Oct. 31: Turkey to host some Muslim FMs on Monday amid Gaza ceasefire concerns

Suspected infiltration triggered sirens in West Bank settlement

A suspected terrorist infiltration siren sounds in the West Bank settlement of Mevo Horon.

The IDF Home Front Command instructs residents to remain locked in their homes until further notice.

The military says the incident is under investigation.

Red Cross says it transferred partial remains of three bodies from Hamas to Israel

Red Cross vehicles carrying the bodies of two people believed to be deceased hostages handed over by Hamas make their way toward the Kissufim border crossing with Israel, to be transferred to Israeli authorities, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, October 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

The Red Cross says it transferred the partial remains of three bodies, apparently of hostages, from Hamas to Israel this evening.

The remains have been taken for identification.

There has been no comment yet from Israel or Hamas on the transfer.

It is unclear if the remains belong to any of the 11 bodies of deceased hostages still held in the Strip.

Earlier this week, Hamas returned the partial remains of Ofir Tzarfati, whose body was recovered by the IDF nearly two years prior.

UN Security Council backs Morocco’s plan for Western Sahara autonomy

The UN Security Council votes in favor of a US-backed resolution stating that Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara is the “most feasible” solution for the disputed territory, despite fierce opposition from Algeria.

The resolution, adopted by 11 votes with none against and three abstentions — with Algeria having refused to participate — says autonomy for Western Sahara under Moroccan sovereignty could be the basis for negotiations to resolve the 50-year-old conflict.

UN tracks significant decline in Gaza aid looting since ceasefire began

Armed Palestinians sit on trucks carrying humanitarian aid near the Zikim border crossing between Israel and Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, August 18, 2025. (Khalil Kahlout/ Flash90)

The UN has tracked a significant decline in looting of humanitarian aid in Gaza since the ceasefire came into place earlier this month.

Just five percent of collected supplies were reportedly intercepted between October 10 and October 28, compared to 80% that were intercepted between May 19 and October 9, UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric says during a briefing.

US backs repeal of Caesar Act sanctions on Syria, State Department says

A US State Department spokesperson says that the Trump administration supports repealing the Caesar Act sanctions on Syria through the National Defense Authorization Act bill, which is being discussed by US lawmakers at the moment.

“The United States is in regular communication with regional partners and welcomes any investment or engagement in Syria that supports the chance for all Syrians to have a peaceful and prosperous country,” the spokesperson says.

Palestinian media reports another settler attack in West Bank, with two vehicles torched

Footage posted to social media allegedly showing a settler attack in the West Bank city of Deir Dibwan on October 31, 2025. (X: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Palestinian media reports on another settler attack today in the West Bank, this time in the village of Deir Dibwan east of Ramallah.

Two vehicles were torched in the alleged attack, footage shows.

Palestinian media says that masked settlers raided the town, hurling stones at residents and storming a mosque.

There are no reports of any arrests.

???? مشاهد توثّق اعتداءات عصابات المستوطنين على بلدة دير دبوان شمال شرق رام الله، حيث هاجموا الأهالي والمركبات واقتحموا أحد مساجد البلدة وعبثوا فيه pic.twitter.com/fqVykqqrAl

— ساحات – عاجل ???????? (@Sa7atPlBreaking) October 31, 2025

مستوطنون إسرائيليون اقتحموا بلدة دير دبوان شرق رام الله خلال صلاة الجمعة، أحرقوا مركبتين واعتدوا على مسجد بتحطيم نوافذه الخارجية، فيما تصدى لهم الأهالي واندلعت مواجهات ما زالت مستمرة.

لمتابعة التفاصيل على موقعنا: https://t.co/pRl0TiCExE#غزة #وقف_الحرب #الضفة_الغربية pic.twitter.com/KmQnUurX5o

— وكالة قدس برس (@qudspressagency) October 31, 2025

15-year-old Palestinian shot dead in West Bank clash with army — PA

Yamen Samid Yusuf Hamed. (Courtesy)

A 15-year-old Palestinian was shot dead in clashes with troops during an IDF raid of the village of Silwad near Ramallah in the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority health ministry reports.

The teen was identified as Yamen Samid Yusuf Hamed, a resident of Silwad.

The PA’s official Wafa news site says that Israeli troops used live ammunition, tear gas and sound grenades during the clashes.

Wafa cites unnamed local sources who say that the IDF held up an ambulance trying to reach Hamed for critical minutes as he bled out. The boy was declared dead at a nearby hospital.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF.

Settlers torch property in latest reported attack on Palestinian village in West Bank

Property torched in a reported settler attack on the Palestinian village of Beit Lid in the West Bank on October 31, 2025. (Social media/X: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Israeli settlers attacked the village of Beit Lid east of Tulkarem in the West Bank, hurling stones at passing vehicles outside the town and setting fire to a tractor and another vehicle, Palestinian media reports.

Israeli troops arrived at the scene but did not arrest any of the settlers, instead clashing with Palestinians who sought to protect their village from the attack, according to the Maan news site.

مستوطنون يحرقون جرارًا زراعيًا خلال هجوم أطراف قرية بيت ليد شرق طولكرم pic.twitter.com/29Bz4wGAUi

— palgraph (@palestine_graph) October 31, 2025

Trump says US will conduct nuclear tests if other countries do

US President Donald Trump says that the United States will conduct nuclear testing if other countries do so, while maintaining ambiguity over what type of testing he is referring to.

“We’re going to do some testing, yeah, and other countries do it. If they’re going to do it, we’re going to do it,” Trump tells journalists aboard Air Force One in response to a question from AFP.

