Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 117?

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday warned that halting funding to the UN Palestinian refugee agency would entail "catastrophic consequences" for people in war-torn Gaza.

"Decisions by various countries to pause funds for UNRWA, the largest supplier of humanitarian aid in this crisis, will have catastrophic consequences for the people of Gaza," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

"No other entity has the capacity to deliver the scale and breadth of assistance that 2.2 million people in Gaza urgently need. We appeal for these announcements to be reconsidered."

Three were killed in a targeted Israeli strike on a jeep in the Rafah area in the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli media reported on Wednesday citing Al-Jazeera.

The strike's targets were unclear in initial reports of the attack.

This is a developing story.

An IDF operation which penetrated a top Hamas intelligence headquarters on December 18 led to seizing electronics which helped the Shin Bet bust open a special Hamas terrorist cell using Jews to transfer weapons and explosives.
 
The Jewish-Israeli citizens, mostly in the Jerusalem area, were duped into believing that they were working for Jews living overseas, and did not realise they were working for Hamas.

All of the instructions for picking up and dropping off packages, or funds, or purchasing various gifts - which in the end were connected to weapons or explosives for Hamas - were delivered to the unwitting Jewish agents electronically.

This was not the first time that Hamas tried to recruit or use Jews as spies, but it was one of the largest-scale reported operation where Hamas was duping larger numbers of people using online identities as opposed to going after one or two individuals with checkered backgrounds and trying to compromise them to spy knowingly.

Whenever any Jewish agent sought to speak to their handlers by telephone, the Hamas handlers pretended that it was too difficult to coordinate because of living overseas and the time difference.

The initial breakthrough came through a mix of the Shin Bet and the IDF intelligence's office for collecting items seized from Hamas for inspecting, cataloguing, and translating into operational intelligence.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday that its projections assumed that the Gaza war would continue with "high intensity" through the first quarter of 2024, and that hostilities would then slowly decline.

The IMF said "real GDP growth in (the) West Bank and Gaza is estimated to have dropped to about -6%" for 2023, a 9-percentage-point downgrade from its October regional outlook.

"We project that the economy will keep on contracting in 2024 if there is no fast and quick cessation of hostilities and reconstruction," said Jihad Azour, the IMF's director for the Middle East and North Africa.

The IMF's updated regional outlook, issued on Wednesday, said that under an assumption that the conflict "gradually eases, positive growth is projected to resume from a very low base, and inflation is expected to gradually ease. 

All states have an obligation to stop funding and facilitating Israel's military actions in Gaza after the World Court indicated that those actions could plausibly 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 against Palestinians in Gaza, in a case brought by South Africa.

The court did not rule on the merits of the accusations, nor did it rule that Israel must stop its military actions in Gaza as South Africa had requested. 

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

Hamas terrorists from the Gaza Strip enlisted Jewish citizens of Israel, unbeknown to them, to help transfer various deliveries, including explosives and weapons, before the current Gaza war began, Israeli media reported on Wednesday, citing the Israel Security Service (Shin Bet.) 

This revelation comes following a joint intelligence effort between the Shin Bet and Israeli police to uncover the operation. 

The IDF released the names of three IDF soldiers killed in action in Gaza on Tuesday morning.

Major (Maj.) (res.) Netzer Simchi, 30 years old, from Masad, a combat officer in the 87th Battalion, the 14th Strike Brigade, was killed in battle in the north of the Gaza Strip on Monday.

Captain (Capt.) (res.) Gavriel Shani, 28 years old, from Ma'ali, a team commander in the 6646 patrol battalion, Shu'ali Marom formation (646), was killed in battle in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday.

Sergeant-Major (Sgt.-Maj.) Yuval Nir, 43 years old, from Kfar Etzion, a fighter in the 6646th Patrol Battalion, Shu'ali Marom formation (646), was killed in battle in the south of the Gaza Strip on Monday.

The IDF added that in the battle in which Shani and Nir fell, two reserve soldiers from the 6646 patrol battalion, Shu'ali Marom formation (646), were seriously injured. Additionally, a fighter from the Paratroopers reconnaissance unit was seriously injured in a battle in the center of the Gaza Strip. In the north of the Strip, a fighter and a sergeant from the Shaked Battalion of the Givati Brigade were also seriously injured. The IDF updated that the soldiers were evacuated for medical treatment in a hospital, and their families were informed.

Simchi graduated from the Kadoorie Agricultural High School, and his mother, Shahar, is a teacher and educator at the institution. The high school published a condolence message: “With great and deep sorrow, we received a very painful message that Netzer, the beloved son of Shahar Simchi, a dear teacher and educator at Kadoorie, fell in the battles in Gaza. Netzer Simchi is a graduate of Kadoorie from the 77th graduating class. We embrace Shahar and all her family in their heavy mourning.” With the outbreak of the war, Netzer was in Thailand - and returned from the trip to fight.

