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Israel News

Daily Alert

U.S. President Gives Hamas an Ultimatum

on September 08, 2025
(New York Times) Isabel Kershner - President Trump on Sunday presented Hamas with an ultimatum: either accept a new American ceasefire proposal or face Israel's military advance into Gaza City. "The Israelis have accepted my Terms," Trump posted on social media, hinting at a new American proposal to exchange all the remaining hostages for Palestinian prisoners and end the Gaza war. "It is time for Hamas to accept as well. I have warned Hamas about the consequences of not accepting. This is my last warning, there will not be another one!" If Hamas balks, it could allow Israel and the U.S. to argue that they tried everything and that the group was bringing disaster upon itself.

Britain: Israel Is Not Committing Genocide in Gaza

on September 08, 2025
(The Times-UK) Matt Dathan - The UK Foreign Office has concluded that Israel's actions in Gaza did not constitute genocide, British Foreign Secretary David Lammy wrote in a letter last week. "As per the Genocide Convention, the crime of genocide occurs only where there is specific 'intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group.' The government has not concluded that Israel is acting with that intent."

Britain "Shamefully Fails to Hold Hamas Terrorists to Account

on September 08, 2025
(Jerusalem Post) Mathilda Heller - "The British Government has now been forced to admit that the hateful rhetoric frequently published about Israel committing genocide is false," Sir Michael Ellis, former Attorney General for England and Wales, told the Jerusalem Post on Monday. "There has never been any evidence of such a thing, but this irresponsible government persists in repeating the slurs and ramping up hatred and diplomatic attacks against Israel. It also shamefully fails to hold Hamas terrorists to account and thus helps to prolong the conflict."

Six Israelis Murdered, 21 Wounded in Jerusalem Shooting Attack

on September 08, 2025
(Jerusalem Post) Six Israelis were murdered and dozens were wounded after Palestinian terrorists opened fire on civilians at Ramot Junction in Jerusalem on Monday morning. A soldier and several civilians killed the attackers.

Soldier Describes Stopping Terrorists in Deadly Jerusalem Terror Attack

on September 08, 2025
(Jerusalem Post) After responding to the attack in Jerusalem on Monday, a platoon commander in the IDF's haredi Hashmonaim Brigade said: "Today, I was at the stop where the terrorist attack was. I heard shooting and understood we needed to make contact. I saw the terrorists, so some other civilians and I opened fire until the terrorists were neutralized, and then helped the wounded."

Jerusalem Student Helps to Stop Terror Attack

on September 08, 2025
(Ynet News) A Jerusalem yeshiva student who received his handgun license a year ago was among the civilians who opened fire on the gunmen who carried out Monday's deadly terrorist attack. "The scenario that something like this could happen crosses my mind every day," he said. "I grew up in Jerusalem and I remember terror attacks since childhood." "This is a bus line I don't like to take, but the other buses didn't arrive, so I got on it. By chance, I was in the right place at the right time, with a weapon....The station was unusually crowded. The bus stopped in the road, and it wasn't full. Suddenly I heard gunfire....One of the civilians outside had already taken up a position and returned fire. I simply joined him. I only had 10 rounds in the magazine, so I couldn't overthink it. The terrorists fired back." "We brought them down. I didn't feel unusual stress, I acted calmly. I gave testimony to the police. I always wondered what would happen if I was caught in an attack, and thank God I acted properly." His brother, a paramedic, was among the first responders. He said, "I'm proud of him. He didn't just take the licensing test - he did advanced training. He and the others with him knew how to respond. They didn't start shooting immediately, they waited until the area cleared of fleeing people before opening fire."

Palestinian Assailants Came from Villages near Ramallah

on September 08, 2025
(Ynet News) Liran Tamari - The two terrorists, Muthana Amro and Mohammed Taha, who murdered six people in Jerusalem, were residents of the Palestinian villages of Qatanna and Al-Qubeiba near Ramallah.