Lebanon accuses Israel of responding to negotiation offer by ‘intensifying’ attacks

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun accuses Israel of responding to its offer to negotiate by intensifying its airstrikes, the latest of which killed a man riding a motorbike in southern Lebanon.

Aoun called for negotiations with Israel in mid-October, after US President Donald Trump brokered a ceasefire in Gaza.

“Lebanon is ready for negotiations to end the Israeli occupation, but any negotiation… requires mutual willingness, which is not the case,” Aoun says.

Israel “is responding to this option by carrying out more attacks against Lebanon… and intensifying tensions,” he adds during a meeting with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul.

Wadephul offers his support, stating that he would urge his Israeli counterpart Gideon Sa’ar to withdraw Israeli troops from southern Lebanon.

“Israel must withdraw. I understand that Israel has security needs… But in fact, we now need a process of mutual trust-building,” the German minister says.

Wadephul also encouraged the Lebanese government to ensure there is “a credible, transparent and rapid process of disarming Hezbollah.”

He acknowledges that it is “a mammoth task” but contended it is “a basic prerequisite for this country to experience stability and for there to be no further conflict with Israel.”

Meanwhile, Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi asks his visiting German counterpart to “help put pressure on Israel to stop its attacks.”

“Only a diplomatic solution, not a military one, can ensure stability and guarantee calm in the south,” Raggi is quoted by the NNA as saying.

He added that “the Lebanese government is continuing to gradually implement its decision to place all weapons under its control.”

Turkey to host Gaza meeting on Monday amid ceasefire concerns

Seated at main table, L/R, UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, US President Donald Trump, Jordan's King Abdullah II, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Egypt's Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly attend a multilateral meeting to discuss the situation in Gaza, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on September 23, 2025. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)

Foreign ministers of some Muslim countries will meet in Istanbul on Monday to discuss the Gaza ceasefire and next steps there, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan says, voicing concern over whether the ceasefire will continue.

Speaking at a press conference in Ankara, Fidan says the gathering would include foreign ministers of countries represented at a meeting with US President Donald Trump in New York in September.

That meeting, to discuss the situation in Gaza, was attended by Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Pakistan and Indonesia.

“The topics being discussed currently are how to proceed to the second stage, the stability force,” Fidan says.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted last week at his opposition to any role for Turkish security forces in the Gaza Strip as part of a mission to monitor a US-backed ceasefire with Hamas.

Katz claims he will strip IDF’s top lawyer, who resigned, of her rank

Defense Minister Israel Katz visits the Mahaneh Yehudah market in Jerusalem, on September 2, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Defense Minister Israel Katz says he seeks to strip outgoing Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi of her rank, over her involvement in leaking the Sde Teiman abuse video to the media.

“All required sanctions will be taken against her, foremost among them the stripping of her rank,” Katz says in a statement.

Under the IDF’s protocols, only a military court ruling, a special military tribunal, or the chief of staff can demote senior officers. The defense minister does not have such authority.

“Anyone who falsely spreads blood libels against IDF soldiers and prefers the welfare of the Nukhba terrorists over theirs is not worthy of wearing the IDF uniform and belongs in prison,” he says.

(The Palestinian detainee who was severely abused by the reservists in the Sde Teiman affair was not a member of Hamas’s Nukhba Force.)

“I intend to ensure a thorough investigation. Anyone found to be involved in this blood libel will be expelled and will pay a heavy price,” Katz adds. He doesn’t elaborate on the blood libel allegation, but appears to be referring to the use of the footage by certain critics of Israel who accused the IDF of raping Palestinian prisoners.

Katz said earlier that he would dismiss Tomer-Yerushalmi from the army, although it is unclear if he has the authority to do so either. Tomer-Yerushalmi met with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir this morning and requested to step down.

New footage shows settlers slaughtering sheep during attack on Palestinian village

Footage shows a masked settler attacking sheep during an attack on a Palestinian hamlet in the South Hebron Hills on October 28, 2025. (Social media/X: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

The Times of Israel has obtained new footage of a settler attack earlier this week on a Palestinian hamlet in the South Hebron Hills of the West Bank, with the clip showing the brutal slaughter of sheep belonging to one of the residents.

The livestock belonged to Mahmoud Drameen, who identified the masked men as local settlers in a complaint filed to Israel Police on Wednesday. The complaint also included graphic security camera footage documenting the attack, which also caught the masked men smashing the windows of his car.

Drameen said a total of 10 sheep were killed or seriously injured, and some had their eyes gouged out.

No suspects have been arrested to date.

While livestock have been targeted in such attacks before, the gruesome nature of the footage points to an apparent escalation in settler violence, which has been taking place on a near-daily basis with overwhelming impunity from Israeli prosecution.

Recent attacks have even featured ATVs that far-right ministers of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government have boasted of providing to settlers in illegal outposts that have mushroomed across the West Bank over the last two years.

Released hostage Omri Miran visits Hostages Square for Kabbalat Shabbat

Released hostage Omri Miran, far right, his father Dani Miran, center, and Lishay Miran-Lavi, at Tel Aviv Hostages Square on October 31, 2025 (Alon Gilboa/Hostages and Missing Families Forum)

Former captive Omri Miran arrives at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square for the first time since his release home for a Kabbalat Shabbat gathering.

Miran’s family, his father Dani Miran, his wife Lishi Miran-Lavi and their daughters are present at the event.

“For those who don’t know me, my name is Omri Miran, father of sweet Roni and Alma, son of the late Vera and Dani Miran, husband of Lishi Miran-Lavi, resident of Nahal Oz, and a Hamas captivity survivor of 738 days,” says Miran.

Miran, 46, was taken captive on October 7 by Hamas terrorists from Kibbutz Nahal Oz.

