News Digest — 3/26/26
Uganda ‘On The Side Of Israel’ Amid The War, Defense Chief Says
Uganda’s Chief of Defense Forces, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba expressed his support for Israel amid the ongoing war with Iran in a series of posts on X Thursday (26th).
“We want the war in the Middle East to end. The world is tired of it,” he wrote, adding that any talk of destroying or defeating Israel will bring Uganda into the war. “On the side of Israel,” he concluded.
In another deleted post, he claimed that Uganda People’s Defense Force (UPDF), the country’s armed forces, will begin participating in the war “on the side of Israel” if it doesn’t end soon.
“Israel has a right to exist and attacks against her must stop,” he stated.
Later on Thursday (26th), Kainerugaba said in another post that he offered the help of Ugandan defense forces to both the U.S. and Israel.
“We could have captured Tehran in 72-hours without any bombing,” but he said they didn’t listen to him.
Last month, Kainerugaba announced in a post on X that Uganda will soon build a statue honoring Lt. Col. Yonatan “Yoni” Netanyahu at Entebbe International Airport.
He said the statue would be placed in the exact spot where Netanyahu was killed following the 1976 hijacking of an Air France flight that led to the abduction of about 100 Jews and Israelis.
Kainerugaba said the monument is a symbol of the ties between the two countries, although no formal government announcement was made regarding the creation of the statue.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu attended a memorial ceremony held at Entebbe Airport in 2016, marking the 40th anniversary of Operation Entebbe.
“Forty years ago, they landed in the dead of night in a country led by a brutal dictator who gave refuge to the terrorists. Today we landed in broad daylight in a friendly country led by a president who fights the terrorists,” Netanyahu said in his remarks.
Despite Iran War, 40 American, Canadian Jews Make Aliyah Ahead Of Passover
Forty North Americans became Israeli citizens on Wednesday (25th), including 25 who landed at Ben Gurion Airport and 15 already in Israel who completed the process the same day, arriving just before Passover and in the middle of the ongoing war with Iran.
The new arrivals, or olim (new immigrants), came from communities across the US and Canada and said the security situation did not push them away from Israel. In several cases, it strengthened their decision to make aliyah (immigration to Israel), according to Nefesh B’Nefesh which assisted the group together with the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, The Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth Leisrael, and Jewish National Fund-USA.
Among those arriving was Eli Schwartz, a 30-year-old lawyer from Minneapolis, who said the war had actually deepened his resolve. “The war actually motivated me even more to make aliyah,” he said. “I was more worried about my flight getting canceled than the war.”
The arrivals were welcomed at the airport by Aliyah and Integration Minister Ofir Sofer and representatives of many other groups including The Jewish Agency.
“The continuous immigration of Jews choosing to come to Israel, even under rocket fire and despite the many challenges, is a powerful source of strength for the State of Israel,” Sofer said He added that the war and the Israel Defense Forces’ recent achievements were helping inspire Jews abroad to come and become part of the country.
Nefesh B’Nefesh co-founder RabbiYehoshua Fass connected the moment to the upcoming holiday. “As Jews around the world prepare to recite’Next year in Jerusalem’ at their upcoming Passover Seders, we are witnessing individuals who are turning those hopes and prayers into reality,” he said. He added that the newest arrivals were choosing to build their lives in Israel without postponing their plans.
The group, ranging in age from 21 to 96, is expected to settle in cities including Jerusalem, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Modi’in-Maccabim-Re’ut, Haifa, and more.
Nefesh B’Nefesh said that since the start of the war with Iran, more than 130 immigrants have arrived from North America. Since the beginning of 2026, about 500 North American olim have made aliyah and another 110 are expected during April. The organization also said that since the start of Operation Roaring Lion, more than 830 aliyah files have been opened by Jews in North America.
Amanda Schuster, a 34-year-old immigrant from Baltimore acknowledged the fear surrounding the move but said it did not shake her decision. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous,” she said. “I wasn’t deterred. I was even more ready to come. I just want to be part of the country. I want to contribute and give back as much as I can.”
Doron Almog from the Jewish Agency said the decision to immigrate during a period of war and uncertainty reflected a deep bond between Jews and Israel. “Each Oleh brings with them not only personal hope, but a nationwide moral boost and a spirit of partnership,” he said.
The new arrivals are expected to receive a package of state benefits, including expanded Hebrew-language programs, housing assistance in priority areas, and tax initiatives offered through the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration.
IDF Strikes Hamas Nukhba Force Terrorists In Central Gaza
The Israel Defense forces eliminated several armed operatives of Hamas’ Nukhba Force in an overnight strike in central Gaza, the Israeli military said on Wednesday (25th).
“The terrorists had recently conducted several military training sessions in the area and posted a threat to IDF soldiers and to the State of Israel,” according to the IDF.
