🎗️Lonny's War Update- October 568, 2023

🎗️Day 568 that 59 of our hostages in Hamas captivity
There is nothing more important than getting them home! NOTHING!

“I’ve never met them,
But I miss them.
I’ve never met them,
but I think of them every second.
I’ve never met them,
but they are my family.
BRING THEM HOME NOW!!!”
We’re waiting for you, all of you.
A deal is the only way to bring
all the hostages home- the murdered for burial and the living for rehabilitation.

#BringThemHomeNow #TurnTheHorrorIntoHope

There is no victory until all of the hostages are home!
‎אין נצחון עד שכל החטופים בבית

Red Alerts - Missile, Rocket, Drone (UAV - unmanned aerial vehicles), and Terror Attacks and Death Announcements

*2:45am - South - Ballistic missile from Yemen - Beer Sheva and areas around - missile intercepted by air defenses

*9:30am - A drone launched at Israel “from the east” was shot down by the Israeli Air Force a short while ago, the military says.

No sirens sounded “according to protocol,” the IDF adds.
The drone was apparently launched from Yemen.

Hostage Updates

Hamas official says group open to freeing hostages, five-year truce in Gaza
Hamas is open to an agreement to end the Gaza war that would include the one-time release of all remaining hostages and a five-year cessation of hostilities, an official from the Palestinian terror group says.
“Hamas is ready for an exchange of prisoners in a single batch and a truce for five years,” the official tells AFP on condition of anonymity, as a delegation from his group is set to meet mediators in Cairo later in the day.
On April 17, Hamas, which opposes a “partial” ceasefire agreement, rejected an Israeli proposal that included a 45-day truce in exchange for the return of 10 living hostages.
The group has consistently demanded that a truce agreement must lead to the end of the war, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and the immediate and sufficient entry of humanitarian aid into the war-battered Palestinian territory.
Israel, for its part, demands the return of all hostages and the disarmament of Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza — the latter being a “red line” for the Islamist terror group.

MK Gafni: "Religious Zionism? They have become the biggest inciters" Chairman of the Finance Committee gave an interview to Yated Ne'eman and attacked the Religious Zionism party, which opposes the yeshiva student exemption law • "They act with populism, this is not how partners behave," he said • According to him, the right-wing bloc may dissolve: "Who knows if it will even be possible to form it in the future?" • On the return of the hostages: "Their return comes before everything, if we don’t bring them back they will die" Chairman of the Degel HaTorah party, MK Moshe Gafni, criticized the Religious Zionism party—amid disputes over the wording of the yeshiva student exemption law. In an interview published this morning (Friday) in Yated Ne'eman, Gafni addressed political events and called for the return of the hostages: "Their return comes before everything, this is the instruction we received from the great Torah sages, with no connection to the conscription law or to any budgets." "Here it is a matter of actual pikuach nefesh (saving lives), and nothing else overrides it," Gafni said regarding the release of the hostages. "There are 59 hostages, more than 20 of whom are alive—if we don’t bring them back, they will die. They will be killed." Gafni addressed the Religious Zionism party, which opposes the wording of the conscription law that the Haredi parties want to pass and is also uninterested in advancing a law that would formalize the status of yeshiva students. "They have become the biggest inciters on this issue," he claimed. "Even though we supported everything they wanted to pass in the coalition, both on war-related matters and other issues. We swallow and support, even if we don’t agree on everything, because we are in a coalition partnership." He continued: "It was expected of them to act accordingly on issues that are the core of our beliefs, and not to behave with populism. This is not how partners act." Gafni was asked whether the conduct of Finance Minister Smotrich, from the Religious Zionism party, is an attempt to take votes from Ben Gvir's supporters. "Apparently, that is the case," Gafni replied, warning that the right-wing bloc may dissolve. "He told us in the past that there is internal criticism against him, and perhaps his current positions stem from that. We also have quite a few problems with the Finance Ministry. But in the end, his voters too will see who dismantled the right-wing bloc, and who knows if it will even be possible to form this bloc in the future. They are responsible for all this, and we discussed this at length in the faction meeting." According to Gafni in his interview with Aryeh Zisman, his faction is coordinated with Agudat Yisrael and Shas. "We have reached a crossroads," he said. "In this week’s faction decision, it was determined that due to the failure to honor coalition agreements, from now on, in every vote with the coalition, they will consult with the great Torah sages on how to vote. There is full cooperation among all of us on this issue. Together, we are a bloc of 18 MKs." Link. Gafni is all talk with regard to the hostages. Until he states an ultimatum to Netanyahu that if he doesn't make a deal, they are leaving the government as he has done with religious matters, then it's all blah, blah, blah and total hypocrisy.

The hostage who escaped his captors speaks for the first time – and describes the dire condition of soldier Matan Angrest in captivity

A hostage who managed to escape captivity and wandered alone in Gaza for days: Since returning to Israel, Ron Krivoy has remained out of the public eye and silent. Tonight, for the first time, he breaks his silence and recounts: "When they saw me, they beat me mercilessly." After being recaptured, he met the wounded soldier Matan Angrest in a tunnel. In a meeting with Matan’s parents, he reveals new details about the abuse: "They electrocuted him to bring him back to consciousness" – and says that without Putin’s intervention, he would still be in captivity.
MATAN ANGRAST

Among the more than a hundred Israeli hostages released alive from Hamas captivity so far, there is one whom no one has yet heard or seen. For nearly a year and a half, Ron Krivoy remained silent—he avoided the media and never told his story in his own voice.
**"I’m okay, I didn’t lose my mind or go crazy,"** he says in an interview with *Studio Friday*. **"My story is very interesting, and everything that happened is real."** Now, for the first time, he is ready to share what he went through: **"As a person, I’m quiet, I live my life. That’s why I didn’t give interviews—I’m continuing my life as it was before. That’s all I asked for, to return to my life."**
If it were up to him, he would have kept a low profile. But now, with the fate of the hostages more uncertain than ever, he feels he can no longer stay silent—and he wants to speak, especially about one soldier he met in captivity: Matan Angrest. Until now, the only ones who heard his story were his close family and security officials who debriefed him upon his return to Israel.

"They beat me mercilessly"
Ron Krivoy (27) comes from a family that immigrated from Russia, but he was born in Israel and grew up in Carmiel: **"I’m from the world of sound, I live that life, the party scene."** On October 7, he went to work at the Nova party in Re’im—and from there, he was kidnapped in the early hours of the morning.
At first, he was held in an apartment in Gaza. During one of the IDF’s bombings, the house was hit, and he seized the moment to slip away from his captors. For four days, he was alone in the heart of Gaza. **"In my head, I never imagined this could be real. What I saw there, what I experienced—it’s beyond comprehension."**
**"At first, no one saw me, but then when someone did—it ended badly. The people there, when they caught me, beat me mercilessly. It wasn’t simple. I experienced something... When they caught me and brought me back, the ones who beat me were just ordinary Gazans, taking all their frustration out on me."

