News Digest — 6/24/26
Ambassador Leiter Warns: ‘The Train Toward Peace With Lebanon Is In Danger Of Derailing’
Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter warned at the opening of the fifth round of talks between Israel and Lebanon that the diplomatic process is at a critical point, stressing that any future agreement must be based on the removal of Iranian influence from Lebanon and the dismantling of Hezbollah.
“This is the fifth round of talks, and I must say – we are in a train wreck,” Leiter said. “For the previous four rounds, we all boarded the same train. We sat in the same carriage and traveled to the same destination, with the United States serving as the leading engine.”
According to Leiter, the purpose of the process was clear from the beginning: “Full peace between the countries; Iran out and its malicious influence out of Lebanon; the dismantling of Hezbollah; peace and security for Lebanon and Israel.”
“Today, this train is in danger of derailing,” he warned. “I hope we can get back on track.”
Leiter emphasized that the talks must not turn into discussions over Iran’s role in restraining Hezbollah, but rather focus on ending Tehran’s involvement in Lebanon altogether.
“The basic assumption was that Iran is out, and that the main discussion concerns Lebanon and Hezbollah – not the question of how much Iran can restrain Hezbollah. That is not Iran’s role. Its role is to leave Lebanon,” he said.
The ambassador said that the international community must maintain clarity regarding the goal of the negotiations. “The only issue is Hezbollah. Hezbollah must be defeated and removed from the equation. Instead, there is a danger that Hezbollah has been given encouragement. There is no doubt it feels stronger and bolder.”
Leiter presented several key questions that Israel believes must be answered as the talks continue.
Does the dismantling of Hezbollah still form the basis of these discussions? From our perspective, it must remain so,” he said.
He also addressed the ceasefire understandings, stating: “We agreed to a ceasefire conditioned on Hezbollah’s withdrawal northward. Does this agreement still hold? We cannot afford commitments that fade away.”
The ambassador made clear that Israel would continue to defend itself against threats from Lebanon. “Israel will act against immediate and developing threats to its citizens and soldiers,” he stressed.
Leiter also expressed concern over the possibility that Iran could receive significant funds as part of the memorandum of understanding being advanced, warning that safeguards must be put in place.
“Iran is expected to benefit from the flow of funds under the memorandum of understanding. How will we ensure that these funds do not find their way to Hezbollah?” he asked.
Netanyahu Vows To ‘Break Free’ From Dependency On US Weaponry
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel must build an independent armaments production network and reduce its dependence on foreign military supplies while speaking last week to reserve combat officer cadets in Gush Etzion.
Netanyahu made the remarks during a meeting with a reserve combat officers’ course at Kibbutz Migdal Oz in Gush Etzion, south of Jerusalem. He discussed Israel’s security challenges across multiple fronts, including Iran and its regional proxies.
“Right now, we are standing against Iran and its proxies. We have dealt them blows. It is not over yet, but it depends on our strength,” Netanyahu said.”
“Where we will be 30 years from now depends on our strength. Therefore, what we are doing right now is building great strength.”
Netanyahu said Israel deeply values US support, but must be able to produce its own weapons and military equipment.
“I want armaments independence,” he said. “I deeply appreciate the support we have received, and which I have also brought over the years, from our American friends. Today I say: we need our own independent armaments network. We must manufacture our own armaments.”
The prime minister said Israel’s long-term security would depend not only on weapons production, but also on technology and training future commanders.
“To break free from dependency, to build more and more power, to integrate more and more technology, and to train more and more generations of commanders like you, because that is what will ultimately determine where we will be,” Netanyahu said.
“With God’s help and with your help, we will be in a good place.”
Netnayahu’s comments came as Israel continues to face threats from Iran and allied groups across the region, while also relying heavily on US military assistance and weapons supplies.
Mark Levin: Iran Deal Funds Tehran More In A Year Than Israel In A Decade
Fox News commentator Mark Levin on Tuesday (23rd) ripped the US-Iran deal, warning it would provide Tehran with more funding in a single year than Israel received in a decade.
