loved Israel,” recalls Michael Oren, past Israeli ambassador to Washington.

“He got it,” Oren continues. “He got what Israel is. He got that Israel is a bastion of freedom and the forward position of the defense of the West, of the United States. I can say, everybody who worked with him on the Israeli side appreciated, if not revered, him.”

Oren was in the room as an Israeli reservist in the 1991 Gulf War when Cheney, then defense secretary, and his counterpart Moshe Arens met to discuss the response to Iraqi Scud missile attacks on Israeli cities. He was the Israeli notetaker, as Cheney sought to convince Israel not to respond.

“The Israeli government was telling the administration that we couldn’t wait anymore, that the paratroopers were out on the runway ready to go to western Iraq,” says Oren.

Cheney feared that the US-backed coalition against Iraq would unravel as Israel joined the fight.

“He had to persuade Arens not to do this, to give them another night,” Oren recounts. “And they would bring in Patriot rocket missiles from Italy and set them up in the streets of Tel Aviv. We were just waiting. Arens was saying, Listen, we can’t sustain another night. Those Patriots have to be up and running by nightfall.”

Oren says that what stood out to him was the “genuine caring and affection and understanding that Cheney displayed in these conversations.”

“It wasn’t like he was ordering Arens around at all,” he continues. “‘I understand your plight. I understand where you are. Please, please just give us tonight.’ He wasn’t muscling him at all; on the contrary.”

“I think that’s what persuaded the Israeli government not to intervene.”

The two remained in touch, and Cheney hosted a dinner in Oren’s honor when he began teaching at Georgetown University in 2008.

Oren adds that Cheney “was hysterically funny. Very funny. He was very warm.”

Cheney died Monday night due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease, according to a statement from his family. He was 84.

IDF says two Hamas operatives detained by commandos during raid in northern West Bank

Two Hamas operatives were detained by Israeli commandos during a raid in the Nablus area of the northern West Bank today, the IDF says.

According to the military, the pair were nabbed by troops of the Duvdevan commando unit in two separate undercover operations in the Balata camp and another village near Nablus, following intelligence provided by the Shin Bet.

Smotrich praises Katz’s ‘excellent’ pick for next military advocate general

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich praises Defense Minister Israel Katz’s choice of Itai Ofir as the next Military Advocate General, following the resignation of Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi last week.

“There is no one more worthy and suitable to heal the military prosecution system” than Ofir, he says in a statement, calling the former Defense Ministry legal adviser a soldier “with a backbone of Zionist values, and a first-rate professional.”

“I am convinced that this excellent appointment by the defense minister will lead to the necessary correction of the system,” he adds.

Additional firefighting squads deployed to Ein Vered as blaze spreads to nearby farmland

An aerial view of a wildfire that broke out in Ein Vered, a moshav in central Israel, on November 4, 2025. (Courtesy/Fire and Rescue Service)

Fire and rescue services have deployed large forces to central Israel as firefighters struggle to extinguish blazes in Ein Vered, a moshav in the region.

Another 15 firefighting squads are now reinforcing the eight squads initially dispatched to the area, alongside four firefighting planes. Additional teams are on their way, the Fire and Rescue Service says.

The fire appears to be spreading to farmland and has scorched several buildings, as police evacuate residents from the northern section of the moshav.

Police have blocked Route 553 to traffic in both directions to keep drivers away from the fire, law enforcement says. No injuries have been reported in the fires.

Ex-chief military prosecutor sharing cell with Histadrut chairman

Ex-chief military prosecutor Col. Matan Solomosh is sharing a prison cell with Histadrut labor federation chairman Arnon Bar-David in Tel Aviv, Hebrew outlets report, after the two were arrested within hours of each other in separate cases.

Solomosh was remanded for two additional days yesterday on suspicion of helping to cover for former military advocate general Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi in the Sde Teiman video leak affair. The two military lawyers were arrested Sunday night and were ordered to remain in custody until tomorrow.

Bar-David was apprehended along with dozens of other suspects the next morning when law enforcement raided the labor federation’s offices, as part of a sweeping investigation into alleged corruption. He is to remain in custody for eight days on the order of the Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court.

The Histadrut, Israel’s largest labor federation, puts out another statement today announcing that its institutions were operating as usual despite the wave of arrests.

“We at the Histadrut have full confidence in the judicial system and in law enforcement authorities, with whom we cooperate fully and transparently,” the agency says.

“We trust in the integrity of our people and believe that the full picture will become clear in due course,” the federation continues, calling on civic and political parties to “act responsibly, refrain from spreading rumors and avoid drawing premature conclusions.”

Katz taps former Defense Ministry legal adviser as next military advocate general

Attorney Itai Ofir (Elad Malka/Defense Ministry)

Defense Minister Israel Katz announces that he has decided to appoint Itai Ofir as the next military advocate general, after the resignation of Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi last week amid the Sde Teiman leak scandal.

Ofir is an attorney who served as the Defense Ministry legal adviser between 2017 and 2024. Before that, he worked as a lawyer in the private sector in Israel and the United States.

Katz says that Ofir “has the proper qualifications to fulfill this complex and challenging role, whose importance is growing at this time, thanks to his vision, experience, abilities, and the positions he has held in the past.