Arrives after release from captivity to Sheba Hospital. Ron Krivoy met with his parents

He was handed back to Hamas terrorists, who this time took him down into a tunnel: **"These aren’t the tunnels you see in pictures. We were in something really small, deep underground. We didn’t even have a floor—just sand and moldy mattresses. We were in a tiny cage, literally 1.5 meters by 1.5 meters, where we had to lie down to rest. You couldn’t stand. No height, no toilets, no food. There were five of us, sharing one bowl of canned food and a pita. I was there for 51 days and lost nine kilograms."
The fact that he also has Russian citizenship saved him. Ron Krivoy in Israel - November 26, 2013

"In my head I never described at all that it makes sense. What I saw." Ron Cariboy | Photo: News 12

"Matan remembered being beaten and passing out"
In that dark, cramped tunnel, he also met Matan Angrest—an armored corps soldier who fought alongside his tank crew in Nahal Oz on October 7 until they took a direct hit. Matan, severely wounded, was the only survivor. Ron explains: **"They took me down to the tunnels a day before Matan, and when he arrived, he was terrified—really, really terrified."
Matan

In a meeting with Matan’s parents, Anat and Hagi, his mother asks: **"What did he remember? The tank being hit? The explosion?"**
Ron recounts: **"He said the first explosion came from the rear, on the right side. That’s when their systems malfunctioned, and they were already injured inside. Then he felt another explosion, and afterward, he tried to communicate with his crew—no one answered. He didn’t understand what was happening until the terrorists came to pull him out of the tank. He said: ‘I woke up, and in flashbacks, I saw my friends lying on the ground.’ I asked him, ‘They didn’t take them with you?’ He said, ‘No, they only took me, and they started interrogating me and beating me.’ Then the mob came—he remembers being beaten, passing out, waking up, being interrogated with a few questions, passing out again."

The horrific abduction video, where Matan is violently dragged from the tank, only shows a fraction of the abuse he endured on the way to Gaza. **"The interrogations he went through started while still in Israeli territory—that’s where they hooked him up to a car battery and tried to revive him. They electrocuted him at first,"** Ron says. **"That’s what he remembers—waking up to a battery shocking him, then losing consciousness again. No matter what they did, he was already unconscious. They couldn’t interrogate him—he wasn’t in a state to talk. His injuries were very severe."
"If I didn't have Russian citizenship, I would still be in the tunnel." Ron and Matan Angrest's parents Photo: News 12

"They electrocuted him during interrogations"
"I saw his last video, and I saw that his hand wasn’t moving," Ron says. "That’s how he was from the first day I met him—his hand was in the same position. So I imagine it’s something he’s been suffering from since the beginning."
Hagi: **"That’s it—that’s our fear. That his hand is paralyzed. We’ve received medical reports—broken eye socket, broken nose, mouth, jaw."**
Ron: **"He went through abuse."**
Hagi: **"Torture and abuse."**
Ron: **"It’s something that even if a person tries to imagine, they could never truly grasp what he’s going through there."**
### **"I’ve never seen burns like that"**
Anat: **"Did you see any other injuries on him?"**
Ron: **"He had burns on his fingers. Something I’ve never seen before. It didn’t look like a normal burn—more like from acid or something. It wasn’t from regular fire. It was something terrible."**
Hagi: **"What kind of child will we get back? My God, I don’t understand."**
Ron: **"He was abused. He went through harsh interrogations—they electrocuted him, beat him."**
Hagi: **"Wow."**
Ron: **"To try and extract information from him. They electrocuted him with stun guns to try and bring him back to consciousness, to get information."**
Hagi: **"Oh my God."**
Ron: **"And he did tell me they beat him."**
Hagi: **"Wow. This is what they tell us—that the soldiers are undergoing severe abuse. Electric shocks."**
Ron: **"Definitely, the soldiers are going through things civilians don’t experience."**
Anat: **"Did you give these testimonies back then?"**
Ron: **"Of course. I sat down and told them everything."**
Anat: **"So they have this information."**
Ron: **"They know everything. From the second day I was back in Israel, I told them as much as I could—every piece of information I could get out."**

"Netanyahu asked, ‘What, Matan is injured?’"
These details from Ron are critical—because despite the long time that has passed and the information accumulated over a year and a half in captivity, when the prime minister recently met with Matan’s parents, he claimed he was unaware of the severity of his condition.
Anat: **"In the last meeting, he (Netanyahu) looked at Gal Hirsch and asked him if Matan was really injured."**
Hagi: **"Our prime minister asks Gal Hirsch—‘What, Matan is injured?’ It’s unbelievable that he didn’t even check or know the condition of a soldier who fought for him."**
Ron: **"This information exists. It’s there."**
Anat: **"Since the video of Matan was released—where his hand is already nonfunctional and his face shows fractures—for five weeks, I’ve been begging on the phone (I have all the text exchanges with Gal Hirsch), pleading for the prime minister to call me for three minutes, to tell me he’s aware Matan is in a humanitarian state and that he’ll fight for him."**
Ron: **"To give you some air."**
Anat: **"And I get nothing. I wrote him a letter—no response for five weeks."**
Hagi: **"We expect the prime minister to bring Matan back. This happened on his watch. We want to see Bibi and Sara bring our boy back to Re’im. At the very least, he should do everything he can to free our son."**
Ron: **"I know that if I didn’t have Russian citizenship, I could still be there with Matan in that tunnel. I’m here because of a miracle—Putin is the one who brought me home. If not for him, I wouldn’t be here today. We’ve been abandoned."

"When they released me, they asked, ‘Who’s the Russian?’"
It’s hard to believe, but despite being born in Israel and growing up as an Israeli in every way, in the cruel selection process of hostage deals, it was Ron’s Russian citizenship that saved him.
Anat: **"Did you know it was because of your citizenship?"**
Ron: **"The person who came to release me asked, ‘Who’s the Russian among all of you?’ He asked, ‘Who’s the Russian?’"**
Hagi: **"Wow."**
Ron: **"For a moment, I hesitated to answer. Then he asked again. I realized I was the only one who looked Russian, so I raised my hand. Then he told me, ‘Tomorrow, you’re going home.’"**
Hagi: **"You were kidnapped from the State of Israel, and President Putin brought you back. That’s something... We told our prime minister—his only victory story is bringing back the soldiers, bringing back the hostages. Bring Matan back—a soldier who went out to defend him and the country."**
Ron: **"I’m truly praying he comes home."**
Hagi: **"We’ll bring him back, and we’ll have another meeting together."**
Ron: **"I’m waiting for the next time we meet—all of us together, looking back at this."  link. When Netanyahu asked ‘What, Matan is injured?, no one should be surprised. It is not the first time that he had no idea (or even cared) that the hostages are hurt, injured, sick, starved, dying. We all remember when he said, "they're suffering but they're not dying". He said that to show that delaying their release may cause them to suffer more but they weren't dying. That statement was altogether wrong and with total disregard to all the hostages that had already died and been killed in captivity. Right now, that number is at least 40 that we know of.

Gaza and the South

World Food Programme says it has run out of food stocks in Gaza. The World Food Programme says it has run out of food stocks in Gaza due to the sustained closure of crossings into the enclave.
No humanitarian or commercial supplies have entered Gaza for more than seven weeks as all main border crossing points remain closed. This is the longest closure the Gaza Strip has ever faced, exacerbating already fragile markets and food systems,” the WFP says in a statement to journalists.

IDF video shows airstrike on Hamas cell in Gaza. The IDF releases footage showing an airstrike on a cell of Hamas operatives who fired an RPG at troops of the 401st Armored Brigade in Gaza City.

The 401st Brigade has been operating in Gaza City’s eastern neighborhoods of Daraj and Tuffah in recent weeks.
During one of their recent operations, a cell of operatives fired an anti-tank projectile from the window of a building. The IDF says a drone then struck the building, killing the cell.
No troops were wounded in the attack, according to the military.

