News Digest — 11/26/25
Returned Hostage Remains Identified As Dror Or
The hostage whose remains were returned Tuesday (25th) from the Gaza Strip to Israel have been identified as Dror Or, 48, from Kibbutz Be’eri. Islamic Jihad said his body was located in the Nuseirat area in central Gaza.
At first, Or was listed as a hostage, but 208 days later his family was told he was no longer alive. He was a father of three children: Yeheli, Noam, and Alma. His wife Yonat Or, was also killed the morning of the terror attack. Two of their children, Alma and Noam were abducted to Gaza and released in the hostage deal in November 2023.
Or managed Be’eri’s dairy for about 15 years and produced its boutique cheese. His family described him as “a man of peace, creativity and love.”
After the October 7, terror attack, contact was lost with Or and with Yonat, Noam and Alma. Two weeks later, the family was told that Yonat’s body had been found and that Dror, Noam and Alma had been abducted. In May 2024, about six months after the children returned from captivity, Kibbutz Be’eri announced that Or had been murdered on Oct.7. His eldest son Yeheli, who was then in a pre-military service program in northern Israel, survived.
Or’s father, Yuval, said last month he knew it would take time to bring his son back because it was necessary to locate him in “a known but wide area.” The family received periodic updates on the search but feared that a renewed war would prevent his return. Now, they have been reunited with him.
Or’s brother, Elad, said at a rally in Hostages’ Square last Saturday (22nd) that he was trying to remind himself it was possible to bring Dror home, and that Dror deserved a final honor. He urged that the fragile ceasefire not collapse and called for continued international cooperation and full-scale search and recovery efforts without delay.
Or’s mother Dorit, said at a recent rally that it was hard to be among the last families still waiting. She said the fear and tension grew each day, and that the family longed to bring Dror home for burial in Be’eri alongside Yonat. She said the children and the extended family needed closure.
Two hostage bodies remain in Gaza: Master Sgt. Ran Gvili and Sudthisak Rinthalak.
Gvili, 24, from Meitar, a YSAM fighter, was killed in battle at Kibbutz Alumim. He fought despite being injured and due for surgery after a motorcycle accident. He managed to save dozens of people from the Re’im music festival before he was killed and his body was taken to Gaza. He served about two years in the Negev YSAM unit of the Southern District Police and was assigned to its motorcycle platoon. He is survived by his parents, Itzik and Talik, and two siblings, Omri and Shira.
Rinthalak, 43, a Thai citizen, was murdered during the October 7 massacre in Be’eri’s orchards and abducted to Gaza. He worked for years in agriculture and came to Israel in 2017 to help support his family.
IDF Kills Five Terrorists Who Evaded Troops For Hours After Emerging From Rafah Tunnel
Nahal Brigade IDF troops killed five terrorists who had emerged from tunnels and initially evaded them in eastern Rafah, the military said Tuesday (25th).
The terrorists were killed after a five-hour manhunt that began in the early morning hours. The incident occurred near the Yellow Line marking IDF-controlled territory.
When observers and Golani commandos initially spotted the terror cell and opened air and ground fire, the suspects managed to escape. Israeli forces carried out a manhunt in the area of Rafah, which ultimately concluded with the deaths of the five terrorists.
On Friday (21st), approximately 17 terrorists emerged from the tunnels in the same area in two different locations. After a 24-hour manhunt, in total 11 were killed, and six were arrested alive after they surrendered, according to the military.
The six arrested terrorists were transferred to Shin Bet for further investigation.
The IDF has been operating in the area to destroy such tunnels over the past month.
In northern Gaza, soldiers killed a terrorist they saw crossing the Yellow Line and approaching troops. There have been several such incidents across Gaza, where terrorists have attempted to breach IDF controlled Gaza territory.
There have been several instances as well, in which terrorists have emerged from the tunnels and were killed by Israeli forces in the area.
Despite these incidents , the US-brokered ceasefire has managed to hold.
Turkey’s spy chief met with his Egyptian counterpart and Qatar’s foreign minister in Cairo on Tuesday (25th) to discuss transitioning to the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal and increasing joint efforts in coordination with the US.
Egypt’s General Intelligence Service Director, Hassan Rashad was present as well.
“During the meeting, they also agreed to continue strengthening coordination and cooperation with the Civil Military Coordination Center (CMCC) to eliminate all obstacles to ensure the continuity of the ceasefire and to prevent further violations,” Turkish sources told Reuters, adding that the three officials also discussed countering Israeli violations of the accord.
End Of Discriminatory Law: Major Step Towards Land Ownership Equality In Judea And Samaria
A significant development occurred on Tuesday (25th) during a meeting of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, when a representative of the Ministry of Defense announced that the ministry is promoting, alongside the legislative process, a military order that will annul the racist restriction on Jews purchasing land in Judea and Samaria – even before the completion of the legislative process in the Knesset.
The legal advisor’s statement from the Ministry of Defense was delivered during a session chaired by MK Boaz Bismuth, during which the committee approved for the first reading the bill to abolish the 1953 “Jordanian Law,” which until now prohibited Jews from acquiring rights to land in the Judea and Samaria area.
The aim of the law is to allow any Israeli citizen or anyone eligible under the Law of Return to purchase land in Judea and Samaria – without the need to circumvent the restrictions through registered companies. Until now, Jews interested in purchasing land in Judea and Samaria were required to act through an indirect mechanism, such as setting up a local company – a complex legal procedure designed to overcome the ban.
