December 2025 hearings addressed Sports Driving Law violations, with the Director of the Sports Driving Authority issuing decisions on offenses committed under.
In December 2025, the Sports Driving Authority held hearings on offenses committed in violation of the Sports Driving Law, 5766 – 2005.
Below is a summary of the events and the decisions of the Director of the Sports Driving Authority regarding them.
Real-time breaking news coverage from Israel and the Middle East. Stay informed with the latest developments as they happen.
Israel's Electricity Authority recommends a new goal of 35% renewable energy by 2035, requiring 22 GW installed capacity, a substantial increase from current.
The demand for electricity is growing due to natural growth and the electrification of the transportation and industrial sectors, as is the demand for clean electricity to reduce emissions. The Electricity Authority has been working over the past decade to promote Renewable energy through various technologies, primarily solar energy combined with energy storage facilities, while creating regulations that incentivize their establishment (urban premium, fast tracks, rooftops, etc.).
The significance of increasing the target to 35% by 2035 is an installed capacity of approximately 22 GW, while currently the installed capacity stands at about 8 GW. The Authority’s recommendation means installing about 1.4 GW per year compared to an average of 0.9 GW in recent years, which necessitates increasing government efforts to enhance the chances of meeting the target.
The Authority recommends realizing the target in a ground-oriented and agro-voltaic scenario, where the economic benefit is significantly higher than in a rooftop-oriented scenario. It should be noted that even in the ground-oriented and agro-voltaic scenario, about one-third of the facility capacity will be on rooftops.
Increasing the target is expected to increase the economic benefit by approximately NIS 6 billion, factoring in the full external costs of the Green Book and an additional tariff cost of about NIS 2.05 billion, so that the total excess cost of renewable energy generation will not exceed 10% of the electricity tariff in 2030 and 8% in 2035.
The economic benefit of a 40% target was found to be higher by about NIS 1.5 billion, although it means doubling the current installation rate. Therefore, the Authority requests public input on the feasibility of meeting the 40% target by 2035. In any case, the Authority recommends that if 2 GW (the annual volume required to meet the 40% target in the next 10 years) are connected per year for two consecutive years until 2030, the target will automatically increase to 40%.
Increasing the renewable energy target to more than one-third of electricity generation in Israel is a weighty decision with far-reaching implications within and outside the electricity economy. Therefore, increasing the target must be a national mission with the commitment and involvement of the entire economy. The main resources should be directed to a special effort in two strategically important components: developing the electricity grid’s capability and significant integration of agro-voltaic facilities, which are a necessary condition for meeting renewable energy targets.
The Authority views the 35% target as ambitious yet realistic, considering the unique characteristics of the State of Israel, taking into account the expected growth in electricity demand, the proven rate of renewable energy facility penetration in recent years, the existing shortage of land and grid resources, and the limitations arising from Israel’s limited energy mix. This target allows for significant progress towards national climate goals while maintaining system stability and tariff accessibility for consumers.
The public review document is published on the Authority’s website for public submissions until February 19, 2026, and will be brought for a decision to the members of the Electricity Authority plenum according to the plenum’s schedule. The public is invited to send comments through the Electricity Authority’s website.
Israel Prize awarded to Dr. Bar-Matthews in Earth Sciences for pioneering paleoclimate research from caves. Her work is a globally influential scientific.
The award committee convened under the chairmanship of Prof. Nurit Shuv-Zisso and with the participation of members Prof. Sigal Abramovich and Dr. Naomi Porat.
The award committee stated in its reasoning that the award is granted to Dr. Bar-Matthews for her exceptional, groundbreaking, and globally influential scientific contribution in the field of paleoclimate research from caves, and for her many years of contribution to science and society in Israel. According to them, Dr. Bar-Matthews is one of the world’s leading researchers in establishing cave sediments as an accurate, continuous, and high-resolution terrestrial climate archive, which serves as a central basis for understanding past climate changes.
