Operation Iron Swords - Day 121 - 04 February 2024
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NEW - War Termination NEW - Operations NEW - Operations Maps NEW - By-Standers NEW - Axis of Resistance NEW - Allied for Democracy UPDATED - Oasis of Martyrs UPDATED - Hostages |
Israeli War Council member Benny Gantz said, “I informed the American envoy that Lebanon is responsible for terrorism emanating from its territory,” and that Israel will expand and deepen its military operations. Sam Halpern reported in The Jerusalem Post "Both Benny Gantz and Yoav Gallant met with US envoy Amos Hochstein on Sunday to discuss the situation on Israel's border with Lebanon... Gantz stated that unless Lebanon and the international community acted to remove the threat within Lebanon, Israel would broaden its military activities in the north in order to do so.... The minister-without-portfolio noted that these potential military activities would take place irrespective of the war in Gaza."
"Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also met with Hochstein... "Our commitment to our citizens is greater than any other commitment,” Gallant told the American envoy. “We are ready to resolve the crisis [in the North] through diplomatic means but are prepared for any other option."... Gallant and Hochstein discussed the need for a change in the security situation on Israel’s northern border and the need for the displaced residents of the north to return to then their homes".
"Casus belli" is a Latin term that translates to "cause of war" in English. It refers to a justification or reason for initiating a war or conflict. A casus belli can be an action, event, or circumstance that is considered sufficient to warrant a declaration of war. It is often used in the context of international relations and diplomacy to explain why a country or a group of countries believes it is necessary to resort to military force. Historically, casus belli has been invoked to justify military actions, and it plays a crucial role in shaping the narrative and legal justifications for going to war.
IDF spokesman, Brigadier General Daniel Hagari stated: “Good evening, today we mark one hundred and twenty days since the beginning of the war. We continue to deepen the operational achievement in Khan Yunis and in the north of the Gaza Strip. We are focused on the war in Gaza, where the abductees are.
“At the beginning of the war, Hezbollah aligned itself with Hamas and opened fire on Israel. In the interests of the security of the residents of the north, a decision was made to evacuate them from their homes. For one hundred and twenty days the residents of the north have been in a complex reality, far from their home, under fighting. Tonight I will explain the fighting on the northern border and our actions to continue in the northern sector. Since the beginning of the war, Hezbollah has been trying to divert our attention from the war in Gaza. He does this at the behest and with the backing of Iran.
“Hezbollah fires at Israeli territory and tries to carry out more and more acts of terror against the citizens of Israel - at the same time as the war in Gaza, for the past four months we have been waging a very intense battle on the northern front aimed at reshaping the security reality so that the residents of the north can return to their homes safely.
“Tonight I will briefly explain the scope of our activities in the northern sector, and the actions to continue. This is the border of Lebanon, and this is the territory of southern Lebanon, where the Litani and Zaharani rivers pass. According to the resolution of the UN Security Council, seventeen zero one, following the Second Lebanon War - the presence of Hezbollah militants south of the Litani River is prohibited.
“Despite this, Hezbollah made southern Lebanon its main stronghold. He has built a number of terrorist formations in the area over the years - from military positions through military bases to warehouses of weapons, while deploying rockets in the area that threaten the rear of the State of Israel.
“As soon as the war broke out in the south, with the understanding that Hezbollah would try to challenge us, under the leadership of the Northern Command, we deployed many land, air, sea and intelligence forces along the border. Indeed - Hezbollah started fighting against Israel and joined the war, when it attacks the settlements of the north and its residents, directs anti-tank missiles and launches rockets against them.
“In response to this and in a proactive manner - the IDF is charging Hezbollah an ever-increasing price and denying its capabilities in southern Lebanon. Since the beginning of the war, the IDF has implemented three main efforts:
- The defense effort - in the framework of which we created a new defense at the border;
- The attack effort - within the framework of which we are harming Hezbollah's deployment and gnawing at its capabilities; and
- the war readiness effort on the northern border.
“Today I will detail these three efforts.
“As of the seventh of October, we are in a new defense effort along the Lebanese border, the purpose of which is to protect the residents of the north and thwart Hezbollah's capabilities. As part of it, instead of the usual one division, we deployed three divisions along the border, with tens of thousands of fighters and IDF forces in regular and reserve positions - on land, in the air, and at sea. and settlements and launch rockets to the rear. So far we have attacked more than one hundred and fifty terrorist squads and eliminated more than two hundred terrorists and commanders. Our policy is clear: whoever poses a threat will be attacked. Every terrorist who tries to carry out an activity against us meets the IDF forces.
“The second effort is the attack effort. Since the beginning of the war, we have attacked more than three thousand four hundred Hezbollah targets all over southern Lebanon. Look at the territory of southern Lebanon. This is a complex terrain route, in which a number of villages and towns are spread, most of which are identified with the Shia population in Lebanon.
“Like Hamas, Hezbollah has also placed its terrorist infrastructure in the heart of the civilian population, in villages and settlements - to make it difficult for us to hit them. That is why our attacks are carried out through precise intelligence targeting, to damage Hezbollah's capabilities and not the population. We will know how to attack every house that is used by Hezbollah as a terrorist infrastructure.
“We are attacking many targets for Hezbollah, including three main Hezbollah formations: the first formation is Hezbollah forces on the border line. Observation and attack positions that Hezbollah established, which will be used by it on the day of the order against the State of Israel. In total, we attacked about one hundred and twenty such observation posts along the length of the border.
“The second array is its munitions warehouses - where missiles of all ranges, unmanned aerial vehicles, weapons and charges are stored. From the beginning of the war, we attacked and destroyed about forty warehouses that Hezbollah hid along the border. In this video, you can see a Hezbollah weapons depot that we attacked in a civilian house - pay attention to the secondary explosions caused by missiles that hit and explode powerfully. We attacked a large number of such targets.
“The third array is Hezbollah's military headquarters, which are the heart of the organization's military activity, from where it manages the organization's activities in routine and emergency situations. So far we have attacked more than forty headquarters staffed by activists. We are also hitting other significant and central Hezbollah formations. For example, the organization's air unit is responsible for launching unmanned aircraft towards the territory of the State of Israel.
“Among other things, we attacked an airstrip, warehouses and weapons used by the unit, and we eliminated terrorists and we also eliminated the head of the southern Lebanon sector in the Hezbollah air unit. In this video you can see terrorists unloading unmanned aerial vehicles from a vehicle, installing them in a completely civilian building, in the heart of a Lebanese village, and preparing them for launch. Air Force aircraft attacked the terrorists and thwarted the launch.