He says he heard in captivity and since his release about what was done for the hostages, the Shabbat eve ceremonies organized each Friday by Kibbutz Nahal Oz in Hostages Square, the weekly rallies, the days of protests and marches.

Miran says he wants to continue giving the same kind of strength to the families whose loved ones have not been released, referring to the bodies of 11 hostages still held in Gaza.

He asks his community of Nahal Oz to stand together for a moment of silence in the memory of those killed at the kibbutz on October 7, and in memory of all those killed on that day and during the war.

“I have no words to express how moved I am,” says Miran. “In the two and a half weeks since I’ve been here, I’ve heard only a fraction of all that has been done. How, out of pain, devastation, and trauma, you rose up and stood beside my family. For that, I thank you deeply.”

He says he loves everyone present, and has hope and the belief that things will be good, despite everything they have all been through.

Celebrating top IDF lawyer’s resignation, justice minister says it’s part of his judicial overhaul

Justice Minister Yariv Levin speaks at the Second Right-Wing Conference in Tel Aviv, July 31, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Justice Minister Yariv Levin claims that the resignation of the IDF’s top lawyer over her involvement in the leaking of footage showing the severe abuse of a Palestinian detainee by Israeli prison guards is the “direct result” of his effort to overhaul the judiciary.

“The systems of lies that have been built here for years, trampling on the rights of entire communities and severely harming the security of the state and IDF soldiers, are crumbling,” Levin writes in a Facebook post.

The soldiers in the video have been indicted for brutally assaulting the prisoner, leaving him with significant injuries, including broken ribs and an internal tear in his rectum.

In her resignation letter, Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi wrote: “I approved the release of material to the media in an attempt to counter the false propaganda directed against the military law enforcement authorities.”

In his statement celebrating her removal, Levin writes, “The head of the Shin Bet, the state ombudsman for judges, and now the military advocate general are being replaced by worthy, professional and decent people.”

“In the coming days, we will see the heads of the legal system closing ranks in a desperate effort to prevent the whole truth from being revealed and to delay the process of change,” Levin writes in a scathing statement.

Rothman summons AG, other legal officials to hearing at Knesset panel to discuss probe into Sde Teiman video

Combination photo showing Religious Zionism MK Simcha Rothman (L) and Attorney General Gali Bahrav-Miara at a Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee meeting, in Jerusalem, September 30, 2025. (Oren Ben Hakoon/Flash90)

Religious Zionism MK Simcha Rothman summons Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and other law enforcement officials for an urgent discussion at his Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee on Sunday morning after the military advocate general admitted she approved the leak of the Sde Teiman detainee abuse video.

The summons aims “to understand how the enforcement law system intends to deal with the conflict of interest inherent in the investigation into the distribution and leak of the Sde Teiman video and the false affidavits submitted to the High Court of Justice on the subject,” Rothman says in a post on X.

IDF says Palestinian shot dead in Gaza after approaching troops, ignored warnings to keep away

A Palestinian suspect who approached Israeli troops in northern Gaza’s Jabalia earlier today was killed.

According to the IDF, the troops attempted to “distance” the suspect, but after he ignored the warnings, continued to approach and “posed an imminent threat,” the forces opened fire.

Palestinian media reports that one person was killed in the area.

There are Palestinian reports of three others killed by IDF fire in the past day, two in Gaza City and one in the Abasan area of Khan Younis in the Strip’s south. The IDF has not yet commented on those incidents.

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

Top US general landed in Israel last night, meets Zamir, flies over Gaza

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir meets with the US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, at the Knesset, October 13, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, arrived in Israel last night as an official guest of IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir.

Caine was greeted by an honor guard at the IDF’s Kirya headquarters, after which he held a meeting with Zamir, according to military sources.

Additionally, Caine and Zamir held a discussion with other commanders on “regional developments across all fronts.”

Today, Caine toured the Gaza Strip from a helicopter before visiting the US headquarters of the multinational force overseeing the Israel-Hamas ceasefire in Kiryat Gat, known as the Civil-Military Coordination Center.

At the headquarters, Caine spoke with Maj. Gen. Yaki Dolf, the IDF’s liaison to the CMCC, the sources add.

Vaccinated doctor catches measles after treating unvaccinated baby

A vaccinated doctor was infected with measles after treating an unvaccinated infant at Ichilov Children’s Hospital, the Health Ministry reports.

The ministry says that two other medical staff members may have also been infected.

The ministry and the hospital are conducting a comprehensive epidemiological investigation and say they are monitoring the situation.

Hamas reportedly resumes search for hostages’ bodies in IDF-held parts of Gaza

Hamas terrorists carry a white bag believed to contain a body, retrieved from a tunnel during a search for the remains of hostages in Hamad City, Khan Younis, southern Gaza, October 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Hamas operatives have resumed searching for the bodies of deceased hostages in territory controlled by the Israel Defense Forces, the Kan public broadcaster reports, citing a source with knowledge of the matter.

It marks the first time Hamas operatives have been allowed into areas controlled by the IDF for such searches since terrorists launched a deadly attack on troops in Rafah on Tuesday.

On that day, Channel 12 news reported that in past searches, Hamas operatives had recovered weapons inside IDF-held areas.

According to Kan, Hamas operatives are being accompanied by Red Cross personnel and are searching in Khan Younis.

Netanyahu tells Bismuth to withhold Haredi draft bill, likely delaying key Knesset panel debate — report

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requested Likud MK Boaz Bismuth to delay submitting the bill to regulate the military conscription and exemptions for the ultra-Orthodox community to his Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, the Kan public broadcaster reports.

According to the report, the debate on the bill, scheduled for Monday, will likely be postponed, as a bill must be presented to the panel 48 hours before a discussion.

