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The Times of Israel liveblogged Tuesday’s events as they unfolded.
US official clarifies Turkey not considered a mediator in Gaza truce efforts after Hamas leaders’ relocation
A senior US official clarifies that the Biden administration does not view Turkey as a new mediator between Israel and Hamas after US President Joe Biden earlier today named Ankara along with Qatar and Egypt as countries that will be renewing efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza now that one has been reached in Lebanon.
“What the President meant is that, we have certain individuals and parties are now spending time in Turkey, and so [Turkey] was added. But it was not to suggest that they are a broker or a negotiator. It’s to say that we will leave no stone unturned in trying to do this,” says a senior US official briefing reporters.
The US revealed earlier this month that it had asked Qatar to oust Hamas leaders from the country due to the terror group’s extended refusal to engage in hostage negotiations. Those Hamas officials then moved to Turkey. While the US has cautioned Ankara against hosting Hamas leaders, it has stopped short of requesting the extradition of Khaled Meshaal, who is under US indictment.
Arab officials speaking to The Times of Israel last week called into question the decision to oust Hamas from Qatar if negotiations were just going to continue under largely the same format in Ankara.
The senior US official briefing reporters maintains that Hamas’s realization following today’s news that “Hezbollah has decided to abandon them and delink the two conflicts” amounts to a powerful change of reality on the ground, and we have to see if that’s enough” to spark a breakthrough in hostage talks.
US official: Netanyahu asked to secure Lebanon ceasefire in run-up to US elections
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, meets with US Special Envoy Amos Hochstein in Jerusalem, June 17, 2024. (Amos Ben Gershom/GPO)
Days before the US presidential election, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked US special envoy for Lebanon Amos Hochstein to come meet him in Jerusalem where the premier told the Biden aide that there was a window to secure a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, says a senior US official briefing reporters about the recently announced agreement.
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a Netanyahu confidant, reportedly told Trump aides that Israel wanted to secure a ceasefire with Hezbollah as a “gift” to the president-elect before he enters office on January 20, though Israeli officials have denied as much.
In their meeting earlier this month, Hochstein told Netanyahu that if both sides were serious, he was prepared to launch another round of intensive negotiations over the coming weeks. Netanyahu agreed, the US official recalls.
Once the sides began to make progress, Hochstein briefed members of the Trump transition’s national security team on the broad tenants of the deal, telling them that there was an increasing likelihood that a ceasefire would be reached, the US official says.
Hochstein conducted a follow-up call with Trump’s aides in the last 24 to 48 hours as the deal was being finalized, and the president-elect’s team seemed supportive of the effort, the senior US official says.
Sharing new details of ceasefire deal, US official says international community learned from mistakes of 2006
A senior Biden administration official involved in the Lebanon ceasefire negotiations fills in additional details of the agreement during a briefing with reporters.
Israeli troops will initially hold their positions at the start of the 60-day period commencing the ceasefire, the senior US official says, explaining that Israel’s gradual withdrawal will only begin when soldiers from the Lebanese military begin being deployed in southern Lebanon, to ensure that no vacuums are created in the interim. “This is a process that cannot happen overnight or in several days.”
The senior US official clarifies that this doesn’t mean the withdrawal will only begin after 60 days. “Rather, by the time we reach somewhere in the 50 to 60 days, all Israeli troops will be gone… In the first couple of weeks, you’ll already start seeing some of those [IDF] troops withdraw.”
During the 60-day period, the US official says that the Lebanese government has authorized its military to verify that Hezbollah moves north of the Litani River, which is located roughly 18 miles north of Israel’s border. There is an agreed-upon map that details the exact lines to which Hezbollah is required to retreat and where specifically the Lebanese army will be deployed.
Lebanese troops will be tasked with patrolling southern Lebanon to ensure that any remaining Hezbollah infrastructure is removed and cannot be rebuilt, the senior US official says.
The ceasefire agreement will also see the US and France join an existing mechanism to monitor the deal’s implementation. Referred to date as the tripartite mechanism and consisting of representatives from Israel, Lebanon and the UNIFIL observer force, the panel failed to ensure the upholding of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which had required Hezbollah to disarm and retreat north of the Litani River.
Under the new deal, the US will become the chair of this enforcement mechanism, which will also be enhanced by France’s presence, the senior administration official says. The committee made up of diplomats and military personnel will be tasked with adjudicating complaints from either side regarding potential ceasefire violations.
The panel will also work to ensure that the Lebanese army is properly trained and equipped to ensure the ceasefire’s implementation, the US official says. While US combat troops will not be on the ground, “there will be [US] military support for the Lebanese Armed Forces,” the official adds.
There will be a separate committee called the Military Technical Committee (MTC) made up of additional countries who will provide additional financial support, equipment and training to the LAF, the US official says.
Unlike the 2006 ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah when the international community “abandoned the scene” after it was reached, “here we remain committed to being on the ground, day to day, watching what’s happening,” the US official says.
The international community is determined to “learn from the mistakes of the past, when Hezbollah was the only organization” involved in the reconstruction of Lebanon. “It is in our interests… to support economic growth” in Lebanon, says the senior official.
The US official also stresses that Hezbollah is “extremely weak at this moment — both militarily and politically,” which presents an opportunity for the Lebanese government to re-establish its sovereignty, particularly by appointing a president — something that Hezbollah blocked for years.
The deal announced today is not “offering Israel a temporary security guarantee, rather a durable ceasefire that [it] can trust,” the senior US official says.
Asked repeatedly to elaborate on the ceasefire’s enforcement mechanism, given reports claiming that the US has provided Israel with guarantees allowing it to immediately strike Lebanon upon alleged Hezbollah violations, the senior US official declines to do so.
Instead, the US official highlights to the now-US-led enforcement committee, which he says will not be a “mailbox” like it was in the years following the Second Lebanon War. Instead, it will operate as a “live messaging service, making sure that whenever there is a view of a violation — specifically a serious violation — it is addressed immediately.”
Smotrich says Lebanon ceasefire, if upheld, could create long lasting security for Israel
Finance Minister and Religious Zionism party leader Bezalel Smotrich says he voted in favor of a ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon because he believes that the terms of the deal, if upheld, “will ensure Israel’s security forever.”
In a post on X, the far-right minister says that the deal, which allows Israel the right to self-defense should Hezbollah violate the agreement, will be “one of the Israeli government’s greatest tests.”
“If we abide by it, we will ensure Israel’s security forever,” he writes. “I voted in favor because I believe we will abide by it.”
“I pledge to continue to be there, on watch for you, until victory and until security is restored,” he adds.
The national security cabinet approved the ceasefire by a vote of 10 ministers to one earlier this evening, with the only vote against the deal coming from National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
מחר בשעה 4:00 בבוקר מתחיל המבחן הגדול ביותר של ממשלת ישראל, אולי אחד המבחנים הגדולים של ממשלות ישראל בכלל. אם נעמוד בו – נבצר בע"ה את ביטחונה של ישראל לנצח. הצבעתי בעד כי אני מאמין שנעמוד בו. דרישותיי לעיגון התנאים הנדרשים לכך בגוף ההחלטה התקבלו ואני מתחייב להמשיך להיות שם על…
— בצלאל סמוטריץ' (@bezalelsm) November 26, 2024
IDF issues evacuation warnings for two more buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs
The IDF issues evacuation warnings for two more buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs ahead of airstrikes against Hezbollah assets.
The warnings come with just four hours to go until a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah takes effect.
#عاجل إلى جميع السكان المتواجدين في منطقة الضاحية الجنوبية وتحديدًا في المباني المحددة في الخرائط المرفقة والمباني المجاورة لها في المناطق التالية:
????الليلكي
????شويفات العمروسية⭕️أنتم تتواجدون بالقرب من منشآت ومصالح تابعة لحزب الله حيث سيعمل ضدها جيش الدفاع على المدى الزمني… pic.twitter.com/6Bpiz4e1Rm
— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) November 26, 2024
Lebanese PM says he welcomes Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire
This handout picture provided by the Lebanese Prime Minister's press office shows Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati delivering a statement to the press in Beirut on October 11, 2024. (Lebanese Prime Minister's Press Office/AFP)
BEIRUT — Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati welcomes the US-brokered ceasefire proposal between Israel and Hezbollah, describing it as a crucial step toward stability, the return of displaced people to their homes and regional calm.
Mikati makes these comments in a statement issued just after US President Joe Biden announced the truce deal.
Mikati says he discussed the ceasefire agreement with Biden by phone earlier in the day.
The prime minister reaffirms Lebanon’s commitment to implementing UN resolution 1701, strengthening the Lebanese army’s presence in the south, and cooperating with the UN peacekeeping force. He also calls on Israel to fully comply with the ceasefire and withdraw from southern Lebanon in accordance with the UN resolution.
Biden: Hamas now ‘has choice to make’ in Gaza, Israel faces ‘hard choices’ on Saudi normalization
US President Joe Biden turns to the ongoing war in Gaza, saying Palestinians in Gaza deserve a similar end to conflict.
“The people of Gaza have been through hell, their worlds absolutely shattered, far too many civilians in Gaza have suffered far too much,” Biden says.
While hinting at criticism of Israel in that remark, Biden is explicit in his blaming of Hamas for refusing to negotiate in good faith for months.
“Now, Hamas has a choice to make. Their only way out is to release the hostages, including American citizens,” Biden says, adding the deal the US is promoting would allow for a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza and result in an “end of the war without Hamas in power.”
Biden says the US, Egypt, Qatar — and now Turkey as well — will make another push for a ceasefire in Gaza. This is the first time he is adding Turkey into the equation, ostensibly since Hamas leaders landed there after Qatar ousted them from Doha. Qatar announced that it was temporarily ending its mediation efforts shortly after it confirmed ousting Hamas leaders in late October. Doha has not since announced a resumption of its mediating role.
The Lebanon ceasefire moves the Biden administration closer to its vision for a more integrated Middle East — one that includes the establishment of a demilitarized Palestinian state alongside Israel, the president says.
To that end, Biden says the US remains prepared to broker a normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, which would include “a credible pathway for establishing a Palestinian state.”
Israel has repeatedly rejected the two-state framework, and a pair of US lawmakers told The Times of Israel months ago that the window to secure a deal before the end of Biden’s term in office has closed.
Nonetheless, Biden says, “I believe this agenda remains possible. In my remaining time in office, I will work tirelessly to advance this vision.”
He acknowledges that a Saudi normalization deal will require Israel to make “hard choices.”
“Now, Israel must be bold in turning tactical gains against Iran and his proxies into a coherent strategy that secures Israel’s long term safety and advances of broader peace and prosperity in the region,” Biden says, in an apparent shot at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who for months refused to plan at all for the post-war management of Gaza, while rejecting the involvement of a reformed Palestinian Authority, even though it would unlock much-needed support from Israel’s Arab neighbors for the post-war reconstruction and management of Gaza.
“I applaud the courageous decision made by the leaders of Lebanon and Israel to end the violence. It reminds us that peace is possible,” Biden says. “As long as that is the case, I’ll not for a single moment stop working to achieve it.”