“Hezbollah endangers the residents of South Lebanon and we will continue to act to thwart Hezbollah's terrorism there as well. The Air Force attacks many of Hezbollah's capabilities, and conducts intelligence gathering together with the Intelligence Division to continue to damage the air defense arrays and other strategic arrays that Hezbollah has built against us for years.
“For example, we attacked a storage site for advanced surface-to-air missiles, which Hezbollah hid, which was intended to harm the Air Force's activities. We are also attacking other types of Hezbollah targets, which are more sensitive, some of which I will not detail for information security reasons. We will continue to attack all significant targets in the area.
“At the same time as the attacks in Lebanon itself, we are working to stop Hezbollah's supply chain of ammunition and missiles. Most of the time, these are weapons and means of warfare that are smuggled by land and air from the territory of Iran to the territory of Syria. Iran directs and helps the terrorist organizations, it sends weapons to all the couriers in the Middle East.
“These means of warfare are used not only against the State of Israel but against the entire Middle East. The Iranian emissaries, as we witness time and time again, pose a threat to the entire Western world.
“From there, they are supposed to be secretly smuggled into Lebanon, contrary to UN Security Council resolution seventeen zero one which prohibits the transfer of weapons to Hezbollah - which is exactly what Iran and Syria are doing. Sometimes there are also attempts by Hamas affiliates in Syria to smuggle weapons into Lebanese territory.
“We locate these shipments and destroy them, using a variety of methods that I won't go into detail about. They are destroyed before they reach Hezbollah. We attack Hezbollah infrastructure in Syria as well. Since the beginning of the war, we have attacked from the ground and the air more than fifty such targets that were deployed in Syria.
“We will continue to act wherever Hezbollah is present, we will continue to act wherever it is required in the Middle East. What is true for Lebanon is true for Syria, and is true for other more distant places. The role of the IDF and the security forces is to protect the security interests of the State of Israel wherever necessary.
“For example, about a month ago we eliminated a squad of "Golan Bag" operatives - Hezbollah's branch in Syria. Precise intelligence targeting a vehicle of the squad, an Air Force aircraft arrives in the area, and precisely attacks the squad in Syria. After attacking all the targets I described so far, we are also making sure to preserve the achievement and prevent Hezbollah from restoring them.
“The third and last effort is the effort to increase preparedness for war. We do not choose war as our first priority, but we are certainly prepared and will prepare if needed. We have learned a lot, and we are learning, from the ground fighting in the Gaza Strip, the IDF is a better army because of it, and we have implemented the lessons in our attack plans in the north.
“For the past four months, the Northern Command in collaboration with the Air Force, the Intelligence Division, the Navy and others, have been preparing and training in a series of exercises for the IDF forces, regular and reserve. To ensure that when given an order - we will be ready to attack immediately.
“Our reservists, protecting the northern border, even tonight when the weather conditions are difficult - the quality of the defense combined with their extensive experience alongside the fighting spirit - deserve tremendous appreciation. In addition to protecting the border, they train together with the regular forces in preparation for war.
“All the efforts I described resulted in the fact that the security reality in the north is already taking shape these days, and will continue to take shape in the future. We will not return to the security reality as it was on October 6 when Hezbollah threatens the residents of the north and deceives the world. Hezbollah was wrong when it decided to side with Hamas, with child kidnappers and rapists, and to attack Israel without any justifiable reason.
“We made a decision to focus on Gaza, this decision is still valid. There are our 136 abductees and abductees. And it is a supreme task to return them home. We know that the current situation is complex in the south and in the north and cities for the tens of thousands of residents who were forced to leave their homes. We are in regular contact with the heads of the local councils, and update them on developments.
“I want to appeal to you residents of the north, despite the challenge and the heavy price you have been paying in recent months, you have shown extraordinary patience, long-suffering and fortitude. Your resilience is a source of inspiration for us. We have the duty to ensure security at the northern border so that you can return to your homes. It is a complex challenge and there is still a way to go until the security situation allows your return. This is our responsibility. We are determined to meet this mission and realize it by any means at our disposal.“
Israeli Channel 13 reported that the administration of US President Joe Biden is pressuring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a truce for a period of 4 months.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said : The settlers are the security belt of the State of Israel, Settlement creates security and the settlers are the security belt of the State of Israel. When there are no settlers, a massacre occurs, as happened last October 7.
Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Abdollahian said the security of Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Palestine, Gaza and the West Bank is the security of the region.
Egypt and France called for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip , and warned that developments in the region threaten to worsen the situation and slide into a broader conflict. This came in statements by Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, during a press conference in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, with his French counterpart, Stephane Ségournet.
Shukri also called for setting a time frame for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, stressing the rejection of the forced displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip. Regarding the results of the discussions between the two ministers, Shukri said, “We stressed the importance of the ceasefire in Gaza and the entry of aid into the Strip.” He added, "We affirm Egypt's rejection of the forced displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip." Shukri continued, "The Palestinian issue must be dealt with through a comprehensive political framework, and a time frame must be set for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state."
For his part, Sigourney said that his country rejects any displacement of the residents of the Gaza Strip, stressing that the Strip must be part of the future Palestinian state. The French minister added that the situation in Gaza is tragic and the needs are urgent to increase humanitarian aid. Sigourney expressed his concern about increasing tensions in the Red Sea region .
The French Minister stressed his country's keenness to coordinate visions and efforts with Egypt towards a permanent ceasefire and prisoner exchange, in light of the agreement of the two countries' positions on the necessity of preventing the circle of conflict from expanding, and activating the two-state solution as a basis for a comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian issue and restoring security and stability in the Middle East.
Later, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the French Foreign Minister discussed the intensified Egyptian efforts with various partners to achieve a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and implement humanitarian aid to end the humanitarian tragedy that the people of the Strip are suffering from. In a tweet on the X website, Sigourney said, “During my meeting with President Sisi, I renewed our commitment to a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza and the relaunch of a two-state political solution.”
The 121st day of the Israeli war in Gaza witnessed the intensification of battles in the heart of Gaza City and in Khan Yunis in the south of the Strip, while Palestinian resistance factions directed new strikes at the occupation forces. The Israeli army also continued to bomb and snipe in several areas of the Gaza Strip, especially the eastern neighborhoods of Gaza City, The Israeli army says that it will take a week to complete control of Khan Yunis.
