Channel 14 News Israel

Category: Israel

  • IDF Eliminates Jihadi Terror Leaders One After Another

    IDF Eliminates Jihadi Terror Leaders One After Another

    The IDF struck a terrorist in Hamas’s military wing in the Deir al-Balah area of central Gaza on Saturday, after he recently advanced terror plots against IDF forces and Israeli civilians. The military said the strike was carried out to remove an immediate threat.

    According to an IDF statement, the operative had also been working to rebuild the terror organization’s capabilities, systematically violating the ceasefire. He was hiding adjacent to the Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital compound in Deir al-Balah. The IDF noted this was another example of Hamas using humanitarian infrastructure and medical facilities for terrorist activity.

    Before the strike, the IDF took a series of steps designed to minimize as much as possible the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precision munitions and aerial surveillance. Southern Command forces remain deployed in the area in accordance with the agreement, and the IDF said it will continue to act to remove immediate threats to forces and Israeli civilians.

    The Jenin Airstrike

    The Gaza strike comes less than a day after another unusual operation against Hamas infrastructure—this time in Jenin. On Friday, the IDF, Shin Bet, and special forces eliminated Qais Bitawi, head of Hamas’s local operations in the former Jenin refugee camp, along with two other associates in an airstrike. Weapons were found in the vehicle they were traveling in.

    The operation was carried out with intelligence guidance from the Shin Bet and military intelligence and led by the Menashe Brigade. Air Force aircraft struck the vehicle carrying Bitawi and the two associates, after which security forces operated in the area. According to a security source quoted after the strike, the Shin Bet had been tracking one of the targets for a period, and intelligence indicated he was engaged in preparations for an attack. After closing the intelligence loop, the decision was made to strike from the air.

    The IDF said Bitawi was involved in advancing significant terror activities, including directing, financing, and carrying out attacks against Israeli civilians and security forces. In addition, he maintained contacts with Hamas operatives in Gaza and abroad. Bitawi is a relative of Nour Bitawi, commander of the Jenin terror organization who was eliminated by security forces in May 2025.

    The Jenin strike marked yet another use by the IDF of airstrikes against terror targets in Judea and Samaria. After years in which aircraft were almost never used for targeted strikes in the area, since 2023 air capability has become a more significant tool in operations against terror organizations in Samaria.

    The two operations within less than a day—in Jenin and Gaza—join IDF activity in recent days against operatives who, according to the military, were engaged in advancing attacks and attempting to rebuild terror organizations’ capabilities. On Thursday, the IDF also eliminated Ibrahim Nabil Ibrahim Bas in Gaza, a terrorist in Hamas’s military wing who participated in the October 7 massacre, and Hamdi Ahmed Hamed Kuhail, a terrorist in the observation unit of ‘Palestinian’ Islamic Jihad.

  • Locals Counter IDF Account of Qusra Clash, Claim Ambush

    Locals Counter IDF Account of Qusra Clash, Claim Ambush

    A storm erupted in Judea and Samaria following events that unfolded Saturday near the village of Qusra. After the IDF and Border Police issued a statement saying dozens of Israelis barricaded themselves in a ‘Palestinian’ home where local residents were present, residents of the Tel Talpiot outpost presented a completely different version of events after the Sabbath ended.

    According to local testimonies, the incident began when several Israelis went out on a routine security patrol in an off-road vehicle near the hilltop. They claim that as they passed near an abandoned construction site, they were attacked by about 40 ‘Palestinians’ who ambushed them in the area of the building.

    Qusra | Photo: 27A

    According to the residents, they immediately reported to the IDF and security forces in the sector and requested assistance, but after forces didn’t arrive quickly, they began repelling the attackers themselves and called additional residents from the area to help them.

    The version presented by the residents contradicts the joint statement released earlier by the IDF Spokesperson and Border Police spokesperson. According to the security forces’ statement, forces were dispatched to Qusra following a report of “Israeli rioters” and violent friction that included stone-throwing at ‘Palestinians’. The IDF and Border Police even claimed that upon the forces’ arrival, dozens of Israelis were identified barricaded in a “‘Palestinian’ house” while Arab residents were inside it.