Turkish official says suspects in rabbi’s murder were arrested shortly after fleeing to Istanbul
Pictures released by the UAE on November 25, 2024, of the three suspects in the murder of Rabbi Zvi Kogan (left to right): Olimpi Toirovich (28), Makhmudjon Abdurakhim (28), and Azizbek Kamlovich (33). (X; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
Turkey releases details of the operation to apprehend the suspects in the killing of Moldovan-Israeli Rabbi Tzvi Kogan in the United Arab Emirates, saying it was conducted by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and the Turkish National Police.
Kogan, 28, who worked in the UAE for the Orthodox Jewish group Chabad, which seeks to support Jewish life for thousands of Jewish visitors and residents in the Gulf Arab state, vanished in Dubai, where he ran a kosher grocery store, last Thursday. His body was found in the Emirati city of Al Ain, which borders Oman, around 150 kilometers (93 miles) from Abu Dhabi, Israeli authorities announced early Sunday.
According to a senior Turkish official, once the UAE determined that the three Uzbek suspects had fled the country, they turned to Turkey for help.
“The Turkish intelligence determined the flight taken by the individuals and executed all subsequent steps with utmost secrecy to avoid raising suspicion,” says the official.
The suspects landed in Istanbul, according to the Turkish official, but police allowed the suspects to leave the terminal and take a taxi in order to reduce the potential for a fight. The police and MIT followed the vehicle, which eventually reached a police checkpoint. The suspects were taken into custody there, then deported to the UAE.
“The Republic of Türkiye remains steadfast in its efforts to prevent criminals from remaining within its borders as part of its broader counter-terrorism initiatives,” says the official.
IDF issues fresh evacuation warnings for Beirut as strikes reportedly hit Lebanon-Syria border
With just over four hours to go until a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the IDF issues evacuation warnings for three buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs ahead of airstrikes.
Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, publishes maps alongside the announcement, which call on civilians to distance themselves at least 500 meters from the sites.
#عاجل إلى جميع السكان المتواجدين في منطقة الضاحية الجنوبية وتحديدًا في المباني المحددة في الخرائط المرفقة والمباني المجاورة لها في المناطق التالية:
????برج البراجنة
????الغبيري⭕️أنتم تتواجدون بالقرب من منشآت ومصالح تابعة لحزب الله حيث سيعمل ضدها جيش الدفاع على المدى الزمني… pic.twitter.com/Mcqxed0Ha5
— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) November 26, 2024
The evacuation warnings come as Israeli airstrikes are reported in Beirut, as well as on the Syria-Lebanon border.
Lebanese media outlets report that an apartment was struck in the capital a short while ago.
مشاهد للشقة المستهدفة في بيروت عند مدخل الخندق الغميق قبالة مديرية الواردات pic.twitter.com/KHYu5IqM9M
— مصدر مسؤول (@fouadkhreiss) November 26, 2024
Meanwhile, Syria’s state news agency SANA says that Israeli warplanes hit the Arida and Dabousiya border crossings with Lebanon, in the Tartus Governorate.
معبر العريضة بين سوريا ولبنان من الجهة اللبنانية #اسرائيل #لبنان #سوريا pic.twitter.com/zjzEya03ym
— صوت العاصمة (@damascusv011) November 26, 2024
Biden says Israel has right to self-defense ‘if Hezbollah or anyone else breaks deal’
US President Joe Biden crosses his fingers as he answers a question about a Gaza ceasefire after speaking in the Rose Garden of the White House on November 26, 2024, in Washington. (Saul Loeb/AFP)
Offering some details on the terms of the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, US President Joe Biden says, “What is left of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations will not be allowed to threaten the security of Israel again.”
Over the next 60 days, the Lebanese army and state security forces will deploy and take control of their own territory in southern Lebanon, Biden says, reiterating that Hezbollah will not be allowed to rebuild its terror infrastructure. During this 60-day period, Israel will gradually withdraw its troops from Lebanon.
The deal will allow civilians on both sides of the Blue Line to return to their homes and rebuild their communities, Biden says.
The president says the US, along with France, is committed to ensuring that the deal is fully implemented, while stressing that this will not require any American troops on the ground.
“If Hezbollah or anyone else breaks the deal and pose a direct threat to Israel, Israel retains the right to self-defense, consistent with international law — just like any country when facing a terrorist group pledged to that country’s destruction,” Biden says.
At the same time, Biden says the deal boosts Lebanon’s sovereignty, allowing the country to put itself on a “path toward a future that’s worthy of a significant past.”
In joint statement, Biden and Macron say ceasefire ‘secures Israel from threat of Hezbollah’
French President Emmanuel Macron shakes hands with US President Joe Biden during a meeting on the sidelines of the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York on September 25, 2024. (Ludovic Marin/AFP)
A ceasefire to end hostilities between Israel and Lebanon will protect Israel from the threat of Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah and create the conditions for a “lasting calm,” US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron say.
“The announcement today will cease the fighting in Lebanon, and secure Israel from the threat of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations operating from Lebanon,” the two leaders say in a joint statement, adding that the deal “will create the conditions to restore lasting calm.”
The US and France will work “to ensure this arrangement is fully implemented” and lead international efforts for “capacity-building” of the Lebanese army, they add.
Biden blames Hezbollah for triggering the past year of fighting
US President Joe Biden highlights how Hezbollah was the party that started the conflict against Israel hours after Hamas’s October 7 terror onslaught.
“Israel did not launch this war. The Lebanese people did not seek that war either,” Biden says in remarks at the Rose Garden, lamenting how Hezbollah’s cross-border attacks have forced 70,000 Israelis to flee their homes in the north in addition to 30,000 Lebanese people who have similarly evacuated their country’s south as a result of IDF strikes.
He notes US security assistance for Israel against Iran and its proxies over the past 14 months.
Biden notes the extent of Hezbollah’s losses over the past year by joining the conflict against Israel — its longtime secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah was killed along with countless other senior leaders and major military infrastructure was destroyed.
While acknowledging Israel’s military gains, Biden insists that “lasting security for the people of Israel and Lebanon cannot be achieved only on the battlefield.”
Biden says Israel and Lebanon agreed to ceasefire, reveals it will take effect at 4 a.m. Israel-time
US President Joe Biden announces a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, in the Rose Garden of the White House on November 26, 2024, in Washington. (Saul Loeb/AFP)
US President Joe Biden announces from the Rose Garden that Israel and Lebanon have accepted a US proposal for a ceasefire between Israel and the Hezbollah terror group.
“This is designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities,” he notes.
Biden says he just wrapped up calls with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, during which each informed him that their governments have accepted the deal, with Lebanon ostensibly receiving the go-ahead from Hezbollah. Biden also thanks French President Emmanuel Macron for his involvement in helping broker the deal.
Biden reveals that the ceasefire will come into place at 4 a.m. tomorrow morning, Israel- and Lebanon-time.
Security cabinet votes 10-1 to approve Lebanon ceasefire deal
The national security cabinet officially approves a ceasefire by a majority of 10 ministers to one, says the Prime Minister’s Office.
“Israel appreciates the US contribution to the process, and reserves the right to act against any threat to its security,” says the PMO.
The sole security cabinet member to vote against the deal was National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
IDF says it downed 3 missiles from Lebanon that set off alerts in wide swath of north
The IDF says three missiles launched from Lebanon were successfully intercepted by air defenses a short while ago.
The projectiles triggered sirens in a wide area of northern Israel.
There are no immediate reports of injuries.
Long-range Lebanon rockets trigger sirens in Hadera area, towns across north
Sirens are sounding in central and northern Israel following long-range rocket fire from Lebanon.
Alerts are activated in Pardes Hanna, Hadera, Harish, and several nearby towns, as well as communities near the Lebanon border.
The IDF is looking into the details.
Trump’s pick for security adviser says election win helped bring about Lebanon ceasefire
US Representative Mike Waltz, a Florida Republican, speaks during a hearing on Capitol Hill, July 22, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr., File)
WASHINGTON — US Representative Mike Waltz, President-elect Donald Trump’s designate to be national security adviser, credits Trump’s victory with helping bring the parties together toward a ceasefire in Lebanon.
“Everyone is coming to the table because of President Trump,” he says in a post on X on Tuesday. “His resounding victory sent a clear message to the rest of the world that chaos won’t be tolerated. I’m glad to see concrete steps towards deescalation in the Middle East.”
He adds: “But let’s be clear: The Iran Regime is the root cause of the chaos & terror that has been unleashed across the region. We will not tolerate the status quo of their support for terrorism.”
Senior Hezbollah official: We still need to examine ‘points’ of deal before Lebanon okays it
A senior Hezbollah official says the terror group still wants to review the ceasefire deal authorized by Israel.
“We must examine the points that Netanyahu agreed to before the [Lebanese] government signs tomorrow,” Mahmoud Qamati, deputy head of Hezbollah’s political council tells Al Jazeera.
Qamati says Hezbollah doesn’t trust Netanyahu and wants to make sure it isn’t being tricked with the agreement.
“We must examine the points that Netanyahu agreed to before the [Lebanese] government signs on tomorrow,” he adds.
“We want an end to the aggression, of course, but not at the expense of the sovereignty of the state,” says Qamati.
IDF says it targeted vaults in strikes against Hezbollah-linked financial institution
Israeli fighter jets struck several Hezbollah sites across Lebanon, which the IDF says were used by the terror group for the management and storage of funds.
According to the IDF, the strikes against nine Hezbollah vaults and branches of the Al-Qard al-Hasan association, known to be used by the terror group as a quasi-bank, were hit in Beirut, Sidon, Tyre, and the Beqaa Valley.
Another strike in Beirut hit a branch of the al-Insaf exchange company, which the military says transferred funds to Hezbollah.
Ceasefire with Hezbollah expected to take effect at 10 a.m. tomorrow morning
The security cabinet has not yet approved the ceasefire with Lebanon, the Prime Minister’s Office tells The Times of Israel.
The vote is expected to take place shortly, preparing the way for the fighting to cease at 10 a.m. tomorrow morning.
Ceasefire deal backed by only 20% of Netanyahu coalition voters, snap poll finds
A snap Channel 12 poll finds Israelis divided over the ceasefire framework.
Asked if they support or oppose “the arrangement that has been drawn up as regards Lebanon,” 37% say they support it, 32% say they oppose it and 31% say they don’t know.
Among those who say they support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition, however, only 20% back the deal, while 45% oppose it and 35% don’t know.
Among opposition voters, 50% back the deal, 22% oppose it and 28% don’t know.
Asked how they consider the war with Hezbollah to have ended, 20% say Israel won, 50% say it ended without a clear victor, 19% say Hezbollah won and 11% don’t know.
Asked how long the ceasefire will hold, 24% say “for years,” 28% say “a few months,” 30% say it will “collapse after a short time” and 18% don’t know.
Channel 12 also asks people who they would vote for if elections were held today, and notes that the unhappiness on the right over the ceasefire has not significantly impacted voting preferences, with the balance of power between the pro-Netanyahu and anti-Netanyahu blocs unchanged since its previous poll.
The bloc of parties loyal to Netanyahu score a total of 51 seats in the 120-member Knesset, the opposition bloc has 64, and the Arab alliance Hadash-Ta’al holds the other five.
The survey scores the parties as follows: Netanyahu’s Likud, 25 seats; Benny Gantz’s National Unity, 18; Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid, 15; Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beytenu, 14; Yair Golan’s The Democrats, 12; ultra-Orthodox party Shas, 9; Itamar Ben Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit, 9; ultra-Orthodox party United Torah Judaism 8; mainly Arab alliance Hadash-Ta’al, 5, and mainly Arab party Ra’am 5.
Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party, new Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar’s party and the Arab Balad party are all below the threshold for Knesset seats.
Were former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who today criticized the emerging ceasefire deal, to return to politics with a new party, it would win 23 seats and Likud would go down to 23.
The survey polled 510 respondents and has a 4.4% margin of error.
Trump’s appointment for Mideast envoy urges cooperation ‘to achieve peace’ in the region
Steve Witkoff arrives at a campaign rally for Donald Trump at the Butler Farm Show, October 5, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
In his first public comments since President-elect Donald Trump appointed him special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff tweets, “let’s all work together to achieve peace in the Middle East and Make America and the World Great Again.”
It is truly the honor of a lifetime to serve you, @realDonaldTrump and the United States. Thank you President Trump for your trust and belief in me as the Special Envoy to the Middle East. Let’s all work together to achieve peace in the Middle East and Make America and the World… https://t.co/K1VRpj8dhr
— Steve Witkoff (@SteveWitkoff) November 26, 2024
Opposition party chiefs bash Netanyahu over Hezbollah ceasefire agreement
Yair Golan, who heads a union of left-wing parties called The Democrats, says Israel can also reach a hostage deal to end the war in Gaza “if its possible to end the fighting in the north with Hezbollah.”
“One-hundred-and-one hostages are waiting for us to save them, but this government is sending soldiers to war to save itself,” Golan charges following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s televised address.
He calls on Netanyahu to “immediately” remove from his lapel the yellow ribbon pan that signifies support for the hostages.
Opposition MK Avigdor Liberman, leader of the hawkish Yisrael Beytenu party, also bashes Netanyahu over the ceasefire deal.
“Netanyahu said until total victory, he just didn’t say the victory of which side,” Liberman writes on X.
Ben Gvir calls Hezbollah ceasefire ‘a historic mistake’ but doesn’t say he’ll quit government
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir leads a faction meeting of his far-right Otzma Yehudit party at the Knesset in Jerusalem on November 18, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir says he’ll oppose the ceasefire deal with Hezbollah, denouncing it as “a historic mistake,” but doesn’t say his far-right Otzma Yehudit party will quit in protest.
“This isn’t a ceasefire. It’s a return to the concept of quiet for quiet, and will already saw where this leads,” Ben Gvir writes in a post on X detailing his opposition to the deal, predicting that “ultimately we’ll again need to return to Lebanon.”
UAE thanks Turkey for help arresting suspects in killing of rabbi
Zvi Kogan, a Chabad rabbi who was murdered in the UAE in November 2024. (Screenshot: @DUDIKEPLER via Reuters)
The United Arab Emirates thanks Turkey for cooperating on the arrest of suspects in the killing of Israeli Rabbi Zvi Kogan, who was a resident of the UAE.
The message of thanks came from the director of strategic communications at the Emirati foreign ministry in a post on X.
The statement comes after the UAE named three suspects it’s holding over in Kogan’s murder, following reports they fled to Turkey after the killing.
A Turkish security source tells Reuters that the three were indeed extradited to the UAE at the request of the Emiratis.
Netanyahu meets with northern mayors after they sharply criticized Hezbollah truce deal
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with the heads of regional councils in the north in the IDF Kirya headquarters in Tel Aviv.
The meeting comes after the council heads sound sharp criticism of the emerging ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon, which Israel is expected to approve tonight.
Netanyahu is joined by Defense Minister Israel Katz, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, Negev and Galilee Minister Yitzhak Wasserlauf, Ze’ev Elkin, the minister in charge of the directorates to rebuild the Gaza and Lebanon border communities, and Netanyahu’s top aides.
PM says Hezbollah ‘not the same’ fighting force as before: ‘We’ve sent it back decades’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks in a video statement about the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal, November 26, 2024. (Screenshot/GPO)
Listing Israel’s achievements in the many theaters of the ongoing conflict, Netanyahu says that he is “determined to do everything necessary in order to prevent Iran from attaining a nuclear weapon.”
In Gaza, he promises to complete the elimination of Hamas, bring the hostages home, and make sure Gaza never again serves as a territory from which to threaten Israel. Netanyahu says that Israel has killed around 20,000 terrorists there.
Turning to Syria, Netanyahu threatens the regime, saying that “[Syrian President Bashar] Assad must understand, he is playing with fire.”
On Lebanon, Netanyahu says that after more than a year of fighting, “it’s not the same Hezbollah. We’ve sent it back decades.”
He notes that Israel killed its leader Hassan Nasrallah and most of its senior leadership, took out thousands of fighters, destroyed thousands of rockets and closed down the tunnels on the border.
Israel has also “attacked strategic sites across Lebanon, and brought down dozens of terror towers in Dahiyeh,” he boasts.
US official fiercely denies PM’s charge that administration is delaying arms shipments
The Biden administration fiercely denies Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s latest claim that it has been delaying weapon shipments to Israel.
“Other than the shipment of 2,000-pound bombs, there is no policy delay or hold on anything. There’s just not,” a US official tells The Times of Israel.
In a speech to the Israeli public moments ago explaining his decision to agree to a ceasefire with Hezbollah, one of the chief reasons that Netanyahu argued in favor of the deal is because it allows Israel to replenish arms stockpiles.
“It is no secret: there have been major delays in the supply of weapons and ammunition. This delay is about to be released soon,” Netanyahu said — this time without naming the Biden administration.
Hebrew media reports in recent days have quoted unnamed Netanyahu associates claiming that the Biden administration pledged to release withheld weapon shipments in exchange for Israel agreeing to a ceasefire in Lebanon. Other aides to the premier have highlighted that the return of Donald Trump to the White House will also ensure an end to the delay of weapon shipments, which has repeatedly been denied by the US.
The Biden administration insists that it has only withheld one shipment of high payload bombs since May over concern that Israel would use them in densely populated areas, leading to the deaths of large numbers of civilians.
Lapid says government was ‘dragged into the agreement with Hezbollah,’ urges hostage deal
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid hits out at the government over the Lebanon ceasefire deal, charging that it was “dragged into the agreement with Hezbollah” after more than a year of fighting.
“Meanwhile, northern communities were destroyed, the lives of the residents were destroyed, the army has been worn down while you’re advancing evasion laws,” Lapid says in a statement, referring to legislation to exempt ultra-Orthodox men from mandatory military service.
Lapid says that the killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and aerial campaign against Hezbollah’s stronghold in the southern suburbs of Beirut are “operational successes worthy of all praise, but the October 7 government did not know how to turn them into a diplomatic win.”
“Under Netanyahu’s watch, the greatest disaster happened in our history, no deal with Hezbollah will erase the abandonments. No statement to the press will change history,” Lapid adds.
He also calls for Israel to swiftly reach a hostage deal that will end the fighting with Hamas in Gaza.
Biden to soon give White House address that’s expected to address Israel-Hezbollah truce
The White House says that US President Joe Biden will give remarks from the Rose Garden at 2:30 p.m. local time in what is expected to be an announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which Washington was instrumental in brokering.
Knesset bill to criminalize denial, celebration of Oct. 7 massacres clears first reading
A bill criminalizing the denial, minimization or celebration of the Hamas terror group’s October 7 attack on southern Israel passes its first reading 10-0 in the Knesset plenum.
The bill, sponsored by Yisrael Beytenu MK Oded Forer, is modeled after a 1986 law prohibiting Holocaust denial and mandates prison sentences of five years for making statements denying the massacre or “downplaying its dimensions” as well as prohibiting expressions of “praise, sympathy or identification” with the attack.
The massacre denial bill has raised concerns among some human rights advocates over its potential impact on free speech, especially given the large number of police investigations and indictments against Arab Israeli citizens on charges of incitement and identifying with terrorist groups since the war began.
“We must not allow attempts to harm our historical memory or justify the atrocities,” Forer says in a statement.
Ceasefire reportedly ambiguous on whether Israel can respond to Hezbollah violations north of Litani
The ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah doesn’t include explicit language stating that Israel has the freedom to respond if the Lebanese terror group violates the agreement in areas north of Lebanon’s Litani River, Channel 12 news reports.
According to the report, the deal states that Israel will report any such violation to the US-led international body that is expected to oversee the deal, which will then convene to discuss how serious the violation is.
However, the wording about whether Israel then has the right to respond is ambiguous, unlike in cases when there are violations south of the Litani River or if there’s an immediate threat.
The report says that the deal provides for Israel to hit back right away in the face of an “immediate threat,” and that this includes arms smuggling. As regards a so-called “present threat,” such as tunnel digging, Israel would inform the international body and could then choose to wait or take action.
Netanyahu: Israel ‘will respond with force’ to any Hezbollah violation of ceasefire
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks in a video statement about the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal, November 26, 2024. (Screenshot/GPO)
Speaking after meeting with his security cabinet, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that he will bring the “proposal for a ceasefire in Lebanon” for final approval before the full cabinet, and that “the duration of the ceasefire will depend on what takes place in Lebanon.”
He says that “with the full understanding with the US, we are maintaining full freedom of action” against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
“If Hezbollah violates the agreement and tries to rearm, we will attack,” he promises. “If it tries to rebuild the terror infrastructure near the border, we will attack. If it fires a rocket, if it digs a tunnel, if it brings in a truck with missiles, we will attack.”
“To every violation, we will respond with force,” Netanyahu pledges.
“A good deal is one that is enforced, and we will enforce it.”
He hits out at many critics who argue that Israel won’t be able to start fighting again after a ceasefire, saying they said the same thing ahead of the weeklong hostage-for-ceasefire deal in Gaza last year. “After all this, maybe it’s time to start believing. Believing in our determination, in our way, in our dedication to victory.”
Netanyahu says there are three reasons for accepting the ceasefire now. “The first is to focus on the Iranian threat, and I won’t elaborate,” he says.
The second is to allow troops to rest and to replenish weapon stores.
“There were delays, and big delays, in weapons shipments,” he says, without mentioning the Biden administration. “And that delay will soon be released,” he says, hinting at Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
The third reason, he says, is to delink the northern and southern fronts and isolate Hamas. “With Hezbollah out of the picture, Hamas is left alone in the campaign,” he says, and will be under greater pressure. “That will help in the sacred mission of freeing our hostages.”
IDF says another barrage of 15 rockets fired from Lebanon at Western Galilee
A barrage of another 15 rockets was fired from Lebanon at the Western Galilee a short while ago, impacting open areas according to the IDF.
There are no reports of injuries.
Hezbollah has fired some 60 rockets at Israel since this morning, according to an IDF tally.
IDF says Kfir Brigade’s Sgt. Tamer Othman was killed fighting in northern Gaza
Sgt. Tamer Othman. (Israel Defense Forces)
An IDF soldier was killed during fighting in the northern Gaza Strip earlier today, the military announces.
The slain soldier is named as Sgt. Tamer Othman, 21, of the Kfir Brigade’s Nahshon Battalion, from Kafr Yasif.
His death brings Israel’s toll in the ground offensive against Hamas in Gaza and in military operations along the border with the Strip to 381. The toll includes a police officer killed in a hostage rescue mission and a Defense Ministry civilian contractor.
