Israel-Hamas war day 339: What's happening in the West Bank, Gaza?

Israel’s chief negotiator for hostages and missing persons warned during the MEAD Conference in Washington that Hamas is murdering hostages in Gaza even as international mediation efforts continue.

“There is a direct link between international pressure on Israel and Hamas' willingness to negotiate,” Gal Hirsch, Israel's chief negotiator for hostages and missing persons, said in an interview on the main stage of the MEAD Conference, held in Washington, DC. “While our negotiating team is in Doha, Hamas continues to kill hostages in Gaza. The military pressure will not stop.”

Hirsch, speaking with Israel Hayom political commentator Ariel Kahana, discussed the complex dynamics of negotiations with Hamas. He expressed frustration with what he described as a false narrative that Israel is obstructing a deal. “Unfortunately, many have embraced the narrative pushed by Hamas — that we are the ones blocking the deal. This is false. We have never canceled any deal that was on the table. It simply hasn't happened,” Hirsch said.

Benny Gantz, chairman of the National Unity party and a member of Knesset, declared at the MEAD Conference in Washington that Israel must prepare for war in the North if a deal to free hostages is not reached soon.

"The time for action in the North has come – if we do not reach a deal for the hostages within days or a few weeks, we will have to go to war in the North," Gantz said, adding that Israel’s security policy post-October 7 cannot return to what it was previously.

The IDF fired at a Palestinian vehicle that attempted a hit-and-run attack near the village of Khorsa on Mount Hebron on Sunday, Israeli media reported, citing Palestinian reports.

One of the terrorists was determined dead at the scene, and another was wounded. There have been no reports of casualties among IDF soldiers.

Rocket sirens sounded in localities in northern Israel on Monday.

Sirens sounded in Kiryat Shmona, Beit Hillel, Kfar Giladi, Kfar Yuval, Ma’ayan Baruch, Metulla, and Tel Hai.

Families of the six hostages recovered from a Hamas tunnel in Rafah last Sunday were told that their loved ones were starved, denied air, and subjected to inhumane conditions before being brutally murdered, according to a report by Channel 12. 

An IDF investigation found that documents forged by the Hamas terrorist organization were leaked to foreign media outlets that would negatively shape public opinion on Israel, according to a Sunday report by Ynet.

Some police officials have accused the IDF and the Shin Bet of withholding security threat information overnight between October 6 and 7, which, if it had been shared with the police, could have saved the lives of 364 civilians who were killed at the Nova party and 44 hostages who were taken.

Syrian air defenses confronted an "aggression" targeting multiple locations in Syria's Hama countryside, state media SANA said late on Sunday, following reports of an explosion heard in the same area. The explosions have been linked to Israel.

Senior US officials have expressed skepticism about introducing a new proposal for a hostage deal in the coming days. The US is still coordinating with Qatar and Egypt on a draft, but President Joe Biden’s senior advisers are debating whether it is worthwhile to table such a proposal as the gaps between Hamas and Israel continue to grow.