Episode Details

HEADLINES
Iranian-linked outreach probes Israeli journalists
Lebanese Army finds second Hezbollah tunnel
Knesset backs budget split amid Haredi demands

The time is now 7:01 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, a pair of developments shapes the regional picture. A Hebrew-language report outlines two separate cases involving journalists and suspected contact with Iranian-linked actors. One independent journalist says he was approached about photographing locations via Telegram about a year and a half ago, with a second approach several months later; he says he reported the attempts to the Cyber Authority, refused to photograph, and asked for intervention, noting there were additional outreach attempts, including one framed as helping the public, that he viewed as potentially missionary in nature. He adds that to probe the demands he carried out a few actions that were not forbidden. Separately, an Orthodox Jewish media figure is suspected of contact with Iranian actors a few days after he proactively reached out to the police cyber unit, alleging messages from unidentified correspondents. Security authorities decided to arrest him, and he was questioned by Shin Bet and the Jerusalem Police, while his attorney says the charges fall on a journalist of clean hands. On the broader security front, US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper praised the Lebanese Armed Forces for locating a Hezbollah tunnel, describing the discovery as the second such find in two months and saying that dismantling tunnels used by non-state actors to store missiles and attack drones promotes peace and stability in Lebanon and across the region. The remarks followed a meeting in Washington between the LAF chief and US officials, with Cooper noting the role of the US-led Mechanism in supporting commitments between Israel and Lebanon. Senator Lindsey Graham commented on the Lebanon context, noting differences over Hezbollah’s designation, as Haykal’s position on that issue was discussed during the talks.

In Israeli Domestic Politics, steps toward budget approval and reform were advanced with cross-party backing. The Knesset approved a decision by the House Committee to split the economic arrangements law, in a vote of 60 to 56, with the ultra-Orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism voting in favor. The economic plan and the 2026 budget consolidation law will be moved to the relevant Knesset committees ahead of their second and third readings. The parties representing the ultra-Orthodox community conditioned their support on the passage of the military conscription law, currently under discussion in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, as part of the broader package of budgetary and reform measures.

In Uplifting News, a New York retrospective highlights the work of a seminal Jewish countercultures photographer. The Center for Jewish History is presenting Bill Aron: Photographer of Jewish Countercultures, a sweeping exhibit running through June 4 that spans five decades—from the havurah movement’s heyday to the later days of the Jewish Lower East Side. The show centers on Aron’s street photography and his pivotal role in documenting a vibrant, evolving community, drawing on images that helped shape collective memory, including material tied to the era’s diy, community-driven culture and the long arc of Jewish life in New York.

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.

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