Friday, October 23, 2026

What You Need to Know:

The big election is almost here. Israelis are heading to the polls next Tuesday, October 27, in their first national election since the October 7, 2023 attack, and leaders are speaking mostly about security. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told graduating IDF officers that Iran is again trying to build nuclear weapons and that he has directed the IDF, Mossad and security services to work toward toppling its regime. Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel has identified attempts by Iran and its proxies to carry out attacks meant to affect the election and that Iran’s weakness could push it toward extreme measures. He warned Tehran that Israel will strike with full force if attacked. 

Allies are also involved. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met Netanyahu privately on Monday at Ovda Air Force Base, where US aircraft are stationed, to discuss regional threats, the prime minister’s spokesman said. The meeting came amid talk of possible renewed fighting with Iran and a day after President Donald Trump endorsed Netanyahu’s re-election.

Dig Deeper:

Netanyahu Says Iran Developing “Weapons of Death,” Orders IDF, Mossad to Topple Regime

Israel’s Foes Have More Influence on its Elections than its Friends

Hegseth Meets Netanyahu during Secret Visit to Israel; Said to Discuss “Threats in Region”

Israel, Lebanon Hold US-mediated Military Talks as Tensions Mount over Hezbollah Disarmament

What You Need to Know:

Lebanon: The IDF released footage on Tuesday showing Hezbollah loading weapons onto a truck at a southern Lebanon site that the Lebanese army had reported already dealing with. The IDF struck the truck and afterwards reported that some Lebanese army elements had coordinated with Hezbollah. The IDF stated it expects the Lebanese army to act more decisively, emphasizing that it will be monitoring Hezbollah’s efforts to rebuild and will not allow threats to Israeli civilians. 

Israeli, Lebanese and US military officers had three days of talks in Florida, USA. Netanyahu said Israel wants Lebanon’s army to clear Hezbollah from two test areas and that Israel will act if it cannot. Katz said the IDF will stay in its security zone until Hezbollah is disarmed.

Gaza: The IDF said it struck two suspects on October 19 who crossed the Yellow Line, the boundary of the Gaza area under IDF control. The suspects reportedly tried to sabotage military infrastructure, posing an immediate threat. Days earlier, the IDF and Shin Bet (Israeli internal security agency) dismantled three Hamas weapons storage sites holding rockets, launchers, RPGs and rifles. Soldiers remain deployed under the October 2025 ceasefire. 

Mediterranean: Eastern Libya’s Parliament approved a maritime boundary deal with Turkey, drawing criticism from Israel, Cyprus, Egypt and Greece. Retired Col. Eran Lerman told the Jerusalem Post it could complicate Israel’s plans to connect its power grid to Cyprus, Greece and Europe and could raise maritime security challenges.

Dig Deeper:

IDF Releases Footage of Hezbollah Moving Weapons, Accuses Lebanese Army of Lying about Enforcement

IDF Targets Two Suspects in Gaza who Posed “Immediate Threat”

Libya’s HoR Ratifying Turkey Maritime Deal “Very Troubling” for Israeli Security

What You Need to Know:

Ahead of the October 27 election, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir placed the military on its highest state of alert and froze soldiers’ leave starting Thursday, so troops remain on base. He said the IDF’s mission is to ensure the elections take place safely and on schedule, and he ordered more senior officers into command centers and reinforcements for Central Command in Judea and Samaria. The IDF is also setting up at least 850 polling stations at bases and outposts so soldiers on duty, including those beyond Israel’s borders, can vote. 

The IDF is also building for the future. Defense Minister Israel Katz announced a new IDF Space Division, with a brigadier general chosen to lead it, to expand Israel’s ability to “monitor, defend and strike from space.” According to the Defense Ministry, Israeli satellites watched hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of Iranian territory each day during Operation Roaring Lion, the campaign against Iran, producing tens of thousands of images that guided strikes and warned Israeli civilians. 

Meanwhile, Air Force officers welcomed progress on a deal for Apache helicopters but warned that other purchases, including additional aerial refueling aircraft and replacement helicopters, remain stalled by government bureaucracy. Senior officers also cited shortages of munitions, and a Ground Forces officer said the army’s vehicles are worn from three years of war and urgently need spare parts.

Dig Deeper:

IDF Chief Puts Military on Highest Alert, Orders Leave Freeze, ahead of Oct. 27 Vote

Katz: IDF to Launch “Blue-and-white Star Wars” Space Division

Israel Air Force Welcomes Apache Helicopter Deal amid Bureaucratic Delays

What You Need to Know:

On Monday, Israel Police gathered at the Israel Police National College in Beit Shemesh for its annual ceremony honoring 1,696 officers, Border Police personnel and volunteers who have died in service since Israel’s founding in 1948. Police Commissioner Danny Levy told bereaved families that they remain part of the police family and that the force’s commitment to them continues. Eti Elus, whose husband, Itamar, fought in Ofakim on October 7 and died in January, lit the memorial torch. The ceremony closed with children of fallen police personnel joining singer Roni Dalumi to perform “Shir Tikvah” (“A Song of Hope”). 