After sirens, IDF says several suspected drones impacted in north; no immediate reports of injuries
The IDF says several suspected drones impacted in northern Israel after sirens sounded in the Western Galilee and Haifa area.
Interceptor missiles were launched at the targets, the military says, adding that the incident is over.
There are no immediate reports of injuries in the attack.
Trump team briefed on Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire, views deal favorably — report
A US official tells CBS News that President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team has been updated about the pending Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal, adding that it viewed the plan favorably.
Blinken says Lebanon ceasefire will be boon to efforts for ending Gaza war
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken gives a press conference at the end of the G7 foreign ministers meeting in Fiuggi, central Italy, on November 26, 2024. (Alessandra Tarantino/Pool/AFP)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the ceasefire deal being finalized between Israel and Lebanon will boost efforts to secure an end to the war in Gaza.
“One of the things that Hamas has sought from day one is to get others in on the fight, to create multiple fronts… and as long as it thought that was possible, that’s one of the reasons it has held back from doing what is necessary to end the conflict,” Blinken says in remarks to reporters after meeting counterparts at the G7 in Italy, “If it sees that the cavalry is not on the way, that may incentivize it to do what it needs to do to end this conflict.”
He says “we are in the final stages” of the Lebanon ceasefire negotiations, stressing that the agreement on the table will save lives in Lebanon and Israel and allow civilians near the Blue Line to return to their homes, while deescalating tensions in the region more broadly.
The Biden administration is committed to working with the Trump transition team in order to ensure the implementation of the Lebanon deal, he says when asked.
According to Blinken, the ceasefire deal ensures the “effective implementation” of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which was passed in 2006 to end the Second Lebanon War by forcing Hezbollah to disarm and retreat beyond the Litani River, 18 miles north of the border with Israel. That resolution has gone unimplemented from the get-go, with Hezbollah violations allowed to go unchecked.
The new deal being finalized envisions the Lebanese army deploying into southern Lebanon along with the UNIFIL observer mission and a new oversight mechanism, Blinken says.
Pressed on whether the US has given Israel guarantees that it will support IDF actions against potential Hezbollah violations, Blinken avoids responding directly but says, “Israel will always have the right to deal with challenges or threats to its security, just as any country has that right.”
Blinken also says that G7 and Arab counterparts are in agreement on working to bring the war in Gaza to an end through the release of all hostages and the surging of humanitarian aid into the Strip, “now that Israel has achieved its strategic goals in the wake of October 7.”
“We agreed with our Arab partners that we cannot end the conflict without a plan for the post conflict — something that we’re working on intensely as we speak,” he says. The US has long expressed frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for refusing to advance this effort and for rejecting initiatives involving the Palestinian Authority, which would unlock the support of Arab allies in the region, which Jerusalem seeks.
Blinken says his G7 counterparts “reiterated deep concern with Iran’s nuclear activities and continued failure to cooperate fully with the IAEA,” the UN nuclear watchdog.
IDF video shows troops dismantling Hezbollah weapons found on banks of Litani River
Troops of the Air Force's Shaldag unit operate at the Litani River in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, in a handout image released on November 26, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
The IDF airs new footage showing troops of the Air Force’s elite Shaldag unit operating on the banks of the Litani River in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, where rockets and Hezbollah bunkers were found.
Videos released by the military show a rocket launcher and other weapons being demolished, as well as an underground site where the terror group stored weapons.
The Litani River in the eastern sector is around 4 kilometers from the northern Israeli border town of Metula.
At the Litani River, troops of the Alexandroni Brigade, 769th “Hiram” Regional Brigade, Golani Brigade’s reconnaissance unit, and Shaldag unit raided numerous Hezbollah sites.
The IDF says the troops battled Hezbollah gunmen in the area, and located and destroyed dozens of rocket launchers, hundreds of rockets, weapon depots, and other weapons hidden in the mountainside.
Troops of the Air Force’s Shaldag unit operate at the Litani River in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon and destroy Hezbollah weapons, in videos released on November 26, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
IDF tracking several ‘suspicious aerial targets’ as sirens keep blaring in Haifa, northern towns
The IDF says it’s tracking several “suspicious aerial targets,” as air raid alerts continue to blare in Haifa and other communities along Israel’s northern coast.
Drone sirens move further south to Haifa area
Suspected drone alert sirens have now spread further south to the Haifa area.
IDF says over 180 Hezbollah targets hit in today’s strikes across Lebanon
Israeli fighter jets have struck over 180 Hezbollah targets across Lebanon today, according to the IDF.
The military says the strikes hit command centers, weapon depots, and other Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut, southern Lebanon, and the Beqaa Valley.
Israeli fighter jets have struck over 180 Hezbollah targets across Lebanon today, according to the IDF. pic.twitter.com/uK9D5pFzEo
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 26, 2024
Drone alerts sound in Acre and numerous other northern communities
Suspected drone alerts are triggered of Acre after first being activated in numerous other communities in the Western Galilee and Northern Galilee.
Italian FM: There are ‘many legal doubts’ about ICC warrant for Netanyahu’s arrest
FIUGGI, Italy — There are many legal doubts about the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Italy’s foreign minister said on Tuesday.
“[There are] many legal doubts, and feasibility seems to me very theoretical because Netanyahu will never go to a country where he can be arrested,” Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani tells a news conference after a meeting with his G7 counterparts.
Syrian state media reports Israeli strikes on two villages in Homs region
Syria’s state news agency SANA reports Israeli airstrikes against two villages in the northern and western parts of the Homs Governorate.
No further details are immediately given.
IDF says Hezbollah command posts and arms depots among targets struck in south Lebanon
Several command rooms and weapons depots in southern Lebanon’s Naqoura and Yater were struck by fighter jets today, the IDF says.
Additionally, a building used by Hezbollah’s aerial forces, which is responsible for drone attacks on Israel, was also struck, according to the military.
More than 20 Hezbollah rocket launchers, including those used in this evening’s attack on Haifa, were struck today, the IDF adds.
Several command rooms and weapons depots in southern Lebanon's Naqoura and Yater were struck by fighter jets today, the IDF says.
Additionally, a building used by Hezbollah's aerial forces, which is responsible for drone attacks on Israel, was also struck, according to the… pic.twitter.com/4oByHjE5iT
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 26, 2024
Netanyahu to give televised statement after security cabinet meeting on Lebanon ceasefire
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will give a video statement tonight at 8 p.m.
The statement will come after he wraps up his meeting with his security cabinet, during which the ministers are expected to approve the ceasefire in Lebanon.
IDF says 10 rockets fired from Lebanon at north, declares drone incursion ‘over’
A barrage of 10 rockets was fired from Lebanon at the Western Galilee a short while ago. The IDF says some of the rockets were intercepted and impacts were also identified.
Separately, a suspected drone launched from Lebanon triggered sirens in the Galilee Panhandle. The IDF says the incident is over, without elaborating.
There are no reports of injuries in the attacks.
Paramedics treat woman who collapsed from cardiac event while running to bomb shelter
The Magen David Adom ambulance service says paramedics treated a women who collapsed after suffering an apparent cardiac incident while running to a bomb shelter during a rocket attack on the Haifa area.
MDA says paramedics used a defibrillator to get her heart beating again. The 60-year-old woman was later taken to a local hospital.
Mayor bans planned Christians for Israel rally in Amsterdam
Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema has banned a large pro-Israel protest that was planned for Thursday night at the Dutch capital’s central Dam Square. Halsema’s spokesperson says the mayor can’t guarantee public safety.
No violence has occurred from the pro-Israeli side at any Amsterdam rally since October 7, 2023. Anti-Israeli protests, however, routinely end in clashes with police. At an earlier demonstration organized by Christians For Israel marking a year since the Hamas invasion of southern Israel, protesters on Dam Square were attacked by violent pro-Palestinian counter-protesters.
Thursday’s planned demonstration may yet take place if the organizers agree on a different location, but Christians For Israel leader Roger van Oordt has so far refused to do so. Van Oordt points out the important “symbolic value” of the central square where the National Monument is located.
Van Oordt has threatened to sue the mayor for her refusal to let the protest take place. Anti-Israel protestors demonstrate on Dam Square weekly.
Naomi Mestrum, director of the pro-Israel lobby group CIDI, told the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, “Mayor Halsema has never cared about safety.”
On the nights of November 7 and 8, violent pro-Palestinian street gangs attacked Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters and others, calling on social media for a “Jew hunt”; some politicians labeled it a “pogrom.”
Mestrum told De Telegraaf that she wonders how the mayor will guarantee public safety at any other location.
Sara Netanyahu wants to be recognized as terror victim over launching of flares at Caesarea home
Sara Netanyahu speaks at an event honoring local security chiefs in Binyamin in the West Bank on August 27, 2024. (Courtesy)
Sara Netanyahu asks to be recognized as the victim of an attempted terror attack, after three flares were fired at the Netanyahus’ home in Caesarea earlier this month.
Nobody was harmed in the incident, no damage was caused, and neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or Sara Netanyahu were at home at the time.
Uriel Nizri, a family lawyer for the Netanyahus, nevertheless sends a letter to the police and Shin Bet saying that she has been “a target for attack together with others in a severe terror event in which military explosives were fired at her house which caused damage and a fire that ignited at the site,” Channel 13 News reports.
Four suspects have been arrested and questioned over the incident, including Rear Adm. (res.) Ofer Doron and two other longtime anti-government activists.
Victims of a crime are entitled by law to be asked by prosecutors for their position on any plea bargain that might be proposed to those indicted over the incident, and the punishment that might be meted out by the court.
Suspected drone and rocket sirens sound in Western Galilee towns
Suspected drone and incoming rocket sirens sound in communities across the Western Galilee.
The IDF says that it’s tracking “a suspicious aerial target” that entered Israel from Lebanon.
In first, IDF issues evacuation warnings for buildings in central Beirut
For the first time, the IDF has issued evacuation warnings for sites outside of Hezbollah’s stronghold in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, publishes maps of several buildings in central Beirut that will be targeted.
The IDF warned earlier that it would be striking numerous branches of the Al-Qard al-Hasan association, known to be used by Hezbollah as a quasi-bank, across Lebanon.
#عاجل انذار عاجل إلى السكان المتواجدين في منطقة بيروت وتحديدًا لكل من يتواجد في المباني المحددة بالأحمر وفق ما يعرض في الخرائط المرفقة والمباني المجاورة لها في المناطق التالية:
????راس بيروت
????المزرعة
????مصيطبة
????زقاق البلاط⭕️أنتم متواجدون بالقرب من منشآت تابعة لحزب الله حيث سيشن… pic.twitter.com/MtTfkxvFY7
— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) November 26, 2024
Massachusetts man pleads guilty to threatening to kill Jews and bomb synagogues
BOSTON — A Massachusetts man has pleaded guilty in federal court to threatening to kill members of the state’s Jewish community and bomb local synagogues.
John Reardon, 59, of Millis, Massachusetts, pleads guilty to one count of obstruction of free exercise of religious beliefs by threat of force, one count of transmitting in interstate commerce a threat to injure a person, and one count of stalking using a facility of interstate commerce.
“This defendant’s threats to bomb synagogues and kill Jewish children stoked fear in the hearts of congregants at a time when Jews are already facing a disturbing increase in threats,” Attorney General Merrick Garland says in a statement. “No person and no community in this country should have to live in fear of hate-fueled violence.”