As part of the fighting in the west of Khan Younes, the battle team of the Givati Brigade raided the "Alkadsia" outpost, which serves as the central outpost of the Khan Younes Brigade and contains many compounds. The office of Mohammed Sinwar - the brother of Yahya Sinwar - was located in the outpost. The forces of the combat team of the paratroopers brigade are fighting in the Khan Yunis area. In recent days, the fighters have deepened the fighting in the neighborhood of El Amal in the west of Khan Yunis. The neighborhood is a terrorist stronghold of Hamas. In the neighborhood, the fighters located many weapons, dozens of terrorist infrastructures of Hamas, underground shafts, observation posts and factories for the production of various weapons.
The fighters of the battle team of the Givati Brigade in the Khan Yunis area, eliminated a terrorist who was seen approaching the troops. Also, the brigade's fire complex directed an aircraft that attacked and eliminated two terrorists who were observed approaching the building. In addition, a fighter jet eliminated a sniper of the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization, directed by the fire center of the 98th division.
Fighters of the Parachute Brigade Combat Team eliminated terrorists who were near the forces in West Khan Yunis, with short-range fire. In the last day, the fighters raided a building with several floors that was used by the commander of the Khan Younes Brigade for combat management and found many weapons in it, including Kalashnikovs, cartridges, military equipment, and technological means. A terrorist who approached the forces of the brigade armed with a knife and threw two grenades at the fighters, was killed by them in a shooting. In additional raids by the forces, a stockpile of RPG rockets was found inside terrorist houses.
In the north of the Strip, fighters of the 401st Brigade Combat Team eliminated seven Hamas terrorists. During raids on many buildings, the fighters of the brigade located seven Kalashnikov rifles, three pistols, military equipment, a lot of ammunition and grenades.
In the last day's Air Force strikes throughout the Gaza Strip, fighter jets attacked several targets of the terrorist organization Hamas, including terrorist infrastructure and launch sites.
The naval forces continue to assist the ground forces operating in the Gaza Strip with fire and observation from the sea. In the last day, the forces attacked several targets used by the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, including terrorist infrastructures and a building where terrorists were identified.
The Israeli forces carried out a series of air strikes on various areas of the Gaza Strip, while clashes continue between the Palestinian resistance and the occupation forces in a number of areas in the Strip. The raids targeted various areas in Deir al-Balah, the center and west of the city of Khan Yunis, and all parts of Gaza City, in addition to the areas south of the Juhr al-Dik area, where huge explosions were heard. The Israeli air and artillery bombardment on Khan Yunis left 10 martyrs since this morning, and 14 martyrs and a number of wounded in Deir al-Balah.
The area separating Khan Yunis and the city of Rafah has been subjected to heavy bombardment for two days by Israeli warplanes and artillery. Al-Aqsa satellite channel said that the Israeli forces launched violent artillery shelling on the Al-Amal neighborhood, Khan Yunis camp, and the city center, and added that engineering units in the army blew up houses near the Austrian neighborhood, west of Khan Yunis, in the south of the Gaza Strip. For its part, the Palestinian Red Crescent said that there are indicators warning of a humanitarian catastrophe in Al-Amal Hospital, which has been besieged for the 14th day in a row, in Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip. It added that the hospital is still under heavy fire, and the movement of paramedics and displaced persons has been prevented.
Clashes were taking place with heavy machine guns in different neighborhoods of Gaza City, and other clashes in the center and west of the city of Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip. The Al-Quds Brigades - the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement - announced that its fighters had placed an Israeli force in a tight ambush in Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip, killing two soldiers and wounding others. It also targeted, earlier, an occupation forces bulldozer in the Al-Amal neighborhood, and confirmed that its members clashed with the occupation forces, causing deaths and injuries among its ranks. The Al-Quds Brigades broadcast images of an Israeli march, which it said it shot down while carrying out intelligence missions southwest of Khan Yunis.
For its part, the Al-Qassam Brigades - the military wing of the Hamas movement - said that it destroyed with mortar shells a gathering of occupation forces penetrating into the Al-Jami'a area, west of Gaza City. The Brigades confirmed earlier that they had targeted an Israeli Merkava tank west of the city of Khan Yunis with an Al-Yassin 105 shell.
Abu Ubaida, the official spokesman for the Al- Qassam Brigades - the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) - announced that the brigades were able during the past days to destroy 43 military vehicles, kill 15 Israeli soldiers from scratch, control 4 drones, and bomb Tel Aviv. And its surroundings were hit by a missile salvo.
Israeli occupation forces stormed the city of Nablus hours after raids and arrests in a number of areas of the West Bank. The occupation forces raided the Ras al-Ayn and al-Qaryun neighborhoods, erected barriers in them, and arrested a number of young men, searched them and checked their identities. An additional force on foot was seen storming the al-Atout and Bab al-Sahha neighborhoods inside the Old City of the city.
Since Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on October 7, and the subsequent Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip , the occupation army has carried out daily raids into West Bank cities, accompanied by arrests of young Palestinians. On Saturday, the occupation forces stormed the towns of Al-Khader and Husan, south and west of Bethlehem in the West Bank, where they launched an arrest campaign in Al-Khader and raided a number of homes. They also fired tear gas bombs and sound bombs in Husan, raided homes there, and conducted their patrols in the town amid confrontations.
The Israeli occupation forces also arrested 3 Palestinian youths in the town of Beita, south of the city of Nablus in the West Bank, and beat them during confrontations that broke out during the storming of the town by Israeli military vehicles. The occupation's incursions targeted the town of Arraba, southwest of the city of Jenin in the West Bank, as well as the town of Salem, east of the city of Nablus. They placed a checkpoint in the middle of the town and arrested a number of young men and interrogated them.
Confrontations also broke out between Palestinians and the occupation forces when they stormed the town of Qaffin, north of Tulkarm, and fired gas and sound bombs before withdrawing from the town.
Fighter jets attacked a launch site where terrorists were and observation posts of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in the areas of Lida and Mis al Jabal in southern Lebanon. In addition, an IDF tank attacked a terrorist cell in the Leyda area. Following the warning in the north of the country, a number of launches were detected that crossed the territory of Lebanon towards the territory of the State of Israel, the IDF attacked the sources of the shooting.
