Minister Regev: “Paving the Afula Bypass will relieve the city of traffic jams, improve safety, and provide residents with a new, safe, and accessible lifeline.”

The Ministry of Transportation and Road Safety and the Ministry of Finance have approved a significant budget addition of 10 million shekels for 2025 for the Eastern Afula Bypass project. With the approval of the additional budget, the total government participation in the project, carried out through Netivei Israel, stands at approximately 351 million shekels.

The approved budget is intended for the completion of the project’s planning, which includes the traffic light at the junction – an essential engineering and safety measure that will allow, among other things, a regulated exit from the neighborhood towards the center of the country.

The Eastern Afula Bypass is a large-scale national infrastructure project, representing a crucial step towards removing transportation “bottlenecks” that limit the development of the entire region. The initiative aims to create a strategic transportation artery that will enable controlled diversion of heavy traffic and intercity traffic flows from Afula’s residential and business center to a modern, high-engineering-standard route. 

The bypass road is expected to bring immediate relief to traffic congestion, improve road safety, and strengthen the full connectivity between northern settlements and the national rail and road network.

Minister of Transportation and Road Safety, Maj. Gen. (Res.) Miri Regev: “We continue to renew and strengthen Israel’s infrastructureas part of the ‘Connecting Israel’ vision we have been leading in recent years. Paving the Afula Bypass is a strategic breakthrough that reflects responsible policy of developing advanced infrastructure throughout the country. This is a project that shortens distances, strengthens the periphery, and provides the residents of the valley with a strong, stable, and connected transportation system that will serve future generations.”

Director General of the Ministry of Transportation and Road Safety, Moshe Ben Zaken: “The budget approval is a vital component in the national effort to strengthen transportation continuity in the north. This is professional management that translates vision into precise execution on the ground, including the regulation of junctions and access to neighborhoods, with full cooperation from all parties to meet national goals. Israeli citizens and the residents of Afula deserve to enjoy strong and efficient infrastructure, and this is the commitment of the Ministry of Transportation under the leadership of Minister Regev.”

Mayor of Afula, Avi Elkabetz: “Thank you very much to Transportation Minister Miri Regev and Netivei Israel CEO Nissim Peretz for the cooperation with the Afula Municipality and the budget approval. For many years, Road 65 caused traffic congestion at the entrances and roads within the city. Since the opening of the new road and interchange about a year ago, city residents and visitors have felt the relief in congestion. The budget, now approved, for the establishment of a traffic-lighted junction connecting to the ‘Afula HaYeruka’ neighborhood will also ease the city’s residents’ exit towards Tel Aviv and the central region, and will effectively serve as an additional component in improving accessibility to and from the city.”

Jerusalem, 12 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — President Isaac Herzog met with Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu in Jerusalem, on Monday, where they discussed the implementation of U.S. President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza.

Herzog called for the urgent return of the last hostage held in Gaza, Police Staff Sgt. Ran Gvili, and stressed the need for regional stability and disarming Hamas.

The two also discussed advancing bilateral cooperation in technology, science, security, and tourism.

Jerusalem, 12 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israeli security forces have arrested the suspect in a Palestinian shooting attack that wounded a soldier during a counterterror operation Shechem (Nablus).

The suspect, identified as Hamas operative Zaid Haraz, was arrested on Monday morning following a day-long manhunt. Additional suspects who assisted Haraz’s escape were also detained.

Jerusalem, 12 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israeli defense company Elbit Systems has secured contracts worth approximately $275 million to equip an Asia-Pacific country’s helicopters with advanced electronic warfare (EW) and missile-defense systems. Over five years, Elbit will supply its integrated EW suite and Mini-MUSIC Direct Infra-Red Counter-Measure (DIRCM) system, designed to detect and disrupt incoming missiles, enhancing aircraft survivability and mission effectiveness.

Bezhalel Machlis, Elbit’s CEO, said the deals reflect growing regional trust in Israel’s combat-proven defense technologies.

Over the weekend and in recent days, Rotem District police officers, in cooperation with the Matpa unit, led an operational activity in several complexes and neighborhoods of feuding families. 

In the town of Ar’ara BaNegev, forces from the Ar’ara station and the Matpa unit operated and conducted searches for weapons. At the end of the operation, four M-16 rifles, combat equipment, and ammunition were located.

