IDF strikes Hamas leadership as it expands invasion to Rafah in South, Beit Hanoun in North

Thousands attended the ‘Hostages First’ rally at Hostages Square on Saturday night, among them were multiple released hostages who asserted the immediate need to return the remaining captives from Hamas captivity. 

The rally came as Israeli leadership confirmed the recommencement of the war, citing Hamas’s unwillingness to negotiate for a new ceasefire deal. Hostage families have previously expressed fear that the continuation of the conflict could result in their loved ones being further abused by their captors and or caught up unintentionally in IDF attacks.

Among the many former hostages in attendance was Doron Steinbrecher, who was released in the most recent deal.

The IDF detected a missile launched by the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen toward Israeli territory on Saturday.

However, it disintegrated while en route toward Israel and fell into Saudi Arabian territory.

Houthis make fourth attempt in three days to launch attack on Israel

The latest launch from Yemen marked the Houthis' fourth attempt to launch an attack on Israel since early on Thursday morning, when a ballistic missile launch triggered sirens across central Israel and the capital of Jerusalem.

The Israeli military said the IAF had intercepted one rocket while two others impacted in open areas.

Hamas could still be involved in Gaza politically after it has been demilitarized, said Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump’s envoy to the Middle East, in an interview with Tucker Carlson on Friday.

“They need to demilitarize, and then they might also be politically involved in Gaza,” he said while discussing Hamas’s rationale and goals for negotiations.

“We need to understand what Hamas wants and then think about what we can offer them to make them leave. That is what needs to happen here,” the envoy said. “At the start of the conflict, we heard that ‘Hamas is an ideology, and they are ready to die.’”

Witkoff challenged this idea, saying, “I don’t think they are as ideologically extreme as they’re often portrayed. They send young children who understand nothing to commit suicide with explosive belts. Once we understand that they want to live, we can talk to them more effectively.”

The IDF struck dozens of Hezbollah rocket launchers, and a command center from which unidentified terrorists were operating in southern Lebanon on Saturday after Israel intercepted rockets fired from across the border.

Hezbollah denied responsibility for Saturday’s strikes, saying it had “no link” to the rocket launches and that it remained committed to the ceasefire. No group claimed responsibility for the attack.

An Israeli official said the identity of those who fired the rockets had not been confirmed. 

Six rockets were fired, the official said, three of which crossed into Israel and were intercepted over Metulla.

Later in the day, the IDF announced a second round of strikes on what it said were Hezbollah targets.