IDF reveals more details on hostage body recovery op, IRGC founder talks to 'Post'

Residents of some communities in the Golan Regional Council were told to stay near safe rooms and reduce movement and gatherings, Channel 12 reported on Tuesday.

The communities include Kidmat Zion, Ein Zivan, Ortal, Merom Golan and Sha’al.  

Israel Air Force fighter jets attacked two launchers belonging to the terrorist organization Hezbollah in the areas of Al-Mansouri and Al-Taybeh in southern Lebanon overnight, the IDF reported on Tuesday morning.

The launchers that were attacked were ready to fire at Israeli territory, the military added.

Separately on Tuesday morning, residents of some communities in the Golan Regional Council were told to stay near safe rooms and reduce movement and gatherings, Channel 12 reported.

The communities include Kidmat Zion, Ein Zivan, Ortal, Merom Golan, and Sha’al.  

At 08:01 a.m. several rocket alerts sounded in Gadot, Hulata and Yesud Hama’ala in the Upper Galilee and in Ortal in the northern Golan Heights

Israel's Foreign Ministry criticized UN Women on Monday for making only one-and-a-half posts on X, formerly Twitter, about Israeli female hostages since December 2023 while mentioning Palestinian women 69 times during the same period.

In the 8-month period, the personal stories of 52 Gazan women were told while “Not a single story about an Israeli woman or a photo of one of the women who were abducted  by Hamas, or the mothers of young Israeli women who are held by Hamas.”

“When photos of these women were published recently, bruised and weak in Hamas captivity, @UN_Women @unwomenchief did not say a word. It seems that Israeli women simply don't matter to them,” the ministry charged.

Dozens of protesters broke through part of the perimeter security fence surrounding the Democratic National Convention on Monday, drawing riot police to the site, a Reuters Television witness said.

Pro-Palestine protesters BROKE DOWN perimeter fence at DNC.

Suddenly democrats do not like all this jihad and intifada...
Suddenly they need a fence to protect themselves...
And even the fence didn't help.

"We told you so" doesn't even describe it.

Video from @libsoftiktok pic.twitter.com/g7YwkDNyle

— lelemSLP (@lelemSLP) August 19, 2024

"Law enforcement personnel are currently on-scene and more information will be provided when available," said a Chicago city spokesperson.

Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York and Democrat Rep. Jared Moskowitz of Florida introduced the "Stand with Israel Act" on Monday, which will "require the withholding of US funding to UN agencies that expel, downgrade, suspend, or otherwise restrict the participation of the State of Israel," according to a statement from Lawler's office.

The bill is modeled after the current prohibition of funding to UN entities that elevate the statue of the Palestinian Authority to a member state, the statement said.

The bill is co-sponsored by two other Democrats, Reps. Josh Gottheimer and Greg Landsman, and 20 Republicans.

Family members of the eight American hostages will be in the crowd Monday night in Chicago when President Joe Biden takes the main stage of the Democratic National Convention, addressing what's expected to be an arena of pro-Palestinian protestors and disrruptions.

Biden didn't give any comments to reporters en route to Chicago on Monday afternoon about his speech, the swath of uncommitted delegates calling for a total arms embargo to Israel, or about the news coming out of Israel that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to the bridging ceasefire proposal.

The pro-Palestinian protests and uncommitted delegates dominated headlines weeks before the convention started.

Hamas' new chief Yahya Sinwar has always been part of the decision making process in the Gaza ceasefire talks, the group's senior official Osama Hamdan said on Monday.

"Due to security conditions, communication with Sinwar has tools and mechanisms in place yet they are operating smoothly," Hamdan added in an interview with Reuters.

The families of the hostages sent a letter on Monday directly to negotiators, bypassing governmental bodies, urging them to secure a deal.

The appeal, made by "Forum for Life," was addressed to CIA Chief Bill Burns, Egyptian Intelligence Head Abbas Kamel, and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, without involving an Israeli representative. The families expressed their support for efforts to end the war and the steps that are needed to secure the hostages' safe return.

"In the name of the majority of Israeli citizens who support the ceasefire agreement and the hostages' release, we wish to express our gratitude for your mediation efforts and your commitment to swiftly agreeing," wrote the forum members.

Hamas senior official Osama Hamdan criticized US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's statement on Monday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepted an updated proposal, saying it "raises many ambiguities" because it is "not what was presented to us nor what we agreed on."

Hamdan told Reuters that Hamas has already confirmed to mediators that "we don't need new Gaza ceasefire negotiations, we need to agree on an implementation mechanism."

Families of Israeli hostages met with US State Secretary Antony Blinken and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday evening.

According to Israeli media, the families of hostages left the meeting with mixed feelings.

Etti Chen, the aunt of Itay Chen, who was in the meeting with Blinken, told Walla: “He is so warm and pleasant. But I didn't leave with good feelings. Not enough was said.”