Maps
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All maps are lies. “Not only is it easy to lie with maps, it is essential,” wrote cartographer Mark Monmoneir in his book How to Lie with Maps. He showed that condensing complex, three-dimensional spaces onto a two-dimensional sheet of paper [in old days] is bound to be reductive. But it is impossible to comprehend the war in Gaza without reference to maps, otherwise the entire conflict is reduced to an endless series of meaningless acts of random violence and the suffering of civilians. The first characteristic of guerrilla warfare is the loss of a front line. Evidently, different mappers have different ideas of how to depict the war in Gaza, notably those that seek to depict Israeli progress in the ground campaign. Part of the problem is latency. The news that forms the basis of the maps takes time to filter out to mappers, and the cartographers take time in crafting their maps, and it takes time to curate them. These processes are uneven among mappers, so their maps may differ in detail. Probably there is some ideological bias, or at least thematic apperception, which is understandable in wartime. It may come as no surprise that al-Jazeera maps depict rather less Israeli territorial progress than other sources. Finally, there remains the epistemological question of just exactly what are the colored in areas depicting. Naively, this might be understood as areas of Israeli control, that are no longer contested by the HAMAS. Or possibly these are areas of Israeli presence, in many of which the possibility of an RPG-wielding HAMAS militant popping out of a tunnel unexpectedly remains a live possibility. With the "zero-range" combat characterized by small unit tactics on both sides, maps may be prey to a fallacy of misplaced concreteness. Indeed, by late January 2024 mappers were rather less exuberant in their depictions of IDF advances. While by the end of 2023 maps suggested that it was "mission accomplished" in North Gaza which was depicted as entirely pacified, by late January 2024 enclaves of IDF elements were depicted at the margins of Gaza City, much of North Gaza was now depticted as either HAMAS-controlled, or "contested". Another noteworthy cartographic ambiguity was found to the south of Khan Yunis in the stretch of Salah Al-Deen avenue running north from Al-Nasr through al-Fukhari to the vicinity of Tawhid Mosque in the environs of Khan Yunis proper. By the end of 2023 some cartographers indicated that a large swath of territory centered on this avenue had been liberated by the IDF, while other cartographers professed no knowlege of an IDF presence in that part of the Strip. By late January 2024 there are suggestions that while the avenue itself was an IDF permissive corridor for nearly the full length of the Strip, much of adjacent territory was not. By 29 January 2024 Al-Jazeera had finally come around to some of the cartographic conventions of other mappers, indicating "occupied areas", and even providing a map of IDF ORBAT in the Strip.
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Bystanders
Israeli officers in the occupation army made a recommendation to the Chief of Staff to stop the smear campaign against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees ( UNRWA ), while Australia said it was studying the accusations leveled by Israel against the agency, which recently warned that the people of Gaza were “dying before the eyes of the world.”
Israeli Channel 12 said that senior army officers submitted a recommendation to Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy to stop the widespread smear campaign against UNRWA, at least for the time being. They advised the officers not to expand the scope of distorting the agency at these times, especially before the planned discussion in the US Congress, as well as the political level in Israel, to decide the mechanisms for dealing with UNRWA and finding alternatives to it. They pointed out that the leaks about the agency that prompted countries to stop funding it were not organized Israeli leaks. According to the channel, the officers fear that the process of discrediting UNRWA before finding an alternative will have very negative results in the Gaza Strip.
Israel had accused 12 of the agency's employees of participating in the attacks of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) on Israel on October 7, 2023, on settlements around the Gaza Strip, which prompted 18 countries and the European Union to suspend funding for the agency.
In a related development, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said - today, Sunday - that his government is investigating allegations that some UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7 attacks, after Australia stopped its funding for the agency last month. According to a transcript, Albanese told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation regarding the accusations, "We are looking into the matter along with other like-minded countries such as Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. We want to resolve this." Albanese said that his government wants to ensure that the accusations are “fully examined” so that all funding goes “for the purpose for which it was provided,” stressing that he does not want “people to die of hunger” in Gaza and that “the only organization that can provide this support there is UNRWA.”
Late last month, Britain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Finland joined the United States, Australia, and Canada in stopping funding for the relief agency, while the agency said it had opened an investigation into a number of employees and cut its ties with these people.
For its part, UNRWA warned yesterday, in a tweet on its account on the X platform, that the residents of Gaza are “dying before the eyes of the world” in a unique disaster of its kind. The agency pointed to the hunger crisis and the humanitarian tragedy that is worsening day after day in the Gaza Strip, in light of the Israeli attacks and siege, and said, “An unprecedented catastrophe is happening before our eyes in Gaza,” stressing that “people are dying before the eyes of the world.” The agency, whose largest donors in 2022 were the United States, Germany, and the European Union, has repeatedly confirmed that its ability to provide humanitarian assistance to the residents of Gaza is on the verge of collapse.
Earlier, UN Secretary-General António Guterres in January described UNRWA as “the backbone of all humanitarian relief operations in Gaza” and called on all countries to “ensure the continuity of UNRWA’s life-saving work.”
Axis of Resistance
The latest military attacks that the US and the UK have launched against Yemen drew strong condemnation from Iran. Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani categorically condemned last night’s airstrikes by the US and the UK against Yemen. Denouncing the strikes as a recurrent violation of Yemen’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and international law, the spokesman warned that the continuation of such arbitrary measures is a blatant act of adventurism that poses a worrying threat to international peace and security. Kanaani noted that the US and UK’s wrong policy of military action against regional countries for the fulfillment of their illegitimate objectives is in direct contradiction to Washington and London’s claim that they do not seek the spread of war and tensions in the region. Deploring the US and UK’s unflagging support for the Zionist regime’s war crimes in Gaza, Kanaani said the British and American military actions in the region are escalating chaos, insecurity and instability with the purpose of giving leeway to the criminal Israeli regime. “The international community is undoubtedly responsible to hold the US and the UK accountable,” the Iranian diplomat added.
Allied for Democracy
Netanyahu responded to right-wing minister Itamar Ben Gvir's criticism of what he considered insufficient aid provided by Washington to the Hebrew state in its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Ben Gvir's statements came after Washington, in a rare step, imposed sanctions on four settlers amid an escalation in violence targeting Palestinian civilians in the West Bank. US President Joe Biden said when he signed the sanctions last week that the violence there had "reached unbearable levels." The West Bank had witnessed an escalation in violence since the outbreak of war on October 7 between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
National Security Minister Ben Gvir told the Wall Street Journal that US President Joe Biden did not provide sufficient support to Israel. He told the newspaper on Sunday, “Instead of offering us his full support, Biden is busy providing humanitarian aid and fuel to (Gaza) that goes to Hamas.” The right-wing minister added, "If (former US President Donald) Trump had been in power, the behavior of the United States would have been completely different."
