Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 117?

Israel has observed "strong indications" that the Paris proposal for the release of hostages and ceasefire will move ahead, NBC reported on Wednesday, citing a senior Israeli official.

The terms of the deal, however, had not yet been presented to Israel's full security cabinet, the official added.

Netanyahu meets Gaza hostage families, lauds 'real effort' made

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Wednesday with 26 representatives of 18 families in Jerusalem who have relatives still held hostage in Gaza.

"We are making every effort we can. I ask you to understand that we are truly committed in the full sense of the word," he said.

PRIME MINISTER Benjamin Netanyahu speaks last week in the plenum, marking the 75th anniversary of the Knesset’s first session. President Issac Herzog and House Speaker Amir Ohana sit alongside him. (credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)

"We are making a real effort, not for some visibility - but out of our commitment to return everyone. The thought is about everyone, the effort is about everyone."

This is a developing story.

Despite the steady flow of reports in recent weeks that the IDF would immediately take action with ground troops in Rafah, the Jerusalem Post has learned that such moves could still take time and significant negotiations.

Multiple sources have said that an IDF move in Rafah is not on the immediate horizon, even as Israel has made some progress in negotiations with Egypt over the issue.

Part of the tension seems to be that the Israeli government would prefer to have control of the Philadelphi Corridor before any ceasefire-hostage deal is cut with Hamas and before making commitments to Egypt and others about who will manage Gaza “the day after” the IDF withdraws.

In contrast, Cairo seems to prefer that if the IDF takes any action, it will be in a period where a ceasefire has already kicked in and after Jerusalem has already made promises about who it will hand Gaza over to.

The IDF announced the name of a fourth soldier that fell in battle in northern Gaza on Wednesday.

The soldier in question was IDF Maj. (res.) Yitzhar Hofman, 36, from Eshhar, a village in northern Israel. He was a platoon commander in the IDF's Sheldag unit.

Opposition head MK Yair Lapid is willing to join Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's emergency government to replace National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, the former prime minister told Channel 12 on Wednesday evening.

Ben-Gvir had threatened to leave the government if the proposal for the hostage deal and ceasefire in Gaza, which he called "negligent," would go ahead.

This is a developing story.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to the Middle East in the coming days, marking his fifth visit to the region since Oct. 7, a US official said on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Wednesday with 26 representatives of 18 families in Jerusalem who have relatives still held hostage in Gaza.

"We are making every effort we can. I ask you to understand that we are truly committed in the full sense of the word," he said.

"We are making a real effort, not for some visibility - but out of our commitment to return everyone. The thought is about everyone, the effort is about everyone."

This is a developing story.

Israel has observed "strong indications" that the Paris proposal for the release of hostages and ceasefire will move ahead, NBC reported on Wednesday, citing a senior Israeli official.

The terms of the deal, however, had not yet been presented to Israel's full security cabinet, the official added.

This is a developing story.

The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on three entities and one individual in Lebanon and Turkey for "providing critical financial support" to a financial network used by Iran's Quds Force and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, the Treasury Department said.

The entities "have generated hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of revenue from selling Iranian commodities, including to the Syrian government," the department said in a statement.

The United States has issued new sanctions related to Iran, Myanmar and Sudan, according to a posting on the US Treasury website on Wednesday.

All states have an obligation to stop funding and facilitating Israel's military actions in Gaza after the World Court made clear those actions could be genocidal, South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor said on Wednesday.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) last week ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent its troops from committing genocide and take steps to improve the humanitarian situation of Palestinians in Gaza, in a case brought by South Africa.

It stopped short of demanding a ceasefire and has not yet ruled on the core of South Africa's case, whether genocide has occurred in Gaza. That ruling could take years.

South Africa rooting for the Palestinian cause

South Africa has for decades been an advocate for the Palestinian cause, comparing the plight of Palestinians to that of Black South Africans under apartheid. Israel has denied allegations of genocide and rejects the comparison to the apartheid era.

"The finding (by the ICJ) we think makes it clear that it is plausible that genocide is taking place against the Palestinian people in Gaza," Pandor told reporters.

Legal adviser to Israel's Foreign Ministry Tal Becker and British jurist Malcolm Shaw sit inside the International Court of Justice (ICJ) as judges hear a request for emergency measures by South Africa to order Israel to stop its military actions in Gaza, in The Hague, Netherlands January 12, 2024 (credit: REUTERS/THILO SCHMUELGEN)

"This necessarily imposes an obligation on all states to cease funding and facilitating Israel's military actions."

Responding to the ICJ ruling last week, South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa hailed it as a step towards justice and said he expected Israel to abide by it.

The IDF's 414th Unit has located over 100 of Hamas's tunnel shafts and destroyed about 200 of their infrastructures in Khan Yunis, a military spokesperson said on Wednesday.

The unit located terrorists and assisted in gathering intelligence on Hamas.

Documentation of the elimination of the terrorists can be seen below:

Attempted ambush in second incident

During the operation in Khan Yunis, Israeli forces searched a house where they located explosives that were placed there with the purpose of harming IDF soldiers.

The unit's soldiers identified an armed terrorist near their forces and were eliminated.

"The unit's forces work to strengthen their defense and attack at almost every point where the IDF maneuvers," said the unit's commander, Lt.-Col. Ofir. "The unit works in diverse ways and uses innovative measures that lead to the defeat of many terrorists."