Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 161?
US drafts UN ceasefire resolution • US still not briefed on Rafah plans • Yemen’s Houthis obtain hypersonic missile • discussion on Hamas demands pushed back again
'If I don't enter the cabinet within days - I will resign from the government' says MK Sa'ar
Head of the "Statesmanlike Right" party Gideon Sa'ar told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that if he isn't allowed in the wartime cabinet within a few days, he will resign from the government, according to Israeli media sources on Saturday.
Sa'ar recently broke off from Benny Gantz's party and demanded a seat in the wartime cabinet.
He stated that he believes the IDF should ramp up operations in Rafah and expressed dissatisfaction with the cabinet's current decision-making.
Go to the full article >>Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade took part in October 7 massacre - report
The Fatah-affiliated armed terrorist group, the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, took part in the attack on October 7, according to a report by Kan News, quoting officials from the group on Saturday.
The report also claimed that the Al-Aqsa Martyrs trained battalions in the West Bank and prepared them for war.
Go to the full article >>Cabinet meeting on Hamas demands delayed again, following Friday mishap - report
This report follows an already delayed cabinet decision. The cabinet meeting on Hamas's demands was adjourned early Friday because it was scheduled too close to the beginning of Shabbat.
The wartime cabinet is only expected to meet to discuss Hamas's new demands for a hostage deal and come to a decision late Sunday evening, according to a Saturday post on X by army radio diplomatic correspondent Yanir Cozin.
הלו"ז כרגע למחר:
— Yanir Cozin - יניר קוזין (@yanircozin) March 16, 2024
18:00 קבינט מלחמה
19:30 קבינט מדיני
כל עוד הדיונים לא מתקיימים משלחת ישראל בראשות ראש המוסד לא תצא לקטאר.
אם גנץ ואיזנקוט טוענים שמטרת הישארותם בממשלה היא השפעה על מהלכי המלחמה ובראשם שחרור החטופים, האם מריחת הזמן הזאת מקובלת עליהם? ואם לא, מדוע לא משנים אותה?
According to the post, the small cabinet, which consists of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Minister-without-portfolio Benny Gantz, will meet at 6:00 p.m., and after an hour and a half, the meeting will extend to the larger general cabinet at 19:30.
Cozin also stated that as long as the cabinet doesn't reach an official position, the Israeli delegation for the hostage deal talks cannot travel to Qatar, where the talks are being held.
This report follows an already delayed cabinet decision. The cabinet meeting on Hamas's demands was adjourned early Friday because it was scheduled too close to the beginning of Shabbat.
After the meeting was cut short, there were mixed reports about whether the cabinet would reconvene on Saturday night or Sunday morning.
The Prime Minister's Office released a statement on Saturday, saying, "Prime Minister Netanyahu already announced yesterday that the War Cabinet and the Political-Security Cabinet will meet on Sunday to advise the negotiating delegation prior to its departure to Doha; therefore, the demand to convene the cabinet tonight is nothing more than an artificial attempt to garner headlines."
PMO said update would be released on Saturday
Despite this statement, the prime minister's official X account posted on Friday evening claiming that an update on the issue would be submitted to the smaller security cabinet on Saturday, followed by the war cabinet.
The Prime Minister's Office this evening:
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) March 15, 2024
Hamas is continuing to hold to unrealistic demands.
An update on the issue will be submitted to the War Cabinet and the Security Cabinet tomorrow.
Go to the full article >>
Mossad chief expected to resume Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha on Sunday
The talks between Israel, Qatar, and Egypt will reportedly focus on remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas, including over prisoner releases and humanitarian aid.
The head of Israeli intelligence is expected to lead ceasefire talks with mediators, which resume in Qatar on Sunday in direct response to a new proposal from Hamas, a source close to the talks told Reuters on Saturday.
The talks between Mossad head David Barnea, Qatar’s prime minister, and Egyptian officials will focus on remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas, including over prisoner releases and humanitarian aid, the source said.
Israel said on Friday it would send a delegation to Doha but did not spell out when or who would take part. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to convene the security cabinet before the talks.
Israeli officials were not immediately available to comment on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath.
Barnea was involved in previous significant pushes for a deal. A short-lived truce in November was agreed and came into effect after his participation in talks in Doha. His last meeting with Qatar's prime minister in January led to a proposal for a temporary ceasefire that Hamas ultimately rejected.
Hamas's ceasefire proposal
Hamas this week presented a new ceasefire proposal to mediators and Israel's ally, the United States, that includes the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for freedom for Palestinian prisoners.
Repeated efforts to agree a ceasefire and exchange hostages for prisoners have fallen apart this year, despite mounting international pressure over the human cost of Israel's ground and air assault in Gaza.
Go to the full article >>Hamas: We won't release a single hostage without agreement on second stage of deal
A Hamas senior official stated on Saturday that the terror organization would not release a single hostage without an agreement on the second phase of a deal with Israel, KAN reported.
The phase would have to include "the cessation of hostilities," the official added.
