Flooding
Heavy rain Friday night and Saturday flooded parts of northern and central Israel. Kadima recorded 117 mm in 75 minutes, according to Israel Meteorological Service figures reported by N12.
Kadima-Tzoran residents were asked to stay home during drainage work. Vehicles were submerged in Even Yehuda, and firefighters rescued a woman and her dog from a flooded Jerusalem home. Weather damage disrupted electricity in Gan Yavne and nearby communities from Friday.
Israel RealTime’s Saturday report carried a forecast warning of coastal flooding and flash floods in Judean Desert and Dead Sea streams, with rain and isolated thunderstorms overnight from Saturday into Sunday in northern and central Israel and local rain in the northern Negev.
That forecast indicated a slight coastal flooding risk for Sunday morning. Rain was expected to weaken Sunday afternoon; Monday was forecast partly cloudy and cooler than seasonal averages.
Avoid flooded roads, streambeds and water crossings, and follow local authority instructions.
Rescue readiness and alerts
The Home Front Command’s Search and Rescue Brigade held its largest drill in five years Wednesday, the IDF said. Standing army and reserve forces practiced civilian rescue operations, responses across simultaneous fronts and cooperation with emergency services in the “Orange Dawn” exercise across Israel.
Sunday morning’s hostile aircraft infiltration alerts in Zar’it and Shomera resulted from a false identification.
The IDF Spokesperson announced a Be’eri siren test for Sunday, November 8, at 18:05. A real alert will be issued through the Home Front Command app and supplementary alert systems.
Operations in Judea and Samaria
The IDF reported November 7 that Duvdevan soldiers arrested three terrorists in raids on al-Am’ari Camp, a-Ram and al-Bireh near Ramallah. The Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) directed the operation and provided intelligence.
According to the IDF, those arrested were planning attacks and military activity against Israeli civilians and troops. They were transferred to the Shin Bet for questioning.
During operational activity in Qalqilya Saturday night, several terrorists threw stones at troops, the IDF Spokesperson said. Forces fired at one terrorist to remove the threat, and a hit was identified. No IDF casualties were reported.
Haredi enlistment
The IDF said 285 young ultra-Orthodox men enlisted over the past week in combat support roles. More draft days, including for combat units, are planned during the November-December enlistment period. The army pledged to expand Haredi integration while preserving recruits’ way of life.
Operation Kadesh archive
The Defense Ministry’s IDF Archive is launching a website marking 70 years since Operation Kadesh, the Sinai Campaign. The ministry calls it the war’s most comprehensive official website to date, with over 4,500 photographs, documents and maps, many previously unreleased.
New records include then-Prime Minister and Defense Minister David Ben-Gurion’s words on Gaza:
“We must take it […] If I believed in a miracle, I would want it to be swallowed up by the sea.”
On the next war, he warned:
“Tel Aviv will be bombed, Haifa will be bombed, and people will be killed. Not combatants, but women and children.”
Then-Defense Ministry Director General Shimon Peres wrote of Ben-Gurion’s outlook:
“Our victory in battle does not necessarily mean it is the last battle, but an Arab victory could be the final victory.”
Records cover preparations, political and military decisions, combat and its aftermath, Gaza and Rafah’s capture, an operation to rescue 65 Jews from Port Said, Air Force reviews and defense officials’ lessons. It profiles 149 commanders who began serving in the War of Independence and formed part of the IDF’s founding command cadre.
Official Hebrew archive.
