Episode Details

HEADLINES
Iran vows retaliation on electrical infrastructure
Ceasefire over as Gulf attacks resume
QIA blocks Iron Dome deal at VW

The time is now 11:01 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

In Iranian Retaliation, the Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, said that any attack on Iranian infrastructure will be met with retaliation and that Israel will not be spared from the response, a stance reported by Iranian state media. His remarks come as US President Donald Trump indicated Washington was weighing strikes on Iranian electrical manufacturing facilities, power plants, and desalination plants if tensions escalate. Zolghadr also denounced Trump as "the world's most hated figure" in remarks cited by Iran International. Separately, Qatari negotiators are in Iran to meet officials to de-escalate tensions and to set the stage for broader talks, coordinated with the United States, with discussions focusing on the implementation of the US-Iran memorandum of understanding and the issues that triggered the latest escalation, including navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

In Regional Impacts, Qatar is in talks with the United States and Iran to de-escalate the crisis as the two sides exchange blows. Iranian armed forces launched attacks on US military infrastructure in Gulf states on Thursday after US strikes on Iran’s southern coastal and eastern provinces, further eroding a three-week-old ceasefire. Iranian media later reported multiple explosions across southern Iran, including Bushehr, where a nuclear plant is located, along with Konarak, Choghadak and Bandar Abbas. Attacks on Qatari and Saudi shipping vessels earlier this week upended the ceasefire, with US President Donald Trump declaring the truce over. A Qatari delegation visited Iran on Friday in what Tasnim described as an effort to strengthen Doha’s mediator role after escalation, following accusations by Qatar over an incident in the Strait of Hormuz and subsequent US attacks on Iranian military and civilian targets. Trump later said the United States had agreed to talks with Iran after Tehran asked to continue negotiations, but he added that the ceasefire between the two nations was over.

In Israeli Economy and Business, the Qatar Investment Authority, Volkswagen’s third-largest shareholder with about 17% of voting rights, blocked a proposed agreement between Volkswagen and Israeli defense company Rafael to manufacture Iron Dome components at Volkswagen’s Osnabrück plant in Germany. German newspaper Bild reported that the QIA veto risks repurposing the struggling plant and could put hundreds of jobs at risk at VW’s German factories. The move reflects tensions between Qatar and Israel and underlines the influence of QIA at Volkswagen’s headquarters in Wolfsburg.

In Uplifting News, Esther Marcus, a Kibbutz Alumim resident and therapist who helped establish resilience centers for survivors after October 7, describes how she and others have carried on amid personal loss. Marcus recounts that her husband, Stevie, died three months after the events, leaving her to balance healing others with coping with her own grief. "Stevie is everywhere, and he’s nowhere, and I find myself looking for him, and he’s not there," she says, as she continues to draw on her professional training to support others while navigating her own bereavement.

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-902123