Overview

• MK Gilad Kariv sent an urgent letter to Prime Minister Netanyahu on August 13 warning that Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich unilaterally halted siltukin transfers since May, withholding more than one billion shekels from the Palestinian Authority.
• Kariv cautioned that the fund freeze was imposed without cabinet or security-system consultation and risked undermining Palestinian governance while strengthening terrorist groups in the West Bank.
• Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett accused Prime Minister Netanyahu and his allies of orchestrating a campaign of public humiliation and leaks against IDF Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Eyal Zamir over his mass conscription orders for tens of thousands of Haredi youths.
• Critics warn that the political attacks on military leadership over Haredi draft enforcement could strain civil-military relations and hinder efforts to integrate the ultra-Orthodox community into national service.
• The Police Investigations Department filed a criminal indictment on August 14 against former David Region commander Avi Cohen for breach of trust and obstruction of justice related to a romantic relationship with a subordinate he recruited.