The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) last Friday issued a sharp rebuttal to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis report on Gaza, rejecting what it described as biased and predetermined conclusions that ignore data on humanitarian aid deliveries.

According to COGAT, the report’s authors formally acknowledged that there is no famine in Gaza, despite previously making what COGAT termed false claims, while still asserting a situation of acute food insecurity.

In an official response, COGAT stated: “COGAT strongly rejects the claims and conclusions presented in the IPC report published today (Friday), which once again portrays a distorted, biased, and unfounded picture of the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. The report relies on severe gaps in data collection and on sources that do not reflect the full scope of humanitarian assistance. As such, it misleads the international community, fuels disinformation, and presents a false depiction of the reality on the ground.”

COGAT concluded: “The publication of statements and warnings that are not based on complete and verified data does not advance the humanitarian response. Instead, it harms it and diverts the discussion from the real challenge – improving collection and distribution mechanisms within the Gaza Strip and preventing Hamas from taking control of the aid.” The statement added that the international community must “avoid falling for false narratives and distorted information.”

Source:
COGAT rejects IPC report, says Gaza not facing famine, by Israel National News, December 19, 2025

 

 

Israeli leaders met Thursday to discuss plans to combat illegal Palestinian waste processing sites, where trash is burned without oversight or sorting, resulting in toxic air pollution which impacts Israeli towns on both sides of the Green Line.

During the meeting, the ministers decided to designate the illegal fires and the resulting air pollution as a national security threat, declaring the phenomenon a national emergency.

Defense Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich vowed aggressive enforcement efforts to put a stop to the illegal garbage burning operations, which regularly leave towns in central Israel like Modi’in, Shoham, and Rosh Ha’Ayin blanketed with toxic black smoke.

Smotrich called the illegal fires “environmental terrorism,” lamenting that the smoke not only harms Israeli residents of Judea and Samaria but also crosses the Green Line into pre-1967 Israeli towns. It is estimated that no fewer than 1400 Israelis die annually due to this eco-terrorism.

“Environmental terrorism proves that the Green Line is virtual, and when Judea and Samaria are the backyard of the State of Israel, it is the entire people of Israel who are harmed. We are erasing the Green Line and taking responsibility.”

A new dedicated enforcement unit is set to be deployed next year to shut down illegal garbage burning sites and to prosecute those operating them, while Israeli firefighters will be enlisted to extinguish unauthorized fires.

Source:
Israel declares national emergency over Palestinian ‘terror pollution’, by World Israel News Staff, December 18, 2025

Report: 1,400 Israelis die annually as a result of Palestinian ‘eco-terrorism’, by World Israel News, November 20, 2025

Samaria mayors and governors recently wrote to the ministers of Defense, Finance, National Security, Transportation and Justice demanding a change in the policy for entry of Israeli citizens into Area A and equal enforcement at the security crossings.

The appeal comes against the backdrop of unusual traffic congestion at the Eliyahu crossing and on key routes in the area, which, they say, pose an immediate danger to Israelis. The congestion spills onto Route 55 and affects tens of thousands of Israelis in communities such as Karnei Shomron, Kedumim, Emanuel and the Gav HaHar region.

This constitutes a real security and safety risk, particularly in light of two shooting attacks that occurred in the area over the past year and a half. They cite the absence of a systemic response despite proposed solutions, including the reopening of another crossing that previously operated.

Source:
Governors warn of security threat from congestion in Samaria, by Israel National News, December 16, 2025

 

A shepherd from Beit Anot in the Hebron hills went out Wednesday morning to the grazing lands and noticed Arab poachers from the village of Halhul unloading traps from a pickup truck, intending to hunt songbirds.

The shepherd approached them and began documenting their actions while reporting to security forces. In response, the hunters fled back toward Halhul, leaving open traps in the field as well as several birds already caught.

Residents of the area have complained of poaching by Arabs from neighboring villages for years, a phenomenon they claim is barely dealt with by police. The farmers in the area say that Israeli farming has prevented poaching and that they actively work to protect the areas around the farms as well.

This act of poaching is also a manifestation of terrorism. It transcends being merely a local offense and aims to instill fear and inflict harm upon Israel, and it can no longer be overlooked. As residents in this report stated, “Step by step we are succeeding in restoring Jewish sovereignty to the area, and in correcting the lawlessness that prevailed in the field for years. It is time for the government of Israel to recognize the settlements as having first‑rate security and strategic value.”

Source:
Watch: Shepherd catches illegal hunters red-handed, by Israel National News, December 17, 2025

 

by Moshe Phillips, AFSI National Chairman

The Islamic terrorist attack at Bondi Beach is a stark reminder that there is zero difference between anti-Zionism and antisemitism.

The horrific shooting attack on the Hanukkah party has generated a variety of responses and recommendations, from tolerance education and self-defense to increasing synagogue attendance as a show of defiance by holding larger public Hanukkah celebrations.

Remarkably, however, one of the most obvious possible responses to antisemitic violence has been almost completely absent from the post-shooting dialogue: aliyah.