    “The Building Is Abandoned, the Rioters Barricaded Themselves Inside”

    Tel Talpiot residents reject this description. According to them, the building where part of the confrontation took place is not an inhabited house at all, but an abandoned construction site, and the ‘Palestinians’ were the ones who entered it during the incident and threw stones from it at the Israelis.

    They further claim that during the events, roadblocks were set up on access routes to the location, including piles of stones and burning tires, which made it difficult for security forces and additional residents to reach the area.

    Elisha Yered, archive | Photo: Jonathan Zindel, Flash 90

    Activist Elisha Yered claimed after the Sabbath ended that this was a pre-planned incident designed to create images portraying Israelis as attackers. “Dozens of masked Arab rioters from the village of Qusra, accompanied by foreign media photographers, came up to the hilltop at noon on the Sabbath, threw stones at residents, and set up stone barriers and burning tires on access routes in an attempt to make it difficult for IDF forces to reach the location,” Yered wrote.

    According to him, “Residents conducting a security patrol out of concern for infiltrations and terror incidents encountered the Arab rioters and immediately reported to the security center and the IDF. When the IDF was slow to come, the residents who were attacked asked additional residents from the area to also come and repel the attack.”

    The Claim: An Attempt to Portray a “Siege”

    Locals claim that the ‘Palestinians” entry into the abandoned building was part of a deliberate attempt to create a media image of Israelis besieging a ‘Palestinian’ home. According to Yered, the Arabs “entered an abandoned house located in an open area up the mountain, barricaded themselves in it, and threw stones from it at the Jews in an attempt to brand the incident in the media as another ‘siege.’”

    Screenshot

    According to him, residents who arrived to help cleared the stone barriers from the access routes and repelled the ‘Palestinians’ from the slopes of the hill. After the route opened and IDF forces arrived at the location, the Israelis left the area. Yered even claimed that six ‘Palestinians’ who barricaded themselves in the building and threw stones were arrested by security forces but were released after about an hour.

    Sharp Criticism of IDF Spokesperson’s Statement

    After the Sabbath ended, hilltop residents leveled sharp criticism at the way the incident was described in the official IDF and Border Police statement. “Again and again, the media systematically exploits the Sabbath and slanders the Israelis who are prevented from responding,” they claimed. “So too in this incident, which is entirely a violent, premeditated provocation by the enemy from beginning to end.”

    The residents particularly criticized the characterization of the Arabs who were in the building as “the home’s occupants.” According to them, “Unfortunately, the IDF spokesperson bought the enemy’s ‘Pallywood’ in the statement he issued, and called the rioters ‘the home’s occupants’—when in fact it’s an abandoned building that never contained residents.”

    Locals further claim that the incident comes amid an ongoing struggle over control of the area: “The campaign that has been conducted for weeks over the head of the hilltop, which guards the strategic mountain, the second highest in Samaria, has one goal: to transfer control of it to the ‘Palestinian’ Authority.”

    The Binyamin Regional Council stated: “At noon (Saturday), clashes developed between Israelis and Arabs in the area of the villages of Qusra and Jalud in Binyamin. According to the Israelis, while they were out on patrol, they were attacked with stones and clubs by dozens of Arabs from Qusra. In footage from the incident, Arabs can be seen throwing stones at the Israelis, while behind them are journalists from foreign media outlets documenting what is happening.

    “During the incident, a confrontation developed that included stone-throwing from both sides. Later, dozens of Israelis arrived at a house in Qusra where Arabs were staying, and there too a confrontation developed. IDF and Border Police forces arrived at the location, separated the sides, and removed the Israelis from the house. The Binyamin Council condemns the violence used during the events and calls on security forces to investigate the rioters who were documented throwing stones and to bring them to full justice.”

