Israel at War: What happened on day 15?

The air force chief said he “wouldn’t want to swap places with our enemy and face an IDF division or brigade,” as the army continued with its plans for an invasion of Gaza.

Maj.-Gen. Tomer Bar’s comments were made on Saturday during a briefing of squadron commanders in preparation for the invasion.

At the briefing, Bar also said the Israel Air Force has struck Hamas with thousands of missiles.

“We will come in with full force and strike them as if [it was] the first day of the battle,” Bar said. “Our role is to ‘embrace’ the land forces and say: ‘The enemy you are about to encounter met us before’” – meaning that the air force had worn down Hamas before the ground forces had to enter.

IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said, “Gaza is densely populated; the enemy has prepared a lot [for our invasion], but we are also preparing,” during a visit to Golani troops.

Israel Air Force drills with foreign forces in the ''Blue Drill'' exercise in October 2021. (credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his inner war cabinet, along with National Unity Party leader and war minister Benny Gantz, also met on Saturday. The content of the meeting is classified.

Earlier Saturday, IDF Spokesman Brig.-Gen. Daniel Hagari said one-fifth of the rockets fired by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad have misfired in the last day, landing inside Gaza and killing civilians.

Over the course of the conflict, 550 rockets have been misfired into Gaza by the terror groups. “They are killing their own people,” he said.

The announcement came only a few days after Hamas accused Israel of firing a rocket that struck Gaza’s Al-Ahli Arab Hospital, killing dozens of people. The accusation was quickly dispelled by the IDF and independent, international investigators who found the rocket emanated from a PIJ misfire.

Weekend rockets with few hits

Over the weekend, Hamas continued its rocket fire on Tel Aviv and the Gaza corridor, but with even less success in hitting Israelis or disturbing daily life as compared to many other days in recent weeks.

Hagari said, however, that Israel is continuing to attack Hamas military targets in the northern Gaza Strip in preparation for an imminent ground invasion. Israel planned to enter Gaza last week, but delayed due to a variety of factors, including evacuating civilians, US pressure on humanitarian issues, tactical concerns about Hezbollah’s intention, and traps that Hamas might be setting. He said 700,000 residents had already moved to the southern Gaza Strip.

Hagari also updated the number of soldiers killed and hostages taken. He said Israel had been in touch with the families of 307 fallen soldiers so far. He also raised the number of hostages to 210, noting that the country constantly gathers intelligence and informs families as soon as they know something new.

“That number will continue to change, and we will update you every time we tell a new family” that their loved one has been kidnapped.

On Thursday, Maj.-Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon said a complex array of factors meant that the IDF had high certainty about a majority of its estimates, but that there were dozens or more cases that still required more examination of evidence, DNA testing, and other issues.

Some 765 civilians murdered by Hamas since the start of the war have so far been identified, the police said on Saturday.

The police, the IDF, and volunteers from ZAKA at the casualty identification station in Camp Shora have been working to identify the victims of Hamas’s massacre in the South for the past two weeks. They said the 765 victims who have been so far identified comprise approximately 75% of the Israeli civilians who were killed in the conflict.

Meanwhile, the IDF and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) on Saturday arrested 89 wanted terrorists in Judea and Samaria overnight, including 68 members of the Hamas terrorist organization.

Among those arrested were prominent and close associates of Saleh al-Arouri, who, from outside the area, manages military-terrorist networks in the West Bank. These included al-Arouri’s brother and cousin – both members of Hamas – and Abraham Suleiman from Nablus, a prominent Hamas operative and former prisoner.

In addition, the IDF demolished the home of Hamas terrorist Maher Shalon, who carried out the Almog junction shooting attack in February, which killed Israeli-American Elan Ganeles.

During the operation, several suspects threw stones at the forces and fired explosives, prompting the troops to respond with fire. Injuries were reported.

In addition, the army and Shin Bet said forces located and confiscated materials used for manufacturing weapons in the village of Qusra.

Since the start of the conflict on October 7, there have been 670 wanted individuals arrested throughout the Judea and Samaria region, as well as in the Jordan Valley and the Bekaa region, with over 450 affiliated with Hamas, the army said.

Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report. 

The Qatar state-owned network Al-Jazeera is facing intense criticism that it is assisting the Hamas terrorist movement in its war against the Jewish state, prompting the government to declare that Al-Jazeera's operation will be outlawed in Israel for transmitting "sensitive information to our enemies." 

When asked about a ban on Al-Jazeera and two additional reportedly pro-Hamas news outlets, foreign ministry spokesman, Lior Haiat, told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday “The government is working on something. And it is being led by the Communications Ministry and the Defence Ministry. The idea is if they are crossing the line in assisting Hama, we can shut out the entire channel. “

He added that the closure of a network is "directed at channels that are crossing the line in assisting Hamas."

