Operation Iron Swords - Day 28 - 03 November 2023

Palestinian armed group Hamas launched thousands of missiles at Israel and deployed its militants to infiltrate Jewish settlements near the country’s border with Gaza on 07 October 2023. The 1,200 Israelis killed on the first day would be the equivalent of 36,000 Americans killed in an attack, as a proportion to Israel’s population of 9.3 million people (compared to 332 million in the USA). Israeli President Isaac Herzog stated: “Not since the Holocaust have so many Jews been killed in one day". PM Netanyahu stated "On October 7th, Hamas murdered 1,400 Israelis. Maybe more. This is in a country of fewer than 10 million people. This would be equivalent to over 50,000 Americans murdered in a single day. That’s twenty 9/11s. That is why October 7th is another day that will live in infamy."

Butcher's Bill / Oasis of Martyrs

Palestinian health authorities say that at least 9,227 Palestinians had been killed in Gaza, more than four times the number killed in the six-week-long war in 2014. The death toll included 3,826 children and 2,405 women [these subtotals fluctuate inexplicably]. In addition, the number of injured rose to 23,516 [though earlier reports had totaloled over 32,000 Paletinians injured since October 7th, including at least 6,360 children and 4,891 women]. More than 2,060 were missing and presumed buried under rubble, a substantial increase from earlier reports. On the West bank, at least 129 Palestinians had been killed, and more than 1,980 injured. IDF said it was holding 1,500 bodies of terrorists.

More than 1,405 Israelis were killed as a result of HAMAS attacks, including 338 soldiers and officers, according to what was announced by the Israeli army. At least 5,431 were injured.

Some 241 [down from 242 the previous day] hostages are being held by HAMAS in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said 03 November 2023. Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said “almost 50” hostages had been killed in Israeli bombing raids in the three weeks since the war began. About 40 Israelis remained missing. More than 50 people were killed in an Israeli air raid on the densely packed Jabalia refugee camp, Palestinian authorities said. Hamas said seven Israeli hostages, three of whom held foreign passports, were killed in this attack.

By one estimate, over 10,000 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. More Israeli raids in the occupied West Bank led to the arrests of dozens of Palestinians, and the number held in Israeli jails has more than doubled to about 10,000 since the Hamas attack on October 7. Israeis jails initially held about 4,000 prisoners from Gaza, and more than 1,550 from the West Bank.

Thousands of Palestinians whose permits to work in Israel were revoked were believed to be held in detention camps, but Israel has so far refused to release information about them, human rights groups said. About 18,500 residents of Gaza held permits to work outside the besieged strip. The Minister of Labour for the Palestinian Authority estimated that about 4,500 workers were unaccounted for and are believed to have been detained by Israeli forces.

Thousands of workers, like Salameh, were arrested and taken to Ofer Prison. Some were rounded up and held in other undisclosed locations with no communication with their families. Others were dumped at checkpoints in the occupied West Bank and made their way to Palestinian cities with only the clothes they were wearing. Other Gaza residents who had received medical permits to enter Israel and were also rounded up. Israel released 3,200 workers from Gaza back to the coastal enclave after they were arrested and stranded following the October 7 attacks. The fate of thousands of other Gaza residents who worked in Israel remained unknown. Palestinian workers from the Gaza Strip were arrested and tagged on October 8 before being taken to Ofer Prison on the outskirts of the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah. They were summoned for interrogation and tortured on what was described as an electrical chair for several days.

Those workers granted permits were approved after a strict security examination by Israeli intelligence and the Israeli army. This meant that after a thorough background check, each worker was confirmed as a civilian with no political affiliations in the Gaza Strip or connections with Palestinian armed groups and resistance factions.

Operational Update

IDF spokesman, Brigadier General Daniel Hagari said : "We eliminated 10 Hamas terrorists who planned the massacre on October 7. Morale is high, the soldiers are strong and determined - they are fighting for the home. We are constantly continuing the effort to return the 241 abductees home. We are focused on Gaza, The goal is to dismantle Hamas and return the abductees. We are promoting a humanitarian effort led by the US, this is happening in southern Gaza."