"I don't need help to figure out how to manage our relations with the United States and the international community while standing firmly on our national interests," Netanyahu said ahead of Sunday's cabinet meeting. He added, "We make our own decisions even in cases where there is no agreement with our American friends."
With increasing pressure facing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from his hard-right coalition, Netanyahu is “faced with a stark choice,” which is either to increase Israel’s international isolation if he continues the war in Gaza, or to leave power if the hard-right National Security Minister, Itamar, withdraws. Ben Gvir, from the coalition, according to the Wall Street Journal, which conducted an interview with the latter. Ben Gvir enjoys “enough support in the ruling coalition to undermine Netanyahu’s rule,” and he says he is ready to exploit that. He also directed harsh criticism of the current US administration, according to what the newspaper reported.
In his first interview with a foreign news organization since joining the government, the Minister of National Security warned that he would oppose any deal with Hamas that would release thousands of Palestinians imprisoned on terrorism-related charges or end the war, before Hamas is completely defeated. Ben Gvir said that Netanyahu "is at a crossroads... and he must choose the direction he will go."
The United States and its regional allies support ongoing negotiations to quickly end the war through an agreement under which Hamas and other armed groups release the remaining hostages and resume decades-long negotiations to establish a Palestinian state. American and Arab officials familiar with the ceasefire negotiations in the Gaza Strip revealed to the Wall Street Journal that the United States is pressing to reach a truce for a period sufficient to halt the momentum of the Israeli military operation in the Strip, which may pave the way for a more sustainable truce.
Israel and Hamas are studying a three-stage agreement, which would end with the release of those kidnapped by the movement, which is listed on US terrorist lists, and a ceasefire for a period of 6 weeks, according to what was stated in the draft agreement discussed by intelligence chiefs of the countries concerned in Paris this week.
American and Arab officials familiar with the ceasefire negotiations in Gaza revealed to the American Wall Street Journal that the United States is pressing to reach a truce for a period sufficient to stop the momentum of the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, paving the way for a complete end to the war. But while diplomatic efforts are underway, “the biggest obstacle may be the presence of a media-savvy lawmaker who has become a magnet for the far right in Israel,” according to the newspaper.
The American newspaper says that Ben Gvir has made a name for himself since he became Minister of National Security a year ago, partly due to his declaration that the Jews are the legal owners of the Land of Israel. Most recently, he led a campaign to distribute assault rifles to Israeli settlers in the West Bank to arm themselves to prevent another Hamas attack similar to the October 7 attack in which about 1,200 people were killed and 240 others were kidnapped.
Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, another right-wing minister, threatened in recent weeks to topple the government if military operations against Hamas stopped. The British Financial Times commented at the time by saying that Netanyahu is under increasing and renewed pressure regarding prioritizing reaching a deal to release the hostages, amid political disagreements in this regard. The "Financial Times" said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under increasing and renewed pressure regarding giving priority to the hostages held in the Gaza Strip.
With this difficult situation facing Netanyahu, uncertainty increases regarding the future of the Israeli government, whose fate is linked to the survival of Ben Gvir. Israeli affairs analyst and opinion writer in the newspaper "Israel Hayom", Jalal Banna, believes that "what happened to Netanyahu with Ben Gvir embodies the saying 'the magic has turned against the magician'," noting that "Netanyahu was the one who saved Ben Gvir and pushed him before the elections to enter the list." "Religious Zionism" and competing in the parliamentary elections. Once again, he saved him by bringing him into the government coalition and giving him the most important ministerial portfolios, even though in previous years the Likud had rejected his party, but today Ben Gvir controls Netanyahu and the Likud Party.”
Israeli affairs analyst, Jackie Khoury, also confirms in statements to Al-Hurra website that the current government formation confirms the great influence of the extreme right, whether through Ben Gvir or the Minister of Finance, indicating that Netanyahu relies mainly on the ultra-Orthodox Jews, and the general feeling in Israel is that “Ben Gvir "Smotrich holds the key to this coalition."
The Wall Street Journal says that a growing percentage of Israelis, especially on the right, view the October 7 attack as an opportunity to chart a new course for Israel by returning settlers to the war-ravaged Strip. Among them is Ben Gvir, who presented his plan to reoccupy Gaza, which would repopulate the Strip with Israeli settlements, while Palestinians would be offered financial incentives to leave.
The Israeli Minister of National Security urged Jewish settlers to return to Gaza, in a mass conference held in Jerusalem, a few days ago, which prompted Palestinians to denounce these statements, which they said amounted to a call for their “forced deportation.” In his new statements to the Wall Street Journal, Ben Gvir said that he believes that the administration of President Joe Biden is hindering Israeli military operations in Gaza, and he said that he believes that the potential presidential candidate, Donald Trump, will support Israel more in fighting Hamas.
The Wall Street Journal says that Netanyahu "now risks increasing Israel's international isolation if he continues the war, or the possibility of being forced out of power if Ben Gvir withdraws the six lawmakers from his Jewish Power party from the ruling coalition."
“Ben Gvir has great influence over Netanyahu,” Yohanan Plesner, president of the Israel Democracy Institute, a Jerusalem-based think tank, told the newspaper. “The last thing Netanyahu needs is early elections and Ben Gvir knows it.” Khoury explains in his statements to Al-Hurra website that “the key to the solution is linked to Ben Gvir, even though Netanyahu and most government leaders are trying to find circumventive ways to deal with him.”
He explains that Ben Gvir does not have much influence with regard to war decisions, military operations, and maneuvering, but politically he has influence, because he is an essential part of the coalition, and he also has influence in national security because he is directly responsible for the police, and he has media influence, but the least is operational influence.
Ben Gvir has a talent for “making headlines, and his critics consider him a dangerous instigator ready to provoke a broader conflict with the Palestinians” to increase his electoral base, and some Israeli officials say that his statements calling on Israel to occupy Gaza make it difficult for them to present their case in foreign capitals, according to the Wall Street Journal. In an example of Ben Gvir's violation of traditional political norms, the minister, in his statements to the newspaper, directed direct criticism of Biden, which is rarely issued by a member of the Israeli Cabinet.
