Tensions between Israel and Turkey are escalating sharply, with a war of words between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reaching new heights and placing President Donald Trump in an increasingly delicate position between the two sides as tension escalates. 

The latest flare-up underscores a broader geopolitical clash about Iran, Gaza and regional influence, even as Washington attempts to maintain cooperation with both sides.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan accused Israel of deliberately seeking a new adversary following its confrontation with Iran, saying the Israeli government is attempting to portray Ankara as its next enemy.

"After Iran, Israel cannot live without an enemy," Fidan said in a televised interview with the state-run Anadolu news agency. "We see that not only Netanyahu’s administration but also some figures in the opposition — though not all — are seeking to declare Turkey the new enemy," he said.

TURKEY’S NATO ROLE UNDER SCRUTINY AMID NEW REPORT ON HAMAS, MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD TIES

The rhetoric reflects a sharp deterioration in relations that have been strained since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack and the war in Gaza, but have now escalated into direct confrontation between the two leaders.

Netanyahu, in remarks posted on X Saturday, accused Erdogan of siding with Iran and its proxies, writing that Israel "will continue to fight Iran’s terror regime… unlike Erdogan who accommodates them and massacred his own Kurdish citizens."

Erdogan has intensified his criticism of Israel’s military campaign, accusing its leadership of war crimes and backing international legal action against Israeli officials.

In one of the most incendiary exchanges, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement claiming, "Netanyahu, who has been described as the Hitler of our time due to the crimes he has committed, is a well-known figure with a clear track record. An arrest warrant has been issued against Netanyahu by the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Under Netanyahu’s administration, Israel is facing proceedings before the International Court of Justice on charges of genocide."

The escalation has not been limited to rhetoric. Erdogan previously has suggested Turkey could take more assertive military action in the region, referencing past interventions, remarks that have raised alarms in Israel.

Israeli officials have responded forcefully. 

Defense Minister Israel Katz has dismissed Erdogan’s threats as bluster, while officials warn that Turkey’s regional posture, particularly its engagement in Syria, is being closely monitored.

For both leaders, analysts say, the escalation also serves domestic goals. For Trump, the situation presents a growing challenge.

The administration relies on Israel as a central partner in confronting Iran, while also depending on Turkey, a NATO ally, for regional diplomacy and mediation efforts tied to ceasefire negotiations and broader Middle East strategy.

That balancing act has become increasingly difficult as tensions between Jerusalem and Ankara intensify.

ISRAEL UNMASKS IRAN-DIRECTED HAMAS CASH NETWORK IN TURKEY AS ANKARA PUSHES FOR GAZA ROLE

Gönül Tol, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and author of "Erdogan’s War: A Strongman’s Struggle at Home and in Syria," told Fox News Digital, "The Trump administration has played a role in making sure the two countries do not clash in Syria. How Turkey and Israel are managing their differences in Syria, where stakes are high for Erdogan, is telling. But this doesn't mean the two will try to undermine each other's interests from the eastern Mediterranean to Levant to Horn of Africa."

"I think for both leaders, Netanyahu and Erdogan, escalating rhetoric serves a domestic purpose," Gönül added, "Anti-Israeli and pro-Palestinian sentiment in Turkey is very strong. At a time when Erdogan is struggling to resolve the country's growing economic problems, responding to Netanyahu's statements harshly scores points domestically and burnishes his strong leader image. But I do not think this rhetoric will turn into direct military clashes between the countries. Despite their military presence and clashing interests, Turkey and Israel have a quiet understanding where each accepts the other's sphere of influence in the country and try to deconflict."

In a policy webinar hosted by the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, Turkish academic Hüseyin Bağcı argued Turkey's ties with Washington limit the likelihood of direct conflict.

"The Turkish state is not interested in fighting with Israel because the Turkish government has very good relations with the United States of America," he said. "You cannot be good with America and then be in conflict with Israel."

TRUMP FACES MIDDLE EAST TEST AS NETANYAHU BALKS AT ERDOGAN’S GAZA TROOP HOPES

From the Israeli perspective, however, concerns center on actions rather than rhetoric.

Retired Israeli strategist Gabi Siboni said Turkey's behavior in Syria is shaping threat perceptions. 

"I don’t know what Erdogan thinks. I know what he does, and I see what we see in our area," Siboni said in the webinar, adding, "There are true security concerns when we’re talking about what is happening in Syria. … Israel is not going to accept any type of military entrenchment of foreign actors."

Bağcı maintained that the tensions are largely political. 

"There is no structural conflict between Israel and Turkey," he said. "The rhetoric is political … but the geography and the interests remain."

The tensions are also being fueled by renewed friction over Gaza-bound aid flotillas, a long-standing flashpoint in Israel–Turkey relations.

A new Turkish-linked flotilla departed from Barcelona Monday, raising concerns in Israel about a repeat of past confrontations. The issue carries deep historical weight: in 2010, Israeli commandos boarded the Gaza flotilla raid, in which 10 were killed, triggering a years-long diplomatic rupture between the two countries.