The IDF says the troops also located and destroyed several rocket launchers in the area. Video

Hussein al-Sheikh will be the deputy of Abu Mazen
Abu Mazen succumbed to pressure from the Arab world - and for the first time intends to appoint a deputy • Al-Sheikh, who will fill the role, until recently served as the minister responsible for the system of relations with Israel, and is considered Abu Mazen's right-hand man • Thus, his chances of becoming the next chairman of the Palestinian Authority have increased
Hussein al-Sheikh, Abu Mazen's right-hand man, will be appointed tomorrow evening (Saturday) as his deputy and successor, greatly increasing his chances of becoming the next chairman of the PLO and the Palestinian Authority.
Al-Sheikh's appointment follows a sharp debate within the Fatah leadership and opposition from other Palestinian factions, four of which, including the Popular Front and the Democratic Front, boycotted the meeting of Fatah's Central Committee where it was decided for the first time to create the position of deputy.
The appointment comes after heavy Arab pressure, mainly from Saudi Arabia, on Abu Mazen at the recent Arab summit in Riyadh to appoint a deputy without delay. Abu Mazen, who initially tried to suffice with creating the position without naming anyone, was warned that he would not be welcome at the next summit conference in Baghdad unless he completed the process. Hussein al-Sheikh until recently served as the Minister of Civil Affairs responsible for the entire system of relations with Israel and also acted as Secretary-General of the PLO Executive Committee. His appointment has sparked opposition even among veteran Fatah leaders, including from the commander of the security forces, General Majid Faraj, who has been considered for years as al-Sheikh's rival and competitor.
The new deputy does not enjoy great popularity in the territories. However, in recent years he has gained Abu Mazen's trust and is accepted by the U.S. and Israel, though some Gulf states are hesitant about his selection.
Intense fighting reported in Gaza, as Katz says combat has ‘heavy prices’
Amid intense fighting in the Gaza Strip, Defense Minister Israel Katz in a post on X says, “the achievements are great, but still, the dangers are great and the prices are heavy.”
In recent hours, there have been reports of major strikes in both northern and southern Gaza.
“Thousands of IDF soldiers in the standing army and reserves are now heroically fighting in Gaza for the release of hostages and to destroy Hamas terrorists,” he says.
Katz says the IDF is operating with “intensity” to ensure ground troops are protected.
“All Israeli citizens must embrace and strengthen IDF commanders and soldiers and pray for their safety and success,” he adds. Link
Gazans say 4 dead, 30 missing under rubble after Israeli strike
Israel using AI to help target Hamas leaders, locate hostages in tunnels — report

Palestinians inspect the damage of buildings destroyed after Israeli airstrikes on the Jabaliya refugee camp on the outskirts of Gaza City, October 31, 2023. The IDF said the airstrikes were part of 'a wide-scale strike' on Hamas operatives and infrastructure belonging to the terror group’s Central Jabaliya Battalion and that the buildings collapsed when Hamas tunnels were targeted. (Abdul Qader Sabbah/AP)
Israel has used artificial intelligence tools to target Hamas leaders amid the war in Gaza, according to a report in the New York Times.
The report opens with a strike at the end of October 2023 that targeted Ibrahim Biari, the commander of Hamas’s Central Jabalia Battalion, who the newspaper says the Israeli military was able to locate by using an AI-infused audio tool to track where he was making phone calls from.
The Israel Defense Forces said the strike that killed Biari, in which dozens of civilians were said to have been killed, targeted a Hamas tunnel complex under the densely populated camp. The incident is being investigated by the military.
In addition to concerns over civilian casualties, Israeli and US officials quoted by the New York Times say there were also instances in which the AI technology resulted in mistaken identifications and arrested.
The report says that Israel employed AI to identify partly obscured or wounded faces using facial recognition, create lists of possible targets and make an Arabic chatbot to scan and analyze text messages and social media, with many of these technologies created in a partnership between Military Intelligence’s Unit 8200 and reservists employed at major leading tech firms known as “The Studio.”
Additionally, Israel reportedly also used the same audio tool that helped locate Biari as part of its efforts to find hostages held in tunnels beneath Gaza, with a pair of Israeli officers saying it has been sharpened over time to more accurately locate people.

Northern Israel, Lebanon and Syria

Syria calls on UN Security Council to push for Israel’s withdrawal from territory
Syria’s foreign minister calls on the UN Security Council to “pressure” Israel to withdraw from its territory following the toppling of strongman Bashar al-Assad.
“We have repeatedly announced our commitment that Syria will not constitute any threat to any of the neighboring countries or any country around the world, including to Israel,” Assaad al-Chaibani says in his first address at UN headquarters in New York.
Israel has launched airstrikes and ground incursions to keep Syrian forces away from its border since Assad’s ouster in December. Officials deeply mistrust the nation’s new Islamist regime, led by former jihadis.
Syria responds to US conditions for sanctions relief, vows not to be threat to Israel
Syrian interim President Ahmed Sharaa speaks in Damascus, Syria, March 29, 2025. (Syrian Presidency/AFP)
Syria has responded in writing to a list of US conditions for possible partial sanctions relief, saying it has acted on most of them but that others require “mutual understandings” with Washington, according to a copy of the letter seen by Reuters.
The United States last month handed Syria a list of eight conditions it wants Damascus to fulfill, including destroying any remaining chemical weapons stockpiles and ensuring foreigners are not given senior governing roles.
Syria is in desperate need of sanctions relief to kickstart an economy collapsed by 14 years of war, during which the United States, Britain and Europe imposed tough sanctions in a bid to put pressure on former president Bashar al-Assad.
In January, the US issued a six-month exemption for some sanctions to encourage aid, but this has had limited effect.
In exchange for fulfilling all the US demands, Washington would extend that suspension for two years and possibly issue another exemption, sources told Reuters in March. link Another sign in a long list of signs that the doors to normal and peaceful relations with our northern neighbor may truly be possible for the first time ever, but our self interested politicians are totally blind and deaf to the signs. I sincerely hope that I am totally wrong and that they are actively and secretly communicating and trying to reach a peace accord with Syria, but I am not optimistic enough to have any faith in this corrupt and failed government.

