The Times of Israel is liveblogging Wednesday’s events as they happen.
Foreign Ministry announces Israeli man killed in Romania ATV crash
The Foreign Ministry announces an Israeli man was killed in an ATV crash in Romania.
The ministry says diplomats are in touch with the family of the man, who is not immediately named, following the deadly incident in the town of Sinaia, and that it’s helping to repatriate his body for burial.
US general tasked with enforcing Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire praises work of Lebanese army
The US military general leading the committee tasked with enforcing the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah hails the efforts of the Lebanese Armed Forces in implementing the early stages of the agreement following a visit to one of the LAF’s bases in southern Lebanon.
US Major General Jasper Jeffers and French Brigadier General Guillaume Ponchin visited the LAF’s 5th Brigade headquarters, which is located five kilometers northeast of Naqoura — one of the two towns from which Israeli forces have withdrawn as part of the ceasefire.
“As part of the Mechanism-enabled transition, the LAF immediately deployed forces to the area to clear roads, remove unauthorized munitions, and provide security for the people of Lebanon,” a statement from the US Embassy in Beirut says.
“Jeffers and Ponchin viewed stockpiles of weapons to be destroyed in the coming days, which the LAF seized from unauthorized armed groups,” the US readout reveals.
“The LAF is the legitimate security provider for Lebanon and continues to demonstrate to me and the rest of the Mechanism it has the capability, intent, and leadership to secure and defend Lebanon. They have acted decisively, rapidly, and with clear expertise. Today, we saw an example of this with the soldiers of the 5th Brigade. The engineer corps in particular is full of true professionals, removing and rendering safe hundreds of pieces of unexploded ordnance every week,” Jeffers says in his own statement.
U.S. Major General Jasper Jeffers, the Co-Chairman of the Cessation of Hostilities Implementation Mechanism, and French Brigadier General Guillaume Ponchin visited the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) 5th Brigade headquarters in southwest Lebanon, Jan. 7. Generals Jeffers and Ponchin… pic.twitter.com/btcsJUWeS9
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) January 7, 2025
US antisemitism envoy to visit Israel later this week
The Biden administration’s antisemitism envoy Deborah Lipstadt will be in Israel on Wednesday and Thursday, where she will meet with President Isaac Herzog, along with diplomats from the Foreign Ministry, the State Department says.
The visit, Lipstadt’s fourth to Israel and fifth to the Middle East and North Africa, marks her final overseas visit as special envoy.
US shifting some military aid from Egypt to Lebanon as Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire holds
US President Joe Biden’s administration will divert $95 million in military aid allocated for Egypt to Lebanon, which faces threats from Hezbollah and other non-state actors, and while a shaky ceasefire with Israel holds, according to a document seen by Reuters.
The State Department notification to Congress of the planned shift calls the Lebanese armed forces “a key partner” in upholding the November 27, 2024, Israel-Lebanon agreement to cease hostilities and to prevent the Hezbollah terror group from threatening Israel.
The move comes after some of Biden’s fellow Democrats in Congress expressed deep concerns about Egypt’s human rights record, particularly the arrests of thousands of political prisoners.
In response to questions about the reprogrammed funding, a State Department spokesperson says the department is still moving forward with foreign military financing for Egypt and said the assessment that Cairo had made progress on political prisoners has not changed.
The Egyptian embassy in Washington does not respond to a request for comment.