Recent reports that Turkish prosecutors are seeking prison sentences for Israeli officials, including Benjamin Netanyahu, over flotilla-related incidents have further escalated tensions, reinforcing how unresolved grievances continue to inflame the current crisis.

While the confrontation remains largely rhetorical for now, the sharp escalation in language, and the competing interests driving it, highlight the fragility of the regional landscape and the limits of Washington’s ability to keep both sides aligned.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Turkish Embassy in Washington, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, and the White House but did not receive a response in time for publication.

AUSCHWITZ: Some 130 police leaders from across the globe converged on Kraków, Poland this week for a first-of-its-kind initiative amid rampant antisemitism. 

The event is aligned with the March of the Living, which brings thousands of participants to Germany and Poland each year to provide a first-hand look at the Nazi death camps and to teach the lessons of the Holocaust through engagement with survivors.

Paul Goldenberg, a law enforcement veteran of 37-years, deputy director of the Rutgers Miller Center on Policing and Community Resilience, which organized the initiative alongside the University of Virginia’s Center for Public Safety and Justice, spoke of the importance of the trip.

"Being here is a testament to who these officers are and to the oath they have taken to protect all communities, regardless of identity," he told Fox News Digital. "It is a commitment not only to ourselves, but to the people we serve. These are very challenging times, and the police, in all their forms, can play a significant role in sustaining democratic values.

UK COUNTERTERRORISM POLICE PROBE ANTISEMITIC ARSON ATTACK AS IRAN-LINKED GROUP CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY

"This initiative is about learning, professional development and remembrance. It is also about reminding ourselves who we are, why we hold these positions and what we must do to ensure people are kept safe — no matter who they are or where they are," he said.

The three-day program included a walking tour of Kazimierz, the Jewish Quarter in Kraków, a guided tour of Auschwitz on Monday; a press conference and testimonies by a Holocaust survivor and survivors of antisemitic shootings, culminating on Tuesday's participation in the March of the Living and a tour of Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Goldenberg said the Holocaust was unique in that it was a state-directed campaign in which police forces played a role, and that a central lesson is how the Nazis’ dehumanization of Jews and other targeted groups enabled the system to function. He added that the goal of the initiative is for participants to return to their departments with a deeper understanding that will help them better train officers, support victims of hate crimes and appreciate the importance and critical nature of their responsibilities.

He pointed to the urgency of the situation, noting that armed military units are now guarding synagogues in Western countries and that both the United States and Canada have deployed specialized police forces to protect Jewish institutions.

NETANYAHU SOUNDS ALARM ON ANTISEMITISM AT HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE DAY GATHERING

"What is striking is that these are not foreign entities — they are integral parts of the societies in which they exist. A synagogue in Belgium is Belgian. A synagogue in London belongs to London. A synagogue in New York City is part of the fabric of that city," he told Fox News Digital.

"From a policing perspective, what is deeply concerning is the erosion of safety and security for vulnerable communities. It is a deeply alarming scenario — one that, in some respects, echoes patterns seen in the 1930s," he added.

The theme of this year's March is combating antisemitism, which has surged to unprecedented levels since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in Israel.

SIGN UP FOR ANTISEMITISM EXPOSED NEWSLETTER

Abbie Talmoud, director for Jewish Community Affairs at the Embassy of Israel to the United States, survived a terror attack outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., in May 2025, in which two Israeli embassy staff members, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, were killed.

Speaking to Fox News Digital in Auschwitz, Talmoud said that amid rising antisemitism, feeling safe in the United States "is really difficult" and would require "systematic change," adding that she has stopped attending some events where she does not feel adequate security precautions are in place.

"There needs to be an understanding that the way we don’t allow racism for other races and ethnicities, we can’t allow antisemitism. It needs to come from the top — the school system, parents, governments," Talmoud said.

Catherine Szkop, director of public affairs at the Embassy of Israel to the United States, who focuses on interfaith relations and engagement, carpooled with Talmoud, Lischinsky and Milgrim to the event that evening and also survived.

"I have a family history tied to the Holocaust. In the Book of Names, I looked up ‘Szkop’ and saw a page taller than me filled with that name, along with dates and locations of those who were murdered. I realized my own name could have appeared there, with ‘murdered in Washington, D.C.’ written next to it," she told Fox News Digital at Auschwitz.

Szkop said she has never been this vigilant or fearful of potential attacks.

RABBI ATTACKED ON NYC STREET ON INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE DAY

"I wear headphones less; it makes me more aware of my surroundings. It’s a mix of fear and wanting some peace of mind after what happened. I don’t let it stop me from living, but it’s made me a little more afraid," she said.

Jeanne Hengemuhle, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, told Fox News Digital in Kraków that her agency, which includes 3,500 sworn members and 1,500 civilian staff, works closely with community leaders across the state to address hate-related concerns before they escalate into crises, emphasizing that early engagement, information-sharing and collaboration are key to preventing issues before they arise.