West Bank, Jerusalem, Israel and Terror Attacks

Politics and the War and General News

Netanyahu's sins: Peace plan rejection leading Israel to strategic dead end in Gaza
It’s too late. Humility – the readiness to say “I am only that big, only that smart, and only that right’’ – will never penetrate Bibi Netanyahu’s mind.
The prime minister’s response to his chief spook’s accusations under oath – “lies” – means King Bibi will never in his life say what King David said after his own sins were laid bare: “I sinned.”
Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar’s charges, that Netanyahu asked him to surveil demonstrators, obstruct the PM’s trial, and oppose the High Court in case of a constitutional crisis – are part of a 12-year moral slide that began when this column warned against Netanyahu’s granting of a cabinet seat to a convicted bribe taker (“Strategic threat looming,” November 2, 2012).
Morally, that was Netanyahu’s original sin as prime minister, but his premiership was marred by two other original sins as well – one political, the other strategic.
The political sin, as argued here in the past (“Netanyahu’s last opportunity,” February 14, 2024) came in 2014, when Netanyahu divorced the political Center, ultimately pawning his future, and ours, with ultra-Orthodoxy and the far Right.
The third original sin concerns the Palestinian problem, the predicament Netanyahu has misread for more than half a century and now leads him, and us, into a strategic dead end.
At this writing, the IDF is reportedly preparing a grand attack on Gaza, an assault that will presumably involve scores of aircraft, hundreds of tanks, and thousands of troops. Just what that assault’s exact purpose will be is unclear, but some of its results can already be assumed.
First, the IDF will lose soldiers, possibly many. Second, our troops will return to patrol Gaza’s angry streets. And third, Hamas, though decimated, will survive. To these, one might add the low likelihood that a ground attack will liberate our hostages.
The kind of decisive victory the IDF achieved in Lebanon is not at stake in Gaza – not because of the military difference between the two arenas, daunting though it is, as Gaza is a densely built urban thicket, whereas south Lebanon is a disjointed and mostly rural countryside.
The difference is political. Hezbollah was part of a sovereign country with a complex society that could potentially confront the minority that had hijacked it. That, in fact, is what is happening there now, following Iran’s effective eviction, and its Shi’ite proxy’s consequent loss of clout.
Gaza, by contrast, is not heterogeneous and not a country. It’s a political no-man’s land populated by Sunni Muslims and fully conquered by jihadists. There is no equivalent there of Lebanon’s sectarian mosaic of Christian, Druze, Shi’ite, Sunni, Armenian, and other tribes and sects. That is why any change in Gaza will have to involve some kind of political reengineering.
Military action, no matter how imaginative and brave, will not deliver this change. For Gaza to change politically, its government must be redesigned not by Israelis, but by Arabs.
The good news is that a blueprint for such an Arab redesign has emerged. The bad news is that Netanyahu, in line with his time-honored Palestinian strategy, and despite his strategy’s manifest collapse, has already rejected that Arab plan.
Egypt's plan for Gaza reconstruction and management backed by Arab allies
The plan, introduced in Cairo on March 4 by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, was vague on details but clear on one thing: Hamas would cease to rule, and the Palestinian Authority would not take over immediately. Instead, a government of non-political experts would oversee reconstruction, which would be financed and managed by Arab governments.
Anyone familiar with Middle Eastern dynamics understood the subtext. The governments of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates – all of which endorsed the plan – would join Egypt in overseeing Gaza’s reconstruction.
Is this a panacea? Of course not. Is this a wholesome plan? It isn’t. It is, however, the potential beginning of an Arab alternative to Hamas. Underpinning that thinking is the Egyptian, Saudi, Emirati, and Jordanian fear of the Islamist scourge. They care about it greatly, and want it defeated no less than Israel, maybe even more.
Israel could therefore have said about that plan, “We have our reservations, but this is a beginning, let’s talk.” Instead, Netanyahu ignored the plan. Netanyahu did not bother explaining his rejection, but its two parts – what he doesn’t want and what he does want – are clear.
What Netanyahu doesn’t want is any form of Palestinian statehood, an aim that Sisi’s plan indeed recommends. Netanyahu also doesn’t want any role for the Palestinian Authority, which the plan does offer, albeit in a delayed, conditional, and piecemeal way.
What, then, does Netanyahu want? Well, he wants to continue riding the Islamist tiger.
People don’t change at age 75, and Netanyahu is not prepared to admit that his big gamble – invest in Hamas, pit it against the PA, and rule the Palestinians – has failed. That is why he – alone among Israel’s relevant policymakers in recent years – resists the establishment of an independent commission of inquiry.
Such a panel would prove that Netanyahu consciously cultivated Hamas as the ruler of Gaza, hoping it would divide the Palestinians nationally and marginalize them internationally.
It should be said in Netanyahu’s favor that this quest, to sweep the Palestinian problem under the rug, did not begin with him. Rather, it is part of Revisionist Zionism’s attitude since well before he was born.
What began with Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s dismissal of the partition idea in 1937 was followed by Menachem Begin’s refusal to include a Palestinian deal in the Camp David Accords in 1979, and by Yitzhak Shamir’s rejection of Shimon Peres’s London Agreement with Jordan’s King Hussein in 1987.
At some point, the ostrich will have to take its head out of the sand. Yes, Hamas and any other Palestinian out to kill us deserve death. The rest, however, exactly like us, deserve a life.  www.MiddleIsrael.net
The writer, a Hartman Institute fellow, is the author of Ha’Sfar Ha’Yehudi Ha’Aharon (The Last Jewish Frontier, Yediot Sefarim, 2025), a sequel to Theodor Herzl’s The Old New Land.  link. The most surprising thing about this article is that it is the Jerusalem Post, which, until October 7 and the disasterous handling of the hostage crisis and the war, was one of the very right wing and pro Netanyahu news outlets that always supported him. The paper hasn't changed its spots but apparently has come to the realization, like so many of us a long time ago, that Netanyahu is a danger to the state and all that he does is in his own self interests and not the interests of the State.
Majority of Public Believes Shin Bet Chief, Majority Fear for Democracy's Future | "Friday Studio" Poll

Following the dramatic affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court: A majority of the public believes Shin Bet chief Bar, not Prime Minister Netanyahu • About 60% of respondents fear for the future of democracy and assess that the greatest danger to the country stems from internal division • Nearly 70% of the public supports a hostage deal in exchange for ending the war • Full data

A majority of the public trusts Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar more than Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a "Friday Studio" poll we published last night (Friday). The data shows that on the eve of Israel’s 77th Independence Day, about 60% of the public fears for the future of democracy in Israel. The full poll and data.

This week, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar submitted his affidavit to the Supreme Court, in which he revealed that he was "instructed to obey the prime minister." In the dispute between Prime Minister Netanyahu and Shin Bet chief Bar, about 45% of the public believes the Shin Bet chief, while 34% believe Netanyahu, who is expected to submit his own affidavit next week. 21% of respondents said they did not know.

Friday Studio Poll - 25.04.2025

Next week, Israel will mark its 77th Independence Day, and a majority of the public fears for the future of democracy in the country. 61% of respondents said they are "very worried" or "somewhat worried." 34% said they are not worried, and 5% do not know.

**What Poses the Greatest Threat to Israel’s Independence?**
66% of the public believes internal division is the greatest threat to the country’s independence. 28% said the security threat is the most severe, and 6% do not know. Additionally, we asked how this year’s torch-lighting ceremony is expected to appear. 41% think the ceremony will be political, 34% believe it will be national, and 25% do not know.

Friday Studio Poll - 25.04.2025

**War in Gaza Dragging On – Due to Political Considerations**
A majority of 68% of respondents support a hostage deal in exchange for ending the war in Gaza. 22% oppose a deal at the cost of ending the war, and 10% do not know. The poll also reveals that 54% of the public believes the war is being prolonged for political reasons, 40% think it continues due to security and operational considerations, and 6% do not know.   link

The Explanation Ronen Bar Didn't Provide – And The Moment That Led to the Explosion with Netanyahu

Allegations that should keep every Israeli awake at night, a murky battle of narratives, and unprecedented accusations: The confrontation between the Prime Minister and the Shin Bet chief has reached unprecedented dimensions, and our democracy risks descending into uncharted territory. This time, the Supreme Court will have to dispel the fog and determine who is telling the truth. Yaron Avraham, Analysis
Though several days have passed, reading the letter submitted this week by Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar to the Supreme Court still evokes complex emotions: palpable fear on one hand, and genuine concern for the state of Israeli democracy on the other—primarily dread over where it might be headed. Such a scathing indictment from a Shin Bet director against a sitting prime minister has never occurred before, nor had we imagined we'd witness it, especially during an ongoing war.
For the public portion of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar's affidavit (in Hebrew)
While the media agonized over the fateful question of what Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich would choose to do when the Shin Bet chief spoke at the cabinet meeting—whether to excuse himself to the restroom or for coffee (the first option was chosen, for those intensely curious)—both sides' offices understood that a line had been crossed. From this point forward, nothing in the relationship between the prime minister and Israel's secret service will remain the same, and it's not as if there was much further to fall to begin with.
Until Bar leaves his position, he is expected to endure a campaign of abuse from the government. The Prime Minister's Office no longer refers to him as "Shin Bet chief" but only by his first name. This isn't just infantile behavior—it's proof that Netanyahu's inner circle, with him at the helm, long ago abandoned statesmanship.
The Shin Bet chief's public affidavit spans eight pages, but the classified version is longer, supported by evidence, dates, and names—aimed at substantiating the grave allegations Bar levels against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Foremost, Bar testifies that the prime minister or his associates attempted to coerce him into submitting an opinion drafted on Netanyahu's behalf—one that would prevent his trial from proceeding.
It can be assumed these references weren't explicitly stated, but that Netanyahu's team's wording included requests designed to lead judges to conclude that holding a trial while the prime minister is constantly present in one room is dangerous—despite the fact that the Shin Bet and security units made all necessary preparations to protect Netanyahu. After all, we should recall, the trial venue was moved from Jerusalem District Court to Tel Aviv precisely due to these security considerations.
Bar also explicitly states in his letter that Netanyahu's timeline is incorrect, misleading, and manipulative: The distrust the prime minister claims to feel did not begin, according to the Shin Bet chief, after October 7—nor due to leaks he attributes to Bar or others in the security establishment and hostage negotiation team.
Protest against the government following the publication of the Shin Bet chief's affidavit(Photo: Amir Yacobi)

