Nov. 24: EU pushing for Palestinian involvement at US-led Gaza ceasefire HQ – official

October 7 victims sue crypto exchange Binance for allegedly allowing payments to Hamas

Binance co-founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao speaks during a press conference at the Europe's largest tech conference, the Web Summit, in Lisbon on November 2, 2022. (PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA / AFP)

Victims of Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel and their relatives sued Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao, accusing them of facilitating millions of dollars in payments to the terror group and other US-designated terrorist organizations.

According to a complaint made public today, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange laundered money for Hamas, even after pleading guilty in November 2023 and paying a $4.32 billion criminal penalty for violating federal anti-money-laundering and sanctions laws.

The plaintiffs include 306 American victims of Hamas’s attack, including relatives of people killed, injured, or taken hostage, and subsequent attacks by various groups.

They accused Binance of knowingly enabling Hamas, Hezbollah, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards to move more than $1 billion through its platform, including more than $50 million after the October 7 attack.

Zhao pleaded guilty to anti-money-laundering violations in connection with Binance’s plea and served a four-month prison sentence. US President Donald Trump pardoned him on October 23.

“Binance intentionally structured itself as a refuge for illicit activity,” the complaint says. “To this day, there is no indication that Binance has meaningfully altered its core business model.”

In a statement, Binance declines to discuss the lawsuit but says, “We comply fully with internationally recognized sanctions laws.” A lawyer representing Zhao in related litigation declines to comment.

The lawsuit seeks compensatory and triple damages, among other remedies.

According to the complaint, large sums of cryptocurrency went through accounts of people with no obvious financial means to explain them.

“When a company chooses profit over even the most basic counterterrorism obligations, it must be held accountable — and it will be,” Lee Wolosky, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, says in a statement.

The complaint is filed in North Dakota US federal court. It says at least two suspicious transactions went through online addresses in Kindred, North Dakota, which has about 1,000 people.

Binance and Zhao are separately defending against a lawsuit by other attack victims in Manhattan federal court. The lawsuit claims they provided a “clandestine” funding mechanism for Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad to raise money and transact illegal business for several years.

A judge rejected the defendants’ motion to dismiss that case in February.

Woman shot dead in Arab town of Jatt, police say

A woman was shot and killed tonight in Jatt, an Arab town in central Israel, police and paramedics say.

The victim, in her 30s, was found unconscious and with no pulse by Magen David Adom medics who arrived at the scene of the shooting.

She was murdered outside a supermarket while with her daughter, according to the Arab48 news site. Residents tell the outlet that the assailants had been targeting the shop and accidentally struck her, firing a bullet that hit between her neck and shoulder, killing her on the spot.

Officers from the Baqa al-Gharbiya police station are at the scene and have launched an investigation. They have placed road blocks in the area as they search for suspects.

She is the 233rd Arab citizen to be killed so far this year in a criminal incident, as violent crime soars in Arab locales throughout Israel, with police failing to crack down on near-daily homicides. Of the victims killed in 2025, 22 have been women.

EU pushing for Palestinians, ‘especially Gazans,’ to be included at US-led Gaza ceasefire HQ – official

A displacement camp in Gaza City, on November 14, 2025. (Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

The European Union is pushing for the inclusion of Palestinian representatives – “especially Gazans” – at the US-led Civil-Military Coordination Center in Kiryat Gat, where dozens of nations and organizations are monitoring the Gaza ceasefire, a senior European official tells The Times of Israel.

According to the official, who has direct knowledge of the issue, “The thing that’s missing from the CMCC as far as the EU is concerned is that there’s no Gazans there, there’s no Palestinians. So they’re talking about the future of Gaza without any Palestinian input.”

The official says that EU officials are currently “trying to persuade the people at the CMCC who are implementing the Trump plan to take account of Palestinian views,” by involving Palestinians in the discussions about the future of the Strip under US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan.

Asked if any specific Palestinian candidates have been suggested as representatives, the official says not yet, noting that the US and Middle Eastern mediating countries “are still putting together candidates” for the committee of Palestinian technocrats to be responsible for the postwar management of Gaza under the peace plan.

The New York Times reported last week that the absence of formal Palestinian representation at the center has prompted criticism among some diplomats and aid workers.

German family-business association lifts ban on contacts with far-right AfD

Leader of the far-right AfD Alice Weidel waves a German flag at the AfD party headquarters in Berlin on February 23, 2025, after the German national election. (Michael Probst/AP)

Germany’s association of family-owned companies has lifted its ban on contacts with AfD lawmakers, signaling the far-right party’s growing acceptability in parts of the business community, as it climbs in the polls.

Just two years ago, prominent business leaders warned that the rise of right-wing extremism threatened Germany’s reputation as a destination for foreign investment and skilled labor.

Such warnings long resonated in a country acutely sensitive about its Nazi past, where mainstream parties maintain a “firewall” against the 12-year-old nationalist Alternative for Germany and refuse to cooperate with it. Jewish leaders have also expressed alarm about the party.

But AfD has surged to first place in many nationwide polls after finishing second in February’s federal election.

“Indignation alone has exhausted itself as a political strategy,” said Marie-Christine Ostermann, president of the association of family-run companies. “Now, only confronting the AfD’s content helps, beyond simple categorizations into ‘good’ and ‘evil.’”

Ostermann stressed that the association still rejects the AfD’s worldview and opposes the party entering government, but said dialogue was necessary given its support among roughly a quarter of voters.

Her group is one of the first major German business organizations to openly call for more engagement with the AfD.

Others remain opposed. The BDI industry association told Reuters on Monday that it does not proactively seek dialogue with representatives of radical parties such as the AfD.

“The success of German industry is based on stable social and political conditions, which the AfD is attempting to shake with its populist positions,” it said.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report. 

US Justice Department renews bid to unseal Jeffrey Epstein grand jury materials

Jeffrey Epstein, on March 28, 2017. (New York State Sex Offender Registry via AP, File)

The US Justice Department renews its request to unseal Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking grand jury materials, saying the US Congress made clear in approving the release of investigative materials related to the prosecution of the late financier that documents such as the court records should be released.

US Attorney Jay Clayton signed the submission in Manhattan federal court, asking that the judge issue an expedited ruling allowing the materials to be released now that US President Donald Trump signed the action requiring the release of documents related to Epstein within 30 days.

The Justice Department said the congressional action overrode existing law in a way that permits the unsealing of the grand jury records.

Judge Richard Berman previously denied a Trump administration request to make the Epstein grand jury transcripts public.

Berman, who presided over Epstein’s 2019 case, ruled in August that a “significant and compelling reason” to deny the request and keep the transcripts sealed was that information contained in the transcripts “pales in comparison” to investigative information and materials already in the Justice Department’s possession.

Berman wrote that the government’s 100,000 pages of Epstein files and materials “dwarf the 70 odd pages of Epstein grand jury materials” and that the grand jury testimony “is merely a hearsay snippet of Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged conduct.”

Two other judges have also denied the public release of material from investigations into Epstein’s decades-long sexual abuse of young women and girls.

Police in West Bank kill man suspected of deadly terror attack last year

The wanted Palestinian killed by officers of police’s Yamam counterterror unit in the West Bank city of Nablus this evening is suspected of being behind a deadly car-ramming attack in May 2024.

The ramming attack on May 29, 2024, just outside Nablus, left two soldiers dead: Staff Sgt. Eliya Hilel, and Staff Sgt. Diego Shvisha Harsaj, both 20-year-old infantrymen in the Kfir Brigade’s Nahshon Battalion.

After the attack, the assailant fled into Nablus and initially turned himself over to the Palestinian Authority’s security forces. However, instead of being handed over to Israel, the suspect was freed from the PA’s custody, and he has been wanted since.

Security forces had said this evening that Yamam officers were exchanging fire with a wanted terrorist in Nablus, adding that further details will be provided later.

Rioters said to smash Jerusalem mayor’s car window in ultra-Orthodox neighborhood

Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion visits the city maintenance department ahead of expected snowfall on February 19, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Rioters threw stones and smashed the rear window of Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion’s car earlier today during a visit to the ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Mea Shearim, Hebrew media reports.

Though Lion was inside the vehicle at the time, he was not harmed and continued with his schedule as planned.

While no injuries were reported, the vehicle sustained damage. Police were reportedly dispatched to the scene and launched extensive searches to track down the suspects.

The attack comes a week after ultra-Orthodox crowds targeted Haredi lawmakers Yoav Ben-Tzur of Shas in Jerusalem and Ya’akov Asher of United Torah Judaism in Bnei Brak over their cooperation in advancing legislation to regulate military conscription and exemptions for yeshiva students.

Ramat Gan man arrested over ‘blood of traitors’ graffiti outside Channel 13 offices

Graffiti sprayed overnight outside the Channel 13 offices in Tel Aviv, November 19, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Police have arrested a man from the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan over threatening graffiti that was spraypainted on a wall outside the offices of the Channel 13 news network.

The message, an apparent death threat, read: “The blood of the traitors will be cleared for publication,” the latter phrase paraphrasing a term generally used by the IDF when it announces the deaths of soldiers.

The graffiti came as broadcast agencies warned of a sharp uptick in incitement against journalists.

Police from the Tel Aviv district announce that investigators used “a range of investigative techniques, including advanced technological means, to identify the suspect.”

The man, 43, was arrested at his home, where police say materials “relevant to the investigation” were found.

Knesset votes to give Ministers Haim Katz, Yariv Levin 5 more ministerial portfolios

L-R: Justice Minister Yariv Levin attends a plenum session at the assembly hall of the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, November 19, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90); Haim Katz, then serving as national security minister, visits the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City, during the first Friday prayers of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on March 7, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/ Flash90)

The Knesset votes 48-42 in back-to-back votes to ratify the government’s nominations of Tourism Minister Haim Katz and Justice Minister Yariv Levin to lead a total of five more ministries.

The portfolios were left leaderless after ultra-Orthodox parties withdrew from the government this summer in a dispute over draft exemptions for Haredi men.

Levin will take over the Labor, Religious Services, and Jerusalem portfolios, while Katz will now head the Health and Welfare Ministries. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is temporarily granted a number of powers usually assigned to the interior minister.

Netanyahu cannot take over the ministry himself because he is on trial for corruption and, by law, a minister cannot serve in such a role while under indictment. The ministry will continue to operate without a minister.

This summer, the government voted to appoint Levin to temporarily take over the Interior, Religious Affairs, and Labor Ministries in an acting capacity, following Shas’s exit from the government. The Welfare and Health Ministries were transferred to Katz, who was already serving as interim housing minister after United Torah Judaism leader Yitzhak Goldknopf resigned from the post prior to his party leaving the government.

Those temporary appointments ended after three months, leaving five ministries without ministers. Katz was appointed as permanent housing minister in September.

Coalition members dismiss criticism of the arrangement, with Regional Cooperation Minister Dudi Amsalem joking that he did not know how many total ministries Levin and Katz were assigned to run.

“I haven’t counted yet,” he says in response to questions from opposition lawmakers.

Israeli forces exchange fire with wanted Palestinian suspect in Nablus

Israeli troops are exchanging fire with a wanted Palestinian in the northern West Bank city of Nablus, the IDF, Shin Bet, and Israel Police say.

In a joint statement, the security bodies say that soldiers, members of the police’s Yamam counterterror unit, and Shin Bet agents are operating in eastern Nablus to “thwart terror.”

“There is currently an exchange of fire between the forces and a terrorist in the area,” the statement says.

Likud to host first national conference in 13 years to elect Central Committee, Secretariat

Defense Minister Israel Katz and Tourism Minister Haim Katz, along with senior IDF officials, visit troops in Rafah, southern Gaza, July 2, 2025. (Ariel Hermoni/ Defense Ministry)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party will host its first national conference in 13 years tomorrow to elect the party’s powerful Central Committee and Secretariat. Elections have not been held since the last conference.

