HEADLINESHRW resignations over blocked Palestinian return reportIDF retaliatory strike targets Bilal Abu AssiIsrael 1 AI supercomputer boosts growthThe time is now 11:03 AM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.In the Disputed Territories (Gaza, Judea and Samaria, East Jerusalem), senior Human Rights Watch researcher Omar Shakir and assistant researcher Milena Ansari have resigned, accusing HRW of blocking publication of a finalized report on the Palestinian right of return. HRW said the publication was paused to strengthen aspects of the research and the factual basis for its legal conclusions, and that the process remains ongoing. Shakir posted that he resigned after more than a decade with HRW, including as Israel/Palestine Director, after HRW’s new leadership pulled the report on the eve of its release and blocked for weeks its publication in a principled way. The resignation letter was reported by The Guardian and The Jewish Current. In a separate development, the IDF announced that it likely killed an undetermined number of Palestinian civilians in Gaza in a retaliatory strike after a Hamas ambush wounded an Israeli soldier near the Yellow Line. The strike targeted Bilal Abu Assi, a Hamas Nukhba Platoon Commander who led the infiltration into Kibbutz Nir Oz on the October 7th massacre, and Abu Assi likely took part in holding deceased hostages captive.In the Disputed Territories (Gaza, Judea and Samaria, East Jerusalem), the IDF said the strike was carried out in response to the ambush and ceasefire violation overnight, and highlighted the individual targeted as a key operative in the events of October 7, with the operation described as part of ongoing efforts to respond to the attack.In US Policy Concerning Israel, US Secretary of State Rubio said Iran agreed to a format for talks but backed away, and that it remains worth exploring whether discussions can return to a useful place. He said the talks were set for Friday, and that if Iran wants to meet, the United States is ready; they prefer to talk, and while a deal is not guaranteed, they want to test the path forward.In US Policy Concerning Israel, he also noted that the format and timing reflect ongoing diplomacy, with emphasis on dialogue as a means to assess whether a settlement is possible, even as conditions and positions show the path to an agreement remains uncertain.In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, Zurich’s mayor and the city council condemned an antisemitic attack on a religious Jewish man on Monday. The 26-year-old Orthodox Jewish man was punched after leaving his home in Wiedikon; the attacker, a 40-year-old Kosovan, made antisemitic statements during the assault. Passers-by intervened, overpowered the attacker, and restrained him until police arrived. The victim sustained wounds to his body and neck. Mayor Corine Mauch, speaking for the city council, said, “We all stand by our Jewish fellow citizens,” and stressed the commitment against antisemitism must remain a priority. The mayor added that the attack was not a random act, but was directed at Jewish people.In Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, the council’s statement underscored the seriousness of the incident and reinforced the city’s resolve to protect Jewish residents and promote an open, supportive society in the face of this act of hatred.In Israeli Economy and Business, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said the economic impact of the Israel 1 supercomputer being built in northern Israel could be very deep, arguing that large-scale AI infrastructure can spur downstream growth in startups, universities, and industry. Huang, the founder and CEO of Nvidia, spoke in an interview with Walla and during a joint press conference with Dassault Systèmes CEO Pascal Daloz at the 3DEXPERIENCE World conference in Houston. The remarks come as Nvidia’s hardware forms the backbone of many leading AI systems, underlining the company’s influence in today’s AI economy and the potential for Israel’s tech sector to benefit from advanced computing infrastructure.In Israeli Economy and Business, Huang’s remarks frame the Israel 1 project as a catalyst for broader innovation ecosystems, with potential spillovers to local startups, research institutions, and industry partners, as Nvidia positions itself at the center of a global AI hardware and software network.In Uplifting News, Israeli researchers at Tel Aviv University report that noninvasive brain stimulation significantly reduced intrusive memories in adults with post-traumatic stress disorder in a five-session pilot. Conducted in Tel Aviv and published in Brain Stimulation, the study used individualized transcranial magnetic stimulation targeted to hippocampal networks. Ten adults completed the weekly sessions, during which memory was reactivated before stimulation within the reconsolidation window. Participants showed consistent improvement, with sharp declines in intrusive ...
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