How is it possible that Israel can shoot an intercontinental ballistic missile in outer space, blow the pants off of 3,000 terrorists with their beepers, but for some reason can't figure out how to solve housing?People are shocked to hear there are 85,000 units on the housing market (3 years of supply) because the media, the agents and the streets all say there is a shortage and you'd better grab a house while you still can. This analysis by JP Katz takes a closer look at the stats and facts and systemic factors that drive the real housing crisis which is a severe shortage of affordable housing for the working class, housing which ordinary people can afford.Sign the petition:https://www.tribejournal.org/housing-...Fill out the survey:http://tribejournal.org/israel-housin...Susbscribe to the TRIBE: www.tribejournal.org/subscribe

This discussion is produced by TRIBEJOURNAL.ORG and is based on a 2026 report by REGAVIM.ORG entitled, "Writing on the Walls of Jericho" which can be downloaded from our website here:https://www.tribejournal.org/post/palestinian-army-or-police-forceIs the Palestinian Authority building and training a military combat force for the next Oct. 7 style attack?The Conceptual Collapse: A Summary of “The Writing on the Wall (of Jericho)”The Regavim Movement's report, "The Writing on the Wall (of Jericho)," asserts that the Palestinian Authority Security Forces (PASF) have dangerously transformed from a civilian police force into a heavily armed, semi-regular military organization that actively supports terrorism. Established in the 1990s under the Oslo and Cairo agreements, the PASF was initially capped at 9,000 personnel and restricted to using light arms. Although this staffing cap was later revised to 30,000, the Palestinian Authority systematically exceeded both its personnel and armament limits. The report argues that PA Chairman Yasser Arafat viewed these peace agreements as a tactical truce, utilizing a "revolving door" policy to superficially arrest and quickly release terrorists. The facade of security coordination violently ruptured during the 1996 Western Wall Tunnel riots, when PASF officers turned their Israeli-supplied weapons against IDF soldiers.During the Second Intifada, the PASF openly engaged in armed conflict. PASF officers formed the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, participated in the brutal 2000 Ramallah lynching, and managed the smuggling of 50 tons of strategic weaponry aboard the *Karine A* ship. In response, Israel launched Operation Defensive Shield in 2002, destroying PASF headquarters and discovering official documents proving the PA financed terrorism.Despite international efforts to rebuild the PASF as an apolitical force under the U.S.-led "Dayton Model" in 2007, Regavim argues the current apparatus remains a dangerous facade. Today, the PASF pays an estimated 65,000 personnel, creating a staggering ratio of 19 armed officers per 1,000 residents. The force has heavily militarized, establishing elite commando units such as Unit 101, S.A.T., and BTS, which train with RPGs, heavy machine guns, and military-grade explosives. This military buildup is coupled with severe ideological radicalization. The PASF routinely glorifies deceased terrorists as "martyrs," integrates released prisoners into its officer ranks, and actively promotes the violent conquest of Israeli cities like Haifa, Acre, and Jaffa. The authors conclude that by continuing to treat this massive, terror-aligned army as a security partner, Israel risks a catastrophic, October 7th-style massacre originating from Judea and Samaria.Read more or download the full report by Regavim.https://www.tribejournal.org/post/palestinian-army-or-police-forceSubscribe to TRIBEwww.tribejournal.org/subscribe

Although many want to blame Israel for the U.S. war with Iran, the facts tell a very different story. This report by former Ambassador Yoram Ettinger draws from 2026 U.S. Intelligence Community Report, West Point Center for Combatting Terrorism, The Department of Homeland Security’s 2025 Threat Assessment. https://theettingerreport.com/the-ayatollahs-war-on-america-it-erupted-in-1979/

Hezbollah’s Long March: How Iran Built a Power Inside Lebanon—and Why the World Should Pay AttentionFor decades, the story of Hezbollah has often been framed narrowly as a regional security issue between Israel and Lebanon. But according to Israeli security expert Lt. Col. (Res.) Sarit Zehavi, the rise of Hezbollah represents something far more significant: a blueprint for how a hostile ideology, backed by a foreign state, can gradually infiltrate and reshape an entire society.Speaking from Israel’s northern border, where she lives only a few miles from Lebanon, Zehavi—founder of the Alma Research and Education Center—describes Hezbollah’s evolution not as a sudden military phenomenon but as a slow, strategic social project supported by Iran.Understanding how this transformation occurred, she argues, may offer a warning for cities and democracies far beyond the Middle East.For Zehavi, the ultimate definition of victory in Israel’s conflict with Hezbollah is far simpler than geopolitics.“Victory for me,” she said, “is that my daughter can go to school for a full year without war.”But the story of Hezbollah carries implications well beyond the Israeli-Lebanese border.It shows how ideological movements can build influence quietly—through schools, charities, and social services—long before they appear as military threats.And it raises a difficult question for democracies everywhere:How do open societies defend themselves against movements that use freedom itself as a tool to undermine it?Lebanon’s experience suggests the answer may determine whether future conflicts begin on battlefields—or in classrooms.