"We are law enforcement, but we are also part of the communities we serve, and we must recognize that role as the first line of defense," she said.

Hengemuhle said that, as human beings, there is a responsibility to do everything possible to combat hate, which requires understanding and educating one another, as well as drawing on different policing and professional backgrounds.

"This is my first year, and I am very humbled to have been invited to take part in the march and learn more. To me, it is about coming together and learning from what happened in the past so we do not allow it to happen again in the future," she said.

"The Holocaust did not happen overnight," she continued. "There were small, incremental changes that ultimately led to what took place. I think it is important that, by coming together and having these discussions, we ask whether we are seeing the kinds of early indicators that could lead us down a dangerous path — and how we intervene before it goes too far."

JEWISH SUMMER CAMPS RAMPING UP SECURITY MEASURES AMID RISING ANTISEMITISM — AND PARENTS ARE FOOTING THE BILL

To this end, senior police officials and associations from Europe and North America signed a landmark memorandum of understanding (MOU) in Berlin earlier this month, formally launching a new transnational initiative titled "Not on Our Watch – The Democratic Policing Initiative."

The agreement brings together the German Police Union (GdP), the European Federation of Police Unions (EU.Pol), the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA), the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA), the Small & Rural Law Enforcement Executives Association (SRLEEA) and the International Police Delegation, in collaboration with leading academic institutions.

The MOU formalizes a shared commitment among participating organizations to strengthen early threat detection and intelligence-sharing across borders, including establishing coordinated operational responses to emerging extremist threats, among other things.

Jim Skinner, sheriff of Collin County, Texas, and incoming vice president of the National Sheriffs’ Association, told Fox News Digital in Kraków that as a law enforcement leader, his responsibility is to serve everyone equally, noting that while there is significant partisanship and political division in the United States, law enforcement must serve and protect all communities equally.

"We all have an obligation to dig deep and make sure hate doesn’t happen on our watch, and to recognize that we have a fundamental responsibility to think critically about how to keep our communities safe," he said.

Skinner noted that North Texas is home to a large and vibrant Jewish community, which he said he is fortunate to serve. He added that he traveled to Israel shortly after the Oct. 7 attack with two other sheriffs and visited Kibbutz Be’eri, an experience he said he will never forget.

"I came away with important, practical lessons for my organization, but also with a deeper understanding of a world filled with hate. It reinforced for me that the authority entrusted to me by the people who elected me must be used wisely in how I approach my job each day — to ensure that something like that does not happen to the citizens where I live, and that if it ever did, we would have a proper and effective response," he said.

"I think about the march," he continued, "it honors Holocaust victims and serves as a reminder of the consequences of hate and the importance of standing against violence and intolerance. That’s the message I want everyone I have influence over to understand."

A gunfight with police outside the Israeli consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, left one attacker dead, two others injured and two police officers sustaining minor injuries.

The armed attackers had ties to an activist group that "exploits religion," according to Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci on X.

"The identities of the terrorists have been identified," he wrote in a post translated by X. "It has been determined that the individuals, who arrived in Istanbul by a rental vehicle from Izmit, include one with ties to an organization that exploits religion; and it has also been established that one of the two terrorists, who are brothers, has a drug record."

3 BROTHERS OF IRAQI DESCENT ARRESTED IN OSLO FOR 'TERROR BOMBING' OF US EMBASSY

U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack condemned the attack and praised Turkish authorities.

"The United States condemns in the strongest terms today’s attack on the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul," Barrack wrote on X. "Attacks on diplomatic missions are attacks on the international order — and an assault on the principles that bind nations together. We commend Türkiye and Turkish security forces for their swift and decisive response."

BELGIUM DEPLOYS MILITARY TO PROTECT JEWISH SITES AFTER ANTISEMITIC SYNAGOGUE EXPLOSION

Police officers pulled out guns and took cover as shots rang out for at least 10 minutes near a permanent security checkpoint near the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul. One person was seen covered in blood amid the glass towers in the heart of the city's main financial district.

Footage obtained by Reuters showed an apparent attacker, in a dark top and carrying a backpack, moving among parked white police and security buses and firing with an automatic rifle and a handgun.

Two bodies lay on nearby streets and parking areas, near grassy areas.

PROTESTERS STORM US CONSULATE IN PAKISTAN, AT LEAST 9 DEAD

Two police officers were lightly wounded in the attack, Istanbul Governor Davut Gul told reporters at the scene.

He said there had been no Israeli diplomatic staff at the consulate for 2-1/2 years, since the Hamas-Israel war began in 2023, leading to a deep chill in Turkish-Israeli diplomatic ties.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry confirmed there were no staff at the consulate at the time of the shootings.

