Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 107?

Two Hezbollah terrorists from the Lebanese terror organization's VIP and leaders' protection unit were killed in an alleged Israeli drone strike on a vehicle in the village of Kafra in southern Lebanon, local media reported on Sunday.

Local sources from Al-Arabiya and Al-Hadath reported that the strike in the village, located some 10 kilometers from the Lebanese border with Israel, failed to kill the main target, who was being secured by the Hezbollah terrorists.

Arabic media named Fadi Suleiman, a senior Hezbollah field commander, as the chief who survived the alleged drone strike. Fadl Suleiman, a reported family member and part of the Hezbollah protection unit, was reportedly killed in the drone strike.

مراسلة #العربية ناهد يوسف: مقتل شخصين في غارة لمسيرة إسرائيلية قرب حاجز للجيش اللبناني.. وأنباء عن انتماء أحدهما لحزب الله pic.twitter.com/6khagUMZ2V

— العربية (@AlArabiya) January 21, 2024

Several other people were also injured in the suspected Israeli strike.

Hamas's leadership may be feeling the strain of the ongoing war with Israel, as the two main leaders of the terrorist organization have not spoken in over a month, according to reports. 

Yahya Sinwar, Hamas's leader in Gaza and the architect of the October 7 attacks, and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh have not communicated in at least a month, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Sunday, citing Egyptian sources. 

The ongoing silence would make it difficult for Israel to agree to a hostage exchange deal with the Hamas leadership, the sources stated. The US, Qatar, and Egypt are spearheading efforts for a hostage deal and a ceasefire.

Sinwar is believed to be hiding deep underground in Hamas's southern Gazan tunnels complex, surrounded by Nukhba commandos who led attacks on October 7, and with Israeli hostages, using them as human shields as the IDF's noose tightens.

Haniyeh hopeful for Hamas rule to continue in Gaza

Sinwar, according to the Egyptian officials, has conveyed to mediators that Hamas considers itself victorious in the conflict, despite substantial military casualties, the WSJ reported. It is estimated that Israel has eliminated around one-quarter of Hamas's military force, according to the WSJ.

On the other hand, Hamas's political leadership, including Haniyeh, which is based in the Qatari capital, Doha, has continued to engage in talks with Qatar and Egypt, aiming to secure Hamas's relevance in the rule of post-war Gaza. This leadership has also expressed a willingness to demilitarize in Gaza, a stance strongly opposed by Sinwar, as indicated by Egyptian officials, the WSJ stated. 

Israel remains steadfast in opposing any role for Hamas in a future Gaza government, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has attempted to rule out allowing the Fatah-controlled Palestinian Authority to rule in Gaza. 

Israel's security cabinet sought to prevent diplomatic and political tensions by approving a plan to place in escrow in Norway the tax fees it collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, which are earmarked for Gaza.

The Prime Minister’s Office said that both the United States and Norway have approved of the plan for the monthly transfer of some NIS 270 million and that the US was its guarantor.

“The frozen funds will not be transferred to the Palestinian Authority but will remain in the hands of a third country,” the PMO explained.

It “will not be transferred under any circumstances, except with the approval of the Israeli Finance Minister [Bezalel Smotrich], not even through a third party.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday denounced Israel for the "heartbreaking" deaths of Palestinian civilians in Gaza and called it unacceptable to resist statehood for the Palestinian people.

"Israel's military operations have spread mass destruction and killed civilians on a scale unprecedented during my time as secretary-general," Guterres said at the opening of a summit of the G77+China in the Ugandan capital Kampala.

"This is heartbreaking and utterly unacceptable. The Middle East is a tinder-box, we must do all we can to prevent conflict from igniting across the region."

Israel's campaign has killed more than 25,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Hamas-governed health authorities on Sunday, and displaced most of the enclave's 2.3 million people from their homes.

Israeli forces operate in the Gaza Strip, January 19, 2024 (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

Guterres insists on 2-state solution following Biden, Netanyahu back and forth

Guterres added that the refusal to accept the two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians is totally unacceptable, saying denying Palestinians the right to statehood "would indefinitely prolong a conflict that has become a major threat to global peace and security."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared on Saturday to push back against US President Joe Biden's remarks about Palestinian statehood after the war against Hamas ends. His office said that in talks on Friday with Biden, Netanyahu "reiterated his policy that after Hamas is destroyed Israel must retain security control over Gaza to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel, a requirement that contradicts the demand for Palestinian sovereignty."

Guterres was in Kampala to attend the summits of G77+China and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). Leaders and senior officials from dozens of countries including South Africa, Iran, China, Turkey, Cuba, India, Vietnam and others attended the meetings.

The G77+China is a group of 134 developing countries that champions the common interests of countries from the global south.

