The inter-ethnic clashes within Israel during the Gaza operation known as Guardian of the Walls in 2021 "revealed major shortcomings in the Israel Police's conduct to the point that the individual security that every Israeli is entitled to was compromised," the State Comptroller said in a damning report on Wednesday. 

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The report notes that during the operation, the widespread riots within Israel's mixed cities were severe and led to the death of three civilians, as well as the wounding of hundreds of law enforcement officers. According to the statistics provided by the State Comptroller's Office, there were 520 instances of such clashes with a total of some 6,000 Israeli Arab rioters taking part overall. 

Some 3,000 arrests were made, including 240 Jews, the report said. The report further faults the Israel Police in such cities for not classifying violence by Arab rioters as terrorism in the years immediately preceding the events.

The report cites a lack of training and mismanaged resources. It also said the Israel Police failed to properly hold drills for the very scenarios that they envisioned, which were similar to what ultimately unfolded, and were lax in their tactical intelligence gathering operations. 

Another troubling finding suggests that the thousands of calls to the police emergency line in Lod — a hotspot during the operation that saw major clashes – were never addressed.

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The Israel Defense Forces and Israel Police will establish a special Border Police unit that will help tackle violence in mixed cities.

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The decision comes as part of lessons learned from May's conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip during which several cities in Israel were shook by riots of Arab residents, when police were overwhelmed and ill-equipped to deal with the violence.

Although the IDF regularly moved Border Police units from Judea and Samaria to the cities after the riots began, this was only a temporary solution.

Following Operation Guardian of the Walls, the IDF and the Israel Police worked to draw lessons from the conflict for the future. It was immediately decided to transfer command over Border Police units from the military to the police, as well as draw upon troops from the Home Front Command to replace police to secure IDF bases and convoys.

As for the new Border Police units, they will consist of reservists who until now mostly served in "regular" military units, usually in infantry or border defense.

The new unit will be jointly funded by the military and the police. The IDF will be responsible for recruiting and training the reservists, and the Israeli Police will authorize them as reservist Border Police officers.

The unit will participate in ongoing operational activities in Judea and Samaria and Jerusalem, and, if required, operate under the Israel Police for internal security missions, such as preventing violent riots in mixed cities.

"This is a solution that will benefit everyone," one senior official said. "The IDF will gain more skilled troops that can operate in Judea and Samaria and the police will gain more skilled troops that can assist in internal security."

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The reconstruction of homes in the Gaza Strip destroyed or damaged during Operation Guardian of the Walls in May will begin in the first week of October using aid from Qatar, a senior Gazan housing official said on Sunday.

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Gaza's Hamas-run government says that during the 11-day operation against Hamas terrorist infrastructure in Gaza, some 2,000 homes were destroyed by Israeli airstrikes and another 37,000 sustained damage.

The 4,400 rockets launched by Hamas and other Gaza-based terrorist groups caused massive damage to numerous Israeli homes, and also killed 11 Israeli civilians – including a 16-year-old girl and a five-year-old boy, and one IDF soldier. Two more civilians were killed while running for shelter. Some 680 of the rockets landed inside Gaza, causing damage and casualties.

Gaza's deputy minister for housing and public works, Naji Sarhan, said that the first phase of the reconstruction would rebuild some 1,800 of the damaged Gazan homes.

Sarhan said Israel had lifted some restrictions on steel and cement entering the territory in recent days. Last week, Egypt began repairing Gaza's main coastal road, part of a broader plan to revamp Gaza infrastructure.

Following the May 21 ceasefire, mediated by Egypt, access to reconstruction funds and materials has been a key Hamas demand. Following an agreement with the United Nations and Qatar, Israel allowed about $20 million in aid from the Gulf state to enter Gaza this month. That disbursement will be followed by $50 million of Qatari funds earmarked for rebuilding homes, Sarhan said.

Gaza officials estimate it will take $479 million to rebuild homes and infrastructure. Qatar and Egypt have each pledged $500 million for Gaza reconstruction.