Opposition Yisrael Beytenu party chair Avigdor Lieberman responds to the report, accusing the government of wasting time while soldiers are fighting and their families worry about them.

“This spitting in all our faces will end on the first day of the government I will form,” he says, vowing to “flip the equation” and put soldiers and ex-soldiers first.

IDF soldier killed in Oct. 19 Rafah attack posthumously promoted to second lieutenant

2nd Lt. Itay Yavetz, who was killed in an attack in the southern Gaza Strip on October 19, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

Itay Yavetz, an IDF soldier who was killed in an attack in southern Gaza’s Rafah on October 19, is posthumously promoted to second lieutenant, the military announces.

Yavetz, who served in the Nahal Brigade’s 932nd Battalion, was also a cadet in the Erez program, a relatively new elite course for platoon and company commanders in the Ground Forces.

Yavetz was in the advanced training stage of the program, which includes academic studies and officer training. Accordingly, the IDF says he was posthumously promoted from the rank of sergeant to second lieutenant — the lowest officer rank.

The military adds that the Erez program, which began in 2023, will also be included in the rule-book for posthumous promotions, which has previously been applied to cadets in the Israeli Air Force, Israeli Navy and the standard Ground Forces officer’s school.

Movement for Quality Government says other officials suspected of crimes should follow IDF’s top lawyer lead and quit

The Movement for Quality Government in Israel says the leak by the IDF’s top lawyer Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi of investigative material regarding abuse at Sde Teiman is “a very severe act which harms proper administration and the rule of law.”

The organization welcomes her decision to take responsibility and resign, and expresses the wish that other public officer holders, including those suspected or indicted for criminal offenses, do the same, in a clear reference to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is standing trial on corruption charges, and numerous other cabinet ministers and MKs who are under suspicion of criminal wrongdoing.

“We respect the internalization of this public norm, and also call on the elected officials, who have a heavy cloud of criminal suspicions and indictments hanging over their heads, to learn from her, stop clinging on to the altar, set aside the keys and fight for their innocence from home,” says the organization.

Katz and Zamir say they are working together to pick new top lawyer for IDF

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

Defense Minister Israel Katz and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir say they are working together to appoint a new Military Advocate General after the resignation of Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi.

The pair held a discussion a short while ago, during which they agreed that Zamir will put together a list of candidates for the role and Katz will later approve one, “who will know how to face the significant challenges currently confronting the Military Advocate General, foremost among them the defense of IDF soldiers,” their offices say in a joint statement.

“The defense minister and the chief of staff are working to create immediate stability in the Military Advocate General, out of their responsibility for the system and for IDF soldiers,” the statement adds.

Red Cross denies Palestinian prisoner visits are security threat to Israel

Illustrative: Palestinian security prisoners gesture from inside a bus after being released from Ofer Prison in the West Bank on October 13, 2025, in exchange for hostages held in Gaza since the October 7 attacks. (HAZEM BADER / AFP)

MANAMA, Bahrain — An International Committee of the Red Cross senior official urges Israel to lift its ban on the group visiting Palestinian detainees, denying that they were a security threat.

There was “no way in which our visits can pose a security threat or a national security threat” to Israel, ICRC director-general Pierre Krahenbuhl tells AFP in an interview.

Red Cross chief says ‘pattern of violence’ targeting aid workers in Gaza, Sudan

United Nations and Red Crescent workers prepare the aid for distribution to Palestinians at UNRWA warehouse in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, October 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Hassan Eslaiah)

MANAMA, Bahrain — The International Committee of the Red Cross’s director-general tells AFP that humanitarian workers were being targeted in Gaza and in Sudan, where five volunteers were killed this week.

“It is now becoming a pattern of violence against humanitarian workers in Sudan, in Gaza, and others that we find very dramatic,” Pierre Krahenbuhl tells AFP in Bahrain.

Gallant says IDF’s top lawyer lied to him about probe of leaked detainee abuse video

Former defense minister Yoav Gallant arrives for a hearing at an internal Likud tribunal in Tel Aviv to present his defense against a move to expel him from the party, September 29, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/FLASH90)

Former defense minister Yoav Gallant says Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi lied to him about an internal investigation into the leaked Sde Teiman abuse video.

“Immediately after the video from Sde Teiman was leaked, I instructed that a swift investigation be opened to find the leaker and bring them to justice,” Gallant says on X.

“I summoned the military advocate general to my office to understand why the investigation was stalling. I asked her why the leaker had not been identified. In her response, as is now clear to everyone, the military advocate general deliberately lied and said that ‘the investigation is lengthy because dozens of people were exposed to the video,'” he says.

Tomer-Yerushalmi admitted this morning in her resignation letter that she approved the video to be leaked, claiming it was a counter to “false propaganda directed against the military law enforcement authorities” over the investigation into the abuse of a Gazan detainee at Sde Teiman.

Hezbollah operative killed in south Lebanon drone strike, IDF says

A Hezbollah operative was killed in an Israeli drone strike in the town of Kounine in southern Lebanon earlier today, the military says.

According to the IDF, Ibrahim Muhammad Raslan was a Hezbollah maintenance officer and was involved in restoring the terror group’s infrastructure in southern Lebanon.

“The terrorist’s activities constituted a threat to the State of Israel and its civilians, and a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon,” the military adds.

צה"ל חיסל מחבל בארגון הטרור חיזבאללה בדרום לבנון

צה"ל תקף וחיסל מוקדם יותר היום, בהובלת פיקוד הצפון ובאמצעות חיל האוויר את המחבל אברהים מחמד ראסלן, קצין תחזוקה בארגון הטרור חיזבאללה, במרחב כונין שבדרום לבנון.
המחבל עסק בנסיונות שיקום תשתיות טרור של חיזבאללה.

