Free Republic

State prosecutors on Monday filed an indictment against a Rishon Lezion resident accused of carrying out surveillance missions on behalf of a foreign agent, including filming the street outside the home of former prime minister Naftali Bennett, in what authorities described as another attempt by Iranian intelligence to collect information on senior Israeli figures. The indictment, filed with the Central District Court in Lod, charges Lekachao Demsash, 31, with contact with a foreign agent, an offense that carries a potential prison sentence. Prosecutors have also requested that he be held in custody until the conclusion of legal proceedings, citing the...

US officials aligned with President Trump request weekly election surveys from Israeli contacts, focusing on top contenders and rising far-right figures; interest grows as Bennett reenters political arena and calls for inquiry into Oct. 7 failures. Beyond simply collecting data, U.S. officials are also seeking clarification about the various candidates and parties, focusing primarily on those leading the polls — Netanyahu and Bennett — while also tracking the strength of the far-right bloc, particularly ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich. Bennett, for his part, has reportedly begun formulating his post-election strategy, assembling a policy team that includes former education minister...

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett claimed on Tuesday that the suspects in the Qatargate scandal deserve a life sentence for having “maliciously sabotaged” Israel’s ties with Egypt while promoting the image of Qatar, which Bennett branded an “enemy.” The comments, made in a social media video, were Bennett’s latest volley of harsh rhetoric about the scandal, in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s senior aide Jonathan Urich and former spokesperson Eli Feldstein are accused of working as paid lobbyists on behalf of Doha while in the premier’s employ. In a subsequent post, Bennett shared the text of the law in question,...

Witkoff and Kushner on one side, Rubio and Huckabee on the other: beneath the surface, the US administration is divided over who should be Israel's next prime minister… There was one moment in the Knesset speech on the day the war ended that particularly troubled Likud. It happened when the president spontaneously praised Yair Lapid. "He's a nice guy," he said to Netanyahu — and then jabbed the prime minister: "You don't need to be so tough now that the war is over." Was this a hint that the president intends, God forbid, to adopt neutrality in the upcoming election...

In the suitability for prime minister polls, former prime minister Naftali Bennett continues to emerge as the principal challenger to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In a direct head-to-head matchup, Channel 12 places Bennett within one percentage point of Netanyahu. In the multi-candidate Channel 14 poll, Bennett ranks second, holding a 12-point lead over the next closest challenger. The dominant topic this week was the fallout from revelations of betrayal within Netanyahu’s office, following reports that senior advisers received funds from Qatar. A Maariv poll shows that 60% of respondents with an opinion do not believe Netanyahu’s claim that he was...

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett warned that Israel’s status in the United States “has never been so bad” and that it is being seen as a “leper state” in a lengthy social media post on Tuesday. The post castigating the current government’s public diplomacy efforts came after Bennett, who plans to run in next year’s elections, spent 10 days in the US… “The Democratic party hasn’t been with us for some time. We’re also losing the Republican party, whose support for Israel could once be counted on,” he wrote, though he credited US President Donald Trump with retaining support for...

Majorities of Israelis oppose granting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a presidential pardon in his criminal trial…according to a new survey conducted for Zman Yisrael, The Times of Israel’s Hebrew-language sister site, this week. In response to the question, “Do you support or oppose Netanyahu’s request for a presidential pardon without admitting guilt or expressing remorse?” 53.2 percent of respondents said they oppose it, while 42.4% said they support it, and 4.4% said they don’t know. On the issue of ultra-Orthodox draft exemptions, the respondents were asked if they support or oppose the law proposed by MK Boaz Bismuth: 53.8% said...

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett says he will support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s request for a pardon if it is conditioned on the premier’s retirement from politics. “In recent years, the State of Israel has been led into chaos and to the brink of a civil war that threatens the very existence of the state,” Bennett writes on X. “In order to rescue Israel from the chaos, I will support a binding arrangement that includes a respectful retirement from political life alongside the end of the trial,” he says. “That way, we can let it go, unite, and rebuild the...

A Virginia high school principal and his brother were arrested for allegedly planning to carry out a heinous attack involving firearms and explosives to kill US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on Wednesday. John Wilson Bennett, and his brother Mark Booth Bennett, have each been charged with conspiracy to commit malicious wounding. According to DHS, the pair was overheard by Virginia state police officers on November 17 discussing alleged plans to "kill police officers and ICE agents." Additionally, Mark was allegedly overheard stating his intention to meet with like-minded individuals in Las...