NEW TERROR GROUP WITH REPORTED IRAN TIES CLAIMS 4 ATTACKS ACROSS EUROPE

The incident occurred next to a major motorway just after midday, immediately outside the tower where the Israeli Consulate is located. The gunfire echoed inside nearby bank headquarters, where thousands of workers were breaking for lunch.

Turkey, a fierce critic of Israel's military operations in Gaza, had recalled its ambassador from Israel in November 2023 and diplomatic relations have been effectively frozen since then.

At the same time that year, Israeli diplomats left Turkey due to security concerns after pro-Palestinian protests erupted across the country and in front of the consulate. Since then, a heavily armed police presence has been maintained in the area near the consulate.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Dr. Gal Rosen is an Israeli paramedic who has saved lives under the threat of missile attacks.

Racing from emergency to emergency, heart pounding, but calm under fire — "don't think, just act."

He said he lost his mother when he was a child at the hands of a murderous terrorist. He saved lives as an army paramedic, but he continues to do it now as a civilian — defiantly choosing to live in Israel and work at Tel Aviv's Magen David Adom (MDA) while under threat and emergencies from multiple-front wars.

He saves lives in the "dark" of war. He sees lives go, sometimes after making difficult split-second decisions.

ARIZONA DEPUTIES SAVE CHOKING 2-WEEK-OLD BABY IN ROADSIDE RESCUE AFTER PARENTS' EMERGENCY CALL

"We need to choose sometimes," he says, speaking to Fox News Digital during a rare moment off between emergencies. "And this is hard."

But, today, he is sharing a story of "light": a stark contrast from the stories he usually refuses to share with his family to spare them the horrifying realities of war — even if they live those themselves.

Last Thursday, Rosen delivered a healthy baby boy into the world and, in sudden threat of a missile attack and blaring sirens, carried that son away from the mother in the ambulance as he and the father raced to reach a bomb shelter.

This was his fifth emergency delivery of a newborn as a paramedic. It was his first under the threat of a missile attack and blaring sirens.

"It was so surrealistic situation, in my opinion, never happened to me, something like this," he said, able to smile about the gravity of it all one week later, after finally finding sleep and time to reflect.

"This is an amazing thing to share at home," Rosen said. "Most of my stories are not like this, most of our stories I share are really hard things for my family to hear. This is why, usually, I'm not sharing with my family stories from my work: 'Sorry, I'm not doing it.'

"Car accidents or about the CPRs or about really difficult situations that I had to deal with."

Just two days after bringing one life into the world, he saw five go.

"I had, like last Saturday, five cases of death in the shift," he said. "I don't want to get home and tell about it in my family, right? But this story is amazing.

UNSUNG HEROES OF 2025: FIRST RESPONDERS AND EVERYDAY AMERICANS WHO SAVED LIVES ACROSS US

"I went to my grandma," he continued, "and said, 'You have to hear it.'

"She was so proud of me and also my family and my father and my friends and my partner. Of course, this is a really nice story to tell to everyone."

The call came around 6:30 a.m. local Tel Aviv time on a Thursday morning: a woman was in labor, getting an assist on emergency delivery over the phone as if it was a movie.

But this was real life, a new life and war.

By the time the MDA paramedic team arrived, the baby was still inside and the husband was helping his wife through the final moments of delivery. Dr. Rosen stepped in for the last few minutes and helped safely deliver the boy.

Then came the alert.

Within moments, a warning sounded that a missile attack on Tel Aviv was expected in about 10 minutes. The paramedic suddenly had to balance the urgency of a wartime emergency with the delicate, critical first steps of childbirth.

He quickly placed the newborn on the mother’s chest for skin-to-skin contact, a key step for bonding and early development. He had the father cut the umbilical cord and helped the mother nurse the baby for the first time.

NYPD OFFICERS SAVE CHOKING 2-YEAR-OLD BOY, BODYCAM VIDEO SHOWS

"I tried to do something as close as possible to reality for them," he said, wanting to preserve the intimacy of a normal birth even though they were far from a hospital delivery room.

With the help of the father and her team, he then moved the family into the building’s shelter. There, in the middle of blaring alarms and the sounds of missile interceptions overhead, relatives from the apartment building — a grandmother, an aunt and others — came downstairs and saw the baby for the first time.

"It was the first time they met the baby, while there were alarms," he said. 

"Adrenaline" and former army paramedic instinct took over.

"I put the helmet, I put the vest and everything, I took the baby, and we stopped by the side and I ran with the baby to a public shelter," he recalled. "So, me and the father, we're running together, I'm taking the baby with me, running to a shelter and just a random building and there was no shelter there.

"'OK, this is not good.' We need to go out.

"And we're going out. There is still alarms; I know that we have like maybe 20 seconds left, going to another building, and then we're getting into a public shelter. There is 50 people there in the shelter and they closed the door. We were still there standing in the shelter, so I gave the father the baby.

"I didn't want the idea for the father also — you know, in the future — to think about the situation that a stranger held his baby while there is a missile attack."