The committee also noted that in pioneering and ongoing research in Soreq Cave, Dr. Bar-Matthews led to an unprecedented reconstruction of the climate in the Eastern Mediterranean over the last approximately 500,000 years. Her work created a unique climate database that became the “Rosetta Stone” of regional and global climate research, and influenced many fields including Earth sciences, water resource management, archaeology, and human studies.
Her research has positioned the Eastern Mediterranean as a natural laboratory for understanding the relationship between climate, environment, and humans, and has become an international methodological standard.
The Israel Prize is the most important and prestigious award given in the State of Israel. The awards will be presented on the eve of Israel’s 78th Independence Day.
Jerusalem mall owner Einad Abu Ramila is under investigation for allegedly hiding NIS 2 million in rental income from apartments and shops over 10 years.
The Tax Authority, through the Jerusalem and Southern Investigations Tax Assessor, is conducting an investigation against Einad Abu Ramila, a renovation contractor and business owner in East Jerusalem, suspected of not fully reporting his income to the tax authorities.
The arrest request reveals that the suspect owns a building with 10 residential apartments for rent located in the Old City of Jerusalem, and additionally possesses 6 shops located in the Hador Mall in the Talpiot neighborhood. As part of the investigation, testimonies were taken from the tenants of the apartments and shops, from which it emerged that the suspect receives rental payments in cash and does not issue invoices and receipts to the tenants, in order to avoid reporting to the tax authorities. Furthermore, from the testimony of his lawyer, it emerged that the suspect did not report income from renting residential apartments at all, only income from one business which he did report.
Yesterday, the investigation concerning the suspect became public, and searches were conducted and documents and computer materials were seized from the suspect’s home and business.
The investigation findings indicate that the suspect did not report his full income from renting apartments and commercial properties for a period of 10 years (2016 – 2026) amounting to approximately 2 million [currency not specified].
The suspect was brought before the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court today and released under restrictive conditions. The investigation is ongoing.
Israel's Defense Ministry approved four new pre-military schools, set to open September 1, to foster leadership and resilience in youth nationwide.
Jerusalem, 20 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israel’s Defense Ministry approved four new pre-military preparatory schools, set to open on September 1.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said the schools “shape a generation of young men and women imbued with mission, responsibility, and leadership” and “strengthen not only the defense and settlement system—but also the social and moral resilience of the country.”
The approved schools target a mixture of religious and secular youth, and include locations in Ashdod, the Jordan Valley community of Gitit, and the Gaza-border communities of Evim and Mivtahim.
Currently, 5,000 students trainees study annually across 64 pre-military schools nationwide.
Israeli delegation heads to Cyprus to finalize Aphrodite-Ishai natural gas agreement, bolstering Israel's regional energy status and economic growth.
Jerusalem, 20 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — A professional delegation from Israel’s Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure is set to depart for Cyprus to advance the Aphrodite-Ishai natural gas agreement. The team, including representatives from the Finance and Justice ministries, will continue negotiations to formalize previous agreements on the joint reservoir.
Minister Eli Cohen said, “Natural gas is a strategic asset of Israel, strengthening our status as a regional energy powerhouse. We will continue developing additional reservoirs to boost production, exports, and the Israeli economy.”
The deal is expected to deepen energy cooperation with Cyprus, facilitate potential gas exports to Egypt, and support other regional projects, including a planned Israel-Cyprus electricity cable.
Israel's Tax Authority publishes 207 financial sanctions decisions totaling over 2.3M NIS for 2024 reporting violations on fund imports/exports.
The Tax Authority is publishing the decisions of the Committee for Imposing Financial Sanctions on Reporting Violators, who failed to report to customs on the import and export of funds to and from Israel in 2024. The publication contains 207 decisions, for which the total financial sanction amounts to over 2.3 million NIS. 45% of the violations were committed at the Jordan River crossing, 25% at Ben Gurion Airport, and 30% at the Begin crossing.
