Netanyahu on new security doctrine: 'Friends can become foes overnight'

(Oct. 20, 2026 / JNS)

The Jewish state can no longer rely on interpreting its enemies’ intentions because “friends can become foes overnight,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Channel 14‘s Sophia Tupolev in an interview set for full release on Tuesday.

Netanyahu’s comments came hours after announcing Jerusalem’s new National Security Doctrine.

“You don’t wait and absorb or accept the building of offensive capabilities against us,” he said, speaking in English. “Intentions can change overnight.”

Netanyahu said he drafted a first version of the doctrine in 2018 but updated it, because “the world has changed.” He cited drones, AI and quantum computing.

He warned that drone swarms guided by AI could be launched “by the thousands or tens of thousands.”

“Digital superiority could let an enemy “paralyze a country and bring it to its heels,” he added.

Israel needs “more raw military power, raw intel power and raw AI power” to face “any coalition of enemies,” Netanyahu declared.

He said Israel must be as independent as possible “so nobody can blackmail us,” pointing to arms independence, energy independence and food security.

The full interview is slated to be posted Tuesday on Channel 14‘s English-language X account at 5 p.m. Israel time.