Israeli Defense Minister Orders Sanctions on Villages of Terrorists Who Carried Out Jerusalem Attack

on September 08, 2025
(Ynet News) Elisha Ben Kimon - Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered civil sanctions against family members and residents of the villages of the terrorists who carried out Monday's deadly attack in Jerusalem, to demolish all illegal buildings in the villages and to revoke 750 work permits to enter Israel. This is in accordance with the recommendation of the defense establishment and the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, Maj.-Gen. Rassan Alian.

Four Soldiers Killed in Hamas Attack near Gaza City

on September 08, 2025
(Times of Israel) Emanuel Fabian - Four IDF soldiers were killed in a Hamas attack on the outskirts of Gaza City's Sheikh Radwan neighborhood early Monday. Hamas operatives reached a tank at an army encampment and opened fire at the commander, who had his head outside the vehicle's open hatch. The gunmen then hurled an explosive device into the tank, killing the four soldiers.

Houthi Drone from Yemen Hits Airport Arrivals Hall near Eilat on Sunday

on September 08, 2025
(TPS-Jerusalem Post) Pesach Benson - A drone launched from Yemen struck the passenger hall at Ramon Airport near Eilat on Sunday, injuring one man. The Israel Air Force intercepted three other drones during the day, two of which were destroyed before entering Israeli territory. The airport, which opened in 2019, replaced Eilat Airport and Ovda Airport for domestic and international flights.

IDF Intercepts 3 Houthi Drones on Monday

on September 08, 2025
(Times of Israel) Emanuel Fabian - Three drones launched by the Houthis in Yemen were shot down by the Israel Air Force over southern Israel within half an hour on Monday.

Hamas Slams U.S. Proposal to End Gaza War

on September 08, 2025
(Ha'aretz) Jack Khoury - Basem Naim, a member of the Hamas politburo, told Al-Araby television on Monday that President Trump's proposal for trading hostages for Palestinian prisoners and a ceasefire in the Gaza war amounts to a "declaration of surrender" for his group. Hamas officials told Ha'aretz the plan failed to meet their core demands.

IDF Issues Evacuation Notice for All of Gaza City

on September 08, 2025
(Ha'aretz-Ynet News) Bar Peleg - IDF Arabic-language spokesman Lt.-Col. Avichay Adraee posted an order on Tuesday for all residents of Gaza City and all its neighborhoods - "from the Old City and Tuffah in the east to the sea in the west" - to immediately evacuate toward the humanitarian zone in Muwasi. The order was accompanied by leaflets in Arabic dropped from aircraft and SMS messages to residents' phones. "The IDF is determined to defeat Hamas and will operate in the Gaza City area with great force.... Remaining in the area is extremely dangerous." He listed a phone number to report Hamas roadblocks or attempts made by Hamas to prevent the evacuation of residents to the IDF.

Amb. Michael Oren Doubts Hamas Will Release All Hostages

on September 08, 2025
(ILTV-Ynet News) Emily Schrader - Former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren told ILTV that Hamas is unlikely to ever return all of the Israeli hostages. "Hamas is not stupid, and it knows that the minute it returns the last hostage, then Israel will be in a position to go in and destroy Hamas completely." In the end, Hamas may not even know where all of them are, and will likely keep several hostages "for safekeeping" or "a rainy day."

Tunisia Denies Gaza Flotilla Boat Hit by Drone

on September 08, 2025
(Jerusalem Post) The latest Gaza flotilla reported that one of its main ships was attacked by a drone in a Tunisian port on Tuesday. However, Tunisia's interior ministry said the reports "have no basis in truth." Authorities said a fire that broke out on the vessel was caused by a cigarette butt, not a drone strike.

