Israel at war: What happened on day 45?
IDF kills three Hamas commanders as Gaza operations continue • Israel proves Hamas took hostages into Al-Shifa Hospital
Hamas, Israel deny reports of ceasefire, hostage deal again
A senior Israeli source and a senior member of Hamas rejected a report that cited an unnamed source from Hamas that an agreement to start a ceasefire on Monday and release a number of hostages had been reached on Sunday.
The Jordanian al-Ghad newspaper reported that a source from Hamas had said that a five-day ceasefire would start at 11 am on Monday and that 50 hostages held by Hamas would be released in exchange for 50 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. A senior Israeli source stated that "there is nothing as of now."
Izzat al-Risheq, a senior member of Hamas, stated early Monday morning that "There is no truth to what the media reported, attributed to sources in Hamas, regarding an exchange deal starting today."
Go to the full article >>Israel receives new armored ambulances amid Gaza war
Dozens of ambulances that were built and armored in the US were purchased in an emergency procurement for the war.
Israel received its first shipment of new armored ambulances at Ben-Gurion Airport on Sunday, according to Walla.
The ambulances were purchased in an emergency procurement conducted by the Defense Ministry's Mission to the US due to the war with Hamas in Gaza.
The shipment included dozens of ambulances that were built and armored in the US on the basis of the Toyota Landcruiser 78, which isn't sold in Europe anymore as it doesn't meet the Euro 6 emission standards.
How are the ambulances armored?
The ambulances were assembled by the Alpine Armoring Inc. and are equipped with a 198 hp V8 diesel engine with a 42.9 kg-m torque. The vehicles have a 5-speed manual transmission and four-wheel drive.
According to Alpine Armoring's website, the ambulances are bulletproof and protected against 7.62mm lead core, 5.56x45 and M80 ball rounds, as well as 2 DM51 hand grenades. The windows are made from multi-layered ballistic glass and the vehicle also has anti-mine protection.
The ambulances were flown to Israel by the Interdel Logistics company from the Allalouf Group. Last month, Interdel Logistics facilitated a shipment of 17 new ambulances for Magen David Adom (MDA).
Go to the full article >>IDF announces names of two soldiers killed in fighting in Gaza
The IDF announced the names of two additional soldiers killed in combat in the northern Gaza Strip on Monday morning.
The two soldiers were named as St.-Sgt. Dvir Barazani, 20, from Jerusalem and Sgt. Yinon Tamir, 20, from Pardess Hanna.
Some 387 IDF soldiers have been killed since Hamas launched its assault on Israel on October 7.
Go to the full article >>President Herzog: "Israel is here for you [Diaspora Jews], and you are here for Israel"
The President's message in Sunday came following his special address during the March for Israel demonstration in Washington DC last week.
President Isaac Herzog has delivered a heartfelt message of hope and unity to Jewish communities worldwide in response to the ongoing challenges facing Israel and a concerning surge in antisemitic attacks.
The President's message on Sunday came following his special address during the March for Israel demonstration in Washington DC last week.
Addressing hundreds of thousands of participants, President Herzog emphasized that the current conflict is not merely a battle between Israel and Hamas.
He stated firmly, "This is not only a war between Israel and Hamas. Israel may be fighting on the ground, but it is fighting the battle of the entire civilized world. We are determined to stand up to this evil."
Herzog's message also touched on the resilience and unity of Israel and Jewish communities worldwide in the face of adversity.
A mutual relationship
He highlighted the strength displayed by Israelis and the outpouring of support from global Jewish communities. "Israel is here for you, and you are here for Israel," he affirmed.
Herzog expressed deep concern. He underscored the disturbing connection between antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment, stating, "In the wake of the massacres, we have seen a terrifying surge of antisemitism throughout the world: Stars of David painted on homes in France. Families in London removing Mezuzas for fear of attack. Hateful demonstrations. An elderly Jewish protester killed in Los Angeles."
In closing, Herzog called for unwavering commitment to values and truth in the face of these challenges. He reassured the global Jewish community, saying, "We will emerge stronger, I’m sure of it," and ended his message with the powerful declaration, "Am Yisrael Chai" (The people of Israel live).