פעולותיו של המחבל… pic.twitter.com/XJ5RmgIggj

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 31, 2025

Smotrich says leak of detainee abuse video ‘tip of the iceberg’ of corruption in justice system

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

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich says the leak of the Sde Teiman detainee abuse video, with the approval of the IDF’s military advocate general, is just “the tip of the iceberg” of what he calls the “corruption” of the justice system, and vows to fix it.

In a post on X, Smotrich lists several points that include: demanding an “independent and impartial investigation” into the matter; suggesting it is “not the only lie and cover-up”; demanding immunity for the officer who “revealed the truth”; and calling for a military advocate general to be appointed from “outside the system.”

Police set to charge 14-year-old from Jaffa who allegedly tried to aid Hamas, ISIS

Police are preparing to indict an Arab Israeli 14-year-old from Jaffa suspected of trying to aid ISIS and Hamas, law enforcement announces, after submitting a prosecutor’s declaration against the youth.

The teenager allegedly reached out to contacts in both terror groups with footage and photos of buildings that are “linked to security forces” in Israel. He also sought to manufacture explosives in order to aid terrorist elements, police claim, but it is unclear whether he succeeded in his attempts to create a functioning bomb.

According to his lawyer, who spoke to The Times of Israel earlier this week, the youth has autism and was detained while visiting his mother’s family in Ramallah. He is being held in the Russian Compound detention facility in Jerusalem, where he has been subject to beatings by guards and other inmates, his attorney further claimed.

The teenager was arrested in Ramallah on October 17 after he allegedly “carried out several tasks for a hostile foreign entity,” police say. His detention has been extended several times by the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court.

Detectives in the Tel Aviv District police’s investigations and intelligence unit have been conducting a covert investigation into the youth over the past couple of weeks, which was subject to a gag order until it was lifted today.

Lapid says ‘no dispute,’ IDF’s top lawyer had to quit, public trust in IDF harmed by leak

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid chairs a meeting of his Yesh Atid party in the Knesset, October 27, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Opposition leader Yair Lapid says there is “no dispute” that IDF Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi had to resign over her leaking of the Sde Teiman detainee abuse video.

“She committed acts that harm the IDF and the public’s trust in it. No one is above the law. And that binds everyone,” Lapid writes on X, adding that an investigation must probe the leak, as well as the break-in to the Sde Teiman base by a far-right mob protesting arrests made due to the alleged abuse of a prisoner.

Ex-PM Bennett says leak of detainee abuse video ‘subverts trust’ in IDF commanders

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett speaks during the Israel Information Technology Conference in Ness Ziona, May 5, 2025. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett calls the leak of the Sde Teiman detainee abuse video a “very severe incident that subverts Israel’s public trust in senior commanders of the IDF.”

“It is good that the incident is being investigated,” he writes on X. “We must get to the bottom of the chain of events from beginning to end, and bring all those involved to justice.”

Heirs of Jewish couple sue New York Met, Greek foundation over Van Gogh painting looted by Nazis

The exterior of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. (photo credit: AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

The descendants of a Jewish couple are suing New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and a Greek foundation over their purchase of a Van Gogh oil painting seized by the Nazis before they fled Germany, The New York Times first reported earlier this week.

The suit accuses the Met of knowing, or that it “should have known” the painting was probably looted when it bought it for $125,000 in 1956, before selling it to a Greek shipping mogul in 1972.

According to the family’s lawyers cited by the report, Hedwig and Frederick Stern bought the painting in 1935, a year before they fled to California. The Sterns were barred from taking the artwork with them when they fled Munich, with the government declaring it “German cultural property.”

It was then sold in 1938 on the Sterns’ behalf by a trustee, with the proceeds going to the Nazis, the lawsuit claims. The painting eventually made its way to New York.

After the Met sold it to Basil Goulandris and his wife, Elise, in 1972, the couple established the B&E Goulandris Foundation, which runs a museum in Athens where the artwork is exhibited, the lawsuit says.

The court papers say that the Met’s purchase of the painting was approved by its curator at the time, Theodore Rousseau Jr., who was “one of the world’s foremost experts on Nazi art looting,” and therefore should have known its origins.

“To this day, the Goulandris defendants continue to conceal how and when their foundation came into possession of the painting; the Stern family’s ownership of the painting from 1935 to 1938; and the fact that the Nazis looted the painting from the Stern family, coerced the Sterns into selling it via a Nazi-appointed agent, and confiscated the proceeds of the sale,” court papers read.

IDF’s top lawyer says she approved leak of detainee abuse video

Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi told IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir during their meeting this morning that she is responsible for the leaked Sde Teiman abuse video.

In her resignation letter, Tomer-Yerushalmi writes: “I approved the release of material to the media in an attempt to counter the false propaganda directed against the military law enforcement authorities.”

“I bear full responsibility for any material that was released to the media from within the unit,” she says, adding that “from this responsibility also stems my decision to conclude my tenure as Military Advocate General.”

IDF’s top lawyer quits amid probe over leak of detainee abuse video

Military Advocate General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi at a farewell ceremony for retiring acting Supreme Court President Uzi Vogelman, at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem on October 1, 2024. (Oren Ben Hakoon/Pool)

Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi requested during a meeting with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir this morning to step down, the military says.

The IDF says Zamir “accepted her request to end her position immediately and will act to stabilize the Military Advocate General and to protect IDF soldiers.”

“The chief of staff is confident that a thorough investigation will be conducted to uncover the truth,” the military adds.

