Friday, October 31, 2025

What You Need to Know:

Following continued Hamas violations of the ceasefire—including attacks on Israeli soldiers and the death of a reservist soldier this week, as well as continued failure to return the remaining 13 deceased captives—Israel launched retaliatory attacks on terrorist targets in Gaza Tuesday night. The strikes targeted terrorist commanders who had participated in the October 7 Hamas attack as well as infrastructure, including weapons production warehouses, launch posts and underground tunnels. The fragile ceasefire resumed on Wednesday morning. 

President Donald Trump backed Israel’s retaliatory strike in response to the death of the Israeli strike, noting that Israel had the right to retaliate. The president asserted that nothing will jeopardize the ceasefire and said that if Hamas “said they would be good, and if they’re good they’re going to be happy, and if not good they’re going to be terminated.” Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani called the terrorist killing of the Israeli soldier and Israel’s response “very disappointing and frustrating for us.” Qatar houses Hamas’s top commanders and frequently acts as a mediator between the terrorist group and Israel. The prime minister said they are still pushing Hamas to disarm. 

Israel has made it clear that it will not tolerate ceasefire violations, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he had instructed the military to carry out “powerful strikes” in Gaza in response to the violations. Jerusalem is reportedly considering five options should Hamas fail to return the bodies of hostages, including extending operational control in Gaza, targeted escalation, operations to retrieve hostage remains, diplomatic pressure or termination of existing agreements.

Dig Deeper:

IDF: Truce Resumes in Gaza after Hamas Attack, Israeli Reprisals

Trump Backs Israel’s Response after Soldier Killed in Rafah

Qatari Prime Minister Says Gaza Violence “Very Disappointing, Frustrating”

Israel Weighing Five Options if Hamas Fails to Return Hostage Remains...

What You Need to Know:

In addition to the flareups in Gaza following the Hamas violations of the ceasefire and Israel’s retaliatory strikes, Israeli forces are working on multiple fronts to keep the nation safe, including at the northern border with Lebanon and in Judea and Samaria, the heartland of the Jewish state. 

The IDF continues sporadic strikes against Hezbollah terrorists attempting to reestablish themselves on the border, and Israeli security forces continue operating against terrorist strongholds in the heart of Israel. In Lebanon, the Israeli military has struck multiple Hezbollah commanders over the past month to thwart the terrorist group’s efforts to reestablish infrastructure in southern Lebanon. Israel and Lebanon are also balancing a ceasefire established last November to end over a year of fighting after Hezbollah launched attacks against northern Israel the day after Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack. Israeli forces also struck an underground terrorist structure, killing three terrorist operatives, near Jenin in northern Samaria. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has repeatedly warned that Israel will not tolerate terrorist threats in Judea and Samaria.

Dig Deeper:

Israel Resumes Enforcing Ceasefire after Strikes Responding to Hamas Violation

IDF Strikes Kill at Least 30 in Gaza...

IDF Kills Hezbollah Commander in Southern Lebanon

IAF Strikes Cave outside Jenin, Eliminating Three Terrorists

What You Need to Know:

Ireland has elected Catherine Connolly, a vocal critic of Israel and far-left, pro-Hamas politician for their new president, a largely ceremonial but nonetheless influential role. Connolly has called Israel a “terrorist state” and accused it of committing genocide in Gaza. She also pointed out that Hamas was elected by the Palestinian people and called the terrorist group “part of the fabric” of the Palestinian people and “part of the civil society of Palestine.” Her landslide election bodes ill for future relations between Israel and Ireland, whose government is already less than friendly towards the Jewish state. 

The United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is requesting data from the UNRWA in regards to reports that staff members of the UN agency participated in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack in Israel. The UNRWA has thus far failed to provide sufficient information to the US body’s investigation, sparking US criticism of the organization’s lack of transparency and fears that UNRWA employees guilty of terrorism could go on to work for other NGOs funded by Washington. At the head of the UN, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s term as leader is coming to an end at the end of 2026. Names are already being put forward for candidates to take over as head of the international body that is so largely anti-Israel.

Dig Deeper:

Far-left Irish Lawmaker who Called Israel a “Terrorist State” Elected President...

House Chair Demands UNRWA Docs on Staff Tied to Oct. 7 Attack

United Nations Must Get “Back to Basics” with Next Secretary-general, US Envoy Says

What You Need to Know:

An IDF reservist soldier was killed in Gaza Tuesday by sniper fire, prompting Israeli retaliatory strikes targeting Hamas terror targets and operatives. This is the latest in a series of Hamas violations since the ceasefire earlier this month, following the death of two Israeli soldiers last week. The soldiers who do return home safely are still at risk, as the Israeli Parliament reported Tuesday that 279 IDF soldiers attempted suicide between January 2024 and July 2025, and for every soldier who dies by suicide, there are seven more documented suicide attempts. 

Hamas is still holding the bodies of 13 hostages in Gaza. Earlier this week, the terrorist group returned remains of Ofir Tzarfati—for the third time. Israeli security forces initially returned part of his remains in a Gaza operation in December 2023, then more of his remains were returned in March 2024. In this week’s return, IDF drones captured video of Hamas operatives dragging Tzarfati’s remains into a freshly dug grave, burying them and then staging a discovery for the Red Cross. Tzarfati’s mother said: “I can’t grasp this. How can you bury your son in installments?” 