The Central Committee, which has approximately 4,500 members, is led by Tourism Minister Haim Katz. It serves as the party’s main representative body, responsible for approving major policy decisions and internal rules.

It, in turn, elects the 50-member Secretariat, led by Defense Minister Israel Katz, which acts as the party’s executive body responsible for party operations, including staff, budget, regional offices, and campaigns.

The party’s highly centralized structure meant that neither the leadership nor those holding key positions were required to renew their mandates, reducing any incentive to convene a conference. However, mounting internal pressure and growing demands from within the party have now compelled its leadership to finally call one.

Other Likud ministers are now challenging the two longtime officials for the powerful posts. Energy Minister Eli Cohen and Culture Minister Miki Zohar are running against Israel Katz, according to Hebrew media reports, while Regional Cooperation Minister David Amsalem is challenging Haim Katz.

The two bodies shape the party’s leadership and strategic direction, making their elections highly consequential for Likud’s internal balance of power, and their chairs rank among the party’s most powerful figures.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards urge ‘revenge’ after Israel kills Hezbollah army chief

Hezbollah members carry the coffin of the terror group's military chief of staff, Haytham Tabatabai, during his funeral procession in a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, November 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps calls for “revenge” for yesterday’s killing of Hezbollah’s top military commander Haytham Ali Tabatabai in an Israeli air strike on Beirut.

“The right of the Axis of Resistance and Lebanese Hezbollah to avenge the blood of the brave fighters of Islam is unquestionable,” the IRGC, Hezbollah’s main military and financial backer, says in a statement, referring to the network of Iran-backed terror groups hostile to Israel.

Foreign Press Association accuses Israel of ‘stalling’ on petition to let reporters into Gaza

Demonstrators and journalists gather to protest against hunger in the Rimal district of Gaza City on July 19, 2025. (Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

The High Court has again pushed off a decision whether to allow free media access to the Gaza Strip, and again approved the government’s request for more time to submit a response to a petition demanding independent press entry to the war-torn territory.

The petition, filed by the Foreign Press Association last year, has met perpetual hurdles since it was filed 14 months ago. The FPA represents foreign journalists in Israel, who have not been allowed to report from Gaza unless they enter as embedded reporters with IDF forces.

The latest postponement, handed down yesterday by the Supreme Court, gives Israel until December 4 to respond to the organization’s request for access to the war-torn enclave. It follows a previous postponement approved by the court in late October.

Responding to the recent decision, the FPA accuses the government of using “stalling tactics” to prevent journalists’ entry and says the repeated postponements have “made a mockery of the legal process.”

“The FPA is dismayed to learn that the Israeli Supreme Court has once again granted an extension to the Israeli government to respond to our petition for free and independent access to Gaza,” the group says in a statement. “The Israeli government has repeatedly made it clear that it has no interest in opening Gaza and no plan for doing so.”

An initial petition submitted by the FPA shortly after the start of the war in Gaza was rejected on security grounds, prompting the organization to file another petition in September 2024. The hearing date for the second petition was stalled for 10 months before it took place last month.

At the hearing last month, the lawyer representing the government requested and was granted another month to provide the state’s updated position, in light of the recently-signed ceasefire agreement.

Now, a month later, the state has been granted its request for an extension.

“We truly hope that this will be the final such delay and that the court and Israeli government will allow the international media to fulfill its mission of reporting the news and informing the world about the situation in Gaza,” the FPA adds.

Netanyahu summons Katz and Zamir to meet after public clash

L-R: Defense Minister Israel Katz, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir at the IAF's command center, August 24, 2025. (Ma'ayan Toaf/GPO)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has summoned IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and Defense Minister Israel Katz for a private meeting following a public dispute between the two earlier today, Hebrew media report.

A separate meeting – to be held either before or after – will bring together members of the wider defense establishment for a situational assessment, given heightened tensions on the northern border, a day after an IDF strike killed Hezbollah’s military chief.

The spat erupted after Katz ordered a renewed examination of the military’s review of its internal probes into the failures surrounding the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack. In an unusually direct public statement, Zamir pushed back, accusing Katz of undermining the IDF’s readiness by freezing military promotions for 30 days.

Katz later doubled down, saying the defense establishment comptroller will release recommendations on the IDF’s internal October 7 review within a month – and that senior IDF appointments will remain frozen until then.

Hamas seeks asylum abroad for gunmen trapped in Rafah tunnels; request rejected by multiple countries — report

Hamas operatives search for the bodies of Israeli hostages in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City, November 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Over the past week, Hamas has reached out to several countries seeking asylum for 100-200 of its fighters trapped in tunnels beneath Rafah in an IDF area of Gaza, but all the requests were rejected, Channel 12 reports, citing Israeli officials.

The countries reportedly approached included Turkey and several unspecified African nations. According to the report, the requests were made with Israel’s knowledge.

Under the 20-point peace plan proposed by US President Donald Trump and endorsed by Israel, Hamas is required to disarm and relinquish control of the Gaza Strip. While the plan includes a mechanism for safe passage out of Gaza for operatives who opt to depart, no country so far has signaled willingness to receive them.

Report: Hezbollah weighs response to Israel strike; next conflict ‘only a matter of time’

People gather looking at the debris following a targeted Israeli military strike on a residential building in the Haret Hreik neighborhood of Beirut's southern suburbs on November 23, 2025. (Ibrahim AMRO / AFP)

Security officials tell Channel 12 that Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem is at a crossroads over how to respond to Israel following yesterday’s strike that killed the group’s military chief.

Sources close to Hezbollah reportedly say the organization currently lacks the capability to launch a significant response, though they warn that the next conflict with Israel is “only a matter of time.”

According to the report, Israel has told the Lebanese government that it will continue efforts to weaken Hezbollah, urging cooperation in eradicating the group from the south of the Litani River and across Lebanon.

While Israel remains on high alert in the north, there has been no change in guidelines for Israeli residents.

Palestinian sources report child killed, 10 wounded in Gaza blast

Palestinian media outlets report that a child was killed and 10 people were wounded in an explosion in a home in western Gaza City’s Nasser neighborhood, on the Hamas-controlled side of the Yellow Line that demarcates the IDF’s withdrawal. The reports do not specify what caused the explosion.

Katz doubles down on freezing IDF promotions following public criticism from Zamir

Defense Minister Israel Katz attends the state ceremony marking 52 years since the Yom Kippur War, held at the military cemetery at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl, on October 5, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/ FLASH90)

Defense Minister Israel Katz doubles down and says the defense establishment comptroller will issue recommendations regarding the IDF’s review of its internal October 7 probes within 30 days, and also freeze senior IDF appointments until then.

“I appreciate the chief of staff, who knows well that he is subordinate to the prime minister, the defense minister, and the government of Israel,” Katz says in a statement.

“I do not intend to argue through the media,” he says.

“The defense establishment comptroller will submit his conclusions within 30 days, and only afterward will I formulate my decisions on the appointments, as required by my role and authority,” Katz adds.

Earlier, Katz said he would freeze senior appointments in the IDF until comptroller Brig. Gen. (res.) Yair Volansky submits a review of the report prepared by Maj. Gen. (res.) Sami Turgeman and other former senior officers, which looked into the IDF’s internal October 7 probes.

White House confirms Trump plans to designate Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terror organization

The White House confirms that US President Donald Trump plans to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist organization.

The White House’s social media account on X posts, “TRUMP VOWS TO DESIGNATE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION,” above a screenshot of an identically-worded New York Post headline.

Yesterday, the conservative outlet Just the News had quoted Trump as having said that the move would “be done in the strongest and most powerful terms,” and that “final documents are being drawn” up.

Yesterday’s report was quickly welcomed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who indicated that he could follow suit. Netanyahu’s declaration was taken as a hint that he could ban the Islamist Ra’am party in Israel, which has denied links with the Muslim Brotherhood and decried the premier’s statement.

Netanyahu sought to bring Ra’am into his coalition several years ago before talks broke down and the party, led by Mansour Abbas, decided to join the Bennett-Lapid government in 2021.

TRUMP VOWS TO DESIGNATE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION. pic.twitter.com/Zwt61sRRuI

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) November 24, 2025

Islamic Jihad confirms it ‘found’ body of deceased hostage, no details on transfer to Israel

The three slain hostages whose bodies were still held captive in Gaza as of November 24, 2025. (L-R): Dror Or, Ran Gvili, and Sudthisak Rinthalak. (Collage by Times of Israel; Photos: Courtesy)

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group confirms in a statement that it “found” the body of a hostage during excavation work in the central Gaza Strip earlier today.

Al Jazeera had reported that the body was located by Islamic Jihad in an area north of central Gaza’s Nuseirat.

There has been no announcement yet on the planned transfer of the body to Israel.

The bodies of three slain hostages remain captive in the Gaza Strip.

Knesset speaker backs extending tenure of body’s legal adviser for another 5 years

Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana speaks at the Inter-Parliamentary Union's Sixth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament in Geneva on July 29, 2025. (Noam Moskowitz, Office of the Knesset Spokesperson)

Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana announces that he has informed Knesset Legal Adviser Sagit Afik that he backs extending her tenure for another five-year term and will “approach the Knesset House Committee in order to complete the required procedure.”

Afik has served in her position since 2020.

In escalating clash, IDF chief accuses defense minister of harming military’s preparedness

Defense Minister Israel Katz (left) and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir are seen at the Knesset, October 13, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir hits back at Defense Minister Israel Katz, after Katz ordered a re-investigation of the military’s review of its internal probes into the failures surrounding the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack.

Zamir also accuses Katz of harming the military’s preparedness by freezing promotions in the IDF for 30 days.

The chief of staff, in a statement, says he was informed of Katz’s moves this morning via the media, while he was at a snap drill in the Golan Heights.

Zamir says that the report prepared by Maj. Gen. (res.) Sami Turgeman and other former senior officers regarding October 7 “was defined from the outset for the chief of staff’s use, to examine the quality of investigations and integrative lessons-learned processes in the IDF, and not for political use.”

He defends the report and calls Katz’s decision “puzzling.” He says Turgeman’s team “heard more than hundreds of testimonies, conducted in-depth examinations, and carried out a professional process.”

“An alternative 30-day review by the defense establishment comptroller, without detracting from his dignity, is not relevant,” Zamir says, after Katz announced that Defense Establishment Comptroller Brig. Gen. (res.) Yair Volansky would submit a review of Turgeman’s report within a month.

“The IDF is the only body in the country that thoroughly investigated its own failures and took responsibility for them,” Zamir continues.

“If any further review is required to complete the picture, it must take the form of an external, objective, and independent committee” that will look into topics including “the interface between the military and political echelons,” he says.

Regarding Zamir’s decision to dismiss officers and censure others over their failures on October 7, something that Katz also ordered Volansky to examine, the chief of staff says, “These are internal command measures within the IDF that do not require approval.”

“The insinuation that the criteria, which were examined with utmost seriousness, are not equal is inappropriate, especially in light of the amount of time and deliberation the chief of staff personally invested in deciding with respect to each and every officer,” Zamir says.

The chief of staff says Katz’s decision to freeze promotions in the IDF for 30 days “harms the IDF’s capability and its readiness process for upcoming challenges.”

Zamir still says that he will “continue conducting staffing discussions as planned, in accordance with his authority, and will forward them to the minister for approval as required.”

Germany may try 100-year-old suspected Nazi camp guard

German prosecutors are investigating a 100-year-old man on suspicion that he served as a Nazi camp guard and took part in executions in the final years of World War II.

Authorities in the western city of Dortmund allege the crimes took place between December 1943 and September 1944, prosecutor Andreas Brendel tells AFP, confirming a Bild daily report.

The man is said to have served at a prisoner of war camp in Hemer, in western Germany, which held at least 100,000 inmates, mostly from the Soviet Union. Thousands died at the camp.