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The 76th United Nations General Assembly entered its second day Wednesday, with the kings of Jordan and Saudi Arabia calling for a two-state solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

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In a pre-recorded speech, Jordan's King Abdullah II said that the latest 11-day conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip underscored that "the current situation is simply unsustainable."

"General security for both sides, indeed for the whole world, can only be ensured by a two-state solution," he said and called for the creation of a Palestinian state established on the 1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The Jordanian king also called for continued support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.

Similarly, Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz stressed in his pre-recorded speech Riyadh's longstanding position on Palestinian statehood.

"Peace in the Middle East is our strategic option," he said, emphasizing that it would include a solution to the Palestinian question and an Arab peace initiative that would guarantee Palestinians' rights to an independent state, also based on the 1967 lines and East Jerusalem as the capital.

Nevertheless, most of King Salman's speech focused on Saudi Arabia's rival, Iran. The leader said Riyadh supports efforts to prevent Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons, as world leaders prepare to resume talks with the ayatollah regime to reinstate the 2015 nuclear pact.

"The kingdom insists on the importance of keeping the Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction, on this basis we support international efforts aiming at preventing Iran from having nuclear weapons," King Salman said.

Iran and Saudi Arabia, leading Shiite and Sunni Muslim powers in the Middle East, have been rivals for years, backing allies fighting proxy wars in Yemen, Syria and elsewhere. They cut diplomatic ties in 2016, but have been holding talks this year aimed at reducing tensions.

"Iran is a neighboring country, and we hope that our initial talks with it will lead to concrete results to build confidence ... based on ... respect of sovereignty and non-interference in internal affairs," the Saudi king said.

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Top Hamas officials met with Taliban leaders several weeks ago to congratulate the radicals who were then rolling through Afghanistan, according to Palestinian media outlets affiliated with Hamas that released photos of the meeting this week.

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Hamas politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh and his deputy Saleh al-Arouri met with Taliban head Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and other senior officials. According to Palestinian sources privy to the matter, the meeting took place in the Qatari capital of Doha shorty after Operation Guardian of the Walls, the recent 11-day conflict between Israel and Hamas, in which the terrorist organization claimed victory.

In the meeting, Baradar reportedly praised Hamas and its leaders "for their steadfast opposition to the Zionist enemy and the long-awaited victory."

A senior Hamas official also said that, at the time, Hamas kept the meeting secret, but decided to confirm it after Taliban took over Kabul. Senior Hamas official Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook even sent Baradar an official letter, in which he congratulated the radicals on seizing the Afghani capital and vowed continued support from Hamas.

Meanwhile, tensions are on the rise between Israel and Hamas.

The Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese Al-Akhbar newspaper reported Tuesday that several days prior, the terrorist organization informed Egypt – which mediates the fragile seize fire between Israel and Hamas – that it was planning to gradually increase pressure on Israel unless it allowed Qatari aid to be transferred to the Gaza Strip in the form of cash.

The terrorist organization said it was considering marching with tens of thousands of Palestinians to the Israeli border, similarly to its infamous "March of Return," as well as send incendiary balloons into Israeli territory, burn tires and throw stones and Molotov cocktails at Israel Defense Forces soldiers.

Israel is concerned that the resumption of Qatari payments could enable the terror group to rebuild its military capabilities expended during the latest round of violence.

On Monday, Hamas launched a rocket into southern Israel for the first time since Operation Guardian of the Walls ended. Luckily, the Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted the rocket and no injuries were reported.

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In an unprecedented report, the Human Rights Watch accused Hamas Thursday of committing war crimes during an 11-day conflict with Israel in May by firing thousands of rockets toward populated areas in Isarel .

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The watchdog, which has a long-standing history of criticizing Israel, also concluded that a misfired rocket launched by Hamas killed seven Palestinians when it landed in the Gaza Strip.