Tomer-Yerushalmi is suspected of involvement in the leaking of a surveillance video from the Sde Teiman detention facility, which purported to show soldiers severely abusing a Palestinian detainee last year.

She has been on leave since a criminal investigation was launched by police earlier this week into the leaking of the footage.

Defense Minister Israel Katz said earlier today that she would be dismissed from her role.

Tomer-Yerushalmi had prepared a resignation letter yesterday, which she delivered to Zamir during their meeting this morning.

Zamir announces senior military appointments, including 35 new colonels

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir announces a round of senior appointments in the military, which the military says were all approved by Defense Minister Israel Katz.

During a previous round of appointments, Katz clashed with Zamir for not consulting with him before the announcement.

The latest list includes 35 new colonels, alongside 20 existing colonels who have been moved to new positions at the same rank. Another three senior officers are being sent to academic studies between roles.

IDF’s top lawyer hands resignation letter to Zamir in meeting, ToI learns

Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi has presented IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir with a resignation letter in a meeting they are currently holding, The Times of Israel has learned.

Earlier, Defense Minister Israel Katz said Tomer-Yerushalmi would be dismissed over her alleged involvement in the leaking of a surveillance video from the Sde Teiman detention facility, which purported to show soldiers severely abusing a Palestinian detainee last year.

Haifa’s beaches closed after shark sighting

Illustrative: The beach in Haifa after it was closed down due to the security situation, August 25, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Haifa’s beaches are closed after a lifeguard spotted a shark near the southern shore, according to the city’s municipality.

Former captive Bar Kuperstein and his father lay tefillin at Hostages Square

Released hostage Bar Kuperstein is wrapped in a prayer shawl and phylacteries at Tel Aviv's Hostages Square, on October 31, 2025. (Instagram story screenshot)

Released hostage Bar Kuperstein, standing next to his father, Tal Kuperstein, are both wrapped in prayer shawls at Hostages Square, with each reciting the blessing for phylacteries (tefillin in Hebrew).

They are gathered in the prayer tent at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, which has been operating throughout the war, holding prayer services, learning sessions, and the opportunity to lay tefillin, a project created by Julie Kuperstein, Bar’s mother, as part of her effort to bring the hostages home.

Rabbi David Lau, the former Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel, is the rabbi in attendance.

Kuperstein had called for a 10 a.m. gathering on Friday to hold a communal laying of tefillin, creating a communal prayer to bring home the bodies of the remaining 11 hostages.

With a yarmulke on his head, Kuperstein has the phylacteries wrapped around his arm, and says the blessing with his father, in his wheelchair, doing the same.

The men around the Kupersteins blow the shofar and burst into song, dancing in a circle, holding the hands of Kuperstein’s father, who is seated in his wheelchair.

“When people sat in their sealed rooms and heard voices outside,” says one of the men leading the prayers, referring to the Hamas terrorist attack of October 7, 2023, “how did they know who was speaking — if it was those attacking them or those saving them — but they heard the words ‘Shema Yisrael,’ the call of the Jewish people that is written into the scrolls placed in the tefillin, and they knew who was outside.”

Kuperstein places his hands over his eyes and leads the crowd in reciting “Shema Yisrael.”

Israel returns 30 Palestinian bodies to Gaza after release of two hostages’ bodies

Israel has returned the bodies of 30 more Palestinians to Gaza as part of an ongoing exchange deal under a US-brokered ceasefire plan, a hospital tells AFP.

The Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis tells AFP that “the bodies of 30 Palestinian prisoners were received from the Israeli side as part of the exchange deal.”

Under the truce, Israel is to return 15 Palestinian remains for every deceased hostage returned by Hamas. Today’s transfer brings the number returned to Gaza to 225.

With Hezbollah rearming, Israel starts to lose patience with Lebanon — report

Hezbollah supporters raise the party's yellow flags and pictures of its slain leader Hassan Nasrallah, as they mark the first anniversary of his killing, in Beirut's seaside Raouche area, on September 25, 2025. (Anwar Amro / AFP)

The Hezbollah terror group is restocking rockets, anti-tank missiles, and artillery, increasing the chances of renewed conflict with Israel, people familiar with Israeli and Arab intelligence tell the Wall Street Journal.

Hezbollah is rearming by smuggling weapons through seaports, as well as smuggling routes through Syria, leading Israel to lose patience with Lebanon over its commitment to disarm the terror group, the sources say.

Israel was angered by recent intelligence findings on the issue, the sources add.

Lebanon’s leaders have passed a message to Israel through mediators asking for Jerusalem to have patience with their efforts to disarm Hezbollah, and said they are open to expanding cooperation on the matter, WSJ reports.

A US-brokered ceasefire in November 2024 with Hezbollah came after two months of open conflict in south Lebanon, which Israel invaded in a bid to ensure the return home of some 60,000 northern residents displaced by Hezbollah’s near-daily attacks. The rocket attacks began on October 8, 2023 — a day after fellow Iran-backed terror group Hamas invaded southern Israel, sparking the war against Hamas in Gaza.

The ceasefire required both Israel and Hezbollah to vacate southern Lebanon, to be replaced by the Lebanese armed forces. Israel has withdrawn from all but five strategic posts along the border.

Since the ceasefire, the IDF said, it has killed over 330 Hezbollah operatives in strikes, hit hundreds of Hezbollah sites, and conducted over 1,000 raids and other small operations in southern Lebanon.

Weakened by the war and still facing regular Israeli strikes, Hezbollah is under internal and international pressure to hand over its weapons, and the Lebanese army has drawn up a plan to disarm it.

