Swords of Iron: What happened on day 10?

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that US President Joe Biden will travel to Israel on Wednesday after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Biden will reaffirm US solidarity with Israel and make clear that Israel has the right and duty to defend its people from Hamas, Blinken said.

The US President will continue to coordinate with Israeli partners to secure the hostages' release from Hamas, the US secretary said, and also noted that the US and Israel agreed on a plan that will allow aid to reach Gazan civilians.

"If Hamas blocks humanitarian aid from reaching civilians, we'll work to prevent it from happening again," the Secretary of State said.

Speaking with the Egyptian President

Biden earlier spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and discussed the need to preserve stability in the Middle East during a phone call on Monday, the White House said.

A billboard in support of US President Joe Biden seen in Israel, October 11, 2023 (credit: AVSHALOM SASSONI/MAARIV)

Biden and Sisi also discussed ongoing efforts to alleviate the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, the White House said.

The top US general overseeing American forces in the Middle East made an unannounced trip to Israel on Tuesday, saying he hoped to ensure its military has what it needs as it fights a deepening war against Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

The trip by Army General Michael "Erik" Kurilla, head of US Central Command, is the latest by a senior US official to Israel ahead of an expected ground assault by Israel's military in Gaza. It comes a day before a planned visit by US President Joe Biden to the country.

The US military is increasing its firepower in the region, aiming to prevent Iran and other Iran-backed groups from getting involved in the conflict as international fears of a wider, regional war grow.

The Pentagon is also rushing weaponry, including air defenses and munitions, to Israel.

"I'm here to ensure Israel has what it needs to defend itself, particularly focused on avoiding other parties expanding the conflict," Kurilla told Reuters, which is traveling with him, in brief remarks before landing.

A US official told Reuters Kurilla was scheduled to hold high-level meetings with Israel's military leadership, ensuring a clear understanding of the close US ally's defense requirements.

Kurilla was also expected to outline US military support aimed at avoiding an expansion of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has urged for the parties concerned in Israel and the Palestinian territories to immediately cease fire and stop violence, adding that it was deeply concerned about the increased tensions, Chinese state media said.

The Eurasian political and economic organization called on all parties to exercise restraint, actively seek dialog and prevent further deterioration of situation, particularly to protect civilians.

The SCO also supports efforts pushed by the United Nations to cool down the situation as soon as possible through peaceful means and the two-state solution.

The IDF assassinated Osama al-Mazini, a senior member of Hamas's political bureau and the head of Hamas's Shura Council, on Monday, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit and the Shin Bet said in a joint statement.

צה"ל ושב"כ חיסלו את ראש מועצת השורא של חמאס ברצועת עזה.

צה"ל ושב"כ חיסלו את אסאמה אלמזיני, ראש מועצת השורא של חמאס ברצועה, במסגרת פעילותו היה אחראי על תיק האסירים והכווין טרור כנגד מדינת ישראל pic.twitter.com/eqfNY98tYc

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 16, 2023

Mazini was in charge of negotiations which led to the prisoner swap in which IDF soldier Gilad Shalit was released from Hamas captivity.

Donald Trump promised on Monday that if elected president again he will bar immigrants who support Hamas from entering the US and send officers to pro-Hamas protests to arrest and deport immigrants who publicly support the Palestinian terrorist group.

On a campaign stop in Iowa, Trump was responding to the Hamas killing of at least 1,300 Israelis that triggered a war in which Palestinian health officials say Israel has killed more than 2,800 Palestinians in Gaza.

Trump, president from 2017-2021, said that if elected to a second White House term he will ban entry to the US of anybody who does not believe in Israel's right to exist, and revoke the visas of foreign students who are "antisemitic."

He also vowed to step up travel bans from "terror-plagued countries." He did not explain how he would enforce his demands, including the one requiring immigrants to support Israel's right to exist under what he called "strong ideological screening."

Many of Trump's immigration policies were challenged in court during his presidency and his newest pledges could also face challenges.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump gestures while talking to the media during a break as he attends trial in a civil fraud case brought by state Attorney General Letitia James against him, his adult sons, the Trump Organization and others in New York City, U.S., October 4, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/MIKE SEGAR)

A ban he imposed on immigrants from some Muslim-majority nations was struck down in lower courts but ultimately upheld by the US Supreme Court. Biden ended that ban when he took office.

Trump said on Monday he would ban immigrants from Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen "or anywhere else that threatens our security." Trump also read a poem that he used to liken immigrants to deadly snakes.

Jaime Harrison, chair of the Democratic National Committee, described Trump's pledges as Islamophobic, extreme and designed to exploit "fear and anxiety."

Iowa is one of the earliest states to hold a Republican presidential nominating contest. A tough approach to immigrants was a cornerstone of Trump's first term as president.

He is the frontrunner to win his party's White House nomination and take on Democratic President Joe Biden in the November 2024 election.

"You're disqualified"

Promising to drastically tighten US immigration laws, Trump said: "If you want to abolish the state of Israel, you're disqualified, if you support Hamas or the ideology behind Hamas, you're disqualified, and if you're a communist, Marxist, or fascist, you are disqualified."

Most of Trump's Republican rivals have condemned Hamas and offered full-throated support for an expected Israeli invasion of Gaza, but none has laid out such a tough series of proposals to keep people out of and expel Hamas sympathizers from the US

The United States along with several other countries have designated Hamas a terrorist organization.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, one of Trump's Republican rivals for the presidential nomination, said on Monday he favored the deportation of foreign students who support Hamas and would bar Gaza refugees from the US if elected president.

Trump last week accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of being unprepared for the Hamas attacks and called Hezbollah - the Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist  group - "very smart."