It added that troops remain deployed in the Strip in accordance with the US-brokered Oct. 10, 2025 ceasefire deal and “will continue to operate to remove any threat.”
The Nukhba Force led the charge during Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 cross-border attacks in Israel’s Western Negev, in which some 1,200 people, primarily Jewish civilians, were massacred, thousands were wounded and 251 were taken hostage to the Gaza Strip.
On Sunday (22nd), the Israel Air Force struck an SUV in central Gaza eliminating a terrorist cell.
Nickolay Mladenov, the Board Of Peace’s high representative for Gaza, said last week that mediators had agreed on a framework for the Strip’s reconstruction and a “negotiated resolution of the Palestinian question.”
The proposal “is now on the table,” Mladenov tweeted, adding, “it requires one clear choice: “full decommission by Hamas and every armed group, with no exception and no carve-outs.”
Under the terms of the proposal, Hamas would gradually give up its weapons, including heavy arms such as rocket launchers, and share maps of its underground terror tunnel network, NPR reported on Thursday (19th).
Top Hamas leaders, including Khaled Mashaal and Musa Abu Marzouk, have rejected key parts of US President Donald Trump’s plan in recent months, including disarmament, despite having agreed to the proposal in October.
An unnamed Hamas official told NPR that the Iranian-backed terror group was awaiting the outcome of the joint US-Israeli campaign against the regime in Tehran before responding to the plan.
Hamas is exploiting the war on the Islamic Republic to rebuild its civil and security rule of the Gaza Strip, the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center said on Monday (23rd).
While the IDF and the US military are focused on “Operation Roaring Lion/Epic Fury” against Iran, Hamas “will continue to tighten security and military governance, including accelerating its rearming and the recruitment and training of operatives,”the think tank wrote.
Hamas’ growing self-confidence and defiance of the demand for its disarmament is manifested by the overt presence of armed operatives from the security forces and the military wing in areas under Hamas control, despite the continued Israeli targeted killings in response to violations of the ceasefire agreement,” it said.
How Is The Iran War Impacting Gaza?
The eruption of the Iran War on Feb. 28 forced Israel to divert its primary air force, infantry and intelligence units toward the Iranian and Lebanese theaters. It compensated for its reduced footprint in Gaza by initiating a spike in targeted attacks on Hamas commanders throughout the Strip.
At the same time, Hamas forces have significantly ramped up operations to secure control of the civilian population and to destroy rivals. The U.S. State Department recently verified footage documenting masked Sahm [internal security] operatives physically tearing down the tents and stalls of displaced Gazans in Khan Younis who refused to pay taxes, illustrating a brutal campaign to suppress internal dissent.
The core architecture of Hamas’ financial solvency relied heavily on Smuggling networks managed and directed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies, noted that Iran was still giving significant aid to Hamas.
Hamas understands that if this [Iranian] regime collapses or is weakened to the degree that it will not be able to continue supporting Hamas, they are in big trouble,” he said. Multiple IRGC commanders responsible for collaboration with Palestinian terror groups were neutralized in the early days of the campaign.
The Iran war has had a deep financial impact on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, potentially dealing a blow to Gaza’s long-term reconstruction prospects. Iran has systematically struck critical energy and civilian infrastructure across the six GCC states, leading to a 50% cut in its projected GDP growth rate for 2026.
Faced with direct physical damage to their territory and the existential economic threat of prolonged regional war of attrition, the billions of Gulf dollars which were considered critical for the Gaza rebuilding plan are increasingly unlikely to materialize. (JNS)
(jns.org)
The Alternative To Wars Of Choice Is Wars With Our Backs Against The Wall- Clifford D. May
America’s military campaign against the Islamic Republic of Iran is being condemned as “a war of choice, not a war of necessity.” I’m here to make the case for wars of choice. My argument is simple. Delaying wars does not ensure lasting peace. On the contrary, delaying wars has often led to wars more costly in blood and treasure.
A war of choice is a conflict we decide to wage to achieve vital goals before our enemies push our backs up against a wall. If your enemy picks up a pistol, does that constitute an imminent threat? Or must you wait until you see his finger on the trigger – by which time it may be too late for you to defend yourself?
The 2002 US National Security Strategy that followed the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, explicitly endorsed preemptive action against gathering threats. CIA Director John Ratcliffe last week told the Senate Intelligence Committee that Iran posed a “constant threat to the United States…and posed an immediate threat” before the war began.
For decades, we have allowed the threat from the self-proclaimed jihadis in Tehran to metastasize. They’ve been building nuclear weapons facilities under mountains. They’ve been funding, arming, and instructing terrorist militias beyond their borders. They’ve plotted assassinations and kidnappings in America and Europe. They’ve been amassing thousands of drones and missiles.
President John F. Kennedy observed: “There are risks and costs to action, but they are far less than the long-range risks of comfortable inaction.”
The writer is founder and president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, (Washington Times)
