Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 321?

The Gaza hostage and ceasefire talks are progressing and have not collapsed, US National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby told reporters in advance of a high-level summit that would likely be held in Cairo already on Sunday.

Staff-Sergeant (Res.) Evyatar Atuar was killed in battle while fighting in the Gaza Strip, the IDF announced on Friday.

Atuar, 24, from Rosh Ha’ayin , served in the 6310th Reconnaissance Battalion in the 16th Brigade.

Atuar fell in central Gaza Strip. During the incident in which Atuar fell, four soldiers in the 6310th Reconnaissance Battalion of the 16th Brigade were severely injured and three additional soldiers were moderately injured.

The soldiers were evacuated to a hospital to receive medical treatment, and their families have been notified.

Following sirens that sounded in the area of Safed in the afternoon, approximately 20 projectiles were identified crossing from Lebanon into northern Israel, the IDF announced on Saturday.

Some of the projectiles were intercepted and the rest fell in open areas. No injuries were reported.

Talks in Cairo aimed at reaching a Gaza ceasefire have been "constructive" with some progress made and all sides need to come together to work toward implementation of a proposed agreement, the White House said on Friday.

White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters that Hamas terrorists should participate in the negotiations, which on Thursday included negotiators from Israel, the United States, Egypt and Qatar.

"We're in Cairo. They're in Cairo. We need Hamas to participate, and we need to get down to the brass tacks of locking in these details. And that's what we're focused on here in the next, coming days here over the course of the weekend," Kirby said.

The IDF dismantles a one-kilometer-long Hamas terror attack tunnel in Rafah, following previous elimination of terrorists emerging from the tunnel shaft.

Yoav Gallant and Itamar Ben-Gvir traded rhetorical jabs on X, formerly Twitter after Gallant accused Ben-Gvir of endangering Israel on Friday.

Defense Minister Gallant said Security Minister Ben-Gvir's "irresponsible actions endanger the national security of the State of Israel and create internal division in Israel."

Ben-Gvir replied to the tweet, stating, "Instead of attacking me on Twitter, start attacking Hezbollah in Lebanon."

Avera Mengitsu, an Ethiopian-Israeli citizen who has been held by Hamas for nearly ten years, turned 38 in captivity in Gaza on Thursday, his brother Ilan told Army Radio on Friday.

Mengitsu, whose family said had suffered from mental health issues, crossed the border to Gaza on September 7, 2014.

Ilan Mengitsu said, "If the government had not been indifferent to the humanitarian issue of Avera ​​- it would have been possible to bring him back a long time ago."

Before October 7, the known Hamas hostages were Hisham al-Sayed (an Israeli-Bedouin) and Avera Mengitsu. The two were believed to be living. The bodies of Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin were also held in Gaza.

Over the past day, the IDF eliminated dozens of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure sites in both central and southern Gaza, the IDF said on Friday.

IDF troops engaged in close-quarters combat, targeting and neutralizing several terrorists who posed immediate threats, the military added. 

In one incident, troops identified a terrorist who posed a threat.  The soldiers subsequently coordinated with the IAF for a targeted strike.

"A Palestinian State would mean an Iranian base in Gaza and Judea and Samaria," Foreign Minister Israel Katz said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday.

He added that Iran and Hamas have capitalized on the Palestinian issue and that just like they did in Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, and Iraq, Iran would continue "threatening population centers, flight paths, shipping routes, and economic hubs in Israel."

US Central Command forces successfully destroyed three Houthi drones on Thursday, CENTCOM announced on X, formerly Twitter.

Two of the Iran-backed militia's drones were destroyed over the Red Sea and one over a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen, CENTCOM added.

CENTCOM said the UAVs presented a "clear and imminent threat to US and coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region."

"This action was taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for US, coalition, and merchant vessels," it added.