Several trials of Nazi camp staff have been held in recent years, spurred by the 2011 conviction of former Sobibor death camp guard John Demjanjuk, despite no proof that he had directly killed anyone.

However, time is running out, 80 years after the end of the war.

Josef Schuetz, a former guard sentenced in June 2022 to five years in prison, died less than a year later at the age of 102.

In April, an alleged former guard at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp near Berlin died before he could face trial to answer charges of being complicit in the murder of more than 3,300 people.

Israeli startup MineOS sells consumer privacy app to McAfee

MineOS founders, from right to left: Gal Ringel, Gal Golan, Kobi Nissan (Shai Dolev)

Israeli startup MineOS has sold its consumer privacy app to cybersecurity firm McAfee, the companies announce in a statement.

The app — which helps users locate their personal data online, understand who holds it, and request its deletion — will be folded into McAfee’s global identity and privacy protection offering.

Launched in 2021, the platform is already used by companies such as Wiz, HelloFresh, Miro, SharkNinja, Selfridges, and Ford.

MineOS CEO Kobi Nissan says the deal marks a significant step in the company’s shift from consumer tools to enterprise-focused technology, noting that the app will continue operating under McAfee.

Mine, released in early 2020, gained traction as a user-friendly tool for managing digital exposure and identity risks. With the sale, MineOS says it plans to channel resources into expanding its enterprise platform, which relies on AI agents to automate tasks such as data mapping, handling data-subject requests, vendor risk assessments, and AI oversight.

Senior intel officer involved in Oct. 7 failures to be ousted from Mossad as well as IDF

Illustrative: A soldier from the IDF's Military Intelligence Directorate works at a computer. (Israel Defense Forces)

A senior military intelligence officer, who the IDF says was involved in the failures on October 7, will be ousted from the Mossad spy agency, where he has recently been serving.

The Prime Minister’s Office confirms the report.

Brig. Gen. “Gimmel” headed the Military Intelligence Directorate’s Operational Division on October 7, 2023, and was later lent to the Mossad.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir yesterday announced that he would be ousted from the IDF over his role in the failures.

Mossad director David Barnea today approved Zamir’s decision and has ruled that the officer will also no longer serve in the intelligence agency.

Outgoing NYC Mayor Eric Adams visits synagogue that was targeted in protest

Outgoing New York City Mayor Eric Adams visits Park East Synagogue in Manhattan, days after it was targeted in a protest by anti-Zionist activists.

The protest targeted an open house at the synagogue for Nefesh B’Nefesh, a group that promotes and facilitates North American Jewish immigration to Israel. It included chants of “Death to the IDF” and “intifada,” and individual protesters used antisemitic epithets.

Adams, who was in Uzbekistan at the time of the protest, condemned it on social media. He got back to New York yesterday, and the synagogue visit is his first public event since returning to the city.

“We don’t back down in the face of hate — we show up,” Adams says in a statement.

“I visited [Park East Synagogue] to stand proudly with Rabbi [Arthur] Schneier and our Jewish community to celebrate Jewish life and reaffirm our unshakable bond with Israel after last week’s antisemitic protests,” he says.

We don’t back down in the face of hate — we show up.

This morning, I visited @PESynagogue to stand proudly with Rabbi Schneier and our Jewish community to celebrate Jewish life and reaffirm our unshakable bond with Israel after last week’s antisemitic protests.

Neither… pic.twitter.com/KRK4jnKPxB

— Mayor Eric Adams (@NYCMayor) November 24, 2025

Adams is a staunch supporter of Israel and the city’s mainstream Jewish communities. His response to the protest highlights the divide between his posture and that of mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, a longtime far-left anti-Israel activist who will take office on January 1.

Mamdani last week criticized both the protest and the synagogue, in a response that drew widespread criticism from Jewish groups.

His office said he “has discouraged the language used at last night’s protest and will continue to do so,” and that he “believes every New Yorker should be free to enter a house of worship without intimidation.”

The statement also said, “These sacred spaces should not be used to promote activities in violation of international law.”

BBC leaders to face lawmakers’ grilling over standards after Trump threat to sue

People use the entrance to the offices of the BBC in London in the late afternoon on November 11, 2025. (HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP)

The BBC’s chairman and other senior leaders will face tough questions on its editorial standards from British lawmakers today after US President Donald Trump threatened to file a billion-dollar lawsuit over a misleading edit of a speech he gave on January 6, 2021.

Lawmakers at a British parliamentary session will focus on questions about editorial standards raised by Michael Prescott, a former journalist and external editorial standards adviser to the BBC.

Prescott was the author of an internal note to BBC bosses that raised concerns about the editing of the Trump speech, as well as other instances of alleged left-leaning “institutional bias” at the BBC including its coverage of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza and transgender issues.

In addition to Prescott, the British broadcaster’s chairman Samir Shah and board member Robbie Gibb will be quizzed at a hearing with Parliament’s Culture, Media and Sport Committee.

The publicly-funded corporation was plunged into a major crisis after its director general and head of news both quit earlier this month and Trump said he was poised to sue over misleading editing in a BBC documentary about the January 6 US Capitol riot broadcast days before the 2024 US presidential election.

The editing made it look like Trump was directly encouraging his supporters to storm the Capitol as Congress was poised to certify president-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election. Shah, the BBC chairman, acknowledged that the documentary gave “the impression of a direct call for violent action.”

The BBC said Shah has sent a letter to the White House saying that he and the corporation were sorry for the edit of the speech.

Last week Shumeet Banerji, a BBC board member, also said he was stepping down over “governance issues,” sparking further questions about the corporation’s leadership.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report. 

After record heat, rain and cooler temperatures expected across Israel

A young girl walks along a street with an umbrella as the first winter rain falls in Jerusalem on November 14, 2025. (John Wessels/AFP)

After an unprecedented November heat wave, Israel is expecting overnight rain, along with a drop in temperature, the Meteorological Service reports.

The showers, which will likely be accompanied by thunderstorms and hail, are expected mainly in the country’s north and center, with a slight risk of flash floods in parts of the Negev and Dead Sea area.

Local showers are forecast to continue into tomorrow morning, gradually decreasing throughout the day.

IDF says it killed two terror operatives who crossed Gaza’s Yellow Line

The IDF says it killed two terror operatives who crossed the Yellow Line demarcating the military’s withdrawal in the northern Gaza Strip today.

In two separate incidents, several operatives had been spotted crossing the line and approaching troops of the 188th Armored Brigade and reservists of the Carmeli Brigade, “posing an immediate threat,” the military says.

The troops opened fire on the operatives, killing two of them, the military says.

Earlier today, the Israeli Air Force struck three operatives who crossed the Yellow Line and approached troops in southern Gaza, according to the military.

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

Cultural watchdog denounces Israeli land seizure to develop West Bank archaeological site

The archaeological site of Sebastia in the West Bank, in a handout photo issued on November 20, 2025. (COGAT)

Israeli cultural watchdog Emek Shaveh denounces a decision to seize some 1800 dunams (445 acres) of land in the West Bank at the ancient archaeological site of Sebastia.

“Residents reported that the expropriation will severely restrict access to agricultural lands and could lead to the loss of roughly 3,000 olive trees, some of them centuries old,” says the left-leaning group, which describes its mission as “protecting ancient sites as public assets that belong to members of all communities, faiths, and peoples.”

The Civil Administration, which manages civilian affairs in the West Bank, said last week that it had begun to expropriate the land in the West Bank for the “preservation and development” of an archaeological site.

The land surrounds the archaeological site of Sebastia, near Nablus, which is thought to have been the capital of the northern Israelite kingdom in the 9th and 8th centuries BCE.

The site itself sits in Area C, the area of the West Bank under Israeli security and civil administration.

The adjacent Palestinian village of Sebastia had developed a tourism industry around the site, which will be threatened by the new development plans, which include a separate Israeli road, a fence around the site, and an entry fee.

Left-wing groups have criticized the seizure. Peace Now, another Israeli settlement watchdog, has pointed out that the latest land seizure was the largest ever carried out for an archaeological purpose.

Rossella Tercatin and Emanuel Fabian contributed to this report. 

Ben Gvir backs officer who shot suspects in Negev car chase

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir attends a National Security Committee meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem on October 27, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir says that he “fully supports” a policeman who shot and injured a suspected criminal during a car chase in the Negev.

The chase began after police tried to stop a suspicious vehicle during an operation near the Negev Bedouin town of Tel Sheva. The driver attempted to flee officers and injured several pedestrians while speeding off, law enforcement says.

Officers opened fire on the driver and his passenger, injuring one lightly and the other moderately. Both were arrested following the chase.

“Every criminal who tries to harm and endangers a police officer should know that his blood is on his own head,” the far-right minister says in a statement, saying the incident “once again illustrates the necessity of the extensive activity we are leading.”

The arrests come two days after Ben Gvir announced an operation to combat crime in Bedouin communities throughout the Negev, dubbed Operation “New Order.” Police say its forces in the Southern District arrested 36 suspects overnight and confiscated a weapon stolen from an IDF base as part of the initiative.

France calls for restraint after IDF strike kills Hezbollah army chief

Left: Rescuers search for survivors at the site of an airstrike that killed Hezbollah's military chief in a residential building in Beirut's southern Haret Hreik neighborhood on November 23, 2025. (Ibrahim Amro/AFP); Right: Hezbollah military chief Haytham Ali Tabatabai, in a poster issued by the terror group after his death. (Hezbollah Media Office)

France’s Foreign Ministry expresses “deep concern” over Israel’s strike yesterday that killed Hezbollah’s military chief Haytham Ali Tabatabai in Beirut, saying that it “increases the risk of escalation in an already highly tense situation.”

“France calls on all sides to exercise restraint,” the ministry continues in a statement to reporters. “It emphasizes the importance of using the cease-fire monitoring mechanism, which is designed for reporting threats. This framework, which all sides have recognized, is essential for preventing unilateral actions and ensuring the security of the civilian population in Lebanon and Israel, in accordance with the cease-fire agreement of November 27, 2024.”

Gaza Humanitarian Foundation confirms it has ended operations in Strip after 5 months

People walk with bags of humanitarian aid they received at a distribution center run by the US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), in the central Gaza Strip, on August 22, 2025. (Eyad BABA / AFP)

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) confirms that it has wrapped up its operations in the Strip after a rocky five-month tenure distributing aid there.

“From the outset, GHF’s goal was to meet an urgent need, prove that a new approach could succeed where others had failed, and ultimately hand off that success to the broader international community. With the creation of the Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) and a rejuvenated engagement of the international humanitarian community, GHF believes that moment has now arrived,” GHF’s executive director, John Acree, says in a statement.

The Times of Israel revealed last month that GHF was undergoing financial woes and was boxed out of humanitarian operations following the start of the Gaza ceasefire.

Acree claims that the CMCC will be adopting GHF’s model of humanitarian aid distribution, which sought to prevent Hamas from diverting the aid by handing it out at militarized hubs separate from the civilian population.

While technically an American organization, Israeli officials and business leaders with links to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government were closely involved in the GHF’s establishment, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Israel has long accused Hamas of coopting humanitarian assistance and argued that the goal of GHF was to exclude the terror group from aid distribution by setting up sites in areas cleared and controlled by the Israel Defense Forces. Netanyahu said Israel’s goal was for GHF to eventually become the sole provider of humanitarian aid in Gaza, replacing the UN and other international agencies that Jerusalem says Hamas exploits.

But GHF’s rollout was marred by near-daily reports of shootings by IDF troops at Palestinians seeking to reach the aid distribution sites, with the UN saying that over 1,000 people were killed in those incidents. The IDF has stated that the death tolls have been inflated, that its troops only fired warning shots at those who posed a threat to troops, and that Hamas operatives and other gunmen were also opening fire at crowds of aid seekers.

The deadly incidents outside GHF sites began to decrease toward the end of the summer, and the aid group has managed to distribute what it says were over 187 million meals to Gazans. There are some 2 million people in Gaza.

