Jacob Jaffa

Jacob Jaffa is the JC's Digital News Editor. His specialist topics include UK and US politics, the far-right and antisemitism in Europe. You can reach him on jjaffa@thejc.com

Latest from Jacob Jaffa

Mossad

Iran mission not complete until regime change, says outgoing Mossad chief

David Barnea told a Yom HaShoah event: ‘A regime that seeks our destruction must cease to exist’

1 min read

Head of Mossad David Barnea attends a ceremony held at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem on April 23, 2025 (Flash90)

Péter Magyar speaks to the media the day after his victory in Hungarian parliamentary elections on April 13, 2026, in Budapest, Hungary (Getty Images)

Hungary to rejoin ICC after Magyar wins landslide

2 min read

Exterior view of the Brent Cross shopping centre (Getty Images)

Brent Cross stabbing: Police manhunt for knifeman after one hospitalised

1 min read

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu attends a wreath-laying ceremony marking Yom HaShoah at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem on April 14, 2026 (Getty Images)

‘You will not force us into ghettos again’: Israeli ministers hit out at Europe on eve of Yom HaShoah

2 min read

El Al to resume flights to nine destinations after Iran ceasefire

Foreign airlines are also set to reactivate their routes to Ben Gurion Airport, the Israel Airports Authority has confirmed

1 min read

April 13, 2026 14:26

An El Al aircraft sits on the tarmac at Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, on March 23, 2026 (Getty Images)

Who is the new head of Mossad?

Roman Gofman previously served in the Armoured Corps and was wounded while fighting Hamas terrorists on October 7 in a gun battle captured on CCTV

1 min read

April 13, 2026 11:57

Incoming Mossad Director Major General Roman Gofman arrives to a Defence and Foreign Affairs Committee meeting at the Knesset on February 5, 2026 (Flash90)

IDF ‘preparing’ for return to Iran War after US talks break down

President Trump, meanwhile, has threatened to blockade Iran’s ports until a peace deal is achieved

2 min read

April 13, 2026 11:25

Members of the Iranian security forces stand guard under a large portrait of Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, on April 9, 2026, in Tehran, Iran (Getty Images)

‘Not the agreement we have’: Trump cautions Iran over Hormuz tolls

The US president guaranteed oil would be allowed through the vital shipping line after striking a ceasefire deal with Tehran

1 min read

April 10, 2026 12:05

US President Trump speaks about the conflict in Iran in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House on April 6, 2026 (Getty Images)

US will end Iran War ‘very soon’ says Trump ahead of national address

Secretary of State Marco Rubio echoed the president’s comments, saying Washington could ‘see the finish line’ in the conflict

2 min read

April 1, 2026 10:46

US President Trump speaks to the media after departing Air Force One at Miami International Airport on March 27, 2026 (Getty Images)

Trump reportedly willing to end Iran War without opening Strait of Hormuz

The president is said to have come to the conclusion that any operation to unblock the vital maritime route would ‘push the conflict beyond his timeline of four to six weeks’

1 min read

March 31, 2026 11:29

US President Trump speaks with members of the media aboard Air Force One on March 29, 2026 (Getty Images)

Netanyahu claims Iran War is ‘beyond halfway point’ and predicts regime will ‘collapse internally’

Speaking to US media, the Israeli prime minister suggested Israeli had already achieved most of its war aims, but refused to put a timeline on the rest of the conflict

1 min read

March 31, 2026 11:10

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, accompanied by Dimona Mayor Benny Biton (L), speaks to the media while visiting the area destroyed by an Iranian ballistic missile on March 22, 2026 (Getty Images)

Sa’ar ‘expressed concern’ over UK antisemitism in call with Foreign Secretary

Yvette Cooper’s Israeli counterpart specifically cited the arson attack on four Hatzola ambulances in Golders Green

2 min read

March 30, 2026 15:51

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar speaks during a meeting of the Subcommittee on Foreign Policy and Public Diplomacy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem, March 23, 2026 (Flash90)

Netanyahu gives Latin Patriarch ‘full and immediate access’ to Holy Sepulchre after Palm Sunday ban row

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa was blocked from entering the church on Palm Sunday by Israeli police, prompting criticism from the clergy and the US ambassador

1 min read

March 30, 2026 14:35

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa meets senior figures from the Israel Police on March 29, 2026 (Israel Police)

US planning ‘weeks of ground operations’ in Iran

The Pentagon is reportedly preparing to put American boots on the ground for the first time in the conflict, but will stop short of a full-scale invasion

2 min read

March 29, 2026 12:13