Israel Defense Forces soldiers have achieved operational control of the Ali al-Taher Ridge area in the eastern part of the security zone in Southern Lebanon, both above and below ground, and cleared the area of terrorists, the military announced on Thursday.

Israeli forces overnight Thursday thwarted a stabbing attack near Damascus Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City, police said Friday morning.

According to police, a 33-year-old resident of eastern Jerusalem attempted to stab Border Police officers, who opened fire and neutralized the terrorist.

Israel is capable of toppling the Iranian regime, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday, describing the goal as “within reach.”

Addressing a Rosh Hashanah toast with the IDF General Staff Forum at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv, Netanyahu said:

“I am convinced of our ability to remove this threat once and for all; meaning, to topple this regime.

“This is the central mission still before us, but it is close. It is not impossible. It is within reach.”

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IDF marks major advance against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon

The IDF says it has cleared Hezbollah operatives from a major underground complex in southern Lebanon—an Iranian-planned network built over two decades to support attacks on Israel.

Two tunnel routes, command centers, weapons rooms and living quarters: uncovered beneath the Ali al-Taher Ridge.

Netanyahu called the news “huge” for Israel.

Read more

Earlier today (Friday), IDF soldiers completed a special counterterrorism operation in northern Samaria, during which they apprehended five terrorists who were planning to carry out a terrorist attack against Israeli civilians and security forces.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says Israel would no longer exist without German military support, echoing Donald Trump's claim about American backing.

From Jerusalem, Ryan Jones examines the history behind these statements — the pre-1962 arms embargo, Israel's early existential wars, and a nation built largely on its own — and asks who really stands behind Israel's survival.

Full episode:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68kHmZT1AEc

The Israel Defense Forces struck Hezbollah targets in Southern Lebanon this mornin after the Iranian-backed terrorist organization launched two drones toward Israeli soldiers operating in the security zone.

Troops opened fire and downed one of the drones, the IDF said. No injuries were reported in the attack.

Israel rebukes British foreign secretary over Gaza video

UK Foreign Minister Ed Miliband posted a clip in which he decries the situation in Gaza after having been told harrowing “stories” during a recent meeting.

Israel said Miliband should have known better than to be taken in by propaganda.

Contrary to the “stories” Miliband felt compelled to repeat for the world, there are no restrictions on the entry of medicines into Gaza. Some 22,500 tons of medical supplies have entered Gaza since the ceasefire began, and Gazans routinely exit the Strip for medical treatment in Israel, including 200 in the past two weeks.

As a member of the International Gaza Support Center that facilitates aid deliveries to the Strip, the UK government is perfectly aware of these facts, Israel’s Foreign Ministry noted.

But Miliband decided to ignore the facts and regurgitate unverified sob stories that serve only one purpose: paint Israel as the villain.

Faith, service and shared responsibility in Israel

“The great leaders of Israel in the Bible were simultaneously men of faith and of battle,” MK Meirav Ben Ari said in the debate over Haredi military service.

Her point cuts to the heart of Israel’s national argument: Torah study is vital, but it need not—and should not—be treated as the opposite of defending the Jewish state. Thousands of hesder soldiers already prove that devotion to Torah and service in the IDF can strengthen one another.

In a time of war, shared responsibility cannot be optional.

Read the full analysis HERE

An Iranian exile’s plea for freedom

“When Israel and the Americans bomb us, we rejoice,” a young Iranian living in Germany says—not from a love of war, but from desperation to see Iran freed from the mullah regime.

He describes a population trapped between repression at home and fear for relatives abroad, with many still hoping outside pressure can succeed where protests have been brutally crushed.

“Trump should give Netanyahu one week of free rein. He’d get the job done,” the Iranian says.

Read the full interview HERE

More than half a million Jewish worshippers have attended Selichot prayers at the Western Wall Plaza in Jerusalem since the beginning of the Hebrew month of Elul (Aug. 14), the Western Wall Heritage Foundation reports.

Due to overcrowding, with 50,000 people filling the plaza on Thursday night, the event was broadcast on giant screens along the Old City walls and at Jaffa Gate.

Selichot are prayers of repentance offered in the run-up to the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashannah and Yom Kippur.

US Ambassador Mike Huckabee: There are only a few hundred Israeli "terrorists" causing trouble in Samaria, but they must be dealt with.

Lebanese television station MTV reports that the Israeli army attacked more than 15 tunnels in the Nabatieh area yesterday evening in a single raid – from the Yahmar al-Shaqif area to the Ali al-Taher mountain range.

Lebanese media outlets report that bunker-buster bombs were used in the latest attacks. The effect was exceptionally powerful.

Israeli security forces on Sunday completed a counter-terrorism operation near Nablus (biblical Shechem) in central Samaria.

During the operation, Israeli troops apprehended a Hamas cell consisting of ten terrorists who had been working to advance attacks against Israeli civilians.

Among the weapons found was a rocket without a launcher.

The Palestinian terrorist who stabbed an Israeli civilian a short time ago was found by IDF soldiers. He attempted to stab the soldiers and was shot dead.