Free Republic

International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan suddenly canceled a planned fact-finding mission to Israel the same day he announced that he is seeking arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Reuters reported. Eight sources with direct knowledge of the proceedings that occurred confirmed the cancelation of the planned visit to Reuters. Khan had been planning his visit for months in order to gather evidence for a potential war crimes investigation against Israel and Hamas in the war that began with the massacre committed by Hamas on October 7, 2023. Khan announced that he...

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says Israel is working on finding a replacement for Hamas’s rule in the Gaza Strip, vowing that the war will not end until the terror group is dismantled of both its military and governmental capabilities. “In any process of ending the war, we will not accept the rule of Hamas. We are advancing an alternative government to Hamas, within the framework of which we will isolate areas, remove the Hamas members and bring in other forces that will enable a different government,” Gallant says following an assessment at the Southern Command in Beersheba. "On one hand,...

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Wednesday held an operational situation assessment and visited several command and control centers in the IDF’s Northern Command, together with Head of the Command, Maj. Gen. Uri Gordin. Upon completing the visit, Minister Gallant referred to Hezbollah Leader Hassan Nasrallah’s recent speech in which he claims that, “Israel’s Minister of Defense is inflating the numbers.” Minister Gallant presented a series of images of Hezbollah brigade commanders and emphasized that the IDF has eliminated over 300 terrorists and commanders in the terrorist organization. He explained, "I have just completed a situation assessment and tour of...

The IDF on Thursday attacked a key Hezbollah-Iranian airstrip in Kilat Jaber, Lebanon, that was used for launching aerial attacks against Israel, in a major escalation between the sides. Last September, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant revealed pictures showing the joint Hezbollah-Iranian terrorist air base in southern Lebanon, about 20 kilometers from the Israeli border. Gallant said at the time that at the airport, one can see Iran’s flag flying on the runways from which the ayatollahs’ regime is using to plot against Israel.

Fifty years after the Yom Kippur War began, Israel is at war again, and preparations are being made right now for an absolutely massive ground invasion of Gaza. According to Google, the Yom Kippur War started on October 6th, 1973. The war with Hamas started on October 7th, 2023, and it could quickly evolve into a major regional war as more parties get involved. Once Israeli troops pour into Gaza, the dominoes will start falling very quickly. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be the one that makes the final decision on a ground invasion of Gaza, and he very...

Lloyd Austin "urged Minister Gallant to address extremist settler violence against Palestinian civilians,' says Pentagon US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin urged Israeli authorities to curtail settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. During his telephone call with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Austin 'urged Minister Gallant to address extremist settler violence against Palestinian civilians and continue the Israeli Ministry of Defense's effort to improve economic opportunities for Palestinians in the West Bank," the Defense Department said in a statement. Austin also 'called for Palestinian leaders to condemn terrorism and take active steps to prevent violence," and further emphasized...

cautions premier may no longer be thinking rationally. Former military intelligence chief Maj. Gen. (res.) Tamir Hayman says he no longer trusts Benjamin Netanyahu's judgement on matters of security after the prime minister's attempt to fire Yoav Gallant as defense minister, and that some of the damage to Israel's economy and social cohesion, and its ties with the US, inflicted by the government's currently suspended push to overhaul the judiciary may be irreversible. In an interview (Hebrew link) with the Times of Israel's sister site Zman Israel, Hayman said he didn't have a rational explanation for Netanyahu's recent behavior...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, exactly a day after Gallant called for a stop to radical [sic] reforms to the judiciary that have divided the country and that the defense minister said posed security risks to Israel.The dramatic move could accelerate a crisis that Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, who has also called for a stop to the legislation, has said could culminate in a bloody civil war. It could also further fray ties with the United States, where Gallant has been steering coordination on defense cooperation with his U.S. counterpart, Lloyd Austin...In a surprise...

While his critics among liberals and NeverTrump purported conservatives double down on their hatred of President Trump, Israel recognizes what a great friend and historic change-maker it has in the 45th president. Gil Hoffman of the Jerusalem Post reports: Construction Minister Yoav Gallant has instructed the top officials in his ministry to begin the process of planning and approving a new quarter for embassies from countries around the world that will be built in Jerusalem, he revealed on Thursday in an interview from New York, where he will be speaking at Sunday's Jerusalem Post Conference. Even before the progress made this week toward...