According to the Prohibition of Money Laundering Law, there is a reporting obligation for the import or export of funds to or from the State of Israel in an amount exceeding 50,000 NIS at air and sea border crossings, and 12,000 NIS at land border crossings. Transferring funds through border crossings is one of the most recognized and sensitive operational patterns in the field of money laundering, as it is a convenient way to transfer cash without documentation and traceability.
Among the decisions in this file:
Decisions of the Committee for Imposing Financial Sanctions – 2024
Israel's Energy Ministry delegation heads to Cyprus for Aphrodite-Yishai natural gas deal. Minister Eli Cohen hails it as a strategic step to strengthen.
Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, Eli Cohen: “The delegation’s departure is an important step towards the development of the Aphrodite-Yishai field, following my meetings with the Cypriot Minister of Energy, Yiannis. Natural gas is a strategic asset of Israel, strengthening our position as a regional energy power, and we will continue to work to find and develop additional fields, which will increase natural gas production for the domestic market and for export, and will strengthen the Israeli economy.”
Continued efforts to advance the agreement for the development of the natural gas field jointly owned by Israel and Cyprus: A professional delegation from the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, in cooperation with representatives from the Ministry of Justice, will depart for Cyprus this evening, in order to continue negotiations for the implementation of the fundamental understandings regarding the Aphrodite-Yishai natural gas field, and to codify them in an intergovernmental agreement.
As part of these understandings, the development of the field will be carried out by the rights holders on the Cypriot side, while the holders of the Yishai concession and the State of Israel will receive compensation for their share in the field, which will be determined by an international expert.
The delegation’s departure constitutes a continuation of the diplomatic and professional contacts between the countries, and follows the meeting between the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, Eli Cohen, and his Cypriot counterpart, Yiannis, which took place in jerusalem last month.
The agreement is important for strengthening the ties between the countries with a shared vision for the development of common natural resources. Reaching understandings is expected to strengthen energy cooperation between the countries and Israel‘s position in the regional arena, and may even contribute to the ability to export gas from Cyprus to Egypt. In addition, reaching an agreement is expected to allow progress on additional issues, such as the planned electricity cable between Israel and Cyprus.
Israel's Housing Minister and Urban Renewal Authority head met developers on urban renewal, discussing tenant issues, costs, and regulatory solutions to.
Minister of Construction and Housing, Chaim Ketz, and Director General of the Ministry of Construction and Housing and the Authority, and Acting Director General of the National Urban Renewal Authority, Yehuda Morgenstern, held a roundtable discussion last weekend with leading entrepreneurs that dealt with the challenges of implementing urban renewal projects and ways to remove obstacles hindering their progress.
During the discussion, an open and in-depth dialogue took place, during which the entrepreneurs pointed out key obstacles hindering project implementation, including: the issue of the uncooperative tenant, lack of economic feasibility due to land values, high execution costs, the impact of interest rate environment, the involvement of Israel Land Authority in some projects, difficulties in development agreements, the method of collecting betterment levies, and general price increases in the industry. Alongside this, proposals for possible regulatory and planning solutions were presented.
Minister Chaim Ketz emphasized the need to accelerate the pace of execution on the ground, increase the supply of housing units, and remove regulatory and planning obstacles, and instructed the professional staff to examine feasible solutions within the responsibility of the ministry and the Urban Renewal Authority in particular, and with other planning bodies in general.
Director General of the Ministry of Construction and Housing and Acting Head of the National Urban Renewal Authority, Yehuda Morgenstern, noted that there are over 100,000 housing units in approved plans that have not yet been realized into building permits, mainly in the center of the country, due to damage to economic feasibility in light of rising construction costs.
In conclusion of the discussion, Morgenstern emphasized that the state, led by the Ministry of Construction and Housing, must act to promote legislative amendments and complementary tools, including examining more profitable standards in cooperation with the Government Appraiser, and noted that close cooperation between the public and private sectors is key to the success of urban renewal in Israel.
Petah Tikva approves 11,000 new housing units through an urban renewal program, enhancing earthquake resistance and city infrastructure on main streets.