"Risking it All" (Part 1) chronicles activist Michael Weichbrod, founder of Homebound, and his families journey from Lakewood, NJ to Ramat Bet Shemesh Israel, to the hills of Judea in an inspiring story about love for Torah, the Land of Israel and being the change.Full article:www.tribejournal.org/homebound-weichbrodSubscribe to the TRIBE:https://www.tribejournal.org/subscribe

What determines the future borders of a country — diplomats in conference rooms, or shepherds on a hilltop?On a ridge overlooking Bethlehem and the hills of Gush Etzion sits Eitam Farm, founded five years ago by Mordechai during the COVID period — though the idea, he says, had been with him for years.“There have been attempts to inhabit the Aetam successfully for more than a decade,” he explains in the video. “This is the first attempt that lasted as long as it did and it's been growing consistently since we've moved in.”When he arrived, he says, “there was nothing here. When I came here there was not one structure.” His purpose, as he describes it, is clear: “The purpose of me being here… is to keep this land from falling into hands of our enemies.”He calls the project “not a profitable farm,” adding, “It's something we do for the main purpose of keeping Israel.”At the heart of the farm is a Beit Knesset built with what he describes as “100% Jewish labor.” The site functions as both an agricultural outpost and a pre-army mechina program. “There's a morning Seder every morning,” he says, where boys study Talmud, Tanakh, and Halachah before heading out in the afternoon to work the fields. There is also a daily minyan.Mordechai connects the location to biblical and Second Temple history, referencing Shimshon and ancient aqueducts that once carried water to Jerusalem. For him, the hilltop is both strategic and historic.Looking out over nearby construction, he says, “The fact that we're here prevents them from encroaching and taking over all this valuable, strategically important and historically significant land.” He describes settling hilltops as “the Zionism of today.”Originally raised in Brooklyn and educated in Haredi yeshivot before studying at Mercaz HaRav, Mordechai says his Zionism came from the texts themselves. “It was the Torah itself.” During COVID, “that's when it clicked that I can actually do this. It's not just a dream.”His message to American Jews is direct: “The time for Jews in America is running out… I could only bless you that you should merit to come to Eretz Israel… with honor and dignity.”Eitam Farm, he says, is “barely sustainable,” but for him the equation is simple: “We graze our sheep to a certain point, we plant vineyards. That's where Israel’s map  is going to end.”

00:00 Introduction to Recent Legislation in Judea Samaria06:00 Impact of Government on Illegal Construction10:17 Understanding Legislative Changes and Their Implications20:45 The New Law on Land Purchases by Jews30:34 Risks and Challenges for Arab Land Sellers40:36 Future of Housing and Development in Judea SamariaIn a wide-ranging conversation on the Tribecast, JP Katz sat down with Naomi Kahn, Director of the International Division at Regavim, to discuss what she describes as unprecedented legislative and policy shifts in Judea and Samaria. The developments include aggressive enforcement against illegal construction and the nullification of a decades-old "Jordanian Law 40" that barred Jews from purchasing land in the territory.The first development, Israel will confiscate equipment used for illegal construction in Judea Samaria. According to Kahn, the past weeks have marked a dramatic change in both tone and action on the ground.The second major development may prove even more consequential: the effective nullification of Jordanian Law Number 40.The law, enacted during Jordan’s occupation of the territory between 1948 and 1967, prohibited the sale of land to non-Jordanians or non-Muslims. Though Jordan later repealed the restriction within its own borders, the law technically remained in force in Judea and Samaria under Israel’s military governance framework.Rather than strike it down, Israeli authorities for decades created a workaround. Israeli companies could purchase land through corporate entities registered in the territory, which would then transfer ownership. The process was costly, bureaucratic, and subject to legal challenges. Kahn argues that maintaining the workaround amounted to tacit acceptance of discrimination.“Your laws express your values,” she said. “Why should Jewish rights be subject to a workaround?”With the recent policy change, private land transactions are expected to become significantly more streamlined. Lawyers anticipate reduced bureaucracy, fewer ministerial approvals, and lower transaction costs. Importantly, the change applies to private land—not state land—and does not alter zoning requirements or planning laws.

