Israel-Hamas War: What happened on Day 146?

According to a government spokesperson, Israel is reviewing possible curbs on access to Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem over the upcoming Ramadan fasting month.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said last week there would be a quota for members of Israel's 18% Muslim minority who wish to take part in peace prayers at Al Aqsa. But Israel's top-rated Channel 12 TV reported on Wednesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would overrule Ben-Gvir.

"The specific issue of prayer on the Temple Mount, in Al Aqsa, is currently still under discussion by the cabinet," government spokesperson Avi Hyman said in a briefing on Thursday. He added that a final decision would take security and public health, as well as the freedom of worship, into account.

On Wednesday, Ben-Gvir posted on X that any attempt to override his authority would amount to a "capitulation to terror," and urged Netanyahu to deny the Channel 12 report.

Family members of hostages still held in Hamas captivity set off on day two of their planned four-day march, leaving from Kibbutz Gat on Thursday morning and planning to arrive in Beit Shemesh by the evening.

The march, titled "United For The Release Of The Hostages," is an initiative of the Hostage and Missing Families Forum, and part of a four-day walk from Gaza to Jerusalem, starting at the Re'im parking lot (the site of one of Hamas's worst massacres on October 7) and passing through Sderot, Kiryat Gat, Beit Shemesh before finally arriving in Jerusalem. 

At 4:00 p.m., the families will arrive at Beit Gurvin for a special ceremony before arriving at Branco Weiss High School in Beit Shemesh by 7.30 p.m.

At the end of the first day of the march, several former Hamas hostages spoke.

Marchers are plan to reach Jerusalem at the end of the four-day march, February 29, 2024 (credit: Hostage and Missing Families Forum)

UN human rights chief Volker Turk on Thursday said war crimes had been committed by all parties in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, calling for them to be investigated and for those responsible to be held accountable.

"Clear violations of international human rights and humanitarian laws, including war crimes and possibly other crimes under international law, have been committed by all parties," Turk told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

"It is time - well past time - for peace, investigation and accountability."

October 7 and the spark of the conflict 

Hamas gunmen killed 1,200 people and captured 253 hostages in an attack on Israel on Oct. 7, according to Israeli tallies.

The attack sparked an Israeli offensive in Hamas-run Gaza, which it says is intended to rescue the remaining hostages and eradicate Hamas. Health authorities in Gaza say some 30,000 people have been confirmed killed during the offensive.

Turk, who was presenting a report on the human rights situation in Gaza and in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, said his office had recorded "many incidents that may amount to war crimes by Israeli forces."

The Shin Bet and the Central Unit of the Jerusalem District Police revealed a thwarted terrorist plot on Thursday, planned by two terrorists who coordinated with a Hamas terrorist in Gaza.

An investigation into the two was opened by the two agencies in early February after suspicion was raised of the two individuals who contacted a foreign agent and conspiracy to commit terrorism. 

The Shin Bet, along with the Jerusalem District Police, uncovered the plot using undercover agents. On February 6, 2024, detectives from the Jerusalem District Police Department and an undercover unit of the Jerusalem Police arrested the two suspects.

Suspects from Nablus arrested 

One terrorist is a 17-year-old resident of Israel living in Shuafat, in East Jerusalem, who worked alongside his cousin, the second terrorist, who is a 29-year-old Palestinian resident of Nablus. With the assistance of the IDF, the older terrorist was arrested and taken into custody. Both suspects were interrogated, and extending their detention.

The police investigation revealed that the terrorists contacted, on their own initiative, a Hamas operative in the Gaza Strip prior to the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war.

The minor sought to carry out a terrorist attack, contacting Hamas operatives with the goal of learning how to produce explosive materials. He also searched the Internet for instructions to make bombs and used Telegram to converse with the Hamas operative.

The increase in airdrops to Gaza of humanitarian aid is getting more attention in the region. It is an important development that could pave the way for supplying parts of Gaza and not having Hamas hijack and steal the food that is supposed to reach Gazans.