“Instead of giving us his full support, Biden is busy providing humanitarian aid and fuel (to Gaza), which goes to Hamas,” Ben Gvir said, giving voice to popular sentiment among many right-wing Israelis. If Trump were in power, the United States’ behavior would be completely different.” Shortly after the Wall Street Journal article was published, centrist Israeli politicians attacked Ben Gvir and called on Netanyahu to take action against him.
Former Defense Minister Benny Gantz wrote on the “X” platform that Ben Gvir’s statements about Biden “harm the strategic relations of the State of Israel, the state’s security, and the current war effort.” Opposition leader Yair Lapid described his comments as a "direct attack on Israel's international standing." In his statements to Al-Hurra website, Lapid said he believed that his statements are “primarily directed to the right-wing audience because there is criticism or resentment of the American position...”
Lapid believed that “there is a direct relationship between Ben Gvir’s criticism of the American leadership and the strengthening of his power in the Jewish street, so he declares what he declares, in addition to the fact that he is a member of the government that cannot speak publicly about American pressures, but only about leaks and names or sources.” Anonymous, but Ben Gvir takes advantage of his eloquence and impudence to declare what he declared.”
Lapid pointed out that this is not the first time that Ben Gvir Siham has directed his criticism at the American administration, as he previously stated that “Israel is not a star on the flag of the United States.” Lapid said that Netanyahu is unable to do "anything for Ben Gvir. Neither dismissal, nor reprimand, nor even denunciation of his statements, and this is what makes me doubt that Ben Gvir coordinated the matter with him."
Netanyahu said in his first reaction to Ben Gvir’s statements, ahead of the government meeting on Sunday: “I do not need help to figure out how to manage our relations with the United States and the international community while standing firmly on our national interests.” He added, "We make our own decisions even in cases where there is no agreement with our American friends."
The Wall Street Journal says that Ben Gvir is gaining popularity. According to a poll conducted by Tel Aviv University last month, a small majority of Israeli Jews now fully, or to some extent, support the establishment of Jewish settlements inside Gaza. Although Netanyahu said that Israel does not seek to occupy Gaza, and only seeks to maintain full security control over the Strip, there are indications that Ben Gvir “enjoys increasing influence in the debate, and that Netanyahu increasingly needs him,” according to the newspaper.
Following the Hamas attack on October 7, Ben Gvir's Jewish Power party became the only right-wing party in Netanyahu's coalition that is not losing voter support. Opinion polls show that the party could win eight or nine seats in the Knesset at the present time. Polls do not indicate that his party will replace Netanyahu's Likud Party, which holds 32 seats, but Likud support has declined to between 19 and 27 seats in recent weeks.
Analysts believe that Netanyahu and Ben Gvir are now fighting for right-wing support before any early elections. Bana says: “Netanyahu knows that without Ben Gvir, the coalition will collapse, and after the war, the fall of his government, and the going to future elections, he will have no choice but to rely on Ben Gvir.”
The analyst believes that Netanyahu is taking advantage of Ben Gvir’s statements to say to the American leadership: “Perhaps there is a danger to the government coalition, so I cannot approve a prisoner and kidnapped exchange deal, and thus he is trying to transfer pressure from the American leadership to Qatar and then Egypt and Hamas in an attempt to reduce the price of a possible deal.” With the Hamas movement.
Khoury believes that Netanyahu will try to disavow Ben Gvir’s statements to the newspaper, but “there is a feeling that this government cannot continue in such an atmosphere for a long time.” Khoury explains: “Every day a new challenge is added to the survival of Netanyahu’s partners in the government. Such statements will lead at some point to the dismantling of the coalition, and the question is when will this happen? No one knows. This may continue for months and even a year, but it is clear that Ben Gvir is strengthening himself.” Popularly, it strengthens his electoral base from a certain segment, but I do not think that this method will prolong the life of the government.”
In an attempt to restore life to the Gaza Strip settlements, a special Israeli government team held a meeting this evening to develop a plan to gradually return the residents of those settlements. The plan will be presented to the heads of the municipal councils of the Strip towns. Israeli media reported, citing an unnamed informed Israeli official, that the plan stipulates starting by returning residents of towns 4 to 7 kilometers from the borders of the Gaza Strip and residents of other towns whose homes were not demolished or damaged. According to the plan, funding for the hotel accommodation of residents of the Gaza envelope settlements will be stopped until the end of next March and they will be given financial support to encourage them to return.
The Israeli government had taken a decision to evacuate all 25 kibbutzim and settlements adjacent to the Gaza Strip, following the Al-Aqsa Flood Battle carried out by the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) on October 7, 2023. Pursuant to the decision taken under emergency regulations, the area located 0 to 7 kilometers from the Gaza Strip border was evacuated, and the number of those evacuated reached 65 thousand people.
Tens of thousands of residents of the Western Negev, Sderot , and Ashkelon were also displaced on their own initiative and without instructions from the Home Front requiring them to do so, as the population of this area close to the enclave is more than 200 thousand.
According to the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, the cost of a family of 6 staying in a hotel room reached approximately 45,000 shekels ($12,000) per month, while a family with two children received allowances worth 18,000 shekels ($4,800) per month if they were not residents in a hotel.
In an attempt by Benjamin Netanyahu's government to return the residents of the cover settlements, it decided last month to provide a financial grant to the residents who would agree to return, which they called an adaptation grant (the value of which was not mentioned), while those who refuse to return will be able to continue to stay in hotels in central Israel.
This prompted the head of a settlement council in southern Israel to accuse the government of trying to bribe residents with financial grants, in exchange for returning to the settlements surrounding Gaza, which are still being subjected to missile attacks from the Strip. He said that the Israeli government is returning residents to last October 6 (the prevailing situation before the war) and abandoning their personal security, noting that the government was unable to remove the security threat, or provide a major security response to the towns in the region.
This prompted the Israeli army and Ministry of Defense to announce the distribution of weapons and logistical combat equipment in 70 towns around the Gaza Strip, according to what was reported by the Israeli Channel 12.
Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich are expected to ratify this matter after discussion by government staff. On the other hand, the commander of the Israeli army’s home front, Rafi Milo, acknowledged the existence of a deep crisis of confidence with the residents of the Gaza envelope, stressing Israel’s failure on October 7. Milo added that the time will come to conduct an investigation, and without returning the residents to their homes, there will be no victory.