The Post also asked Hiat about a ban on the Qatari-owned Al-Araby and the pro-Hezbollah outlet Al Mayadeen operating in Israel and in Judea and Samaria. It is unclear if Israel plans to close the two news outlets that are broadcasting in support of Hamas.

Shloma Karhi, the communications minister,  told Israel’s Army Radio last Sunday  about Al-Jazeera  "This is a station that incites, this is a station that films troops in assembly areas (outside Gaza) ... that incites against the citizens of Israel - a propaganda mouthpiece.”

AN EMPLOYEE working inside the office of Qatar-based Al- Jazeera network in Jerusalem watches the news, last month. (credit: AMMAR AWAD / REUTERS)

"It is unconscionable that Hamas spokespeople's message goes through this station.” He continued, "I hope we will finish with this today."

Israel’s government ratcheted up its rhetoric against Al-Jazeera on Friday, according to a report in Ynet, noting that the communications ministry said: "After strenuous activity by the Minister of Communications and his office staff, with the support of the Mossad, the Shin Bet and the Defense Ministry of Defense, and after examining all the required legal aspects and reaching agreements with the Ministry of Justice and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, the government approved regulations that will allow the cessation of activities of a foreign broadcasting organization that harms the security of the state, for the duration of the war.

The closure of the Al Jazeera network in Israel comes after the presentation of evidence that it helps the enemy, broadcasts propaganda in the service of Hamas in Arabic and English to viewers all over the world, and even transmits sensitive information to our enemies."

Mossad pushed for the ban

The Mossad told public broadcaster Kan this week that it advocates a ban on Al-Jazeera because the outlet showed sensitive movements of Israeli forces along the Gaza Strip border.

Yigal Carmon, the former counter-terrorism advisor to Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir and Yitzhak Rabin, wrote Wednesday on the website of the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI),” Qatar has two TV channels that are serving Hamas in time of war: Al-Jazeera and Al-Araby. To the shame of Israel's reckless and failing government, these Goebbels-like channels are broadcasting from Israel. War was declared by Hamas commander in Gaza Muhammad Deif, on these two channels on the morning of Saturday, October 7. Since then, both channels have been acting as megaphones for Hamas's military, operational, and propaganda messages.”

Carmon is the president and founder of MEMRI and has argued from the outbreak of the war that Israel needs to discontinue the news operations of  Al-Jazeera, Al-Araby and Al Mayadeen. Carmon has garnered the moniker as the "man who predicted the war" for his prescient August 31 article. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-764217

He continued that “Israel is in a legal state of war, with emergency laws activated. Under these laws, such enemy channels could be shut down within half an hour – which means that Prime Minister Netanyahu's deadly collaboration with Qatar is continuing even after 1,400 Israelis were killed, nearly 200 were abducted, and there is nightly missile fire on Tel Aviv that is broadcast by these channels.”

According to Carmon, “Al-Jazeera's and Al-Araby's impact on both the ideological and operational levels is enormous. Israeli lives have been put at mortal risk due to these channels' operational and ideological support. And yet they are still, to this very day, operating freely in Israel.”

The former colonel in the IDF's military intelligence, Carmson, said “Qatar is Hamas and Hamas is Qatar.”

MEMRI issued a report on Tuesday, with “some of the messages posted by Al-Jazeera's journalists celebrating Hamas' mega-terror attack in Israel.”

In an October 10, 2023 post in response to President Joe Biden's comment that Hamas "does not represent the aspirations of the Palestinian people," Al-Jazeera presenter Ghada Oueiss wrote: "Seriously? Has brother [Biden] polled our opinion on this??”

On October 7, the day of the Hamas massacre, the Al-Jazeera presenter  Tamer Almisshal celebrated the events, writing: "Gaza manufactures victory and honor for its homeland and nation."

Al-Jazeera Presenter Ahmad Mansour circulated  a video showing Hamas terrorists dragging two Israeli soldiers on the ground, and stated: "This historic picture is worth as much as the hundreds of billions of dollars that the world's Zionists have invested in Israel in the last decades.”

Israel’s ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, published an opinion article on the website Newsweek titled “Is Qatar a Western Ally or Jihadist Hotbed?”

The ambassador wrote that “Qatar couples its financial support for terror with a sophisticated propaganda machine, state-run Al Jazeera has been instrumental in spreading anti-American and antisemitic content around the world. It cravenly exported the rhetoric of Osama Bin Laden and al-Qaeda to global audiences.”

Prosor added, “Qatar has gone to great lengths to whitewash these crimes, using strategic investments to distract from its abysmal human rights record.”

