Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2026-02-09 at 13:50

HEADLINES
Jerusalem brothers indicted for spying for Iran
Ran Gvili remains recovered, Gaza aid surges
Poles dislike Jews at forty percent

The time is now 1:49 PM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

In the conflict with Iran and its Regional Proxies, prosecutors indicted two Jerusalem brothers in their 20s on security offenses, including contact with Iranian intelligence elements and transferring information related to national security. The indictment says one brother, with help from the other, was in contact with Iranian intelligence handlers and was exchanging various information in return for financial compensation. The charges include delivering information to the enemy, both individually and jointly, and delivering information that could be used to harm Israel’s national security. The State Prosecutor’s Office has asked for an extension of their detention as the case proceeds, and the indictment did not specify whether the brothers are Jewish or Arab. Earlier this year, Shin Bet noted that 25 Israelis, including Jews, were indicted for spying for Iran in 2025, and the rate of Iranian plots to recruit Israelis as spies rose by about 400% in 2025. Separately, a report describe allegations of an online bot army campaign by the Iranian regime aimed at a Trump State Department official, a tactic that has gained traction among Iranian dissidents who say Tehran is creating chaos among groups that would like the hardline regime to fall.

In the Disputed Territories (Gaza, Judea and Samaria, East Jerusalem), the Israeli-coordinated aid effort reports that more than 65,000 trucks have entered Gaza since the October ceasefire, including over 14,000 carrying shelter equipment and more than 47,000 carrying food. Since the start of the ceasefire, Gaza has received more than 620,000 tents and tarps, 64 humanitarian staff rotations, 12 evacuations of Gazans with dual citizenship totaling 1,526, and 13 medical evacuations totaling 1,392. In the past week, 4,200 humanitarian aid trucks entered Gaza, delivering food, medical supplies and shelter equipment, with near 100 Gazans needing medical care and their escorts exiting Gaza through the Kerem Shalom Crossing to the Allenby Bridge. Two rotations of humanitarian personnel were completed, and entry of tents and clothing continued alongside winterization efforts. The IDF released new imagery from the operation to recover the remains of the final Gaza hostage, St.-Sergeant-Major Ran Gvili, who died during the October 7 infiltrations and whose remains were held for nearly 900 days before being returned to Israel for burial in Meitar. Gvili, a police officer from the Special Patrol Unit, drove toward Gaza border communities to help repel infiltrating terrorists and was killed in the operation; his remains were located in al-Batesh cemetery in the Shejaia-Daraj-Tuffah area of northern Gaza, a site believed to have been chosen by Palestinian Islamic Jihad for burial. The released footage shows troops moving through rubble and buildings in Gaza, but does not show the cemetery excavation. Separately, reservists along the volatile yellow line warn that Hamas is rebuilding command structures and preparing for renewed combat despite the fragile interim arrangement.

In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, a poll in Poland shows that 40% of Poles dislike Jews, the highest level recorded in the CBOS survey since 2006, with positive opinions about Jews at just 22%. The same poll indicates 18% of Poles dislike Americans and 43% dislike Ukrainians, with Ukrainians also among the groups most disliked in the survey; the CBOS poll has been conducted annually since 1993 and gauges attitudes toward 21 national and ethnic groups, reflecting broader shifts in opinion since the onset of the war in Ukraine.

In Israeli Economy and Business, Elbit Systems announced $100 million in new contracts with the Defense Ministry to advance digitization capabilities for the IDF, including a fifth-generation digitization array for the Digital Ground Army program (Tzayad) and the Multi-Sensor Border Defense System (MARS). The effort is intended to deliver enhanced command and control capabilities with full multi-domain connectivity across air, sea and land, and to support operational and tactical decision-making through artificial intelligence tools, with the stated aims of increasing force survivability and lethality. A separate opinion piece discusses critical minerals as Israel’s next strategic asset, noting a Washington ministerial meeting that elevated minerals to a ministerial-level priority, arguing that supply chains have become strategic assets and vulnerabilities and that the United States plans to pursue a network of trusted partners rather than pursuing full self-sufficiency.

In Uplifting News, activist Somaya Bashir is set to run in the Democratic Party primaries as the party’s potential Arab candidate, advocating for Arab-Jewish partnership and greater representation. Bashir, a hijab-wearing psychologist and longtime activist from the northern village of Jatt, has helped found several non-profits including “We Have No Other Land” and has been a prominent figure in Women Wage Peace and other civic initiatives. She announced on social media that she would seek a place on the Democrats’ slate, joining the party last month alongside other activists.

Thank you for tuning in to this Israel Today: Ongoing War Report update.
I'm Noa Levi. Stay safe and informed.
Keep in mind that this AI-generated report may contain occasional inaccuracies, so consult multiple sources for a comprehensive view. Find the code and more details in the podcast description.

SOURCES
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/crime-in-israel/article-886126
https://worldisraelnews.com/inside-the-iranian-regimes-online-bot-army-campaign-against-trump-state-department-official/
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-886131
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-886127
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ryhgbjpwbx
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-886129
https://www.jpost.com/defense-and-tech/article-886132
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-886061
https://www.timesofisrael.com/activist-somaya-bashir-to-run-for-democrats-slate-calls-for-arab-jewish-partnership/