Netanyahu has ‘no interest in long-term Gaza occupation,’ Gottheimer says
(JNS) — The Israeli prime minister does not want Israel to govern Gaza permanently, Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) told JNS, amid reports that Benjamin Netanyahu is considering a wider military operation in the Hamas-controlled coastal enclave.
Gottheimer, who was part of a bipartisan congressional delegation to the Jewish state that met with Netanyahu on Wednesday, said that Israel is focused on defeating the terror group.
“We talked about it as the ultimate goal of ensuring that we crush Hamas, and we can’t have leadership and governance,” Gottheimer told JNS. “He was very clear to say that there was no interest in a long-term occupation and that you have to have some sort of multinational governance structure ultimately.”
Israeli researchers grow first long-term human kidney in lab
(JNS) — In a world first, Israeli researchers have grown human kidney organoids — a synthetic 3D organ culture — from tissue stem cells in the laboratory mirroring human fetal kidney development, Tel Aviv University announced on Wednesday.
The breakthrough allowing researchers to see the development of the organ in real time, isolate genes that lead to birth defects, develop new treatments in the field of regenerative medicine, and test the toxicity of drugs during pregnancy on fetal kidneys.
The synthetic kidney grew and developed over six months, surpassing previous kidney organoids that broke down within four weeks, researchers said.
It is also the purest kidney organoid ever developed, with no cross contamination from stem cell development.
The research was carried out with Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer in Ramat Gan.
IDF demolishes Hebron home of Jaffa shooting plotter
(JNS) — Israeli forces demolished the Hebron home of Abd al-Rahim Himouni overnight Wednesday.
Himouni assisted in the Oct. 1, 2024, terrorist attack at the Tel Aviv Light Rail’s Erlich Station on Jerusalem Boulevard in Jaffa, in which four Israeli and three foreign civilians — one each from Georgia, Greece and Moldova — were killed and 14 civilians and an IDF soldier were wounded.
Judea Brigade forces and combat engineers from the elite Yahalom Unit participated in the Hebron operation.
Himouni belonged to a Hamas cell that orchestrated the deadly shooting. According to an indictment filed last year, Himouni and another accomplice were not present during the attack itself because they lacked firearms, while two other members of the cell carried out the assault.
The IDF in March destroyed the Hebron homes of the two terrorists who perpetrated the shooting in Jaffa — Ahmed Himoni and Muhammad Masak.
Murdered in the attack were Revital Bronstein, Shachar Goldman, Victor Samson Green, Jonas Krosis, Ilya Nozadze, Inbar Segev-Weigder and Nadia Sokolenco.
IDF strikes Hezbollah sites in Southern Lebanon
(JNS) — The Israel Defense Forces struck Hezbollah targets in Southern Lebanon on Wednesday night, hitting weapons storage facilities, a missile launcher and engineering equipment used to rebuild terrorist infrastructure, the military said.
The IDF accused Hezbollah of continuing efforts to reestablish terror capabilities across Lebanon while using civilians as human shields.
“The presence of weapons and Hezbollah activity in the area constitutes a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon,” the military stated, adding that it “will continue to operate to protect the State of Israel.”
The strikes were the latest in a series of Israeli military operations targeting the Lebanese terror group in recent days.
Israeli Cabinet to vote on plans for expansion of Hamas war
(JNS) — Israel’s Security Cabinet was slated to meet Thursday night to decide on the continuation of the war on Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip, with one option being a full-fledged occupation of the enclave.
The ministers were set to gather at 6 p.m. at the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem for the pivotal meeting and a subsequent vote. The session is scheduled to last until 11 p.m. but expected to last longer.
A senior official told Ynet on Wednesday afternoon that while the Cabinet was expected to support the proposal to occupy Gaza to defeat Hamas, “things can always change in the Middle East.”
Senior government officials told the outlet that any proposal brought to the Cabinet by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would win a majority.
Ahead of the vote, Netanyahu on Thursday afternoon met with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has come out in support of occupation, as well as reestablishing Israeli communities throughout Gaza.
