Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2026-07-21 at 02:02

HEADLINES
Iran moves nuclear centrifuges into Pickaxe Mountain
ASEAN to issue statement amid US-Iran tensions
Cyprus corruption video aimed to harm state

The time is now 2:01 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

In Iranian Retaliation, Iran moved thousands of uranium enrichment centrifuges to underground facilities deep inside Natanz's Pickaxe Mountain last fall, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing Israeli and US officials. The transfer followed the 12-day war in June 2025, during which American and Israeli strikes pummeled three of Iran’s main nuclear sites in an operation the United States called Midnight Hammer. US and Israeli officials said moving sensitive equipment into the mountain raises concerns that Tehran intends to sustain uranium enrichment even in the face of a major military attack. Pickaxe Mountain lies south of the Natanz complex, which hosts two enrichment plants that were bombed in June 2025. Satellite imagery indicates the tunnel facility has been carved more than 100 meters below bedrock, making it deeper and more fortified than other sites; the tunnel facility was not targeted in the wars, according to ISIS. Separately, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has claimed it destroyed a radar system and an F-15 at a US base in Jordan, though the report offers no independent verification.

In Regional Impacts, ASEAN's top diplomats meet, to issue statement amid 'grave concern' over US-Iran conflict, ASEAN foreign ministers will issue a statement on the Middle East crisis after expressing grave concern about the evolving situation, the Philippines' top diplomat said after chairing a closed-door meeting in Manila with its ASEAN counterparts. The gathering comes as tensions between the United States and Iran threaten to cast a shadow over a regional meeting in Southeast Asia this week, injecting uncertainty into a region grappling with maritime tensions with China and a faltering effort to end Myanmar's civil war. Foreign ministers from the 11-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and major partners will gather in Manila against the backdrop of instability beyond the region since the United States and Iran resumed open conflict, raising concerns about energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz, inflation, and global growth. "We're looking at several occasions where they can raise this very, very critical topic," said Dominic Xavier Imperial, a spokesperson for the Philippines, the meeting host.

In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, Sydney's synagogue leaders give evidence on antisemitism to Royal Commission following Bondi attack, synagogue and Jewish school leaders told the Royal Commission about antisemitism and social cohesion, voicing concerns about the future of Australia's Jewish population in the wake of the Bondi terrorist attack on a Chabad Hanukkah event that left 15 dead and about 40 injured. Rabbi Wolff, the rabbi of Sydney's Central Synagogue in Bondi Junction, told the committee that Australia requires three complementary pillars: security, legislation, and education, with education addressing how Jews live, not only how Jews died. Dr. George Foster, a member of the South Sydney Synagogue, said Australia is not becoming Germany and noted that institutions are protecting it, but warned of disturbing parallels in the social atmosphere and warning signs that Holocaust survivors and the Jewish community recognize when patterns are left unchallenged.

In Israeli Economy and Business, Investigators find Israeli company's expose on Cyprus corruption may have been intentional attack, a secretly shot video released on January 8 showing a Cypriot official, a former energy minister, and a businessman talking with people posing as investors may have been part of an effort to harm the Cypriot state, an independent investigator said. Charalambos Charalambous, a senior aide to Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides, resigned after the video’s release. Black Cube, a private intelligence firm founded by former Israeli intelligence personnel, said it was involved in producing the video but did not identify its client. Andreas Paschalides, who is leading an independent investigation, said the video appears to be a hybrid attack to harm the Cypriot state, while the Cypriot inquiry noted that statements in the video cannot yet be taken as proof of wrongdoing and dismissed some claims.

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/iran-news/article-903128
https://t.me/newssil/207146
https://www.jpost.com/international/article-903135
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-903129
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-903134