The Israeli army confirmed that it had targeted an ambulance at the entrance to Al-Shifa Al-Akbar Hospital, in Gaza City, saying it was “being used by a terrorist cell affiliated with Hamas.” The health authorities in Gaza announced that the bombing led to "the death of a number of citizens and dozens of wounded." Pictures taken by Agence France-Presse show bloodied civilians surrounding a destroyed ambulance. The Ministry of Health in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip said on Friday that Israel had targeted a convoy of ambulances leaving Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, heading to the south of the Gaza Strip to evacuate the injured to Egypt.

The Pentagon revealed that unarmed American drones were flying over the Gaza Strip to contribute to efforts to locate and release hostages held by Hamas since the October 7 attack. Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder said in a statement, “In support of efforts to release the hostages, unarmed American drones are flying over Gaza and providing advice and assistance to our Israeli partner.” He added, "These drones began flying after the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7." Two American officials told Reuters that the United States was carrying out reconnaissance drone flights in the skies of Gaza, searching for those kidnapped by Hamas, during its attack on Israel on October 7.

A New York Times analysis in which Amelia Smith, an aviation researcher, assisted, showed the US deployed more than six MQ-9 drones, whose reconnaissance missions were mainly focused on areas in the southern Gaza Strip. the drones whose operations were analyzed flew over the Gaza sky for approximately three hours, at an altitude between 7,300 and 7,900 meters. The MQ-9 drones were designed to be the US Air Force's first "hunter-killer" drone, and are mainly used for surveillance missions due to the advanced sensors and their ability to fly over an area for more than 20 consecutive hours. The MQ-9 was used to launch air strikes and collect intelligence information in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria, and many armies around the world also use these aircraft.

The former head of the CIA, General David Petraeus, expressed his disappointment that the leaders of the occupying state do not have a clear plan for after the end of the war in Gaza , just as the Americans did not have a plan to manage Iraq after the overthrow of the regime of the late President, Saddam Hussein. According to his interview with Haaretz newspaper , he said: Netanyahu and the war government announced a very big goal, which is to eliminate the Hamas movement and its military arm in Gaza, stressing that it is a very difficult matter. Due to the field conditions in the Gaza Strip. He pointed out that "the mission entrusted to the Israeli army is the most difficult mission that could ever be entrusted to an army." Petraeus continued: "We fought many fierce battles in major cities against Al-Qaeda fighters and members of Iranian-backed militias, and none of these battles come close to the challenge that awaits the Israeli army in Gaza." He continued that in order to implement this goal, the Israeli army needs to invade and clear every building, floor, room, basement, and tunnel in Gaza.

Bystanders

The United Arab Emirates on Friday warned that the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza threatened to impact the wider Middle East and that it was working to secure a humanitarian ceasefire, according to Reuters news agency. "The risk of regional spillover and further escalation is real, as well as the risk that extremist groups will take advantage of the situation to advance ideologies that will keep us locked in cycles of violence," Noura al-Kaabi, a minister of state for foreign affairs, said during a policy conference in Abu Dhabi. The UAE has previously said the Hamas attacks on southern Israel were "a serious and grave escalation."

Axis of Resistance

In his first speech since the outbreak of war between Hamas and Israel on October 7, Nasrallah appeared on a giant screen in front of tens of thousands of his supporters at a celebration in the southern suburb of Beirut, coinciding with gatherings in several areas, in honor of the dead of the party and the “resistance” against Israel who died. In the ongoing escalation on both sides of the Lebanese border against the backdrop of the war between Hamas and Israel. He addressed the Americans, saying, "Whoever wants to prevent a regional war... must hasten to stop the aggression against Gaza."

The speech of the leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, was not consistent with the marketing and propaganda scenes that preceded him a few days ago or with regard to the period of time that passed since the Israeli war in the Gaza Strip without him appearing with a statement or appearance.

While some observers believe that he “did not jump over Iran’s position,” others considered that his statements were “balanced,” at a time when an Israeli political analyst views the connotations of the phrases and contexts that Nasrallah made as “keeping things as they are,” and an implicit declaration by not entering the battle.