It appears Hamas is purposely creating a humanitarian crisis in Rafah, aimed to pressure Israel to stop its operations and enable Hamas to benefit and grow in power again. Hamas uses its control of the border to control the distribution of items to local people. And Hamas has partnered with international organizations, offering its police as “protection” for shipments, in essence acting as a mafia contractor in which it benefits. 

The Israel Defense Forces said on February 28 that “in cooperation between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, France, and the USA: a supply of food and medical equipment that was transferred to the residents of the southern Gaza Strip and the Jordanian field hospital was airdropped.”

This is important cooperation. Jordan, France, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and the US are key partners, and the airdrops can help Gazans in various parts of Gaza. So far, the recent airdrops have included 160 packages of food and medical equipment. “The move was carried out in coordination with the International Cooperation Division of the Strategic Planning and Cooperation Directorate (J5), the Coordination and Liaison Administration to Gaza (CLA) of the COGAT Unit, the 98th Division, and the IAF,” the IDF said.

Israel won’t tolerate continued Hezbollah attacks, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told US Secretary of State Lloyd Austin amid the Biden admiration fears that Israel would launch a summer campaign against the Iranian proxy group.

“The State of Israel will not tolerate threats against its citizens and violations of its sovereignty and will take the measures required to ensure their security,” Gallant said late Wednesday night.

Gallant detailed for Austin the “ongoing attacks conducted by Hezbollah on Israel’s northern communities,” according to the Defense Ministry.

The conversation took place as an anonymous Biden administration official told CNN, “We are operating in the assumption that an Israeli military operation is in the coming months.” The official added that such an attack would not happen "imminently in the next few weeks but perhaps later this spring. An Israeli military operation is a distinct possibility.”

Rocket launchers and tunnel shafts were located and destroyed by security forces, uncovering stocks of weapons and additional terrorist infrastructure in recent operations in the Gaza Strip, the IDF reported early on Thursday. 

Soldiers of the 162nd Division continued their divisional operations in the Zeytun neighborhood, where they eliminated terrorist squads that fired at Israeli soldiers. Troops from the 98th Division continued fighting in the Khan Yunis area, where they eliminated terrorists and destroyed terrorist infrastructure in the area.

In Zeytun in the northern Gaza Strip, soldiers from the 401st Brigade eliminated terrorists, destroyed tunnel shafts, and located several weapons. 

In recent days, soldiers carried out circuit closures and eliminated terrorists who fired at soldiers. The soldiers identified two terrorist squads that shot troops and, within a short time, directed aircraft to attack and eliminate the terrorist squads.

Sinwar was surprised by the IDF's maneuver deep into Palestinian territory, according to a statement released by senior security officials on Wednesday. The Hamas leader intended to conduct fighting from an underground fortified base called "Room 6," which was equipped for extended stays with military personnel and communications lines, according to IDF intel.

"Sinwar plans and acts accordingly to each situation and doesn't necessarily trust those around him," the military source said. "He will make mistakes, and we need to be there or in proximity to recognize it."

Now, he moves from place to place and plans his actions accordingly. "The distance between us and him will be shortened by one mistake too many of his."

Two weeks until Ramadan, and the concern over fermenting unrest due to intentions to limit the ascent of Israeli Arabs to the Temple Mount is preoccupying security authorities in the IDF and the Shin Bet. Attempts to stir up trouble every Friday since the outbreak of the war have not been particularly successful and apart from the occasional tension in east Jerusalem between Arabs and Israel Police, relative calm is maintained. 

The procrastination in decision-making regarding restrictions on Muslim worshippers ascending to the Temple Mount until the last minute has become a consistent pattern among decision-makers in recent years, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the forefront. Last year, against the backdrop of an escalation in the area due to Palestinian terrorism, the security cabinet was required to decide whether to allow the entry of Palestinians from the West Bank to the Temple Mount. 

Canada will begin supplying humanitarian aid to Gaza and will do so by airdropping supplies by next week, government sources revealed Thursday morning.

This comes in light of a joint coordination effort by six states to provide humanitarian aid to the southern Gaza Strip by airdropping supplies from the states of Israel, Egypt, Jordan, France, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States.

This is a developing story.