This distrust also doesn't stem, Bar claims, from wartime decisions he allegedly opposed: According to the Shin Bet chief, the primary reason Netanyahu resolved to dismiss him is the investigation Bar is conducting into his inner circle over suspicions of severe harm to national security—the Qatargate affair exposed by News 12.
Bar is right, but only partially. The breakdown in trust between him and the PM began before October 7 and only intensified after Black Sabbath. Recall that deranged tweet issued from the Prime Minister's Office under family pressure while Netanyahu was in a cabinet meeting with the IDF chief and Shin Bet director—publicly accusing Bar of complicity in the massacre. This was no slip of the tongue.
Even then, the PM said in closed conversations: "Had they woken me at 4 AM, the entire division would have been mobilized." Yet, it was Netanyahu who chose to continue waging the war alongside Bar—until something happened. That "something" was Qatargate, and the Shin Bet's attempt to determine whether the PM's office was embroiled in an affair bordering on a word we must be careful not to utter explicitly—but which is the antithesis of loyalty.
Bar also raises a claim that, if true, should keep hostage families and the entire public awake at night no less: According to the Shin Bet chief—though he doesn't state it outright, using instead the phrasing "another motive"—the prime minister removed him from the hostage negotiation team because he seeks to thwart, not advance, a deal.

In his letter to the government a month ago, Bar noted that the last breakthrough—freeing 33 hostages, alive or dead—resulted from a unique Shin Bet operation that cannot be published. This week, I approached military censorship requesting permission to disclose this information to the public. Based on our understanding, and consistent with Bar's affidavit, this operation remains ongoing and will impact future deals—strengthening the Shin Bet chief's claim that one step authorized by Netanyahu and the government broke the deadlock in talks.
Bar's words to the Supreme Court essentially signal to families that the PM appointed Minister Ron Dermer to head the negotiation team to sabotage it. This is an extraordinarily grave accusation—but it aligns unequivocally with what other sources familiar with Israel's dynamics with mediators and Hamas say, as well as with the families' own sense.

The Shin Bet chief also provides explanations about October 7's events—details not included in the public Shin Bet investigation. On one hand, Bar accepts responsibility for his agency's part in the failure, but on the other, he counters conspiracy theories (some emanating directly from the PM's office and associates) alleging he and others knew in advance about Hamas's deadly surprise attack. Bar's unambiguous response: Absolutely false—a manipulative lie, incitement.
Incidentally, Bar still hasn't explained why, despite requesting to wake the PM at 5:15 AM, Netanyahu only awoke at 6:23 AM. What happened in between? Which Shin Bet official failed to call the PM's military secretary?
Netanyahu, for his part, swiftly responded while attending another court hearing that "Ronen Bar submitted a false affidavit, which will be disproven in detail." Hours later, he issued a broader response—yet even there, he didn't deny asking Bar to obey him rather than the Supreme Court in a constitutional crisis, though he may address this in an affidavit requested by the Court by Sunday.
So far, the PM hasn't responded to Bar's claim that requests to surveil protesters and their funding sources were made "at the end of work meetings, after asking the military secretary and stenographer operating the recording device to leave the room—clearly intending these exchanges to go unrecorded." This week, we revealed the protester named in the affidavit is attorney Gonen Ben Itzhak, co-founder of the "Crime Minister" movement—a detail previously exposed by Ilana Dayan in an "Uvda" investigation.
Ultimately, this is an extraordinarily alarming document. If true—in whole or part—it demonstrates that the sitting prime minister attempted to turn Israel into a banana republic, solely for his political and personal interests. Such a letter cannot remain under a cloud of uncertainty: The details must be clarified.
Though they'd prefer not to pull chestnuts from the fire for all of us—focusing instead on the procedural question of whether the government has authority to dismiss him—the Supreme Court justices will play a decisive role in uncovering the truth. A concept that, according to the Shin Bet chief's affidavit, the PM and his office long ago ceased to pursue.  link

Gaza war exposes rifts within IDF over civilian casualties
Air Force chief now personally approves all aerial attacks amid growing unease over collateral damage, breakdowns in coordination and concerns aggressive tactics may endanger hostages and undermine ethical and strategic goals
A scheduled meeting this week between senior Israeli military officials, including Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Yaniv Asor and Air Force Commander Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, was abruptly postponed. The delay comes amid rising tensions between branches of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) as concern grows over the mounting number of civilian casualties from Israeli airstrikes in Gaza. A senior defense official warned that without swift intervention, the friction could escalate into a full-fledged crisis of trust between Southern Command and the Air Force. The core issue, officials say, revolves around what the IDF terms “nezah agavi” — collateral damage — a euphemism for the deaths of uninvolved civilians in the course of airstrikes targeting Hamas and other terrorists in the enclave. Within the military hierarchy, the Southern Command commander functions as the lead operational authority in Gaza, directing integrated IDF forces in the campaign. Target selection is based on immediate operational needs or intelligence gathered by Military Intelligence, the Shin Bet internal security service or Southern Command’s own intelligence units. The Air Force is responsible for determining how strikes are executed — including the munitions used — and while no airstrike proceeds without its authorization, it is Asor who formally issues the operational orders. Target approvals are typically made overnight ahead of the following day’s strikes, in a process led by Asor. This includes setting priorities and coordinating munitions use through the Fire Center — the nerve center of all strike operations, whether ground-based, artillery or aerial.
However, in recent weeks, senior figures in the Air Force have grown increasingly uneasy. Part of that discontent stems from the rising number of civilians killed in Gaza since the IDF resumed intensive operations in the territory. Tensions have reached the point where, as of this week, Air Force chief Bar now personally approves each individual strike carried out by his branch.
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Military sources say Bar’s decision is meant to restore confidence among pilots, many of whom have expressed discomfort with how operations are being managed. “Maybe you don’t trust every person involved,” Bar has reportedly told them, “but you can trust me.” The Air Force sees this not only as a matter of ethics but of professional standards. Civilian casualties that exceed expectations, officials say, pose a direct threat to the lives of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza.
In practice, pilots are increasingly finding discrepancies between the estimates they are given before a strike and the actual civilian death toll afterward. For example, on a recent Saturday, Palestinian authorities reported 52 deaths in Gaza by the evening. When Air Force officials attempt to investigate such cases, they say they are often met with insufficient cooperation — a charge they direct at other parts of the military. While the IDF insists that cooperation between Southern Command and the Air Force continues around the clock and remains effective, sources in the Air Force say the deeper issue lies in how information is managed before and after a strike. “All of the targets are legitimate,” one senior Air Force officer said. “The question is the intelligence that leads us there — and what’s done with the results.”
Mistakes are inevitable in combat, they acknowledge. But when investigations into those mistakes are not thorough, or when similar incidents recur, it raises red flags. “It starts to look like someone has a finger on the trigger without enough professionalism,” one Air Force figure said. “That perhaps this isn’t just a mistake.”
Some question why the Air Force is raising concerns now, more than 18 months into a war that has already resulted in thousands of civilian deaths in Gaza. Officers within the Air Force and Military Intelligence say the nature of the war has changed. They point to a decline in high-value targets and a shift in tone since Asor assumed command of Southern Command.
Asor is widely seen as a bold, aggressive commander aligned with the prevailing IDF strategy of seeking “total victory” over Hamas. He holds the authority to impose conditions on target approval and to halt or authorize strikes in real time — including during active combat. Sources say recent operations have been more aggressive, with less consideration given to the risk of civilian casualties, without a measurable improvement in battlefield outcomes.
Statements by Israeli politicians — including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has been criticized for downplaying the urgency of rescuing Israeli hostages — have only fueled Air Force concerns. Some in the service fear a growing disconnect between operational decisions and the war’s stated goals.
Earlier this year, a group of reserve pilots signed a petition questioning the ethical direction of the war. Bar responded sharply, declaring that the signatories would no longer serve in operational positions — though they were not fully discharged from reserve service. The episode exposed deeper unease within the Air Force, which continues to prepare for the possibility of a large-scale strike on Iran’s nuclear program.
Unlike some other militaries, the Israeli Air Force operates on a hybrid model of career personnel and reservists, many of whom bring extensive operational experience. Senior officers warn that any suggestion to simply “follow orders” without questioning intent or outcome fails to grasp how Israeli squadrons operate. “This isn’t the Russian Air Force,” one said. “The IDF isn’t a mercenary army.”
The Air Force has not refused any mission in Gaza. In fact, it is responsible for the bulk of successful strikes against Iran-backed terrorists forces in the region — far more than any limited commando operations. But commanders acknowledge a growing sense that the military’s ethical compass is under strain.
Their main concern now is what happens if, or when, pilots are ordered to implement one of two classified operational plans for a full-scale ground invasion of Gaza — moves that could carry serious implications for the fate of Israeli hostages.
IDF Response: “All IDF branches operate in full coordination and with a shared purpose to achieve the objectives of the war,” the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said in a statement. “Debriefing, lessons learned and operational review processes are conducted routinely. The IDF is taking ongoing steps to reduce harm to uninvolved civilians despite the challenges posed by terror infrastructure embedded within civilian areas.” link