Katz says IDF’s top lawyer will be ousted over leak of detainee abuse video

Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi attends a farewell ceremony for retiring acting Chief Justice Uzi Vogelman at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem on October 1, 2024. (Oren Ben Hakoon/POOL)

Defense Minister Israel Katz announces that the IDF’s top lawyer, Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi will be dismissed over her alleged involvement in the leaking of a surveillance video from the Sde Teiman detention facility, which purported to show soldiers severely abusing a Palestinian detainee last year.

Military Advocate General Tomer-Yerushalmi “will not be able to return to her position in light of the severity of the suspicions and the sensitivity of the role, which is responsible for law enforcement and setting legal norms throughout the IDF,” says Katz in a statement.

Katz says he will soon appoint an acting military advocate general and later begin a process of selecting a new officer for the role.

The appointment of the military advocate general — like other major general roles — is approved by the defense minister, following recommendations made by the IDF chief of staff.

Tomer-Yerushalmi has been on leave since a criminal investigation was launched by police earlier this week into the leaking of the surveillance video.

The involvement of individuals at the Military Advocate General’s office in the distribution of the video aired by Channel 12 news in August 2024 was being examined as part of the investigation.

The investigation is also looking into the suspicion that Tomer-Yerushalmi was aware and even potentially ordered that the video be leaked to the media.

The leaked footage showed soldiers at Sde Teiman taking aside one of the detainees, who had been lying face down on the floor, then surrounding him with riot shields to block visibility while they allegedly committed the abuse. The detainee was subsequently taken away for treatment for severe injuries.

Earlier this year, military prosecutors filed an indictment against five reserve soldiers for the abuse.

Ben Gvir says residents of two more localities to be eligible for gun permits

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

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir announces the addition of Modi’in and the Be’er Tuvia Regional Council to the list of localities whose residents are eligible for a private firearms license, as part of his gun permit reform.

In a statement, Ben Gvir says the move is in response to “repeated security incidents” in the communities.

“The reforms we are leading have already saved many lives and have proven themselves in the field,” he says.

Requests for gun permits surged following Hamas’s massive attack on southern Israel. Last March, Ben Gvir celebrated the approval of 100,000 new gun licenses since October 7, claiming that putting more weapons on the streets has made Israel safer. Women’s groups have decried the rising number of guns in Israeli homes, saying it poses a risk to victims of domestic violence.

In the wake of October 7, the National Security Ministry also granted temporary authority to Ben Gvir’s personal staff appointees, Knesset employees, and others to approve gun license applications. Several were subsequently investigated by police on suspicion that the ministry inappropriately issued firearms permits.

Last November, the High Court of Justice said that licenses were issued “seemingly without authority.”

Sam Sokol contributed to this report.

Ex-cop seriously hurt after self-immolating outside Defense Ministry rehab official’s home

A former policeman suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder set himself alight in front of the home of a senior official in the Defense Ministry’s Rehabilitation Department in Neve Ilan, the ministry says.

Fire and Rescue services say a team arrived on the scene and provided treatment to the man, who was in a serious condition.

The team also worked to extinguish flames in the home’s yard.

Paramedics took the man to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital, the Magen David Adom ambulance service says.

US cancels Trump-Putin summit over Russia’s hardline demands on Ukraine — report

US President Donald Trump (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands at the end of a joint press conference after participating in a US-Russia summit on Ukraine at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025. (Drew Angerer/AFP)

The United States has cancelled a planned Budapest summit between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin following Russia’s firm stance on hardline demands regarding Ukraine, the Financial Times reports.

The decision came after a tense call between the two countries’ top diplomats, the Financial Times says

Reuters cannot immediately verify the FT report.

Hurricane Melissa’s death toll climbs to 44, storm churns north

An aerial view of Black River, Jamaica, October 30, 2025, in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa. (AP/Matias Delacroix)

Hurricane Melissa’s confirmed death toll climbed to 44 on Thursday, official reports say, after wreaking destruction across much of the northern Caribbean and picking up speed as it headed toward Bermuda.

Jamaica’s information minister tells Reuters at least 19 deaths had been confirmed, but authorities were continuing search and rescue efforts. The storm has left hundreds of thousands without power, ripped roofs of buildings and scattered fields with rubble.

Jamaica’s military has called on reserve personnel to report for duty to help with relief and rescue operations.

Melissa made landfall in southwestern Jamaica on Tuesday as a powerful Category 5 hurricane, the Caribbean nation’s strongest-ever storm to directly hit its shores, and the first major hurricane to do so since 1988.

Windspeeds were well above the minimum level for the strongest hurricane classification. Forecasters at AccuWeather said it tied in second place for strongest-ever Atlantic hurricane on record in terms of windspeed when in struck land.

The forecaster estimated $48 billion to $52 billion in damage and economic loss across the western Caribbean.

Repression in Iran worsened after 12-day war with Israel in June, UN probe finds

Iranians walk past a poster featuring Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei outside the venue of the 22nd Police and Security Equipment Exhibition at Imam Khomeini Mosque in Tehran on October 15, 2025. (ATTA KENARE/AFP)

United Nations factfinders denounce Iran’s intensification of oppression since the country’s 12-day war with Israel in June, noting more than 21,000 arrests and mistreatment of minorities and journalists.

“Since March of this year, we have documented further deterioration of the human rights situation in Iran,” says Sara Hossain, who heads the Independent International Fact Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran, a body established by the UN Human Rights Council in 2022.

“Airstrikes by Israel on Iranian territory and a subsequent domestic crackdown by the Iranian authorities further constricted civic space, undermined due process, and eroded respect for the right to life,” she adds.

Regarding the 21,000 people arrested by Iranian authorities during the 12-day war, Hossain says the Islamic Republic has targeted a broad swath of Iran’s civil society, including “lawyers, human rights defenders, journalists, and even social media users who simply published content relating to the hostilities.”