“There is great importance at this time, in light of the serious facts that are being uncovered, to immediately appoint a military advocate general from outside the military advocate general [unit] — someone untainted by any suspicion and possessing the proper qualifications, who can act to cleanse, rehabilitate, and reorganize the military prosecution system based on principles that first and foremost include the protection of IDF soldiers, who are fighting bravely under difficult and complex conditions for the security of the State of Israel, and certainly not to initiate or take part in blood libels that defame IDF soldiers, harm their dignity and expose them to persecution around the world,” Katz says in a statement.

Ofir in 2022 was among the candidates for the role of Israel’s attorney general, although he was ultimately not selected. He holds a bachelor’s degree in law and a master’s in business administration from Bar-Ilan University, as well as a master’s in law from Harvard University.

In the military, Ofir was a combat officer in the Givati Brigade and in the reserves served in the Negev Brigade.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF on the appointment, which is normally made by the IDF chief of staff and approved by the defense minister.

It is unclear if the appointment will be accepted as legal, as according to the Military Justice Law — the legal framework for military jurisdiction in Israel — the military advocate general must be “a military attorney with at least seven years of legal experience,” which removes the possibility of a civilian legal expert, or even a senior IDF officer who is not an attorney, serving in the role.

Polling stations open in New York City as Mamdani and Cuomo face off

Voters sign in at a polling site, in New York, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Voting at polling stations in New York City is underway, with residents set to decide the outcome of a generational and ideological divide that will resonate across the country as they choose the next mayor to run the nation’s largest city.

Zohran Mamdani, who won the Democratic primary earlier this year, faces former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent, and perennial Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, who is trying to pull off a massive upset.

A victory for Mamdani would give the city its first Muslim mayor and its youngest leader in generations, while elevating the democratic socialist to political stardom and giving his brand of economic populism one of the most visible political perches in America.

If Cuomo comes out on top, he will have staged a remarkable political comeback four years after resigning as governor over a barrage of sexual harassment allegations.

For Sliwa — the creator of the Guardian Angels crime patrol group and a longtime New York tabloid fixture — a highly unlikely win would put a Republican in charge of the nation’s largest city at a time when many New Yorkers are seeking a leader who can keep President Donald Trump at bay.

The race has made Mamdani a national figure as he has drawn the ire of Trump and other Republicans, who have cast him as the face of a new, more radical Democratic Party. Trump has also threatened to take over the city if Mamdani wins, as well as arrest and deport the state assemblymember, who was born in Uganda but is a US citizen.

Hamas claims to have located body of a hostage in Gaza City

The military wing of Hamas announces that it has located the body of a hostage during excavations in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City, “inside the Yellow Line” — that is, within the area under Israeli control.

The identity of the hostage is not specified.

The statement adds that arrangements are being made to transfer the body to Israel, but no timeline for the handover is given.

Homes evacuated in Ein Vered due to wildfire

Smoke rises from a wildfire in Ein Vered, a moshav in central Israel, on November 4, 2025. (Courtesy/Fire and Rescue Service)

Police are evacuating homes in Ein Vered, a moshav in central Israel, as a wildfire spreads in the region, law enforcement announces.

Residents in the northern section of the community are evacuating as strong winds carry the flames to buildings. No injuries have been reported.

Fire and rescue services have dispatched eight firefighting squads and two planes to the area to extinguish the blazes, the agency says.

IDF says it killed terror operative who crossed Yellow Line in Gaza

The IDF says it killed a terror operative who crossed the Yellow Line, demarcating the military’s withdrawal, and approached troops in the northern Gaza Strip earlier today.

The operative had “posed an immediate threat” to the forces stationed in the area, the military says, adding that shortly after he was spotted, the Israeli Air Force struck and killed him “to remove the threat.”

The military says it remains deployed in Gaza “in accordance with the ceasefire agreement and will continue to operate to remove any immediate threat.”

Reports of Israeli drone strike targeting car in southern Lebanon

Lebanese media reports an Israeli drone strike targeting a car in the southern town of Kfar Dajjal, near Nabatieh.

At least one casualty is reported in the strike.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF.

In recent weeks, the IDF appears to have stepped up its strikes on Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon, who Israel says are violating the terms of a November 2024 ceasefire.

مراسلة «#الأخبار»: إصابة مواطن جراء استهداف سيارة في #كفردجال pic.twitter.com/wLK2OJBQSe

— جريدة الأخبار – Al-Akhbar (@AlakhbarNews) November 4, 2025

West Bank footage shows men in IDF fatigues fire in air to disperse olive harvest volunteers

The organization Rabbis for Human Rights reports that one of its volunteers was injured in the hand by a drone while assisting Palestinians in harvesting olives near the village of Deir Istiya in the West Bank. According to the organization, she was taken to a hospital with a deep cut.

In the footage, the volunteer is seen being injured by the drone as it lands on her, after which two men in IDF fatigues arrive at the scene to pick up the drone. The men appear to be reservists from the emergency response team of a local settlement. They can be heard saying that it belongs to a settlement security coordinator, though it is unclear from which settlement.

After an argument breaks out over the drone, one of the uniformed men points his weapon at the olive-picking volunteers while the other fires a shot into the air before the two withdraw from the area.

According to the organization, about 30 volunteers and staff members from Rabbis for Human Rights and Standing Together were present at the scene, accompanying Palestinian farmers during the harvest, along with nine rabbis from the American group T’ruah.

The IDF has yet to issue a response.

Unveiling 2026 budget plan, Smotrich targets 3.2% deficit, calls for defense spending efficiency

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich leads a Religious Zionism faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, October 27, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich presents an initial state budget framework for 2026, based on a deficit target of 3.2 percent of gross domestic product, calling for more efficient management of defense spending following two years of ballooning war costs.

