Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 86?

The IDF must look ahead to the future as it operates in the Gaza Strip, Israeli military spokesperson R.-Adm. Daniel Hagari said in a Sunday evening briefing.

Earlier on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that discussions about what would happen to the Gaza Strip "the day after" the war ends would need to wait until Hamas was defeated.

Netanyahu: Israel can only discuss day after when Gaza war ends

Speaking in a Sunday cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said that the "day after must get here first."

"In order to talk about the day after, it needs to get here first. Only the IDF will have control," the prime minister said.

"Obviously, the Strip will be demilitarized. There will be no power except Israel," said Netanyahu.

IDF Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari (credit: IDF)

Israeli forces expanded its operations in Khan Yunis and across the Gaza Strip on Sunday ahead of the planned transition to "Stage 3" of the IDF's war on Hamas.

The IDF deepened its siege of the southern Gaza city, a hotbed of terror activity, with Israeli forces expected to continue their assault on Hamas in the city after the transition to "Stage 3," which refers to a point where the “main war” is over, but where the IDF is expected to continue for three to nine months to fight an insurgency.

IDF increased its manpower in the South, with close to two full divisions operating in the area below Wadi Gaza.

IDF looking in Khan Yunis to advance Gaza war goals

Israeli security sources remain hopeful that continued military pressure on Khan Yunis will eventually "bear fruit" in regard to the IDF's war goals in Gaza, set by Israel as the dismantling of Hamas, removal of any threat to Israel from the Gaza Strip, and return of all hostages taken on October 7.

Areas closer to Israeli towns in both the north and south of Gaza, including Shejaia, Beit Hanun, Beit Lahia, and Khirbat Ikhza'a, are undergoing "special treatment" by Israeli forces to ensure no security threat can be posed from the towns following the war, as per reports.

The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu published a brief statement on Sunday reporting that the prime minister is in normal health and maintains a healthy lifestyle with a proper diet.

The cardiac incident that Netanyahu suffered in July will be discussed separately, the statement said. The prime minister was hospitalized for heart issues and had a pacemaker implanted.

The statement from his office Sunday said that since that operation, "there has been no evidence of arrhythmias or other events" and that "the pacemaker implanted in his body is working properly."

"He is not dependent on the pacemaker," the statement reported, "and no abnormal events have been recorded since his previous examination."

Israel is prepared to let ships deliver aid to the war-ravaged Gaza Strip "immediately" as part of a proposed sea corridor from Cyprus, the Israeli foreign minister said on Sunday, naming four European countries as potential participants.

Under the arrangement first suggested by Cyprus in November, cargo would undergo security inspection in the Cypriot port of Larnaca before being ferried to the Gaza coast, 370 km (230 miles) away, rather than through neighboring Egypt or Israel.

"It can start immediately," Foreign Minister Eli Cohen told Tel Aviv radio station 103 FM when asked about the Mediterranean corridor.

He said Britain, France, Greece, and the Netherlands were among countries with vessels able to land directly on the shores of Gaza, which lacks a deep-water port. He appeared to suggest he expected them to do that rather than offload aid in Israel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that discussions about what would happen Gaza Strip "the day after" the war ends would need to wait until Hamas was defeated during a meeting of the cabinet on Sunday, according to Israeli media.

"In order to talk about the day after, it needs to get here first. Only the IDF will have control. Obviously, the Strip will be demilitarized. There will be no power except Israel," said Netanyahu.

At least 10 Iran-backed Houthi militants were killed after the US sunk their boats during an attempted attack by the militants against a container ship in the southern Red Sea, according to AFP.

On Sunday morning, the Maersk Hangzhou issued a distress call after being attacked by four Houthi small boats, as the Houthis fired on the vessel and attempted to board it, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM). The security team on the vessel returned fire.

When the US helicopters from the USS Eisenhower and USS Gravely arrived at the scene, the Houthis fired at them as well. The helicopters returned fire, sinking three of the four boats and killing their crews. The fourth boat fled the area.

After the attack, Maersk announced that it was suspending the transit of its vessels through the Red Sea for 48 hours, according to Reuters.