These Hostage Families Want to Fight in Gaza, Not Tel Aviv

on September 08, 2025
(Wall Street Journal) Elliot Kaufman - Boaz Miran has waited 700 days to see his brother Omri, who was 46 when Hamas took him to Gaza as a hostage. But you won't find him at the hostage protests. He told the Journal's editorial board: "Hamas always tells the hostages to tell the people of Israel: 'Take to the streets. Go and demonstrate. Go and pressure your government. Go and make chaos in Israel.' And the Israeli people just go and do what Hamas asks them to do." Miran is part of the Tikva Forum, a smaller group of hostage families which has opposed the protests as well as the ransoms paid by Israel's government. His hope is that Israel will press forward militarily until the terrorists surrender all the hostages. I ask Miran why not take a partial deal which would release 10 living hostages, as Hamas has reportedly accepted. Miran replies, "This raises a moral question....Maybe it can be Omri, or maybe it can be another hostage. How do you choose?" Second, "if I agree to make a deal, it isn't free. Many soldiers will pay the bill with their lives, because more terrorists will be released and Hamas will gain more power. In the end, Israel will need to go back and fight in Gaza and more Israelis will be kidnapped by Hamas in the future." "What we need to do is apply as much military pressure as possible on Hamas and make it surrender. This is the way to bring back all the hostages." The terrorists have always had a security blanket, knowing they can toss Israel a few hostages, or even their bones, and regroup. By playing along, Israelis allow their country to be held hostage too. The writer is a member of the Journal's editorial board.

The Last Stronghold of Hamas Is about to Fall

on September 08, 2025
(Telegraph-UK) Col. (ret.) Richard Kemp - The IDF has been ratcheting up pressure on Hamas in Gaza City, pretty much Hamas's last major stronghold. Israel has already warned the civilians there to move to designated safer areas. On Friday, Hamas issued a specific order threatening civilians who leave. They are intent on sacrificing their own population to bring international pressure on Israel to halt its offensive. Egypt is abetting Hamas by refusing to open its borders to give civilians temporary refuge. Most desperately want to find safety in Sinai and on recent visits to Gaza almost every one of the 100 or so Gazans I met told me exactly that. In virtually every other conflict around the world, neighboring states open their borders. During the Syrian civil war, Arab countries and Turkey took in millions fleeing the fighting. Meanwhile, the IDF has been making immense efforts to ship thousands of tents and other supplies into southern Gaza, as well as beefing up the joint U.S.-Israeli humanitarian aid distribution operation. The IDF has a more sophisticated system for mitigating civilian harm than any other armed forces in the world, developed over many years of fighting enemies that actually want to maximize the deaths of their own civilians. This offensive is not a matter of choice for Jerusalem but a tragic necessity. No country that wanted to survive could take any other path. The writer, a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, was chairman of the UK's national crisis management committee, COBRA.

Israel Has the Right to Destroy Hamas to Prevent Another Oct. 7

on September 08, 2025
(JNS) Amb. David Friedman - Genocide is defined as the deliberate killing of a large number of members of an ethnic group with the intention of eliminating that group. Israel's conduct plainly does not meet that definition. First, Israel is responding to an unprovoked, barbaric attack within its borders on Oct. 7, 2023. Second, Israel has shown no intention of eliminating the Palestinians in Gaza, as evidenced by the smallest percentage of civilian relative to militant casualties of any urban war. Third, Israel clearly has the military power to destroy Gaza, but it never would because genocide decidedly is against the Israeli ethos and values. Fourth, Palestinian communities under Israeli control have grown nearly 10-fold since Israel took over. Fifth, 20% of Israeli citizens are Palestinian Arabs and, under Israeli rule, they have ascended to the highest echelons of business, law, medicine and academia. If you don't believe that Israel has the right to destroy Hamas in order to prevent another Oct. 7, then you just hate Jews, and there's nothing more to discuss. If you believe that Israel has such a right but believe that Israel is killing too many people, then you have an obligation to identify a less lethal way to destroy Hamas. I have yet to hear a single critic of Israel offer such a method. The writer is a former U.S. ambassador to Israel.