Jodi Cohen, the special agent in charge of the FBI Boston Field Office, says the guilty plea sends a message that “you cannot call and threaten people with violent physical harm and not face repercussions.”
“People of all races and faiths deserve to feel safe in their communities,” she says.
In January, Reardon called Congregation Agudas Achim in Attleboro, Massachusetts, and left a voicemail making several threats to kill congregants and bomb the synagogue, including that “if you can kill the Palestinians, we can kill you,” federal authorities said. Ten minutes later, he allegedly made a call to another local synagogue and a Jewish organization.
Reardon was arrested days later.
IDF says air defenses downed 5 rockets fired from Lebanon at Haifa; 5 others fired earlier at Galilee
Five rockets launched from Lebanon at the northern port city of Haifa were intercepted by air defenses a short while ago, the IDF says.
Five more rockets were launched at the Western Galilee shortly before the Haifa attack. The IDF says some of the rockets were intercepted and others impacted.
There are no immediate reports of injuries.
G7 to omit direct mention of ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu, says ‘no equivalence’ between Israel and Hamas
FIUGGI, Italy — A joint statement of Group of Seven foreign ministers is set to avoid mentioning the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, despite an effort by the Italian hosts to find a common position on it.
Italy, which currently chairs the G7, said yesterday it wanted to try to forge a common positiona bout the ICC arrest warrant at a two-day meeting it hosted in the spa town of Fiuggi which ends today.
A draft of the final statement due to emerge from the discussions, reviewed by Reuters, doesn’t directly name the ICC and its decisions.
“In exercising its right to defend itself, Israel must fully comply with its obligations under international law in all circumstances, including International Humanitarian Law,” it says.
“We reiterate our commitment to International Humanitarian Law and will comply with our respective obligations,” the statement adds, stressing “that there can be no equivalence between the terrorist group Hamas and the State of Israel.”
Egyptian FM calls for empowering Lebanese army so it can control southern Lebanon
Egypt wants to see the Lebanese army empowered so that it can control southern Lebanon, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the sidelines of the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Italy yesterday, according to an Egyptian readout.
The Egyptian statement says that Abdelatty focused on the Palestinians, decrying “aggressive Israeli policies against the Palestinian people and their disastrous repercussions on the security and stability of the region and the entire world under the ongoing violations of international law and international humanitarian law.”
Adbelatty also emphasized the importance of increasing humanitarian aid into Gaza, and argued that there will be no stability in the region without “the end of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories.”
IDF’s Arabic spokesman warns military about to start striking branches of Hezbollah quasi-bank
In a warning to Lebanese civilians, Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, says the military will soon be striking numerous branches of the Al-Qard al-Hasan association, known to be used by Hezbollah as a quasi-bank.
“Iranian funding and Hezbollah’s independent sources of income are deposited at the association’s branches, and it is used in practice to manage and store the terror assets of the organization,” Adraee says.
The spokesman says the strikes “will be another blow to the Iranian financing chain of Hezbollah, which uses an association under a civilian guise to finance assets for the storage of weapons, the establishment of launch sites, the payment of wages to its terrorists and the build-up of its criminal terrorist organization, on the backs of the people of Lebanon.”
The IDF says it will issue evacuation warnings to civilians near the sites in the coming hours.
The first warnings are published by Adraee now, for two buildings in Tyre and Sidon.
Rocket alerts activated in Haifa area
Rocket warning sirens blare in Haifa and suburbs of the northern coastal city.
Ex-PM Bennett slams Hezbollah ceasefire deal as ‘a total security-diplomatic failure’
Then-alternate prime minister Naftali Bennett at a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on September 18, 2022. (Olivier Fitousi/Flash90)
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett tears into the Hezbollah ceasefire deal that the security cabinet is expected to approve this evening, saying it won’t prevent Hezbollah from being able to launch attacks on Israel.
In a video statement, Bennett decries the lack of a planned buffer zone in Lebanon, saying Hezbollah will be able to rebuild homes along the border that the terror group can use as a staging point for an invasion of the north and as a place to launch anti-tank missiles from.
“Hezbollah still has its stockpile of tens of thousands of rockets,” Bennett says, “and it can continue producing [weapons] and rearming.”
“An impressive military achievement by IDF soldiers and commanders is being translated into a total security-diplomatic failure,” he adds.
Netanyahu convenes security cabinet ahead of expected approval of Hezbollah truce
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is meeting with his security cabinet now.
The ministers are expected to approve a ceasefire in the fight against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
An official statement from Netanyahu’s office approving the ceasefire is expected tonight.
Upping pressure on Israel, G7 foreign ministers say ‘now is the time’ for Lebanon ceasefire
FIUGGI, Italy — Foreign ministers from the G7 democracies up the pressure on Israel to accept a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah in Lebanon, saying “now is the time to conclude a diplomatic settlement.”
In a draft statement at the end of a two-day meeting in Italy, the G7 ministers urge Israel to facilitate humanitarian aid delivery to Palestinians, and condemned increasing settler violence in the West Bank.
The ministers also condemn recent attacks on the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and express their support for the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA, saying it plays a “vital role.”
Lebanese report claims US and France will announce ceasefire at 10 p.m.
A joint American-French statement will be issued shortly after 10 p.m. local time announcing that a ceasefire has been reached in Lebanon, according to the Lebanese Al Jadeed news station.
The outlet says that Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati will offer a statement in parallel welcoming the ceasefire.
IDF says 20 Hezbollah targets struck in Beirut within 2-minute span
Smoke billows above Beirut's southern suburbs following Israeli airstrikes on November 26, 2024. (Fadel Itani/AFP)
The IDF says it struck 20 Hezbollah sites within two minutes in Beirut’s southern suburbs a short while ago.
The fast and extensive wave of airstrikes was carried out by eight fighter jets, according to the military.
Seven buildings targeted in the strikes were used by Hezbollah for the management and storage of funds, the IDF says, including headquarters, vaults and branches of the Al-Qard al-Hasan association, known to be used by Hezbollah as a quasi-bank.
The other 13 sites included a Hezbollah aerial forces center, an intelligence division command room, weapon depots, and other military infrastructure, the IDF adds.
Before the strikes were carried out, the IDF issued evacuation warnings to civilians in the vicinity.
The military releases footage showing the strikes.
An extensive wave of Israeli airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs, in a video released by the IDF on November 26, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
Katz meets with defense brass to okay ‘continued IDF offensive ops on northern front’
This handout photo shows Defense Minister Israel Katz meeting with top IDF officers and Defense Ministry officials on November 26, 2024. (Shira Keinan/Defense Ministry)
Defense Minister Israel Katz is currently approving “the continued IDF offensive operations on the northern front” during an assessment with the military’s top brass and other defense officials, his office says.
The meeting approving the battle plans is attended by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, head of the Operations Directorate Maj. Gen. Oded Basiuk, head of the Intelligence Directorate Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder, head of the Strategy Directorate Maj. Gen. Eliezer Toledano, Defense Ministry Director General Eyal Zamir, and head of the ministry’s Political-Military Bureau Dror Shalom.
As PM set to convene ministers on Hezbollah truce, IDF begins ‘extensive’ wave of Beirut strikes
The IDF says it has begun an “extensive” wave of airstrikes in Beirut.
A short while ago, the military issued evacuation warnings to 20 buildings in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, a Hezbollah stronghold.
Further details on the strikes will be provided later, the IDF adds.
أحزمة نارية في الضاحية الجنوبية لبيروت https://t.co/avv34MdJQP pic.twitter.com/X9uMGD9vqT
— Ali Bk (@Bk_Hanas) November 26, 2024
The strikes come as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to convene the security cabinet, where ministers are expected to approve a ceasefire with Hezbollah.
Netanyahu to convene security cabinet as ministers set to approve Hezbollah truce
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at a cabinet meeting on November 24, 2024. (Screen grab/GPO)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has moved up his security cabinet meeting to 4 p.m., an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.
The ministers are expected to approve a ceasefire in the fight against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Netanyahu is slated to meet with regional council heads, who have bitterly opposed the proposed truce deal, from northern Israel later in the day.
IDF says senior Hezbollah field commander killed in strike, troops located weapons during raids
Weapons found by troops in southern Lebanon, in a handout photo issued on November 26, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
The IDF says a senior Hezbollah field commander was killed in a recent airstrike in southern Lebanon, during operations of the Commando Brigade.
The commandos have been operating in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, under the 98th Division.
According to the IDF, the commandos spotted a cell of Hezbollah gunmen in their area of operations, and directed strikes against them.
Among the dead was the commander of Hezbollah’s forces in the sector where the troops are operating, according to the IDF. The military does not name the exact sector, as troops are still operating there.
The troops have also located numerous weapons, including long-range anti-tank missiles, rocket launchers, and other equipment belonging to Hezbollah, the IDF adds.
Reports of Israeli airstrike without warning in central Beirut; IDF issues evacuation warnings for 20 buildings
Lebanese media outlets report an Israeli airstrike in central Beirut, outside of the Hezbollah stronghold in the southern suburbs of the capital.
No evacuation warning was given, indicating the strike was an attempted assassination, not the targeting of Hezbollah infrastructure.
https://twitter.com/mayadeenlebanon/status/1861394803100971287
Meanwhile, the IDF issues evacuation warnings to some 20 buildings in Dahiyeh, the southern suburbs of Beirut, ahead of airstrikes on Hezbollah assets.
UK says Hezbollah truce ‘only way to restore security’ for civilians in north Israel, south Lebanon
An Israeli soldier inspects the site where a rocket fired from Lebanon hit in Kiryat Shmona, Nov. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Britain calls for an end to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, insisting that a ceasefire is “the only way to restore security” for civilians in Lebanon and northern Israel.
“We urge all parties to engage in efforts to reach a ceasefire and indeed a long-term sustainable peace in the Middle East,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman tells reporters.
Since October 8, 2023, Hezbollah-led forces have attacked Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a near-daily basis, with the terror group saying it was doing so to support Palestinians in Gaza amid the war there sparked by the Hamas onslaught on October 7.
IDF: Jets struck several Hezbollah weapons depots in south Lebanon’s Bint Jbeil
Israeli fighter jets struck several Hezbollah weapons depots in southern Lebanon’s Bint Jbeil a short while ago, the military says.
The sites were being used to store anti-tank missiles, anti-aircraft equipment, and other weapons, the military says.
Since this morning, over 30 Hezbollah sites have been struck in southern Lebanon, according to the IDF.
Rocket sirens sound in Golan Heights
Rocket sirens sound in Katzrin and nearby communities in the Golan Heights.
Lebanon FM: Army ready to deploy at least 5,000 troops to south after IDF withdraws
Lebanon's Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib attends a joint press conference with the European Union's top diplomat, in Beirut on September 12, 2024. (Joseph Eid/AFP)
Lebanon’s foreign minister Abdallah Bou Habib says he hopes a ceasefire to end fighting between Israel and Lebanese terror group Hezbollah will be agreed to later today.
He says that the Lebanese army will be ready to have at least 5,000 troops deployed in southern Lebanon as Israeli troops withdraw, and that the United States could play a role in rebuilding infrastructure destroyed by Israeli strikes.