The Israeli government said that it would bring in 65,000 workers from India, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan to resume halted construction work after the government expelled Palestinian workers following the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) attack on Israel on October 7. About 72,000 Palestinian workers were working on construction sites in Israel before the attack, which prompted the government to dismiss and exclude them for security reasons. There are still about 20,000 foreign workers in Israel, but nearly half of the construction sites have closed due to labor shortages. A spokesman for the Israeli Ministry of Housing said that new groups of foreign workers are expected to arrive in the coming weeks, as the government seeks to avoid a shortage in the supply of housing units that would lead to raising real estate prices as interest rates begin to decrease. Before the Hamas attack, 150,000 Palestinians from the West Bank and 18.5,000 others from the Gaza Strip had permits to enter Israel for work, according to the Government Coordination Unit for Actions in the Territories, before their entry was restricted. US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson said, "We must use all available tools to hold Iran accountable." He added that President Joe Biden's administration "has shown weakness on the world stage over the course of 3 years, and this has encouraged our opponents." Johnson also elaborated on his criticisms of the Biden administration’s retaliation against Iranian proxies following the deaths of three US soldiers in Jordan. “We should not be appeasing Iran,” he said, claiming that, “we’re projecting weakness on the world stage.” “We need to act to decimate the Iran Central Bank, the assets that they held there.” “We need to put big-time pressure, maximum pressure on their oil exports. There’s a lot that we can do to Iran to send a message instead of this appeasement strategy.”
“Instead of working in a bipartisan way, House Republicans are playing a political game that does nothing to secure the border, nothing to help the people of Ukraine, and denies humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians,” the White House fired back.
The newspaper "Israel Today" quoted informed sources as confirming that the United States had asked Israel for urgent answers regarding a series of incidents in the West Bank in which the Israeli army may have violated the Leahy Law. According to these sources, if the answers are not satisfactory to the United States, this means, according to the Leahy Law, that Israeli forces operating in the West Bank may not receive American security support. The Leahy Act - passed by the US Congress in 1997 - prohibits the US government from providing financial support or aid to foreign forces involved in serious human rights violations.
Butcher's Bill / Oasis of Martyrs
On 7 October 2023, Hamas and other armed groups present in the Gaza Strip carried out an attack in Israel, killing more than 1,200 persons, injuring thousands and abducting some 240 people, many of whom continue to be held hostage. It was the second largest loss inflicted on the Israeli forces after the 1973 war. Palestinian armed groups launched thousands of missiles at Israel Following this attack, Israel launched a large-scale military operation in Gaza, by land, air and sea.
The 1,200 Israelis killed on the first day would be the equivalent of 36,000 Americans killed in an attack, as a proportion to Israel’s population of 9.3 million people (compared to 332 million in the USA). Israeli President Isaac Herzog stated: “Not since the Holocaust have so many Jews been killed in one day". PM Netanyahu stated "On October 7th, Hamas murdered 1,400 Israelis. Maybe more. This is in a country of fewer than 10 million people. This would be equivalent to over 50,000 Americans murdered in a single day. That’s twenty 9/11s. That is why October 7th is another day that will live in infamy."
The HAMAS Ministry of Health in the besieged sector announced that the number of victims of the Israeli operation its beginning had risen to 27,365 martyrs, and the killing of nearly 10,000 Palestinian children and 6,600 women killed. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
The number wounded was 66,630. The Palestinian Government Media Office in Gaza had said much earlier that the number of missing people had risen to more than 8,000, including including 4,700 children and women, amid expectations that the toll will be double thi figures.
The IDF intensified its military operations in the West Bank, and increased the pace of incursions and raids into cities, towns, and camps, resulting in the martyrdom of 380 Palestinians, the injury of about 3,950, and the arrest of 5,780, according to official HAMAS sources. As of 17 January 2023, the Israeli escalation in the West Bank led to the death of 360 Palestinians, the injury of nearly 2,200, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, and the arrest of about 6,000, according to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club.
More than 130 Hezbollah fighters were killed in Lebanon during exchanges of bombing operations with Israel.
Israel revised down the death toll from the October Hamas attacks in southern Israel from 1,400 to 1,200. IDF had said previously it was holding 1,500 bodies of terrorists, a total that now would increas to about 1,700.
The total number of Israeli deaths has risen to 563 [557?] since the start of the war on October 7, including 233 [220?] killed since the ground invasion as a result of the ongoing clashes with the Palestinian resistance. Among them were at least 56 with the rank of platoon commander, 43 with the rank of company commander, 9 with the rank of battalion commander, and 5 with the rank of brigade commander. These officers constitute 23% of the total deaths of the Israeli army in the war on Gaza.
Israeli media reported that 27% of the Israeli military casualties in the war were officers. In detail, the media highlighted that three brigade commanders, four battalion commanders, and other senior officers have been killed in the war so far.
The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation reported that 29 of the army's deaths were caused by "friendly fire" and operational incidents since the start of the ground war in Gaza, late last October. The Israeli authority explained that "18 army soldiers were killed by friendly fire, two were killed as a result of gunfire (without explanation), and 9 Israeli soldiers were killed in ammunition, weapons, or run-over accidents." The Jerusalem Post newspaper revealed that 15 soldiers were killed in the Strip without their bodies being found.
According to some reports statistics indicate that 20% of the Israeli losses were due to friendly fire. Because the nature of the battle has become completely different from what was expected, and it lacks a front line.
It was announced that soldiers wounded in the Gaza Strip battles numbered to 2,815 since the beginning of the war, including 1,296 who had been wounded since the start of the ground attack on October 27, 2023.
The Israeli army reported that 407 who are still receiving treatment for their injuries in the Gaza battles, and the condition of 48 of them is serious. The number of injured among the Israeli army since the start of the ground operation in the Gaza Strip on October 27 included 602 minor cases, 430 moderate cases, and 264 critical cases.
At least 13,794 Israelis were injured, according to i24 TV.
Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper had reported that 5,000 soldiers had been wounded since the beginning of the war on October 7, and that the Ministry of Defense had recognized 2,000 soldiers as disabled so far.
An estimate by the Israeli Ministry of Defense expected that the number of soldiers with disabilities in the war taking place in the Gaza Strip since October 7 of last year would reach 12,500 soldiers. The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth said that the Soldiers' Rehabilitation Department of the Ministry of Defense has dealt with 3,400 soldiers who were classified as disabled in the army since last October 7.
