Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2026-07-05 at 18:01

HEADLINES
- Hamas Bribes Drive Gaza Evacuations
- Edelstein and Lapid Unite on Israel's Future
- West Bank Hotels Get 27 Million NIS

The time is now 6:01 PM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

In the Conflict with Iran and its Regional Proxies, Hamas officials have been taking bribes to put healthy Gazans on emergency medical evacuation lists, The Telegraph reported on Thursday. The Telegraph cited unproven testimonies from Gazans with ill or injured family members, saying Hamas is taking bribes from healthy individuals to get on the medical evacuation list. Gazans with family members on the list claim the bribes are corrupting the system through which people leave the strip to receive medical treatment overseas. The report alleged that some Gazans who are healthy have obtained forged medical documents claiming they are severely injured or ill in order to be evacuated from Gaza. In some testimonies, families with genuinely sick relatives said their loved ones were moved up in the queue after their relatives bribed Hamas officials. Notably, health authorities in Gaza are run by Hamas, meaning the organization making the list for medical evacuation is inherently biased and corrupt. Additionally, in the early days of the Israel-Hamas War, reports emerged that Gazans bribed Hamas and guards at the Egyptian border to escape Gaza.

In Israeli Domestic Politics, Channel 12’s Meet the Press interviews with MK Yuli Edelstein and Yair Lapid show convergence on core national issues. Edelstein, who spent decades in Likud before leaving to pursue a new political path, and Lapid, long seen as a rival of Prime Minister Netanyahu, were highlighted not for disagreement but for common ground. Both argued that October 7 fundamentally changed the country’s political priorities. Both repeatedly returned to the issue of haredi conscription, and both acknowledged that Israeli society has shifted significantly to the Right. Both spoke about the need for broader Zionist policy to unite the country.

In the Israeli Economy and Business, the government approved about 27 million NIS to develop and construct hotels in the West Bank to promote tourism. The plan aims to transform the West Bank from a day-trip destination into a place for overnight stays and to boost the local economy by expanding tourism. The Tourism Ministry says a lack of planning reserves for hotels is a major obstacle to developing the industry. As part of the decision, the ministry will promote statutory planning for hotel development and take steps to enable realization of development rights and the marketing of land plots, based on a mapping study the ministry will conduct. The government will allocate 7 million NIS from the Tourism Ministry’s ongoing budget to be distributed equally between 2026 and 2030. An additional 20 million NIS from the ministry’s development budget has been approved for grants to support the establishment, conversion, and development of hotel projects.

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-901517
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and-diplomacy/article-901511
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and-diplomacy/article-901516