Jordan airdropped aid to north Gaza for first time in 5 months, official says
Displaced Palestinians line up to receive food at a distribution centre in Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on November 26, 2024 (BASHAR TALEB / AFP)
Jordanian military planes dropped aid to northern Gaza today for first time in five months to help relieve the dire humanitarian situation in the enclave, an official source says.
Two C-130 planes belonging to the Jordanian air force dropped contained nearly seven tons of food and essential relief to areas the UN agencies identified as most in need and facing hunger, the source tells Reuters.
Police officers, IDF soldiers and 1 civilian arrested on suspicion of abducting and assaulting Palestinian
The Department for Internal Police Investigations (DIPI) reveals what appears to be an incident in which a Palestinian man was violently assaulted and abducted by a group of four police officers, four IDF soldiers, and one Israeli civilian in August.
According to details released by DIPI, the suspects attacked a Palestinian man in the area of Nahal Auja in the central West Bank, north of the Kochav Hashahar settlement.
They then took him to a nearby location and a short while later he was found and taken for medical treatment for his injuries.
The DIPI conducted a secret investigation together with the military police and arrested the nine suspects this morning.
The four police officers and the civilian will be brought to the Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court today for a hearing on extending their detention, while the soldiers will be brought in front of a military court for the same proceedings.
According to Ynet, the civilian suspect is Saar Ofir, a resident of the Elkana settlement in the central West Bank who was arrested in July on suspicion of executing a Hamas terrorist captured by IDF forces in Gaza.
Independent Oct. 7 commission: National security ‘collapsed and is no longer suitable’
Members of the independent civilian commission of inquiry at the presentation of their findings, November 26, 2024 (Sam Sokol/Times of Israel)
Israeli leaders must recognize that national security “has collapsed and is no longer suitable,” and must be updated, an independent Civilian Commission of Inquiry probing the government’s failure to prevent October 7 states.
“The basic assumptions on which the security concept is based must be examined again, and frequently. Systematic situation assessments should include an examination of the new threats and the changing intentions of the enemy, and the integration of experts from various fields in the work of intelligence and strategy. There is no doubt that a way must be found to structure the processes in the work of the headquarters at various levels, all the way up to the prime minister,” the commission writes in its final report following over four months of work.
It calls on Israeli intelligence agencies to “develop reliable and effective mechanisms to decisively deal with the misconceptions that will almost inevitably develop among decision-makers” while also cultivating a “culture of listening” paired with the practice of presenting “decision-makers with possible alternatives to existing information along with its own analysis, and to raise possibilities that the enemy will act differently.”
“The first and most significant recommendation is for all of us: to adopt a culture of taking responsibility, learning, investigation, and correction at the national level,” the commission states.
“Every system, large and small, must have a control and review system in numerous areas, particularly those concerning policy, strategy and human life. The Israel Defense Forces needs such a system, and the Israeli government needs it as well.”
The commission also recommends focusing heavily on a strategy for “the day after” in Lebanon, Gaza and the wider Middle East — as well as making efforts to bolster security in the south.
“Observation, fire, command and control must be hidden from the enemy and protected in routine and emergency situations” while “the civil defense system must be rebuilt and be able to respond to its purpose of protecting the settlements until the army arrives.”
Sirens in northern communities warn of suspected drone attack
Sirens in northern border towns warn of a suspected drone attack.
The alerts come as Israel looks set to approve a plan for a ceasefire with Hezbollah later today. Israeli officials have stressed that they would be accepting a cessation of hostilities, not an end to the war, with the terror group.
IDF says it struck 6 Beirut buildings used by Hezbollah
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted Hezbollah in Beirut's southern suburbs on November 26, 2024 (IBRAHIM AMRO / AFP)
The IDF confirms striking six buildings used by Hezbollah in Beirut’s southern suburbs a short while ago.
According to the military, the buildings were being used by Hezbollah’s coast-to-sea missile unit and as command centers.
Since the beginning of the week, some 30 Hezbollah sites in Beirut have been struck, the IDF says.
Before the strikes were carried out the IDF issued evacuation warnings to civilians in the vicinity.
IDF troops reach key Litani River for first time since 2000 Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon
IDF troops operate at the Litani River in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, in a handout image released on November 26, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
The IDF’s 91st Division has reached the Litani River in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, as well as the Wadi Saluki area, and the military says troops located dozens of Hezbollah weapons and sites in both areas.
It is the first time since 2000 — when Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon — that IDF troops have reached the Litani River.
In the Wadi Saluki area, troops of the Commando Brigade raided several Hezbollah sites. The IDF says the commandos located and seized hundreds of weapons, and found dozens of bunkers and dozens of primed rocket launchers.
At the Litani River, troops of the Alexandroni Brigade, 769th “Hiram” Regional Brigade, Golani Brigade’s reconnaissance unit, and the Israeli Air Force’s Shaldag unit raided numerous Hezbollah sites in the area.
The IDF says the troops battled Hezbollah gunmen in the Litani River area, and located and destroyed dozens of rocket launchers, hundreds of rockets, weapon depots, and other weapons hidden in the mountainside.
Wadi Saluki is located around 10 kilometers from Israel’s border, and the Litani River in the eastern sector is around four kilometers from the northern Israel town of Metula.
The chief of the IDF Northern Command, Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin, also visited the Litani River amid the operations.
The proposed truce deal that Israel is expected to agree to today, which would halt the fighting on the northern front, calls for an initial two-month ceasefire during which Israeli forces would withdraw from Lebanon, and Hezbollah would end its armed presence south of the Litani River.
Weapons found by troops at the Litani River in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, in a handout image released on November 26, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
Lapid welcomes findings of independent Oct. 7 commission, defends his own actions
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid addresses the press ahead of his Yesh Atid party's weekly faction meeting in the Knesset, November 18, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid welcomes the release of the independent Civilian Commission of Inquiry’s final report on the government’s failure to prevent October 7, calling it “in-depth, comprehensive and important.”
Lapid, who testified before the commission in August, calls for the establishment of an official state commission of inquiry as well. He also argues that while October 7 “could have been prevented,” he believes that “all the symptoms of October 6 are still present in this government a year afterward.”
According to the commission’s final report, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was responsible for the decision not to strike Hamas preemptively, former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Lapid also shoulder blame for “maintaining the concept of cash for quiet, albeit in different ways.”
In a statement, Lapid says that “the possibility of a preemptive strike against Hamas, like the possibility of an operation to assassinate senior Hamas figures, was discussed more than once during the ‘government of change,'” which he co-led with Bennett, but that “the intelligence conditions were not ripe for such operations.”
In a letter to the commission published alongside its final report, Lapid makes similar points, stating that his government had halted the “suitcases of cash” and instead sent funds that could be “traced and tracked, which made intelligence work easier.”
“We led a zero-tolerance approach toward terror attacks, e.g., incendiary balloons or perimeter fence events. The IDF was instructed not to ignore any event and to respond with disproportionate force. This policy led to the elimination of this type of event,” the letter continues.
“I’ve been asked multiple times whether I believe that the October 7 disaster could have happened when I was prime minister. The answer is no… How can I be so confident? And the answer is that there was no scenario in which I would have received warnings of such scope, quality, and frequency as I’ve described, and ignored them. [Our] government’s period in office was the quietest year for southern residents in over a decade,” Lapid insists.
Independent commission: Cabinet members directly responsible for ‘collapse of the government system on Oct. 7’
File: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads a weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on September 27, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet were directly responsible for the “collapse of the government system on October 7,” the independent Civilian Commission of Inquiry probing the failure to prevent the Hamas attack finds.
Following dozens of hearings and the testimony of around 120 witnesses over the past four months, the commission determines that the cabinet ministers, “in most of the various ministries,” bear the blame for the government’s “inability to provide a response to the families of the people missing and captive; the lack of response to the needs of combat soldiers to reach the southern and northern fronts; the lack of response and care for the families of the evacuees and their children – in both the north and the south.”
Likewise, the IDF and Israel Police “are solely responsible for the lack of coordination between them and the many failures that prevented the rescuing of many Nova festival-goers in Re’im,” the commission states, calling on the two bodies to strengthen their coordination going forward.
Senior Hezbollah commander killed in recent Tyre airstrike, IDF says
A senior Hezbollah commander was killed in a recent airstrike in the coastal Lebanese city of Tyre, the IDF announces.
The military names the commander as Ahmed Subhi Hazima, head of operations in Hezbollah’s coastal region of southern Lebanon.
Hazima, who replaced the previous commander after he was killed in a strike on November 17, had advanced numerous attacks against Israel from the western sector of southern Lebanon, including infiltrations and anti-tank missile attacks, the IDF says.
The military says his killing is another blow to the terror group’s capabilities.
Lebanon says it filed UN complaint over Israel’s ‘continued, deliberate’ targeting of its forces
Rescuers at the scene of an Israeli airstrike on a Lebanese army post in Amriyeh in southern Lebanon on November 24, 2024 (Kawnat HAJU / AFP)
Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry says it has filed a complaint with the United Nations Security Council over Israel’s “continued and deliberate” targeting of Lebanese forces since October 8, 2023, the date Hezbollah forces opened fire on Israel, sparking the ongoing conflict in Lebanon and northern Israel.
The statement specifically references attacks since November 17, 2024, that it says killed 10 soldiers and wounded 35 more.
“Lebanon called on the member states of the Security Council to condemn the repeated Israeli attacks on the army,” says the Lebanese Foreign Ministry, “and consider them a flagrant violation of international law, the UN Charter, and international resolutions, especially Resolution 1701.”
It also says the incidents “constitute a clear message from Israel rejecting any initiatives for a solution, and its insistence on military escalation instead of diplomacy.”
After a deadly strike on a Lebanese Army post earlier this week, the IDF apologized, saying it “regrets the incident and clarifies that it is fighting in a targeted manner against the Hezbollah terror organization, and not against the Lebanese Army.”
Independent commission: Multiple IDF chiefs share responsibility for failing to prevent Oct. 7
Military chief Aviv Kohavi (right), Defense Minister Benny Gantz (center), and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar hold an assessment at the IDF's Southern Command HQ in Beersheba, August 5, 2022. (Ariel Hermoni/Defense Ministry)
According to the findings of the Independent Civilian Commission of Inquiry investigating October 7, multiple IDF chiefs of staff over the past decade, including Benny Gantz, share responsibility for failing to prevent Hamas’s brutal attack.
The commission blames the former defense leadership for advancing the concept of a smaller army “with excessive reliance on technology,” also castigating recently ousted defense minister Yoav Gallant, IDF chief of staff Herzi Halevi and other recent and current defense officials for reducing Israeli forces along the Gaza frontier as well as “for the lack of readiness of soldiers at the various bases in the Southern Command and for abandoning the female field observers to their fates on October 7.”
The IDF leadership was also responsible for “ignoring all warning lights; disregarding the warnings of the field observers; the lack of response to the many failures that emerged in the field; and the prevailing lawless atmosphere in the communities surrounding Gaza,” the commission states.
In addition to failing to act on Hamas attack plans obtained in advance, the IDF leadership failed to adequately heed warnings on the evening of October 6 and the morning of October 7 and is responsible “for not immediately conveying the warning to commanders and soldiers in the field so that they could at least prepare themselves.”
According to the commission, the IDF’s Southern Command and the Gaza Division “failed miserably, to the point of collapse of all defense systems, as soldiers in the field were left to their own devices with no reinforcements arriving for many hours.”
