IDF

Gal Hirsch: 'Hamas planned to hold Israeli hostages for 10 years' - interview

In an interview with The Jerusalem Post, Brig.-Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch described the complexity of Israeli hostage rescue operations, his involvement in negotiations, and Hamas terror tactics.

|ByZVIKA KLEIN, AMICHAI STEIN
Brig.-Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch
IDF VETERANS work the fields as part of Kaima’s Anchored in the Earth therapeutic farming program.

Anchored in the Earth: The theraputic farm helping Israel's combat veterans

Now in its second year, the initiative serves approximately 60 veterans across four cohorts, providing a structured path toward healing and reintegration through farm-based therapeutic work.

|ByABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN
THE MACABRE job of finding the body of the last hostage, Ran Gvili, required the unearthing of 250 bodies and the assistance of embedded forensic dental specialists. Here, IDF soldiers stand alongside Gvili’s body after its discovery in Gaza this week.

YASAR heroes: The IDF unit that found and identified Ran Gvili

MILITARY AFFAIRS: A hero shows up when there is no applause, and the work is heavy, unseen, and costly, a description embodied by IDF soldiers whose job is to search, identify, and return the dead.

|ByTUVIA BOOK
Plumes of smoke rise after the IDF carried out house demolitions in the northern Gaza Strip in January. It is believed that between 80,000 and 200,000 tons of munitions were fired or dropped on Gaza over two years of war.

IDF strikes Gaza, Palestinian reports say at least 30 people dead

The recent IDF airstrikes in Gaza killed 32 people, according to Hamas-run health authorities cited by Reuters.

|ByTOBIAS HOLCMAN

IDF concludes Hebron security operation, begins tactical drill in Kiryat Shmona

In the joint Hebron operation, the IDF searched approximately 350 structures and apprehended 14 individuals wanted for terrorism related activity.

JANUARY 23, 2026ByTZVI JASPER, JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Israeli soldiers carrying weapons walk during a weekly settlers' tour in Hebron, in the West Bank, December 20, 2025

IDF to trim reserve duty, could expand mandatory service as soldier shortage deepens

The new plan aims to reduce the number of reserve days for combat soldiers, limiting them to fewer than 60 days per year.

JANUARY 23, 2026ByAMIR BOHBOT, JERUSALEM POST STAFF
AN IDF reserve soldier reports for a military drill along the border with Lebanon and Syria.

Thousands protest rising crime in Arab sector, Ben-Gvir accuses leaders of 'fueling violence'

“Tens of thousands in Sakhnin are marching together for the safety of all of us,” Hadash-Tal chairperson MK Ayman Odeh said.

JANUARY 22, 2026ByKESHET NEEV
Members of the Arab community in Israel protest against the violence in their community, in Sakhnin, northern Israel, January 22, 2026.

Investment, amnesty, withdrawal: US outlines Gaza demilitarization plan led by NCAG - explainer

A US-backed blueprint for Gaza’s future lays out a tightly sequenced plan to dismantle armed groups, link reconstruction to verified disarmament, and enable a phased IDF withdrawal

JANUARY 22, 2026BySHIR PERETS
DR. ALI Shaath, leader of the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, signs the NCAG Mission Statement.

Israeli film Butcher's Stain receives an Oscar nomination in Best Live Action Short category

Butcher’s Stain has already won a Silver Medal in the Narrative category at the 2025 Student Academy Awards, an important achievement for a filmmaker at the beginning of his career.

JANUARY 22, 2026ByHANNAH BROWN
Omar Sameer Mahamid stars in Meyer Levinson-Blount's Butcher's Stain, a short film that has received an Oscar nomination.

Will Donald Trump's Hamas disarmament endgame make Israel safer? - analysis

The great game has begun for Israel, Hamas, the US, Qatar, Turkey, and others to try to reframe the future of Gaza conflict and the Middle East.

JANUARY 22, 2026ByYONAH JEREMY BOB
US President Donald Trump speaks during a reception with business leaders, at the 56th annual World Economic Forum (WEF), in Davos, Switzerland, January 21, 2026.

Man charged with hate crime for antisemitic attack on Israeli lecturer Rami Glickstein in Manhattan

Glickstein, 59, suffered a vicious antisemitic attack while in New York on October 27, 2025, resulting in a brain bleed and a broken nose.

JANUARY 22, 2026ByMATHILDA HELLER
Israeli educator and lecturer in the IDF, Rami Glickstein, 59, suffered a vicious antisemitic attack while in New York.

IDF carries out anti-terrorism operation in Hebron, seizes illegal weapons, arrests wanted suspects

The operation "is part of a series of proactive operations to thwart terrorism in Judea and Samaria and to strengthen the defense of the settlements," IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said.

JANUARY 22, 2026ByDANYA SAPERSTEIN
Chief of Staff, Lt. Col. Eyal Zamir conducts a situation assessment as part of an operation in the Hebron region

Weapons smuggling via drones poses a threatening new reality for Israel - analysis

The drone smuggling threat is growing, as the last attempts occured on the Egyptian and now apparently also the Jordanian border.

JANUARY 22, 2026BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
View of a new security drone in Efrat, in the West Bank

Some 25 Israelis indicted for spying for Iran in 2025, Shin Bet reveals

In a separate arena, the Shin Bet reported that 130 Israeli-Arabs were indicted for terror-related offenses, while 219 were arrested.

JANUARY 22, 2026ByYONAH JEREMY BOB
The silhouette of a man, seen over the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran (illustrative)