News Digest — 10/5/26
Flag Lowered To Half-Mast As Israel Remembers October 7 Massacre Three Years On
The State of Israel lowered its flags to half-mast at exactly 6:29 a.m. on Monday (5th) to mark the third anniversary of the October 7 massacre, with IDF Chief of Staff LTG Eyal Zamir promising to implement lessons learned from the tragic event.
President Isaac Herzog is expected to give a memorial speech on Mount Herzl later in the morning, followed by the national memorial ceremony for the murdered on October 7 at 14:00
At 17:00, at the president’s home, there will be a “Salon Otef” gathering, which will include former hostage Omri Miran and his wife, Lishay. Additional Salom Otef gatherings are slated to be held at numerous locations across the country.
At 18:30, another memorial ceremony will take place in Beersheba.
At 19:00, Rami Kleinstein will perform in Ofakim, and at 20:00, a memorial service will take place in Sderot.
“We will carry their stories with us and educate generations of commanders and soldiers by their example,” Zamir said in a statement released to mark the event, referring to all those who have fallen during and since the massacre.
Among promises Zamir made after October 7 were that “We will not allow our enemies to build up their strength unhindered,” and “we will identify threats as they emerge and strike them with determination and force.”
“We will ensure that this people, which has returned to its land, will never again be uprooted from it. This is our duty to the fallen, our responsibility to the citizens of Israel and our oath to future generations,” he said.
Zamir also praised the moments after October 7 when the people of Israel, “in all their diversity,” stood in unity to defend the country.
“In the most difficult moments, the solidarity and exemplary character of Israeli society were revealed,” he said, “a people rushing to the aid of its sons and daughters, fighting for its renewal and leaving no one behind,” Zamir said.
IDF Chief: ‘Whoever Threatens Us, We Will Strike With A Decisive Blow’
IDF Chief of Staff LTG Eyal Zamir warned on Sunday (4th) that Israel could continue taking preemptive military action against emerging threats, as he announced the conclusion of the IDF’s investigations into the failures of October 7 and outlined plans to expand the military’s capabilities.
Speaking at a conference of senior IDF commanders at the Glilot base, Zamir emphasized that the military must prepare for the possibility of a surprise war and strengthen its ability to confront threats across multiple fronts.
“We are building the IDF’s strategy with readiness for a surprise war, including the preemptive thwarting of severe threats as they develop, as our reference scenario – this is our operational compass,” Zamir declared.
“We removed threats; we are operating in all arenas, defending forward, and continuing to pursue our enemies everywhere. Our message is clear: Whoever threatens to harm us and builds the capabilities to do so – we will act in advance and strike them with a decisive blow.”
The conference, attended by commanders holding the rank of Brigadier General and above from across the IDF’s commands, directorates, and branches, focused on the findings of the October 7 investigations and the implementation of lessons learned from the failures surrounding the Hamas massacre.
The gathering began with a moment of silence in memory of those murdered and killed on October 7. Senior officers subsequently presented the major findings of the investigations, measures being implemented to address identified failures and mechanisms established to oversee the process.
“I chose to convene the IDF senior commanders forum today, on the eve of the national memorial day for the events of October 7th, as a message,” Zamir said.
“We are examining the status of implementing the lessons from the October 7th investigations, with recognition of the magnitude of the failure alongside the understanding that we must not sink into them, but rather learn, draw lessons, improve, and move forward. The events of October 7th continue to accompany us, and our duty is to ensure that they do not happen again.”
Zanir announced that 2027 would be dedicated to investigating the broader war, including examining individual theaters of combat and identifying lessons applicable throughout the military.
The conference marked the first stage of a broader investigative process that will include an examination of Operation Roaring Lion and eventually culminate in a comprehensive assessment of the war.
Addressing the military’s future force structure, Zamir stressed that Israel’s limited geographic size requires a larger military capable of responding to simultaneous threats.
“One of our greatest lessons is the need to expand our margin of security. The state of Israel is a geographically small country without territorial depth, and it faces multi-front threats,” he said.
“We must build the IDF’s force structure in light of all challenges and threats. The size of the IDF is our strategic depth. Therefore, we must expand the IDF and adapt it to its growing missions.”
During the conference, Zamir presented a certificate of appreciation to Chief Warrant Officer V. of Unit 8200, who had warned before October 7 that Hamas was preparing a large-scale surprise attack.
Zamir praised v’s professionalism and stressed the importance of encouraging independent thinking and dissenting assessments within the military.
“In our organizational culture, we must not allow people-pleasing discourse, intellectual tyranny, or the suppression of critical thinking,” he stated.
Reflecting on the war, Zamir acknowledged the military’s failures on October 7 while praising the bravery and sacrifice of its soldiers, the leadership of its commanders, and cooperation between different branches of the IDF.
“On October 7th, the IDF failed severely, but the IDF got back on its feet and proved itself to have a determined spirit, bringing about a historic and unprecedented multi-front victory,” he said.
Zamir concluded by emphasizing that the military remains on heightened alert amid the current security situation.
“The entire IDF is in constant readiness. We are all on guard. It is our duty to prevent a surprise and to prepare for a surprise,” he said.
“We are in a period of tension and alertness, and each person in their own sector must be alert and prepared.”
Flydubai Hijacker Targeted Ben Gurion Airport
New details from the interrogation of Hamam al-Hammami, the Flydubai co-pilot who attempted to hijack a flight from Dubai to Israel, indicate that the terrorist intended to crash the plane into Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport, causing mass casualties, Israeli officials said on Sunday (4th).