Hamas's Chief Negotiator Is a Terrorist, Not a Peacemaker

on September 08, 2025
(The Dispatch) Jonathan Schanzer and Ahmad al-Sharawi - The leading figure among a gaggle of Hamas leaders outside of Gaza who participate in ceasefire negotiations is Khalil al-Hayya, who was reportedly appointed as Hamas's leader in Gaza following the elimination of Yahya Sinwar by Israel in October. Al-Hayya splits his time between Qatar and Turkey. Al-Hayya participated in the hostage negotiations after Hamas kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2006. He proclaimed that the Shalit deal proved that kidnapping works, and he promised more abductions. The New York Times reported in October 2024 that Al-Hayya was a key planner of the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, during which Hamas seized 251 Israeli hostages and took them to Gaza. Al-Hayya led meetings with Iran's Revolutionary Guards in Lebanon to convince both the Iranians and Hizbullah to join Hamas in their attacks against Israel. So Israel and the U.S. find themselves negotiating the return of hostages with one of the men responsible for their capture. The U.S. should designate al-Hayya as a terrorist and bar him from any further negotiations. Al-Hayya has not played a productive role. He has spurned multiple deals that have been put on the table to end the war. Instead, he has doubled down on his group's positions, saying the Oct. 7 attack was "a military accomplishment" and a "source of pride for our people." He has also attacked the governments of Egypt and Jordan, urging their people to "escalate popular resistance." Jonathan Schanzer is senior vice president for research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, where Ahmad al-Sharawi is a research analyst.

American Leadership Is Feeding Gaza

on September 08, 2025
(The Hill) Norm Coleman - Thanks to bold American leadership, the civilian population in Gaza is receiving free food aid safely and reliably. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) has distributed more than 150 million free meals to Palestinian civilians since launching operations in May. The UN and other aid groups, fearful of a newcomer showing how their work can be done better, have become needlessly aggressive in working to undermine the GHF and refused to work with it cooperatively. The media, beholden to a narrative that Gaza is starving or that famine is imminent, has become a stenographer for the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. Hamas reportedly made the dismantling of the GHF a key demand in recent ceasefire negotiations. The writer is a former U.S. senator (R-MN), 2003-2009.

Spain Sanctions Israel over Gaza "Genocide"

on September 08, 2025
(Times of Israel) Nava Freiberg - Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced Monday an arms embargo and partial import ban over Israel's wartime conduct in Gaza, aiming to "stop the genocide in Gaza." In response, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar imposed sanctions on two Spanish ministers - Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Diaz and Minister of Children and Youth Sira Rego. "It is no longer possible to avoid imposing personal sanctions on members of the Spanish government who have crossed every red line. The entry of these ministers into Israel is prohibited, and Israel will not maintain any contact with them," Sa'ar said. "The government of Spain is leading a hostile, anti-Israel line, marked by wild, hate-filled rhetoric," Sa'ar said. The Spanish government's statements and policy are "tainted" with antisemitism. He accused Spanish politicians of "overt antisemitism." He later said, "If [Spain wants] to halt defense ties with Israel, who do you think will lose from that? We don't need Spain to defend the Land of Israel. On the contrary, they probably need Israeli capabilities far more than we need theirs." Sanchez's announcement came as Palestinian gunmen opened fire on a crowded Israeli bus stop, killing six people including Spanish-Israeli dual national Yaakov Pinto, 25. In response to Sa'ar's accusations, Spain's Foreign Ministry said it was recalling its ambassador.

Finland Deploys Israeli Gabriel-5 Missile

on September 08, 2025
(Jerusalem Post) Anna Ahronheim - The Finnish Navy has officially placed the Israeli-made Gabriel-5 missile into operational service after a series of extensive exercises. The Gabriel-5 has been installed on board the Hamina-class fast-attack missile boats, significantly expanding the Finnish Navy's strike capabilities. Manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries, the missile has combined anti-ship and land attack capabilities with a range of 300 km. at high speed. The missile does not fly in a straight line toward its target, making it difficult to detect and hit. It also features sea-skimming capabilities that make it difficult for radars to detect and intercept.