The Post sent press queries to Al-Jazeera and Qatar’s government.

The Post sent a press query to Israel’s Government Press Office on Friday about Al-Araby and Al Mayadeen operating in Israel and in Judea and Samaria. Al Araby TV reporter Amid Shehadeh and cameraman Rabi Munir have previously reported in Jenin. The agency director for  Al Mayadeen’s office in 'Palestine' is Nasser al-Laham, according to his X account, formerly known as Twitter, biography.

In 2020, al-Laham championed the antisemitic book "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion" during an interview with Al Mayadeen. MEMRI first located and translated the interview. Al-Laham said "The Emiratis and Bahrainis who normalize [their relations with Israel] believe – and I don't know who planted this conviction in their brains – that the Israelis love them. They are clearly not well versed in the Bible, the Talmud, or The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.”

Al-Laham continued that "Zionists do not love Arabs. The Zionists came to replace [the Arabs] and not to occupy them. So this will be a direct occupation of the UAE and Bahrain by Israel. It will be an occupation in the full sense of the word – the media, the economy, and the politics. They are after the billions of the Gulf. On the stairs, boarding his plane, Netanyahu stated: 'I am going to get the billions.' He wants cash. He wants to follow Trump's example.“

Lufthansa and all its airlines have extended the suspension of flights to Israel to Oct. 31 due to security concerns in the region, the company said on Friday.

The suspension includes all flights to and from Tel Aviv as well as Beirut, the company, which also include Swiss, Austrian and Brussels Airlines, said.

After a pursuit, a terrorist who fired at an IDF unit earlier today near the community of Margaliot in Israel's north has been located and eliminated, the IDF spokesperson said on Friday evening.

Previously, the terrorist fired at a reserve unit operating in the area before fleeing the scene.

The IDF immediately launched a pursuit of the shooter and blocked possible escape routes.

After several hours, the IDF managed to eliminate the terrorist, who was found carrying a rifle.

During the initial shooting, an IDF reserve soldier was seriously wounded.

The soldier has been evacuated for medical treatment at the hospital, and his family has been notified.

Israel Police officers from the Northern District have arrested a 27-year-old resident of Nahf, who allegedly published words in praise and support for Hamas, the Israel Police said on Friday. 

The man had been reported after posting photos of children being kidnapped by the terrorist organization and praising the attackers.

In addition, he had posted instructions on his Facebook page teaching how to make explosives. 

Illegal employment

After the arrest of the suspect, an inspection was carried out at his home as well as at the business he owns, where a West Bank resident, who was in Israel without a permit and was employed by the suspect, was located. 

The suspect and the West Bank resident were transferred to the police station in Majd el-Kurum for further investigation and will later be brought before the court to extend their detention. 

Man arrested after Facebook post in support of Hamas kidnappers (credit: ISRAEL POLICE SPOKESMAN)

“The Israel Police will continue to work with great effort to locate and deal with instigators of violence and acts of terrorism on social networks," the police spokesperson said. "These contents that call for incitement against the security forces and support for a terrorist organization, especially these days, may upset public order and endanger the peace of citizens.”

The White House on Friday asked Congress for nearly $106 billion to fund ambitious plans for Ukraine, Israel and US border security, but offered no strategy for securing the money from a broken Congress.

President Joe Biden's request for the funding comes days after he visited Israel and pledged solidarity as the country bombards Gaza following an attack by Hamas terrorists that killed 1,400 people in southern Israel.

By grouping Israel funding with Ukraine, border security, refugee assistance, measures to counter China and other hotly debated priorities, the Democratic president is hoping he has created a must-pass national security spending bill that can win support in a chaotic House of Representatives.

The chamber, which Republicans won control of last year, has been without a leader for 18 days.

Some Republican lawmakers have grown skeptical of the need to fund Ukraine's war with Russia, and have threatened to halt government altogether to put an end to chronic US budget deficits and fiscal spending fueled by $31.4 trillion in debt.

People gather for a demonstration at Times Square to express solidarity with Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in New York City, U.S., October 19, 2023. (credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)

"The world is watching and the American people rightly expect their leaders to come together and deliver on these priorities," said Biden's budget director, Shalanda Young, in a letter to acting House Speaker Patrick McHenry. "I urge Congress to address them as part of a comprehensive, bipartisan agreement in the weeks ahead."

In a call with reporters, Young said the role of the White House is to lay out the country's needs and the stakes, not to meddle in the speakership battle.

"We are doing our job here by letting Congress know what the critical needs are and we expect them to act, and act swiftly," she said.

She also told Congress of plans to submit another request for funding to deal with natural disasters, high-speed internet, child care and wild-land firefighter pay "in coming days."

