
Ahead of the High Holidays, Israel’s National Security Council Alerts Travelers to Heightened Threats Abroad
The National Security Council on Sunday, September 6, presented the public with an updated overview of threats abroad ahead of the Tishrei holidays, aiming to raise vigilance and awareness among Israeli travelers. The council clarified that the document is an updated summary of global intelligence and terrorism trends, not a set of new travel warnings. The escalation and Israel’s ongoing campaign against Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, and other actors have led to increased efforts to target Israelis beyond the country’s borders, and growing incitement on social media has widened the motivation to attack. The council identifies the third anniversary of the October 7 massacre, in October 2026, as a particularly sensitive period.
Iran and its proxies remain the primary source of the threat. Driven by a desire to retaliate for the blows it has suffered, Iran is employing terrorist networks and criminal elements to target diplomatic missions, security personnel, senior officials, Jewish community institutions, and Israeli tourists. Hezbollah, seeking to avenge the blows dealt to its leadership, poses a significant potential threat. In Europe and elsewhere, Hamas is investing considerable resources in building terrorist infrastructure for high-profile and revenge attacks on Jewish and Israeli targets, alongside its efforts in Judea and Samaria and Gaza, while global jihadist organizations such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda continue to issue direct calls for attacks against Jews.
The council also points to a sharp rise in attacks by lone perpetrators. Since the outbreak of the war, 25 Israelis and Jews have been murdered in terrorist attacks abroad. This is a decentralized and hard-to-predict threat fueled by radicalization on social media, with attackers generally acting on their own initiative and choosing accessible soft targets such as large gatherings, houses of worship, and community institutions. With the advisory in hand, Israelis heading overseas for the holidays can travel alert and informed. (INN/VFI News)
“The LORD will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” – Psalm 121:7-8