JC Israel Briefing Day 565: Egypt replaces Qatar as ceasefire mediator after US-Israeli pressure

His family responded: “He’s begging us to save him.” Terrorist hostage videos are known to be scripted and are interpreted as tools of psychological warfare.

Then, this morning, people across the Haifa area were woken at 4 am as a ballistic missile fired from Yemen triggered air defence activation across northern Israel. The IDF said the missile was “probably intercepted successfully”. Magen David Adom reported no injuries from impact but said several people were treated after being hurt while rushing to shelters.

Elsewhere, US President Donald Trump said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are “on the same side of every issue” after a phone call covering Iran, trade and other topics. Trump said that the conversation went “very well.” The call was the first since Trump informed Netanyahu about Washington’s plan to enter nuclear talks with Iran.

But hostage families have urged Netanyahu to cancel upcoming Independence Day events, saying public celebrations are unacceptable while 59 abducted Israelis remain in Gaza. Relatives called for national restraint at a press conference yesterday.

“There is no independence when 59 of us are in Gaza,” said Lishi Miran-Levi, wife of hostage Omri Miran. Naomi Baruch, whose son Uriel is held hostage, said: “On Memorial Day I don’t know if to cry for Uriel or wait for him… I light a candle and don’t know if it’s a memorial candle or a candle of hope.” Families urged municipalities and private groups to scale back festivities.

On the topic of the war in Gaza, Israel has destroyed 40 Hamas bulldozers used to breach the border on October 7 and later deployed by the group for tunnelling, bomb-laying and weapons recovery. The IDF described the engineering vehicles as a “major component” of Hamas operations and said they were used repeatedly throughout the war.

And, in hostage negotiations, Egypt has reportedly replaced Qatar as lead mediator after pressure from Israel and the Trump administration. Concerns had been raised about Qatar’s leverage over Hamas. A working-level Israeli delegation travelled to Cairo on Monday.

In Lebanon, Israel has killed a Hezbollah commander and a Hamas-linked operative accused of planning attacks on Israel. The IDF said the Hezbollah figure, responsible for forces in Majdal Zoun, was killed in al-Haniyya.

Footage showed a strike on a car followed by a second blast as the target fled. In a separate strike, Hussein Izzat Mohammad Atwi, a member of Al-Jama’a al-Islamiyya and associate of Hamas, was killed near Beirut. Atwi directed terror cells, coordinated cross-border infiltrations and took part in plots against Israeli targets abroad, according to the IDF.

Meanwhile, a Palestinian man reportedly died yesterday after settlers set fire to his home in Sinjil and soldiers allegedly beat him during the attack.

According to media reports citing A’id Rarabi, his cousin, Wael Rarabi, 47, suffered chest pains after being struck by soldiers and exposed to tear gas and smoke. He collapsed and was declared dead at Ramallah Hospital.

In other news, Israel’s Foreign Ministry deleted condolence messages for Pope Francis from official diplomatic accounts yesterday, triggering internal backlash. According to Ynet, the ministry ordered missions worldwide to remove posts and avoid signing condolence books, without explanation.

Diplomats reportedly fumed in WhatsApp groups. “We deleted a simple, innocent tweet… clearly because of the pope’s criticism of Israel over the war in Gaza,” one wrote, according to Ynet. Another argued: “It looks bad. Very bad.” The ministry later said the tweet was posted “by mistake.”

Finally, the High Court has frozen the government’s attempt to fire Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar. Bar has accused Prime Minister Netanyahu of demanding personal loyalty and misusing the agency for political aims.

In a sworn affidavit, Bar said he was told to follow Netanyahu’s orders over the court’s in any potential constitutional crisis and was asked to act against protestors. He claimed his removal was triggered by probes into Netanyahu’s aides.

Channel 13 has reported that candidates interviewed for Bar’s replacement were questioned about their loyalty to the Prime Minister. The PM’s Office called the report “total fake news, and cheap gossip.” In related news, the feud between right-wing politicians and Bar has escalated, with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich walking out of a cabinet meeting yesterday rather than listen to Bar speak.

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