But by September, it was only distributing a small fraction of the aid entering Gaza, and pledges by US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee that GHF would scale up its operations from three to 16 sites never materialized.

Poland summons Israeli ambassador over Yad Vashem social media post

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski speaks while meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, not pictured, February 26, 2024, at the State Department in Washington. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

Poland summons the Israeli ambassador, Yaakov Finkelstein, over a post on X from Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust museum, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski writes on X.

Sikorski is protesting against a social media post yesterday in which Yad Vashem appeared to refer to Poland as the leader in taking certain discriminatory steps against Jews leading up to the Holocaust.

“Poland was the first country where Jews were forced to wear a distinctive badge in order to isolate them from the surrounding population,” the post says, linking to an article on the topic. “[On this day] 23 November 1939 Hans Frank, the governor of the Generalgouvernement issued an order that all Jews aged 10 and above must wear a white cloth armband 10 cm wide marked with a blue Star of David on their right arm.”

Sikorski previously said the post should make it clear Poland was “German-occupied” at the time. Yad Vashem later reshared the post, writing, “As noted by many users and specified explicitly in the linked article, it was done by order of the German authorities.”

But today, Sikorski replies, “Since the misleading post has not been amended, I have decided to summon the ambassador of @Israel.”

The Israeli embassy in Poland does not immediately address the issue on X. Sikorski’s complaint is the latest in a years-long string of disputes between Israel and Poland over Poland’s role in the Holocaust, and Holocaust memory in the country.

Since the misleading post has not been amended, I have decided to summon the ambassador of @Israel to @MSZ_RP

— Radosław Sikorski 🇵🇱🇪🇺 (@sikorskiradek) November 24, 2025

The Auschwitz Memorial, which runs the site of the former Nazi death camp in Poland, also criticized the Yad Vashem post.

“It seems that if anyone should know historical facts, it is @YadVashem,” the memorial posted on X. “They should be fully aware that Poland at that time was occupied by Germany, and that it was Germany that introduced and enforced this antisemitic law.”

Dani Dayan, Yad Vashem’s chair, defended the museum in a post earlier today.

“Yad Vashem presents the historical realities of Nazism and WWII, including countries under German occupation, control or influence,” he wrote. “Poland was indeed under German occupation. This is clearly reflected in our material. Any other interpretation misreads our commitment to accuracy.”

Jewish extremist to be charged with beating elderly Palestinian woman, police say

A Jewish extremist assaults Palestinian olive pickers and civil rights activists close to the West Bank town of Turmus Ayya, October 19, 2025. (Courtesy Jasper Nathaniel)

Prosecutors plan to file terror charges against an extremist settler filmed beating an elderly Palestinian woman unconscious during an olive harvest in the central West Bank last month, police announce.

The suspect, who is apparently known to Israeli authorities in the West Bank, was arrested on November 9 and is set to be indicted this coming Friday. A prosecutor’s declaration has been filed against him today.

The defendant is one of dozens of Jewish extremists who assaulted olive pickers near the village of Turmus Ayya on October 19, injuring two Palestinians and a foreign activist. The attack left the victim, 52-year-old Afaf Abu ‘Olia, with a severe head injury. She was hospitalized for a week as a result of the beating.

The suspect is accused of committing a “racially-motivated terror attack involving severe assault” against Abu ‘Olia and other victims. Police say that the suspect has been involved in several other violent incidents prior to his arrest, including an attempted arson attack on a police vehicle and attacks on Jews.

Once charges are filed in the Jerusalem District Court, prosecutors are expected to request that the suspect remain in detention until the end of legal proceedings.

The indictment comes as security forces have been ramping up arrests of settler extremists over the past week, amid mounting domestic and international pressure to combat the phenomenon of Jewish nationalist violence.

Last week, a special task force was established within the West Bank District police to arrest settlers suspected of taking part in violent raids on West Bank Palestinian towns.

A minor was indicted on similar charges yesterday, after he was detained on suspicion of joining in a large-scale attack on a Palestinian factory and farmland in the northern West Bank.

LGBTQ umbrella group says Beersheba woman in serious condition was stabbed for being trans

Demonstrators lift pride and transgender flags as they sit on a road during protests against the government's judicial overhaul plans, in Tel Aviv on July 18, 2023. (JACK GUEZ/AFP)

The Aguda LGBTQ umbrella organization confirms earlier reporting that a woman stabbed in Beersheba last night is transgender, and says the stabbing, which left her with serious wounds and unconscious, was a hate crime.

“A trans woman is fighting for her life after being stabbed purely because of who she is. Let that sink in,” says the Aguda in a press release.

“Unfortunately, this is not the first time that the trans community, and particularly trans women, are attacked on the streets,” says the Aguda.

Citing its last annual report on anti-LGBTQ sentiment, which was published in May and refers to 2024 data, the Aguda says that while trans people comprise 15% of Israel’s LGBTQ community, they were targeted in 43% of attacks reported last year.

“We will not rest until the abandonment ends, safety returns to the streets and the security of all LGBTQ people is guaranteed across the country,” says the Aguda.

In Beersheba specifically, the organization notes that there have been numerous cases of pride flags being vandalized and burned over the past few months, including ahead of the southern city’s Pride Parade in August.

“Just as we warned — what begins with incitement and assaults on community symbols, without a proper [official] response and deterrence, quickly leads to assaults on people,” the Aguda says.

i24 News reported last night that the stabbing victim was an Arab transgender woman. Police were reportedly checking the possibility that she was stabbed in a hate crime or by a relative.

However, the Aguda says that as far as it knows, a suspect apprehended in the case is unrelated and unknown to the victim.

The Aguda statement doesn’t specify the victim’s nationality, but it thanks Beit el-Meem — a Haifa-based Arab LGBTQ group affiliated with the Aguda — for being in contact with the victim and police. The statement also thanks the LGBTQ Open House in Beersheba and the organization Transiot Israel (Israeli trans women) for their help.

Charlie Summers contributed to this report.

Smotrich presents outline of 2026 state budget to Netanyahu, defends dairy reform

Finance Minister and Religious Zionism leader Bezalel Smotrich leads a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, November 17, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announces that he has presented the main points of the 2026 state budget to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who approved it for a vote in the cabinet on December 4.

In a statement, Smotrich defends his proposed reform to lower dairy prices, which he has said stems from an overregulated, overly concentrated dairy market.

“A central component of the series of steps we are bringing in this budget to lower the cost of living is the milk reform. In recent weeks, we have witnessed a false smear campaign that is trying to prevent this reform and perpetuate the monopolies and the huge price gaps we pay for basic dairy products,” Smotrich says.

As part of the reform, Smotrich plans to waive Israel’s high tariffs on milk imports to encourage competition, increase the supply, and lower the cost of one of the most popular staples bought by consumers.

Sa’ar meets Paraguayan president in Asunción to boost economic and security ties

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar (right) meets with Paraguayan President Santiago Peña in Asunción, November 24, 2025. (Presidency of Paraguay)

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar meets with Paraguayan President Santiago Peña in Asunción during a diplomatic trip to Paraguay and Argentina this week, Sa’ar’s office says in a statement.

During the meeting, the two discuss ways to strengthen bilateral and economic ties as well as the situation in the Middle East and in South America. Paraguayan Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez Lezcano, Israel’s Ambassador to Paraguay Amit Mekel, and Paraguay’s Ambassador to Israel Alejandro Rubin attended the meeting as well, the statement adds.

According to Sa’ar’s office, the two countries will sign a memorandum of understanding later today to advance security cooperation.

“Argentina and Paraguay have stood firmly alongside Israel over the past two years during the war, and they remain steadfast with Israel in the international arena and in international institutions,” Sa’ar said in an earlier statement about the visit to both countries.

Paraguay moved its embassy to Jerusalem last December. Argentine President Javier Milei, who Sa’ar is slated to meet with in Buenos Aires later this week, announced during a June visit to Israel that Argentina would open its embassy in Jerusalem next year.

Sa’ar also thanks Pena for Paraguay’s April decision to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Hamas, and Hezbollah as terrorist organizations.

Iran’s foreign minister to hold talks in Paris Wednesday, French ministry says

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks in a news briefing after attending a conference titled "International Law Under Assault: Aggression and Self-Defense," in Tehran, Iran, November 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will hold talks with his French counterpart Jean-Noel Barrot in Paris this week, France’s foreign ministry says.

Iran’s top diplomat on Friday accused the United States, Britain, Germany and France of pursuing a path of “escalation” after the UN nuclear watchdog passed a resolution, demanding Tehran provide “full and prompt” cooperation, including access to sensitive nuclear sites.

Saudi Arabia to open more alcohol stores as curbs ease, sources tell Reuters

Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman waves goodbye while leaving the White House after a meeting in the Oval Office with US President Donald Trump in Washington, DC, November 18, 2025. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)

Saudi Arabia plans to open two new alcohol stores, including one serving non-Muslim, foreign staff at state oil giant Aramco, as the kingdom further eases restrictions, people briefed on the plans tell Reuters.

The launch of an outlet in the eastern province of Dhahran and one for diplomats in the port city of Jeddah would be a further milestone in efforts, led by de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to open up the country.

The kingdom, which is the birthplace of Islam, last year opened an alcohol store serving non-Muslim diplomats in the capital Riyadh – the first such outlet since a ban was brought in 73 years ago.

The new store in Dhahran will be set up in a compound owned by Aramco, one of the three people who talked to Reuters says.

That store would be open for non-Muslims working for Aramco, adds the source, who says Saudi authorities had informed them of the plan.

Two of the sources say a third liquor store is also in the works for non-Muslim diplomats in the city of Jeddah, where many missions have honorary consuls.

Both stores are expected to open in 2026, but no timelines have been released, two of the sources say.

The government media office does not immediately reply to questions over the plans for the stores in both locations, which were previously unreported. Aramco declines to comment.

Bank of Israel cuts interest rates for first time in nearly 2 years

Illustrative: View of screens showing falling stocks at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

The Bank of Israel cuts borrowing costs for the first time in almost two years, following last month’s ceasefire agreement with the Hamas terror group in Gaza, and as inflationary pressures have been easing.

Citing a moderate inflation environment and a recovery in economic activity, the central bank lowered interest rates by 25 basis points to 4.25% from 4.5%.

The Bank of Israel last reduced the key lending rate in January 2024, the first cut in almost four years, to support households and businesses as the economy was getting battered by the war with Hamas in Gaza, triggered by the October 7, 2023, onslaught.

“In view of geopolitical developments, economic activity in Israel recovered sharply during the third quarter,” the central bank says in a statement. “There are several risks of renewed acceleration of inflation: geopolitical developments and their impact on economic activity, an increase in demand alongside supply constraints, and fiscal developments.”

Today’s decision was taken by the central bank’s monetary committee, led by Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron. Ahead of the interest rate decision, the majority of economists were in consensus that the central bank would lower interest rates as consumer prices continued to moderate in recent months. Israel’s annual inflation rate held steady in October at 2.5%, and remained within the government’s 1%-3% annual target range.

Yaron has come under fierce scrutiny by politicians and manufacturers for failing to lower high borrowing costs as households and businesses struggle to make mortgage and loan repayments during the two-year war with Hamas in Gaza.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich threatened to lower taxes if the central bank did not start cutting interest rates to ease the pressure on borrowers.

A lower interest rate path will come as a relief to some existing and potential mortgage borrowers, as well as households with loans in Israel tied to variable rates.

Ra’am’s Abbas accuses Netanyahu of ‘trying to steal the elections’ by hinting at ban of his party

Ra'am party head MK Mansour Abbas leads a faction meeting, at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, on February 10, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Mansour Abbas, chair of the Islamist Ra’am party, reportedly accuses Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of “trying to steal” next year’s election by floating a ban of the Muslim Brotherhood, the movement with which Ra’am is affiliated.