A document released late Saturday at the end of the NAM summit included a condemnation of "the illegal Israeli military aggression on the Gaza Strip, the indiscriminate attacks against Palestinian civilians, civilian objects, the forced displacement of the Palestinian population" and called for an immediate and durable humanitarian ceasefire.

Lebanese media has reported on Sunday that Israel attacked a vehicle in the village of Kafra in Southern Lebanon, located at some 10 km from the Lebanese border with Israel. 

According to Reuters, two people were killed and several others injured in the suspected Israeli strike.

Reuters contributed to this report.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Sunday denounced Israel for the "heartbreaking" deaths of Palestinian civilians in Gaza and called it unacceptable to resist statehood for the Palestinian people.

"Israel's military operations have spread mass destruction and killed civilians on a scale unprecedented during my time as secretary-general," Guterres said at the opening of a summit of the G77+China in the Ugandan capital Kampala.

"This is heartbreaking and utterly unacceptable. The Middle East is a tinder-box, we must do all we can to prevent conflict from igniting across the region."

Israel launched its offensive in Gaza after Hamas's October 7 attack in which Israeli officials say more than 1,200 Israelis and foreigners were killed and 240 taken hostage.

Israel's cabinet on Sunday approved a plan for frozen Palestinian tax funds to be held by a third-party country and reserved the right to decide when the money will be transferred to the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Under interim peace accords, Israel's finance ministry collects tax on behalf of the Palestinians and makes monthly transfers to the PA, which has limited self-rule in the West Bank.

But there have been constant wrangles over the arrangement, and the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) said on Sunday it wanted the money in full and would not accept conditions that prevent it from paying its staff, including in Gaza.

Palestinians reject Israeli involvement in Palestinian funds

"Any deductions from our financial rights or any conditions imposed by Israel that prevent the PA from paying our people in the Gaza Strip are rejected by us," Hussein Al-Sheikh, secretary general of the executive committee of the PLO, said on social media platform X.

Palestinian Authority Civil Affairs Minister Hussein Al-Sheikh speaks to The Media Line in his office in Ramallah. (credit: THE MEDIA LINE)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the cabinet decision was supported by Norway and the United States, which will be a guarantor that the framework holds.

The IDF and Border Police demolished the homes of two Hamas terrorists in Hebron, the IDF reported on Sunday.

The terrorists were involved in an attack at a tunnel checkpoint near Jerusalem in November, resulting in the death of 19-year-old Corporal Avraham Patna. The two terrorists were eliminated by Israeli forces at the scene.

Additionally, IDF, Shin Bet, and Border Police officers arrested seven wanted individuals in the West Bank overnight, the Israeli military added.

Two of the terrorists were reportedly arrested in Nablus, a Palestinian city in the northern portion of the West Bank.

IDF troops demolish the Hebron homes of two terrorists who carried out a terror attack in November. January 21, 2024. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

Weapons and ammunition confiscated

In Hizma, just northeast of Jerusalem, Israeli forces found and confiscated weapons, including a Carlo-type rifle, weapon parts, and ammunition.

Israel has eliminated 20% to 30% of Hamas’s fighters in Gaza, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing estimates from US intelligence agencies. This figure is lower than the Israeli goal, the publication added.

The WSJ, citing an Israeli estimate, added that, prior to the war, Hamas's strength lay at around 30,000 fighters. Last week, the IDF reported that 9,000 of this total had been killed.

Enough ammunition to continue fighting for months

Despite much of Gaza being in ruins, new assessments show the terror group is still far from being vanquished, the WSJ said. 

Hamas’s tactics have shifted since the beginning of the war, with the terror group focusing its guerilla warfare on smaller groups and lurking behind traps they set for IDF soldiers. 

According to the US estimate, Hamas has enough ammunition and weapons to enable it to continue attacking the IDF in Gaza for months. 

In addition, a classified US report shows evidence that in a bid to reinstate its control, Hamas is reconstituting its police force within Gaza City, as per the WSJ.

Israeli soldiers operate in the Gaza Strip amid the ongoing conflict with Hamas, January 16, 2024 (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

Additionally, the US estimates that some 10,500 to 11,700 terrorists have been wounded and could soon be combat-ready again. 

The IDF has reportedly slightly different numbers and estimates that 16,000 terrorists have been wounded, half of whom are incapacitated and unable to return to fight. 

Reviewing war goals 

Israeli officials have recognized Hamas’s prime goal as survival, notwithstanding the losses it has sustained, the report continued. 

The numbers come amid US pressure on Israel to reduce the scale of operations in Gaza and the overall aim of the war from the complete destruction of the terror group to its elimination as a threat.

The US has also requested that the IDF shift its actions to targeting primarily Hamas leadership, the WSJ concluded. 

The toll of Palestinians killed in Gaza has totaled 25,105 since October 7, Gaza's Hamas-controlled Health Ministry announced on Sunday.

According to the ministry, a further 62,681 Gazans have been injured thus far.