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Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2026-03-20 at 04:02
Published 4 weeks, 2 days ago
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HEADLINES
Raz Cohen Indicted Over Iron Dome Data
Iran Claims IRGC Spokesman Killed Overnight
Likud Gains in Roaring Lion Poll
The time is now 4:01 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.
In Direct Israel-Iran Clashes, a Jerusalem reserve soldier who served in the Iron Dome air defense system was indicted on security offenses for allegedly passing information about Iron Dome activity to Iranian operatives in exchange for payment. Raz Cohen was arrested at the start of the war and questioned by the national security police unit Lahav 433 in a joint investigation with the Shin Bet; his detention was extended several times before the Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office filed the indictment on Friday. The indictment says the reservist maintained contact with Iranian elements and transmitted sensitive details related to Israel’s air defense operations, though prosecutors did not specify the full scope of the information or any sums involved. Separately, Iranian state media reported that Brigadier General Ali Mohammad Naeini, the spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed in an overnight attack, a claim echoed by Iranian television. Iranian sources also described attacks on Tehran’s underground infrastructure with bunker-busting bombs.
In Regional Impacts, Iran’s multilevel blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is examined as an idea with three levels: political, military, and economic. The political part is described as the strongest, while the economic part is considered the weakest. The piece cites history to illustrate how blockades can backfire, referencing Napoleon Bonaparte’s 1806 attempt to blockade Britain and Egypt’s 1967 move to shut the Straits of Tiran in a bid to choke Israel, noting that such tactics have often failed to achieve their aims and can backfire when dependent on global flows of trade.
In the Conflict with Iran and its Regional Proxies, Israel struck Syrian military targets after attacks on Druze civilians, with the army saying it hit Syrian government infrastructure in southern Syria on Thursday night in response. The targets included a command center and weapons in bases controlled by the Syrian regime. Local Druze media reported mortar shelling against internal security forces, and armed groups from the National Guard Druze paramilitary were seen in the Sweida area. The army spokesperson said Israel will not tolerate harm to the Druze population and will continue to defend them. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights office has documented ongoing rights violations in Syria since December 2024, while also noting that the new Syrian authorities have begun to address accountability through the creation of national investigative bodies. In a broader look at the border region, Israel is pushing Hezbollah further north in Lebanon, aiming to create buffer zones and reduce the risk of attacks on border communities. The discussion notes lessons from past conflicts and describes how Israel has pursued narrowing the border area while the fate of a broader clearing effort in southern Lebanon remains tied to ceasefire terms and Lebanese state capacity.
In Israeli Domestic Politics, as Operation Roaring Lion enters its third week, a Maariv poll shows Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party gaining ground at the expense of Otzma Yehudit. Likud rises by one seat to 28, while Otzma Yehudit falls to seven. Gadi Eisenkot’s Yesh Atid is down to eight seats, with Yashar! led by Eisenkot slipping to 11. Former prime minister Naftali Bennett falls by one seat to 21. Yisrael Beytenu rises to 10 seats, and Yesh Atid is up to eight, while the scenario of a Bennett 2026 joined list with Yashar! would win 33 seats, the largest lineup, though Yesh Atid would drop to seven.
In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, Guy Christensen’s “Part-Time” Boycott is examined. Christens
Raz Cohen Indicted Over Iron Dome Data
Iran Claims IRGC Spokesman Killed Overnight
Likud Gains in Roaring Lion Poll
The time is now 4:01 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.
In Direct Israel-Iran Clashes, a Jerusalem reserve soldier who served in the Iron Dome air defense system was indicted on security offenses for allegedly passing information about Iron Dome activity to Iranian operatives in exchange for payment. Raz Cohen was arrested at the start of the war and questioned by the national security police unit Lahav 433 in a joint investigation with the Shin Bet; his detention was extended several times before the Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office filed the indictment on Friday. The indictment says the reservist maintained contact with Iranian elements and transmitted sensitive details related to Israel’s air defense operations, though prosecutors did not specify the full scope of the information or any sums involved. Separately, Iranian state media reported that Brigadier General Ali Mohammad Naeini, the spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed in an overnight attack, a claim echoed by Iranian television. Iranian sources also described attacks on Tehran’s underground infrastructure with bunker-busting bombs.
In Regional Impacts, Iran’s multilevel blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is examined as an idea with three levels: political, military, and economic. The political part is described as the strongest, while the economic part is considered the weakest. The piece cites history to illustrate how blockades can backfire, referencing Napoleon Bonaparte’s 1806 attempt to blockade Britain and Egypt’s 1967 move to shut the Straits of Tiran in a bid to choke Israel, noting that such tactics have often failed to achieve their aims and can backfire when dependent on global flows of trade.
In the Conflict with Iran and its Regional Proxies, Israel struck Syrian military targets after attacks on Druze civilians, with the army saying it hit Syrian government infrastructure in southern Syria on Thursday night in response. The targets included a command center and weapons in bases controlled by the Syrian regime. Local Druze media reported mortar shelling against internal security forces, and armed groups from the National Guard Druze paramilitary were seen in the Sweida area. The army spokesperson said Israel will not tolerate harm to the Druze population and will continue to defend them. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights office has documented ongoing rights violations in Syria since December 2024, while also noting that the new Syrian authorities have begun to address accountability through the creation of national investigative bodies. In a broader look at the border region, Israel is pushing Hezbollah further north in Lebanon, aiming to create buffer zones and reduce the risk of attacks on border communities. The discussion notes lessons from past conflicts and describes how Israel has pursued narrowing the border area while the fate of a broader clearing effort in southern Lebanon remains tied to ceasefire terms and Lebanese state capacity.
In Israeli Domestic Politics, as Operation Roaring Lion enters its third week, a Maariv poll shows Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party gaining ground at the expense of Otzma Yehudit. Likud rises by one seat to 28, while Otzma Yehudit falls to seven. Gadi Eisenkot’s Yesh Atid is down to eight seats, with Yashar! led by Eisenkot slipping to 11. Former prime minister Naftali Bennett falls by one seat to 21. Yisrael Beytenu rises to 10 seats, and Yesh Atid is up to eight, while the scenario of a Bennett 2026 joined list with Yashar! would win 33 seats, the largest lineup, though Yesh Atid would drop to seven.
In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, Guy Christensen’s “Part-Time” Boycott is examined. Christens