The Israeli army revealed that about 9,000 of its soldiers have received “psychological assistance” since the beginning of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, and about a quarter of them have not returned to combat. This came according to a new statement revealed by the Army Medical Corps, according to Channel 12 and the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth. According to the statement, nearly 9,000 soldiers have applied for psychological assistance since the beginning of the war, and approximately a quarter of them have not returned to combat.
The statement continued, "In total, about 13,000 regular and reserve soldiers required accompaniment or medical treatment at some level during the fighting, and thousands of them were injured in the battles."
Al Jazeera military and strategic expert Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi expressed his conviction that the numbers of dead and wounded announced by Israel “cannot represent the truth,” due to a discrepancy between the Israeli army’s data and the Walla website, which is close to the army itself.
In an interview with RT, Military strategist retired Tunisian Brigadier General Tawfiq Didi said that the number of Israeli army deaths in the Gaza battles is much greater than what Israel announces. Didi explained in an interview with the “Best Saying” program on RT channel, “The number of people killed in battles can be easily known, as the equation in wars is that for every 3 wounded there is a dead person, and the numbers now in Israel hover around 12,500 wounded and disabled people, and when we divide by Three, we find that the death toll exceeds 4,000, especially after eliminating more than a thousand tanks and armored vehicles, and I know what happens when Kornet missiles hit a tank. Its ammunition explodes and no one is left alive.”
He added, "The Israelis announce their dead only of those of Jewish origin and of the first race, meaning all Arabs, Falash, and those who are among them. They are not counted because they are of the second category. So I am sure that the number exceeds 4 thousand dead, and this is a very easy military calculation."
He pointed out, "The Palestinian resistance documented everything it did, unlike the Israelis. The resistance documented shooting at tanks and armored vehicles and destroying the houses in which the Israeli soldiers were holed up, and we saw them being killed... We saw the Kornet hitting the tanks, we saw Al-Yassin 105, so the difference is clear."
Hostages
Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed have been held as hostages in Gaza since 2014 and 2015, respectively. Unlike the roughly 240 people kidnapped in the Hamas October 7 terrorist attacks, the campaign for the release of Mengistu and al-Sayed has received little publicity. Mengistu is known to suffer from what HRW deemed "serious" mental health issues. "Avera crossed one of the safest borders in the world, under the eyes of the security services," recalled Gil Elias, a relative. "We're talking about a mentally ill person who got lost." The calls for the release of Mengistu and al-Sayed have been barely audible during the many years they have been held captive in Gaza.
Israel had previously estimated there were 116 living hostages in Palestinian custody. Israel declared 20 out of 136 people in Gaza captivity dead in absentia, after announcing its forces had recovered the bodies of two hostages. By another count, 132 of them are still being held in Gaza, and 25 of them have been confirmed dead. Israel considers those still held by Hamas to be hostages regardless of whether they are dead or alive.
Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy earlier had told reporters that Hamas still held 137 captives. The resistance released 10 Israeli detainees, 4 Thais and 2 Russian women, who were released outside the agreement. Over the course of 6 days, Israel has received 102 detainees, women and children, including 78 Israelis, in exchange for the release of 234 Palestinian prisoners, women and children.
Eylon Levy, the Israeli government spokesperson, told reporters 01 December 2023:
- Hamas still held 137 hostages from the October attacks, in addition to four others who went missing before the war
- The hostages include two children aged four and 10 months, who, Hamas now claims, are dead
- 117 male hostages are still kept in Gaza, including the two children, as well as 20 females
- 126 hostages are Israelis, and 11 others are foreign nationals
- Foreign nationals are eight Thais, one Nepalese, one Tanzanian and one French Mexican citizen
- Ten of the remaining hostages are 75 and older.
- There are seven missing people since the October 7 attack
- Hamas had released 110 hostages so far – 86 Israelis and 24 foreign nationals.
Some of the rest are soldiers, seized when Hamas raided military bases in Israel. They may end up being held the longest. The Israeli military had not specified how many soldiers were captured, nor their ranks.
According to some estimates, Hamas was initially holding nearly 210 of the 240 hostages, while Palestinian Islamic Jihad was holding the remaining 30. About 40 Israelis remained missing. More than 40 hostages taken from Israel into Gaza on October 7th are not currently in the custody of Hamas, the group responsible for the attack, according to a CNN report based on a diplomatic source briefed on the negotiations, CNN's prior reports had indicated that an estimated 40 to 50 hostages were held by Palestinian Islamic Jihad or other unidentified groups or individuals.
Abu Ubaida, the spokesperson for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said on Hamas’ telegram account that 23 bodies of the 60 missing Israel hostages were trapped under the rubble. “It seems that we will never be able to reach them due to the continued brutal aggression of the occupation against Gaza,” he said.
The Palestinian Prisoners' Club revealed that about 11,000 arrests were carried out by the Israeli army during the year 2023 in the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, in addition to arrests from the Gaza Strip before the seventh of last October. The number of people arrested by the Israelis in the West Bank since that date has exceeded 6,500. The total number of prisoners in Israeli prisons is 8,800, as documented by the club until the end of December 2023. Palestinian prisoner institutions said more than 3,290 administrative detainees, which is the highest percentage since the years of the 1987 Intifada, and 661 who were classified as “unlawful combatants” from Gaza, and this is the number available only as a clear given. The Prisoners' Club stated that cases of arrest among women amounted to (300), and this toll includes women from the occupied interior detained after October 7, while the number of cases of children reached 1,085. The arrest campaigns affected all groups, including women and children, as the number of women who were arrested reached about 200, while the number of arrests among children until the end of last December exceeded 355 children.
Israel said on 14 January 2024 that, since the beginning of the war, over 2,960 wanted persons have been arrested throughout the Judea and Samaria Division and the Bekaa and Valleys Division, over 1,350 of whom are affiliated with Hamas. On 08 January 2024 it was reported that more than 1,350 wanted persons had been arrested throughout the Judea and Samaria Division and the Bekaa and Valleys Division, more than 870 of whom are associated with the terrorist organization Hamas.
The institutions added in the statement that “the occupation arrested 210 women during the aforementioned period, and this statistic includes women who were arrested from the territories in 1948, and more than 355 children,” pointing out that “the outcome of the arrest campaigns includes all those who were arrested from homes, and through military checkpoints, Those who were forced to surrender themselves under pressure, and those who were detained.” It explained that "the number of arrests among journalists reached 50, of whom 35 remain in detention, and 20 of them were transferred to administrative detention."
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