President Isaac Herzog has reportedly decided to pause, for now, his handling of the pardon request submitted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s attorneys. The reason given: the prime minister did not respond to the president’s proposal to begin a process of dialogue.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir held a situational assessment with Northern Command. Addressing the possibility that a U.S.-Iran agreement may not be signed, Zamir said: "The IDF is prepared to return to intense fighting immediately." Separately, a terrorist involved in the October 7 attack on Zikim Base was killed in Gaza.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced an indictment against former Cuban president Raúl Castro. The charge alleges that about 30 years ago, while serving as defense minister, he gave the order to shoot down two American planes.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir met with division commanders and addressed the possibility of renewed fighting with Iran. The IDF also carried out strikes against militants in southern Lebanon and Gaza.
Col. Meir Biderman, commander of the 401st Armored Brigade, was seriously wounded in southern Lebanon after an explosive drone strike. In the same incident, a combat officer with the rank of lieutenant colonel was moderately wounded, and a reservist soldier was lightly injured.
Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin, and after their state meeting the two issued a joint statement calling for an end to the war in Iran. They stressed: "The attack on Iran harmed regional security."
Amid reports that the U.S. and Israel could resume strikes on Iran, President Donald Trump spoke with reporters. Asked whether Israel is pushing for an attack, he replied: "Bibi will do what I tell him."
The government approved a sweeping 250 million-shekel plan to rescue, preserve, develop, and make heritage and antiquities sites more accessible in Judea and Samaria, the Jordan Valley, and the Judean Desert. Efforts to protect the sites from looting and destruction will also be expanded.
President Donald Trump said he is giving Iran a matter of days to reach an agreement, saying the deadline is Sunday. Iran also confirmed a report that it is demanding compensation for damage caused during the war.
IDF officer Maj. (res.) Itamar Sapir of Ariel, a company commander in the reserve battalion of the Maglan unit, was killed in combat in southern Lebanon. He is survived by his wife and their year-and-a-half-old son.
The government of Somaliland announced that it will open its embassy in Jerusalem. The embassy is expected to open next month at an event attended by Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi. It will be the eighth foreign embassy to begin operating in Jerusalem.
Democrat Adam Hamawy, who served as a defense witness for Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, one of the figures behind terror attacks in the U.S., is now a leading candidate in New Jersey’s House race. Families of those killed and survivors of the attacks have published letters of condemnation.
With approval from the attorney general’s office, prosecutors instructed police to carry out additional investigative steps in the case known as the "Qatar-Gate" affair. Among those called in to testify were several diplomatic correspondents.
The IDF said it struck a Hamas weapons warehouse and a rocket launch shaft in northern Gaza. Dozens of rockets, launchers, and explosive devices were reportedly stored at the site.
A 17-year-old Palestinian suspect from the Aida refugee camp near Bethlehem had been wanted for a week after allegedly throwing an improvised explosive device at Rachel’s Tomb. No worshippers were hurt, and Border Police forces later found him at his home and transferred him to the Shin Bet.
IDF forces took control of another boat headed toward Gaza in open waters. According to intelligence information, about twenty additional vessels are making their way to the area along a different maritime route. The IDF is preparing to intercept them.
A young man was speaking Hebrew on his cellphone on a London street when five Arabic-speaking suspects allegedly attacked him and beat him until he collapsed. No arrests have been made so far.
A request has been filed with the International Criminal Court in The Hague seeking the arrest of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. The prosecution alleges his involvement in offenses against the Palestinian population in Judea and Samaria. Similar requests may also be filed against ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and ישראל כ"ץ.
Under a defense agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, 8,000 Pakistani troops and dozens of fighter jets have been deployed inside the kingdom. At the same time, Pakistan’s government is mediating between Iran and the United States in an effort to reach an agreement to end the war.
The Forum of Professors for National Resilience said it sent an urgent letter to Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich demanding that he invoke the “Nakba Law” and cut funding to Tel Aviv University, following a protest by Arab students in which calls were reportedly heard praising shahids.