In the shelter, with the postpartum mother still in the ambulance under the Iron Dome, the unmistakable sound of war came with a shock.

"We also heard the interception with the Iron Dome," Rosen said.

The sound, he said, was impossible to ignore: "a boom," followed by a shock wave you could feel.

The air was vibrating.

The grateful father and mother, identified by MDA as Nikola and Violet, said the experience was frightening but that the emergency team helped keep them calm.

ICE AGENT SAVES LIFE OF 'UNRESPONSIVE' 1-YEAR-OLD BOY IN JFK AIRPORT AS PANIC ENSUES IN TSA SECURITY LINE

"It wasn’t a simple experience," they wrote in a joint statement, preferring to keep privacy but permitting Dr. Rosen to share the war story out of praise and thankfulness.

"The labor started at home, and just minutes after the MDA team delivered the baby, the siren caught us, and we went down to a shelter. The team functioned amazingly, calmed us, and treated us in the best possible way. This isn’t the ideal experience, but we’re happy everything ended safely, and we’re grateful to the team who helped us so much."

In that cramped shelter of about 50 huddling Israelis, surrounded by strangers and the threat of falling missiles, the room broke into applause. People congratulated the father and shouted "Mazal tov."

Mother was still in the ambulance with members of the MDA team, still at risk postpartum, as the Iron Dome was busting missiles overhead.

"And after 10 minutes that we sat there, we went out, and we walked in the street with a baby, 30 minutes old, crossing the intersection together, going to the ambulance," Rosen said. "They put a helmet on her and a vest on the mother, and one of my teammates stayed with her, because she couldn't come to the shelter. It was too much time, too risky for her.

"And, you know, in these moments, I didn't think so much. So I just act.

"I realized that it would be better to protect the son; it would better to go to find a shelter. And we didn't think about the idea that maybe we'll be in alarms, because we were in the situation, we were at the moment, we're with the family, with the delivery, with everything, and you can't imagine something like this — even though it's Israel, and now we can actually imagine everything.

"Still, it was really, really, really exciting — excitement and happiness – and a good thing because most of our days right now are dark."

Despite losing his mother to a murderous terrorist and living under the threat of multiple-front wars and shrieking Iron Dome sirens and missile attacks, Rosen would choose no other life.

MISSILES ABOVE, NEWBORNS BELOW: ISRAELI HOSPITALS SHIFT CRITICAL CARE UNDERGROUND

"My mother was murdered in a terror attack when I was a kid, when I was a child, and to choose to still be here with my family, to live here: This is our home and to choose, going to a different path, not hate.

"I will save lives, and I will do my best to help other families going through these situations, and I will do my best to make sure there are no other families that will need to suffer from a loss.

"So I think this is the mentality of Israelis in general. But still, see, this is one of the only places in the world that people are getting rescued by a flight to come back to Israel.

"In a war," he deadpanned.

But, with everything happening under the stress of war, Rosen kept the calm, precision and resolve of an army paramedic, knowing the best medicine for a baby born under stress is skin-to-skin and mother's milk.

"I learned in med school, I learned these two things are the most important: Put the baby on the skin, give them the bond, help her to nurse," he said. "It also can help the mother a lot when she nursing the baby. It's also helping with postpartum bleeding. And a lot of things.

"So this situation, it's hard to do when we are in this missile attack."

But all is well that ended well and — in the case of Nikola and Violet's newborn — began as well as could be under the circumstances.

"I was so excited I couldn't sleep for — like the delivery. It was something like 17 hours into my shift," he recalled. "So I worked 16 hours. It was after 17 hours shift.

"Now and after 17 hours shift, I went back home, I tried to sleep, I couldn't sleep, and then I had to go to another shift. So I was awake for at least 24 hours."

One week later, the adrenaline and excitement have not worn off. And the baby boy, mother, father and MDA paramedic team live on to tell an all-timer.

JERUSALEM: Israel’s Parliament, the Knesset, on Monday passed a law mandating the death penalty for Palestinian terrorists convicted of deadly acts of terrorism, sparking anger from European countries and an Israeli opposition leader.

Lawmakers voted 62-47 in favor of far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s legislation to prescribe the death penalty by hanging. Ben Gvir and his party, Otzma Yehudit, proposed the measure.

Otzma Yehudit lawmaker Tzvika Foghel, who chairs the National Security Committee and advanced the bill through the committee under his leadership, told Fox News Digital that Israelis are fed up with policies of containment and compromise.

NETANYAHU URGES COURT TO REVOKE PALESTINIANS' ISRAELI CITIZENSHIP AFTER CONVICTIONS FOR VIOLENT CRIMES

"For too many years, we have tried to please the entire world, even when we were being murdered in our streets. Since October 7, we have shifted to an offensive approach so that we can dictate the reality in the future," he said.