The New York-based rights group has repeatedly come under fire by Israel and its supporters over reports accusing Israel of war crimes against the Palestinians as well as of "apartheid" and persecution. But in its latest report, it agreed with most legal experts – and Israel itself – that rocket fire from Palestinian population centers directed at Israeli civilian areas is a violation of international law.

"Palestinian armed groups during the May fighting flagrantly violated the laws-of-war prohibition on indiscriminate attacks by launching thousands of unguided rockets towards Israeli cities," said Eric Goldstein, acting executive director of the group's Middle East and North Africa division.

The watchdog based its conclusions on an investigation into Hamas rocket attacks that killed 12 civilians in Israel, including two children and one soldier.

The war erupted on May 10 after Hamas fired a barrage of rockets toward Israel in support of Palestinian protests at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the Sheikh Jarrah eviction dispute.

Israel has said it struck over 1,000 targets in the Gaza Strip during the fighting, while Hamas launched more than 4,300 rockets and mortar rounds at Israel, including barrages directed at major population centers around Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

"The rockets and mortars that Palestinian armed groups fired lack guidance systems and are prone to misfire, making them extremely inaccurate and thus inherently indiscriminate when directed toward areas with civilians," the report said. "Launching such rockets to attack civilian areas is a war crime."

Human Rights Watch concluded that a Hamas rocket fired on May 10 killed seven people, including two children, in the Gaza Strip city of Jabaliya. It said the number of Palestinians killed by errant Hamas fire might be higher.

"Munitions apparently directed toward Israel that misfired and fell short killed and injured an undetermined number of Palestinians in Gaza," the report said, adding that Hamas has not "provided information about how many rockets misfired or how many people died as a result in Gaza and there are no precise independent estimates."

The May conflict was the fourth war between Israel and Hamas since the terrorist group seized control of Gaza in 2007. Founded in the 1980s, the group rejects Israel's existence, is responsible for scores of deadly attacks on Israeli civilians and is considered a terrorist group by the United States, European Union and Israel.

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Maj. Gen. Herzl Halevi officially entered the role of IDF deputy chief of staff in a changing of the guard ceremony at Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv, Sunday.

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Among those in attendance at the ceremony were Defense Minister Benny Gantz, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi.

In his remarks at the ceremony, Gantz thanked both Halevi and Zamir.

He said: "Eyal, you represent the quiet and stately commandment and the professionalism alongside initiative and creativity. Together with the Homefront Command, you knew how to lead IDF operations in conjunction with decision-makers, with everyone knowing they had someone to rely on .…."

Turning to Halevi, Gantz said: "You are an officer of special operations who knows how to get down into the details, but as was proven in Operation Guardian of the Walls, a commander who also knows how to build a campaign, incorporating all the [military] arms and necessary abilities. Now, you have been tasked with continuing to build the IDF's power, advancing the multi-year plan [designed to increase the IDF's offensive and defensive capabilities sevenfold], and bolstering the power of the IDF as the people's army alongside the chief of staff."

Addressing the ceremony, Kochavi noted the role of IDF deputy chief of staff "has become more significant today, at a time when building up power is [a] multi-armed [effort]. Eyal, you have done an extraordinary job, a job that gave me a great deal of confidence. In operational activity and the aspects of power-building, in the concept of operating and implementing the Momentum multi-year plan, you brought vast experience, discretion, practicality, pragmatism, and above all, you brought many results. You were an extraordinary partner, and you did it with great elegance.

Turning to Halevi, Kochavi said: "We've known each other for many years. I'm very happy to receive you as my partner. I very much trust your wisdom, your operational experience, and your judgment, and I expect us to continue to implement the Momentum multi-year plan to make a better army that takes better care of its people."

In a speech at the event, Halevi expressed great appreciation for his predecessor, Maj. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who was also in attendance. He said he could "feel the responsibility that will be placed on my shoulders in a minute. I thank the defense minister and the chief of staff for their faith and for choosing me, and I commit to making every effort to act in every way for the IDF's success in its many missions and complex challenges."

