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Israel’s National Security Council Issues Travel Warning Ahead of Jewish High Holidays Amid Terror Threats
A pro-Hamas march in London, United Kingdom, Feb. 17, 2024. Photo: Chrissa Giannakoudi via Reuters Connect
Israel’s National Security Council on Wednesday issued a travel warning to Israelis and Jews planning to travel for the Jewish Holiday Holidays next week, urging them to be vigilant amid a historic surge in antisemitism and mounting threats from terrorist groups.
“Ahead of the High Holidays, during which hundreds of thousands of Israelis are expected to travel abroad, we would like to increase public awareness to the various terrorist threats abroad and suggest that those traveling follow the recommendations published on the website of the National Security Council (NSC),” the government body said in a message posted to its website.
The NSC emphasized the “dangers” of sharing or posting on social media any information that could identify one as being a member of or active in Israel’s security forces.
“Sharing any such information increases the risk that the person who shared it or is depicted in it will be marked as a target for attack,” the statement said. “Therefore, we recommend to avoid posting any content in any format that indicates or refers to service in the security forces, military operations, or any similar content.”
The NSC also underscored the “possible danger of being lured and kidnapped,” urging caution when being engaged by a stranger, whether in person or online.
The posting also recommended that, due to “the real life-threatening danger facing Israelis in these places,” the Israeli public refrain from traveling to Iraq (including Iraqi Kurdistan), Yemen, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Somalia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Libya, Algeria, Jordan, Egypt (including the Sinai Peninsula), and Turkey.
Next week, Jews around the world will celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and then the following week will observe Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism known as the Day of Atonement. Together, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are known as the Jewish High Holidays.
Both holidays fall near the one-year anniversary of the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas’s Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel. During the onslaught, Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists murdered 1,200 people, wounded thousands more, and kidnapped over 250 hostages while perpetrating rampant sexual violence against the Israeli people. The brutal invasion was the largest single-day massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
Beyond launching the Israel-Hamas war, the Oct. 7 atrocities unleashed a historic surge in antisemitic incidents around the world, especially across the US and Europe. According to civil rights groups, several such outrages have been motivated by anti-Israel animus.
“We expect Oct. 7, 2024, (the one-year anniversary of the Swords of Iron War) to be a significant date for terrorist organizations (and in particular Hamas and Global Jihad factions). Around that time, efforts to carry out attacks against Israeli/Jewish targets abroad are expected to intensify, both in planned attacks and in local initiatives or lone-wolf attacks,” the NSC warned.
The NSC explained that since October, “a sharp increase has been identified in the motivation of terrorist groups and their efforts to carry out attacks against Israeli/Jewish targets around the world.”
The statement specifically noted Hamas’s efforts to attack Israelis and Jews abroad, as well as the threats and active terror plots from Iran and its chief proxy Lebanese Hezbollah, another Islamist terrorist group.
Islamic State (ISIS) has also encouraged its followers to carry out attacks in Europe in response to the war in Gaza, stressing the importance of plotting against Christian and Jewish targets, including synagogues.
“The growing threat and increase in terrorist activity against Israelis and Jews abroad is reflected in dozens of foiled attempted attacks targeting Israelis and Jews abroad (it has been made public that Iranian terrorist attacks against Israelis in Peru, France, Germany and Greece were thwarted) alongside several successful attacks, including those that took human life,” the NSC noted, citing specific examples such as arson against synagogues and the recent murder of four Israelis in Egypt.
Beyond terrorist groups, anti-Jewish hate crimes have spiked to record levels in several countries in Europe, North America, South America, and elsewhere.
“To conclude, the high motivation among terrorist organizations (Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, Global Jihad) alongside the anti-Israeli, anti-Jew hate-filled atmosphere in many countries since the beginning of the war, significantly increase the likelihood of lone-wolf assailants, grassroots organizations or organized terrorist groups carrying out attacks against Israelis/Jews abroad,” the NSC warned Israelis.
The post Israel’s National Security Council Issues Travel Warning Ahead of Jewish High Holidays Amid Terror Threats first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.