'We are in a multi-arena war' says IDF Chief of Staff about security during Ramadan
"We are in a multi-arena war - Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank, and Gaza, and threats even further away," said IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, during a situational assessment of security threats during the month of Ramadan on Friday.
In the meeting, which also included the commander of the West Bank division, Lt.-Col. Yaki Dolef and the commander of the Binyamin region, Lt.-Col. Liron Biton also stated that since the beginning of Ramadan, and every day since, there have been multiple attempted terror attacks.
Additionally, the Chief of Staff met with soldiers and special forces deployed in numerous areas, who are on high alert for multiple security threats
Go to the full article >>Germany calls for large-scale aid access to Gaza as Scholz heads to Israel
Germany's air force said it dropped pallets with four tons of relief goods by air into the enclave on Saturday.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged Israel on Saturday to allow humanitarian aid access to Gaza on a larger scale, ahead of a two-day trip to the Middle East.
Scholz will travel to the Jordanian Red Sea port of Aqaba on Saturday to meet on Sunday with Jordan's King Abdullah before flying on to Israel to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"It is necessary for aid to reach Gaza on a larger scale now. That will be a topic that I also have to talk about," Scholz told journalists ahead of his trip.
Concerns over Rafah offensive
He also voiced concern about Israel's planned offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where more than half the Palestinian's enclave's population of 2.3 million have taken shelter.
"There is a danger that a comprehensive offensive in Rafah will result in many terrible civilian casualties, which must be strictly prohibited," he added.
Germany's air force said it dropped pallets with four tons of relief goods by air into the enclave on Saturday.
"Every package counts. But airdrops are just a drop in the ocean," the foreign ministry said on the social media platform X.
Israel's air and ground campaign in Gaza, triggered by Hamas' attack on Oct. 7, has displaced most of the population and left people in dire need of food and other essentials.
Go to the full article >>US, Jordan conduct joint aid airdrop to Gaza
The United States, Israel's main ally, and other countries have called on Israel to allow in more humanitarian aid.
US and Jordanian aircraft on Saturday dropped food supplies to Palestinian civilians trapped in the Gaza Strip in a joint humanitarian aid operation, US Central Command said in a statement.
The airdrops by a US Air Force C-130 aircraft and a Royal Jordanian Air Force C-130 aircraft came as the main UN agency working in the enclave said that one in three children under age two is acutely malnourished. It warned of looming famine.
US Central Command called the airdrops "part of a sustained effort and we continue to plan follow-on aerial deliveries."
Humanitarian issues in Gaza
Much of Gaza is under rubble and its 2.3 million Palestinian residents are facing food shortages more than five months after Israel launched an air and ground offensive following the Oct. 7 rampage into Israel by Hamas terrorists.
The United States, Israel's main ally, and other countries have called on Israel to allow in more humanitarian aid. Israel blames UN agencies for slow deliveries, saying it puts no limits on assistance.
The United States began aid airdrops on March 2 and is planning to begin a sealift from the island of Cyprus.
Go to the full article >>Man opens fire on Jewish community in Hebron, terrorist eliminated
Israeli media, citing Palestinian sources, identified the shooter as Sheikh Mahmoud Nofal, the imam of Hebron's al-Qassem Mosque.
A terrorist opened fire on the Jewish community in the West Bank city of Hebron on Saturday, the IDF said. The suspect was subsequently targeted and eliminated by IDF soldiers.
No injuries were reported, and no damage was caused, but IDF troops have begun searching the area for additional terrorists.
Israeli media, citing Palestinian sources, identified the shooter as Sheikh Mahmoud Nofal, the imam of Hebron's al-Qassem Mosque.
Video shows suspected shooter firing from a cemetery
Walla shared a video of the incident that appears to show the terrorist shooting from within a cemetery complex.
Several Palestinians in the vicinity at the time were reportedly detained for questioning under suspicion of possible involvement in the attack.
Later, the Hamas-affiliated Safa News Agency reported that Israeli security forces had raided Nofal's home.
This is a developing story
Go to the full article >>Second aid shipment for Gaza ready to sail from Cyprus, says its president
A second cargo of food aid was ready to depart by sea from Cyprus to Gaza on Saturday, the island's president said, after a first aid shipment landed in the besieged Palestinian enclave overnight.
Almost 200 tons of food arrived in the enclave late on Friday, the first shipment in a new aid route to the Gaza Strip, devastated by five months of war.
"The first ship has started its return to Cyprus, and we are ready to dispatch the second ship," Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides told journalists.
The second ship, with 240 tons of aid, was moored at Larnaca port awaiting a signal to sail.
US based charity World Central Kitchen (WCK), which arranged the mission with the UAE and Spanish charity Open Arms with support from the Cypriot government, said the new shipment included pallets of canned goods and bulk products.
Go to the full article >>Israel-Hamas War: What you need to know
- Hamas launched a massive attack on October 7, with thousands of terrorists infiltrating from the Gaza border and taking some 240 hostages into Gaza
- Over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals were murdered, including over 350 in the Re'im music festival and hundreds of Israeli civilians across Gaza border communities
- 134 hostages remain in Gaza, 34 of which killed in captivity, IDF says