Over the weekend, a report was received about a shooting incident in the area of the old cemetery in Abu Asaa settlement. Police officers from the Tel Sheva municipal policing unit conducted searches and located a suspect holding a hunting rifle. The suspect was arrested and transferred for investigation at the Ayarot station.

In another operation by Beer Sheva station police officers, in cooperation with the Shahar 101 unit and the Southern District dog handlers, a weapons search was conducted in the town of Tel Sheva. A suspect was arrested holding an M-16 rifle and ammunition.

In parallel, a combined economic activity took place as part of the “Manifa” operations, in conjunction with civilian enforcement agencies, during which dozens of vehicles were taken off the road, fines totaling tens of thousands of shekels were issued to debtors, and vehicles were seized for debts amounting to hundreds of thousands of shekels.

Jerusalem, 12 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Arab media reports say Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has been hospitalized in Ramallah. The 90-year-old Abbas is in the 21st year of a four-year term.

The suspect, Zaid Kharaz, is a terrorist from the Hamas terror organization. His location and swift arrest were made possible through intelligence guidance and the deployment of various IDF and Shin Bet assets in the area. Additionally, forces apprehended additional suspects who aided the terrorist in escaping. The arrested suspects were transferred for further investigation by the Shin Bet. Security forces will continue to operate with determination to thwart terror and protect the security of the residents of Judea and Samaria.

The Tax Authority announces that the total levies collected by 31/12/2025 for oil profits and excess profits from natural resources amounted to NIS 8.8 billion, of which NIS 7.3 billion are final levies. In total, approximately NIS 1.3 billion were collected in 2025, compared to approximately NIS 1 billion in 2024. Approximately NIS 1.2 billion became final, compared to NIS 1.4 billion in 2024.

Non-final levies are levies collected as advances or as withholding tax during the tax year, and their collection is not yet final. After the end of the tax year, according to the amount of the levy calculated in the annual report submitted, the levy will become final, in whole or in part. Final levies are levies collected according to annual reports submitted by the owners of oil and natural resource rights, as well as levies collected following a final assessment.

The Tax Authority transfers the collected levy funds (final and non-final) to the Accountant General at the Ministry of Finance on a quarterly basis. The Accountant General manages the non-final levies in a fund for an interim period until they become final, and transfers the final levies, along with investment profits (or net of losses), to the State of Israel Fund on a quarterly basis, after they have been converted to a foreign currency amount.

The levies for excess profits from oil and natural resources are collected in accordance with the Natural Resources Profits Taxation Law. According to this law, the funds received from the levies will be managed in accordance with the provisions of the State of Israel Fund Law. The purpose of the fund is to manage the state’s revenues from levies on profits from natural resources with a long-term economic perspective to maximize profit and to ensure the continued existence of the fund for future generations. In addition to the levies on oil profits and excess profits from natural resources designated for the State of Israel Fund, oil rights holders and natural resource utilization rights holders also pay income tax and royalties, which enter the state budget on an ongoing basis.

Data by Year:

Data by Quarter for 2025:

The Ministerial Committee for Legislation approved the banking services competition reform, which aims to increase competition in the banking system and lower Interest Rates for small and medium-sized businesses as well as households. The reform, led by the Ministry of Finance, will improve credit conditions and financial services and is a central component in the fight against the high Cost of Living.

The reform will enable several dramatic steps:

– Competition in Deposits: The entry of new entities that can become banks and offer the public higher interest rates on deposits and on current account funds.
– Credit Easing for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses and Households: Encouraging the establishment of new banks that will specialize in credit for small and medium-sized businesses and households, and will offer credit at lower interest rates.
– Dual Solution: Encouraging the establishment of new banks that can compete with existing banks by offering deposits to the public, and can also provide cheaper credit based on those deposits. Thus, the reform is both a central component in the fight against the high Cost of Living, and will help small and medium-sized businesses operate and grow through cheaper and more convenient financing. 

In fact, the reform will allow the entry of new banking players from Israel and abroad, who will bring with them competition that will lower the cost of money for businesses, households, and the economy as a whole, as well as financial innovation, advanced products, and diverse offerings, while improving service quality and its adaptation to public needs.

The Ministerial Committee for Legislative Amendments approved the advancement of the law following the government’s decision to adopt it as part of the Arrangements Law. Legislative proceedings will begin with the expected submission of the state budget to the Knesset this week.