Iran has also ramped up executions, with more than 1,200 to date in 2025 — already exceeding the 2024 total, which was the highest recorded figure in Iran since 2015.

“There are strong indications that the Government of Iran continues to systematically implement the death penalty in ways that contravene international human rights law,” Hossain says.

The investigation also found that the Islamic Republic’s repression of ethnic and religious minorities has “intensified” with “over 330 Kurds and large numbers of Arabs” arrested and “hundreds of thousands of Afghans” deported, Hossain says.

Iran has accused members of the Baha’i faith of being “Zionist spies,” targeting them in house raids and confiscating their property, Hossain says.

The probe also found Iran’s government continuously deactivates journalists’ SIM cards, and repression of the press is “not confined to Iran’s borders,” she adds.

The mission also examined Israel’s deadly airstrikes on Evin prison, a notorious jail for political prisoners.

“Our preliminary investigation indicates that the Israeli airstrikes hit civilian buildings in the prison complex, which do not constitute legitimate military objectives, and that the strikes on these buildings were likely intentional,” Hossain says.

She adds that Iranian authorities may have failed to take reasonable measures to protect detainees.

US energy secretary cancels visit over Israeli counterpart’s refusal to approve Egypt gas deal

Energy Minister Eli Cohen meets his American counterpart Chris Wright in Washington on April 3, 2025. (Shmulik Almani)

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright cancels his upcoming six-day visit to Israel after Energy Minister Eli Cohen refuses to sign off on a massive gas export agreement recently agreed upon between Jerusalem and Cairo, Cohen’s office says.

In August, Israel’s Leviathan field signed a $35 billion to export natural gas to Egypt, the largest export agreement in Israel’s history.

But Cohen’s office says he won’t approve the deal until “fair prices are agreed upon for the Israeli market,” adding that the Trump administration applied significant pressure on Cohen and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to approve the deal.

The US energy giant Chevron, which operates the gas field, also has been pressing Israel to ratify the deal, reports Israel Hayom.

Cohen “demanded that the prices for the Israeli market will remain attractive,” according to his office. “Since the negotiations have yet to be completed, Cohen refused to approve the export until the issue is solved.”

It is exceedingly rare for a minister to publicize his role in shaking up Israel’s relationship with any US administration. The statement from Cohen’s office was especially notable in creating friction with US President Donald Trump’s White House while US officials are working with Israel to advance Trump’s peace plan for Gaza.

The gas deal in its current form is expected to funnel hundreds of millions of shekels in revenues from gas royalties and taxes to the country’s state coffers.

The deal was announced as growing domestic energy needs have sparked heated discussions over natural gas exports. Earlier this year, the Finance Ministry warned that Israel is poised to face a natural gas shortage in the next 25 years as domestic energy needs are growing faster than forecast and gas export sales are robust. A shortfall would lead to higher electricity prices for consumers.

Natural gas from Leviathan, one of the world’s largest deep-water gas discoveries, started to flow to the Israeli domestic market in December 2019. The partners in the Leviathan reservoir began exporting natural gas to Egypt in January 2020 after signing a deal for 60 billion cubic meters, which is expected to be supplied by the early 2030s. To date, Leviathan has supplied 23.5 billion cubic meters of gas to the Egyptian market.

“At the same time, efforts are underway to sort out the diplomatic aspects between Israel and Egypt,” says Cohen’s office.

Report: US watchdog says IDF committed ‘many hundreds’ of potential human rights violations in Gaza

A US government watchdog says in a classified report that the IDF committed “many hundreds” of potential human rights violations during the Gaza war that would take the State Department “multiple years” to review, The Washington Post reports.

The report from the State Department’s Office of Inspector General was completed several days before the Gaza ceasefire went into effect on October 10.

The report assessed the US government’s adherence to the so-called Leahy Law, which bars aid to foreign security force units credibly accused of human rights violations.

The report revealed by The Post, based on details provided by two officials, notes that the criteria for making such determinations are more stringent for Israel than for other countries and that the process includes higher-level US officials and a lengthier review. Former State Department employees critical of Israel tell The Post that the policy results in Israel avoiding accountability for rights abuses.

Israel says its troops make efforts to avoid civilian casualties, and accuses Hamas of embedding itself and its weapons among noncombatants. The IDF says it investigates allegations of violations among its troops.

While Trump has fired 17 inspectors general since returning to office, arguing that those removed were acting unfairly, the watchdogs are mandated to operate independently.

The Biden administration largely dismissed concerns of alleged rights abuses by the IDF that were raised by State Department bureaucrats, and the Trump administration is seen as even more likely to do so, given its closer relationship with Israel.

Meanwhile, the corresponding watchdog for the now-defunct US Agency for International Development is looking into alleged diversion of humanitarian assistance by Hamas and other Gaza terror groups, according to The Post.

UJA federation: 74,000 Jewish households in New York set to lose food assistance due to US government shutdown

The UJA-Federation of New York says 74,000 Jewish households in New York City are set to lose food benefits due to the federal government shutdown.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for lower-income families will expire on Saturday, according to the US Department of Agriculture, which oversees the program.

Recipients of the program receive an average of $187 a month for food. Around 42 million Americans use the program.

UJA thanks New York Governor Kathy Hochul for allocating $65 million in emergency funding for food providers, including food pantries affiliated with the federation.

UJA says it drew the statistic from a 2023 report on poverty in the New York Jewish community. The survey found that 12% of Jewish households in the area are defined as poor and 8% near poor.

The families in those categories tend to be large, so the percentage of the Jewish population that is poor or near poor is around 24%.