The Region and the World

Personal Stories

‘Yotam wanted to be a dad’: Mother of slain Hamas hostage battles to continue his lineage, looking for a mother
After a year of mourning, Iris Haim petitioned a court to use the sperm of her late son Yotam—kidnapped on October 7 and mistakenly killed by IDF fire after escaping captivity—to fulfill his dream of fatherhood; her journey has grown into a personal mission with powerful national meaning
Iris Haim waited until the end of the traditional first year of mourning for her son Yotam before beginning a process she hopes will result in a grandchild, born from the sperm of her son, who was kidnapped to Gaza in the October 7 attack and mistakenly killed by Israeli forces.

During this year, her grief turned into growing anger toward the country’s leadership, toward public celebrations when other hostages returned home, and toward those who branded her an “abominable Bibist,” a derogatory term for ardent supporters of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Now, she says, she has no doubts: Everyone, including Netanyahu, must step down to make way for new leadership, which she believes could even include her.

Iris Haim cries every day. And when she cries, the blue in her eyes becomes even more vivid.

We met at her new apartment in Mevasseret Zion, near Jerusalem, her fourth residence since the October 7 massacre. It’s a significant day for her, a day on which she takes a major step toward fulfilling the mission she set for herself: ensuring the continuity of her son Yotam Haim in the most meaningful way for her and her family.

She sits down for an exclusive interview just a short time after submitting a petition to the family court in Be'er Sheva, requesting to use the sperm of her late son, who was mistakenly killed by Israeli fire after escaping Hamas captivity along with Alon Shamriz and Samer Talalka, 70 days after the three were abducted.

“We have sperm, which is incredible and helps a lot,” Haim says. “At least our son left something behind. We have something physical, beyond ‘Beit Yotam’ (House of Yotam), a rehabilitative music school in southern Israel that supports people coping with mental illness, and all the other ways we’re commemorating him.

"I can build Beit Yotam without him being physically present, and people can name their children after him, but with the sperm, his lineage can truly continue. Thankfully, we were able to preserve it, and now we’re looking for a mother. Not a surrogate who’ll carry the child and let us raise it. We’re looking for someone who wants to be a mother.

"The child who will be born will have a father figure. The mother will be able to talk to the child about his/her father, Yotam, and the child will have a family—us. That gives us a lot of hope and light in this darkness."

What kind of woman are you looking for? “We’d be happy with a redheaded grandchild, but that’s not a serious request,” she says with a laugh. “I haven’t imagined her, I’m a practical person. She has to be someone who truly wants a child and wants us as her family. That’s the most important thing, because we’ll be the grandparents, and the child will have uncles and aunts too. We have so much to give, and that’s what will connect us.”

What about the woman's personality traits? “She needs to have love, compassion and maturity,” Haim says. “Bringing a child into the world through a story like this isn’t simple; she has to be someone with deep emotional strength."

Did Yotam want to have children? “Sure, he really did. We’re not doing this on a whim. I have three children, and Yotam was the only one who ever talked about having kids. Tuval, the eldest, told me, ‘I don’t want to have children.’ But Yotam used to say, ‘Mom, don’t worry. You’ll have grandchildren from me.' He wanted a long-term relationship and to start a family. He said he wanted to be a father like his own dad."

So, you’ve begun fulfilling his wish? “We have to go through the court, and it’s not a natural thing to request permission,” she says. “But people need to understand that we’re in a different era, and young people approaching military service should have the option to sign a document allowing the use of their sperm, just like you sign a will or an organ donor card."

Yotam told me: 'Mom, don’t worry. You’ll have grandchildren from me'

"A young man could choose to say, ‘I donate my organs, and I donate my sperm to ensure continuity, to give life to another person'. On both a personal and national level, it’s important that we continue our lineage, our existence."

Why did you decide to file the request now? “We were told not to even discuss it during the first year since he died. A year needs to pass so you’re more grounded and not caught up in your emotions. It’s not simple, it’s a whole process. Not everyone has the ability to deal with lawyers, meetings and court filings. Not everyone is ready, and not right away. One of Yotam’s close friends once said, ‘I want to be the mother.’ A year went by, and she said, ‘I can’t do it right now'."

That's understandable. But there’s no doubt about your readiness to be a grandmother. “We very much want to have a grandchild, maybe even more than one. For us as a family, it would bring tremendous hope. I believe it’s a national calling right now, that in the aftermath of October 7, there should be more children born in Israel. It’s part of rebuilding our society, especially in light of so many people who were murdered so unjustly. There should be a way to use sperm from the deceased without so much red tape as there is now."

Does it trouble you that this child won’t have a father? “On the contrary! The child will have a father."

The child will have a memory. “No. The child will have a figure, a story about a father. A child conceived from an anonymous sperm donor doesn’t know who their father is, and they grow up with a constant sense of absence. They have no paternal family, no grandparents from that side, only a mother and her family. This process is more balanced: the child will have a father figure, Yotam Haim. And the father has a story; he was a hero."

'It's certainly better than a child who has nothing'

The entire country has come to know Iris Haim's fortitude, but even she knows the road ahead will be long before she can wrap her arms around a grandchild - either a boy or a girl - born from her son Yotam’s sperm. She is prepared to walk that challenging path, driven by the hope of that moment.

Haim believes that the benefits far outweigh the challenges of raising a child without a father, and that Yotam’s presence will extend beyond photos in an album. “It’s much more than a picture,” she says. “A child born after their father has died can grow up with their father as a real presence in their life. That’s certainly better than a child who has nothing.