His Iowa remarks appeared to be an effort in part to blunt that criticism.

"We will aggressively deport resident aliens with jihadist sympathies," Trump said.

Hamas released another video of a hostage on their Telegram channel on Monday. The video appears to show a young woman receiving medical attention from Hamas.

In the video, the girl says she was badly hurt and has been receiving medical treatment.

“Hi, I'm Mia Shem, 21 years old from Shoham. Currently, I'm in Gaza. I returned early Saturday morning from Sderot; I was at a party. I was seriously injured in my hand. I underwent surgery on my hand at the hospital [in Gaza] for 3 hours. They are taking care of me, giving me medicine, everything is fine. I only ask that they bring me home as soon as possible to my parents, to my siblings. Get me out of here as soon as possible. Please.”

Hamas claims to be administering medical attention

On Hamas's Arabic Telegram channel, the video is accompanied by the caption, "Mujahideen from the Al-Qassam Brigades provide medical care to a female prisoner in Gaza, who was captured on the first day of the Al-Aqsa Flood battle."

A post on X, formerly Twitter, from Israel's Army Radio includes a photo of the young woman.

קרן שם, שבתה מיה נעדרת מאז המסיבה ברעים, ל-@ilanadayan1: "מהשנייה שהתחילו הדיווחים חייגתי לנייד שלה, והטלפון מצלצל שעות אבל אין מענה. אני דורשת לדעת, שיגידו לי משהו. אף אחד לא חיפש אותי, העלנו פוסט בפייסבוק - עשיתי את כל מה שיכולתי כדי להודיע שהבת שלי נעדרת, אף אחד לא פנה אליי" pic.twitter.com/xPzYGXGHmq

— גלצ (@GLZRadio) October 12, 2023

"From the second the reports started I called her cell phone," Army Radio quotes Mia's mother, Keren Shem, as saying. "And the phone has been ringing for hours, but there's no answer. I demand to know, someone should tell me something. No one has looked for me; we posted on Facebook - I did everything I could to let everyone know that my daughter is missing, but no one has contacted me."

Mia's aunt, Galit, told Israeli media that "Today [the family] called me screaming and told me that they see Mia in a video on Telegram. I saw her, and I thought I was dreaming. I finally saw the girl after all this time. She looks hurt and scared - but at least she's alive."

"This is a very significant step, and we want our girl at home. We demand that the countries of the free world make sure that she return to us. She was with a very good friend of hers - Elya Toledano, and we heard nothing more about him. We want to know he's okay."

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said that Maya's family had been notified that she had been kidnapped last week and that IDF representatives were in contact with her.

"The IDF is operating with all intelligence and operational means for the return of the hostages," said the IDF. "In the video, Hamas tries to present itself as a humanitarian organization while it is a murderous terrorist organization, responsible for the murders and kidnappings of babies, women, children, and the elderly."

It is unclear when the video of Mia was filmed and The Jerusalem Post is unable to verify its authenticity at this time. Neither the woman's family nor any Israeli government or security officials have confirmed the authenticity of the video.

Hamas often uses similar videos as part of psychological warfare efforts, and it is not yet determined if Mia is still alive.  

This is a developing story.

Nearly 1,000 US citizens and family members have departed Israel on State Department-sponsored charter flights since Friday for Europe, a department spokesperson told Reuters on Monday.

The State Department said it had offered more than 4,000 seats on US government-chartered transport by air and sea to US citizens and immediate family but said the flights and other departure options have generally departed at half capacity or less.

The State Department said the US government-facilitated flights are scheduled to continue from Tel Aviv through at least Thursday.

Hundreds of Israeli hi-tech experts have temporarily put their private sector jobs aside to help locate Israelis missing after last week's attack by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

Hamas gunmen evaded heavy Israeli security measures to escape the Gaza Strip and storm Israeli towns and kibbutzes, killing 1,300 people and taking almost 200 into captivity. In response, Israel has bombarded Gaza for days, killing more than 2,700 Palestinians while its troops prepare a ground assault.

Karine Nahon, one of the leaders of the initiative, said volunteers have been analyzing footage - including videos posted online by Hamas - to help identify and locate the more than 1,000 people who are still unaccounted for. Any information gleaned is passed on to Israeli authorities.

Based out of Tel Aviv, the center of Israel's hi-tech and cyber security sector, the volunteers have created a makeshift command center where they use artificial intelligence and facial and voice recognition to help locate those unaccounted for after the attack, sometimes by clothing or recognizable features.

"The government right now relies on the information that is coming from these rooms," Nahon said.

Hands are seen interfering with cyber code (Illustrative). (credit: PIXABAY)

Pictures of the missing Israelis line the walls, reminding volunteers of their mission.

"We try to understand the status of each one of the missing people and we still have more than a thousand people who are missing," she said.

They are working against the clock.

Israel has vowed to eliminate Hamas in response to the attacks while Hamas says it will execute hostages in response to Israeli strikes on civilians.

Hamas removing videos from the internet

Hamas is now also removing footage of the attacks that it has posted online, suggesting that the terrorist group is aware those videos are being analyzed for information, Nahon said.

"Hamas now is deleting and removing videos that they have. There was a live video of how they entered into different rooms of slaughtered children, and horrible pictures.

"What they do now is they go one by one and they remove those videos, because they understand that we basically monitor that and we analyze those videos," she said.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Monday spoke to his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, and reiterated the United States' commitment to avoiding an escalation of the Israel-Hamas conflict and emphasized civilian safety, the Pentagon said in a readout.

The IDF said it was striking military targets belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist movement in Lebanon on Monday night.

This is a developing story.