IDF braces on multiple fronts as West Bank tensions spike and Gaza control expands

Security cabinet convenes Sunday amid heightened alert; 26 battalions deployed in Judea and Samaria as olive harvest season approaches.

IDF braces on multiple fronts as West Bank tensions spike and Gaza control expands — On the eve of Simchat Torah 2026, Yossi Yehoshua analyzes a security establishment grappling with a key lesson: there will not always be concrete intelligence warning, and one must be prepared for everything.[^1] The political-security cabinet will convene this coming Sunday amid heightened alert vis-à-vis Iran and several other fronts simultaneously.[^1] The United States is sending the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and an additional Marine unit to the region.[^2] Tensions in Judea and Samaria reached a peak on Thursday with four unusual incidents, including an attempted weapon theft at the Beit Karim farm, a dummy explosive device with a Hamas flag near Talmon, a stone-throwing incident in Yasif, and a confrontation in Jinta in which five left-wing activists were injured.[^3] About 30 left-wing activists had arrived in the Jinta area near the Kochav Yehuda farm to assist Palestinian farmers with harvest preparations.[^3] The IDF has 26 battalions deployed in the sector, and data from the Farm Association indicates 1.1 million dunams in the farm areas, providing livelihoods for about 100,000 Palestinian families.[^3] Olive oil production dropped from 32,000 tons in 2022 to just 7,000 tons in 2025—a decline of 75 percent.[^3] Since the beginning of the year, IDF forces have confiscated 500 drones of various types, and a complete ban on drone possession has been imposed in Judea and Samaria due to concerns they could be fitted with explosives.[^4] Meanwhile, Brig. Gen. Liron Betito, commander of the Gaza Division, stated on October 1 that the IDF controls 63% of the Gaza Strip and that Hamas is in a very serious condition.[^5] On Thursday evening, the IDF published a study claiming that 170 Gazans presented worldwide as journalists were actually terrorists, with 118 of those listed being operatives in Hamas's military wing and 17 having infiltrated Israeli territory during the October 7 attack.[^6] The question remains how the military will reconcile its expanding operational footprint with the lesson that warning cannot be assumed. Polling seesaws and campaign contr