“This way, the command echelon failed not only in intelligence and alertness, but also in its planning and readiness for a rapid response to terrorist incidents,” it states.
Independent Oct. 7 commission: Netanyahu ‘responsible for undermining all decision-making centers’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at a security cabinet meeting, April 4, 2024. (Channel 12 screenshot: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
In a scathing report, the independent Civilian Commission of Inquiry investigating the government’s failures on and leading up to Hamas’s October 7, 2023, finds Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “responsible for undermining all decision-making centers, including the cabinet and the National Security Council, in a way that prevented any serious discussion that includes a plurality of opinions on significant security issues.”
In its final report, the commission states that Netanyahu was responsible for silencing critics of his “cash for quiet” approach to handling Hamas and that the prime minister “is responsible for ignoring the pull on his coattails and the warnings” ahead of October 7.
Netanyahu was also responsible “for the fact that it was not possible to provide a response to the various needs in the home front due to the chaos between the ministries,” the report adds.
While Netanyahu was responsible for the decision not to strike Hamas preemptively, former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid also shoulder blame for “maintaining the concept of cash for quiet, albeit in different ways,” the commission states.
Katz to UN envoy for Lebanon: Israel will show ‘zero tolerance’ for ceasefire violations
Defense Minister Israel Katz meets with Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, UN Special Envoy for Lebanon, in Tel Aviv, November 26, 2024. (Defense Ministry spokesperson)
Israel will respond to any threat from Lebanon even after a ceasefire, Defense Minister Israel Katz tells Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, UN Special Envoy for Lebanon.
“We will act against any threat, anytime and anywhere,” says Katz, according to his office.
“Every house in southern Lebanon that is rebuilt and in which a terrorist base is established will be demolished, every rearming and regrouping by terrorists will be attacked, every attempt to smuggle weapons will be thwarted, and every threat to our forces or Israeli citizens will be immediately destroyed,” he says, talking tough just hours before the security cabinet is expected to approve a ceasefire after nearly 14 months of fighting between Hezbollah and Israel.
He also demands “effective enforcement” from UNIFIL, the international peacekeeping organization in Lebanon. According to the Israeli readout, Katz stresses that the implementation of the ceasefire must include effective enforcement and oversight, including preventing arms smuggling and domestic arms production by Hezbollah.
Katz emphasizes that Israel will show “zero tolerance” for violations of the ceasefire.
“If you don’t do it, we will,” he says, “and with great force.”
Independent commission blames PM, defense chiefs for Oct. 7 failures: ‘Completely failed to protect citizens of Israel’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds a security consultation in the Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv the day after Iran's ballistic missile attack, with (from right) Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, Mossad chief David Barnea, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, Maj.-Gen. Roman Gofman, military secretary to the prime minister, and Netanyahu's chief of staff Tzachi Braverman, October 2, 2024. (Ma'ayan Toaf / GPO)
The independent Civilian Commission of Inquiry into October 7 blames Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defense ministers and the heads of Israel’s security services, among others, for the government’s failures on and leading up to Hamas’s brutal attack.
In a scathing report, the independent commission states that the entire government had “failed its primary mission” and that the IDF, Shin Bet, and other organizations “completely failed to fulfill their sole objective — protecting the citizens of Israel.”
The commission blames “arrogance” for the fact “the IDF was not prepared for the mass invasion of Israel by Hamas terrorists – even though their plan was known in advance.”
“Arrogance and inherent blindness also led the political leadership to continue to work to strengthen Hamas by transferring funds and avoiding taking an offensive initiative in the face of threats, while idealizing reality and attempting to buy quiet from Hamas using money,” the report states.
Laying the blame directly on Netanyahu, the report adds, “Repeated warnings from senior command officials” to the prime minister failed to spark in-depth discussions of the the threat and “the relationship between the prime minister and the political leadership, and the entire military and professional leadership, is poor or has not existed at all for a long time.”
Then-defense minister Yoav Gallant, the IDF chief of staff, the head of Military Intelligence and their predecessors were also responsible for the debacle, having, among other things, reduced the IDF’s presence along the Gaza frontier and abandoning the IDF’s observation troops to their fate, the commission finds.
Former senior defense officials, such as current opposition politician and ex-defense minister Benny Gantz, share responsibility for the IDF’s failures, including the idea of shifting to a “small and smart army,” the report charges.
Moreover, the IDF chief of staff and senior leadership are responsible for “the lack of an operational response to ‘Jericho Wall’ and the warnings on the night of October 6 and the morning of October 7.”
The New York Times reported last year that Israel obtained Hamas’s plans for its assault on October 7, dubbed “Jericho Wall,” over a year before the devastating attack.
Israeli airstrikes reported in Beirut after IDF issued warnings for buildings used by Hezbollah
After the IDF issued evacuation warnings for six Hezbollah sites in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanese media report Israeli airstrikes in the area.
Footage shows smoke rising from the targeted sites.
سلسلة الغارات التي استهدفت الضاحية الجنوبية منذ قليل #ملحق pic.twitter.com/qypSbRzcNI
— Mulhak – ملحق (@Mulhak) November 26, 2024
2 IDF troops seriously wounded in Hezbollah drone attack in north and in central Gaza fighting
An IDF soldier was seriously wounded in a Hezbollah drone attack on the Mount Hermon area this morning, the military says.
The IDF says it is investigating the incident, during which a drone launched from Lebanon exploded near soldiers in the Hermon.
Separately, a reservist noncommissioned officer with the 8163rd Combat Engineering Battalion was seriously wounded in central Gaza this morning, the military adds.
The servicewoman wounded in the Hermon and the reservist wounded in Gaza, were taken to hospitals for treatment.
Court grants Netanyahu 8-day delay to start of his testimony in corruption trial
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives at the Jerusalem District Court for a hearing on his corruption trial, June 26, 2023. (Alex Kolomoisky/Pool)
The Jerusalem District Court grants Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu an eight-day postponement to the start of his testimony in his ongoing criminal trial, after his defense team said it did not have enough time to prepare him to testify.
Netanyahu had been scheduled to begin testifying in court this coming Monday, but will now begin his testimony on December 10 instead.
The prime minister’s defense attorneys had said they would not be able to prepare for his testimony due to his intense schedule resulting from the war, and requested a 15-day delay.
The court says in its decision that the circumstances since it rejected a more lengthy delay earlier this month had not changed, but that it decided “not without doubts” to agree to the request, in part owing to the defense team’s pledge not to request any further delays.
The prime minister’s defense team had initially sought to push off his testimony to the middle of March, citing time pressure on Netanyahu, but the court ruled earlier this month that such a long delay could not be justified.
IDF soldier succumbs to wounds sustained during October 7 onslaught
Sgt. First Class Yona Betzalel Brief, whose death was announced on November 26, 2024 after he was injured on October 7, 2023 (Israel Defense Forces)
An IDF soldier seriously wounded during fighting against Hamas-led terrorists during the onslaught on October 7, 2023, has succumbed to his wounds, the military announces.
The slain soldier is named as Sgt. First Class Yona Betzalel Brief, 23, a combat medic with the Duvdevan commando unit, from Modiin.
More than 300 soldiers were killed during the October 7 attack.
Gantz criticizes expected Hezbollah truce: ‘We must not do only half the job’
Leader of the National Unity Party MK Benny Gantz leads a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, on November 11, 2024 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
National Unity leader Benny Gantz criticizes the expected proposal for a truce between Israel and Hezbollah as being “half the job” and says that Israel must maintain immediate freedom of action against Hezbollah.
“The idea that we will report to the committee and only then take action is fundamentally flawed, as Hezbollah can burn our intelligence sources and move the means of warfare,” Gantz writes on X, apparently referring to the international panel that will monitor the truce.
“It is impossible to speak in terms of a ‘temporary ceasefire.’ Withdrawing forces now will create a dynamic that will make it difficult for us, and make it easier for Hezbollah to regroup,” he says.
“We have paid so much — in the blood of our fighters, in the wounded, in the many days reservists have given to fighting, in budgets and armaments. The residents of the north have been evacuated for over a year, and those who live on the second line [of villages close to the border] are staying in bomb shelters,” he says.
“We must not do only half the job. We must not miss the opportunity for a strong agreement that will fundamentally change the situation in the north,” Gantz says.
Rocket hits Kiryat Shmona home, causing damage but no injuries
Damage is seen to a home following a rocket impact in Kiryat Shmona, November 26, 2024. (Israel Fire and Rescue Services)
A home in the northern city of Kiryat Shmona was damaged by a rocket launched from Lebanon a short while ago, police and the Fire and Rescue Services say.
There are no reports of injuries.
The IDF says several rockets were launched by Hezbollah in the attack.
Children of migrant workers ask to be allowed to join IDF: ‘Want to give back to the country’
Dozens of children of migrant workers have asked the government to grant them citizenship and allow them to serve in the Israel Defense Forces, the Kan public broadcaster reports.
The teens have sent a letter to Interior Minister Moshe Arbel, Defense Minister Israel Katz, IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and the Prime Minister’s Office.
The teens are reportedly making the request using a legal clause that allows citizenship to be granted to those who contribute to the state.
In a related initiative, a similar letter was recently sent on behalf of 120 teenagers by the Hotline for Refugees and Migrants.
Since the start of the war, a number of teenagers have made individual requests to join the IDF that were not granted, Kan reports.
“I feel like this is my home. Israel has given me a lot and I want to give back to the country,” one of the teenagers tells the outlet.
עשרות ילדי עובדים זרים הגישו בקשה להתאזרח ולהתגייס, על סמך סעיף בחוק האזרחות שמאפשר מתן מעמד למי שתורם למדינה >>> https://t.co/rtcoGfUegb@NOFARMOS pic.twitter.com/b9VDftQIDN
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) November 26, 2024
The issue of the children of foreign workers and the IDF returned to the spotlight this week when Arbel announced that the father of slain IDF reservist Cedrick Garin would be granted permanent residency in Israel.
Enrico Basilio was deported from Israel to the Philippines some 22 years ago, when his son was just 2 years old.
Basilio returned to Israel in January of this year for the first time since he was deported, in order to attend his son’s funeral. The 23-year-old IDF reservist was among 21 soldiers killed in Gaza in January when a deadly RPG attack collapsed two buildings with soldiers inside.
As Basilio was deported when Cedrick was just 2 years old, the boy was raised solely by his mother, Imelda, also originally from the Philippines, who retained her status as a temporary resident even after Cedrick received citizenship upon the completion of his IDF service.
EU’s Borrell urges Israel to back truce with Hezbollah, says it has necessary security guarantees
High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell speaks to the press as he arrives for a meeting of EU Defence Ministers in Brussels on November 19, 2024. (NICOLAS TUCAT / AFP)
The European Union’s foreign policy chief urges Israel to back a proposed ceasefire deal with Hezbollah, which he says has all the necessary security guarantees for Israel.
Speaking at a G7 Foreign Ministers meeting, Josep Borrell says there is no excuse for not implementing the deal with Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group.
“There is not an excuse for not implementing a ceasefire… No more excuses. No more additional requests. Stop this fighting. Stop killing people,” Borrell says.
Israel looks set to approve the plan for a ceasefire with Hezbollah later today. Israeli officials have stressed that they would be accepting a cessation of hostilities, not an end to the war with the terror group.
