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Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 225?

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
 IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip. May 18, 2024. (photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip. May 18, 2024.
(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

IDF confirms: Body of hostage Ron Binyamin recovered from Gaza

"The Families Forum bows its head and mourns upon receiving the difficult news of the murder of Ron Benjamin by Hamas terrorists and the taking of his body to Gaza as a hostage.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
 (L-R) Amit Buskila, Shani Louk, Itzik Gelernter, and Ron Binyamin (photo credit: Foreign Ministry/Facebook, Hostage and Missing Families Forum)
(L-R) Amit Buskila, Shani Louk, Itzik Gelernter, and Ron Binyamin
(photo credit: Foreign Ministry/Facebook, Hostage and Missing Families Forum)

The body of Ron Binyamin, 52, was recovered from Gaza by the IDF after being held there since his murder by Hamas on October 7, the IDF confirmed on Saturday, one day after the military announced the recovery of three other Israeli hostages’ bodies.

IDF spokesperson, R.-Adm. Daniel Hagari announced that Binyamin’s body was recovered at the same time as the three other hostages’ bodies rescued on Friday, but the process of identification and notification of the family took longer.

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US calls on Hamas to free hostages as Sullivan heads to Israel

US Ambassador Jack Lew, as well as ambassadors from Austria, Germany, and Great Britain, called for the release of hostages during a rally in Tel Aviv.

By TOVAH LAZAROFF
 Jack Lew, US ambassador to Israel, at a rally in Tel Aviv, May 18, 2024. (photo credit: Pauline Fatimer)
Jack Lew, US ambassador to Israel, at a rally in Tel Aviv, May 18, 2024.
(photo credit: Pauline Fatimer)

The Biden administration pledged it would never abandon the remaining 132 hostages as its National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan was due to arrive in Israel Sunday in an effort to reenergize talks.

“The United States continues to press ahead with negotiations to bring the hostages home,” America’s Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew told protestors at hostage square as he addressed them for the second time in the last seven months.

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Gantz challenges Netanyahu to reveal his true war, post-Hamas, Hezbollah strategy

Whether Benny Gantz is bluffing or not, one thing is certain: Come June 8, Israel's way forward on the southern and northern fronts of the war will be much clearer.

By YONAH JEREMY BOB
 Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Cabinet minister Benny Gantz during a press conference in the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv , Israel , 28 October 2023.  (photo credit: ABIR SULTAN/POOL)
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Cabinet minister Benny Gantz during a press conference in the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv , Israel , 28 October 2023.
(photo credit: ABIR SULTAN/POOL)

What National Unity party leader and war minister Benny Gantz did on Saturday night was to force Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reveal his true war and post-Hamas strategy.

Gantz, as well as Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and the IDF high command have made it clear that winning the war requires removing Hamas from power.

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Gantz to Netanyahu: If you lead the nation to the abyss, we will withdraw from the government

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
 L-R: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; Minister Benny Gantz (photo credit: FLASH90)
L-R: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; Minister Benny Gantz
(photo credit: FLASH90)

Minister-without-portfolio Benny Gantz gave Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a deadline until June 8 to come up with a more clear war program or he will leave the government.

"If you choose to lead the nation to the abyss, we will withdraw from the government, turn to the people, and form a government that can bring about a real victory," Gantz said in his statement.

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WATCH: IDF destroys terror infrastructures, kills 50 Hamas terrorists in Rafah

Hundreds of pieces of terror infrastructure have been destroyed, including weapons production sites and rocket launching sites.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
IDF conducting targeted raids in eastern Rafah, May 18, 2024. (CREDIT: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)

IDF troops launched targeted raids into Rafah, aiming to destroy and disrupt terror infrastructure, according to an IDF statement on Saturday.

Soldiers from the 401st Brigade's combat team launched raids deep into eastern Rafah.

The troops targeted terror infrastructure and buildings used by Hamas to fire on IDF troops.

About 50 Hamas fighters were eliminated in the fighting.

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Scores of terrorists killed, anti-aircraft guns captured in eastern Rafah

In one of the raids, the “Tzabar” Infantry Battalion located numerous weapons, including dozens of rifles, grenades, and magazines.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
IDF Givati Brigade operates in eastern Rafah. May 18, 2024. (photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)
IDF Givati Brigade operates in eastern Rafah. May 18, 2024.
(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)

The combat team of the IDF’s Givati Brigade has killed more than 80 terrorists during operational activities in eastern Rafah, the military said on Saturday afternoon.

The Givati Brigade has been operating in the area for several weeks.

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Hostile aircraft intrusion sirens sound in northern Israel

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Breaking: Rocket Sirens (photo credit: Courtesy)
Breaking: Rocket Sirens
(photo credit: Courtesy)

Hostile aircraft intrusion sirens sounded in northern Israel on Saturday afternoon.

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Hamas-run health ministry says Gaza death toll reached 35,386

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
  (photo credit: FLASH90)
(photo credit: FLASH90)

The death toll in Gaza reached 35,386 on Saturday, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in the Strip.

The health ministry does not differentiate between terrorists and civilians in its toll.

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Panama-flagged oil tanker reportedly attacked southwest of Yemen's Mocha - Ambrey

Ambrey said a radio communication indicated the vessel was hit by a missile and that there was a fire onboard.

By REUTERS
 An aerial view of the Barbados-flagged ship True Confidence ablaze following a Houthi missile attack at sea, March 6, 2024, in this handout photo. (photo credit:  DVIDS/Handout via REUTERS )
An aerial view of the Barbados-flagged ship True Confidence ablaze following a Houthi missile attack at sea, March 6, 2024, in this handout photo.
(photo credit: DVIDS/Handout via REUTERS )

British security firm Ambrey said on Saturday it had received information that a Panama-flagged crude oil tanker had been attacked approximately 10 nautical miles southwest of Yemen's Mokha.

Ambrey said a radio communication indicated the vessel was hit by a missile and that there was a fire onboard. It did not provide details of the communication.

Yemen's Houthi militia, which controls the most populous parts of Yemen and is aligned with Iran, has staged attacks on ships in the waters off the country for months in solidarity with Palestinians fighting Israel in Gaza.

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Rafah airstrike kills PIJ officer, 460th Brigade faces heavy fighting in Jabalya

The airstrike eliminating the PIJ operative was one of a broader array of strikes across the Strip.

By SAM HALPERN, DANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
IDF soldiers operating in the Gaza Strip on May 18, 2024. (IDF Spokesperson's Unit)

An Israeli airstrike killed the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorist organization’s Rafah Brigade head of logistics, the IDF announced on Saturday morning.

The terrorist was armed with an RPG in a compound across from IDF troops.

The PIJ operative was reportedly responsible for preparing terrorists for attacks on Israeli personnel in the area.

The airstrike eliminating the PIJ operative was one of a broader array of strikes across the Strip. The military reported that, over the past day, the Israel Air Force hit 70 targets across Gaza.

Palestinian media reports have claimed that a person was killed in an airstrike in east Rafah, although the validity of the report and background of the alleged party cannot be confirmed by the Post at this current stage.

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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
  • 129 hostages remain in Gaza
  • 39 hostages in total have been killed in captivity, IDF says