JP Katz and Haim Etkin discussed the new letter sent by the Israeli Security Authority to real estate companies regarding their reports to 2025. Etkin, an real estate analyst and appraiser in Israel, explained how builders have stopped receiving loans from banks, forcing them to turn to the stock market to raise capital through unsecured debt and selling shares to insurance companies managing pensions. He detailed how there are 85,000 unsold apartments, with 50,000 in the central region, and highlighted that there are 3.05 million condos available compared to 2.9 million households, creating an oversupply situation. Etkin predicted a 25-30% market correction before government intervention would stabilize prices, similar to what happened in the 1980s when banks were bailed out after a similar crisis. He also discussed what he believes the government will do to stop market chaos in the months or years to come.

We interview Ephraim, a resident in Jerusalem is responding to the Jerusalem's dense urban planning, high rise towers and shrinking apartments all accompanied by rising prices and cost of living. He is building his home in the hills of Judea Samaria in an effort to give his children a different expression of Torah life.https://www.tribejournal.org/post/haredim-on-the-hill

The State That Can Declare War—but Can’t Build a VillageFor decades, Israeli governments of every political stripe have declared their commitment to strengthening the Negev and the Galilee. Cabinet meetings are held in the periphery. Press releases announce new communities. Ministers pose for photographs against sweeping desert backdrops. And yet, the result is strikingly consistent: not a single new Jewish settlement has actually been established within Israel’s 1948 borders in more than thirty years.This is not a failure of ideology. It is a failure of state capacity.Akiva Bigman, an investigative journalist and longtime observer of Israel’s land and housing policy, points to a structural paralysis embedded deep within the Israeli governing system. Over the past three decades, more than thirty formal government decisions have been made to establish new settlements—villages, towns, communities—in the Negev, the Galilee, and even the Golan Heights. Had these decisions been implemented, Israel’s demographic and strategic map would look very different today. Instead, the number realized is zero.The reason lies in a profound inversion of authority. In theory, Israel’s elected government sets national policy, while the professional bureaucracy implements it. In practice, when it comes to settlement and land development, this hierarchy has been flipped upside down.A key turning point came in 2004 with an Attorney General directive—known as Directive 1.1800—that fundamentally redefined how new settlements may be approved. Under this framework, the government is permitted only to “express policy” in vague, non-binding language. It is explicitly barred from making operative decisions that override or even meaningfully guide the planning authorities. Environmental bodies, land regulators, and planning committees—none of them elected—are granted decisive power over whether a settlement may proceed, where it may be located, and whether it should exist at all.National considerations—demography, sovereignty, border security—are conspicuously absent from the list of mandatory criteria. The system is consumed instead by procedural minutiae: environmental impact studies, alternative land-use options, and endless rounds of review. The result is not careful planning, but paralysis.This explains the surreal reality visible today in places like Tel Arad or Ramat Arbel, where “temporary” caravan communities have existed for years or even decades. These are not ideological provocations; they are acts of desperation. Unable to execute its own decisions through formal channels, the government resorts to creating facts on the ground in the hope that the presence of families, children, and daily life will pressure the bureaucracy into action.Even this rarely works.The irony is hard to ignore. Israel can launch complex military operations thousands of kilometers away, yet cannot authorize a civilian village within its internationally recognized borders. It can approve high-rise towers in central cities, but not a modest rural community meant to anchor border regions.After October 7, the consequences of this dysfunction became impossible to ignore. Border communities were exposed, underpopulated, and vulnerable—precisely because decades of settlement policy never moved beyond declarations. Yet even now, the system remains unchanged.Israel does not lack land. It does not lack people willing to live in the periphery. What it lacks is a governing structure capable of translating national priorities into reality. Until elected governments are restored as decision-makers rather than symbolic endorsers, the gap between rhetoric and results will remain—and the country’s most critical regions will continue to pay the price.https://www.tribejournal.org/post/israeal-bureaucracy-new-communities-1948-borders