Since October 8, 2023, Hezbollah-led forces have attacked Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a near-daily basis, with the terror group saying it was doing so to support Palestinians in Gaza amid the war there, sparked by the Hamas onslaught on October 7.
IDF issues evacuation warnings for 6 Beirut buildings ahead of strikes against Hezbollah
The IDF is calling on civilians near six buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs to immediately evacuate ahead of airstrikes against Hezbollah assets.
Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, publishes maps alongside the announcement, which call on civilians to distance themselves at least 500 meters from the sites.
#عاجل إلى جميع السكان المتواجدين في منطقة الضاحية الجنوبية وتحديدًا في المباني المحددة في الخرائط المرفقة والمباني المجاورة لها في المناطق التالية:
????برج البراجنة
????تحويطة الغدير⭕️أنتم تتواجدون بالقرب من منشآت ومصالح تابعة لحزب الله حيث سيعمل ضدها جيش الدفاع على المدى… pic.twitter.com/9eDDIMNgpE
— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) November 26, 2024
Rocket sirens sound in Kiryat Shmona, surrounding towns
Sirens in Kiryat Shmona and surrounding communities close to the northern border warn of incoming rocket fire.
The alerts come hours before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to convene the security cabinet to approve a truce with the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon after more than a year of fighting.
Defense Ministry advances plans to build fence along entire border with Jordan
The border between Israel and Jordan on the Route 90 highway in the Jordan Valley, July 6, 2017. (Hadas Parush/Flash90)
The Defense Ministry says it has begun “detailed engineering planning” to establish a fence along the entire border with Jordan to prevent infiltrations into the country — an expensive undertaking that has made little progress in the past.
The work comes following the directive of new Defense Minister Israel Katz.
The ministry says the planning works, which will cost tens of millions of shekels, will include laying an initial section of the fence with surveillance equipment, mapping out potential environmental hazards, and soil surveys.
The works are expected to last several months, “and they are intended to advance the readiness of the defense establishment for the establishment of a barrier on the border with Jordan, in accordance with the decisions of the political echelon on the issue,” the ministry adds.
There is an aging fence along the 309-kilometer (192-mile) border that Jordan shares with Israel and the West Bank, though military and police officials say it is sufficient to prevent most gun-smuggling attempts.
The idea of boosting the fence or building some sort of border wall has been floated repeatedly by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others for more than a decade, although many see any such major effort as unlikely to succeed due to the sheer length of the border and the enormous cost.
Rocket sirens sound in northern border towns
Sirens sound in communities close to the northern border with Lebanon, warning of incoming rocket fire.
The alerts come hours before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to convene the high-level security cabinet in Tel Aviv later today to approve a 60-day ceasefire with the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon after more than a year of war.
Northern officials angered by expected Hezbollah truce, call for residents not to return home
View of a house hit from missiles fired by Hezbollah from Lebanon into Metula, on the Israeli border with Lebanon, November 20, 2024. (David Cohen/Flash90)
Local council leaders in the north express anger over the expected truce between Israel and Hezbollah, saying that the safety of residents is not guaranteed.
“Do not surrender to terrorism. Do not make this shameful agreement. This is a sad arrangement, an agreement of surrender by the Israeli government to Hezbollah, an arm of Iran,” Metula Mayor David Azoulay tells Channel 13.
“The threat has not been removed. We will not agree to return to the reality of October 7 in the north,” he says.
Azoulay says that 70 percent of homes in Metula have been damaged and that residents should not agree to return.
“The reconstruction will take at least two years. For as long as there is no real security here, not just a ‘sense of security,’ we will do everything to not return,” he says.
Moshav Margaliot Chairman Eitan Davidi tells Channel 12 that it is inconceivable “we will be relying on Lebanon to guarantee our safety,” referring to the fact that the agreement will not include a buffer zone secured by the IDF.
“Northern residents didn’t leave their homes for over a year, just to return to having Hezbollah as neighbors,” Davidi says.
Speaking to Radio 103FM he warns of “the massacre that the [elite Hezbollah] Radwan forces will carry out here in a few years time.”
Davidi charges that “the massacre in the south [on October 7] will pale in comparison to what will happen here.”
The military has reportedly told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it has broadly achieved its aims in Lebanon against the Hezbollah terror group.
Netanyahu is expected to convene the high-level security cabinet in Tel Aviv later today to approve a 60-day ceasefire with the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon after more than a year of war.
Since October 8, 2023, Hezbollah-led forces have attacked Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a near-daily basis, with the group saying it is doing so to support Gaza amid the war there.
Some 60,000 residents were evacuated from northern towns on the Lebanon border shortly after Hamas’s October 7 onslaught, in light of fears that Hezbollah would carry out a similar attack, and due to increasing rocket fire by the terror group. Israel has been trying to enable the residents’ return, including through an ongoing ground operation.
IDF to test rocket sirens in Kibbutz Yad Mordechai this afternoon
The military says it will carry out a test of rocket sirens in the Gaza border community Kibbutz Yad Mordechai this afternoon.
Sirens will be heard at 4:05 p.m.
In the case of an actual attack, the sirens will sound twice, according to the IDF.
Halevi flew to UK yesterday for meeting with military chiefs
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi holds an assessment at the military's underground command room at the IDF HQ in Tel Aviv, September 23, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi flew to Britain yesterday for a number of hours to meet with military chiefs from a number of nations.
Halevi flew to the United Kingdom in the afternoon and returned shortly after midnight.
The Yisrael Hayom outlet, which first reported the trip, notes that Halevi’s visit came against the background of the International Criminal Court arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant, as well as the expected truce between Israel and Hezbollah.
The outlet highlights that it is “unusual” for the military chief to travel abroad during wartime.
Dershowitz says he’s building ‘legal dream team’ to defend Israel in court and on international stage
American lawyer Alan Dershowitz returns to the courtroom for the criminal trial of former US President Donald Trump after a short break at the municipal criminal court, May 20, 2024 in New York. (Sarah Yenesel/Pool Photo via AP)
Prominent US attorney Alan Dershowitz says he is building a “legal dream team” to defend Israel in court as well as on the world stage.
Noting the International Criminal Court arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant, Dershowitz writes in the Wall Street Journal that “this case will be tried in a courtroom in The Hague. It will also be tried in the court of public opinion, both in the US and throughout the world.”
Dershowitz says that those who have signed up for the project include former US attorneys general Michael Mukasey and William Barr, former Solicitor General Seth Waxman, former FBI Director Louis Freeh and former Canadian attorney general and justice minister Irwin Cotler.
It is unclear what role, if any, the team will take in the ICC legal proceedings.
Dershowitz says the team will not only argue that the ICC has no jurisdiction in the matter, but will also demonstrate that Israel’s military actions in Gaza are not in violation of international law.
In a massive legal bombshell last week, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant over the war in Gaza, an unprecedented step that put the two at risk of being detained in much of the world. The decision marked the first time the ICC has ever issued arrest warrants against leaders of a democratic country.
The court also issued a warrant for Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif, who Israel says was killed by an IDF strike in Gaza in July. Khan had sought arrest warrants for Deif and slain Hamas leaders Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar for the terror group’s October 7, 2023, massacre that sparked the ongoing war in Gaza.
Residents of northern Israel brace for uptick in rocket fire ahead of potential Lebanon truce
Residents of northern Israel are bracing for a potential uptick in rocket fire and drone launches from Lebanon amid reports of a potential imminent ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
The Home Front Command has adjusted the activity scale in the Golan Heights and northern border communities, meaning that most schools won’t be open and large events will not be able to be held.
Officials are concerned that the Iran-backed terror group could increase attacks ahead of the expected announcement of a ceasefire.
More snow falls at Mount Hermon ski resort, closed amid war
The Kan public broadcaster reports some seven centimeters (2.7 inches) of snow fell overnight on the upper parts of the Mount Hermon ski resort, with lower altitudes receiving a dusting of around three centimeters (1.1 inches).
The resort saw its first snowfall of the season yesterday.
The Hermon site has been closed for over a year now by military order amid rocket and drone attacks by Hezbollah from southern Lebanon.
The resort saw some 400,000 visitors in the winter of 2022-23 and zero in 2023-24, adding to the region’s economic woes.
כ-7 ס"מ שלג ירדו הלילה במפלס העליון וכ-3 ס"מ במפלס התחתון באתר החרמון הסגור. הטמפרטורה – 2°-@rubih67 pic.twitter.com/mdVevRooCc
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) November 26, 2024
IDF says it downed drone that crossed into the Golan Heights from the east
The military says it shot down a drone that crossed into Israel “from the east,” which is generally taken to mean that the aircraft flew from Iraq.
The announcement came minutes after warning sirens sounded in northern areas of the Golan Heights.
70-year-old woman seriously wounded in Hezbollah rocket barrage on Nahariya
At least two people are wounded by shrapnel in the Hezbollah rocket barrage on Nahariya, medics say.
Magen David Adom says it is treating a 70-year-old woman in serious condition and a man in his 80s who is lightly hurt.
Several others are being treated for acute anxiety.
The IDF says 10 rockets were launched in the attack, some of which impacted inside towns.
IDF says 10 rockets fired from Lebanon in latest barrage, several impacts in Nahariya
The IDF says a barrage of 10 rockets was launched from Lebanon at the Western Galilee a short while ago.
Several of the rockets were intercepted and impacts were also identified, the military says.
Magen David Adom says it is scanning sites of reported impacts in Nahariya for potential casualties.
A fire is also reported in Nahariya from an impact or falling shrapnel.
The IDF says a barrage of 10 rockets was launched from Lebanon at the Western Galilee a short while ago.
Several of the rockets were intercepted and impacts were also identified, the military says.
Magen David Adom says it is scanning sites of reported impacts in Nahariya for… pic.twitter.com/4YEhE9lsEG
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 25, 2024
US Mideast envoy to visit Saudi Arabia, aims to use Lebanon truce as ‘catalyst’ for Gaza deal
White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa Brett McGurk arrives at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, April 18, 2024. (Kent Nishimura/ Getty Images/ AFP)
White House Mideast czar Brett McGurk will visit Saudi Arabia tomorrow to discuss using a potential ceasefire in Lebanon “as a catalyst” for a subsequent ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza, deputy press secretary Andrew Bates tells reporters aboard Air Force One.
Medics responding to reports of rocket impacts in Nahariya
Medics are responding to reports of rocket impacts in the northern city of Nahariya.
Sirens are heard in the city and other towns in the Western Galilee, during a barrage of rockets launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon.
Top Hamas official in Lebanon says Palestinian terror group will back Israel-Hezbollah truce
Hamas official Osama Hamdan speaks during an interview with AFP in Istanbul on September 15, 2024. (Ozan Kose/ AFP)
BEIRUT, Lebanon — A top Hamas official in Lebanon says the Palestinian terror group will support a ceasefire between its Lebanese ally Hezbollah and Israel, despite Hezbollah’s previous promises to stop the fighting in Lebanon only if the war in Gaza ends.
“Any announcement of a ceasefire is welcome. Hezbollah has stood by our people and made significant sacrifices,” Osama Hamdan tells the Lebanese broadcaster Al Mayadeen, which is seen as politically allied with Hezbollah.
There has been no official comment on a potential Lebanon ceasefire from Gaza-based leaders of either Hamas or the smaller terror group Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Hamdan is a member of Hamas’s political wing.
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