IAF activity causes booms in central Israel, Katz announces sanctions on terrorists

Freed hostage Or Levy adopted a mantra he learned in captivity from slain hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Hersh's parents said at the UIA NSW Stars of David Gala on Sunday night.

"Or told us that the mantra saved him," Hersh's father, John Polin, told the audience at the Gala.

The saying that helped Hersh while he was in captivity and then helped Or was a "slight mistranslation of Viktor Frankl and Nietzsche - if you have the why, you'll find the how," Polin told the audience.

The IDF is investigating the sounds of explosions which were heard earlier on Tuesday in central Israel, the military said. 

The IDF added that the explosions that were heard were due to routine activity carried out by the Israel Air Force.  

There was no concern for a security incident, the military added. 

Hearing discourse on the price of the hostage deal while in Gaza captivity was difficult, but it also granted hope, released hostage Agam Berger told Israel's public broadcaster KAN on Tuesday. 

"It's not anyone's fault that they were kidnapped; people need to know that they are fighting for us," she stated. "It's like saying that our lives aren't worth enough," Berger, who was kidnapped from the Nahal Oz base on October 7, noted. 

"On the other hand, we heard people say that Israel was able to pay the price of the deal, and it gave us strength."

Eyal Ofer, an expert on Hamas and Gazan economics, explained the rationale behind why Hamas may cease the hostage release ceremonies—and why, in his view, Israel is missing the bigger picture in an interview with 103FM on Tuesday. 

A surprising statement from a Hamas spokesperson suggests the group may change its approach to what Israel has called "shows of force" celebrating the release of hostages in Gaza.

After repeated delays in prisoner exchanges due to Hamas violations, the group has expressed willingness to forgo these public ceremonies—apparently to help advance the ongoing deal. 

Three soldiers who survived the Nova Music Festival attack had never met—until they were called up to serve in the same reserve battalion, the IDF shared on Monday.

Lt.-Col. (res.) Naomi, Lt.-Col. (res.) Shani, and Capt. (res.) Nastya each served in different units during their original military service. After October 7, all three were called up to the 926th Reserve Battalion, where they soon discovered their shared stories of survival at the Nova Festival.

"I never once considered not being there for my soldiers. From the first moment, I knew I would stand up and fight," said Nastya, a platoon commander. "They are my family, my driving force, and I have a responsibility to them."

Defense Minister Israel Katz imposed sanctions on Tuesday on security prisoners and their families who are citizens and residents of Israel and receive funding from the Palestinian Authority (PA).

According to the ministry's statement, following the sanctions, security forces raided the homes of those subjected to the order, confiscating cash and assets amounting to hundreds of thousands of shekels. 

The terror funds that were ordered to be liquidated were paid by the PA to terrorists who are currently serving sentences in Israeli prisons and released prisoners and their families for terror activities they committed, the ministry said.

Drone intrusion alerts sounded in several communities in the southern Golan Heights, starting at 8:39 a.m. local time on Tuesday.

This is a developing story. 

Brigade 474 of Division 210 has carried out dozens of short attacks deeper into Syria beyond the Israeli buffer zone within southern Syria, the IDF said on Monday.

In addition, the army released footage from one of its attacks over the last week in which paratroopers seized guns, ammunition, and other military equipment that the old Syrian army left behind.

Lt.-Col. “H.” said the IDF located the weapons inside a nearby house, and that in other operations, his unit had located missiles, improvised explosives, armored personnel carriers, and even tanks.

The IDF is set to release a series of probes into its role surrounding the October 7 massacre.

One of the probes will examine the intelligence and decisions specific to the evening before the invasion, as well as regarding the orders given in light of the evolving threat situation.

IDF's intel unit flagged unusual activity hours before attacks began

At some point overnight between October 6 and October 7, the Shin Bet and IDF Unit 8200 flagged a large number of Israeli cell phone SIM cards being activated in Gaza.

Since such cards could only be used if those Gazans with them entered Israel, this immediately raised suspicions.

A senior Hamas official admitted in an interview with The New York Times on Monday that if he had known the destruction that would be brought on to Gaza because of the October 7 attacks, he would have never agreed to it.