“The defense establishment cannot continue to hold the stick at both ends,” says Smotrich. “On the one hand, it is a system with great appetite and need for funds, and on the other hand, it will have to do the hard work to manage this resource.”

The budget deficit in 2024 reached 6.9% of GDP due to higher defense and civilian spending as a result of the war with the Hamas terror group in Gaza. It has since eased to 4.7% in September.

To date, the two-year war has cost the economy NIS 250 billion ($77 billion), out of which NIS 180 billion ($55 billion) were direct costs spent on defense and security, according to Smotrich.

Speaking at a press conference in Jerusalem, Smotrich vows to lower taxes for the working population and advance a reform in the banking system, including taxation.

Also speaking at the press conference, Finance Ministry Director-General Ilan Rom criticizes the defense budget management as “wasteful,” calling for structural changes in defense spending for greater efficiency.

“Defense spending is the cornerstone of the budget, and it will determine what the budget will look like,” remarks Rom.

Dick Cheney, powerful and polarizing US vice president, dies at 84

Former Vice President Dick Cheney watches he attends a primary Election Night gathering for his daughter, Rep. Liz Cheney, Aug. 16, 2022, in Jackson, Wyoming (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in US history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, has died at age 84.

Cheney died Monday night due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease, according to a statement from his family.

“For decades, Dick Cheney served our nation, including as White House Chief of Staff, Wyoming’s Congressman, Secretary of Defense, and Vice President of the United States,” the statement says. “Dick Cheney was a great and good man who taught his children and grandchildren to love our country, and to live lives of courage, honor, love, kindness, and fly fishing. We are grateful beyond measure for all Dick Cheney did for our country. And we are blessed beyond measure to have loved and been loved by this noble giant of a man.”

The quietly forceful Cheney served father and son presidents, leading the armed forces as defense chief during the Persian Gulf War under president George H.W. Bush before returning to public life as vice president under Bush’s son, George W. Bush.

Cheney was, in effect, the chief operating officer of the younger Bush’s presidency. He had a hand, often a commanding one, in implementing decisions most important to the president and some of surpassing interest to himself — all while living with decades of heart disease and, post-administration, a heart transplant. Cheney consistently defended the extraordinary tools of surveillance, detention and inquisition employed in response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Years after leaving office, he became a target of President Donald Trump, especially after daughter Liz Cheney became the leading Republican critic and examiner of Trump’s desperate attempts to stay in power after his election defeat and his actions in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol.

“In our nation’s 246-year history, there has never been an individual who was a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,” Cheney said in a television ad for his daughter. “He tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him. He is a coward.”

In a twist the Democrats of his era could never have imagined, Dick Cheney said last year he was voting for their candidate, Kamala Harris, for president against Trump.

A survivor of five heart attacks, Cheney long thought he was living on borrowed time and declared in 2013 he now awoke each morning “with a smile on my face, thankful for the gift of another day,” an odd image for a figure who always seemed to be manning the ramparts.

Troops capture 10 guns during smuggling attempting from Jordan using drone

Weapons seized by IDF troops following an attempted smuggling on the Jordanian border, November 4, 2025 (Israel Defense Forces)

An attempt to smuggle weapons into Israel from Jordan using a drone was foiled this morning, the military says.

Troops of the Yoav Regional Brigade located the drone after it crossed the border and was downed. It was found to be ferrying 10 handguns, according to the IDF.

In the past year, there have been frequent attempts to bring weapons and drugs over the Egyptian border using drones. Smuggling attempts are also frequent on the Jordanian border, although less commonly with drones.

In Germany, Jordan’s queen seems to equate Israeli language on Palestinians to Nazi propaganda

Speaking at a youth conference in Germany, Jordan’s Queen Rania has appeared to equate the Israeli attitude toward the Palestinians to Nazi Germany’s dehumanization of Jews.

Rania appeared yesterday before the One Young World Summit in Munich, which brings together young prospective leaders from all over the world. There, she spoke of hateful speech as a precursor to atrocities around the world.

“To dismiss it as ‘just talk’ is to ignore how every genocide has begun: with words,” she said. “Dehumanizing speech has served as the prelude to some of the worst chapters in human history. In the 1930s in this very city, the Nazi party called Jewish people vermin. In Rwanda, public radio broadcasts described the Tutsis as cockroaches. In Myanmar, nationalists compared the Rohingya to stray dogs.

“In the aftermath of the October 7 attacks, when an Israeli official announced a complete siege on Gaza, he described the population as ‘human animals.’ He was operating from a time-tested playbook: Convince the public you are dealing with beasts, and violence becomes not just acceptable, but necessary.”

Queen Rania urges global youth to meet hate and indifference with hope at One Young World Summit in Munich

Read more ????https://t.co/CmYFQm8KfL pic.twitter.com/jDLwQVAkwj

— The Jordan Times (@jordantimes) November 4, 2025

Rania was referencing then-defense minister Yoav Gallant, who said two days after the October 7 terror attack, as the dimensions of the atrocities committed by Hamas were becoming clear, that he had ordered “a ‘complete siege’ of the Gaza Strip.”

“We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly,” he said.

In Israel Gallant was widely seen as referring to Hamas and other terror groups, in light of the brutality that had been on display in Israel’s south, and with Israel saying repeatedly that it was fighting terrorists, and not Gaza’s population as a whole. Gallant himself said later that he was speaking of “the perpetrators and orchestrators of these barbaric attacks.”

