Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks with Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich during the weekly cabinet meeting at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, Israel, January 7, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun/Pool

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and senior ministry officials will present Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later on Sunday with the state budget and planned structural reforms for 2026, Smotrich’s office said.

“The Finance Minister will present to the Prime Minister the necessary measures to ensure continued economic growth and to combat the high cost of living,” it said.

It added that cabinet ministers would vote on the budget on Dec. 4 but it is unlikely the budget would be approved by year end.

According to Israeli law, the budget must be approved by parliament by the end of March or new elections are triggered.

Its final approval faces an uphill battle that could ultimately lead to new elections.

The government has splintered in the past two years over the Gaza war, the ceasefire which has halted it and demands by ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties to exempt Jewish seminary students from mandatory military service.

Palestinian women look out of a window near the site of Saturday’s Israeli strike in the Central Gaza Strip, November 23, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa/File Photo

A senior Hamas delegation met Egypt’s intelligence chief in Cairo on Sunday to discuss the ceasefire agreement and the situation in Gaza, the group said, as both Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group continue to trade accusations of truce violations.

Egypt, Qatar and the US have been mediating between Hamas and Israel, securing the ceasefire that came into effect last month.

In a statement, the group said it reaffirmed its commitment to implementing the first phase of the ceasefire agreement in its meeting with Egypt’s intelligence chief, but accused Israel of “continued violations” that it said threatened to undermine the deal.

Hamas, whose delegation included its exiled Gaza chief Khalil Al-Hayya, called for a “clear and defined mechanism” under the supervision of mediators to document and halt any breaches of the deal.

The movement said it also discussed with Egypt ways to urgently resolve the issue of Hamas members in Rafah tunnels, adding that communication with them had been cut off.

Reuters reported earlier this month that mediators were trying to address the fate of a group of Hamas fighters holed up in tunnel networks in Israeli-controlled areas of Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said the country’s military killed five senior Hamas members on Saturday after a fighter was sent into Israeli-controlled Gaza territory to attack Israeli soldiers there.

The clock tower at Cornell University. Photo: Clarice Oliveira.

i24 News – An explosive report from the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy (ISGAP), cited by the New York Post, claims that Qatar has invested roughly $20 billion in American schools and universities as part of a strategy to promote Islamist ideologies.

ISGAP says the funding aligns with the objectives of the Muslim Brotherhood and represents a deliberate influence campaign on U.S. campuses.

According to Dr. Charles Asher Small, executive director of ISGAP, the Qatari ruling family maintains close ideological ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and leverages its financial resources to promote their worldview.

The report notes that much of this support flows through the Qatar Foundation, which funds universities, schools, and cultural institutions across the United States.

Cornell University is highlighted as a major recipient, reportedly receiving nearly $10 billion. The institution has recently faced controversy over its handling of antisemitic incidents following the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, including the arrest of a student for making death threats against Jews and the suspension of a history professor who described the Hamas attack as “exhilarating” during an anti-Israel rally.

In November, Cornell announced an agreement with the Trump administration to retain over $250 million in federal funding, effectively ending several investigations into allegations of racial discrimination and antisemitism.