“This approach of Netanyahu’s has a very clear goal: to try to steal the elections and try to fix their results in advance, because he knows that Ra’am is a party that will bring change, and will bring the numbers to replace the government of Netanyahu and [National Security Minister Itamar] Ben Gvir,” Abbas says, according to the Ynet outlet.

Abbas said today that his party is “evaluating the legal situation” after Netanyahu appeared to threaten to outlaw it on the grounds that it is connected to the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Islamist party is the political wing of the Southern Islamic Movement, a group inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood, a global Islamist organization that has been outlawed in around a dozen countries for alleged links to terrorism.

Abbas has repeatedly denied that his party is connected to the Brotherhood.

Ra’am, which joined the coalition that unseated Netanyahu in 2021, takes a conciliatory stance toward Israel and is focused more on socioeconomic issues than its parent movement’s more radical sister branch, the Northern Islamic Movement, which is already outlawed.

Ra’am holds five seats in the Knesset, and polls indicate it will retain that number in the next elections.

A source close to Netanyahu says the ban is not connected to Ra’am, according to Ynet.

“We’re not against one party or another,” the unnamed source reportedly says. “To the extent that Ra’am departs from the law, the party will be disqualified from running regardless of the Muslim Brotherhood.”

Abbas accuses Netanyahu of “aiming to taint the legitimacy of Ra’am, a legitimate and democratic party.”

Activist accused of harassing reporters appears at Knesset session on press safety

Right-wing activist Mordechai David attends a National Security committee meeting at the Knesset, November 24, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

An activist who was recently questioned by the police about his alleged harassment of a TV correspondent spoke today during a hearing on violence against journalists convened by the Knesset’s National Security Committee, Channel 12 reports.

The session — titled “Lack of enforcement against serial harassers of journalists and protesters, and a real danger to human life” — was held at the opposition’s request.

Right-wing activist Mordechai David, who is under a restraining order barring him from the home of MK Gilad Kariv of The Democrats, and who was questioned last week on suspicion of threatening Channel 12 correspondent Guy Peleg after a speaking event in Tel Aviv, was reportedly in attendance and was greeted with applause by some of those present.

At the opening of the discussion, Kariv reportedly said: “Despite the restraining order issued by the police against Mordechai David, he has now arrived at the National Security Committee’s discussion on the harassment of journalists.”

Later in the meeting, David took the floor, saying, “I never broke into MKs’ homes…I ask questions gently and politely, and I don’t curse or insult. So let all the squawkers keep crying and run to the police.”

According to Haaretz, in response to criticism over David’s presence despite the restraining order against him, the Knesset said: “The restraining order applies to the MK’s home, not to the Knesset. The police have no authority to enforce it inside the building, and responsibility for complying with it lies with the individual subject to the order.”

Odeh calls on Islamist Ra’am to join united list of Arab parties in face of potential ban

MK Ayman Odeh speaks with activists at a protest calling for an end to the war in Gaza, and the return of the hostages, in Rosh Pina, northern Israel, on July 26, 2025.(Ayal Margolin/FLASH90)

Hadash-Ta’al chair Ayman Odeh calls on Mansour Abbas’ Islamist party Ra’am to join a united electoral list of Arab parties, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to threaten to outlaw it on the grounds that it is connected to the Muslim Brotherhood.

“Join a joint list! United as one, we will command 17 mandates and remove Netanyahu,” Odeh says, speaking before a faction meeting at the Knesset.

While recent polls indicate Ra’am would win 6 seats and Hadash-Ta’al 5, a single unified Arab list is expected to perform better than the parties on their own. Arab parties have run together in past elections.

The Arab parties have for months been in talks to revive the list, which, at its peak in 2020, commanded the third-largest bloc in the Knesset.

Ra’am, on its own, was part of the coalition that briefly unseated Netanyahu in 2021, the first time in decades that an Arab party had joined the government.

Odeh accuses Netanyahu of “incitement” against Ra’am and the entire Arab population and criticizes opposition leaders for cooperating in the de-legitimization of Arab citizens.

He notes that his party “stands alongside Ra’am” despite “serious disagreements,” and calls on opposition parties to “do everything” to prevent Netanyahu, and far-right ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, from being re-elected.

Top Hezbollah official at funeral of army chief Tabatabai: ‘The Zionists should be worried’

Hezbollah members raise the terror group's flags and chant slogans as they attend the funeral procession of Hezbollah's military chief of staff, Haytham Tabatabai, and two other Hezbollah members who were killed in an Israeli airstrike, in a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, November 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Hezbollah executive council head Sheikh Ali Daamoush says Israel should be wary of Hezbollah’s response to the IDF’s assassination of Hezbollah military chief Haytham Ali Tabatabai yesterday.

Speaking at Tabatabai’s funeral in Beirut, Daamoush says “the Zionists should be worried, because they’ve committed a grave crime against the resistance and against Lebanon.”

Regarding a diplomatic resolution to the tensions, Daamoush says: “We won’t concern ourselves with any proposals as long as the enemy doesn’t commit to the ceasefire agreement” that Israel and Hezbollah reached in November 2024. Israel has accused Hezbollah of breaching the accord and says its strikes against the terror group are meant to prevent it from rearming.

Alluding to US and other countries’ pressure on Beirut to disarm Hezbollah as outlined in the ceasefire agreement, Daamoush adds: “It’s the state’s duty to defend its citizens and its sovereignty. The government needs to draw up plans for that and reject foreign diktats and pressure.”

Several injured as vehicle hits pedestrians during police chase in south

A driver hit several people while fleeing police near Tel Sheva in the south, law enforcement says.

Officers attempted to stop the vehicle during an operation in the Negev Bedouin town, but the driver tried to escape, injuring several pedestrians.

The injured, one of whom is in moderate condition, were taken to a nearby hospital for further treatment, police say.

One of the passengers of the vehicle has been wounded by police gunfire during the chase, Ynet reports.

Dead pregnant shark bearing marks of fishing net washes up on central Israel shore

A dead pregnant sandbar shark bearing marks made by a fishing net has washed up on the shore of the beach at the Beit Yannai National Park in central Israel, officials say.

An autopsy found that the shark was at an advanced stage of pregnancy and was carrying seven fetuses, none of which survived.

The two Haifa University experts who undertook the autopsy say they found deep marks consistent with a battle with a fishing net around the creature’s head, along with deep muscle bruising. They also discovered bleeding in the heart muscle — a sign of acute stress.

The sandbar shark is in danger of extinction.

Gantz backs Zamir as IDF chief challenged by Katz

Benny Gantz speaks during press conference in Tel Aviv on August 23, 2025. (Tal Gal/Flash90)

Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz voices strong support for IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir for taking “a difficult and necessary step” by holding commanders accountable for their roles on October 7, 2023.

“I want to back Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who imposed and demanded personal responsibility from commanders. This is the role of the chief of staff,” Gantz says ahead of a faction meeting.

“I’m sure it wasn’t easy for Eyal to call his brothers-in-arms of decades and hold them accountable and impose sanctions, but this is necessary for the IDF and for the country,” says Gantz, himself a former chief of staff.

The remarks come amid a broader conflict between Zamir and Defense Minister Israel Katz over the promotions of top military officers, and as Katz ordered the defense establishment comptroller to re-evaluate the findings made by an external panel of former senior officers, and accepted by Zamir, that looked into the IDF’s investigations into October 7.

Lapid: ‘Crazy increase’ in crime under Ben Gvir, with murders of women spiking

Opposition leader and Yesh Atid chair Yair Lapid leads a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, October 27, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid slams Itamar Ben Gvir as a failed national security minister under whose tenure crime has seen a “crazy increase” by all metrics.

“I have two data points for you: the first is that during the term of the current government, there has been a 74% increase in the number of women murdered in Israel. And the second is that most of the murdered women are Jewish,” Lapid tells reporters ahead of his Yesh Atid party’s weekly faction meeting in the Knesset, citing a statistic recently published by the Israel Women’s Network.

Lapid says that he is not bringing this up because “an Arab woman who is murdered is less terrible than a Jewish woman” but due to the fact that Ben Gvir “is trying to sell us is that violence and murder are an ‘Arab problem,’ and why should we care if Arabs kill each other.”

“It’s not only disgusting racism, it’s also not true. It’s a lie. Most of the female murder victims are Jewish. Most of the people harmed by protection rackets are Jewish. Most of the victims of property crimes are Jewish. And of course, the overwhelming majority of terror victims are Jewish,” Lapid declares.

Instead of showing up at the scene of yesterday’s anti-LGBT hate stabbing in Beersheba or the shooting near Tel Aviv University, Ben Gvir “drove to Lakiya in the Negev to fight with the head of the local council, so he could have a video of himself arguing with Arabs,” Lapid asserts.

“That’s all he knows how to do: fight with Arabs and film it,” Lapid continues, arguing that “personal security in the State of Israel has never been so bad,” listing a variety of recent incidents, including grenade-throwing, murders and other crimes.

“There is almost no business in the State of Israel that doesn’t pay protection, or has received threats to pay protection… People are afraid. Afraid to walk around the street. Afraid of crime families,” he continues.

“There has never been a failure like Ben Gvir in the history of the country. This is what happens when you take a criminal with 53 indictments and eight convictions, who never served a minute in the army, and make him the minister in charge of internal security,” Lapid says. “Then the citizens of Israel have no security, there are only videos of Ben Gvir fighting with Arabs.”

Low-flying IDF drones reported over Beirut during Hezbollah military chief’s funeral

Hezbollah members carry the coffin of the terror group's military chief of staff, Haytham Tabatabai, during his funeral procession in a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, November 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Israeli drones are flying over Beirut’s southern suburbs during the funeral there of Hezbollah military leader Haytham Ali Tabatabai, Lebanese media reports.

Footage shows the drones flying low over the area.

Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces artillery strikes are reported in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese outlet Al-Akhbar reports that Israel has launched munitions at the area of Yaroun in southern Lebanon, causing fires.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF.

Israel has been escalating its strikes on Hezbollah in recent weeks, accusing the terror group of violating the year-old ceasefire and increasingly attempting to rebuild its capabilities, and expressing frustration at lagging Lebanese efforts to disarm the group.

عدد من المسيرات المسلحة الواضحة تحلق فوق الضاحية الجنوبية تزامناً مع التشييع pic.twitter.com/7P0RHISUlX

— مصدر مسؤول (@fouadkhreiss) November 24, 2025

Liberman: Government is politicizing the IDF while failing to defeat Hamas, Hezbollah

Yisrael Beytenu party chief Avigdor Liberman holds a faction meeting in the Knesset in Jerusalem on November 24, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/FLASH90)

Yisrael Beytenu chair MK Avigdor Liberman accuses the government of failing to fully defeat Hamas and Hezbollah while also politicizing the army.

Despite two years of war and a claimed “total victory,” Israel today faces “an open front in Gaza and in Lebanon” as well as one in Iran, Liberman tells reporters ahead of his party’s weekly faction meeting in the Knesset.

“The strengthening of Hezbollah and Hamas is greater than the damage we are inflicting on them. They are becoming stronger than ever,” he says, referring to recent IDF strikes against the two terrorist groups.

Beyond the current military challenges, Israelis now also find themselves faced with a “new front” in the form of a conflict between Defense Minister Israel Katz and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, he continues.

Katz in recent months has been fighting an escalating campaign against the chief of the Israel Defense Forces by selectively promoting officers and denying the appointments of others with whom he apparently does not see eye to eye.

Today Katz ordered the defense establishment comptroller to re-evaluate the findings made by an external panel of former senior officers, and accepted by Zamir, that looked into the IDF’s October 7, 2023, investigations.

This “madness” is “dangerous” and the “only way to reach the truth is a state commission of inquiry” that will investigate “absolutely everyone,” says Liberman, calling on those in the coalition “who feel a minimal sense of responsibility” to “stand up and support the establishment” of such a probe.