But his comments were widely scrutinized by Israel critics, who have often alleged he was referring to the entire Palestinian population.

Rania went on to accuse Israel of genocide in Gaza, saying that “in the past few months, both famine and genocide have been confirmed by independent international and UN-mandated bodies. The world saw it coming, but failed to act to prevent it.

“It’s not just Gaza,” she added. “Around the world, we’re seeing hatred seep back into the foundations of our global community. And the danger isn’t only in what hate destroys, but in what it reshapes – our moral compass, our sense of decency.”

WZO nominations see shuffle, while Yair Netanyahu still out

Online voting for the heads of major Zionist institutions has been extended for another day, through Wednesday morning, after a new agreement was reached between the parties, World Zionist Organization sources say.

Yair Netanyahu, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s elder son, remains out of the picture after the surprise last-minute addition of his name to a list of WZO executives upended the nomination process last week. WZO leaders have made it clear that any effort to secure a cushy job for the younger Netanyahu will not be acceptable.

Under the latest agreement, Rabbi Doron Perez, chairman of the religious Zionist World Mizrachi movement — and father of Cpt. Daniel Perez, who was killed in the October 7 Hamas attack and whose body was held in Gaza for two years — will become either the president of the WZO or the chair of Keren Hayesod. He was previously set to become the WZO chair.

Current WZO chair Yaakov Hagoel will continue in that position for the first half of the five-year term. Two and a half years in, he would be replaced by a member of the Yesh Atid party.

Two members from World Likud will be added to the WZO executive in the future, but there is no way that Yair Netanyahu would be approved for that, a WZO source notes.

The arrangement for the chair of the Jewish National Fund-KKL will remain as previously agreed. Yesh Atid MK Meir Cohen would serve first, retiring from the Knesset after 12 years. He would be replaced in the middle of his term by a representative of the Likud party.

Charges dropped against police officers who shoved elderly Haredim at Mount Meron

Charges have been dropped against two reservist Border Police officers who shoved elderly Haredi worshipers at Mount Meron during Lag B’Omer last year, according to an i24News report.

A police disciplinary court canceled the case on a technicality after the prosecution dragged its feet in filing charges against the reservist officers. It further reasoned that punishing them would hamper motivation for reservists in the Border Police, the outlet says.

The northern holy site had been closed to visitors on Lag B’Omer in 2024, for fear of missile attacks from Hezbollah. Hundreds of Haredi Jews nevertheless attempted to ascend the mountain, and clashes soon broke out between them and law enforcement.

Border Police officers were filmed responding to the crowds with force. In one video, an officer was seen throwing an elderly man to the ground, leaving him motionless. A later photo purports to show the man bloodied and receiving medical attention. Another video showed a female Border Police officer pushing an elderly woman several times, though she did not fall.

US proposal for Gaza international force ‘an opening for negotiation’ — European diplomat

A Hamas gunman stands in Gaza City on November 2, 2025. (Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

The Trump administration’s draft United Nations Security Council resolution on an international security force for Gaza that leaked to press last night “is an opening for negotiation,” a European diplomat tells The Times of Israel.

“This is a draft document” and not a completed proposal, the diplomat emphasizes.

Key points of disagreement include the role of the Palestinian Authority, and recognition of a Palestinian state, the diplomat says.

“There are different points that seem to be lagging behind what was written in the Trump plan some weeks ago,” insists the diplomat.

The issue of the the mandate of the so-called International Stabilization Force is also a major area of contention — whether it will be merely a peacekeeping force or one that actively works to dismantle terror groups.

“An offensive mandate is very likely to piss off some of the partners, especially in Arab countries,” says the diplomat. “I’m not really sure they want this force to have an offensive mandate. Now that remains to be debated.”

The diplomat doesn’t expect talks to drag on: “Most of the people around the table want it to be rather quick because you don’t want to spend months negotiating a resolution.”

Lebanon’s parliament speaker: Israel preventing full deployment of Lebanese army along border

Lebanon's Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri chairs a parliamentary session to elect a president, in Beirut, January 9, 2025. (Anwar Amro / AFP)

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri says Israel is preventing the complete deployment of the Lebanese Army along the country’s southern border, due to the presence of IDF troops in five strategic locations inside Lebanese territory. He adds that 9,000 Lebanese Army soldiers have already been deployed south of the Litani River in southern Lebanon.

Berri, whose remarks were quoted by Arab media during a meeting with journalists in Lebanon, also says that Israel’s claims that weapons are being smuggled into Lebanon through Syria are false.

Berri, who heads the Amal Movement, a Hezbollah ally, further states that “the resistance,” a reference to Hezbollah, “is fully committed to the ceasefire agreement.”

Israel says Hezbollah is continually violating the ceasefire and attempting to rebuild its forces in southern Lebanon, and has increasingly been carrying out strikes on targets belonging to the terror group.

Leaders of opposition bloc to meet this weekend

The leaders of the so-called anti-Netanyahu “change bloc” will meet Saturday evening, a spokesman for Opposition Leader Yair Lapid announces.

The meeting will bring together Lapid, former prime minister Naftali Bennett, Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman, Yashar! With Eisenkot chief Gadi Eisenkot, Blue and White head Benny Gantz, and The Democrats’ leader Yair Golan.

They last met three weeks ago.

