In a video statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that if Hamas does not return the hostages by Saturday at noon, the ceasefire will end, and the IDF will resume heavy military operations “until Hamas is completely defeated.” After Hamas announced a delay in the hostage release, Netanyahu said he ordered the IDF to mobilize forces in and around the Gaza Strip. “If Hamas does not return our hostages by noon on Saturday, the ceasefire will end, and the IDF will resume intense fighting until Hamas is decisively defeated…. “I have just concluded an in-depth four-hour discussion in the Security Cabinet. We all expressed outrage at the appalling condition of the three hostages who were released last Saturday…..

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he’s given his advisers instructions to obliterate Iran if it assassinates him. “If they did that they would be obliterated,” Trump said in an exchange with reporters while signing an executive order calling for the U.S. government to impose maximum pressure on Tehran. “I’ve left instructions if they do it, they get obliterated, there won’t be anything left.” If Trump were assassinated, Vice President JD Vance would become president and would not necessarily be bound by any instructions left by his predecessor. Federal authorities have been tracking Iranian threats against Trump and other administration officials for years. Trump ordered the 2020 killing of Qassem Soleimani, who led the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force.

In a highly relevant Q&A session, Rav Aharon Lopiansky shlit”a delivered a pertinent message on the role of Daas Torah in medical decision-making. The discussion, moderated by Rabbi Sruly Fried of Chai Lifeline, centered around a question posed: Does Daas Torah have a place in medical advice and referrals, and if so, what is its role? Rav Lopiansky’s response was clear and unequivocal: One must differentiate between moral dilemmas and technical expertise. “If someone is building a structure and is unsure if the supports are strong enough, would anyone even have a hava amina to ask Daas Torah? Of course not. You ask an engineer,” he explained. The same applies to vaccines—why should a Rav be expected to be a medical expert?

A soldier from the elite Egoz unit of the Commando Brigade was seriously injured on Shabbos during military activity in Jenin as part of Operation Iron Wall. A second soldier was moderately injured in the incident and a third soldier was lightly injured. “The soldiers were evacuated to receive medical treatment at a hospital, and their families were informed,” the IDF spokesperson stated. The IDF spokesperson added that IDF, Shin Bet, and Border Police forces continued counterterrorism activities in northern Shomron over the week, killing over 10 terrorists and arresting around 20 terror suspects. On Friday night, an Air Force aircraft targeted a vehicle carrying a terror squad, killing three terrorists. The strike was carried out based on precise Shin Bet intelligence.

Agam Berger is among the hostages expected to be released on Shabbos. Her mother, Merav, made a tremendous Kiddush Hashem and made a video urging Israeli media to honor Shabbos by refraining from coverage. Merav said “We are waiting with bated breath for our daughters…. We also know that it will apparently happen on Shabbos, and not for no reason, either: Our enemies apparently intended that.

On the night before October 7, an IDF intelligence unit gathered information indicating that Hamas was preparing to fire rockets at Israel and also observed unusual activity among Hamas’ aerial forces that indicated they were preparing for activity, Ynet reported on Thursday. These signs were discussed in IDF consultations in the following hours but no officials made a decision to raise alerts over a possible Hamas attack or cancel the Nova party which was being held with thousands of attendants in an open area near the Gaza border. Contrary to earlier reports, during these consultations, senior IDF officials had seriously considered the possibility that Hamas was about to launch an attack on Israel.

All remaining obstacles in the hostage-ceasefire negotiations with Hamas have been resolved, multiple Israeli officials have announced, solidifying the agreement. This development follows an announcement by Qatari and US leaders yesterday. However, earlier today, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office accused Hamas of reneging on parts of the deal, creating a last-minute crisis. At Shas party’s annual conference, chairman Aryeh Deri confirmed the breakthrough, stating, “A few minutes ago, I received final confirmation that all barriers have been overcome, and the deal is now progressing. Technical details are being finalized.

Five IDF soldiers were tragically killed today in intense battles in the northern Gaza Strip, the military announced. All five were members of the Reconnaissance Battalion of the Nahal Brigade, and their sacrifice highlights the ongoing toll of the conflict. The fallen soldiers are: Captain Yair Yakov Shushan, 23, from Ma’alot-Tarshiha, a squad commander. Staff Sergeant Yahav Hadar, 20, from Kfar Tavor. Staff Sergeant Guy Karmiel, 20, from Gedera. Staff Sergeant Yoav Feffer, 19, from Herzliya. Staff Sergeant Aviel Wiseman, 20, from Poria Illit. The soldiers were engaged in heavy fighting in the northern Gaza Strip when the incident occurred.

An IDF investigation has determined that six hostages abducted by Hamas were likely executed by their captors amid an airstrike on a Hamas tunnel in Khan Younis, Gaza. As YWN reported at the time, the bodies of the hostages were recovered on August 20, over three months after their deaths. YWN had reported at the time that they had been executed as their bodies were found riddled with bullets, and the IDF is releasing confirmed details now. The victims, identified as Alex Dancyg, 75, Yagev Buchshtav, 35, Chaim Peri, 79, Yoram Metzger, 80, Nadav Popplewell, 51, and Avraham Munder, 78, were taken hostage during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

Kash Patel, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the FBI, was recently informed by the bureau that he had been targeted in a cyberattack by Iranian hackers, according to a report by CNN on Tuesday that also said the hackers may have gained access to some of Patel’s communications during the breach. The incident is part of a broader pattern of Iranian hacking efforts aimed at Trump associates. In September, the Justice Department charged three members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) for a series of cyberattacks targeting Trump campaign staffers during the 2020 presidential election.