  • Israeli Court Bars Holocaust Artifacts From Private Sales

    Israeli Court Bars Holocaust Artifacts From Private Sales

    The Haifa Magistrate’s Court has ruled that Holocaust-era artifacts will not be sold to the highest bidder but will instead be transferred to museums and institutions dedicated to Holocaust commemoration and research. The ruling came after legal proceedings initiated by Yad Ezer L’Haver, an Israeli nonprofit.

    Photo: Yad Ezer LaHaver

    The proceedings began after the organization learned that a Holocaust-era item was set to be sold at auction. Yad Ezer LaHaver sought an injunction, and the court granted the request, halting the sale. According to the organization, the subsequent ruling accepted its position that remnants of the Holocaust are not ordinary collectibles to be bought and sold on the private market.

    Yad Ezer LaHaver and the Haifa Holocaust Museum welcomed the decision, describing it as a significant and precedent-setting ruling. They said Holocaust-era artifacts are historical assets of memory that should be preserved and displayed to the public in institutions dedicated to education, research and commemoration.

    Photo: Yad Ezer LaHaver

    “These are not ordinary objects”

    Dr. Shimon Sabag, founder and CEO of Yad Ezer LaHaver and founder of the Haifa Holocaust Museum, called the decision “a precedent-setting and historic ruling.” “Although it comes more than 80 years late, order has finally been established, and it has been determined that Holocaust artifacts are not merchandise to be passed from hand to hand and sold to the highest bidder,” Sabag said. “The proper place for these items is in museums and institutions of the Jewish people dedicated to researching the Holocaust, commemorating it and passing its memory on to future generations.”

    Photo: Yad Ezer LaHaver

    “These are not ordinary objects. Behind every item stands a person, a family, a community and a life story that was cut short,” Sabag added. He said the artifacts must remain accessible to the public and younger generations rather than disappearing into private collections or being used for financial profit.

    Sabag said he shared news of the ruling with Holocaust survivors living at the organization’s “Warm Home.” “I saw emotion and joy that I have not seen in a long time,” he said. “They said, ‘There are judges in Haifa, and there are judges in Israel.’ For them, this is a ruling that should have been handed down many years ago, and it is good that it was issued while they are still alive.”

    Photo: Yad Ezer LaHaver

    “This is one of the most moving and just days in the struggle for the dignity of Holocaust survivors and the preservation of the memory of the six million,” Sabag continued. “We will no longer allow the memory of the Holocaust to be cheapened, and we will not allow historical artifacts to be sold as though they were goods in a bazaar or market. Holocaust artifacts are not commercial property—they belong to the memory of the Jewish people and of humanity as a whole.”

    Photo: Yad Ezer LaHaver

    The organization said it will continue working on behalf of Holocaust survivors and to preserve historical artifacts and documents so they can be displayed to the public and used for education, research and commemoration for generations to come.

  • IDF Rescues Jewish Teen Held Captive in Hostile Arab Town

    IDF Rescues Jewish Teen Held Captive in Hostile Arab Town

    A special Israeli force broke into a home in the ‘Palestinian’ village of Deir Ballut in Samaria today (Friday) and rescued a Jewish teenage girl who had been held inside. She was rescued safe and unharmed. The incident began when the military was called to the village following the teenager’s attempt to escape from the home where she had been living with her husband.

    Israeli forces operating in Samaria, | Photo: IDF Spokesperson’s Unit

    The teenager was married to an Arab resident of the village. According to initial information, her husband discovered her attempt to escape and prevented her from leaving the home. As the situation developed and concerns grew for the teenager’s life, the military declared a “Drawn Arrow” emergency procedure. Israeli forces, including a special unit, then entered the village to carry out the complex rescue operation.

    After approximately an hour and a half of tension, the forces broke into the home where she was being held and successfully rescued her. Two suspects were arrested, and the teenager was transferred for care. Deir Ballut is located just hundreds of meters from the Jewish communities of Peduel and Eli Zahav.

