Israel Brief: Wednesday, October 1

Yom Kippur on the horizon, sirens in the south: endgame talks, hard doctrine, and the duty to stay awake

Shalom, friends. Yom Kippur begins this evening. We won’t publish tomorrow—we’ll be in shul with you. Back on Thursday morning.

As Yom Kippur takes hold in Israel, our enemies are unlikely to pause. Just about twenty minutes or so ago, sirens sounded in communities near Gaza; baruch Hashem, Magen David Adom reports no 101 emergency calls so far. The IDF intercepted two missiles fired from the Gaza City area. May Israel pass this holy day in relative peace—and may the plans of our enemies be turned on their heads.

What to watch in this briefing: the clock on the U.S.-backed ceasefire plan as Hamas signals rejection; the IDF’s doctrine for the “twilight days” and the insistence on holding ground inside Gaza—not retreating to the fence; fresh “Palestinian” terrorism in Judea; and a widening ring of pressure from Tehran’s proxies to European capitals.

Read with kavvanah.

The War Today

IDF braces for ‘twilight days’ of Gaza war as US pushes ceasefire plan

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir toured Gaza, warning commanders that Hamas may attempt last-minute attacks before a possible U.S.-brokered ceasefire takes effect. The Trump–Netanyahu plan envisions full hostage release in exchange for prisoner swaps and Hamas’s disarmament, with international monitors overseeing the destruction of tunnels and weapons. Hamas leaders rejected the terms as a “declaration of defeat,” while hostage families hailed the announcement as historic. Read more →

IDF commanders warn: Israel must hold ground inside Gaza, not rely on border defenses

Senior officers in the Southern Command cautioned that any ceasefire deal leaving the IDF only along the border would return Israel to the vulnerabilities of October 6. They stressed that civilians in border towns must see Israeli soldiers in front of them, not Hamas gunmen, and argued for a permanent security perimeter inside Gaza, modeled on the enforcement system against Hezbollah in Lebanon. Commanders also said the current slow, overwhelming approach in Gaza City could dismantle Hamas infrastructure within two months without unnecessary IDF casualties. Read more →

Two wounded in Gush Etzion terror attack

Just minutes after we sent yesterday’s Brief, news broke of another attack in Judea. A terrorist rammed his car into Israelis at the Al-Khader Junction in Gush Etzion and then tried to stab them. Two teens, ages 15 and 16, were injured, one seriously. The attacker was shot by a civilian, identified as Col. (res.) Hezi Nechama, once sidelined from service for criticizing the lack of victory in Gaza. The assault comes only days after an IDF soldier was killed in a ramming and shooting in Samaria, underscoring the unbroken wave of “Palestinian” terrorism across Judea and Samaria. Read more →