 

Immigration by Jews to Israel has never been more than a trickle – for example, from the United States typically 2,000 to 3,500 annually, less than one-fourth of one percent of the American Jewish community before October 7. In 2024, the United States and Canada (combined) saw 3,340 Jews make aliyah.

But that’s not surprising, because there has never been an instance throughout history when there was a substantial aliyah from a Jewish community that was comfortable and prosperous, and believed that it was physically safe. It goes against human nature. People vote with their feet. When they like a place, they stay there.

Perhaps that’s part of the reason that there is so little discussion in America about aliyah. It seems so utterly unrealistic to expect many American Jews to ever take the idea seriously.

Another reason it’s not widely discussed is that the very question makes many people uncomfortable. Zionists tell themselves that they are needed in the Diaspora in order to promote Israel’s cause. Many Orthodox Jews may tell themselves that while living in Israel is Jewishly desirable, it is justified to remain in the United States in order to earn a living.

And while those reasons may be valid on some level, they are nonetheless unsettling.

But there is now another dimension to this issue that simply cannot be avoided.

Even before October 7, pundits, community leaders, and organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League have been reporting that antisemitism has been increasing very significantly. They all vehemently agree that it is reaching crisis proportions. The more dramatic among these commentators have begun warning that “it” could happen in America – and even Australia – after all.

Well, if that is the case-and if the terrorist shooting attack on Bondi Beach illustrates-then shouldn’t we at least be talking about the option that Jews in imminent danger have always considered and often undertaken: emigration to Israel?

Have American Jews forgotten about the deadly shooting attacks on the synagogues in Pittsburgh and Poway, California?

During the 1930s, as the dark storm clouds gathered on the Jewish horizon, the legendary Zionist leader Ze’ev Jabotinsky (1880-1940) crisscrossed Eastern Europe, pleading with the Jewish masses, “Liquidate the Exile before it liquidates you.”

The Jews of Germany and Poland tried to get to Eretz Yisrael on the eve of the Holocaust, but the British government – first under Neville Chamberlain’s leadership and later under Winston Churchill – enforced the infamous White Paper of 1939 that tragically kept them out.

America and the rest of the Diaspora, as we head into 2026, is not comparable to Germany in 1939. Terrorists attacking a Hanukkah event in Australia is not the same as an entire government-in fact, virtually an entire nation-waging a deadly war of extermination against Jews. No one is proposing that the Diaspora Jews should be selling their houses and buying plane tickets this week.

What I am saying is that we should at least be talking about aliyah. We should be discussing the positive reasons for moving to Israel. We should be frank about the reasons we give our children for why we love Israel but live elsewhere. We should have a serious discussion about what traditional Jewish sources have to say about the subject.

We should consider the implications of Bondi Beach, the Tree of Life, and Poway.

It’s time for aliyah to be a real part of the conversation.

Source:
Aliyah as a response to Bondi Beach?, by Moshe Phillips, December 16, 2025 – Israel National News

 

The Security Cabinet on Thursday evening approved the establishment and regulation of 19 new communities across Judea and Samaria.

Among the communities approved, following the proposal of Ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Israel Katz, are Ganim and Kadim, which were evacuated from northern Samaria as part of the Disengagement nearly twenty years ago.

In addition, approvals were granted for veteran communities as well as those in early stages of development. This marks a significant political step expanding Israeli communities in the region.

The list of approved communities: Esh Kodesh, Allenby, Givat Harel, Ganim, Har Bezek, Ya’ar El-Keren, Yatziv, Yitav West, Kadim, Kochav HaShachar North, Kida, Mishol, Nahal Doron, Pnei Kedem, Reihanit, Rosh HaAyin East, Shalem, Tamun.

We commend this advancement. It represents the appropriate solution and the Zionist reaction to those who persist in their efforts to undermine the existence of The State of Israel.

Source:
Cabinet approves: 19 new communities in Judea and Samaria, by Israel National News, December 12, 2025

 

 

Eight Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria received formal Israeli government recognition this week, with each given a locality symbol documenting their regulation under the State of Israel.

Harsha, Migron, Shvut Rachel, Adi Ad, Achiya, Nofei Prat and Tal Menashe all received community symbols; the previously frozen symbol of the eighth community, Sa-Nur, was unfrozen as well.

All eight communities may now be officially recognized by Israeli government ministries, enabling them to be hooked up to the national water grid via Mekorot and to receive a branch of the Israel Post service, among other things.

Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan hailed the move, noting that the granting of community symbols is “an important and historic step for settlement,” adding that above all, the return of the settlement symbol to the community of Sa-Nur 20 years after the disastrous expulsion from Gaza, “is another step towards historical correction and justice … The state is saying in a clear voice: the return to Sa-Nur is just, and a fact.”

The greater the construction activity in Judea and Samaria, the more challenging it becomes to establish a second state solution. Consider it akin to progressively asserting sovereignty over Judea and Samaria (although without the application of Israeli law which is an critically important). However, the declaration of full sovereignty over this area must occur immediately and without hesitation!