איזה כאב. אחד האנשים שהכי חדרו לי ללב.
לא סיימנו את השיחה נצר. pic.twitter.com/FMo5DPAEdt

— Yoaz Hendel יועז הנדל (@YoazHendel1) January 30, 2024

Former minister Yoaz Hendel, who met Netzer during the fighting and filmed a video with him, parted from him: 'What a heartache. Netzer Simchi fell today. He so deeply entered my heart. Netzer, we didn't finish our conversation.”

Nir, a resident of Kfar Etzion, left behind his parents, Amos and Letzi Nir, his wife, Ayala, and their five children: Alon, Shahar, Ofri, Yigal, and Roey. The Gush Etzion Council published a condolence message: “The Gush Etzion Council announces the fall of Sergeant-Major Yuval Nir, a resident of Kfar Etzion who fell in the battles in Gaza.”

The head of the Gush Etzion Council, Shlomo Ne'eman, eulogized Nir: “Yuval, you fell as a hero in the most just war, in defense of the people and the land. We send condolences to the extended Nir family and the communities of Kfar Etzion and Migdal Oz, our beloved residents.”

Shani, from Yakir, also fell in the battles in the Gaza Strip. The settlement where he lived published a condolence message: “With great sorrow and deep pain, we were informed this evening of the fall of our settlement's member, Captain (res.) As a combat officer in the paratroopers, Gavriel Shani fell in battle for the state's defense in the line of duty. Yakir embraces the Shani family, the widow, and the extended family and will stand by their side.”

Israeli comedian Hanoch Daum, a relative of Shani, eulogized him on his Facebook account: “He was from a special family with deep [Jewish] roots. He is from a truly extraordinary family. What a difficult evening.”

In the Eli secretary's office, they also mourned Shani: “Baruch Dayan HaEmet - with great sorrow, we announce the falling of Gavriel Shani in Gaza. We share in the grief of his wife, Yuval, the children, and the residents of HaShaked Street. Details about the funeral and shiva will be sent later."

Nine people were arrested at the Kerem Shalom crossing after they protested against the humanitarian aid entering Gaza, Maariv reported on Wednesday. 

According to the Tzav 9 movement, Yehuda Dee, son of Rabbi Leo Dee whose wife and daughters were killed in a terror attack last April, was also among those arrested. 

The annual report for 2023 and January 2024 on the fight against antisemitism published by the Diaspora Ministry, the World Zionist Organization, and the Jewish Agency showed that between October and December, the number of antisemitic incidents worldwide increased sixfold. 

According to the report, following the October 7 attacks, antisemitic incidents have drastically surged to a record high.

Between the months of October and December, numbers show antisemitic incidents to be six times greater, or  235%, than the figures for the months of January through September of 2023. 

Geographically, the incidents are spread across the world. The US takes pride of place with 43% of incidents reported, followed by 35% in Europe. 

The report also shows a 33% increase in antisemitic attacks of a violent nature in 2023 in comparison to last year. According to the calculations, 48% of these attacks were in relation to the Swords of Iron Operation. 

A demonstrator holds a sign that reads 'no to antisemitism', during a protest against antisemitism and to commemorate the 2012 Toulouse attack against a Jewish school that left three children and an adult dead, at the Place de la Republique square in Paris, France, March 13, 2022. (credit: REUTERS/BENOIT TESSIER)

Out of these attacks, 46% occurred in the US. Britain comes in second with 16%, followed by Germany’s 9%, France and Canada with both 6% and Australia 2.5%.

When analyzing each country separately, according to the report, France has seen the greatest surge in antisemitic events, with 1000%, followed by Canada with 800%, Australia with 738%, the US with 337%, and Germany with 320%. 

'Severest antisemitism since the 1930s'

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli said, “This year has been unlike any other. The hatred of Israel around the world is the most severe since the 1930s of the previous century.

"Jews all over the West feel unsafe. Jews who speak Hebrew on the subway in the capitals of Europe are beaten up. Jews who carry [Israeli] flags on the streets are murdered.

"The most severe antisemitic remarks are made by the Palestinian Authority. Our main recommendation is to move from the defensive phase to the offensive phase. We have to file lawsuits against Hamas and the Palestinian organizations over antisemitism and incitement to terror. The Palestinian Authority educates to terror and pays terrorists, and we have to know how to combat this with the proper tools," he concluded.

Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) continued their active engagement in the northern and central regions of the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, targeting Hamas terrorist infrastructure and eliminating a significant number of terrorists in the area, the IDF Spokesperson Unit reported on Wednesday.

In recent days, combat units from Brigade 162 have maintained their presence in the northern and central zones of the Gaza Strip, relentlessly pursuing terrorist elements. These efforts have resulted in the neutralization of numerous terrorists and the dismantling of key terrorist infrastructure.

The 401st Brigade, in particular, has been instrumental in combating terrorism in the northern area of the Strip. Through several confrontations with armed militants, they successfully eliminated more than 15 terrorists affiliated with the Hamas terror organization.