IDF will keep fighting Iran in Syria, chief of staff says
Amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran, IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi said Sunday that the army will continue to operate forcefully as needed against Iranian entrenchment in Syria.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
War monitor claims Israeli strike killed at least 19 pro-Iran fighters in Syria
Airstrikes likely carried out by Israel killed at least 19 pro-Iran militia fighters in war-torn eastern Syria, a war monitor said Thursday.
Israel on its way to fourth election in two years?
Israel is on a high-speed train to new elections — the fourth in two years — as rumblings during the past few weeks over a possible government collapse manifested in a verbal threat by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.
Israeli PM Netanyahu and UAE Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Zayed nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and United Arab Emirates Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Zayed have been nominated for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, the Jerusalem Post reports. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Lord David Trimble of Northern Ireland has nominated the two leaders for their pioneering agreement to normalize relations between Israel and the UAE.
Israeli military prepares for possibility Trump will strike Iran
The Israel Defense Forces have in recent weeks been instructed to prepare for the possibility that the U.S. will conduct a military strike against Iran before President Trump leaves office, senior Israeli officials tell me.
Netanyahu announces he plans to visit Bahrain
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Tuesday that he is planning to make his first official visit to Bahrain in the near future, the Jerusalem Post reports. Like Sudan and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain has recently signed a US-brokered normalization agreement with Israel.
In threat to Iran, US sends heavy bombers to Middle East via Israel
The United States this week rapidly deployed several heavy bombers to the Middle East this week in an apparent threat to Iran, amid swirling speculation that US President Donald Trump plans to take military action against Tehran before President-elect Joe Biden enters office.
Upping pressure on Blue and White, Lapid vows no-confidence vote next week
In a move aimed at pressuring the centrist Blue and White party to break ranks with the coalition amid an ongoing deterioration of relations within the government, opposition leader Yair Lapid said Monday that he’ll lead a proposal next week to disperse the Knesset and call new elections.
Media reports Netanyahu flew to Saudi Arabia for secret talks
Israel’s Channel 12 has reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Mossad chief Yossi Cohen flew to Saudi Arabia Sunday for a secret meeting with officials there, All Israel News (AIN) reports. Although the meeting has not been confirmed by the Prime Minister’s office, the news has caused speculation that, following Bahrain, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia may become the next Arab state to normalize relations with Israel.
Iran vows to crush any Israeli attempt to hit its “advisory” role in Syria
Iran on Sunday vowed to defeat any Israeli attempt to harm its role in Syria, saying the era of “hit and run” attacks by Israel there was over, days after Israel carried out airstrikes on the Syrian army and Iranian paramilitary targets in the country.
IDF strikes Hamas targets in Gaza after rockets fired
The IDF struck Hamas targets in Gaza overnight on Saturday, after Palestinian terrorists fired a rocket toward Israel, setting off air raid sirens in the southern city of Ashkelon, the military announced.
Netanyahu: Israel to ink deal with AstraZeneca for millions of vaccines
Israel is in the final stages of talks with British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca to purchase “millions” of doses of its vaccine, which is currently under trial, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Friday.
Pompeo: US to withdraw funding from organizations involved with “cancer” of BDS movement
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Thursday that the US will withdraw government funding from organizations it identifies as engaging in “hateful BDS conduct,” the Washington Examiner reports. Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions (BDS) is an international Palestinian-led, non-violent movement that challenges what its founders describe as “Israeli apartheid and settler-colonialism.”
Islamic state claims responsibility for blast between Egypt and Israel
A blast hit the Al Arish-Al Qantara natural gas pipeline in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula on Thursday, witnesses and local authorities said.
Gantz welcomes renewed Palestinian security ties, calls for peace talks
Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Wednesday praised the Palestinian Authority’s decision to resume security cooperation with Israel, saying the move benefited both Israelis and Palestinians.
In a rare move, IDF releases video of predawn strikes on Iranian, Syrian targets
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday night released footage of some of its predawn airstrikes against Iranian and Syrian military sites in southern Syria, which came in response to an attempted attack on Israeli troops that was thwarted the day before.
Pompeo says Israel’s normalization deals ‘isolate Iran more than ever’
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday met said during a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Bahrain’s foreign minister that regional normalization deals leave Iran “ever more isolated”.
Israel strikes targets in Syria to send a message to Iran
Israel carried out a round of airstrikes in Syria early Wednesday morning in what military officials said was a message to Iran to get out of the country, the Times of Israel reports. The strikes followed a thwarted Iran-backed attempt to set off anti-personnel mines against Israeli troops on the Golan Heights this week.
IDF launches airstrikes against Iranian Quds Force in Syria
The Israel Defense Forces attacked Iranian and Syrian targets in Syria early Wednesday morning in response to explosives troops uncovered on Israel’s border with Syria on Tuesday.
Over 50% of Israelis would not agree to be vaccinated against COVID-19
More than half of Israelis (52%) say they “think they would not” or are “convinced they would not” be vaccinated against the coronavirus if a vaccine becomes widely available, according to a new survey by the Israel Democracy Institute.