Israel at war: What happened on day 44?

Good progress has been made on efforts to secure the release of hostages, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani told reporters in Doha on Sunday morning.

“I am now more confident that we are close to a deal that can bring the people safely back to their homes,” he said.

He spoke in the aftermath of a Washington Post report about the counters of a deal by which 50 female and child hostages would be freed in exchange for the Israeli release of 50 Palestinian women and minors jailed on security-related offenses.

As part of that deal, Israel would agree to a five-day ceasefire, during which time the hostages would be released in small groups.

The Qatari Premier said that “efforts for a deal are still ongoing” during a joint press conference he held with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.  

A woman looks at posters depicting missing Israeli citizens likely among the hostages held in Gaza, with the word ''kidnapped,'' following Saturday's attack by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas against Israel, in a street in Paris, France, October 13, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/Abdul Saboor)

“It’s counterproductive to see leaks coming out before sealing a deal, which has been going through ups and downs throughout the last few weeks,” the Qatari Premier.

He acknowledged however that such an agreement could be close to execution.

“When you come closer to the goal, your confidence levels are increasing, The sticking points are more practice, logistical, not something that represents the core of the deal. 

'We see good progress in the last few days,'

“The effort are still ongoing, and we communicate with both parties, with the Israelis and with Hamas. We see good progress in the last few days,” he said.

The Qatari Premier added that it was also important to ensure humanitarian assistance to Gaza.

“We see the people are suffering from starvation, people are lacking power, clean water, sanitation, the hospital is lacking fuel. These are the most important things, it should not be relevant to the deal, but if the deal is going to facilitate that, then we hope it happens as soon as possible,” he said.

The Qatari Premier spoke on day 44 since Hamas infiltrated souther Israel on October 7, killing over 1,200 people and seizing over 239 hostage. Israel responded with a military campaign to oust Hamas from the Gaza Strip, which it has forcibly ruled since 2007. Hamas has asserted that over 11,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in war related violence.

Borrell in Doha acknowledged that what Hamas did on October 7 ws the largest massacre of jews since the Holocaust. But he said, the IDF’s military campaign has created a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. “One horror doesn’t justify another horror,” Borrell stated. He called for the immediate release of the hostages and for the implementation of last week’s United Nations Security Council resolution calling for prolonged humanitarian pauses

“The number of casualties, the number of children, makes us believe that much more should be done [by Israel] to preserve the life of civilians,” he said.

Borrell called on Israeli to also allow more humanitarian assistance but noted that this was equivalent to treating the symptom not and not the disease.

It doesn’t make sense to give someone dinner and then kill them the next day, Borrell said, as he called for the implementation of the two-state resolution to the conflict as the best way to ensure peace 

“I am very much aware that this will require a great effort, not only economically, but a political investment, not to build houses but to build a state.

The best way to honor the victims is to take steps to ensure that an attack such as the one that occurred on October 7 never happens again, he stated.

The remains of 12-year-old Liel Hezroni from Kibbutz Be'eri have been identified on Sunday, according to Israeli media.

Liel was declared missing for 38 days before she was pronounced dead. Her body was identified next to the body of her aunt Ayala Hezroni. 

They were both killed during the October 7 massacre in Kibbutz Be'eri.

The IDF announced on Sunday morning that Sgt. Yakir Biton, 34, from Jerusalem, Sgt.-Maj. Rani Tahan, 40, from Sde Nehemiya, and Maj. Chen Yahalom, 35, from Kfar Azar, were killed in the fighting in northern Gaza.

Jordan's King Abdullah said on Sunday the international community should push for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza to stop a humanitarian catastrophe caused by what he termed Israel's "ugly war against civilians."

In remarks made during a meeting with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, the monarch said global powers should force Israel to comply with international law to protect civilians and ensure Israel heeds calls to allow uninterrupted flow of aid into the enclave.

The IDF has killed numerous Hamas terrorists and destroyed Hamas infrastructure over the course of the weekend, the IDF spokesperson said on Sunday morning.

The IDF hit the Gaza-based terror organization from the air, sea, and land, with both naval and aircraft operating in tandem with Israeli ground forces.

The Israeli security apparatus operated in the Gaza neighborhoods of Jabalia, Zaytoun, and Beit Lahia, engaging Hamas combatants there with small arms, tank fire, and air support.

In one such engagement in the the Jabalia neighborhood, soldiers of the Nahal Brigade identified a squad of Hamas terrorists on the roof of a residential building. Directing an aircraft, the IDF targeted the group with a precision strike, successfully eliminating the terrorist.

In other residential buildings, the IDF discovered weapons and military gear that Hamas had kept there.

IDF naval action

Meanwhile, Israeli Shayetet 3 naval forces targeted Hamas militants with a barrage of artillery shells. The naval actions both eliminated targets and provided cover for ground forces operating in the area.

IDF forces, led by the Paratrooper’s Brigade, conducted raids of the homes of senior Hamas officials in the Rimal neighborhood, the IDF spokesperson said on Sunday.

The Rimal neighborhood is one of the Strip’s more upscale locations. 

