This story first appeared as today’s Israel briefing newsletter. You can sign up to receive it daily here.
Israel was due to strike Iran within weeks but the US launched its negotiations with the Islamic Republic to stop the plan, according to a new report from the New York Times. Israel’s planned operation reportedly aimed to turn back the clock on Tehran’s nuclear programme by at least a year. But it needed US support to succeed and defend against retaliation – and the plan apparently fell at this hurdle.
According to NYT, after debate with his team, Trump rejected military action and approved a diplomatic attempt to talk to Iran. Talks started last Saturday in Oman and are scheduled to continue this Saturday, probably in Rome.
Yesterday, Russian President Vladimir Putin told a former hostage yesterday that Hamas – the terror group that held him for almost 500 days and murdered his father, Vitaly – deserves “gratitude” for eventually freeing him. He made the comment to Sasha Troufanov at the Kremlin. Troufanov’s partner, Sapir Cohen, and his mother Yelena, both former hostages themselves, were also in the room.
Putin said: “Everything that happened to you is a great misfortune, but the fact that we managed to secure your release is the result of Russia’s stable, long-standing relations with the Palestinian people, with their representatives, with various organisations. And I believe it is necessary to express gratitude to the leadership of Hamas’s political bureau for responding to our request and carrying out this humanitarian act.”
Russia has not designated Hamas a terrorist organisation, and the Kremlin maintains open communication with its leadership.
On the topic of hostages, haunting scenes of hostage Rom Braslavski were shown in a new video released by Palestinian Islamic Jihad. “Can you get me out of here?” he asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
He also appealed to US President Donald Trump, asking: “Where are you?” He described being held “alongside mice and insects, without food and water”, and said he has not showered for more than two weeks. Terror groups are known to manipulate hostages in videos as part of their psychological warfare.
Braslavski’s mother, Tami, lambasted Netanyahu for failing to secure his release. Referring to the Israeli premier’s son Yair, she said: “His son is sitting in Miami and drinking a margarita on the beach while my son is underground.”
Meanwhile, a pair of NGOs have tried to initiate an arrest warrant against Israel’s Foreign Minister during a visit to the UK. Gideon Sa’ar met Foreign Secretary David Lammy in London on Tuesday.
The activist groups, the Global Legal Action Network and the Hind Rajab Foundation, announced yesterday that they had tried to have him arrested by submitting documents accusing him of war crimes to the UK’s Attorney General and Director of Public Prosecutions and to the Metropolitan Police.
And Israel has narrowed its operations in Gaza to limited ground manoeuvres and targeted airstrikes aimed at extracting a hostage deal, military officials said yesterday. The IDF is deliberately avoiding a full-scale offensive. This calibrated approach is intended to maintain pressure on Hamas while keeping negotiations alive.
Since mid-March, Israel has killed 350 militants, including 40 senior Hamas officials, and struck over 1,200 targets. Part of Israel's strategy involves taking control of Gaza territory to pressure Hamas into a deal and has now expanded its buffer zone to cover 30 per cent of Gaza’s territory. In the south, troops are constructing the Morag Corridor to isolate Rafah. Israeli forces now control half of the Netzarim Corridor near Gaza City. This means Israel can effectively cut Gaza in two at any moment.
On the diplomatic front, France is pushing for a sweeping ceasefire deal tied to Israeli-Saudi normalisation, according to Haaretz, as part of a broader diplomatic initiative to end the war in Gaza. The proposal, coordinated with Riyadh, would see Israel withdraw fully from Gaza in exchange for regional recognition – without formally committing to a Palestinian state.
The plan also outlines a mechanism allowing Israeli strikes to continue under international supervision and envisions a two-state solution framed in vague terms acceptable to the current Israeli government. Macron has intensified contacts with Arab leaders and hopes to secure support ahead of a June summit in New York.
But Israeli defence officials reportedly estimate that food supplies in Gaza will last for only one more month. The humanitarian situation remains dire, with limited access to aid. International agencies have warned of a growing risk of famine if additional supplies are not allowed in soon.
In military operations outside of Gaza, Israel has killed a Hezbollah operative in the Lebanese village of Hanine and a member of the group’s elite Radwan force in Qantara. In the West Bank, troops killed two Islamic Jihad gunmen, including Mohammed Zakarneh, who was wanted for a deadly January shooting.
Elsewhere, UN atomic chief Rafael Grossi warned yesterday that Iran is “not far” from building a nuclear bomb and will soon meet officials in Tehran. Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said he welcomes a deal. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that enrichment is “non-negotiable”.
Finally, Billy, the Israeli dog found in Gaza by IDF soldiers, was returned home yesterday to her owner. Rachel Danzig was seen smiling in footage as she held the dog, who disappeared during the 7 October attack while the family was sheltering in a safe room. Aviad Shapira, an Israeli soldier, discovered her in Rafah after she approached him upon hearing Hebrew. A campaigner who helped lead the search, Tami Bar Yosef, posted yesterday on social media: “The family is experiencing indescribable excitement. We’re all struggling to believe it. It’s a Passover miracle – Billy’s exodus from Rafah, with the help of Aviad Shapira, the reservist angel.”
You can sign up to the JC’s Israel briefing here.
