🕑 Published: August 25, 2026 · 9:57 PM Israel time
📍 KATZ: ISRAEL WILL REMAIN ON HERMON AND IN SYRIA SECURITY ZONE WHILE THREATS PERSIST: Defense Minister Israel Katz visited Israeli troops in southern Syria and said Israel will remain on Mount Hermon and in the security zone as long as jihadist threats persist.
Katz also said Israel had acted against a Turkish attempt to establish itself militarily in Syria in a manner Israel viewed as threatening its security interests, sending another direct message to both Ankara and the government of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
👁️ BATTALION 595 HOLDS RARE FULL-BATTALION GOLAN DRILL: The IDF said Combat Intelligence Collection Battalion 595 brought all of its teams together in the Golan Heights for a rare battalion-level exercise after years in which its specialized teams normally operated separately across the Syrian and Lebanese fronts. Since October 7, the battalion has operated in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria.
The nearly four-day drill began with a simulated infiltration into Israel before expanding into offensive operations deep in enemy territory. Forces deployed intelligence-collection systems, relayed intelligence, directed mortar and artillery fire, moved tens of kilometers carrying their equipment and established concealed observation positions without exposing their locations. Command, intelligence, observation and support elements also practiced sustained operations. The IDF said the exercise demonstrated the battalion’s ability to independently conduct both intelligence-collection and offensive missions.
🛡️ SHA’AR EFRAIM CROSSING SECURITY EXERCISE: The Defense Ministry’s Crossings Authority is hwld a security exercise today at the Sha’ar Efraim Crossing from 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Sounds of gunfire and explosions were expected during the exercise.
🇮🇱 SYRIAN DRUZE LEADER MAKES PRO-ISRAEL DECLARATION: Hikmat al-Hijri, the spiritual leader of Syria’s Druze community, said: “We are an inseparable part of Israel, and we share its beliefs and ideology”.
❗️ SHIN BET DEEPENS ROLE IN SEARCH FOR HAYMANOT KASAU: President Isaac Herzog told the family of missing Haymanot Kasau that the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) is actively assisting police in the investigation and search. The Shin Bet confirmed that, following a recent police request and the required approvals, it is providing operational assistance. Israel Police remains in charge of the investigation, and authorities have not disclosed the nature or scope of the Shin Bet’s involvement.
Haymanot disappeared from the Safed absorption center on February 25, 2024, when she was nine years old. Despite extensive searches involving police and thousands of volunteers, investigators have not publicly identified a substantive lead explaining what happened to her. Her family has long maintained that she was kidnapped and has repeatedly pressed for deeper Shin Bet involvement, but police have not publicly established that a kidnapping occurred.
The Shin Bet had previously been authorized in February 2026 to assist police, making today’s development best understood as a deeper operational role rather than the agency entering the case for the first time. Its involvement also does not establish a terrorism or nationalist motive, and no such motive has been publicly confirmed.
🇮🇱 ISRAELI AID DELEGATION RETURNS FROM COLOMBIA: The Israeli “Brit Re’im” aid delegation, led by the IDF Home Front Command in cooperation with the Defense and Foreign Ministries, returned to Israel early Tuesday after completing its mission in Colombia. The delegation landed at Nevatim Airbase aboard an Israeli Air Force aircraft. Brig. Gen. (res.) Yossi Pinto served as delegation commander.
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