New Digest — 1/12/26
After Warning Civilians Of Imminent Strikes, Israel Hits Hezbollah Infrastructure In South Lebanon
Following an evacuation warning to Lebanese civilians, the IDF confirmed that it had been striking Hezbollah infrastructure in “several areas” of southern Lebanon on Sunday evening (11th).
The initial warning was issued by Arabic-language spokesperson Col. Avichay Adraee on X.
The area around Kafr Hata will be targeted by the military in the coming hours, Adraee warned, adding that this will consist of a strike on a Hezbollah terror military infrastructure site and that locals should remain at least 300 meters away from a building highlighted in the post.
The warning came after the military stated earlier that day that the IDF struck a weapons storage shaft belonging to Hezbollah terrorists in southern Lebanon.
The strikes were conducted near Kfarbeit, the military clarified later on Sunday (11th).
Later on Sunday (11th), the military confirmed that they struck a second site used by Hezbollah terrorists to store weapons. This second site was underground, the military clarified.
The site had been previously struck approximately a week ago, the military added, noting that they had informed the Lebanese Armed Forces about the presence of terrorists operating in the area.
The LAF inspected the site, following communication with the IDF, but the terror infrastructure was not fully dismantled, the IDF said.
The IDF, therefore, decided to strike the site again on Sunday (11th).
The military noted that it took steps to mitigate harm to civilians by issuing advance warnings to local populations, referring to Adraee’s aforementioned social media post.
The military also struck and killed an additional terrorist near Bint Jubeil, the military confirmed on Sunday evening (11th),
This follows a series of strikes, including on Friday (9th), when the military confirmed a series of strikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon “in response to the terrorist organization’s continued violations of the ceasefire understandings.”
Additionally, on Thursday (8th), the military conducted an air strike in the Zaita region of southern Lebanon, killing a Hezbollah operative.
A later statement from the IDF clarified that the operative was Alaa’ Hourani, who was a Hezbollah drone operator.
Throughout the IDF’s conflict with Hezbollah, Hourani also aided in re-establishing the terror group’s infrastructure in the region, as well as in intelligence gathering and deploying terrorist forces.
Separately, in southern Gaza, soldiers from the IDF’s 188th Brigade on Sunday (11th) identified a terrorist crossing the Yellow Line in the area.
The terrorist approached the soldiers “in a manner that posed an immediate threat,” the military noted.
As a result, the air force, coordinating with the soldiers, conducted a strike and killed the terrorist, the military confirmed.
Netanyahu Convenes Cabinet Meeting By Openly Declaring Support For The Movement To Topple The Islamic Republic Regime
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened Sunday’s (11th) cabinet meeting by addressing the ongoing events in Iran and expressed open support for the protesters fighting to take down the Islamic regime.
“Israel is closely monitoring developments in Iran,” Netanyahu stated. “Pro-freedom protests have spread across the country. The people of Israel, and the entire world, stand in awe at the immense courage of the citizens of Iran.”
The Prime Minister added that “Israel supports their struggle for freedom and strongly condemns the mass slaughter of innocent civilians.
Netanyahu ended on an optimistic note: “We all hope that the Persian nation will soon be freed from the yoke of tyranny, and when that day comes, Israel and Iran will once again be loyal partners in building a future of prosperity and peace for both peoples.”
Later in the day, the Prime Minister convened the security cabinet with senior defense officials to discuss regional developments, including Iran and the Trump Plan.
Over the weekend, several security situation assessments were held in the IDF, led by the Chief of Staff LTG Eyal Zamir, amid the latest developments in Iran.
“We are monitoring developments in Iran,” the IDF stated, emphasizing that “the protests are an internal Iranian matter.” However, it was further stated that the IDF is prepared for defense and continuously improving its capabilities and operational readiness.”
“We will know how to respond with strength if necessary. The IDF will do everything required to protect the citizens of the State of Israel,” the IDF’s statement read.
Report: Israel Preparing For New Gaza Ground Offensive
Israel’s military is gearing up for a possible new ground operation in the Gaza Strip, multiple sources told The Wall Street Journal, as Israel and the US weigh their responses to Hamas’ ongoing refusal to disarm.
According to a report published on Sunday (11th), both Hamas and Israel are preparing for a new round of fighting, as questions linger regarding the future of the fragile ceasefire in Gaza.
Since the truce went into effect in October, Hamas has sought to rebuild its military capabilities, assembling new weapons and recruiting Gazans – including large numbers of teenagers – to replace terrorists killed during two years of fighting.
With the massive increase in the amount of aid entering Gaza, Hamas has also been able to refill its coffers, controlling the bulk of aid entering the enclave and selling incoming goods to civilians.
An Israeli official cited in the report said the IDF has no immediate plans to carry out large-scale operations in the nearly 50% of the Gaza Strip controlled by Hamas.
However, the official added that if Hamas remains steadfast in its refusal to hand over its arsenal, Israel’s military will eventually be called upon to disarm Hamas by force.
The Trump administration is continuing its efforts to convince Hamas to agree to some formula for disarmament, while at the same time putting together the administrative bodies which will be tasked with governing Gaza and overseeing aid transfers and reconstruction.
Israel is, for the time being, willing to hold off on confronting Hamas over its failure to disarm, with the IDF likely to be deployed in the near future on Israel’s northern border for some form of campaign against Hezbp;;ah, after the December 13 disarmament deadline passed.