The bloc is an alliance of right-wing, centrist and left-wing parties that seek to oust Netanyahu and his hard-right coalition, and have been working on creating a mechanism for coordinating their efforts.

There have been some tensions among the leaders of the bloc, with Eisenkot calling on Gantz to resign in September and Lapid accusing Golan of trying to weaken his Yesh Atid party in October.

Lapid: Levin has no authority to bypass AG, he’s a hate-filled minister in a minority government

Opposition leader and Yesh Atid party chair Yair Lapid leads a faction meeting at the Knesset on October 20, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid slams Justice Minister Yariv Levin over his intention to appoint State Ombudsman for Judges Asher Kula to head the investigation into former military advocate general Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, in place of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, whom Levin has claimed is legally barred from involvement in the case.

Lapid objects to Levin’s claim that sidelining the attorney general in this case “is the best possible solution” and that Kula’s “appointment will enjoy broad public trust.”

“Yariv Levin is proposing to appoint an investigator through a channel that bypasses the attorney general, claiming this would ‘gain broad public trust,'” Lapid says in a statement.

“No, it wouldn’t… and he doesn’t have the authority to take this step. He’s a hate-filled minister in a minority government that’s doing everything it can to destroy the system, and we have no trust whatsoever in his actions.”

IDF chief salutes slain commander Hamami: ‘Rest in peace, war hero’

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir eulogizes Col. Asaf Hamami — whose body was returned by Hamas more than two years after he was killed and abducted to Gaza — as a “war hero” at his funeral.

Hamami was the commander of the Gaza Division’s Southern Brigade, the regional unit responsible for the southern portion of the border with the Strip. He was killed fighting Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Nirim during the October 7 onslaught.

“Hamami, you captivated everyone who met you with an unfeigned charm, including your subordinates and your superiors. You led and guided with effortless authenticity,” Zamir says. “You were a commander with a strength of heart and professional wisdom that inspired, and above all, you believed in and nurtured the strength of your people and truly loved them.”

Zamir recalls that as the chief of the Southern Command, he awarded Hamami — then the commander of the Givati Brigade’s Tzabar Battalion — a certificate of excellence for his outstanding work. “I know that you would have continued to command in the highest positions of the IDF in the same way,” he says.

After his death, Zamir says, commanders would tell their troops to act “with courage and determination like Hamami.”

“How proud you would have been of them, Hamami, of their heroism and of all our troops who led the IDF’s maneuvers in Gaza and countless arenas since that day of terrible failure, until victory. A victory achieved after two years of the most complex and powerful military effort we have known in the country’s history, which brought the living hostages back home for recovery, and reshaped Israel’s security conception against regional threats,” Zamir says.

הרמטכ"ל זמיר מצדיע מעל קברו של אסף: נוח בשלום גיבור מלחמה, נישא מכאן את הציווי – להיות טובים להיות חממי | שידור ישירhttps://t.co/0gTsx3E09p pic.twitter.com/kdUkK8SyvB

— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) November 4, 2025

“Rest in peace, war hero, for the victory was achieved, and we continue to fight to continue to win,” he says. “I promise you that the victory achieved from the strength of the cohesion of the people’s army and the nation will continue to give us the power to continue to build, to grow, and also to fight with that cohesion which is necessary for our existence,” Zamir continues.

“From here, we will carry the command ‘to be good — to be Hamami,’ forever,” he adds.

French cement maker Lafarge goes on trial on charges of financing jihadists in Syria

French cement maker Holcim’s Lafarge unit goes on trial facing charges that its Syrian subsidiary financed terrorism and breached European sanctions to keep a plant operating in northern Syria during the country’s civil war.

Investigative judges allege that Lafarge paid jihadist groups including Islamic State and the al-Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front, both designated as terrorists by the EU, a total of 5 million euros ($5.83 million) between 2013 and September 2014.

The case, bringing a company to trial on financing terrorism charges in France, is unprecedented.

Lafarge, which became part of Switzerland-listed Holcim in 2015, and eight people including former Lafarge executives have been under investigation by the anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office since 2017.

In a statement, Lafarge says the case revolves around “actions that occurred more than a decade ago and were in flagrant violation of Lafarge SA’s Code of Conduct. None of the former executives who are standing trial as individuals are with Lafarge SA or any affiliated entities today.”

Lafarge says it is dealing with the issue responsibly through the legal process.

Ombudsman agrees to oversee Sde Teiman leak probe, stresses neutrality on Levin-AG dispute

The State Ombudsman for Judges Asher Kula says in a press statement that his agreement to oversee the Sde Teiman leak affair does not reflect any position he might have regarding the controversy around Justice Minister Yariv Levin’s decision to byp ass the attorney general in creating the role.

“The ombudsman does not express any position regarding the obstacles [to the involvement of] the attorney general [in the Sde Teiman leak investigation], nor regarding the authority of the minister,” a statement put out by the Justice Ministry’s spokesperson reads.

“The ombudsman agrees to accept the task should it be decided to give it to him, in accordance with the law.”

Levin has claimed that Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara is legally barred from involvement in the case due to her role in submitting responses to the High Court of Justice on behalf of the former military advocate general, who is suspected of several offenses in the Sde Teiman leak.

Baharav-Miara has insisted that Levin’s claims are baseless, that he has no authority to bypass her and appoint a person to head the investigation instead of her and her office, and that she and senior officials in the Attorney General’s Office will continue to direct and oversee the investigative process.

