Israel at war: What happened on day 34?

Palestinian Islamic Jihad is willing to release two Israeli hostages they are holding, the terror group's spokesperson announced on Thursday, according to Israeli media reports. 

The spokesperson said that an elderly woman and a child could be released. They were later named as Hanna Katzir, 77, and Yagil Yaakov, 12, both of Kibbutz Nir Oz. Yaakov was kidnapped alongside his father, his father's partner, and his brother Or, 16.

Israel will not pass up any opportunity to get the hostages held by Hamas back, IDF Spokesperson R-Adm Daniel Hagari stated on Thursday, but stated that the video released by Palestinian Islamic Jihad of two hostages was "psychological warfare."


PIJ announced earlier on Thursday that an elderly woman and a child could be released. They were later named as Hanna Katzir, 77, and Yagil Yaakov, 12, both of Kibbutz Nir Oz. In a video they were seen lambasting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Colonel Amir Ben David is a senior officer in the Home Front Command. Since the war began on October 7, he has been one of the nation’s key players in safeguarding Israel’s citizens as the IDF engages with Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in the north.

“For the Home Front Command, the main goal is saving lives, doing everything we can to save the lives of the citizens of Israel,” Ben David said. 

Any halt to fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas in the Gaza Strip for humanitarian purposes would need to be coordinated with the United Nations and need to be agreed by all parties to the conflict "to be truly effective," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Thursday.

Israel will begin four-hour pauses in northern Gaza starting on Thursday to allow people to flee hostilities, the White House said earlier in what it called a step in the right direction.

IDF Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi and the Israel Security Service (Shin Bet) head Ronan Bar went deep into Gaza with IDF troops to conduct a situation assessment on the ground, the IDF announced on Thursday. 

"The main strength for now in this war, which I feel all the time, is the cooperation; I turn around and see the IDF, in every corner, everyone is doing everything just so that you will be as strong as possible," Halevi said. "There is nothing they will not do to make you work well. Keep moving forward, thoroughly, and increase the pace. We are behind you!"

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas agreed he would be willing to take control of the Gaza Strip after Hamas falls, according to The New York Times.

According to the report, Abbas would only accept the position if the Biden administration commits to promoting the establishment of a Palestinian state.

This is a developing story.

The UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) said on Thursday it is seeking $481 million for Israeli-besieged Gaza in response to "unprecedented devastation" there and growing needs in the West Bank.

"One month into a tight siege and a brutal war, the humanitarian needs in the Gaza Strip are colossal. They grow by the hour," said UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini.

UNRWA said in a statement the money would be used to provide basic food assistance, shelter, water and sanitation to 1.6 million people in Gaza and provide basic health care and protection to those in the West Bank.

This comes on top of a previous UN appeal for $1.2 billion announced last week.

The names of fallen soldiers St.-Sgt.-Maj. (Res.) Dov Moshe Kogan and Sgt. Roni Eshel were released by the IDF on Thursday, bringing the total number of fallen IDF soldiers since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war to 354. 

Sgt. Eshel fell on October 7 during the outbreak of the war, and Kogan fell on Thursday during battle inside Gaza. 

Israel will begin four-hour pauses in northern Gaza starting on Thursday to allow people to flee hostilities, the White House said in what it called a step in the right direction.

White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the pauses emerged out of discussions between U.S and Israeli officials in recent days, including talks US President Joe Biden had with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Around 9,500 rockets have been fired on Israel by Hamas in the South and Hezbollah in the North since the start of the war on October 7, according to the IDF.

Of those 9,500, around 3,000 were fired in only the first four hours by Hamas. That number is even higher than the already staggering widely reported 2,200 rocket number most media carried in the early days of the war.

It dwarfs the number of rockets ever fired on Israel in a day by any enemy until now, with Hamas firing 4,500 rockets on Israel over 50 days during the entire 2014 Gaza conflict, a number which itself at the time was a major new high.