How Israel's Strikes on the Houthis Will Change Yemen

on September 08, 2025
(Foreign Policy) Fatima Abo Alasrar - The deaths of a dozen Houthi cabinet members could appear to be a devastating decapitation. However, Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi and his cabinet were the softer face of a group where genuine power remained locked within a narrow inner circle of family and allies. Rahawi's real role was to provide a veneer of national unity, not to wield authority. These were all figures who had chosen to lend their credentials to the Houthi militia's drive for legitimacy. The deeper loss, however, is psychological. For years, the Houthis have relied on the perception that they are untouchable, able to absorb strikes and emerge stronger. The Israeli attack punctured that mythology of invulnerability. The timing raises uncomfortable questions for the Houthis about how deeply Israeli intelligence has penetrated the organization. Yet the strikes did not decapitate the movement. Its leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, remains at the helm. The chief of the general staff, Maj.-Gen. Muhammad Abd al-Karim al-Ghamari - who manages the day-to-day war effort - is still alive. The Houthis' security and intelligence services continue to function, as does their military command structure. Looking forward, the Houthis are unlikely to be strategically derailed. They will replace their fallen ministers with new placeholders, stage larger rallies, and issue louder threats. But after the Houthis witnessed Israeli intelligence capabilities with the pager attacks on Hizbullah, experiencing direct penetration of their own leadership circles forces a different reckoning. For Israel, it means that deterrence can be achieved not only through intercepting missiles but by undermining the Houthis' mythology of invulnerability. The writer is a senior policy analyst at the Washington Center for Yemeni Studies.

Palestinian Journalists Attacked - By Whom?

on September 08, 2025
(Gatestone Institute) Khaled Abu Toameh - A recent international campaign to express solidarity with Palestinian journalists in Gaza has pointed an accusing finger at Israel, while ignoring the suffering they have experienced under Hamas's rule during the past two decades. The global media campaign also ignored allegations that many of the Palestinian journalists targeted by the Israel Defense Forces were affiliated with Hamas and other terror groups. Since its bloody takeover of Gaza in 2007, Hamas has been waging a systematic campaign to silence its critics, including arresting journalists who do not toe the line. Consequently, the only Palestinian journalists who were free to operate in Gaza for the past two decades were those working for Qatar's Al-Jazeera, serving as Hamas's unofficial mouthpiece, or those whose reporting was limited to attacking and smearing Israel. Those who continue to ignore Hamas atrocities and human rights abuses against Palestinians are doing a great disservice to the Palestinians: they are allowing Hamas to get away with its crimes against its own people. The writer, a veteran Israeli journalist, is a senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute and the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs.

Psychological Diplomacy in the Face of a "Two-State" Tsunami: The "Puerto Rico Solution"

on September 08, 2025
(Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs) Irwin J. Mansdorf, Ph.D. - While the "two-state" solution is almost universally accepted as "the only" solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, the reality of a full-fledged Palestinian "state" is not something most Israelis can accept, certainly not post-October 7, 2023. While many outsiders see a Palestinian state as the "fair" thing to do and a reasonable solution that would solve the conflict, this logic lacks credibility in a reality where Palestinians, both leadership and society, refuse to accept the existence of Israel as a Jewish state. Instead, we have a generational culture of Jew-hatred where the goal is not a state alongside Israel but a state instead of Israel. The continued popularity of Hamas among Palestinians in the face of the horrors of Oct. 7 serves as a constant reminder of the futility of seeking a Western solution in a Middle Eastern framework. How do we morph the Western obsession with "two states" into a situation that Israel can live with? It is the perception of a "state" that requires change. A Palestinian "state" can never pose a military threat to Israel. It cannot oppose peaceful coexistence. It can't enter into treaties with states hostile to Israel, and it can't continue to educate to hate. It can't host terror organizations, and it can't deny Jewish rights to the land. The same world that calls for Palestinian independence plays a different game itself. France, the first Western country to call for Palestinian independence, rules over 13 separate territories outside of France whose national identity as independent nations is not recognized. The United Kingdom has 14 British Overseas Territories, all of which are subject to British constitutional oversight and authority over defense, foreign relations, and internal security. Americans have Puerto Rico, which is neither a sovereign country nor a U.S. state. Their language is Spanish, and their cultural identity is Puerto Rican. They have their own flag and their own representation in international events, such as the Olympics. In theory, the Puerto Rico model provides independence and self-determination within a framework that protects Israelis and maintains national identity for both sides. The "two-state solution" that is parroted by so many needs to look at how a Palestinian "Puerto Rico" or a British or French-style "overseas territory" will look. It is all a matter of psychological diplomacy. The writer is a clinical psychologist and a fellow at the Jerusalem Center specializing in political psychology.

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