The living hostages who have returned to Israel still have a long road to recovery. Yosef-Haim Ohana, who was released in the ceasefire agreement earlier this month, said his release “isn’t complete,” adding that “you don’t go back to being a free man in a day after they took everything from you […] I need to learn to be free, I need to learn to make my own decisions.”

Dig Deeper:

IDF Reservist Killed in Tuesday Attack in Rafah; Israel Says Ceasefire Restored

IDF Soldier Suicide Attempts Spike to 279 since 2024, Knesset Report Reveals

WATCH: Hamas Caught Staging Hostage Ofir Tzarfati’s “Burial, Discovery” in Gaza

“I Need to Learn to be Free”: Ex-hostage Yosef-Haim Adapting to Life...

What You Need to Know:

This week Israel commemorated Aliyah Day to celebrate Jewish people making aliyah (immigrating to Israel) and returning to their ancient homeland. As Israel struggled through two years of war following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack, Jewish people around the world saw an unprecedented rise in antisemitism and faced a growing sense of alienation in their countries. This highlights the truth, according to Edna Weinstock-Gabay—CEO and director-general of Keren Hayesod—that “the State of Israel is not only the home of its citizens—it is the home of every Jew in the world.” 
As more Jewish people around the world experience hatred, antisemitism and violence, more are looking toward their ancient homeland for the future. Weinstock-Gabay said this is an opportunity for the Israeli government to initiate programs to make the transition as seamless as possible for new immigrants, to make them feel like family, like they are home. Shira Lankin Sheps issued a clarion call for aliyah in the Times of Israel, saying that she has never regretted her decision seven years ago to move to Israel with her family. “To be among my people, with our army, with God’s presence felt in every season,” she wrote, “I feel more seen, more safe, more Jewish, more aligned since making aliyah than I ever have in my lifetime.”

Dig Deeper:

The Home of the Jewish People – Now More Than Ever

Yom HaAliyah: The Call to Move to Israel

Making Aliyah on Aliyah Day: Sisters from New Jersey Begin Next Chapter in Israel

What You Need to Know:

A Jewish Israeli man was attacked in New York City on the street in broad daylight on Monday. A man on the street saw 58-year-old Rami Glickstein’s kippah and screamed at him, ripped off the kippah, threw it on the ground and spat on it. When Glickstein picked it up, the attacker began punching him in the face repeatedly, leaving him with a broken nose and other injuries. Glickstein’s wife said the attack was “like 1939.” The consul general of Israel in New York, Ofir Akunis, said the attack is a direct result of global incitement against Israel and the Jewish people in the wake of October 7. 

In London, a man wearing Jewish Orthodox clothing was trapped on a bus for an hour as the driver screamed antisemitic slurs at him and refused to let him leave. A 12-year-old boy in Vienna was beaten by classmates last week who shouted antisemitic slurs at him, incurring injuries that left him in the hospital overnight. Anti-Israel activists and organizations across South Africa have been harassing and protesting Holocaust and genocide centers, accusing them of silence amid what the protesters call the “Palestinian genocide.” In the face of the growing hatred and violence, the Israeli minister of diaspora affairs and combatting antisemitism met with the Hungarian minister in charge of fighting antisemitism to discuss European antisemitism and how to deal with it.

Dig Deeper:

“It’s Like 1939,” Says Wife of Israeli whose Nose Was Broken in NY Attack...

London Bus Driver Accused of Antisemitic Harassment of Jewish Passenger

Jewish Boy, 12, Brutally Attacked by Classmates in Vienna

Anti-Israel Activists Target South African Holocaust Centers

Israel, Hungary Join Forces to Combat Rising Antisemitism in Europe...

What You Need to Know:

The Israeli defense minister on Monday lifted the emergency measures in place in southern Israel since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, signaling another step toward the end of the two-year war. Defense Minister Katz signed off to lift the emergency measures that allow the Israeli Home Front Command to limit gatherings and civilian access to particular areas. Though the war is not officially over, the ceasefire has put an ending to the fighting, aside from Hamas violations and retaliatory Israeli strikes. Defense Minister Israel Katz said the decision to lift the emergency measures “reflects the new security reality in the south of the country […]” 

As Israel looks forward to rebuilding industries that suffered during the war, the Manufacturers Association of Israel came up with a plan valued at NIS 1.25 billion (US $384 million) to rehabilitate the two industries hardest hit: industrial production and exports. The president of the association said they are “confident that this postwar plan will secure Israel’s industrial production and exports for years to come.”

A delegation of some 30 African Christian leaders are visited Israel this past week, representing 10 African countries, including Angola, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique and other nations. The delegation comprised church leaders, including bishops and priests, in a visit organized by Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel, who said that “strengthening ties with these leaders strengthens Israel’s position on the continent based on deep shared values […]”

Dig Deeper:

Defense Minister Declares End to Emergency in South After 2 Years of War

Proposed $1.25 Billion Postwar Economic Plan to Revive Israeli Industry...

African Christian Leaders Visit Israel Representing Millions of Worshippers