JC Israel Briefing Day 588: Syria in secret talks to join Abraham Accords

In related news, the US is “getting close to maybe doing a deal” with Iran over its nuclear programme, Donald Trump said yesterday in Qatar. “We’re not going to be making any nuclear dust in Iran,” he said. “Iran has sort of agreed to the terms.”

He described the talks as “very serious negotiations with Iran for long-term peace.” A written proposal had earlier been submitted in Oman. Iran’s top security adviser Ali Shamkhani told NBC News that Tehran would give up enriched uranium, accept full inspections, and commit never to build a nuclear weapon if all sanctions were lifted.

In a tragic funeral, family and friends buried Tzeela Gez yesterday -  the mother who was murdered by terrorists while on her way to give birth. Doctors delivered the baby by caesarean section and are still fighting to keep him alive, while her husband survived the attack with light wounds. At the funeral, as settler leader Yossi Dagan began to speak, Gez’s sister Shaked shouted through tears, “I don’t want politics! I want love for my sister! Let us finish with love for my sister!”

Meanwhile, the UN is blocking a US-led plan to change how aid is delivered in Gaza. While the UN supports efforts to cut Hamas out of the process, it said the new plan violates humanitarian standards of neutrality and independence. The model, backed by Israel, would use Israeli-approved contractors instead of international agencies. The UN said it already has a delivery structure ready to operate and called the proposed system inadequate.

In the West Bank, Israeli forces killed five Islamic Jihad gunmen during a raid in the town of Tamun, northeast of Nablus. The army said its Duvdevan unit entered a house and exchanged fire. Assault rifles and grenades were recovered. In Gaza, the military said it had struck more than 130 targets and killed a senior Hamas financier.

Likewise, in Lebanon, Israel killed a Hezbollah operative in a drone strike on the village of Arnoun, near the southern border. The Israeli military said the man was trying to re-establish a terror position that had previously been dismantled.

And missile fired by Houthi terrorists from Yemen was intercepted over central Israel. Debris landed near the West Bank settlement of Alon Shvut. Sirens sounded across the Jerusalem area. There were no injuries.

On the other side of the world, Leah Goldin, whose son Hadar was killed and taken by Hamas during a UN-brokered truce in 2014, told the Security Council in New York that “when the UN passes a resolution, it must mean something”. She said her son’s case had been abandoned. “This is not about politics,” she added. “This is about the right of a mother to bury her son.”

Ruby Chen, the father of slain IDF soldier Itay Chen, also spoke at the Council. Itay was taken hostage by Hamas on October 7 and declared dead by Israeli intelligence in March. His body has not been returned. “This is the lowest form of terrorist psychological warfare imaginable,” Chen said. He called on the UN to enforce Resolution 2474, which mandates the return of hostages, and urged the appointment of a special envoy. “Resolution 2474 must not remain symbolic,” he said. “Bring them home now.”

Elsewhere, former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said Israel has become passive and is losing its military edge. “The Middle East is undergoing tectonic changes,” he wrote. “Our enemies are getting stronger, and Netanyahu, Smotrich and their gang are frozen like a forest.” He said US weapons deals with Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar were redrawing the region while Israel “stands still.”

Finally, a survivor of the October 7 massacre at the Nova music festival has secured a place in tomorrow’s Eurovision final. Yuval Raphael, performing her song “New Day Will Rise,” advanced from the semifinal in Basel to represent Israel. Her performance was cheered by the crowd and praised for its emotional power. Police kept rival protests behind barricades outside the arena.

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