The IDF and Shin Bet announced Thursday that they successfully struck a key Hamas command and control center in Jabalia—eliminating multiple high-ranking terrorists, including individuals directly involved in the October 7 massacre. The strike, carried out on Wednesday, targeted a central hub used by Hamas both for strategic coordination and as a gathering place for senior operatives. Among those killed was Shadi Diab Abd Al-Hamid Falouji, a terrorist from Hamas’ East Jabalia Battalion who infiltrated Israeli territory and took part in the brutal attacks of October 7.

A dramatic shake-up has rocked President Donald Trump’s National Security Council, with multiple senior officials abruptly fired just one day after far-right conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer made a high-profile visit to the Oval Office, Axios reports. The surprise purge, described by one U.S. official as a “bloodbath,” has cast a fresh spotlight on internal divisions within Trump’s second-term orbit and raised alarms over the growing influence of fringe voices in shaping national security policy. According to two sources familiar with the situation, several NSC members—including senior directors—were dismissed in rapid succession on Thursday.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich will try to negotiate with the Trump administration in the coming days to reduce the 17% tariff on Israeli exports to the US, Israel’s largest trading partner. The US decision shocked Israeli officials and caused the Israeli stock market to dip, with the Tel Aviv 35 index dropping 0.16%, the TA-125 falling 0.20% and the Tel Aviv Banks index decreasing by 0.1%. Trump announced reciprocal tariffs on 60 countries, including Israel, of half the rates they impose on US goods. Israeli financial officials are very concerned about the decision’s impact on Israel’s economy. Ynet quoted Dr. Ron Tomer, president of the Manufacturers Association of Israel, as saying he is seriously concerned about the decision.

Hamas has made a decision not to respond to Israel’s counterproposal for a ceasefire/hostage release deal, an official told Reuters on Wednesday. According to the official, the terror group is “committed” to the mediators’ plan instead. Israel had submitted a counterproposal last week to a new Egyptian proposal for a hostage release/ceasefire deal that would see Hamas releasing US-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander along with four other hostages [not all alive] in exchange for a 50-day ceasefire and the start of negotiations on a long-term ceasefire; the opening of Gazan crossings to allow the entry of humanitarian aid; and the re-opening of the Netzarim Corridor. Israel would also release 2,000 Palestinians detained after the October 7 attack and 250 terrorists for each released hostage.

Avigdor Lieberman, head of the Yisrael Beytenu party and longtime antagonist of lomdei torah, has openly called on police to prosecute the gedolim for allegedly “encouraging draft evasion.” His accusations, laced with contempt, were directed at none other than the Rosh Yeshiva of Slabodka and leader of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah, Hagaon HaRav Dov Landau shlit”a, as well as the former Rishon LeTzion, Harav Yitzchak Yosef shlit”a. Lieberman, no stranger to anti-chareidi rhetoric, claimed that Rav Landau had “ordered bochurim not to report to recruitment offices,” and that Rav Yosef had made remarks about discarding draft notices.

President Donald Trump announced reciprocal tariffs during a highly anticipated “Make America Wealthy Again” event which he said will restore the American dream and bolster jobs for U.S. workers. “American steel workers, auto workers, farmers and skilled craftsmen,” Trump said from the White House Rose Garden Wednesday afternoon. “We have a lot of them here with us today. They really suffered, gravely. They watched in anguish as foreign leaders have stolen our jobs, foreign cheaters have ransacked our factories, and foreign scavengers have torn apart our once beautiful American dream. We had an American dream that you don’t hear so much about. You did four years ago, and you are now.

The White House is seriously considering Iran’s proposal for indirect nuclear negotiations, even as U.S. military forces surge into the Middle East, preparing for the possibility of military strikes ordered by President Donald Trump, according to a report by Axios. The high-stakes balancing act follows a letter sent from Trump to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in which Trump reportedly delivered an ultimatum: two months to secure a new nuclear deal—or face potential consequences. Iran rejected direct talks but left the door open for indirect negotiations, to be brokered by the Gulf nation of Oman, a longtime quiet mediator between Washington and Tehran. “Iran has responded—but not on U.S. terms,” a senior U.S.

The Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee held another discussion on the draft conscription law on Wednesday. Lt. Col. Avigdor Dikstein, the head of the Chareidi sector in the Manpower Directorate of the IDF, presented updated data on the recruitment of Chareidim to the committee, saying that of 10,000 draft orders sent since July 2024, only 205 Chareidim enlisted. He added that a total of 1721 Chareidim are serving as soldiers since the beginning of last year’s recruitment cycle. There is approximately 66,000 bnei yeshivos who are currently eligible for IDF service but have not enlisted. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

U.S. District Judge Dale E. Ho dismissed the federal corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams on April 1, 2025, siding with the Trump administration’s Justice Department in a decision that has roiled the city’s political landscape. The ruling ends a months-long legal saga that saw Adams indicted on bribery and fraud charges, only for the case to unravel amid allegations of political interference and prosecutorial upheaval. The dismissal came after the Justice Department, under Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, moved in February to drop the five-count indictment, which accused Adams of accepting over $125,000 in illicit campaign funds and luxury perks from Turkish nationals aiming to sway his influence.

The Honenu legal aid organization expressed outrage at the Supreme Court’s decision this week to reduce the sentences of two Palestinians convicted of participating in a violent lynching of a Jewish family that mistakenly entered an Arab village in northern Israel during Operation Guardian of the Walls in 2021. One of the terrorists was originally sentenced to seven years in prison, and the Supreme Court reduced his sentence to three years and four months. The sentence of another terrorist, which was initially four years in prison, was shortened to two years and nine months. According to the indictment, the Jewish family got lost and mistakenly entered the village, where they were brutally attacked by a mob of dozens of Arabs who threw stones at their vehicle.