If you ever find yourself in trouble with the law, just bring up Jan. 6, 2021. At the very least, it might get your bond lowered. Court proceedings are unfolding for the suspects involved in the viral Cincinnati attack that took place July 26. Judge Alan Triggs had originally set the bond for two individuals at a $200,000 secure bond and a $300,000 secure bond. These were for 24-year-old Dekyra Vernon and 25-year-old Aisha Devaughn, respectively according to WCPO. Triggs has now lowered both bonds for these women to $25,000, of which each must pay 10 percent. Vernon’s defense attorney,...

The Likud Party has experienced a significant rise following the war with Iran…The survey reveals that Likud gained 4 seats, increasing its total to 26, up from 22 in the previous poll. This marks the first time since October 2024 that Likud has surpassed Naftali Bennett’s new party, which has dropped to 24 seats. Although Likud is strengthening, the shift primarily reflects changes within the coalition bloc. Otzma Yehudit, led by Itamar Ben-Gvir, has lost two seats, dropping to 6. Meanwhile…the Democrats, led by Yair Golan, have gained ground, rising to 12 seats at the expense of Yesh Atid, the...

The Rebecca Bennett campaign tells Fox News Digital the criticism shows she is a 'threat' to win the seat.. A Democrat running for Congress in New Jersey who has been positioning herself as a moderate to unseat the sitting Republican in a pro-Trump district, has deleted several social media posts promoting progressive candidates and causes. Democrat Rebecca Bennett, who is running in the Democratic primary to unseat GOP Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. in New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District, is a Navy veteran and current member of the Air National Guard who has been labeled by local media as a "moderate"...

..... Speaking during a visit to the Ramat David Airbase, Gallant said, "The action of the Air Force in all sectors is very impressive, and it is appropriate that the roar of the jets drown out the unnecessary chatter and allow the IDF soldiers to carry out their mission quietly and safely." Bennett, in his op-ed, mentioned that during his term as Prime Minister, Israel destroyed a UAV base on Iranian soil, thwarted an attempted Iranian terror attack on Israeli tourists in Turkey, and shortly afterwards "the commander of that very unit was assassinated in the center of Tehran." Responding...

oan Bennett, former wife of Senator Ted Kennedy, was born on September 9, 1936, in Manhattan. Bennett married Ted Kennedy on November 29, 1958. Her private struggle with miscarriages and alcoholism became public after she was arrested for drunk driving in 1974. For decades Bennett wrestled with sobriety. She is currently in treatment under her children's care.

Tony Bennett, the master pop vocalist who had a professional career spanning eight decades with a No. 1 album at age 85, died on Friday morning in New York City. He was 96. Bennett was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016, but had continued to perform and record through 2021. His peer Frank Sinatra called him the greatest popular singer in the world. His recordings – most of them made for Columbia Records, which signed him in 1950 – were characterized by ebullience, immense warmth, vocal clarity and emotional openness. A gifted and technically accomplished interpreter of the Great American...

Tony Bennett, the master pop vocalist who had a professional career spanning eight decades with a No. 1 album at age 85, died on Friday morning in New York City. He was 96. Bennett was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016, but had continued to perform and record through 2021.

Bennett speaks out. Former Israeli PM talks about Zelensky the coward.

When Naftali Bennett took over Israel’s premiership from Benjamin Netanyahu in June of 2021, the Likud leader was famously derisive and dismissive of his successor, questioning the legitimacy of his government and promising to return to power quickly. Some commentators criticized Netanyahu then for his apparent lack of decorum, noting that previous transfers of power had been more courteous. Now, a little more than a year later and with Netanyahu set to return to the premiership, a new detail has emerged from that handover. Channel 12 news on Friday published a photo of a note that was left for Bennett...

The Colorado race for U.S. Senate comes down to six points in the final stretch of the race, with Democrat incumbent Sen. Michael Bennet under 50 percent in the latest Trafalgar Group poll. The poll, conducted from September 20 to 24, showed that Bennet has under 50 percent of the vote with only 48.6 percent. Joe O’Dea, the Republican nominee, running against Bennet, garnered 42.6 percent of the vote.

If there’s a candidate for elected office more honest, ethical, and authentic than Joe O’Dea, we’d be surprised.Indeed, national journalists have called O’Dea one of the best candidates anywhere in the country. O’Dea’s an American success story, who is a rare blend of candor, decency and strength.The campaign by [Democrats] to smear the good name of Joe O’Dea — an honest man trying to do good for a country that badly needs balanced leadership — is misleading and wrong. ... Even traditional mainstream media at the New York Times, the Washington Post and NBC News have loudly condemned the smear...