Bill expanding police powers to probe incitement heads for final votes

Lawmakers in the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee vote to advance a controversial bill allowing police greater discretion in probing suspected incitement, while chipping away at state attorneys’ oversight of investigations into such cases.

The bill, which will now go to the Knesset plenum for the final two votes needed for it to pass into law, would allow police to open investigations into possible incitement offenses without approval from the State Attorney’s Office.

The bill, which received backing from the ultra-Orthodox Shas party despite coalition tensions, also calls for stricter legal penalties for incitement.

In a tweet, Otzma Yehudit MK Yitzhak Kroizer, one of the bill’s sponsors, calls its advancement “a critical step that strengthens the law enforcement system and provides it with the tools to act immediately.”

Iranians mark 1979 US embassy takeover with chants of ‘Death to US’ and ‘Death to Israel’

Iranians celebrate the anniversary of the 1979 takeover of the US Embassy in Tehran — the first such commemoration since the US bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities during a 12-day war with Israel in June.

On Nov. 4, 1979, Iranian students overran guards to take over the embassy, seizing dozens of hostages in a crisis that would last for more than a year.

In what is a yearly commemoration, thousands of people returned to the spot in downtown Tehran today chanting “Death to US” and “Death to Israel.” Some hanged effigies of US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and set fire to US and Israeli flags.

Stepping over the American and the Israeli flags, while carrying models of rockets.

Welcome to Tehran!
This is how the Islamic Republic of Iran's education system looks like pic.twitter.com/Mm1DuXRGAV

— Hamas Atrocities (@HamasAtrocities) November 4, 2025

State media says similar gatherings took place in other Iranian cities and towns.

Mockups of Iranian missiles were on display on the sideline of the rallies, some inscribed with the words “Death to America.” Replicas of centrifuge machines used in uranium enrichment were also on show.

Opposition MK says Ben Gvir accosted and verbally assaulted her at Knesset

MK Pnina Tamano-Shata attends a press conference at the Knesset in Jerusalem, July 29, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Blue and White MK Pnina Tamano-Shata has accused National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir of accosting her in the Knesset plenum, coming up close to her and calling her “fucked up and stupid.”

Appearing to barely hold back tears, Tamano-Shata told lawmakers yesterday evening that the ultranationalist minister had confronted her over her complaints about law enforcement’s policing of the Ethiopian Jewish community in Israel. The Ethiopian community has long charged authorities with discriminatory legal treatment.

After confronting Ben Gvir regarding recent “violent” arrests of two children of Ethiopian descent, she later said in a post on X, “the minister called me ‘fucked up and stupid’ and pressed up against my face in a violent and threatening manner, even though I asked him to step back. The incident was not captured on camera, but there are plenty of witnesses.”

Ben Gvir’s office has so far not issued a statement responding Tamano-Shata’s allegation.

Sa’ar in India: Eradicating Hamas is at heart of Trump’s plan, Israel won’t compromise on it

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar (L) meets in New Delhi with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, November 4, 2025 (Israeli Embassy in New Delhi)

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar says that Israel won’t compromise on disarming Hamas and demilitarizing Gaza under US President Donald Trump’s peace plan.

“The eradication of the Hamas terror state is at the heart of President Trump’s plan. Hamas must be disarmed. Gaza must be demilitarized. We won’t compromise on it,” Sa’ar says while in New Delhi, during a meeting with his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

He adds, “The radical terror states of Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Houthis in Yemen have established themselves over the past decades. Uprooting them is necessary for the security and stability of our region.”

“Radical terror is a mutual threat to Israel and India,” Sa’ar continues, condemning the “horrific” terror attack in Pahalgam earlier this year.

He adds that Israel seeks “to promote connectivity between South Asia, West Asia and Europe,” and “supports regional connectivity projects” such as I2U2, a strategic economic partnership between India, Israel, the US, and the United Arab Emirates, and the planned India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC).

Jaishankar welcomes Sa’ar’s visit and notes India’s interest in exploring economic opportunities with Israel.

During their meeting, the two ministers sign a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in diplomatic cadet training, according to Sa’ar’s office.

Setting up clash with AG, Levin names judge to oversee Sde Teiman probe in her stead

Judge Asher Kula at the Nazareth District Court, June 7, 2022. (David Cohen/Flash90)

Justice Minister Yariv Levin is seeking to appoint State Ombudsman for Judges Asher Kula as a special prosecutor to head the investigation into former military advocate general Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, who is suspected of fraud, breach of trust, abuse of her office, obstruction of justice, and unlawful disclosure of material in the Sde Teiman leak scandal.

Kula would head the investigation in place of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, whom Levin has claimed is legally barred from involvement in the case, since she and her office had been involved in submissions to the High Court of Justice on behalf of the Military Advocate General’s Office, which he says turned out to be inaccurate and even misleading.

Baharav-Miara has already rejected Levin’s claims as lacking foundation and stated that the minister does not have the authority to bypass her, and Levin’s announcement will likely lead to a further clash with the attorney general.

Writing to interim Civil Service Commissioner Daniel Hershkowitz, Levin informs him that he intends to appoint Kula to head the investigation instead of the attorney general.

Levin says that Kula has agreed to take the role. Kula, the former deputy president of the Nazareth District Court, was recently handpicked by the coalition to serve as the ombudsman for judges after the government passed legislation giving it control over the ombudsman appointment process.

“I believe that the ombudsman for judges, both as an institution and personally, is the best possible solution to what is required in this case,” says Levin. “His appointment will enjoy broad public trust, which is necessary in the circumstances in which we find ourselves.”