“The Iranian regime will now receive more money from this deal in a single year than Israel receives in 10 years (nearly all of which buys military equipment from American companies).” Levin wrote in a post on social media.
He added, “Israel is actively and aggressively focused on complete economic and military independence. It does not want to be treated as a sterling partner in war but a belittled punching bag the rest of the time.”
“Just listen to what’s said about Israel by Democrats, Woke podcasters, TV hosts, and even some of our friends. I fear we will regret this as we grow closer to countries like Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan and go down a narrow and dark path,” concluded Levin.
Earlier on Tuesday (23rd), Levin sharply criticized diplomatic efforts involving Hezbollah, questioning the exclusion of Israel and Lebanon from negotiations and condemning the role of outside mediators.
“Has anybody ever heard of a negotiation where the two countries directly affected, Israel and Lebanon, are left out of the negotiations?” Levin wrote, referring to what he described as a Hezbollah renewal negotiation involving Qatar, Pakistan, and the United States.
Levin argued that the outcome of such talks would be imposed on both countries and asked, “Have we ever forced a democratic ally to endanger its own citizens by supporting a terrorist organization that has murdered Americans?”
“Honestly, this is an abomination. What kind of insanity is this?” he continued.
Levin accused the negotiators of undermining Israel’s security interests and strengthening Iran’s influence in Lebanon through Hezbollah.
“Even worse, we are smearing Israel for refusing to abandon its security, we ensure Iran’s control over Lebanon via Hezbollah, and we have done absolutely nothing over the 45 year period Hezbollah has slaughtered Americans,” he wrote. “Only Israel has. Why are we helping Hezbollah? Pure appeasement to Iran.”
Levin also questioned whether congressional Republicans would support the effort. “I wonder how many congressional Republicans support this? No way this escapes scrutiny. Something is going on here that stinks to high heaven,” he wrote.
Time To Expose Erdogan’s True Face- Nadav Shragai
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is President Donald Trump’s “very good friend,” as the American President has described him, but continues to host and provide refuge to Hamas mass murderers, who keep planning terrorism and attacks against us from Istanbul and Ankara. On Monday (22nd), we learned that dozens more such attacks , which could have ended in major disasters and many casualties, were recently thwarted by Israel, fortunately.
Nevertheless, Trump does not spare the Turkish President expressions of admiration and affection just as he often lavishes admiration and friendship on other sworn enemies of the state of Israel.
Mojtaba Khamenei for example, whom Trump, unbelievably expressed sorrow over after he was harmed and called a “brave man; ” the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, who according to Trump is a “fantastic and brave man,” despite the fact that he and his regime have for years provided financial, political and ideological support to the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas, and, just like Erdogan, hosted its offices and headquarters, and also Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the jihadist known as al-Jolani, yet Trump sees him as a “true leader and fighter…a tough guy with a very strong past… a true leader…pretty amazing.” Trump wanted him to deal with Hezbollah instead of Israel.
Trump’s “good friend,” Erdogan, has during the years of the war managed to call directly for Israel’s destruction (March 2025), define Israel as a “terror state” and “a threat to humanity,” compare us to Nazis and publicly wish for our annihilation.The Turkish leader even made clear that Israel’s end was near, and that”the atomic bombs it possesses will not save it.”
Unlike in the past, the Turkish president no longer bothers to deny the ties between his regime and the Hamas-attack-planners operating from his territory. And perhaps that is no wonder, when this is a man who was in contact before and after the massacre with the architects of Oct. 7, a man who expressed respect for the late Sunni religious authority Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaeadawi, who issued a religious ruling permitting suicide attacks against Israelis, and a man who had close ties with Qazi Hussain Ahmad, the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Pakistan, who rejected the very legitimacy of Israel’s existence. Erdogan also met with two of the most prominent subversives among Israel’s Arab citizens against the very existence of the Jewish state, Sheikh Raed Salah and Kamal Khatib, leaders of the outlawed Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel.