"Sperm donation has become very common; women reach 35, give up on finding a partner, and sperm donation becomes a very straightforward solution. What’s better? A child who knows nothing about their father and isn’t even allowed to find out, or a child who knows, who has something to hold onto? There’s a family. There’s me. I’ll be there to care for and embrace the child. What could be better than that?"

The one who will be standing there beside her is Yotam’s father, Raviv. Though the two separated, they remained close friends and partners and are navigating this process together. “We’ve been together for 40 years,” says Haim. “I left our home in Sde Nitzan on November 1, 2022, but we never divorced. We’re very, very close friends. I moved to Kibbutz Or HaNer in southern Israel, rented a small apartment and was very happy there."

Haim was in her apartment in Or HaNer on what Israelis now call the “Black Saturday,” Oct. 7, 2023, when her son was kidnapped from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during Hamas’ assault. “It's a seven-minute drive from where Yotam was,” she says. “Of course, I couldn’t help him. I texted him, ‘It’ll be over soon, and I’ll take you to Sde Nitzan, to Raviv.’ The terrorists didn’t reach that area. At the time, we didn’t understand anything. We had no idea what was happening.”

Since then, Raviv has returned to Sde Nitzan. “And I’m here in Mevasseret. This is my fourth home. It won’t be my last, that’s for sure. I couldn’t bring myself to go back to the south. Even now, I feel I can’t live in that area. A disaster of this scale shakes you to your core. It makes you clearer about your personal needs. No one planned for Yotam to die at 29. It forces you to realize life is short, you can’t afford to drift."

How has that been reflected in your and Yotam's father's lives? “We each became clearer on what was good for us and what wasn’t. Being together wasn’t good for either of us. For many years, I managed everything alone, even when I was married. We stayed together out of convenience, habit, the kids - Tuval, Yotam and Noya, who were our huge joint project. Yotam somehow held us together and wouldn’t let us separate. We always had something to do to try to save him, to support, help and lift him up. Raviv and I were a great team, but we weren’t a good couple."

Did you stay together for Yotam’s sake? “Maybe that’s what we felt, like it was our role, but in the end, he saved himself. He went through anorexia at 18, couldn’t enlist in the army, and was hospitalized at the Center for Eating Disorders at Sheba Medical Center. We thought we could save him.

"It was very difficult for him there. Raviv drove there every day just to try and convince him to stay. In the end, they told him, ‘Go. We don’t have enough beds.’ I broke down when he came back home - what do we do now?

"Looking back, Yotam knew better than we did what he needed. I say in my lectures that maybe we thought we were helping and saving him, but eventually, he did it all by himself. Though we were in the background, and maybe that hope of saving him is what kept me with Raviv."

Raviv, Yotam's father, wrote in statement to the court: 'Yotam told me that if anything ever happened to him, he wanted us to have a grandchild from him, to be his continuity'

Raviv Haim, who describes himself as the quiet one in the family, shared with the court the moment he received what he considers Yotam’s will for continuity. It happened during one of the open conversations he had with his son about death, following a near-death experience Raviv had at the age of 28.

“I told Yotam that during a soccer game, another player accidentally punched me in the neck and I lost consciousness. I had a near-death experience where I felt like I was flying through a warm, glowing tunnel filled with an incredible sense of pleasure. There was no sense of time, and nothing hurt. At the end of the tunnel, I saw the face of my sister, who had died the year before, and she motioned with her hand for me to go back to life. At that moment, Yotam told me that if anything ever happened to him, he wanted us to make sure we would have a grandchild from him, that this would be his continuity."

The statement of Yotam's father was submitted to the court, along with declarations from other family members and friends. “I even obtained a statement from Yotam’s therapist,” says Adv. Nili Schatz, who is representing the family alongside Adv. Shimon Haski and Adv. Romy Knebel. “This is a rare case in Israel, and I hope that under these extraordinary circumstances, the state will not reject us. It owes them that much."

The deceased’s wish for continuity, as described in Raviv Haim’s statement about his late son, carries legal weight in the proceedings. “The key is convincing the court that the deceased wanted to have a child after his death,” says Adv. Schatz. “Such a request has only been approved once in Israel, in 2016. There’s no legislation on this, we rely on court rulings and a 2003 directive from the attorney general, which is outdated."

"Something changed after October 7. Israel has never experienced a second Holocaust. The courts must adopt a new approach to this kind of request. Enabling a child to be born from the sperm of a fallen soldier or hero should be seen as a national obligation - both to the victims and to their families."

'There's joy around me. And what do I have? Disappointment'

In Israel, a country obsessed with childbirth, where fertility treatments are more subsidized than anywhere else in the world, Iris Haim knows that every Israeli is a critic, and that her decisions and statements might provoke objections.

It wouldn’t be the first time she’s faced backlash. Just recently, Haim compared her emotions surrounding the hostage return deal to those of a stillbirth. In a Facebook post on February 8, she wrote that she suddenly understood what parents feel when they leave a delivery room empty-handed while others cradle living newborns wrapped in blankets.

"Let me ask you, what do you think of celebrations held for returned hostages?" she says. "Imagine a mother who gives birth to twins - one lives, one dies. Do you celebrate? I remember seeing Eli Sharabi, Ohad Ben Ami and Or Levy standing there, thin and wearing sweatuits, and I was jealous. I want my son. I waited, I believed, I hoped, I traveled on missions. Why didn’t I get him back? That’s when I thought of a mother who carries a child in her womb, expecting. Around her, joy floods social media, releasing updates about the gifts the returned hostages receive. And what do I have? Disappointment."

טקס השחרור של אלי שרעבי, אור לוי ואוהד בן עמי משבי החמאס

At this point, her face turns red, and her eyes fill with tears. "It's heartbreaking. And that contrast, the joy, was the hardest part. People are joyful and celebrate. It’s good to celebrate; a baby is born, and the whole family rejoices. But what if, beside the new mother, lies a woman who knows her baby is stillborn? Maybe the new mother would tell her family, 'Let’s step outside to celebrate and not rub it in her face?' It was very difficult for me, and I know that other parents who lost their children felt the same. They support the joy, but they can’t bear to see it out in the open."

How did you cope? "I muted all notifications about returning hostages, which featured reports on what they ate, what they drank. I didn’t want to see it. It destroys me. Not because I think they shouldn’t have come home. It’s good they did, but it’s hard for me. I have this defense mechanism that helps me separate myself from the emotion. If I stay emotionally connected all the time, I’ll just cry. When I cry, I open this little lock inside and connect to the story. It could be because of the kidnapping."

Can you give an example? "A few days ago, I was with Karina Ariev. We stayed in touch. Ever since she met with us, I knew I’d be in touch with her. Because of Yotam and that deep bond, she spoke, and suddenly, I burst into tears. I don’t fall apart instantly, but I cry almost every day.

"In my lectures, I talk about the farmers who cultivate the land, and I cry. It’s very emotional for me. I show videos of the peanut fields Yotam worked in and talk about how the Gaza border region is coming back to life, that the fields are blooming again. To me, that symbolizes continuity. There’s life there, but also death. One of the people who didn’t return to work in those fields is Yotam, along with so many others."

One of the many others who didn't return from this "Black Saturday" was Sgt. First Class Yosef Guedalia, a combat soldier of the elite Duvdevan unit who was killed in action in Kibbutz Kfar Aza.

Haim thinks of him every day, even though she never met him. "He died on Oct. 7 in the neighborhood where Yotam lived, and he passed right by Yotam’s home. I imagined Yotam looking at him, maybe hoping to be saved by him. I met his mother during the war; she’s a Haredi woman, wearing a wig, and I always cry when I talk about her son. Because there's this bond of togetherness when your heart meets another heart."

