Person

Itamar Ben-Gvir

1. Follow-up: Netanyahu posts AI image of nuclear blast over Tel Aviv before Tuesday's election, warning of a 'second Holocaust'

   Israel's military said on Sunday, Oct 25, it will close all land crossings in the West Bank during the Oct 27 parliamentary election and bar Palestinian workers from settlements from that day, after two Israeli soldiers were killed in an attack at a checkpoint. On the eve of the vote, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted an AI image of a nuclear bomb exploding over Tel Aviv, warning of a 'second Holocaust' if he is not elected, while billionaire Trump donor Bill Ackman said far-right ministers Ben-Gvir and Smotrich should not be in the next government. Al Jazeera reported that two Israeli air strikes on students and guards at the Islamic University in Gaza City killed 3 people and injured at least 7.

   Oct 26, 2026 Morning
2. Follow-up: EU condemns settler attack on diplomats' convoy; Netanyahu unveils security platform before election

   On Oct 17 Israeli settlers attacked a European diplomats' convoy in the West Bank and assaulted a visiting French mayor. The EU External Action Service on Oct 18 'strongly condemned' the attack, demanded accountability, effective measures against violence toward Palestinians (including during the olive harvest) and journalists, and an end to settlement expansion; the New York Times reported US officials also condemned West Bank attacks. About a week before the Oct 27 election, Netanyahu released his first national security platform in about a decade, favouring pre-emptive strikes and wider buffer zones; the opposition called it 'shallow'. An Israel Public Broadcasting Corporation poll on Oct 18 showed Netanyahu's bloc down two seats versus an opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot. The same day, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir was forced off stage by protesters at a Tel Aviv university event.

   Oct 19, 2026 Afternoon