IDF canines Patrick and Toy fought alongside Oketz soldiers during operations in the Gaza Strip, taking down terrorists and giving soldiers information from inside buildings before they entered, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit said Sunday.

In many cases, the canines are sent into buildings to conduct an initial scan before the soldiers enter, identifying various types of threats and protecting Israeli forces.

The canines also map houses and locate weapons and explosives.

IDF canines operate in Gaza. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

How IDF canines Patrick, Toy helped kill Hamas terrorists

During a joint raid alongside soldiers from the 460th Brigade in the Jabalya neighborhood, a soldier sent Patrick to scan the targeted location before soldiers entered.

Patrick located a terrorist and apprehended him before he could pose a threat to the soldiers.

In another raid in the Rimal neighborhood, Toy found a corridor connecting the building soldiers were to another building where a terrorist was hiding.

Toy apprehended the terrorist, protecting the soldiers.

On October 7, Hamas terrorists attacked dozens of points along the border with Gaza. They broke through the security fence and massacred people in Israeli communities. It took days of fighting to secure the border area again on Israel’s side of the fence. When the fighting was mostly done and Israeli communities retaken, the damage had to be repaired, and Israel had to consider its next steps in the Hamas-run enclave [in Gaza].

Key units from the Combat Engineering Corps came into the breach. In the first month of the war, the engineers helped repair and reinforce the breaches in the security fence. When the ground operation in Gaza began, they were pressed into action to help neutralize explosive devices and create access routes for forces to enter the Gaza Strip.

One IDF statement in early November noted that “during ground operations in the Gaza Strip, combat engineering troops created access routes, cleared the area of explosive devices, and neutralized terror infrastructure and terrorist cells found in the area. Furthermore, combat engineering and infantry soldiers located and struck military compounds used for planning and executing terror activities.”

Today, some of the engineering forces and their vehicles have been brought back from the tough battles in Gaza. I drove down to the Erez Crossing to meet with members of the unit.

All signs are that Israel will shift from the “main war” (Stage 2) to a longer, lower-intensity conflict in Gaza (Stage 3) in the next two to four weeks.

What will this mean? To answer that question, we need to identify why this is happening.

There are two main reasons this is happening: 1) world pressure and, most importantly, American pressure, and 2) pressure from reservists and their families to be able to return to regular life.

The Jerusalem Post has learned that balancing between these two reasons will be the key to navigating this incredibly important transition.

At a minimum, at a practical level, the transition means that hundreds of thousands of reservists may be returning home from Gaza and the northern front in the near future.

Not all of the reservists, and many of the reservists will need to rotate in and out of the southern and northern fronts for longer than usual reserve duty stints in 2024.

Reduced number of IDF reservists in the field

But if the IDF jumped from a military of 100,000-150,000 before the war to around 450,000 at the climax of reservists volunteering, it is going to drop to much closer to the pre-war levels (though not all the way back down.)

This already started a few weeks ago when much of IDF Division 252, a mostly reservist division, was given extended leave after finishing certain missions in northern Gaza.

It will progress more dramatically in the near future.

This is happening because, socio-economically, the country is not built to survive with reservists at war for months straight at a time.

The toll it takes on the economy from missing workers and the toll it takes on families from missing parents is immense and cumulatively starts tearing at the foundation of the country even more as time passes.

It is happening because the reservists and their families represent a massive voting constituency that no one wants to alienate by keeping them in service longer than they believe is fair, even during wartime.

The Post has learned that the IDF is also very concerned about giving the reserves breathing room in a much larger way than it has done to date.

But that is only half of the story.

Soldiers from the IDF's special force Maglan unit are continuing military operations in the Khan Yunis area in southern Gaza, collaborating with reconnaissance, engineering, and air force units, eliminating terrorists in face-to-face encounters. Additionally, they are working to locate and destroy terror infrastructure in the area.

During investigations of a building that allegedly serves as an educational office, cultural center, and school, Maglan troops discovered rocket launchers, documents, and tools belonging to the Hamas.

Large quantities of combat equipment, including rockets and ammunition, were found, including an arsenal discovered in a closet in a bedroom.