Since Oct. 7, Erdogan has treated us as an enemy, and the obvious question is: Why do we not treat him as such? Why is someone who hosted, and still hosts, arch-terrorists on his soil, (some of them deportees from the Shalit deal, who direct terrorism against us from there), still not formally defined in Israel as an enemy? Why is someone who turned Istanbul and Ankara into a home and safe haven for Hamas headquarters or offices, and into an oxygen pipeline for the economy of the Palestinian Hamas terrorist organization, still not considered our clear enemy?
Why should we not see him, too, as part of the network of “and their helpers” of those who massacred, raped, beheaded, abused, abducted and murdered us on Oct 7? Why not expose his ties to the murderous Hamas organization as well in the upcoming trial of the Nukhba terrorists?
Erdogan, in whose country the Israeli and US flags, and the portraits of Netanyahu and Trump, are burned in the streets, exactly as in Iran, defines Hamas terrorists as mujahideen, holy warriors, and admires the “martyrs” of the terrorist organization. In his speeches, he notes the commitment to “defend Islam” and describes the need for an “alliance of Islamic states” to act against Israel as a “religious duty.” Only recently, he prayed that “al-Qahhar,” one of Allah’s names, meaning “the destroyer” or “the subduer,” would devastate and destroy Zionist Israel, “the one created by Satan.”
Trump’s America knows this reality well. Nevertheless, in Erdogan’s case too, it struggles to internalize that hatred rooted for generations in religious fanaticism cannot be extinguished with firehoses or money, just as the DNA of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards cannot be changed in the same way. We, unlike Trump, must behave and speak differently, and make sure the entire world knows who the real Erdogan is.
Poll: Israelis Place Security Over Withdrawals, Say Buffer Zones Essential
A new survey commissioned by the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs found that most Israelis support maintaining defensible borders and security zones in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and the Jordan Valley: 64% support a permanent military buffer zone in Gaza, while 73% support maintaining a security zone in southern Lebanon up to the Litani River.
“The Israeli public has drawn a clear lesson from Oct. 7 and the security developments of recent years: national security cannot be based on hopes, international guarantees, or assumptions that have proven inadequate,” said JCFA President Dan Diker. “Most Israelis now understand that defensible borders, strategic depth, buffer zones, and an Israeli security presence in vital areas are indispensable components of national defense.”
60%of Israelis support maintaining Israel’s security presence in Syria. 57% said Israel must keep a permanent military presence in the Jordan Valley, irrespective of any future political deal. 61% oppose any agreement that would require a full withdrawal from Judea and Samaria without Israeli-controlled buffer zones or security mechanisms. 56% said Israel’s 2005 disengagement from Gaza was a strategic mistake. (JNS)
(jns.org)
How Alliances Work – Abe Greenwald
Vice President JD Vance said on June 18, “If I was in the cabinet of the Israeli government, I might be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world.” Vance’s premise is false. Israel has relations with dozens of countries and maintains significant strategic partnerships throughout the world even with countries that criticize it obsessively. And while he claims that Israeli cabinet members are personally attacking Trump, they’ve merely commented on the Iran deal and what it means to Israel.
The vice president wasn’t describing an alliance. He was describing a dependence that strips a nation of the right to disagree. What Vance is talking about is obedience. That’s not how alliances work. The U.S. has never expected Britain or any other ally to surrender its voice in exchange for American protection. In a healthy alliance, partners are free to speak candidly when interests diverge. The alliance works because it’s rooted in shared aims and shared values, not because one side has purchased the silence of the other.
Zionism emerged, in part, as a rejection of the idea that Jews should live at the mercy of leaders whose favor could be granted one day and withdrawn the next. Actually, Israel is the only country at this moment that’s been unwavering in its support for the president and the only country that’s proved itself fighting alongside the U.S. in ages. (Commentary)