“There is another message that emerges from this event, and that is the politicization of the army. People no longer advance based on abilities and professional skills, but according to connections. They advance based on how close they are and on who is more of a ‘yes man.’ Politicization will destroy the army,” Liberman alleges.

At snap northern drill, Zamir says exercise is to implement October 7 lessons

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir (center) meets with troops during a drill in the Golan Heights, November 24, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

Speaking at a snap drill in northern Israel this morning, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir says the exercise is part of the military’s efforts to implement lessons learned from the failures of October 7.

He says drill “is meant to strengthen the IDF’s competence and readiness at all levels and in all sectors for complex surprise scenarios.”

“This is the basis for a professional army, alert and prepared for defense, and for a swift transition to offense and the removal of threats from the citizens of the state and its borders,” Zamir adds, according to remarks provided by the IDF.

The drill opened this morning with an inspection of the 210th “Bashan” Regional Division — responsible for the border with Syria in the Golan Heights and the Mount Dov area on the border with Lebanon — to examine their readiness for an unexpected incident.

The military said today that situation assessments and decision-making processes would be checked at all levels as part of the drill, along with the activation of troops and the management of forces on the battlefield.

Merz to visit Israel for first time as German chancellor next month

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz addresses guests during a Central Council of Jews in Germany (Zentralrat der Juden in Deutschland) Rosh Hashana reception, on the occasion of its 75th anniversary, on September 17, 2025, at the Jewish Museum in Berlin. (John MACDOUGALL / AFP)

Friedrich Merz will make his first visit to Israel as German chancellor in December, a diplomatic source tells The Times of Israel.

The visit, which is tentatively scheduled for December 6-7, will include a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial.

Merz, who was elected in May, will be the first elected leader of a major European country to visit Israel in over a year.

Germany’s long-standing support for Israel following the Holocaust has been strained by the death toll and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, which prompted demands from the German public for government action.

Berlin suspended some arms trade with Israel in August over the Israeli cabinet’s decision to conquer Gaza City in its war against Hamas in Gaza. Germany is the second-largest arms exporter to Israel, after the United States, and Israel’s main backer in the EU.

Germany is slated to lift an order suspending some weapons sales to Israel today, following the Gaza ceasefire agreement reached last month.

Final draft of PA interim constitution pledged by Abbas expected within week

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas addresses the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly via video, September 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

The committee drafting an interim constitution for the Palestinian Authority is expected to finish its work within a week and submit a final draft to PA President Mahmoud Abbas for approval, the Authority’s WAFA news outlet reports.

According to WAFA, the committee held its sixteenth meeting at the Palestine Liberation Organization headquarters in Ramallah to discuss proposed constitutional articles and referred the approved clauses to experts for final review.

Speaking to the UN in September, Abbas pledged to draft an interim constitution within three months and hold elections within a year as the PA seeks to reform itself.

Abbas said the constitution would ensure that all parties participating in elections adhere to the Palestine Liberation Organization’s charter, which includes recognition of Israel.

Under US President Donald Trump’s comprehensive Gaza ceasefire plan, presented days after Abbas’s UN speech, a “faithfully” reformed PA could take the reins of Gaza and possibly lay conditions for a “credible pathway” to Palestinian statehood. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted that there will not be a Palestinian state.

Police arrest 36 suspects linked to shootings in south amid crackdown

Police arrested 36 suspects overnight linked to shootings in the Negev, law enforcement announces, as part of a sweeping operation in the area aimed at combating violent crime in the desert region.

The arrests come after National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir announced the commencement of the “New Order” operation, with hundreds of officers set to boost enforcement of traffic laws and take guns off the streets.

As part of the operation last night, National Guard troops and Negev District police seized an M16 assault rifle stolen from an army base and arrested the individual in possession of it, police say.

At the same time, officers in police’s Unit 33, focused on counter-terror operations, nabbed four suspects in an alleged weapons smuggling ring.

Officers seized two cars belonging to the suspects and NIS 37,000 (approximately $11,000) in the raid.

Law enforcement adds that police have so far issued over 250 traffic tickets since the start of the operation.

Last night, Ben Gvir toured Lakiya, north of Beersheba, hours after police erected roadblocks at the entrance to the Negev Bedouin town.

The move incensed residents and Lakiya’s council chairman, Sharif al-Asad, who accused law enforcement of treating the population as “second-class citizens.”

Outrage as far-right Australian lawmaker wears burqa in parliament stunt

Australian far-right Senator Pauline Hanson wears a burqa to parliament as a political prop in her push to ban the Muslim garment in public, sparking accusations of racism from Muslim senators over the stunt.

Hanson dons the burqa shortly after she was denied permission to introduce a bill that would outlaw burqas and other full-face coverings in public places in Australia.

It is the second time Hanson had used the garment, worn by some Muslim women, in parliament in an effort to ban the public wearing of burqas.

The Senate erupts in anger as she walks into the chamber wearing the burqa, and proceedings are suspended when Hanson refuses to remove it.

Australian right wing populist leader Pauline Hanson decided to wear a burqa into the Australian Senate today

Strangely enough this is actually the second time she has done this in her career

She’s polling at nearly 20% of the national vote, mainly because the Labor government… pic.twitter.com/HFqazRRi5L

— Drew Pavlou 🇦🇺🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼 (@DrewPavlou) November 24, 2025

Hezbollah to hold mass funeral in Beirut today for military chief killed in IDF strike

Left: Rescuers search for survivors at the site of an airstrike that killed Hezbollah's military chief in a residential building in Beirut's southern Haret Hreik neighborhood on November 23, 2025. (Ibrahim Amro/AFP); Right: Hezbollah military chief Haytham Ali Tabatabai, in a poster issued by the terror group after his death. (Hezbollah Media Office)

Hezbollah is set to hold the funeral today for its top military chief and other members of the terror group, a day after Israel killed them with a strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Haytham Ali Tabatabai is the most senior Hezbollah commander to be killed by Israel since a November 2024 ceasefire sought to end over a year of hostilities between the two sides, sparked when the terror group began firing rockets and drones at Israel on October 8, 2023.

The terror group calls on its supporters to attend the mass funeral for its “great leader” Tabatabai, which will take place in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, a densely populated area where it holds sway.

Report: Body of hostage held by Palestinian Islamic Jihad recovered in central Gaza

The three slain hostages whose bodies were still held captive in Gaza as of November 24, 2025. (L-R): Dror Or, Ran Gvili, and Sudthisak Rinthalak. (Collage by Times of Israel; Photos: Courtesy)

Al Jazeera reports that the body of a hostage held by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad was recovered in an area north of central Gaza’s Nuseirat.

There has been no announcement yet from Islamic Jihad or Hamas on the planned transfer of the body to Israel.

The bodies of three slain hostages remain held in the Strip — two Israelis and one Thai national: Dror Or, Master Sgt. Ran Gvili and Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak.

Police to question journalist accused of ‘shoving’ employee of PM’s wife in May

Channel 13 reporter Aviad Glickman arrives at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem for a hearing, July 25, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Police have summoned Channel 13 News legal correspondent Aviad Glickman for interrogation, after the reporter appeared to shove one of Sara Netanyahu’s associates during a libel hearing in May, Hebrew outlets report.

Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara has allowed police to investigate Glickman, but did not officially approve the questioning, Ynet reports.

Glickman’s interrogation is set to take place in the coming days, Hebrew-language media reports.

Gal Dabush, an employee of the premier’s wife, filed a complaint over the incident, which occurred as attendees of the hearing attempted to make their way out of the courtroom.

There was a bottleneck at the exit as Glickman and a number of other journalists apparently tried to film Netanyahu as she left the court.

The libel hearing was held after Netanyahu sued her ex-employee, Sylvia Genesia, who claimed to have been pressured to lie and defend the prime minister’s wife in a statement to police.

Glickman, whose reporting has been critical of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had been previously summoned for questioning in July over the alleged shoving, but Baharav-Miara contacted police at the time, insisting they reconsider the move and first examine the incident’s context.

Police viewed Baharav-Miara’s request as a bid to exert political pressure on law enforcement, Channel 12 reports. Eventually, they decided to postpone the investigation until they discussed it officially with the attorney general.

אביעד גליקמן תקף אותי באלימות ודחף אותי בחוזקה ביציאה להפסקה בבית המשפט.

ביטחון בית המשפט היו עדים לאירוע האלים והוציא אותו.

אני הגשתי נגדו תלונה במשטרה. אני לא אשתוק מול האלימות של גליקמן. מבטיחה לעדכן.

מה עוד תעשה להם השנאה כלפי משפחת נתניהו?

הם לא רק משקרים, הם לא רק… pic.twitter.com/JhbBV2xWfw

— Gal (@miss__gd) May 28, 2025

IDF chief visits snap drill in north, tells troops to raise alert level after killing of Hezbollah military leader

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir (center) meets with troops during a drill in the Golan Heights, November 24, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir visited the 210th “Bashan” Regional Division in northern Israel this morning, amid an ongoing snap drill testing its readiness.

The division is responsible for the border with Syria in the Golan Heights and the Mount Dov area on the border with Lebanon.

In addition to the drill, the IDF says Zamir was updated on the army’s preparations on the Lebanon border, and he instructed troops to increase their level of alert following the killing of Hezbollah’s military chief in Beirut yesterday.

Silman, Karhi set to join panel determining mandate of government’s controversial Oct. 7 inquiry – report

Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman attends a rally in Jerusalem for the re-establishment of Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip, on February 27, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman and Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi from the ruling Likud party are expected to join the ministerial panel tasked with determining the mandate of the government’s controversial commission of inquiry into failures surrounding the Hamas onslaught of October 7, 2023, according to the Walla news site.

In response to the news of Silman’s potential appointment, the October Council, which is made up of bereaved families and relatives of former hostages, says, “In his usual spin, Netanyahu decided to add Minister Idit Silman to the ministerial team of the ‘cover-up’ committee – the same minister who said: ‘A state commission of inquiry? What does that mean?”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long refused to establish an independent state commission of inquiry, the country’s highest investigative authority, which polls find a large majority of Israelis believe to be necessary.

The panel will be led by Likud Justice Minister Yariv Levin and composed entirely of government ministers, all of whom, except Ze’ev Elkin of Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar’s New Hope party, were in office during the October 7 attack, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists stormed southern Israel to kill some 1,200 people and take 251 hostages, sparking the war in Gaza.

Other members of the panel will include Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Settlements and National Missions Minister Orit Strock from Religious Zionism; National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Heritage Minister Amichay Eliyahu of Ben Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit party; and Likud’s Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter, Science and Technology Minister Gila Gamliel, and Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli.

IDF says it targeted 3 terror operatives who crossed Gaza ceasefire line, threatened troops

The IDF says it identified and struck three terror operatives who crossed the Yellow Line demarcating the military’s withdrawal in the southern Gaza Strip today.

The operatives had been spotted crossing the line in the Khan Younis area and approaching troops of the Kfir Brigade, while “posing an immediate threat,” the military says.

The Israeli Air Force, with information provided by the ground troops, struck the operatives “to remove the threat,” the IDF says. Palestinian media reported that two people were killed in a strike in the area.

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

Knesset legal adviser accuses Rothman of threatening him during discussion on splitting AG’s role

MK Simcha Rotman (L) and legal adviser to the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee Gur Bligh at the Knesset in Jerusalem on July 16, 2023 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee legal adviser Gur Bligh accuses committee chair MK Simcha Rothman of threatening him during the panel’s discussion on the government’s contentious plan to split the role of the attorney general.

During remarks from former Likud minister Dan Meridor, Rothman whispers to Bligh, who then tells the lawmaker: “You will not threaten me.”

It is unclear what Rothman said, and the proceedings briefly stall.

