Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2026-06-28 at 11:02

HEADLINES
Israel expands Lebanon security zone civilians flee
Saudi Aramco helicopter crash leaves 14 dead
Umm el-Fahm schools shut over Sukkot visit

The time is now 11:01 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

In Regional Impacts, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared on Saturday in front of a large map of Lebanon showing a new security zone that Israel has vowed to hold onto in Lebanon. How long Israel will stay, and what exactly will happen in the zone remains to be seen. So far, Israel has forced most of the civilians to evacuate the area, and has razed some of the villages within it. This policy borrows from Gaza, made possible by an international community that feels this new policy is acceptable; and by US support for it. The new security zone looks a lot like the old one from the era of the 1980s and 1990s. There are some key differences. In the old days Israel had a local partner force called the South Lebanon Army. This group was able to work with the local population and also help fight Hezbollah and other threats. In those days Israeli soldiers were used to working among an Arab population. They had done it in Gaza and the West Bank. Today things have changed. Israel prefers to have zero civilians among or near IDF soldiers. This is partly a result of a lot of the changes since the Second Intifada. While there are elements of Israel’s security forces that speak Arabic and work with A...

Separately, a helicopter belonging to Saudi Aramco crashed on Sunday in Ras Tanura on Saudi Arabia's eastern coast west of the Strait of Hormuz, killing 14 nationals, the state news agency reported, adding that the cause was unknown. Investigations are under way, with the participation of relevant authorities, to determine the causes of the helicopter crash. Ras Tanura hosts the largest refinery in the Middle East, and it is operated by Saudi Aramco. This is a developing story.

In the Conflict with Iran and its Regional Proxies, not all wars end with surrender ceremonies, victory parades, or the signing of famous treaties. Sometimes they simply endure, fading into the background until people forget. That has been the story of Israel and Lebanon. For almost eight decades, Israelis have lived with the knowledge that their northern border has always been a front line. Generations grew up hearing about Katyusha rockets, the security zone in southern Lebanon, Hezbollah attacks, and shelters in Kiryat Shmona. Lebanon, meanwhile, endured invasions, occupation, civil war, and the rise of one of the world's most heavily armed terrorist organizations. Yet beneath all of that lies a legal reality that is often overlooked: Israel and Lebanon have technically remained in a state of war since May 1948.

In Israeli Domestic Politics, Umm el-Fahm schools close in protest of MK Zvi Sukkot visit. All educational institutions in the Arab city of Umm el-Fahm held a strike on Sunday in protest against MK Zvi Sukkot (Religious Zionist Party)'s visit. Sukkot's visit aimed at examining the educational programs, as part of his role chairing the Knesset Education Committee. Locals defined it as a clear and unacceptable provocation, and claimed that it was an attempt to exploit educational institutions for election propaganda and personal politics. Sukkot claims that declared terrorist organizations are entering to lecture in schools in the city. Sukkot held an Israeli flag in one hand and a poster of Raed Salah, the former mayor of Umm el-Fahm and leader of the banned northern branch of the Islamic Movement, in the other. Sukkot said he wanted to deliver a message to the city's residents, saying “I am not your enemy. I am the chairman of the Knesset Education Committee and I came to inspect the education system.” There is no Israeli flag on the main building as required by law, only three schools allow the Israel Police to enter citizenship classes and admit people like Raed Salah. If they continue, then we will make sure that not a single shekel of state money enters the s...

Want to predict how an Israeli will vote? Look at their religiosity, survey says. Israel’s political divide correlates strongly with the country’s Jewish religious spectrum, a new study of the 2022 election found, showing that the more religious voters were, the likelier they were to vote for the current right-wing coalition, and vice versa. The study by the Israel Democracy Institute, published Sunday, comes a few months before Israelis are due to head to the ballot box again. Polls show a competitive race between the ruling bloc of right-wing and religious parties that support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the largely centrist, left-wing and secularist parties that hope to unseat him. In the 2022 election, coalition parties won 64 out of the Knesset’s 120 seats, while opposition parties won 56. Netanyahu’s Likud party won 32 seats, the most of any party, while the opposition centrist Yesh Atid won 24. The survey found that Haredi voters were the most likely to support coalition parties, while secular voters were most likely to support the opposition. Eighty percent of the coalition parties’ voters were Haredi, religious Zionist or traditional Jews, while 73.5% of the opposition’s voters were secular. Likud, which has roots as a right-wing secular...

In Uplifting News, Israel, Jewish Federations launch NIS 200 million plan to strengthen Diaspora Jewish education. The plan is a direct continuation of Project Aleph Bet, also launched by Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Minister Amichai Chikli in partnership with the Jewish Federations of North America. The Israeli government unanimously approved Sunday a NIS 200 million national initiative to strengthen Jewish education in Diaspora communities, in partnership with the Jewish Federations of North America. The plan, proposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Minister Amichai Chikli, will be led by the Prime Minister’s Office together with Chikli’s ministry and key partners in Jewish communities worldwide, with JFNA playing a central role in advancing the initiative. Gary Torgow, chair of JFNA’s Board of Trustees, and Eric Fingerhut, president and CEO of JFNA, were invited to attend the cabinet meeting at which the proposal was approved. Both welcomed the decision and the partnership between the Government of Israel and Jewish Federations on what officials described as a strategic initiative for the future of the Jewish people. The initiative will focus especially on North America, where the government said approximately 1.8 million Jewish school-age children live in the United States, while only a small percentage attend Jewish educational institutions. According to the joint statement from the Prime Minister’s Office and the Di...

Thank you for tuning in to this Israel Today: Ongoing War Report update.
I'm Noa Levi. Stay safe and informed.
Keep in mind that this AI-generated report may contain occasional inaccuracies, so consult multiple sources for a comprehensive view. Find the code and more details in the podcast description.

SOURCES
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-900731
https://www.jpost.com/international/article-900721
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-900727
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-900716
https://www.timesofisrael.com/want-to-predict-how-an-israeli-will-vote-look-at-their-religiosity-survey-says/
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-900720