Levin has claimed that a clause in the 1959 Law for the Civil Service (Appointments) allows a minister to empower an external public servant to take up a task of an official under that minister’s authority if that official is legally prevented from carrying out that task.

Some critics have pointed out, however, that this could contravene Clause 34 of Basic Law: The Government which states, “A Minister, who is in charge of implementing a law, is entitled to assume any power, with the exception of powers of a judicial nature.”

Israelis honor Col. Asaf Hamami as slain hostage’s funeral gets underway

People are lining the streets in Rosh Ha’ayin for the funeral procession of Col. Asaf Hamami, whose body was returned from Gaza on Sunday night.

Hamami, 40, the commander of the Gaza Division’s Southern Brigade, was killed fighting Hamas terrorists in the Gaza border community of Kibbutz Nirim on the morning of October 7, 2023, and his body was abducted to Gaza.

רחוב חיים הרצוג בראש העין התמלא בתלמידי בתי הספר, החטיבה ותושבי העיר שיצאו לחלוק כבוד אחרון לאסף חממי ז"ל שחזר לקבורה בישראל pic.twitter.com/c1PMGBDzbJ

— לירי בורק שביט (@lirishavit) November 4, 2025

UN secretary-general decries ‘continued violations’ of Gaza ceasefire

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warns against violations of the ceasefire in Gaza after two years of war.

Addressing reporters on the sidelines of the Second World Summit for Social Development in Doha, Guterres says he is “deeply concerned about the continued violations of the ceasefire in Gaza. They must stop and all parties must abide by the decisions of the first phase of the peace agreement.”

Military prosecutor in Sde Teiman affair reportedly suspended

The military prosecutor in the Sde Teiman detention facility abuse case has reportedly been suspended over suspicions that he transferred surveillance camera footage to the Military Advocate General’s Office, which was then leaked to the media.

Army Radio reports that the prosecutor, a lieutenant colonel, has been placed on forced leave until further notice. The IDF has not officially commented on the report.

The report says the prosecutor was questioned under caution by the police over suspicions that he was involved in the leaking of the surveillance video, which purported to show soldiers severely abusing a Palestinian detainee last year.

As the prosecutor in the case, he had access to all the investigation materials, and he is suspected of providing them to officers in the MAG’s office for the leak to Channel 12 news in August 2024. Army Radio says police have evidence showing that former military advocate general Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi instructed her staff to ask the prosecutor for materials to then pass on to the media.

However, it remains unclear if the prosecutor knew that the material he handed over to the MAG’s office was intended to be leaked to the media, Army Radio says.

Another officer has replaced the prosecutor.

Yesterday, lawyers for the defendants in the abuse case were updated by the MAG’s office that the Palestinian security detainee at the center of the affair was released back to Gaza on October 13 in the framework of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. A document from the offices that the defense attorneys received was signed “on behalf of the operational affairs prosecutor.”

Search continues for missing phone of military advocate general

A search is continuing this morning at Hatzuk Beach in Tel Aviv for the phone of the former military advocate general, which police reportedly suspect her of intentionally tossing into the sea when she briefly disappeared Sunday. At the time she was feared to have harmed herself due to the ongoing investigation into her actions in the Sde Teiman affair.

Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi was found alive but her phone was not located. She is reported to have told investigators she does not remember what she did with it.

Police suspect she may have been attempting to destroy incriminating evidence in the case.

Tomer-Yerushalmi has admitted to authorizing the leak of a video in mid-2024 showing the alleged abuse of a Palestinian prisoner at the Sde Teiman holding facility. She and others in her office are suspected of then repeatedly lying about the leak and obstructing the investigation into it.

צוללנים של המשטרה ממשיכים לחפש את הטלפון הנייד של הפצ"רית. חפ"ק המרכז את החיפושים הוקם בחוף הצוק@YoavBorowitz pic.twitter.com/MOJWgaTrOa

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) November 4, 2025

Israel hands over bodies of 45 Palestinians after Hamas returns remains of 3 hostages

Israel handed over the bodies of 45 Palestinians yesterday, the Red Cross says, a day after Hamas returned the remains of three hostages. Israeli officials identified the three as soldiers who were killed in the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that triggered the war in Gaza.

The exchange marked another step forward for the tenuous, US-brokered ceasefire. For each deceased Israeli hostage returned, Israel has been releasing the remains of 15 Palestinians.

The Red Cross says it facilitated the transfer of 45 Palestinian bodies to Gaza on Monday morning. Zaher al-Wahidi, a spokesperson at the Gaza Health Ministry, told The Associated Press that Nasser Hospital received the bodies around noon.

Only 78 of the bodies returned so far have been identified, the ministry says. Forensic work is complicated by a lack of DNA testing kits in Gaza, it adds. The ministry posts photos of the remains online, in the hope that families will recognize them.

Draft UN resolution grants US and partners broad mandate to govern Gaza, provide security

Armed men guard trucks carrying aid as they drive through Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, November 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

The Trump administration’s draft UN Security Council resolution to establish an international force in Gaza would give the US and other participating countries a broad two-year mandate to govern Gaza and be in charge of security there, Axios reports.

According to a copy of the draft published by the news site, the so-called International Stabilization Force will be in charge of securing the Gaza Strip’s borders with Israel and Egypt, ensuring the safety of civilians and humanitarian zones and training new Palestinian police officers who it will partner with.