  • IDF Eliminates Oct. 7 Hamas Terrorist and Senior Jihadist

    IDF Eliminates Oct. 7 Hamas Terrorist and Senior Jihadist

    Israeli forces eliminated two senior terrorists in targeted operations in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, including a Hamas commander who actively participated in the Oct. 7 massacre and invasion of Israel. During a targeted operation in the Shati area, Israeli forces eliminated Ibrahim Nabil Ibrahim Bas, a chief terrorist in Hamas’s military wing who took an active part in the Oct. 7 invasion of southern Israel. In a separate strike in the Zabra area Thursday night, Israeli forces eliminated Hamdi Ahmed Hamed Kahil, an top Islamic Jihadist who headed one of the terrorist organization’s observation units.

    Photo: Nati Shohat, Flash 90

    According to the IDF, the two terrorists had recently been involved in planning and advancing terror attacks against Israeli security forces and civilians. The military said both had also been working to rebuild terrorist cells while systematically violating the ceasefire understandings. The strikes were carried out to eliminate an immediate threat, according to the IDF. Southern Command forces remain deployed throughout the area in accordance with the agreement and continue to operate against any threat to Israel’s security.

  • Turkey Is ‘The New Iran,’ Warns Middle East Expert

    Turkey Is ‘The New Iran,’ Warns Middle East Expert

    Amid recent reports of Israeli strikes near Damascus and efforts to thwart Turkish weapons transfers into Syria, Middle East expert and senior researcher Yoni Ben Menachem is warning that Israel faces a powerful new strategic threat. In an interview with C14 on Friday morning, Ben Menachem described Turkey under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as the “new Iran,” warning that without clear red lines from the United States, Israel could find itself sliding into a direct military confrontation with Turkey on Syrian soil.

    Photo: IDF Spokesperson’s Unit

    According to Ben Menachem, Turkey’s attempt to transfer air-defense systems and weapons to an airfield in Syria is only the tip of the iceberg of a much broader plan. “We have to remember that Turkey is headed by a megalomaniac president who sees himself as the new sultan, the new caliph,” Ben Menachem said. “He talks about conquering Jerusalem, he wants to reach the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and he heads a radical Sunni axis that is trying to replace the Iranian axis.”

    Ben Menachem also described what he views as the depth of Turkish involvement in Syria’s leadership, arguing that key figures in the government are effectively proxies of Ankara. “Abu Mohammed al-Julani, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is a Turkish agent. They brought him to power in Syria,” he said. According to Ben Menachem, Turkey’s goal is to establish a military presence that would alter the regional balance of power, while benefiting from partial backing from the U.S. administration.

    Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan | Photo: Reuters

    Ben Menachem also analyzed how Israel’s election results could affect the northern arena. “If it is a left-wing government, that will play into their hands, because we are hearing statements that there is no need for buffer zones—not in Syria, not in Lebanon and not in the Gaza Strip. It will be easier for them to move closer to Israel’s border,” he said.

    By contrast, he predicted that a right-wing victory could lead to an unavoidable confrontation. “If the right-wing government wins, we are definitely expected to face a confrontation with the Turks on Syrian soil that could even deteriorate into a military conflict, because they will not raise the white flag and they want to take control of Syria,” Ben Menachem warned.

    U.S. President Donald Trump | photo by: The White House

    While attention is increasingly focused on Turkey, Ben Menachem stressed that the Iranian threat has not disappeared, but is instead changing form under what he described as a deceptive period of relative calm. Despite President Donald Trump’s statements that Iran is “begging for a deal,” Ben Menachem remains skeptical. “The Iranians will not raise the white flag. I estimate that they are using this relative calm to rearm—to produce ballistic missiles and drones,” he said.

    Ben Menachem further predicted that Tehran could be preparing a major offensive move ahead of the U.S. midterm elections. “They will surprise Trump. They will initiate an escalating offensive move, attack the Gulf states and American bases with the aim of spilling American blood in order to hurt Trump in the elections,” he warned.