Foghel said the death penalty for terrorists is part of a broader shift in Israel, driven by the recognition that no other country faces a reality in confronting radical Islamic terrorism in Gaza, Lebanon, Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), as well as in Yemen and Iran.

"The death penalty for terrorists who burned, raped, mutilated and abused children and parents is the same punishment we established for the Nazis," he said.

Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said, "The EU has a principled position against the death penalty in all cases and in all circumstances. Israel had long upheld a de facto moratorium on both executions and capital punishment sentencing, thereby leading by example in the region despite a complex security environment."

She added, "The approval of the Death Penalty Bill by the Israeli Parliament marks a grave regression from that practice and from Israel’s own commitments. We are deeply concerned about the de facto discriminatory character of the Bill."

ANALYSTS SAY GAZA 'CIVILIAN' DEATHS INCLUDE HAMAS, OTHER TERROR MEMBERS WORKING AS MEDICS, MEDIA WORKERS

Israel has applied the death penalty only once in the state’s history for the Nazi mass murderer Adolf Eichmann in 1962. The death penalty exists on the books in Israel, but Israeli courts have limited latitude to apply execution to cases beyond penalties for Nazi war criminals.

Former Prime Minister and current leader of the centrist Yesh Atid party, Yair Lapid said the legislation is fundamentally flawed because it does not apply to Hamas terrorists involved in the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre that killed 1,200 people.

"This law is not a show of force; it is a sign of panic. This law is more extreme than anything in the United States, and they know it will get struck down by the law. It isn’t a law for justice or for deterrence, it is a law for public relations," he added.

Likud lawmaker Dan Illouz, a supporter of the legislation, told Fox News Digital that the events of Oct. 7 underscored, in his view, the need to prevent terrorists from viewing the kidnapping of civilians as a viable means of securing the release of imprisoned militants.

"The death penalty shatters that equation. It serves as the ultimate deterrent, ensuring that terrorists know their actions lead only to their own demise, not a negotiated release. We are a life-loving nation, but to protect life, we must deal decisively with those who seek to destroy it," he said.

"Prime Minister Netanyahu's vote in favor was crucial. It projects an unmistakable message of strength and moral clarity from the very top of Israel's leadership. By personally casting his vote, the Prime Minister showed our enemies, and the entire world, that our government is completely united and unyielding in our resolve to eradicate terrorism and defend our citizens," he added.

MICHIGAN SYNAGOGUE ATTACKER WAS INSPIRED BY HEZBOLLAH, SOUGHT TO KILL AS MANY JEWISH PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE: FEDS

The Israeli Channel 12 political commentator, Amit Segal, wrote that he supports "executing terrorists who attempt to murder civilians — especially the monsters of October 7," but was critical of Ben Gvir’s legislation.

He wrote in his newsletter, "The law defines terrorism as acts ‘to negate the existence of the state,’ a definition that could apply to groups such as extremist Haredi factions and violent members of the ‘Hilltop Youth’ (which Ben-Gvir supports.)

Segal said that "while Ben-Gvir’s law is essentially a campaign stunt, a more responsible law is making its way through the system. Proposed by MKs Simcha Rotman and Yulia Malinovsky, the law establishes the practical mechanisms — procedural and evidentiary — to secure convictions of Nukhba terrorists, after which the death penalty could be imposed."

Another Likud lawmaker, Amit Halevi, told Fox News Digital that the central element of the legislation is the distinction between criminal offenses and crimes against the state or against humanity.

"A terrorist commits his crimes as part of an ideology aimed at killing, oppressing and controlling all Jews. These terrorists, if they could, would kill every one of us. They are ideological murderers, in a different category from ordinary criminals, and that is a critical point of the bill," he said.

Halevi added that further efforts are needed to clearly delineate crimes against the state, including what falls within that category and what does not.

"Generally speaking, this legislation is a step in the right direction. Much of the criticism I hear relates to ordinary criminals. People do not understand the enemy — who he is and what this war is about," he said.

As Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) publicly claim their dead, new research shows that many previously counted as civilians were in fact members of the terrorist organizations, undermining accusations that Israeli forces deliberately targeted civilians in Gaza.

Researchers monitoring the Hamas-run health ministry’s death reports told Fox News Digital that a growing number of "martyrs" were exposed as terrorists by their own groups such as Hamas, despite maintaining public identities as healthcare or media workers.

Gabriel Epstein, senior policy associate at Israel Policy Forum, told Fox News Digital that he has tracked multiple individuals named by Hamas and PIJ as martyrs killed in battle in Gaza who held positions in the health industry, including nongovernmental organizations (NGOs.)

US-BACKED GAZA AID GROUP SLAMS DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS, ACCUSES IT OF SPREADING 'FALSE' CLAIMS

Epstein found several individuals labeled as medical staff who are also members of terrorist groups. The most serious revelation from the martyr list is Fadi al-Wadiyya, a physiotherapist for Médecins sans frontières, who was killed by Israel Defense Forces in June 2024. MSF responded to the death, saying they were "outraged" and "strongly condemn[ed] the killing of our colleague."

