National Security Conference Reveals 5 Things Israel Now Greatly Fears

Every summer, Israel holds a strategic discussion forum that brings together former military chiefs of staff, retired heads of intelligence agencies, active ministers, political party leaders, as well as senior researchers and experts. They discuss the most pressing issues currently facing Israel. The forum takes place at the National Security Conference organised by the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), one of the most prominent and influential strategic think tanks in Israel, particularly among security policymakers. To understand the importance of this conference, it is first necessary to know the background of the institution behind its organisation, including its position within Israel’s national security circles. Only then can we examine the various main issues discussed at the latest conference held at the end of July 2026. The conference consisted of 17 sessions addressing various security challenges, with particular attention to mapping the threats Israel is expected to face in the next five to ten years. The Institute for National Security Studies was born in the context of a major evaluation following the October 1973 War. At that time, a belief developed in Israel that one of the main causes of the failure to predict the attack at the start of the war was the absence of an independent institution outside the military and security establishment tasked with testing the various assumptions underlying the government and military’s national security assessments. From this emerged the idea of forming an independent strategic study centre under Tel Aviv University. The institution was expected to produce independent assessments and to test and criticise the assumptions used by the security establishment. The task of establishing the institution was entrusted to retired Major General Aharon Yariv, former head of the Israeli Military Intelligence Directorate, Aman.