    Ben Menachem concluded by calling for a strategic shift in dealing with Iran. While economic pressure is important, he argued, it is insufficient to topple a dictatorship with powerful mechanisms of repression. “It is an important move, but a slow one. You cannot bring down a regime that has strong mechanisms of repression if you do not take ground action, and Trump does not want to reach Tehran,” he said.

     

  • Israeli Woman Finds Jew-Hatred Note Planted in Her Luggage

    Israeli Woman Finds Jew-Hatred Note Planted in Her Luggage

    An Israeli passenger discovered an anti-Israel message inside her luggage this week while traveling from Seattle to Tel Aviv. Noa Sever Duboskin, a 48-year-old Los Angeles resident who moved to Israel, found the note Monday while unpacking her belongings. Written in large letters, the note read, “F— Israel.”

    Photo: Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90

    Duboskin said the discovery left her feeling “scared and uncomfortable” and with “a sense of disgust.” She made sure that her children, ages 9 to 16, did not see the threatening message. Following the incident, Duboskin reported it to U.S. aviation authorities, the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Embassy in Israel.

    The American organization StopAntisemitism responded sharply to the incident, asking: “What if next time that person puts an explosive in the suitcase?” The incident follows a similar episode about six months ago, when an El Al flight from Los Angeles to Tel Aviv was delayed after “Free Palestine” stickers were discovered on airport equipment.

  • Two Teen Arabs Planned ISIS Attacks on IDF and Temple Mount

    Two Teen Arabs Planned ISIS Attacks on IDF and Temple Mount

    The Haifa District Attorney’s Office is expected to indict a 16-year-old Arab minor from the Galilee and 19-year-old Ibrahim Kaabia, a resident of Haifa, both Israeli citizens, on suspicion of pledging allegiance to the Islamic State terrorist organization and planning attacks against Jewish Israeli security forces on the Temple Mount and in northern Israel.

    Jews on Temple Mount | Photo: Temple Mount Administration

    The minor was arrested on August 4 in a joint operation by the Shin Bet and the Northern District Police’s Central Unit. Investigators found that after allegedly pledging allegiance to ISIS, the 16-year-old teenager began watching and searching online for material containing instructions for constructing explosive belts. Authorities suspect that he intended to carry out an attack targeting Jewish police officers and soldiers at the Temple Mount.

    ISIS terrorist | Photo: Reuters

    Several days after the minor’s arrest, 19-year-old Kaabia was arrested on suspicion that he too had pledged allegiance to ISIS. Investigators allege that Kaabia was planning an attack on an IDF base in northern Israel. With the investigation concluded, the Haifa District Attorney’s Office is expected to file indictments against both suspects in Haifa District Court and request that they remain in custody until the conclusion of legal proceedings.

  • U.S. Orders Embassies: Demand Military Protection for Jews

    U.S. Orders Embassies: Demand Military Protection for Jews

    The U.S. State Department dispatched an extraordinary diplomatic cable on Wednesday night to nearly all American embassies and consulates worldwide, instructing diplomats to engage the highest echelons of host governments to underscore the critical imperative of safeguarding Jewish communities ahead of the Tishrei High Holidays, according to a diplomatic document obtained by the Jewish News Syndicate (JNS).

    Lighting candles in memory of the victims of the Sydney mass shooting attack, Archive | Photo: Eric Marmor / Flash90

    The internal document instructs U.S. diplomatic missions to provide local authorities with foundational briefings on the Jewish High Holidays as well as the upcoming anniversary of the October 7 massacre, which took place on the holiday of Simchat Torah in 2023. State Department officials noted that recent years have witnessed an alarming pattern of terror attacks globally timed around or during Jewish religious festivals, urging foreign partners to proactively prepare for potential threats during this sensitive window. According to the cable, Washington called on foreign governments to deploy “law enforcement forces, counter-terrorism units, or military elements, as appropriate” around synagogues, prayer assemblies, and holiday gathering venues.