Go to the full article >>Netanyahu: With attack on ship, Iran has ratcheted up its aggression
Some 25 crew members of different nationalities, including Ukrainians, Bulgarians, Filipinos, and Mexicans were onboard the ship. No Israelis were present on it.
Tehran has increased its aggression against Israel and the free world, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after Yemen’s Houthis, an Iranian proxy group, had seized a British-owned and Japanese-operated cargo ship in the southern Red Sea.
Netanyahu immediately blamed Iran.
“We strongly condemn the Iranian attack against an international ship,” Netanyahu said. “This is another act of Iranian terrorism which expresses a leap forward in Iran’s aggression against the citizens of the free world, and creates international implications regarding the security of global shipping lanes.”
Some 25 crew members of different nationalities, including Ukrainians, Bulgarians, Filipinos, and Mexicans were onboard the ship. No Israelis were present on it.
The attack came as the US and other Western powers have worked to prevent the regionalization of the Gaza war between Israel and the Iranian proxy group Hamas.
Iranian proxies threaten regional stability
At issue is the fear of a second front between the Iranian proxy group Hezbollah in Lebanon, and a wider and more direct conflict with Iran.
The Houthis said they had seized a ship in that area, but described it as Israeli. “We are treating the ship’s crew by Islamic principles and values,” a spokesperson for the group said, not referring to the Israeli account. Its armed forces said on Sunday they would continue to attack Israeli ships.
The Houthis, allies of Tehran, have been launching long-range missile and drone salvos at Israel in solidarity with the Hamas terrorists fighting in the Gaza Strip.
Last week, the Houthis’s leader said his forces would make further attacks on Israel, and they could target Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Bab-el-Mandeb strait.
A US defense official said, “We’re aware of the situation and are closely monitoring it.”
On Saturday, before the attack, US presidential adviser Brett McGurk told the International Institute for Strategic Studies during its Manama conference that the US was prepared for all contingencies in the region, noting that it had, for this reason, moved a carrier strike group into the eastern Mediterranean.
“We did not deploy a carrier strike group because of the threat coming from Hamas,” he stated, but rather with an eye toward Iran and many of its proxy groups, he explained.
“We had a cruiser deployed in the Red Sea, not by happenstance,” McGurk stressed.
“When the Houthis launched almost 30 ballistic missiles and UAVs we believe at Israel… our cruiser destroyed, shot them down,” he said
“That is why we deployed our military assets here, and they are going to stay here as we work our way out of this crisis,” he said.
Amos Hochstein, a senior adviser to the US president and a senior adviser for energy and investment, also spoke of US efforts to contain the Gaza war when he addressed the Manama conference on Sunday.
At the end of the day, the US and Gulf governments and the global community have been very clear that shutting down this shipping route is a “unacceptable.”
Iran and its proxies know that this is “a red line.”
About the Lebanese border, he said “We cannot afford the escalation of this conflict into another front. It’s of utmost importance to ensure that the Gaza war does not spread to Lebanon.”
Reuters contributed to this report.
Go to the full article >>Hamas, Israel deny reports of ceasefire, hostage deal again
A senior Israeli source and a senior member of Hamas rejected a report that cited an unnamed source from Hamas that an agreement to start a ceasefire on Monday and release a number of hostages had been reached on Sunday.
The Jordanian al-Ghad newspaper reported that a source from Hamas had said that a five-day ceasefire would start at 11 am on Monday and that 50 hostages held by Hamas would be released in exchange for 50 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. A senior Israeli source stated that "there is nothing as of now."
Izzat al-Risheq, a senior member of Hamas, stated early Monday morning that "There is no truth to what the media reported, attributed to sources in Hamas, regarding an exchange deal starting today."
Go to the full article >>Israel-Hamas War: What you need to know
- Hamas launched a massive attack on October 7, with thousands of terrorists infiltrating from the Gaza border and taking some 240 hostages into Gaza
- Over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals were murdered, including over 350 in the Re'im music festival and hundreds of Israeli civilians across Gaza border communities
- Israel stresses that no ceasefire will be reached without a "mass release of hostages"