When the IDF claimed that al-Wadiyya was a member of PIJ, MSF said they had "no prior knowledge" of his "alleged involvement in military activities" and said they had "not received any formal explanation" of "the circumstances of his killing."

In a Telegram account claiming to be the media reserve for the Al-Quds Brigades, a post mourning al-Wadiyya’s martyrdom on Feb. 24 lists the physiotherapist as an assistant to the military manufacturing unit of PIJ’s Al-Quds Brigades.

Fox News Digital asked MSF whether they were aware of al-Wadiyya’s PIJ connections prior to the martyr announcement. A spokesperson said, "We would not knowingly employ people engaging in military activity" as it "would pose a danger to our staff and patients by compromising our neutrality."

HAMAS TERRORISTS USE AMBULANCES, SCHOOLS, HOSPITALS IN VIOLATION OF US-BROKERED CEASEFIRE, IDF OFFICIAL SAYS

The spokesperson said that "MSF had no indication that Fadi Al Wadiya might have been involved in military activity of any kind prior to the Israeli authorities’ online posts in June 2024. In the immediate aftermath of Al-Wadiya's killing, we asked for explanations from the Israeli authorities, but never received an official response. If the Israeli authorities were aware of Al-Wadiya's links with militant activities, they never shared this info with us until after he was killed. To this day, the only information they shared and that we are aware of is what was shared through public social media posts."

The IDF banned MSF operations in Gaza from the beginning of March because the organization refused to provide a list of its Palestinian employees. In response to Fox News Digital’s questions about whether they would consider providing this list to the IDF presently, MSF’s spokesperson said, "We did not share our staff lists with Israel because we did not receive concrete assurances to ensure the safety of our staff or the independent management of our operations. This is a place where humanitarian workers have frequently been detained, attacked, and killed. We have a responsibility to protect our colleagues from harm."

Epstein shared several other cases of healthcare workers who played prominent roles in terror groups.

MEDICAL NGO THAT SLAMMED ISRAEL’S ANTI-TERROR RAID NOW QUITS GAZA HOSPITAL OVER ARMED OPERATIVES

Mohammed Akram Abdullah al-Kafarna was mourned by the Palestinian Nursing and Midwifery Association’s Facebook page as the nursing supervisor at Kamal Adwan Hospital and by the Institute for Palestine Studies as head of the Gaza nursing system. A Telegram account that lists members of Hamas’ best-outfitted Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, al-Kafarna is described as one of Beit Hanoun’s "Qassam Martyrs."

Ayman Suleiman Aliyan Abu Tayr was listed as martyred in Khan Younis in June 2025. The Institute for Palestine Studies labels him as a nurse and head of the clinical nutrition department at Nasser Hospital. According to a Telegram account linked to PIJ’s Al-Quds Brigades, Abu Tayr was a Commander in the Central Operations Unit of the Al-Quds Brigades.

Jaber Abdulhamid Diab Mohammedin was mourned on the Palestinian Ministry of Health General Directorate of Nursing’s Facebook page as an Intensive Care Unit nurse at the Al-Rantisi Specialized Children’s Hospital. A Telegram account linked to the Islamic Jihad Movement lists Mohammedin as a commander in the military manufacturing unit of the PIJ’s Al-Quds Brigade.

Nidal Jaber Abdulfattah al-Najjar is labeled as an administrator at the Palestinian Ministry of Health, according to the Institute for Palestine Studies, while a mourner on Facebook noted that he worked in the Al-Rantisi Children’s Hospital. He is labeled on a Telegram account emblazoned with Hamas’ distinctive red triangle as a martyr commander of Hamas’ Al-Radwan Battalion.

Salo Aizenberg, director of media watchdog group HonestReporting, told Fox News Digital that he is tracking at least 10 "virtually indisputable" examples of journalists who are actually combatants, working with Hamas and other terrorist groups.

David Adesnik, vice president of research for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that he has also been tracking the disclosures. "With PIJ, the number of commanders who operated with civilian cover is striking," Adesnik said. "We’re at a point where the evidence indicates that this duplicity was a routine part of a strategy to infiltrate civilian organization, especially humanitarian ones. This provides access and protection while ensuring outrage when these supposed humanitarians are killed."

Adesnik said he believes it "likely that Hamas also employed this strategy in a systematic way, but right now we mainly have the PIJ disclosures. Given that Hamas is many times larger, if it were to disclose this kind of information, the effects could easily ripple across the humanitarian sector in Gaza."

Among the cases Aizenberg is tracking are media workers. He said that his list is "based solely on admissions by those groups and other Gazan sources," and "does not include the many additional examples identified through Israeli evidence."

Though the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) cites Yacoup Al-Borsch as a journalist and the executive director of Namaa Radio, Aizenberg has found "numerous social media posts and martyr notices identifying him as a fighter and ‘mujahid.’" This includes a Facebook post from an account affiliated with the Al-Omari Mosque in Jabalia.