עימות סוער בוועדת החוקה: רוטמן לחש לאוזנו של היועץ המשפטי של הוועדה, שהתפרץ – "אתה לא תאיים עליי"@yaara_shapira @diklaaharon pic.twitter.com/EuzPgSzAiC

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) November 24, 2025

Rothman, a lawmaker from the far-right Religious Zionism party and an architect of the government’s judicial overhaul, has pushed a bill that would split the attorney general’s position into three jobs — legal adviser to the government, prosecutor general, and government representative in the courts — and give the government complete control over appointments to those roles, amid the coalition’s ongoing efforts to fire Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara.

Meridor, a former justice minister who served in several of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinets, says that the efforts to split the role are part of a wider attempt to “completely change Israel into a non-democratic regime.”

Proponents of the bill to break up the attorney general role say that the position holds too much power and has an inherent conflict of interest.

Critics say the legislation would deal a death blow to the already-sparse system of checks and balances on executive power in Israel.

Tax benefits to be extended for southern communities impacted by Oct. 7, Smotrich says

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announces that he has instructed ministry officials to extend tax benefits for Sderot and southern communities affected by October 7, which are currently slated to expire at the end of the year.

Smotrich says the communities “are a significant link in Israel’s strength and resilience. We continue to support them with every tool available to us as a state.”

Lapid to business leaders: Lack of functioning government is Israel’s biggest economic problem

Opposition leader and Yesh Atid chair Yair Lapid leads a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, October 27, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid tells business leaders that under the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel is suffering from a nonfunctional and incapable government that does not serve the best economic interests of its people.

“The biggest economic problem of the State of Israel is that we do not have a functioning government. There is no government here in the technical sense – a functioning, working body, with managerial capabilities and an economic vision, that deals with the lives of citizens. That sees ahead,” Lapid tells a conference of the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce.

“I want to tell you what kind of government I want to establish here — a government of 18 ministers. Without coalition funds. A government that says without blinking: anyone who does not enlist [in the IDF] and then goes to work, will not receive a single shekel from the state,” he continues.

“The idea is a functioning government, that thing we’ve forgotten, or lost faith could even happen. In the end, that’s what we need most: a government that manages and is managed, and wants what’s best for us. But it won’t arise on its own. It will only come into being if we fight for it together,” Lapid adds.

Netanyahu’s cabinet includes 30 ministers.

Hamas says 2 political operatives detained by Israel in West Bank, one later released

Two members of Hamas who were elected to the Palestinian Authority’s largely defunct legislative council were detained east of Bethlehem in the West Bank this morning, Hamas’s Prisoner Affairs’ Office reports.

The terror group’s office says Ahmed Atoun, 57, was released a number of hours after he was taken, bound and blindfolded, from his home in Beit Sahour, east of Bethlehem, for interrogation at an Israeli military facility.

Muhammad Abu Tir, 75, remains in detention after he was taken from his home in Dar Salah, east of Bethlehem, the prisoners’ office says.

Both men were elected on a Hamas slate in the last PA legislative election in 2006, the most recent to date.

A spokesperson for Israel’s police in the West Bank does not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Teenage boy rescued from small platform hanging from crane over Jerusalem high-rise

A teenage boy is rescued from a crane suspended over a high-rise building at the entrance to Jerusalem, November 24, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Emergency services have managed to rescue a teenage boy from a crane in Jerusalem, after he was found on a small platform hanging from the crane’s hook.

Rescuers climbed the crane and lowered a crew member on a pulley so that he could reach the boy and fit him with a helmet and harness so he could be hoisted up to the main part of the structure.

The teen was lowered to the ground and transferred to medical services for on-site treatment, the Fire and Rescue Service says, adding that the teenager was believed to be in good condition.

Currently, officials do not suspect the incident was a suicide attempt.

The teen was atop the crane’s platform for an estimated seven hours, having ascended the structure at around midnight, Ynet reports.

It is unclear how the boy reached the platform.

IDF ready for potential Hezbollah response to military chief’s killing; no change in Home Front guidelines

Left: Rescuers search for survivors at the site of an airstrike that killed Hezbollah's military chief in a residential building in Beirut's southern Haret Hreik neighborhood on November 23, 2025. (Ibrahim Amro/AFP); Right: Hezbollah military chief Haytham Ali Tabatabai, in a poster issued by the terror group after his death. (Hezbollah Media Office)

Following the killing of Hezbollah’s military chief in Beirut yesterday, the IDF is geared up for a potential response by the Iran-backed terror group, though as of now, there has been no change in guidelines for civilians.

The Israeli Air Force has bolstered air defenses in the north for possible rocket fire by Hezbollah from Lebanon, and has also raised its level of alert, military sources say.

However, as of yet, the military has no specific information indicating that Hezbollah is planning a rocket barrage.

The Home Front Command, meanwhile, has not issued any changes to its guidelines for civilians.

Palestinian reports: 3 killed by IDF gunfire in Gaza City, drone strikes near Khan Younis

Three Palestinians were killed by troops on the Israeli-controlled side of the ceasefire line in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian media and local hospitals report.

There is no immediate comment from the Israel Defense Forces.

Gaza City’s Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital says one person was killed by gunfire in the city’s eastern Tuffah neighborhood.

Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis says two were killed by drone strikes in Bani Suheila, east of the city. Reports say the two were male youths.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday that Israel will keep striking Hamas over ceasefire violations in Gaza. The terror group has in turn accused Israel of breaking the truce.

Iran blasts Israel’s ‘cowardly’ killing of Hezbollah military chief

A civil defense worker inspects the damage at an apartment building hit during an Israeli airstrike in the southern suburb of Beirut, on November 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

Iran slams Israel over its killing of the Hezbollah military chief, a day after the commander of the Iran-backed terror group was targeted with a strike in the Lebanese capital of Beirut.

“The Iranian Foreign Ministry strongly condemns the cowardly assassination of the great commander of the Lebanese Islamic Resistance, the martyr Haytham Ali Tabatabai,” the Iranian foreign ministry says in a statement.

Tabatabai was considered second only to Secretary-General Naim Qassem in the terror group’s command structure.

Hezbollah eulogized him as a “great Jihadi commander.” It said Tabatabai “dedicated his life to the resistance” and “was among the leaders who laid the foundation” for it.

Australian magistrate rules synagogue arsonist motivated by mental illness, not antisemitism

Rabbi Dovid Gutnick speaks to the media next to the burnt front entrance of the East Melbourne Synagogue in Melbourne on July 6, 2025. (William WEST / AFP)

A man who set fire to a Melbourne synagogue while worshippers were inside was motivated by mental illness rather than antisemitism, an Australian magistrate says.

Angelo Loras, 35, had pleaded guilty to arson and recklessly placing people at risk of death on July 4 when he doused the front door of the East Melbourne Synagogue with flammable liquid and ignited it. Around 20 worshippers were inside sharing a Shabbat meal, but no one was injured.

Reports of antisemitic incidents have risen sharply across Australia since Hamas’s October 7 massacre, which sparked the war in Gaza.

Government leaders suspected the attack on the synagogue, which is also known as the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation, was a hate crime.

The morning after the fire, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese released a statement saying the arson attack was “cowardly, is an act of violence and antisemitism, and has no place in Australian society.”

But Magistrate Malcolm Thomas rules that Loras was not motivated by antisemitism but had been in the grip of a terrifying delusion stemming from his failure to take medication for schizophrenia.

Thomas sentences Loras to four months’ imprisonment, which is less than the 138 days he has already spent in custody.

While Loras is eligible for release today, he is also ordered to continue medical treatment for schizophrenia for 20 months and to perform unpaid work.

Loras describes himself on the social media platform X as “Single, Iranian, forklift driver, music lover.”

The Australian government has blamed Iran for an earlier arson attack on a Melbourne synagogue, which security officers describe as an antisemitic crime aimed at undermining Australian social cohesion.

Australian spy agencies accuse Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guards of organizing arson attacks on Melbourne’s Adass Israel Synagogue in December last year and on a Sydney kosher food business two months earlier. Iran has denied any involvement. Both buildings were extensively damaged.

Rescue services working to reach teen sitting on crane suspended over Jerusalem high-rise

A teenage boy is seen on a platform hanging from the rope of a crane above a high-rise building as firefighters attempt to rescue him in Jerusalem on November 24, 2025.(Fire and Rescue Service)

Emergency services are working to rescue a teenage boy found sitting on a platform suspended from a crane’s hook, hanging over a 36-floor building near the entrance to Jerusalem.

He is currently crouching on a narrow flat surface just above where the payload is typically attached to the crane’s cable.

The high-rise is the same unfinished structure from which a 20-year-old fell to his death in an apparent suicide during an anti-draft protest in the capital last month.

After making eye contact with the boy, who is aged around 15, Fire and Rescue teams began working to bring him down safely from the height.

Several firefighters are currently climbing the crane in order to reach him.

Initial findings indicate that this is not a suicide attempt, fire officials say.

“This is a very complex rescue, both due to the great height and the challenging and problematic angle at which the crane is positioned. The firefighters are acting with judgment and professionalism to build a rope system that will allow safe access to the teenager and his rescue,” says Shai Nehemiah, the commander at the scene.

Zamir orders snap drill testing IDF’s readiness for sudden events on northern border

Israeli soldiers patrol near the border with Lebanon, November 22, 2025 (Ayal Margolin/Flash90)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir this morning launched a snap drill aimed at testing the military’s readiness for various scenarios, starting with sudden events on the northern border.

The IDF says the drill will last several days, and it will “assess and improve the IDF’s readiness for a range of scenarios.”

The drill opened with an inspection of the 210th “Bashan” Regional Division — responsible for the border with Syria in the Golan Heights and the Mount Dov area on the border with Lebanon — to examine their readiness for a sudden event, the military says.

The military says situation assessments and decision-making processes will be checked at all levels, along with the activation of troops and the management of forces on the battlefield.

The IDF warns that there may be sounds of explosions and an increased presence of military forces and aircraft in the Golan Heights during the drill.

The exercise was pre-planned, according to the IDF.

In clash with Zamir, Katz orders re-evaluation of external probe of IDF’s Oct.7 investigations

Defense Minister Israel Katz (left) and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, June 20, 2025. (Ariel Hermoni/Defense Ministry)

Defense Minister Israel Katz continues to clash with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, saying that he has ordered the defense establishment comptroller to re-evaluate the findings made by an external panel of former senior officers that looked into the IDF’s October 7 investigations.

Katz also says he is freezing senior appointments in the IDF until Defense Establishment Comptroller Brig. Gen. (res.) Yair Volansky submits his findings.

Volansky is to “thoroughly examine the report” that was put together by Maj. Gen. (res.) Sami Turgeman and a team of other former senior officers, “including the question of the need for additional investigations in areas that the IDF has not previously investigated… as well as completing investigations that the committee marked in red and determined were not carried out properly and in depth,” Katz says in a statement.

Turgeman’s team noted several topics that were not investigated at all, chief among them was the IDF’s handling of intelligence reports received since 2018, which outlined Hamas’s intent to launch a wide-scale attack against Israel, known as “Jericho’s Walls.”

Additionally, Katz says the comptroller will be asked to “formulate a recommendation for equal criteria regarding the drawing of personal conclusions,” after Zamir last night announced he was dismissing and censuring a host of officers involved in the October 7 failures, based on Turgeman’s findings.

Katz says that Volansky will submit his recommendations within 30 days, “so that I can quickly form my position on senior IDF appointments under my authority in light of the events of October 7.”

Additionally, Katz says that his position, whereby officers who served in the Southern Command on October 7 will not be promoted, “remains unchanged.” This comes after Zamir ruled that there was no issue with the promotion of three senior officers, whose promotions were previously held up or canceled by Katz.

Katz also claims that the issue of appointing a military attaché to the US “is entirely unrelated to this matter and does not constitute grounds for delaying any appointment in the IDF.” Katz has been seeking to appoint his military secretary, Brig. Gen. Guy Markizeno, as the next attaché, a move that Zamir does not support.