Nasrallah's speech, the first since the Israeli war in Gaza, lasted about an hour and a half, and began by addressing the contexts and reasons that sparked the surprise attack launched by Hamas on October 7th. Gradually, the leader of Hezbollah moved to talk about international and regional positions, until he addressed an issue related to Iran, reiterating its position that denies its connection to the attack, and the same applies to the party he leads, saying: “Iran does not exercise any guardianship over the opposition forces, and the real decision-makers are the leaders of the resistance. And its Mujahideen who serve its goals.”

Nasrallah linked the escalation of his military forces’ movements in southern Lebanon to two points, the first to the course of military operations in Gaza, and the second to Israel’s military behavior towards Lebanon, considering that “the party has already entered the battle since October 8.” While he pointed out that a third of the Israeli army is on the Lebanese border, and an important part of it is elite forces, he declared that “all possibilities on our Lebanese front are open, and all options are on the table, and we can go to them at any given time.”

During his speech, he also identified two goals: the first related to “stopping the war and aggression in Gaza,” and the second was that “Gaza, specifically Hamas, would win,” as he put it.

From the point of view of one researcher in security and political affairs, retired Brigadier General Khaled Hamadeh, “Nasrallah’s speech did not go beyond what was expected,” and he told the “Al-Hurra” website: “From the beginning, it was known that his speech would not go beyond the Iranian statements, which acquitted Tehran of any role in the attack.” Hamas in Gaza.

Hamadeh believes that “the speech was disappointing and did not include any vision of what might happen and what Hezbollah’s plans are to respond to what is happening in Gaza,” and “it was not at the level of those who were betting that Nasrallah would be able to protect Lebanon, and even if they were not.” From the axis of resistance and resistance.”

During the hour and a half of the speech, Nasrallah tried to present “a monotonous picture of what could be called resistance,” according to Hamadeh, but he added, asking: “Does this mean that what Nasrallah is doing could constitute a resistance tactic or a military action that can be attributed to resistance movements?” ". He continues: "Hezbollah must search for another formula in which to present itself to the Lebanese public, different from everything it was presenting previously."

But on the other hand, the Lebanese writer and journalist, Mounir Rabie Khattab, describes Nasrallah as “he was responsible and walked between the points, and even his words were weighed on a scale of gold,” as he put it. Rabie says to the “Al-Hurra” website: “Nasrallah did not want to frighten the Lebanese about the war and its expanding horizons, and he did not want to reassure the Israelis at the same time,” and therefore he declared full readiness in the event of any developments.

"He responded directly to the Western and American response that the goal is to defeat and end Hamas and not to cease fire. He also responded to Israel's words about crushing Hamas and not to cease fire." The Lebanese writer considered that "During his speech, Nasrallah set a new equation, which is a victory for Hamas and the pursuit of a ceasefire, if the Americans want to spare the region a regional war." If this is not achieved, “the leader of Hezbollah left his scope open to carry out operations, starting from southern Lebanon and the forces of the resistance axis in different regions,” according to Rabie.

Israeli political analyst Yoav Stern believes that "Nasrallah's speech kept things as they were, as he said that all possibilities were open, and he did not say that we would enter the battle to protect Gaza." His speech was not escalatory, but rather “warning,” and Stern also sees it in his interview with Al-Hurra as “positive in itself,” because the opposite “could have led to rapid escalation.” “It also seems that Iran and Hezbollah have no interest in entering the battle when there are American battleships in the region.” Stern adds: “Hezbollah has now accepted the idea that the battle will be in Gaza alone,” and that “threats to intervene when Israel begins its ground attack have completely disappeared.”

Retired Colonel Khaled Hamadeh believes that "Nasrallah's speech was disappointing to his audience." He also says that his talk about participating in the war from southern Lebanon "will not enjoy any kind of credibility among Hamas fighters, who are fighting battles of different pace and type, with high risks."

But on the other hand, writer Munir Rabie explains, “Nasrallah knows that America does not want to expand the war while Israel is unable to do so.” He also has, according to what Rabie says, “data about Arab and international efforts to reach some kind of understanding about releasing prisoners and imposing a temporary humanitarian truce.” Once this is completed, “and negotiations with Hamas take place, the matter will be considered an achievement and victory for the movement based on its recognition, which will reduce the military ability to crush it.”