    Security outside a synagogue in Paris | Photo: Shutterstock

    The American directive emphasizes that security cordons must extend far beyond the physical premises of synagogues. The cable outlines the necessity of securing residential sectors within Jewish neighborhoods where congregants walk predictable routes at set times, often wearing traditional clothing that clearly identifies them as Jewish. Furthermore, host governments were urged to intensify armed patrols in crowded commercial districts and public spaces where community members assemble during the holiday season.

    The State Department also asked foreign leaders to conduct advance security consultations and establish active liaison channels between national security agencies, Jewish community leadership, private security firms, and community-affiliated businesses to ensure rapid coordination in the event of an imminent alert.

    Illustration | Photo: Shutterstock

    A key operational challenge highlighted in the cable is the difficulty of issuing real-time emergency notifications to Shomer Shabbat and holiday-observant Jews. Because religiously observant Jews refrain from using smartphones, radios, or electronic devices over the holidays, the State Department urged governments to develop bespoke mechanisms—such as physical sirens or dedicated patrols—to deliver direct warnings during sudden security emergencies.

    This issue carries added urgency this year: Rosh Hashanah, observed over two consecutive days, begins at sunset on Friday, September 11, coinciding directly with the entry of Shabbat, and concludes after nightfall on Sunday, September 13. This creates an extended three-day period during which large segments of the observant Jewish population will be entirely disconnected from conventional electronic media and automated emergency alert systems. Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, the State Department’s Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, declined to comment on the cable when contacted by JNS. However, a source familiar with the process noted that a similar urgent directive was circulated in late March ahead of the Passover holiday.

  • IDF Eliminates Two Hamas Terrorists in Gaza Strikes

    IDF Eliminates Two Hamas Terrorists in Gaza Strikes

    The IDF announced on Thursday evening that it eliminated two Hamas terrorists and operatives during the day in two separate precision strikes across the northern and southern Gaza Strip. According to the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, both terrorists were actively advancing imminent terror plots against IDF forces and Israeli civilians while working to reconstitute Hamas’s terror infrastructure in systematic violation of the ceasefire.

    Hamas Terrorists in the Strip, Archive | Photo: Flash90

    Earlier in the day, the IDF struck a target in the Al-Shati camp in northern Gaza, eliminating terrorist Bilal Ibrahim Saleh Rakiei, who operated in the anti-tank missile apparatus of Hamas’s military wing. In a separate strike conducted in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli forces eliminated Azzam Rifa’at Abed Abadlah, a terrorist operative in Hamas’s Khan Yunis Brigade.

    “Recently, these terrorists advanced terror plots against IDF troops and the citizens of Israel, working to restore the organization’s capabilities in systematic breach of the ceasefire,” the military stated. “The strikes were executed to remove the threat.”

    Hamas Terrorists | Photo: Shutterstock

    The military underscored that Southern Command troops remain strategically deployed across the sector in accordance with existing operational frameworks: “IDF forces in the Southern Command remain deployed across the sector according to the agreement and will continue to act decisively to neutralize any immediate threat.” Thursday’s targeted strikes follow a series of pinpoint actions conducted by the IDF against terror operatives working to rebuild militant infrastructure in the Strip despite the ceasefire.

    Hamas Terrorists in the Gaza Strip | Photo: Shutterstock

    Earlier today, the IDF confirmed that two Nukhba terrorists who participated in the October 7 massacre were eliminated in strikes earlier this week in Khan Yunis. One of the eliminated terrorists, Rezeq Suheil Suleiman Abu Shahma, also served as a personal bodyguard to Yahya Sinwar. Military officials confirmed that both terrorists had recently been organizing operational terror attacks.

    Additionally, earlier this week, joint operations by the IDF and the Shin Bet (ISA) dismantled two major Hamas weapons depots embedded inside mosques in Al-Shati and Deir al-Balah, seizing dozens of Kalashnikov assault rifles, ammunition caches, and tactical combat equipment.