The force’s mandate will apparently include disarming Hamas, with the draft saying that the ISF will “stabilize the security environment in Gaza by ensuring the process of demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, including the destruction and prevention of rebuilding of military, terror, and offensive infrastructure, as well as the permanent decommissioning of weapons from non-state armed groups.”

The draft also says the ISF will perform “additional tasks as may be necessary in support of the Gaza agreement,” and that it will be established and operate “in close consultation and cooperation with Egypt and Israel.”

Additionally, the resolution calls for granting US President Donald Trump’s proposed Board of Peace the powers of “a transitional governance administration with international legal personality that will set the framework and coordinate funding for the redevelopment of Gaza pursuant to the Comprehensive Plan, until such time as the Palestinian Authority has satisfactorily completed its reform program.”

????????????SCOOP: READ HERE THE FULL TEXT OF THE DRAFT SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION ON THE GAZA INTERNATIONAL FORCE:

The Security Council,

Welcoming the Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict of 29 September 2025 (“Comprehensive Plan”), and applauding the states that have… https://t.co/yG5VPWkhNW

— Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) November 4, 2025

Trump backs Cuomo, threatens to withhold federal funds if Mamdani wins NYC mayoral race

US President Donald Trump in a social media post on the eve of New York City’s election says voters “really have no choice” but to support independent candidate and former Democratic governor Andrew Cuomo, who was a high-profile foe of Trump’s during the president’s first term.

“You must vote for him, and hope he does a fantastic job,” Trump says.

He trashes Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani in the post and predictes the demise of the nation’s largest city if he wins. If that happens, Trump says it is “highly unlikely” he will be sending federal funds to New York City.

But Trump has already sought to block or slash federal funds going to the city related to counterterrorism initiatives and grants aimed at addressing the costs of migrants. He’s also suspended funding some infrastructure projects during the government shutdown and suggested he may make the hold permanent.

Likud minister’s contentious media regulation bill passes first reading in Knesset

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi speaks during a plenum session at the Knesset in Jerusalem on October 22, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi’s highly controversial bill that would dramatically overhaul Israel’s media landscape passes its first reading in the Knesset, with 54 lawmakers voting in favor and 47 against.

The legislation would give the government significant control over broadcast media by establishing a new regulatory council, with a majority of members chosen by the communications minister, which would have an array of authorities over broadcast media, including the ability to issue hefty fines.

Karhi, one of the most far-right members of the Likud party, has claimed that the law would increase competition in the media market and reduce costs for content consumers.

Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara has sharply criticized the bill, saying it would enable “political interference in the work of broadcast bodies and endanger the free press in Israel.” Ahead of the bill’s first reading, Knesset Legal Advisor Sagit Afik issued a rare warning to lawmakers noting that it doesn’t have Baharav-Miara’s legally required approval.

The bill will now advance to the Knesset Economics Committee, where it will be discussed and debated before being prepared for a second and third reading in the Knesset.

The committee is led by Likud MK David Bitan, who has blocked previous efforts by Karhi, including his bill to shut down the Kan public broadcaster. The bill passed its preliminary reading in the Knesset plenum last November before becoming stuck in committee.

US national intelligence chief visits US ceasefire monitoring HQ in Kiryat Gat

US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard speaks during a Senate Committee on Intelligence Hearing in Washington, DC, on March 25, 2025.(Andrew Harnik/Getty Images/AFP)

US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard on Monday visited the US-operated Civil Military Coordination Center, which monitors the ceasefire in Gaza from southern Israel.

Gabbard tells Fox News that 16 countries and 20 NGOS are currently operating out of the CMCC, including through intelligence sharing, which is why she made the visit.

Exclusive: DNI Gabbard visits US-led Civil-Military Coordination Center

"It’s a living example of what can happen when nations unite for common interests with the potential impact of lasting peace that benefits generations to come," Gabbard told Fox News.https://t.co/0qC5kmr2Ad

— Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) November 3, 2025

“Intelligence supports not only security, and achieving lasting peace and stability for both Israelis and Palestinians,” she tells Fox News.

Gabbard also visited the Kerem Shalom Crossing along the Israel-Gaza border.

She is the latest high level US official to visit Israel in recent weeks, following President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, senior advisers Jared Kushner, and Steve Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and army chief Dan Caine.

Gabbard will reportedly meet tomorrow with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which may explain his request to shorten his cross-examination tomorrow in his criminal trial.

Netanyahu speaks to parents of Omer Neutra and Oz Daniel after their bodies returned

(L-R) Col. Asaf Hamami, Staff Sgt. Oz Daniel, Cpt. Omer Neutra, who were killed fighting terrorists on October 7, 2023 and their bodies returned to Israel on November 2, 2025. (Courtesy)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to the parents of Cpt. Omer Neutra and Staff Sgt. Oz Daniel after their remains were returned to Israel last night from Gaza.

According to his office, Netanyahu sends his condolences to the families and says he is embracing them during this difficult time.

The Prime Minister’s Office says that the Neutra and Daniel families asked Netanyahu to “act with the same determination” to bring home the remaining eight bodies still being held in Gaza.

Netanyahu tells the families that he will not rest until everyone is returned home, his office says.

Neutra and Daniel, members of the same tank crew, were slain together on October 7 as they fought to repel the Hamas attack on southern Israel, and their bodies were kidnapped that day and held for two years.

Netanyahu spoke earlier today with the family of Col. Asaf Hamami, whose remains were also returned last night.