Combat troops of the Paratroopers Brigade, along with the IDF Armored Corps, Combat Engineering Corps, and air force engaged Hamas terrorists in the Sheikh Ejalin and Rimal neighborhoods.

During the IDF maneuver, the Israeli forces discovered about 35 tunnel shafts, found a variety of weapons, and eliminated Hamas combatants.

The IDF also raided a Hamas military camp during the operation, in the course of which they located ammunition depots and seven rocket launchers.

Hamas's senior commanders in Gaza's "luxury" neighborhood

The IDF states that the Rimal neighborhood is considered to be among Gaza’s higher-end communities and is home to many of Hamas’s senior commanders.

Hamas also uses the area’s civilian spaces for its martial operations, the IDF says. The neighborhood also contains Hamas military posts and government buildings.

After IDF soldier Staff Sergeant Yehonatan Yitzhak Semo fell in battle in the Gaza Strip this week, the family of the fallen Israeli warrior decided to donate his organs to save the lives of other Israelis, Israel’s National Transplant Center said on Sunday.

After having been seriously wounded fighting Hamas terrorists last week, Semo was urgently transferred to Petah Tikva’s Beilinson Hospital. Despite their best efforts, doctors nevertheless were forced to declare the young man’s death shortly thereafter.

Semo’s family noted that Yehonatan is his parents’ eldest son, leaving behind four younger siblings.

“With beautiful big eyes and a captivating smile, he never complained about difficulties,” his family said, going on to list many of the fallen soldier’s academic and volunteer achievements.

According to Semo’s family, he had wanted to serve in a combat role in order to be able have a meaningful impact in Israel’s fight against Hamas.

The Israeli flag. (credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)

“Yehonatan signed an Adi (organ donor) card of his own initiative,” his family said. Previously, after his mother had discovered and asked him about it, Semo had replied, “'Yes, I signed it a long time ago.”

“That was Jonathan,” his family explained. “Everything he did was with a smile, understanding, commitment, and a willingness to help.”

The impact of Semo's sacrifice

Semo’s sacrifice consequently has had a life-changing, if not not life-saving, impact for six other people.

At Beilinson Hospital, a 46-year-old was able to receive a heart transplant and a 36-year-old was able to receive an eye transplant.

At Ichilov Hospital, a 51-year-old received a liver transplant.

At Schneider Children’s Medical Center, an eight-month-old infant and a 10-year-old child were able to receive kidney transplants.

Finally, a 50-year-old at Hadassah was also able to receive a kidney transplant.

The fact that part of him will continue to live and help others afterward... there is nothing more uplifting,” his family added. “Thanks to him, many people signed organ donor cards during the past week, and many more will."

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The IDF announced on Sunday morning that Sgt. Binyamin Meir Airly, 21, from Beit Shemesh, and Cpt. (res.) Roey Biber, 28, from Tzur Moshe, were killed in the fighting in northern Gaza, according to the IDF Spokesperson's Unit.

A Palestinian was killed amid armed clashes with Israeli forces in Jenin early Sunday morning, according to Palestinian reports.

Additionally, one Palestinian was seriously injured in clashes with Israeli forces in Kalandiya and another two Palestinians were injured in clashes in Balata near Nablus.

Israel, the United States, and Hamas have reached a tentative agreement to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the deal.

As part of the detailed, six-page agreement, all parties would freeze combat operations for at least five days while "an initial 50 or more hostages are released in smaller groups every 24 hours," the Post reported. Hamas took about 240 hostages during its Oct. 7 rampage inside Israel that killed 1,200 people.

The newspaper said overhead surveillance would monitor ground movement to help police the pause, which also is intended to allow in a significant amount of humanitarian aid.

There was no immediate comment from the White House or the Israeli prime minister's office on the Post report.

The hostage release could begin within the next several days, according to people familiar with its the agreement.

People gather in front of the United Nations Headquarters in Jerusalem demanding for action to be taken to return the hostages kidnapped by Hamas during the October 7 attacks, in Jerusalem November 13, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/AMMAR AWAD)

Pressure had been growing on Israel to reach a deal

Since Hamas's attack on October 7, during which at least 240 Israelis were taken into captivity in Gaza, families of those held hostage have organized to call on the government, as well as international bodies, to act for the captives' release. Last Saturday night marked the second week in a row that demonstrations have been held in cities across the country. Thousands attended the rally in Tel Aviv on November 12, including Reuven Rivlin, the former President of Israel, and the singer Shlomo Artzi. 

Haim Rubinstein, the spokesperson for a families' activist group, said in an interview with Channel 13 on Monday that "members of the families [of the kidnapped] are sitting in their homes, anxious about the fate of their loved ones, and they want to do something, right now." Their plan, he said, is to "arrive in Jerusalem and meet with the Prime Minister, with a clear demand: return all of them, now."

In a statement on Tuesday, Prime Minister Netanyahu said, "Our hearts are always with the abductees and their families. Since the beginning of the war, we have been working continuously to free our abductees, including exerting increasing pressure since the beginning of the ground maneuver."