According to the officials, for this reason, al-Hammami began his hijacking attempt over Jordan. The plan was to continue flying toward Israel to make it appear as a routine flight to Ben Gurion.
The terrorist is suspected of having planned to approach landing as usual, and only in the final seconds, once it was impossible to intercept the plane, crash it into the terminal.
The pilot was foiled thanks to Captain Smit Machchhar’s ability to open the cockpit door, thus allowing the passengers to take control from the hijacker.
At the same time, Channel 13 reported that Al-Hammami said in his interrogation that he had planned the attack before Flydubai hired him.
“I researched and checked which airlines fly to Tel Aviv and therefore I chose Flydubai. I tried to be hired by all the companies. I planned the attack before I was hired,” he reportedly told his interrogators.
Israeli Mossad agents and aviation experts are taking part in the investigation into the incident. According to a report by Smadar Perry in Ynet, citing a senior Emirati official, Saudi and Omani intelligence officials are also participating in the investigation, along with at least two American representatives from intelligence agencies.
According to the report, the investigation is focused on the planning of the terror attack allegedly carried out by 29-year-old co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami. The Emirati official claimed that Hammami did not merely intend to crash the aircraft, but planned to crash it into a high-rise building in Israel, in a plot modeled on the Sept 11 attacks. The target reportedly was the Azrieli Towers in Tel Aviv. The report also said that Al-Hammami had previously been fired by Oman Air because of his extremist views and was barred from working as a pilot in his home country. He subsequently moved to Morocco, visited Syria, and was eventually hired by Flydubai.
Israel Is Winning – Douglas Murray
The attempted hijacking of a Flydubai plane en route from Dubai to Tel Aviv is a reminder that Israel and the West remain at war with Islamic radicals, and that it is a war we are winning. The online world is filled with shrill declarations that Israel has lost this war. But on the third anniversary of the October 7 attacks, Israel and its allies have been winning the war on the ground even as they have lost the PR war around the world.
The PR war matters. But it matters less than the war itself. Better to win the ground war and lose the PR war than the other way around.
Piece by piece, the Israeli government took apart the Iranian axis. First, they took apart Hamas in Gaza, despite constant attempts to make them stop, which came not just from Europe but from President Joe Biden’s White House. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Tehran in July 2024. Then, when Netanyahu was in New York speaking at the UN, Israel bombed the compound where the head of Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah, and almost all his remaining senior colleagues were gathered.
Two years into the war that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar started, the Israeli air force took out the majority of the Iranian regime’s air defenses, then came back and struck thousands of regime targets, opening the route for American B-2 bombers to attack the main Iranian nuclear sites. Then the Americans and the Israelis returned. They not only targeted the Iranian nuclear program again but also killed the supreme leader.
Everybody alongside and above Sinwar in the chain of command is now dead. Neither Hamas, Hezbollah, nor the Iranian regime has a noose ready to pull around Israel’s neck anymore. A large share of the Israeli hostages were eventually returned alive. Three years ago, this set of victories would have seemed unthinkable.
What happened in the skies above Saudi Arabia on Wednesday (9/30) stands as a metaphor for three years of war. The Israelis saw an existential threat, took matters into their own hands, and decided their own course. The rest of the West will have to decide whether it will follow the Israeli model or let its own future be dictated by terror and the hijacking of its entire society. (Free Press)
UK Green Party Adopts ‘Zionism Is Racism’ Platform
The UK Green Party voted Sunday (4th) to define Zionism as racism and formally adopt an anti-Zionism platform, approving a motion that drew condemnation from British Jewish organizations and a declaration from Israel’s Foreign Ministry that the Green Party leader, Zack Polanski, will be barred from entering Israel.
Delegates backed the measure 1,022 to 813 at the party’s annual conference on October 4, 2026.
The motion characterizes Zionism as an ethnonationalist political project that privileges one group over others and maintains that anti-Zionism is not antisemitism.
The new policy supports Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) , an arms embargo against Israel, Palestinian liberation, and the right of return with a single democratic state across historic Palestine.
Party leader Zack Polanski, who is seeking election to Parliament on Thursday (8th) in Prime Minister Starmer’s now-vacant London constituency, did not vote. The Green Party received 6% of the vote in national elections in 2024.
Three of the party’s five MPs —Adrian Ramsay, Ellie Chowns and Carla Denyer — publicly opposed the motion, as did former leader Caroline Lucas. They warned that adopting the measure could alienate Jewish people and deepen divisions.
The Board of deputies, the Community Security Trust, the Jewish Leadership Council and the Movement for Progressive Judaism said the measure effectively makes antisemitism official party policy and jeopardizes the safety of British Jews, The Guardian reported
Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also denounced the vote, describing the resolution as a “stain on the history of the United Kingdom” and saying it went beyond legitimate political debate.
In an X post, Israel’s Foreign Ministry pointed out that the Green Party defined its party’s resolution as “calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state ‘from the river to the sea’ – meaning the destruction of the State of Israel.”
The statement continued, “The resolution constitutes a clear antisemitic text according to the IHRA definition, as it denies the Jewish people’s right to self-determination. Therefore, as a first step, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar decided this evening to declare Green Party leader Zack Polanski barred from entering Israel. The decision has been coordinated with the relevant authorities.
The Israeli government said following the decision that it now viewed the Green Party as “a body that gives legitimacy to terrorism.”
Party figures responded to the controversy with a joint statement pledging that the Green Party would remain anti-racist.