Some $14.3 billion of Friday's funding request for the 2024 fiscal year would be dedicated to Israel, much of it to support the country's air and missile defense systems and other weapons purchases. Israel has vowed to wipe out Hamas, which rules Gaza, after the Islamist terrorist group's Oct. 7 attack.

Hardline conservative Jim Jordan, an ally of Republican former President Donald Trump who objects to further aid to Ukraine, invoked Israel ahead of his third bid to get enough votes for the House leadership position.

"The sooner we can get this accomplished, the better for the American people, who expect us to work for them, and for our friends and allies like the great state of Israel," Jordan said. He appeared poised to lose the speakership vote again on Friday.

Biden also wants more than $9 billion for humanitarian relief, including for Israel and Gaza, where the population faces a worsening humanitarian crisis.

The proposal also includes $13.6 billion for US border security to deal with large numbers of Latin American and Caribbean immigrants at the southern border as well as fentanyl trade and $4 billion in military assistance and government financing designed to counter China's regional efforts in Asia. Funding will also support the Pacific "AUKUS" security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Unwavering support for Ukraine

But the largest share of cash, $61.4 billion, would be for Ukraine. The request includes billions to replenish the country's military equipment, and would provide economic and security aid and support for refugees in the United States. The war with Russia is 20 months old, and Biden has vowed to support Ukraine indefinitely.

"The unwavering bipartisan support for Ukraine in the United States is incredibly encouraging for all of our warriors and for our entire nation," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Friday on social media. "America's investment in Ukraine's defense will ensure long-term security for all of Europe and the world," he said. Zelensky spoke with Biden on Thursday.

About four in 10 respondents in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted last week said the US should support Israel's position in the current conflict when given a range of options. Nearly half said Americans should remain neutral or not be involved.

In a separate Reuters/Ipsos poll earlier this month, roughly the same proportion agreed with a statement that Washington "should provide weapons to Ukraine."

"American leadership is what holds the world together. American alliances are what keep us, America, safe," Biden said in an Oval Office address to the nation on Thursday night.

The death toll of French citizens from the Hamas attacks in Israel has risen to 30, and seven others are still missing, said a French diplomatic source on Friday.

Ronen and Orna Neutra told a large crowd in Times Square that their son, Omer, had captained his soccer team at his Long Island high school and loved the NBA. They last spoke to Omer on Oct. 6 while he was stationed with his tank unit on the Gaza border, when he said he looked forward to a restful Shabbat.

“Omer is now considered to be held by Hamas,” his father said. “Omer, we know that you’re alive and you’re strong.”

He added, “We pray for your swift return.”

Bring Them Home rally

The parents delivered the speech as part of a massive “Bring Them Home” rally Thursday evening on behalf of the captives held by Hamas. The rally was organized by the Israeli American Council and backed by a range of Jewish groups. Thousands of people packed Times Square for the event, bearing Israeli and American flags and photos of the 200 hostages held by the terror group, which took the captives when it invaded Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, killing 1,400 and wounding thousands.

Photos of the hostages were displayed on the iconic LED screens towering over Times Square, as well as on the LED billboards along Broadway and Seventh Avenue.

Pro-Israel demonstrators protest in Times Square on the second day of the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, in Manhattan in New York City, U.S., October 8, 2023. (credit: JEENAH MOON/REUTERS)

Community leaders and politicians, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, addressed the crowd, vowing to bring back the hostages and defeat Hamas, and leading chants of “Bring them home.” Israeli singer Shiri Maimon sang Israel’s national anthem, “Hatikvah.”

“To free the hostages we will persist and persist and persist,” said Schumer, who had recently returned from a trip to Israel.“In every generation they have risen to afflict us,” he said, quoting the Passover Haggadah. “But we know in every generation we fight back until we win.”

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Friday called on Israel to stop its attacks on Gaza, which he said amounted to genocide, and urged the international community to work for a humanitarian ceasefire in the region.

In a post on social messaging platform X, Erdogan also said Israel was provoking non-regional actors instead of turning back from its mistakes in Gaza, adding that the region needed saving from the "frenzy of madness" supported by Western powers and media.

"I repeat my call for the Israeli leadership to never expand the scope of its attacks on civilians and to immediately end its operations amounting to genocide," Erdogan said.

He said Ankara was working to end the fighting between Israeli and Palestinian forces before they reached "a point of no return."

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi agreed on Friday that global leaders should do everything possible to avoid a contagion of conflict in the Middle East, Sunak's office said.

Sunak also welcomed efforts by Egypt to reopen the Rafah border crossing with Gaza as soon as possible, his office said following a meeting between the pair in Cairo.