Israel’s National Cyber Directorate said it is investigating a wave of suspicious phone calls targeting Israeli citizens with prerecorded Hebrew messages that appeared to come from Iranian intelligence operatives. According to Ynet, one recording introduced itself as a direct pitch from Tehran: “Iranian intelligence is looking for official agents — competitive salary, comprehensive security. Find us on Telegram and the internet.” One man told the outlet that both he and his wife received a call offering financial compensation if they agreed to enlist as agents for Iran. The cyber directorate urged the public not to answer calls from numbers beginning with 03-6817 or 03-3067, and to hang up immediately if connected. Officials stressed that simply answering the call would not compromise a device. Police instructed recipients to block the numbers and file reports with law enforcement. The calls add to a string of documented Iranian recruitment efforts in recent years, many of them run through the encrypted messaging app Telegram. Investigations have shown that Israelis drawn in online are often asked to perform simple, seemingly harmless tasks before being directed to gather intelligence or, in some cases, participate in assassination plots. The surge in arrests has been significant enough that Israel has opened a new wing in Haifa’s Damon prison to house suspected Iranian agents. Most operatives are ordinary Israeli civilians targeted by Iranian officers online. Israeli officials say the campaign is designed to build a grassroots spy network capable of collecting intelligence on nuclear and military facilities and tracking senior figures in the defense establishment and scientific community. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Senior Hamas leader Ghazi Hamad declared that the October 7, 2023, assault on Israel — one of the bloodiest days in the nation’s history — was a “benefit” to the Palestinian cause, even as the devastating war it triggered continues to grind on nearly two years later. In an interview aired Thursday on CNN, Hamad said the cross-border rampage, which left some 1,200 Israelis dead and 251 taken hostage, created a “golden moment” for Palestinians by putting what he described as Israel’s “brutality” on display before the international community. “You know what is the benefit of October 7 now?” Hamad asked. “If you look to the [UN] General Assembly yesterday, when about 194 people opened their eyes and looked to the atrocity, to the brutality of Israel, and all of them, they condemned Israel.” Hamad went further, claiming: “We waited for this moment for 77 years. I think this is a golden moment for the world to change history.” The remarks come as Gaza reels from unprecedented destruction and loss of life. According to figures released by Hamas, which cannot be independently verified, more than 65,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched its military campaign in response to the October 7 attack. Pressed by CNN on whether Hamas bears responsibility for the staggering death toll — given that the group instigated the war with its assault — Hamad rejected the premise outright. “I know the price [is] so high,” he said, “but I’m asking again, what is the option?” Hamad also dismissed the insistence by the U.S. and other Western powers that Hamas must play no role in any future Palestinian state. He argued that the world cannot “exclude” the terror group, asserting it is “playing a positive role” in advancing Palestinian aspirations. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Emirati media released footage of last night’s meeting between Prime Minister Netanyahu and Emirati Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Yisrael Porush, son of United Torah Judaism MK Meir Porush, was arrested by police on Motzei Shabbos during a protest outside Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara in Tel Aviv. Porush, a member of the Elad city council for the Shlomei Emunim movement, a former mayor of the Chareidi city, and leader of the Magen u-Moshi’a anti-enlistment group, was protesting against the detention of Chareidim for refusing to report to IDF draft notices. A video posted on an official Shlomei Emunim WhatsApp group shows Porush, wearing a Tallis, entering a police vehicle. He states, “I am being arrested for blowing the shofar in the Land of Israel while there are a hundred young men in detention.” There are around 100 Chareidim in military prison as of last week. In a statement, Shlomei Emunim called the arrest “an outrageous violation of the right to protest,” while MK Porush stated that his son’s detention reveals the “hypocrisy” of those protesting the government. “That cannot be considered democracy,” he said, adding, “when people demonstrate against the attorney general, who demands mass arrests with governmental violence and the denial of the right to study Torah…that is forbidden, and the demonstrator must be arrested.” Porush strongly criticized authorities, saying, “Rabbi Porush exposed this hypocrisy tonight. Thanks to him, everyone now knows that the State of Israel is not a nation of law, but a dictatorship hostile to democracy. There are unelected rulers in the legal system against whom it is forbidden to protest.”
TRUMP: “I am pleased to report that we are having very inspired and productive discussions with the Middle Eastern Community concerning Gaza. Intense negotiations have been going on for four days, and will continue for as long as necessary.”
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries slammed President Donald Trump for attending Ryder Cup golf matches just days before a possible government shutdown, as Republicans push for a “clean” stopgap funding bill while Democrats demand it also extend ACA tax credits set to expire before 2026.
The Shin Bet and IDF say an airstrike in Gaza killed Hamas terrorist Muhammad Ahmad Yousef al-Jamal, who shot and killed Israeli officer Chief Inspector Arnon Zmora during the June 8, 2024, Nuseirat hostage rescue. Also killed in the strike was Sari Idris Muhammad al-Aqrab, another Hamas terrorist linked to the October 7 attacks.
The IDF says its troops demolished the home of one of the two Palestinian terrorists behind the Yerushalayim shooting attack earlier this month that left six people dead.
The IDF released footage of a drone strike in Gaza City targeting Hamas terrorists who were spotted attempting to plant bombs. The terrorists, seen digging while trying to conceal themselves under blankets, were identified by troops of the 188th Armored Brigade, who then called in the Israeli Air Force to carry out the strike, killing them, according to the military.
On the one-year anniversary of his assassination by Israel, the Hezbollah-affiliated al-Mayadeen network broadcast what it claims is the final image of the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah.
NETANYAHU: “The long-suffering Iranian people will regain their freedom. They will make Iran great again…Our two ancient peoples. The people of Israel. And the people of Iran will restore a friendship that will benefit the entire world.”
NETANYAHU: “We have begun serious negotiations with the new Syrian government… I believe an agreement can be reached that respect Syria’s sovereignty and protect both Israeli security and the security of the minorities in the region.”
NETANYAHU: “They tell me the “PA promised us.” “It will reform.” We’ve heard these promises for decades. They always promise they never deliver…Palestinian Authority is corrupt to the core…They teach their children to hate Jews and destroy the Jewish State.”
