For months, residents of northern Israel have been grappling with deliberate GPS disruptions carried out by the Israeli military as part of the fighting in the region. But this morning, it appears these jamming efforts have now extended to the central part of the country.
The jamming comes just days after the Israeli-attributed assassination of an Iranian general, Mohammad Reza Zahedi, for which Tehran has vowed to take revenge. The Israeli military has yet to comment on the situation. However, these disruptions appear to be an extension of their ongoing GPS jamming operations in the north amid heightened conflict in that region.
Numerous drivers in the center reported that navigation apps like Waze were suddenly showing their locations in places they were definitely not - including as far away as Beirut, Lebanon. Other GPS-reliant services like the Wolt delivery platform also exhibited the same bizarre location errors, falsely placing couriers in areas like Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
The IDF has yet to comment on the situation. However, these disruptions appear to be an extension of their ongoing GPS jamming operations in the north amid heightened conflict in that region.
It was only in late December that Waze, in coordination with the Home Front Command, resumed showing traffic data for the first time since hostilities began. But the app still withholds comprehensive traffic maps in certain areas as part of security precautions.
The ramifications of the widening GPS blackouts remain unclear. Beyond the hassles for civilian drivers, there are potential safety concerns for emergency responders and commercial transit unable to reliably track locations. Delivery services have already reported major difficulties completing routes.
Waze also has not provided any official statement on the issue impacting its central Israeli user base. But images circulating online show unmistakable GPS deviations spanning the entire region.