Ahmed Abu Sharia was a freelancer who worked for outlets like Iranian Tasnim News Agency, the CPJ says. According to the "official" Telegram site of the Mujahideen Brigades, the Palestinian Mujahideen movement’s military wing, he was also a member of the Mujahideen Brigades.

Rizq Abu Shakian was a "media worker and administrator for the pro-Hamas Palestine Now Agency," according to CPJ. Shakian also appears in Hamas uniform on a Telegram site that shares images of Palestinian martyrs. According to Aizenberg’s research, he was a member of the Al-Qassam Brigades.

In response to questions about whether CPJ would update listings of journalists who have been claimed as terror affiliates, the group directed Fox News Digital to its policy for updating listings, which states, "CPJ has a long-standing policy of updating its data and the accompanying narrative accounts without issuing formal corrections as new information becomes available over time. In certain cases, a record may be removed from public view when new information leads CPJ to determine that a case falls outside its mandate or for security concerns, such as the safety of the journalist and their family.  CPJ will publicly record when it has removed a journalist from the database for a reason outside of security concerns. "

As the shaky ceasefire in Gaza continues, analysts say they continue to place value in closely examining the war’s casualties. Epstein said that "reviewing cases of militants who held dual civilian roles in key sectors like media, healthcare and education is important for the historical record and underscores the information limitations press, government, and analysts face in real time during conflict." He said that "over time, militant identification can give a sense of just how deep Hamas, PIJ and other militant groups' hold over key sectors in Gaza was."

As the war with Iran dominates the region's attention, Hamas is quietly reasserting control inside Gaza, according to videos and photos circulating on social media. An Israeli analyst and a Gazan political commentator say the developments raise fresh doubts about whether postwar plans for the enclave can move forward anytime soon.

Michael Milshtein, a senior analyst at the Dayan Center at Tel Aviv University, said Hamas has used the past two and a half weeks not only to rehabilitate militarily but to project visible control in public life.

"They are really making good use of them to establish their power in the public sphere, not just for military rehabilitation," Milshtein said, describing what he said were new recruits, police deployments and even parades in central Gaza. "Hamas is here to stay."

TRUMP LAUNCHES PHASE 2 OF GAZA PEACE PLAN — BUT HAMAS DISARMAMENT REMAINS THE REAL TEST

He said Gazans have reported that Hamas is also rebuilding the machinery of governance. "Their police are everywhere," he said. "They are also improving their taxation system." During Ramadan, he added, Hamas personnel were checking markets and mosques and "starting to build education systems." 

Mkhaimar Abusada, a Gazan political analyst, agrees momentum around postwar Gaza planning has largely stalled since the Iran war escalated.

"Everything with regard to Gaza has been put on hold," Abusada told Fox News Digital. Before the regional war erupted, he said, developments had been "moving in the right direction," including work around the Board of Peace, the Gaza Technical Committee and discussions tied to a possible international stabilization force.

"Yes, Hamas has taken advantage of the current situation," Abusada said. "They are not under the pressure that they were before."

Both analysts pointed to the same broad dynamic: as attention shifted to Iran, pressure on Hamas eased.

Abusada said that before the war, there had been what he described as serious discussions about disarmament, the deployment of an international force and Gaza’s political future. But "the enthusiasm that preceded the war has come down," he said, adding that Gaza has been pushed to the "back burner."

"When I talk to Palestinians, they tell me, ‘Listen, we are actually already waiting for the day after the war,’" Milshtein said. He said some expect Netanyahu to become "very indebted to Trump because of the war in Iran, and he will have to accept whatever dictates he has regarding Gaza."

US SEEKS UN AUTHORIZATION FOR GAZA INTERNATIONAL FORCE LASTING THROUGH 2027 UNDER TRUMP PLAN

At the center of that conversation is the prospect of an international stabilization force entering Gaza. But both men suggested Hamas may not see such a force as a threat.

Abusada said Hamas had "welcomed the deployment" of such a force and appears to view it as "restraining the Israeli army" rather than coming in "to disarm" the group. He said the possibility of troops from countries such as Indonesia may make such a deployment appear less threatening to Hamas, which could see it as a buffer against continued Israeli military operations.

Milshtein took that argument further, saying Hamas sees the model less as a peacekeeping mission than as a version of the Hezbollah-UNIFIL arrangement in Lebanon.

"Hamas says, ‘I have no problem, it will be like UNIFIL in Lebanon,’" Milshtein said. "Don’t even dream about starting to chase us, taking our weapons, and entering the tunnels. You need to protect us from Israel as well."

Abusada said the next phase depends heavily on how the Iran war ends. If the Iranian regime survives and avoids collapse, he said, Hamas will draw encouragement from that outcome.

"If Iran is not defeated, if the Iranian regime is not collapsing, that’s going to be some kind of moral support for Hamas," he said.