The Chairman of the Land of Israel lobby stated after the discussion: “Today we took a significant step towards correcting a historic and racist injustice. It is unacceptable that in the Land of Israel there should be a restriction on Jews acquiring land simply because of their Jewish identity. We expect the law to pass as soon as possible in the plenary so that we can move forward with the second and third readings and end the racist discrimination against Jews.”
Extreme Weather Causes Flooding, Road Closures And Damage Across Israel
Heavy rain and hail swept through portions of the country on Tuesday morning (25th), leading to reports of damage, road closures and flooding.
According to the Kan public broadcaster, a portion of the West Bank security fence in the Hebron Hills collapsed due to the heavy rains and high winds.
Sections of Route 40, Route 227 and Route 206 in southern Israel were closed Tuesday morning (25th) due to flooding. In the north, roads flooded in Yiryat Motzkin and Shfaram. In the center, Route 90 outside Jericho was closed after flooding.
In Jerusalem, heavy hail fell for a number of minutes across the city, although no damage was reported.
The Magen David Adom ambulance service said that it had been called to rescue citizens who were trapped in their cars due to flooding or reported flooding in their homes in Kiryat Gat, Shfaram, Modiin, Ilit, Beit Shemesh. Beersheba, Rahat, Kafr Qasim, and Carmel.
According to reports, United Hatzalah volunteers in Beit Shemesh rescued students aboard a school transport vehicle that got stuck on a flooded road. Footage showed a rescuer paddling in a dinghy to reach the stranded children.
The Israel Meteorological Service said Tuesday morning (25th) that a new record had been set overnight for rain in the center of the country, after (5 inches) of rain was recorded within 4 hours in the West Bank settlement of Neveh Tzuf.
Overnight, the IMS said, 50mm of rain fell in Karnei Shomron in the West Bank, 47mm in Mevo Dotan and 39mm in Ariel. In Haifa, about 33mm fell overnight, in Modiin around 30mm, and in Beersheba approximately 28mm.
The rainy weather arrived just after a rare late-November heatwave across Israel, where temperatures exceeded 93 degrees Fahrenheit.
The IMS said that this past Friday (21st) was Israel’s single hottest late November day on record in Eilat, the resort town at the southern tip of the country, with the temperature hitting highs of 98 degrees Fahrenheit.
You Cannot Build A Stable Peace With A Partner That Openly Prepares For the Next Massacre – Giorgia Valente
Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute, said that Washington’s basic assumption that Hamas can be induced into a demilitarized political arrangement is flawed.
“The Americans still believe they can implement the ceasefire plan by having the Turks, Qataris, and Egyptians pressure Hamas. They are convinced that with an international force and Arab involvement, Hamas will eventually comply. I think this is naive and wrong. Hamas does not intend to comply.”
For Michael, Hamas’ behavior during and after the fighting shows that it sees any ceasefire not as an end state, but as a tactical pause. “They continued recruiting people, training them, rebuilding tunnels, and reconstructing their capabilities from the first day of the ceasefire.”
“They butchered opponents in the streets, they appointed new governors, and they operated ministries. They have been reconstructing their governmental and military capabilities since day one. This is not the behavior of a movement preparing for demilitarization.”
“As long as Hamas remains in control and is committed to another Oct, 7, the American ceasefire framework will not get anywhere. You cannot build a stable peace with a partner that openly prepares for the next massacre. At some point, the United States will have to recognize that Hamas is the obstacle, not part of the solution.”
“Israel has to give the Americans the time and space to try their way, so that the responsibility for the failure of the plan falls on Hamas. But in the end, I believe they will move to Plan B, securing eastern Gaza under IDF oversight, expanding it gradually to the west while crushing and dismantling Hamas if it continues to violate the agreement.”
“Hamas will regroup simultaneously in Gaza, the West Bank, and other countries, rebuild its capabilities, and look for the second opportunity for another Oct. 7. This is exactly the reason we have to crush them and dismantle them. As long as they hold on to their weapons and ideology, no ceasefire framework, American or UN, will produce real peace.” (Media Line – Jerusalem Post)
The World’s Been Too Rough With Israel – Ludovic Hood
Israel’s response to the October 2023 Hamas led massacres and kidnappings of over a thousand civilians, as well as to missile and drone attacks from Iran and its regional militias, has been vigorous. Pursuing victory – ending the threats to Israeli towns and cities from Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and the regime in Tehran – requires the application of determined, and at times overwhelming, military force. In Gaza, Israel’s army has been operating in some of the most difficult urban warfare conditions in history.
Tragically, thousands of Palestinian civilians have died during the fighting over the past two years. But here is a simple truth: Hamas’ leaders could have released the hostages and ordered their men to lay down their arms at any point. They knew Palestinian women and children would be collateral damage as they fired missiles and launched attacks from apartment buildings, inviting airstrikes.
Pre-eminent news outlets routinely accept Hamas’ allegations and lies at face value and downplay or overlook the group’s actions, whether its use of human shields that have caused thousands of civilian deaths or its vicious tyranny and misogyny. The coverage and political gesturing in the West have been, at best, disproportionate and prejudiced, and, at worst, dishonest, malicious, and likely to extend the war and the suffering.
The writer is a career US Foreign Service Officer with two decades of experience working on Middle East affairs. (National Interest)