Writer Rabie believes that “Nasrallah reads all the circumstances as being in his favor, as long as America and Israel do not want or wish to expand the war in Gaza.” "He is able to accumulate profits in the political sense after reaching a ceasefire agreement, no matter how long the battles last," and with regard to the South Lebanon front, Rabie believes that "it may expand and operations there may escalate without sliding into open war." But this depends on a point related to either “turning the tables or any miscalculation on the part of Israel and America,” according to the words of the same writer.

So far, “there is no intention in Iran to expand the battle,” and Israeli analyst Stern believes that “the American presence serves as a deterrent to it and the parties associated with it.” He explains that "Nasrallah's speech represents an implicit admission that he will not enter the battle," and that "he seems to believe that Israel has no intention of expanding the battle."

Al-Nujaba Movement announced its readiness to take part in the war against the Israeli occupation alongside the Lebanese and Palestinian Resistance movements. The Secretary-General of al-Nujaba Movement in Iraq, Sheikh Akram al-Kaabi, announced that the Iraqi Resistance is ready to assist Resistance movements in Palestine and Lebanon in this legendary war. Al-Kaabi stressed, "We reassure our brothers in Palestine and Lebanon that their brothers in Iraq, who entered this legendary war alongside them, since day two, are fully prepared."

The Iraqi leader then thanked the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, and the freedom fighters, saying, "All gratitude and appreciation to His Eminence Sayyed Nasrallah for his speech that healed free hearts," adding, "All thanks and respect to the heroic freedom fighters and all the leaders of the Iraqi Resistance, those who made the wise decisions and took on the legitimate initiative."

Allied for Democracy

A senior White House official said that officials in the administration of US President Joe Biden are aware of what was stated in the speech of the Lebanese Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, but they do not intend to engage in a war of words. The official confirmed in an interview with Al-Hurra TV correspondent in Washington that the United States does not seek to expand the escalation imposed by Hamas on Israel. He added that Washington and its partners have made clear that Hezbollah or other parties in the region, whether states or non-governmental groups, should not take advantage of the ongoing conflict. The official warned that this would turn the current conflict into a war bloodier than the war between Israel and Lebanon in 2006.

He stressed that Washington does not want this conflict to expand to include Lebanon, saying that it is difficult to imagine the devastation it will cause. In addition, the United States considered that the militia close to Iran should not “exploit” the war between Israel and Hamas after Nasrallah announced that the possibilities of expanding this war were “open.”

The National Security Council spokesman said, “We and our partners have been clear that Hezbollah and other parties, whether they are states or not, should not try to exploit the existing conflict."

US Secretary of State is visiting Israel as part of his second tour in the Middle East since the start of the conflict between the Hebrew state and Hamas. Blinken announced that he discussed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the issue of a “humanitarian truce” in the war in Gaza. “We believe that all of these efforts will be facilitated through the humanitarian truce, and through arrangements on the ground that increase security for civilians and allow for the delivery of humanitarian aid more effectively and sustainably,” Blinken told reporters in Tel Aviv.

According to what the Washington Post reported from an American official who refused to reveal his identity, Blinken will seek to push Israeli officials to engage in a “humanitarian truce” that will allow the evacuation of all Americans from Gaza, as well as foreign hostages held by Hamas, and the arrival of aid to the besieged Strip. The senior administration official stated that launching a “humanitarian truce” would be among the American proposals to “facilitate the entry of aid and the exit of hostages” from Gaza.

Netanyahu said that Israel will not agree to any temporary ceasefire with Hamas before the release of more than 240 hostages held by the movement during its attack on October 7. He added in a speech broadcast on television, "Israel rejects any temporary ceasefire that does not include the return of our hostages."

International criticism and pressure on the US have been mounting due to the increasing death toll in Gaza, and if it does nothing, it will be standing on the opposite site of humanity and the international community, which is why Blinken aims to push for a "humanitarian pause" during this trip, Niu Xinchun, a research fellow at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times.

Israel may agree with the "pause" suggestion as it would be temporary and restricted to certain spots, for example, to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza and foreigners to leave through the Rafah crossing, Niu said. However, the humanitarian crisis will continue to deteriorate as Israel is in the early stage of pushing its ground military operation into Gaza and the US' policy of supporting Israel to eliminate Hamas has not changed. More people will die and the situation will worsen, said the expert.