Friday, June 26, 2026

What You Need to Know:

PM Netanyahu: US President Trump has stated publicly of PM Netanyahu: “He’ll do whatever I want him to do.” Yet the Israeli prime minister demonstrated his intention to do whatever is best for Israel when he spoke to the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel Conference on June 24. PM Netanyahu recalled the pressure put upon him when Israel went into Rafah. Then-US President Biden “said he would halt the weapons supply. I said I respect him very much, and he even came here at the beginning of the war, but we have no choice, we will enter—and if we must, we will fight with our fingernails. Because there are moments when you must know how to tell even the president of the United States what we stand for.” Just as the decision to enter Rafah two years ago, Israel must stand firm against Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the prime minister is not afraid to tell the president of the United States what he stands for.

Election Year: Nearly one month has passed since the first reading of a bill to dissolve the Knesset (Parliament) and hold early elections. At the center of the conflict with the government coalition is the draft exemption bill which would allow Torah (Gen.­–Deut.) study to replace mandatory military service. Although a majority of Israelis oppose such an exemption, the far right parties have refused to budge. The Times of Israel published unconfirmed reports that PM Netanyahu may be considering a second and third reading of the bill and holding elections one week earlier, on October 20, rather than October 27.

Dig Deeper:

PM Netanyahu’s Remarks to the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel  

PM Netanyahu, ‘I never asked Trump for permission to strike Iran last year’

Conflict over Draft Exemption Bill may Result in Push to Dissolve Knesset

What You Need to Know:

Iran There has been a lot of speculation about the role of Lebanon in the MOU recently signed by the US and Iran. However, one thing is certain: Israel’s leaders, both political and military, do not plan to leave southern Lebanon until Hezbollah, Iran’s puppet terror group, is gone.

Hezbollah/Lebanon: The IDF recently captured a fortified tunnel complex in southern Lebanon, where drones were assembled and then launched at Israeli communities. Troops found “around 50 UAVs with 30 kg. (66 lb.) of explosives apiece.” Besides preventing the launch of these fully intact drones, the military was able to gain intelligence by examining them first-hand.

Gaza/Hamas: Since the initial flurry of activity when President Trump unveiled his Gaza Peace Plan in late September 2025, little has actually been accomplished. That changed this week when a contingent of Moroccan military officers arrived at the ISF (International Stabilization Force) headquarters in Kiryat Gat. Morocco is a Muslim country that has no ties to Hamas and also has been actively working to remove radical fringe elements from its own country, making it a partner Israel can work with. 

Judea/Samaria: Terrorists in the biblical heartland embed themselves in villages in close proximity to Jewish communities, thus making it more difficult to define this as an actual front in Israel’s war for survival. However, it is most definitely a security concern as the IDF has confiscated more than 240 firearms, lathes used to manufacture weapons, and ammunition, preventing their use in attacks on Israelis.

Dig Deeper:

DM Katz: Israel won’t Leave Lebanon Security Zone  

IDF Captures Hezbollah Drone Factory and Launch Site  

Morocco Sends Troops to Help Enforce Peace Deal in Gaza   

IDF Seizes Weapons Concealed in Civilian Areas of Judea & Samaria

What You Need to Know:

These days, one sees more and more female combat soldiers on the streets of Israel. Women fought alongside men prior to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. Then women primarily filled supporting roles—until about 25 years ago, when they began to join mixed-gender combat battalions and pick up assault rifles to defend the nation. One of the issues facing Israel today is the division between its secular, moderately observant population and the ultra-Orthodox, or haredim. While many haredim do enlist, there are other groups which have been very vocal in insisting that Torah students must be exempt from military service. Recently 257 current and former IDF officers sent a letter to IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, warning him that “pressure from outside religious actors is damaging military discipline and operational effectiveness.” For his part, the chief of staff addressed a meeting of religious Zionist rabbis and made it clear that “the IDF is still short thousands of combat soldiers and needs every male and female combat soldier to carry out its missions.”

The fighting in southern Lebanon has been fierce, despite a US-brokered ceasefire agreement. One month before he was killed in battle, Lt. Col. Dor Ben Simhon spoke with Ynetnews: “We used to look back and see northern communities from our positions. Today they are far from us and we cannot see them. That says a lot. It is important to us that people at home know we are not stopping the fight.”

Dig Deeper:

Hundreds of Female IDF Officers Write to IDF Chief of Staff over Concerns  

Zamir Meets Religious Zionist Rabbis, IDF Needs Every Male & Female Soldier  

‘Writing History in Real Time’ Slain Battalion Commander’s Last Interview

What You Need to Know:

Residents of the small Israeli kibbutz (collective community) aptly named Holit (“sand dune”) for the surrounding landscape, are just now beginning to return home. Located 1.2 kilometers (0.7 mi.) from the Gaza border, Hamas terrorists overran the kibbutz, destroying many buildings, murdering 15 members and taking six hostages, later killing two of them in Gaza. Rather than dwell on the past, members of this little kibbutz are looking to the future, with a five-year plan to increase their pre-October 7 membership from 200 to 300. 

Seven families have returned before the official return date for residents in August. Roni Levy is one of them and described the horror of that day to Ynetnews. Home alone, she retreated to her safe room and hid. Though terrorists entered her home and set fire to its contents, she was not discovered. Perhaps the story of Holit’s residents is best expressed by Levy, when she said: “I always joke that I ruin people’s drama. Everyone is looking for big stories of resilience, but I see things a little differently. I survived. I returned home. Joy wins.” And that story is playing out in many Israeli communities today. 

The Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs (JCFA) recently presented the results of a new survey. JCFA President Dan Diker said, “The Israeli public has drawn a clear lesson from October 7: national security cannot be based on hopes, international guarantees, or assumptions that have proven inadequate.” Respondents support permanent buffer zones in Gaza (64%), southern Lebanon (73%) and a security presence in Syria (57%), believing these to be “indispensable components of national defense.”

Dig Deeper:

Residents Returning to Kibbutz Holit after nearly Three Years  

Poll: Israelis Place Security over Land Withdrawals & Say Buffer Zones Essential  

What You Need to Know:

As Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon faces an uphill battle to ensure that Israel’s side of the story is told at an organization that is extremely biased against the Jewish nation. Recently, as he addressed the inclusion of the Israel Prison Service on the 2026 blacklist of parties suspected of sexual violence in conflict, he was repeatedly interrupted by Vanessa Frazier, the report’s author. At one point, Danon told Frazier, “We are a member state, and you work for the UN, and you will be quiet now!” Replying to a question about how he manages to “stay cool-headed in a hostile environment like the UN,” he said, “There are moments when we must stand firm on our positions and not give an inch.”

In an earlier interview, the UN official admitted that she had not reviewed the evidence before accusing the Israel Prison Service of sex crimes against Palestinian detainees before it was blacklisted. She stated, “It’s not the responsibility of my office to do any verification. The information is verified with a very robust methodology … I am a recipient … I compile that information and I present it to the Secretary-General.”

A recent petition with 118,331 signatures requested an investigation into the “scope and impact” of pro-Israel lobbying activity in UK politics. In part, the text read: “We feel that the horrific devastation in Gaza, the ongoing suppression of Palestinians in the West Bank [Judea and Samaria] and the UK’s political response underline the urgent need to scrutinize how … lobbying efforts may shape government decisions, party policy and public debate.”

Dig Deeper:

Danon Demands UN Official Resign over Israel Blacklist   

UN Official Did Not Review Evidence before Blacklisting Israel for Sex Crimes   

UK Parliament to Open Investigation over Israeli Lobby’s ‘Influence’ 

What You Need to Know:

United States: With more than three million members, the largest teachers union in the US is being investigated over allegations of antisemitism. A 297-page complaint charges the National Education Association (NEA) with “allowing a hostile environment for Jewish union members by denying them the ability to fully participate in union activities, denying opportunities to Jews … and allowing harassment and intimidation of Jewish educators.” US labor unions in general have taken anti-Israel positions in the last several years.

Australia: The recent decision of an Australian judge to consider a key video inadmissible because the two former nurses who claimed to have killed Israeli patients “did not consent” to being recorded has raised this question: “If healthcare professionals can allegedly express hostility toward Jewish patients and the most direct evidence is excluded from consideration, what confidence can the public have that hatred is being confronted rather than accommodated?”

Canada:  Although authorities have not labeled Monday’s shooting in Montreal that left one policeman and a beloved Jewish rabbi dead an antisemitic act, historian and author Gil Troy disagrees. He argues that “even if antisemitism didn’t trigger this crime, the lynch-mob mentality against Jews, Zionism, and Israel drove it.” Troy claims that the trends in Canada have been to keep silent when faced with antisemitism. For example, Dr. Ed Rosenberg left a 30-year career at the University of BC after the administration took no action against antisemitic messages from students and colleagues. Silence speaks volumes. The Jerusalem Post wrote, “Those who keep quiet while others harass Jews, Israelis and Zionists broaden the zone of tolerance for all forms of brutality.”

Dig Deeper:  

US Opens Probe into Alleged Antisemitism at Leading Teacher Union   

Why Excluding a Recording from an Alleged Antisemitism Case in Australia Matters   

Jew-Hatred Drove Montreal Violence, Even If It Didn’t Trigger It (Opinion) 

What You Need to Know:

Since the rebirth of the nation of Israel in 1948, the country has always been enriched by olim—or those returning from the lands of their exile. At a recent Nefesh B’Nefesh ceremony, eight English-speaking immigrants were each awarded the Bonei Zion Prize to acknowledge the significant impact they have made on Israeli society. Sponsor Sylvan Adams, a strong proponent of immigration, said the award highlights “the extraordinary people who choose to build their lives here and help build the future of the Jewish state.” The recipients represented the fields of science, education, culture, public service and social innovation. 

Soon teens from roughly 80 Israeli communities will be gathering for the Unistream Entrepreneur of the Year competition. Unistream is a nonprofit that “trains thousands of young people each year from Israel’s geographic and social periphery.” Teams will be presenting their innovative projects, such as “a smart automatic tourniquet called Auto-save.” The students got their inspiration from the account of a Druze border police officer who was wounded at Joseph’s Tomb in 2000 and bled to death because medics couldn’t reach him. The teens said: “On October 7, innocent people who were simply celebrating life found themselves alone and bleeding, unable to get help. That is when we understood that we had to act to change this.”

Last week, PM Netanyahu announced that Route 60, which runs the length of Judea and Samaria, has been officially renamed as “The Biblical Highway.” This affirms the historic ties of the Jewish people to a contested land.

Dig Deeper:

Leading Israelis Honored for Contributions through Aliyah  

What Are Israeli Teenagers Focused on During a Prolonged War?   

PM Netanyahu Officially Names Route 60 “The Biblical Highway”