Source:
Israel Grants Full Recognition to 8 Judea–Samaria Towns, Including Sa-Nur, by Hana Levi Julian/The Jewish Edition, December 10, 2025

 

A report released Tuesday by the Farms Association, and the Binyamin Regional Council highlights a sharp and ongoing decrease in terrorist incidents along Allon Road-one of the most sensitive and central routes in Judea and Samaria.

The data shows that the creation of strategic farms along the route has directly contributed to a dramatic improvement in the security situation. In 2022, when only three farms were operational in the area, there were 459 terrorist incidents. In the following year, with six farms, the number dropped to 314, and by 2024, after increasing to 11 farms, only 126 incidents were recorded.

Yisrael Ganz, Head of the Binyamin Regional Council and Chairman of the Yesha Council, addressed the findings, saying: “The strategic farms are not just a physical addition to the road-they represent a fundamental shift in the security approach across the entire region. They enable the security forces to operate efficiently, establish control, and prevent incidents before they occur.”

Source:
New report: Strategic farms lead to dramatic decrease in terrorist attacks, by Israel National News, December 9, 2025

 

The Israel Defense Forces is sounding the alarm over a growing terrorist threat from the Judea and Samaria, warning that Iranian-backed arms smuggling could spark an Oct. 7-style attack.

Concerns over the presence of significant Iranian-supplied firepower in the hands of Palestinian terrorists has prompted Israeli intelligence and security forces to intensify operations across the territory.

According to a new report from Israel’s Channel 14, a senior IDF official warned that Judea and Samaria presents a growing threat to Israeli communities, with the potential to spark an attack similar to the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

On Tuesday, the IDF uncovered a major terrorist infrastructure in the Tulkarem area, including three rockets at various stages of assembly, explosive devices, operational equipment, and materials for making bombs.

The terrorist threat grows no matter where the IDF exposes it. It is essential to recognize that the task of constantly uncovering and eradicating this terrorist infrastructure has always lied solely with Israel.

Source:
IDF Warns of Growing West Bank Threat, Presence of Iranian Weapons Amid Major Counterterror Operations, by Ailin Vilches Arguello/The Algemeiner, December 10, 2025

 

Netanyahu’s Pardon Request
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has requested a presidential pardon from President Isaac Herzog amid his ongoing corruption trial. Normally this isn’t done in Israel before a verdict is reached. However, it is believed that the Trump “peace plan” could be endangered by having Netanyahu remain under indictment with the trial dragging on. This may be a significant factor behind the request.

President Herzog’s Response
President Herzog has stated that he will consider the request with the welfare of the state and Israeli society in mind. He acknowledged the significant public debate surrounding the pardon and emphasized the need for a careful and responsible approach to the decision. We hope that he will do so without regard to his personal political considerations. We are well aware that his primarily left-wing base will not be happy with him if he uses his pardon power.

Public Reaction
The request has sparked protests in Israel, with demonstrators rallying outside Herzog’s home. Left-wing citizens oppose the pardon, fearing it would undermine democratic institutions and suggest that Netanyahu is above the law.

Legal Context
Pardons in Israel are typically granted after legal proceedings have concluded. Netanyahu’s request is considered extraordinary, as it seeks to intervene in an ongoing trial. Legal experts note that while the president has broad discretion in granting pardons, such requests before a conviction are rare. Additionally, a pardon at this point leaves open the question of whether Netanyahu is actually guilty of even the most minor criminal offense, a question that the Prime Minister would in all likelihood prefer to have answered unequivocally.

What are the reasons for President Herzog to pardon Netanyahu?

National Reconciliation
A pardon could promote national unity in Israel, which has been deeply divided due to ongoing political tensions and Netanyahu’s lengthy corruption trial. Netanyahu argues that ending the trial would help lower societal tensions and foster reconciliation among Israelis.

Sovereignty and Leadership
President Isaac Herzog has emphasized Israel’s sovereignty and the importance of making decisions based on the well-being of the Israeli people. Pardoning Netanyahu could be seen as a way to stabilize the political landscape during a tumultuous time, especially with ongoing conflicts in the region.

Legal Considerations
While Netanyahu has not admitted guilt in his pardon request, the legal framework in Israel allows for pardons without an admission of wrongdoing. Herzog has stated that he will consider the request seriously, indicating a willingness to weigh the implications of a pardon on the legal system and public perception.

Support from Allies
U.S. President Donald Trump has publicly urged Herzog to grant a pardon, highlighting the international political dynamics at play. Support from influential allies may pressure Herzog to consider the broader implications of his decision on Israel’s international relations.

Conclusion
Pardoning Netanyahu could address immediate political challenges and promote a sense of unity in Israel, despite the complexities surrounding the legal and ethical implications of such a decision. While no one would be completely happy with the ramifications of a pardon, we believe that relieving a sitting democratically elected leader of a democratic nation from the burden of appearing in court to answer for questionable (to say the least) allegations is an action whose time has come.