Halevi said: "The IDF's role is not just preventing the destruction of our home but mainly preventing the creation of the conditions for a threat to the stability of the walls. There are threats, but there are robust walls that we will continue to bolster, and there is a home we will continue to nurture.

In his remarks, Zamir, who was retiring after 37 years of military service, turned to Kochavi and said: "You have led a vital and impressive process of change. [You were] The right commander, person, and leader at the right place and a time when the IDF needed a chief of staff like you.

Turning to his successor, Zamir said: "You are entering a significant and influential role. You are an experienced commander and a fine leader. You have proven this in all of your roles. I am convinced you will learn and mainly influence much as deputy chief of staff."

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Palestinian rioters once again took to the streets of Jerusalem's Shimon HaTzadik neighborhood (also known as Sheikh Jarrah) on Tuesday.

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Arab residents of the area accosted two members of the right-wing Religious Zionist Party – Bezalel Smotrich and Orit Strook – who came to visit the neighborhood.

Footage shows one Arab man scream at Smotrich, "Get out of here, son of a b****. You are garbage, there is nothing for you to do here. You cockroach, get out of here."

Eventually, two police officers, who were nearby, intervened and dispersed the growing crowd.

In May, Palestinians used contested homes in Sheikh Jarrah as the pretext to launch hostilities against Israel. This led to 11 days of war between Hamas and Israel, as well as to a series of violent clashes between Arab Israelis and the police.

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An egregious incident occurred during Operation Guardian of the Walls, the IDF said on Friday morning. During the 11-day military operation against terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip last month, one Palestinian was wounded when a soldier opened machine-gun fire from a tank at three innocent bystanders near the border.

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According to the IDF's internal investigation, the shooting occurred in contravention of the rules of engagement and directives. Consequently, GOC Southern Command Maj. Gen. Eliezer Toledano, together with GOC Northern Command Maj. Gen. Amir Baram, decided to institute the following punitive measures:

The platoon commander who ordered the shooting will be dismissed from the IDF; proceedings will be launched to discharge the artillery corps gunner who fired the weapon; and the company commander in charge of the sector in question will be reprimanded.

Meanwhile, the Military Police Criminal Investigative Division has also launched an investigation and will deliver its findings to the Military Advocate General. At this stage, the army was investigating whether the soldier fired at three Palestinian farmers near the border and whether the purpose of the shooting was to distance them from the border. It wasn't known if the Palestinian who was shot died of his wounds.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi, who received the internal inquiry on Thursday, said: "This is a grave incident that does not coincide with the IDF's ethics. The IDF will continue to ensure that it operates in a professional and ethical manner, investigate its actions meticulously, and learn the appropriate lessons."

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Israelis' level of psychological resilience was the lowest measured in the last two years, and significantly lower than what it was at the height of the COVID crisis in Israel, new research from Tel Aviv University and Tel-Hai College indicates.

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The research looked into the level of psychological resilience and social cohesion of the Israeli population and found that respondents' level of resilience had been dropping since the COVID pandemic, and saw a significant drop during Operation Guardian of the Walls last month.

For the purposes of the study, psychological resilience is measured from 1 (lowest) to 5 (strongest). In 2018, the Israeli population's average level of resilience stood at 4.33. When the second COVID wave was at its height in October 2020, the average level of resilience stood at 3.41; and during Operation Guardian of the Walls it dropped to 2.47.

The research included approximately 650 participants.

According to Professor Shaul Kimhi and Dr. Bruria Adini, respectively from the psychology and emergency management departments at Tel-Hai College and two of the team of researchers, the current resilience crisis came on the heels of the COVID pandemic, which included a number of simultaneous threats.

Kimhi and Adini said that the trend of lowered resilience should "concern us all" and be taken into account by decision-makers when they formulate policies to respond to future crises.

Should the drop in psychological resilience continue, they warned, it could "seriously damage Israeli society's ability to recover and return to normal life."

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