Ra’am ‘evaluating legal situation’ after Netanyahu’s apparent threat to outlaw Arab party

Ra'am party head MK Mansour Abbas leads a faction meeting, at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, on February 10, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Ra’am leader Mansour Abbas says the political party is “evaluating the legal situation” after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to threaten to outlaw the Islamist faction.

“We are examining the matter from a political and legal perspective, and evaluating the situation and the information we have,” Abbas tells the Ynet news site.

Ra’am, which joined the coalition led by prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid in 2021, is the political wing of the Southern Islamic Movement.

The southern branch of the Islamist movement, which is inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood, takes a conciliatory stance toward Israel and is focused more on socio-economic issues than the northern, more radical branch, which is already outlawed.

Abbas has in the past denied that his party was part of the Muslim Brotherhood movement.

Last night, Netanyahu pledged that Israel will complete the process of outlawing the Muslim Brotherhood.

The prime minister’s apparent threat to Ra’am came as he praised US President Donald Trump for his decision to make the final preparations for outlawing the Muslim Brotherhood and declaring it a terrorist organization.

Critics of Netanyahu and his hardline right-wing government have warned of attempts to disenfranchise Arab voters ahead of the elections — set to be held by the end of October 2026 — including by making it easier to disqualify Arab candidates.

British Jewish group: ‘Strong whiff of antisemitism’ to protest of Israel immigration event at London synagogue

A British Jewish communal organization says that a demonstration near a synagogue in London that was hosting an event promoting immigration to Israel yesterday is “obnoxious with a strong whiff of antisemitism.”

“We will continue to discuss with police and government if there are any further attempts to repeat,” reads the statement by Andrew Gilbert, vice-president of the Board of Deputies.

Video posted to social media appeared to show the anti-Israel protesters chanting “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” seen by many as a call for Israel’s destruction.

Police had claimed that there was “no legal mechanism” from preventing the protest outside St. John’s Wood United Synagogue but said that they had worked to move the demonstration to a short distance away from the Jewish house of worship.

The incident came days after anti-Israel protesters chanted for an intifada and heckled Jews at a demonstration outside a prominent New York City synagogue that was holding a similar event on immigration to Israel.

🕍 Tonight racists were allowed to protest at a synagogue, where families were attending.

Conditions were imposed and protestors were moved to the end of the road.

I silently filmed and was instantly told “Go away Zio!” (far-right slang for Jew)… pic.twitter.com/7XLyd83jbb

— Alex Hearn (@hearnimator) November 23, 2025

Man dies of wounds sustained in overnight Umm al-Fahm shooting

A young man has died after he was shot and critically injured in Umm al-Fahm overnight, a watchdog says.

According to the Abraham Initiatives, a coexistence group that tracks violence in the Arab community, 21-year-old Mehdi Mehamid’s death means that 232 Arabs have been killed violently since the start of the year.

Gunmen attack Pakistan paramilitary force headquarters, police say

Gunmen attacked a paramilitary force headquarters in Pakistan’s northwestern city of Peshawar today, police say.

The complex, the headquarters of the frontier constabulary paramilitary force, is also hit by two suicide bombers, sources tell Reuters, adding that three people have been killed.

“The first suicide bomber first carried out an attack on the main entrance of the constabulary and the other one entered the compound,” a senior official tells Reuters on condition of anonymity.

“Law enforcement personnel, including the army and police, have cordoned off the area and are carefully handling the situation as we suspect there are some terrorists inside the headquarters,” the official adds.

The headquarters of the force is located in a crowded area, close to a military cantonment.

“The road has been closed for traffic and cordoned off by the army, police and (security) personnel,” Safdar Khan, a resident of the area, tells Reuters.

Nefesh B’Nefesh condemns ‘violent rhetoric’ outside NYC synagogue event

Nefesh B’Nefesh addresses the protest outside its synagogue event last week in New York City, condemning “violent rhetoric” from the protesters and pledging to remain committed to its goal of promoting and facilitating aliyah from North America.

The statement, issued Sunday, comes days after a crowd protested outside a Nefesh B’Nefesh open house held at Park East Synagogue, an Orthodox congregation on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

Protesters chanted “Death to the IDF” and “Resistance you make us proud, take another settler out,” and individual demonstrators shouted antisemitic epithets.

“We are deeply concerned by, and firmly condemn, the violent rhetoric and aggressive behavior that took place outside of the Park East Synagogue,” the Nefesh B’Nefesh statement says. “Our commitment remains unwavering. We will continue to serve Olim (immigrants to Israel) with professionalism, compassion, and the highest level of care, ensuring that every individual and family feels supported.”

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, and outgoing Mayor Eric Adams, condemned the antisemitism at the protest, as did several Jewish groups.

A spokesperson for mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, a longtime harsh critic of Israel, said in a statement that he “has discouraged the language used” at the protest.

The statement added, “He believes every New Yorker should be free to enter a house of worship without intimidation, and that these sacred spaces should not be used to promote activities in violation of international law.”

In Response to the Recent Violent Protest Outside of Park East Synagogue, NYC:

For more than two decades, Nefesh B’Nefesh has been dedicated to supporting, educating, and advising individuals and families throughout their Aliyah (immigration to Israel) journey.

We are deeply… pic.twitter.com/22IE6ccKNI

— Nefesh B'Nefesh (@NefeshBNefesh) November 23, 2025

US hails ‘significant step forward’ in Ukraine talks, announces ‘updated’ framework

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (right) and Ukraine's Presidential Office Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak hold a press conference in Geneva on November 23, 2025. (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

The White House says that talks in Switzerland on a proposal to end the Ukraine war mark a “significant step forward,” and reaffirms that any eventual deal will “fully uphold” the war-torn country’s sovereignty.

A joint US-Ukraine statement released minutes later by Washington says: “As a result of the discussions, the parties drafted an updated and refined peace framework.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio led a US delegation that met with Ukrainian and European officials in Geneva on Sunday to try to thrash out a plan for ending the conflict, which began in February 2022 with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

US President Donald Trump had given Ukraine until November 27 to approve his controversial plan to end nearly four years of fighting, whose initial draft accepted a range of Moscow’s hardline demands. The 28-point plan requires the invaded country to cede territory, cut its army, and pledge never to join NATO.

Kyiv has sought changes to the draft. The statement’s announcement of a new draft appears to indicate that changes were indeed made.

“The talks were constructive, focused, and respectful, underscoring the shared commitment to achieving a just and lasting peace,” the joint statement says. “The discussions showed meaningful progress toward aligning positions and identifying clear next steps. They reaffirmed that any future agreement must fully uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty and deliver a sustainable and just peace.”

Both sides pledged to keep working on joint proposals “in the coming days.”

Ben Gvir tours Bedouin town amid spate of violent crime, declares ‘I’m the landlord here’

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir tours the Negev Bedouin village of Lakiya for a second time this month, sparking anger from residents after police blocked the town’s entrance with concrete blocks this afternoon.

His visit and the roadblocks erected today come on the heels of a new operation by police aimed at combating spiraling crime and arms trafficking among Negev Bedouin, dubbed Operation New Order.

While Arab mayors and council heads have repeatedly demanded that the state do more to combat crime in their locales, many assign blame to the far-right national security minister for the uptick in homicides since he took office. They have also lamented that they have been boxed out from decision-making regarding the issue even though it primarily affects their constituencies.

Ben Gvir, during his visit alongside Southern District police chief Haim Bublil, is seen feuding with Ra’am MK Walid al-Hawashleh. Footage shows Ben Gvir declaring that he is the “landlord” in the Arab town, as al-Hawashleh derides him as a racist.

“We will mow down whoever is bad, I’m not afraid of them, I’m the landlord here,” he says, before shouting “barra,” meaning “out” in Arabic, at al-Hawashleh, a taunt he uses frequently when fending off criticism from Arab lawmakers.

“You racist, you haven’t done anything about the murders in Arab society,” al-Hawashleh says while pursuing the minister as he continues down the street with his entourage. “You’re only making provocations here.”

השר לביטחון לאומי איתמר בן גביר הגיע ללקיה: ״מי שרע נכסח אותו – אני לא מפחד ממכם. אני בעל הבית פה״ pic.twitter.com/JFqzQL0YhJ

— ארנולד נטייב (@ArnoldNataev) November 23, 2025

Later footage from the visit shows dozens of residents jeering the far-right minister as he waves from his car, before entering the vehicle.

Earlier today, police put up roadblocks in Lakiya as part of the new operation, aimed at blocking the movement of criminals and weapons in the area. However, locals resented the decision since it impeded their movements.

לא הספקתי מוקדם יותר, אז הנה המשטרה פועלת בהוראת השר בן גביר.

הודעת המשטרה: בטונדות וחסימות משטרתיות הוצבו ביישובים הבדואים לקייה ותל שבע.

מבצע "סדר חדש" בנגב יצא לדרך בסוף השבוע – ביוזמת השר לביטחון לאומי איתמר בן גביר והמפכ"ל דני לוי המשטרה פועלת נגד תופעת הירי וזליגת אמצעי… pic.twitter.com/PkxxA8GQRt

— אלעד הוּמינר 🇮🇱 العاد هومينر (@EladHumi) November 23, 2025

Concrete roadblocks have been used by the IDF in the West Bank and East Jerusalem to prevent entry and exit from Palestinian residential areas during times of heightened tension, as well as during some major Jewish holidays.

Sharif Al-Asad, the head of Lakiya’s local council, tells the Hebrew outlet Walla that he attempted to push back against the choice to erect roadblocks in the town. “This is Ben Gvir’s decision, as if we are second-class citizens. We are equal citizens,” he says.

Bedouin leaders protest exclusion from emergency meeting on spiking Negev violence

Rahat mayor Talal al-Kernawi shouts at National Security Itamar Ben Gvir on May 7, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Heads of Bedouin locales in the Negev are incensed after they were excluded from an emergency meeting on spiraling violence in the region, mainly within Arab society, that took place in Beersheba’s City Hall earlier today.

The meeting was held in the wake of a spate of violent incidents to rock the southern Israeli region, including a Thursday shooting in the Bedouin city of Rahat that left two dead, and reports of heavy gunfire near Jewish towns at the start of last week, which prompted National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir to drive south and tour several areas in the Negev.

In a Facebook post announcing the meeting earlier today, Beersheba mayor Ruvik Danilovich called violent crime “civilian terror” and warned that “the next October 7 is at the doorstep.” Also attending were leading local Jewish politicians, including mayors and chiefs of local councils.

The politicians plan to submit a document of principles to the government and security agencies, demanding the state deal with rising crime.

Absent from the meeting were the nine Arab local council heads in the Negev, despite the fact that the violence is concentrated in their jurisdictions, with their constituencies bearing its brunt.

“It saddens us that this is the behavior; we expect to cooperate with all the Negev local authorities and for them to also deal with the Bedouin sector. We don’t look upon this favorably,” Rahat mayor Talal al-Kernawi tells The Times of Israel. “We’re also in favor of safeguarding governance in the Negev.”

Speaking of last week’s deadly shooting, which took place amid a dispute between cousins, al-Kernawi says that guns need to be swept from the streets of the city, and laments the “tremendous amounts” of army-grade weaponry that has fallen into the hands of criminals.

“It’s terrifying, we need governance in this matter to defeat the spread of arms,” he says.

Speaking to Walla, the head of Lakiya’s local council says that southern mayors and council chairmen “share the same fate.”

“When such an important meeting is held and we are not informed, it is simply the exclusion of us,” he tells the Hebrew outlet.

Man in his 20s shot, critically injured in Umm al-Fahm

A young man is critically injured after being shot in Umm al-Fahm, the Magen David Adom emergency service says.

The victim, in his 20s, was brought to a local clinic in the Arab city while unconscious with no pulse. Paramedics are now rushing the man to the hospital while attempting to resuscitate him.