The program, initiated by the Urban Renewal Authority and the Petah Tikva Municipality, covers a significant portion of the city area in Petah Tikva and applies to buildings requiring reinforcement against earthquakes. The program outlines a controlled process and enables gradual renewal of the built fabric in the city through reinforcement and additional construction, or through demolition and reconstruction.
The program is promoted under Section 23 of TAMA 38 and sets the conditions for building renewal in the city. Furthermore, the program defines building rights within the various mechanisms stipulated therein, according to the renewal zones it defines: Metropolitan Main Street, Urban Main Street, and Citywide B and C.
The city currently has approximately 2,500 buildings requiring reinforcement, comprising about 35,000 housing units. Accordingly, the full potential of housing units that can be realized from this program, should all buildings be renewed according to the maximum scenario, encompasses tens of thousands of housing units. The program’s target is approximately 11,000 new housing units, subject to the required public space capacity.
The program establishes mechanisms for adding active frontages, including commercial or public spaces on the city’s main streets, as well as new pedestrian passage routes through public easement mechanisms.
Chairman of the Central District Committee, Adv. Micha Gadron: “Petah Tikva joins a list of cities such as Lod, Kfar Saba, Ra’anana, and Ramla, where similar programs have been approved. The program replaces TAMA 38 and will provide a solution for buildings requiring reinforcement against earthquakes that are not included in complex urban renewal projects.”
Central District Planner at the Planning Administration, Talila Harel: “This is a significant program for urban renewal in Petah Tikva, a program that improves building renewal possibilities by adapting construction regulations to the urban character, allowing for the allocation of built public spaces, establishing active frontages, and new passage routes for improving pedestrian accessibility.”
Director of the Planning Department at the National Urban Renewal Authority, Guri Nadler, noted that: “The Petah Tikva Municipality has been promoting urban renewal on a large scale in recent years, and the program approved today creates an additional and significant tool for promoting renewal in the city. The program is adapted to the city’s various areas, prioritizes renewal in complexes, and creates significant certainty for promoting building permits for renewal at the single plot level.”
The program was prepared by Mazor Firsht Architects and Urban Planners.
Four brothers accused of evading NIS 1.8 million in capital gains tax by submitting fake property declarations to the Land Appreciation Tax Authority in.
The tax authority – through the Investigation Officer of Haifa and the North, is conducting an investigation against four suspects, brothers from the Khalil family, suspected of making a false declaration to the Land Appreciation Tax Authority in Nazareth regarding the sale of apartments in their name, thereby evading capital gains tax totaling over 1.8 million ₪. Concurrently, an investigation is underway against the buyers, two brothers from the Kahili family, suspected of submitting a false declaration to the Land Appreciation Tax Authority in Nazareth regarding the purchase of the apartments, thereby evading acquisition tax totaling 400,000 ₪.
In August 2023, the four suspect sellers, through their lawyer, submitted an online declaration stating that they sold an entire 5-story building including 4 apartments for a total value of 6 million ₪. Each of the suspects declared the sale of one apartment in the building and attached a request for exemption from capital gains tax. Accordingly, the two suspect buyers also submitted a false declaration based on these figures.
From the findings of the investigation and the audit conducted by employees of the Land Appreciation Tax Authority in Nazareth, the building being sold includes 8 apartments and not 4 as declared by the suspects. Additionally, it was found that the estimated value of each of the 8 apartments sold is 1.375 million ₪, totaling 11 million ₪ and not 6 million ₪ as declared by the suspects. Furthermore, it was found that the suspect sellers do not meet the conditions for exemption from capital gains tax because two of the suspects own an additional apartment, and regarding the other two suspects, it was found that they were not the owners of the property for 18 months.
From the investigation findings, it appears that the suspect sellers evaded capital gains tax totaling 1,888,708 ₪. Additionally, the arrest request indicates that the suspect buyers evaded acquisition tax totaling 400,000 ₪ and assisted the sellers in evading capital gains tax.
The six suspects were brought before the Magistrate’s Court in Haifa and were released under restrictive conditions. The investigation is ongoing.