Help is also coming for those who serve and their families. Sheba Medical Center recently opened a new psychological treatment center for security personnel and their families who may be struggling with trauma. The Mevo’ot HaHermon – Sheba Clinic, the first of its kind in northern Israel, offers individual and group therapy for PTSD, anxiety, depression, grief and loss, sleep problems and nightmares, and family and relationship challenges, along with a support group for spouses of combat soldiers. Sheba’s Professor Amitai Ziv said trauma care must be professional, continuous and accessible, and must reach the families around each service member.

Dig Deeper:

Israel Police Honors 1,696 Fallen Personnel at Annual Memorial Ceremony

Sheba Opens Psychological Treatment Center for Security Operatives with PTSD in Northern Israel

What You Need to Know:

A Palestinian teacher who worked for 15 years at Gaza schools run by the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) alleged that staff there encouraged students to hate Jews and glorified Hamas, the New York Post reported Monday. Speaking anonymously for her safety, she said a senior school official threatened to cut out her tongue after she confronted a colleague over what was being taught to girls. She warned that such teaching could fuel future violence like October 7. A UN investigation previously found that nine UNRWA employees may have been involved in the October 7 attack, and the agency dismissed them.

Britain and Israel are in a fresh diplomatic clash over building in Judea and Samaria. On Monday, UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband asked Israeli companies to stay out of the bidding for E1, a project of 1,234 housing units within the boundaries of Ma’ale Adumim, a Jewish city east of Jerusalem, saying Britain has new powers to penalize those involved in what it calls illegal settlements. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar replied on X that Judea and Samaria are “not foreign lands to the Jewish people,” accusing Britain’s Labour government of an obsession with Israel. 

In France, prosecutors asked a Paris court on Tuesday to give European Parliament member Rima Hassan, an outspoken critic of Israel, a 10-month suspended sentence and a two-year public office ban for glorifying terrorism. The charges are based on a now-deleted post quoting Kozo Okamoto, a terrorist behind the 1972 Lod Airport (now Ben Gurion Airport) massacre that killed 24 people.

Dig Deeper:

Veteran UNRWA Teacher Exposes Alleged Hamas Radicalization, Hatred of Jews in Gaza Schools

Israeli FM Slams UK “Obsession” with Jewish State over E1 Sanctions Threat

French Prosecutors Seek to Bar anti-Israel European Parliament Member Rima Hassan over Terrorism Case

What You Need to Know:

In north London, a man allegedly assaulted several Jewish women on Monday, according to Shomrim (Hebrew for “guards”), a volunteer security group serving the Jewish community. At least three women were attacked, one of them a mother with her baby in a stroller, and the victims told Shomrim they believe they were targeted because they are Jewish. Volunteers arrived within 30 seconds of the first call and detained a 33-year-old suspect, whom police arrested on suspicion of racially and religiously aggravated grievous bodily harm. Police have increased patrols. 

Croatian police have filed charges against 23 people after Hajduk Split soccer supporters marched through Split chanting pro-Nazi, anti-Jewish slogans before last week’s game against Ajax, a Dutch club with strong Jewish ties. The chants reportedly hailed Adolf Hitler and the Ustasha, the pro-Nazi regime that ran Croatia in World War II. Six suspects are in custody, and the police are still looking for 15 others. Political leaders, human rights groups and the Jewish community condemned the chants, and Hajduk Split apologized to Ajax and to UEFA, European soccer’s governing body. 

In Maryland, USA, the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law accused Montgomery County Public Schools of failing to shield an Orthodox Jewish student at Montgomery Blair High School from harassment. In a federal civil rights complaint, the group says he endured antisemitic taunts, an anonymous phone threat to bomb him and targeting on social media, while the principal brushed off the online posts as “just a flag.” The group wants the US Department of Investigation to investigate.

Dig Deeper:  

At Least Three Jewish Women Attacked in North London in Alleged Hate Crime

23 People Charged over Antisemitic, Pro-Nazi Chants ahead of Croatia Soccer Match

Brandeis Center Files Complaint Alleging Antisemitic Harassment at Montgomery High School

What You Need to Know:

Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Tuesday met with Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar in Budapest, the first meeting between an Israeli leader and Hungary’s new premier since he took office earlier this year. Herzog thanked the Hungarian government for its stance against antisemitism and invited Magyar to visit Israel. Magyar appeared to accept, telling him, “See you in Israel.” Hungarian President Andras Baka reaffirmed his country’s zero tolerance for antisemitism, and Herzog called Hungary a friend and ally. 

Meanwhile, an Israeli hospital is using technology to give a voice to its youngest patients. Clalit-Schneider Children’s Medical Center and Code for Israel launched an artificial intelligence (AI) system that creates personalized, printable communication boards in under five minutes, tailored to each child’s age, language, gender and background. The boards let children who cannot speak, whether because of ventilation, language difficulties or being too young or too weak to write, express pain, fear or simple needs. Preparing such boards used to take up to several hours. Dr. Oshrat Sella Weiss, who heads the hospital’s speech-language pathology service, said the goal is restoring children’s ability to communicate and take part in their own care, and that the system will let the team reach many more of them.

Dig Deeper:

In Budapest, Herzog Meets Hungary’s New PM Magyar, who Pledges to Visit Israel

Israeli Hospital Launches AI System to Enable Hospitalized Children to Communicate without Speaking