'We can start building our new leadership'

Iris Haim’s connection with the religious community, people she had not previously connected with, has made some people visibly uncomfortable. Having supported left-wing parties in the past, she has drawn criticism for refraining from blaming the current government or Netanyahu for the failures of October 7. But today, she speaks very differently.

"They called me an 'abominable Bibist,'" she recalls. "Someone said that I was 'shining in TV studios since her son was executed.' I remember that sentence clearly. This person, a teacher from Herzliya who wrote it on X, later apologized and met with me.

"I think I’ve gone through a process since October 7. I had a very strong belief in our country, we have an army, we have a state. I was born here and was raised with this sense of security that I live in a functioning country with a strong army and good intelligence. That’s what I genuinely felt, and I said so in the media, even after Yotam was killed. I said, ‘Okay. It was a mistake. We didn’t know. We didn’t understand.'"

When did you understand what had happened to Yotam, Alon and Samer? "In the first weeks, before we received the debriefing, we didn’t know what had really happened. We thought it was a chaotic escape, that the IDF troops saw figures among terrorists and they fired at everyone, so the three also got killed. That was the image I had in my mind. Yotam's head was shaved; I didn’t know that at the time.

"We were told just four sentences: 'Yotam was killed by friendly fire while escaping Hamas captivity and was mistakenly identified as a terrorist.' What do you imagine? Total chaos. As a mother, you construct mental defenses - you picture your son running, escaping, like in a movie, and someone misidentifies him and shoots him."

You say you’ve gone through a process; what does that mean? "I kept saying there would be a time to deal with the failure and hold people accountable, but that wasn’t the time when our soldiers, both reserves and regulars, were out there defending us. I felt that one of our roles on the home front was to foster a unifying dialogue, not a divisive one. That was my way, and I still believe in it. Our subconscious choice was to focus on healing first, on our own healing, without relying on anger. In the early days, I didn’t feel anger."

And now? "Now I’m angry at these leaders. You can’t watch them go home and just say 'sorry.' Saying 'sorry' is not enough! If I ran over a child, I’d go to jail, pay a big fine or get some other penalty. This IDF chief of staff and this defense minister (Herzi Halevi and Yoav Gallant) should walk away in disgrace. No one should hire them. They shouldn’t be seen in public life anymore. They should be gone, along with Bibi Netanyahu and his gang. All of them together. That’s where I am now."

Until now, you hadn’t said that Netanyahu should resign. "That wasn’t me a few months ago. I’ve shifted. I went through a process. I believe these people must be held accountable. Why? To restore trust. My son will not come back. Trust in the State of Israel won’t be restored as long as these figures have influence. That’s the correction we need."

The prime minister doesn’t appear to be doing any soul-searching or stepping down. "I don’t know what he thinks in private, what he says to his wife or to Trump. But there’s no healing in Israel without the return of all the hostages. That’s non-negotiable.

"I always consider who’s listening on the other side; if what I say could hurt our social fabric, I won’t say it. Is it worth badmouthing the prime minister, someone I’ve never voted for? I realized that this path wasn’t right for me. I don’t insult, smear or point fingers. I can say that I want answers. I’ve never been part of the Hostage and Missing Families Forum. I wasn’t invited to the Knesset, I’m not ‘in the club.’ I follow my own path, and I believe I’ve had a big impact. If we want to restore trust, it has to start with this entire government stepping down and the formation of a new kind of leadership."

You sound like you’ve arrived at the same place as Yonatan Shamriz, brother of the late Alon Shamriz, who founded the Kumu movement (a nationwide movement dedicated to healing Israel's social fabric). "Yonatan is doing important work. He wants change, and I’m glad about that. He started a bit early, but now, I’m having the same thoughts. This is the right moment. I won’t shout in the streets, ‘You abandoned us,' as that kind of rhetoric is hard for me. Today, I can say, ‘You disrespected us.’ We had to reach this point. All the new movements that have sprung up should unite. Together, they must rise and replace our current government. We’ve got about a year until elections, it's time to start building our new leadership."

What kind of leadership should that be? "Leadership made up of people with integrity. People who were affected by October 7, like me, like Yonatan Shamriz, like Brig. Gen. Dedi Simchi (whose son died on Oct. 7). We’re all worthy of support."

Have you decided to enter politics? What if Naftali Bennett reaches out? "I’ve said what I think about that."

Would you like to see Yair Golan (leader of the Democrats party) in leadership? "Absolutely not. He was in the army; did he issue any warnings? Did he do anything to save us from October 7? Anyone associated with the old leadership - no!"

Still, he did go out of his house and rescue people at the Nova festival. "Take someone like Rami Davidian (who saved many lives on Oct. 7). He cries constantly over not saving more people. He has complex PTSD. And Yair Golan? People like him and Yair Lapid didn’t unite us. The people who helped were ordinary people, like me, like Dedi, like Izhar Shay. People who talked about unity. Even though I oppose this government and say this government must go, at the critical moment, when we were in crisis, there was no room for political games. Not a shred of responsibility was taken by politicians. I believe that even the opposition has no place in the new leadership. They failed to unite us, too."

The hidden message in the video

Talking about politics and leaders is difficult for Haim. She would much rather focus on commemorating her son Yotam and on the theme of unity. “During the shiva in Shoeva, we set up folding couches, stayed in one small room together and slept there. I said we would establish a non-profit organization in Yotam’s memory, one that would also help others. Tuval, my eldest, took on the project and started building the nonprofit. We decided to call it Chayei Yotam - Yotam’s Life Association.

As someone who lived with mental health challenges, he overcame so much. But the hardest thing he ever faced was surviving Hamas captivity, supporting and encouraging others, escaping, enduring five days in the most dangerous place imaginable, fearing for his life and being a true hero."

Yotam’s deep connection to music also became central to how the family chose to honor his memory. “Yotam was a drummer, and one of his dreams was to become a famous drummer performing on big stages around the world. What held him back were his anxieties. He would schedule a drumming lesson in Jerusalem, then cancel. He got accepted to Rimon (a leading Israeli music school) but was afraid he wasn’t good enough. Living in the Gaza border community, he worried about how he’d even get there.

"So we decided to build Beit Yotam, House of Yotam, in the south. It will be based on a music school. We wanted to create a place where people could come to where there’s only music, no grades, no competition, but with full emotional support. It will be a huge music farm."

One of the last images of Yotam came from captivity, in a video the family received after his death, one they ultimately decided not to release.

“If the video had arrived before Yotam was killed, we would have published it. It took me eight months to open it. I didn’t know what I would see.”

And what did you see? “He looked very thin, with a shaved head. Just seeing that was terrifying. And he wasn’t alive anymore. I was scared, I didn’t know what to expect. After eight months, I spoke to a friend who had also been his therapist. She asked me to send her the video. Then she said to me, ‘You’re probably watching it on a loop.’ I told her no, I hadn’t even watched it. ‘You have to see it,’ she said. I was home alone, and I started watching it on a loop. He smiles. A body language expert who analyzed the hostage videos told me Yotam was in control of the situation. He gestured toward his heart, ‘I’m strong.’ A smile. No other hostage smiled. And we can’t give up something that incredible." link

Acronyms and Glossary

COGAT - Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories

ICC - International Criminal Court in the Hague

IJC - International Court of Justice in the Hague

IPS - Israel Prison System

MDA - Magen David Adom - Israel Ambulance Corp

PA - Palestinian Authority - President Mahmud Abbas, aka Abu Mazen

PMO- Prime Minister's Office

UAV - Unmanned Aerial vehicle, Drone. Could be used for surveillance and reconnaissance, or be weaponized with missiles or contain explosives for 'suicide' explosion mission

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