The rising specter of a possible new war with Iran has also complicated plans for a new ground campaign in Gaza, with Tehran threatening Israel repeatedly over the past few days.
Ultimately, the sources cited in Sunday’s report (11th) said that Israel will need to confront Hamas if no deal can be reached on disarmament.
Security experts say that confrontation could come either in the form of a rapid takeover of Gaza or a gradual, piecemeal approach.
“The army is ready and can do both,” said Amir Avily, a retired IDF general and head of the Bithonistim group of former Israeli officers.
Erez Winner, a former IDF senior planner now serving as a research fellow at the Israel Centre for Grand Strategy, said that unlike previous Gaza operations, any future Israeli campaigns would be able to proceed quickly, given the fact that all the living hostages have been returned and most Gazans are already living in tent cities and can be easily relocated.
Winter Returns, Storms To Peak Mid-Week
Israel’s string of sunny days will end Monday afternoon (12th), when the weather becomes hazy and a new winter weather system arrives.
On Monday afternoon (12th) the winds will pick up and rain will begin to fall in northern Israel.
Monday evening (12th) will see the rain spreading to central Israel, and overnight, the weather throughout Israel will become stormy and extremely cold.
Tuesday (13th) will see strong winds with gusts between 80-100 kilometers per hour. Most of the precipitation will be concentrated in the central mountains, though there will be intermittent rainfall in northern Israel and in the rest of central Israel as well. There is a strong chance of flooding in the Judean Desert and the Dead Sea streams, and there may be snowfall on the peaks of Mount Hermon and the higher mountains in the Golan Heights.
Tuesday morning (13th) will begin with stormy weather, but the storms will lose strength over the course of the day, winds will become significantly gentler, and the rain will gradually lessen. Temperatures will remain very low.
Wednesday (14th) and Thursday (15th) will see a gradual rise in temperature along with potential rainfall in northern and central Israel.
Why Jews Mourn Jewish Strangers – Barry Finestone
When a Jewish person is killed thousands of miles away, Jews around the world often feel it as a personal loss. Not symbolically. Not intellectually. Personally. After the recent mass killing in Bondi, Jewish communities across continents gathered and mourned. Most of them have never been to Australia and did not know the victims.
This reaction often puzzles people outside the Jewish community. Why would the death of a stranger feel so immediate? The answer reveals something fundamental about how Jews understand belonging, memory and responsibility. Jews are very few. Roughly 15 million worldwide, less than two-tenths of one percent of the global population.
When a people group is that small, distance collapses. A stranger is never entirely a stranger. Some knew their family or prayed in the same language, or shared a lineage. It is what happens when you belong to a tiny people whose survival has never been guaranteed. But plenty of small groups do not react this way. The Jewish reaction is shaped by something more enduring. Jews carry history differently.
For most people, violence against their group is episodic. For Jews it is cumulative: Pogroms, expulsions, forced conversions, massacres, and the Holocaust are read as a long unfinished sentence. It means that the past is present tense. Jewish memory is not nostalgia, it is violence. It is pattern recognition shaped by centuries of experience.
Moreover, Jews have a moral architecture that centers an ancient teaching that all Jews are responsible for one another. This is not just a saying. It is a demand. Historically Jewish communities survived because they treated that responsibility as non-negotiable. Jewish life persisted through mutual accountability.
Jewish identity is not just a religion you practice. It is a story you inherit and a future you feel obligated to protect. When tragedy strikes, it does not feel like news, it feels like something has happened to the family.
The writer is President and CEO of theJim Joseph Foundation, supporting Jewish education in the US.
Israel’s U.S. Ambassador: “We Don’t Occupy Anybody Else’s Land. We’re Indigenous To The Land Of Israel.” – Corinne Baum
Israeli Ambassador to the U.S., Yechiel Leiter told Congregation Ahavath Sholom in Fort Worth Texas: “The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan made peace with Israel without conditions.”
“They didn’t say divide Jerusalem. They didn’t say give up the Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, the settlements. No. They made peace. Why? Because they’re promoting an Islam that says [we can live] side-by-side with Western civilization instead of defeating Western civilization.
He told the Jerusalem Post in an interview: “Our introduction to Judaism is an instruction to Abraham, ’Leave your father’s home, your birthplace, and go to the land which I will show you.’ You can’t change history. That’s how Jewish history begins, with Zionism, connecting the people and the land. We don’t occupy anybody else’s land. We’re indigenous to the Land of Israel. We don’t need to apologize for being who we are: the Land of Israel and the People of Israel.”
He said the Israel-Hamas war “isn’t a border dispute… It tore that mask off the notion that all we have to do is give up a few km. here, give up a few km. there, divide Jerusalem… That’s not the issue. They’re talking about destroying the State of Israel.”
Leiter hit out against those who accuse Israel of genocide in Gaza. If we committed what we’re being accused of doing, my son, my friends’ sons would be alive today. We didn’t bomb population centers from the air. We went in on foot to weed out the terrorists.”
“Maj. (res.) Moshe Leiter was killed in action alongside three other reservists in Beit Hanun. When he found the entrance to a Hamas tunnel he announced on the radio, but then terrorists underground blew up the tunnel. Had we just bombed that area because we knew that there was a tunnel there, they would be alive.”
