Operation Iron Swords - Day 133 - 17 February 2024

Contents

NEW - War Termination NEW - Operations NEW - Operations Maps NEW - By-Standers NEW - Axis of Resistance NEW - Allied for Democracy UPDATED - Oasis of Martyrs UPDATED - Hostages

The biblical holidays for the Jews this year intersect with the second week of Ramadan and Tarawih prayers, which may open the door to a new battle in Al-Aqsa Mosque. Ramadan is celebrated Mar 10, 2024 – Apr 9, 2024. Tarawih, also known as Taraweeh, is a voluntary (nafl) night prayer performed by Muslims during the Islamic month of Ramadan. Tarawih prayers are a sunnah of the Prophet, which means that it was his practice to perform them. Purim is a Jewish holiday that celebrates the survival of the Jewish people from annihilation in the 5th century BCE. The story is told in the Book of Esther and is known as the Feast of Lots. Purim dates are March 23–24, 2024.

Extremist Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said that "residents of the Palestinian Authority must be prevented from attending prayers on the Temple Mount during the month of Ramadan." On his account on the “X” platform, Itamar Ben Gvir wrote: “Before the preparatory meeting for Ramadan that will be held tomorrow with the Prime Minister and the Security Service... I once again clarify my categorical position... Residents of the Palestinian Authority should not be allowed to enter Israel in any way.”

Ben Gvir added: “You must not take risks, and it is not possible for there to be kidnapped women and children in Gaza and for us to allow Hamas to celebrate victory on the Temple Mount (the Israeli name for Al-Aqsa Mosque)!”

Israeli media reported that the Israeli security policy for the month of Ramadan, specifically allowing worshipers to enter Jerusalem, constitutes a dilemma and a source of disagreement in the government of Benjamin Netanyahu.

According to Hebrew Channel 12, “A real battle is taking place behind the scenes in preparation for the dialogue session that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold next Sunday, during which a limited discussion will be held during which the Israeli security policy for the month of Ramadan will be determined, specifically with regard to the entry of worshipers from the West Bank and East Jerusalem into Al-Aqsa Mosque.”

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir demanded that Muslims from the West Bank not be allowed to enter the Temple Mount at all. On the other hand, the Shin Bet and the Israeli army warn that such a policy could incite entire sectors that are currently under some kind of control, and turn the Temple Mount into a focal point around which they gather. Squares, and a senior security official indicated that this represented a “real barrel of explosives.”

The channel indicated, "There is also a dispute between the police and Minister (Ben Gvir)." The police believe that Nasr's photos should not be allowed by allowing Palestinians from the West Bank into Al-Aqsa Mosque, but they offer more lenient restrictions than the minister wants.

Channel 12 explained that the Shin Bet and the Israeli army do not mind Palestinians aged 45 and above entering Al-Aqsa Mosque during the month of Ramadan, while the police say that those allowed must be aged 60 and above, and Minister Ben Gvir demands that all Muslims br bsnned.

As for the entry of 1948 Palestinians into the Temple Mount, the Shin Bet does not impose any restrictions or limits, and the police specify the persons allowed to enter from the age of 45 years and above, and Minister Ben Gvir specifies them from the age of 70 years and above.

Netanyahu would hold a dialogue session with a smaller lineup than the government, after discovering significant opposition to the mitigation policy, and in the background of this discussion, there are warnings from security officials on a set of factors: “Not transferring tax funds to the Authority, and not allowing Palestinian workers to enter Israel - as well as the issue of the Holy Mosque. All of these things could produce an explosion of emotions that would quickly and dramatically open fronts against Israel.

Israeli War Council Minister Benny Gantz said that even in the upcoming holy month of Ramadan , the war could continue in Gaza, threatening to expand the fighting to Rafah unless they return the prisoners.

Demonstrations took place in the Israeli street in front of the homes of the President of the entity, Herzog, and the Israeli occupation Prime Minister , Netanyahu. These demonstrations extended in several areas from Haifa to Tel Aviv, and there are attempts to storm the Ministry of War building, as several streets in occupied Jerusalem were closed.

Demands are increasing to stop the war and move towards establishing a deal to liberate detainees and prisoners from the occupation soldiers held by the Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip. Israeli media reported that the Israeli security policy for the month of Ramadan, specifically allowing worshipers to enter Jerusalem, constitutes a dilemma and a source of disagreement in the government of Benjamin Netanyahu .

War Termination

Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas intends to suspend the truce negotiations and the exchange deal until aid is brought into northern Gaza. A leadership source in the Hamas movement revealed the movement's intention to suspend negotiations with the Israeli occupation to reach a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip and implement a prisoner exchange, if aid is not delivered to the areas north of the Strip. The head of the Hamas political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, said: “The movement has responded all along in a positive spirit and high responsibility with the mediating brothers in order to stop the aggression against the Palestinian people, end the unjust siege, and allow the flow of aid, shelter and reconstruction, and the movement has shown complete flexibility in dealing with these issues.” But it is clear so far that the occupation continues to maneuver and procrastinate on the issues that concern our people, while its position revolves around the release of prisoners held by the resistance.”

Haniyeh stressed during a press statement that the resistance will not accept anything less than a complete cessation of aggression, the withdrawal of the occupation army from the Gaza Strip, the lifting of the unjust siege, the provision of safe and appropriate shelter for the displaced and displaced due to the crimes of the occupation, the return of the displaced, especially to the north of the Gaza Strip, an end to the barbaric starvation policy, and a commitment to reconstruction. All of these are humanitarian requirements and are subject to consensus in the United Nations, human rights institutions, and the decision of the International Court of Justice, and the occupation must comply with them.

The head of Hamas's political bureau added, "Achieving a prisoner exchange deal through which our prisoners, especially the old ones and those with high sentences, will be released is one of the goals of these negotiations, and this cannot be skipped," stressing that the movement deals with the ongoing negotiations in a positive and highly responsible spirit, but it will not neglect. With the great sacrifices of our people and the achievements of their valiant resistance. Haniyeh continued, "We will work with all available means to stop the bloodbath that the enemy is carrying out around the clock against our defenseless people."

Hamas leader Sami Abu Zuhri confirmed that there was a major Israeli retreat from the Paris paper on the ceasefire and the prisoner release deal. Sami Abu Zuhri said: “There is a major Israeli retreat from the Paris paper,” noting that “the movement’s position was characterized by positivity during the Cairo negotiations.” Abu Zuhri added: "We have no information regarding a new round of negotiations," while stressing that "the American position on the Rafah invasion is ambiguous and practically allows horrific massacres."

The demands put forth by Hamas in the ongoing negotiations would mean the defeat of Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a press conference. Netanyahu, addressing the media, stated that Israel would persist in its efforts until achieving what he termed as "absolute victory." He specifically mentioned plans for an operation in Rafah as part of the ongoing war on Gaza.

The head of the Israeli government emphasized the occupation's refusal to "yield to international dictates" for any future settlement with the Palestinian people. "Israel will not submit to international dictates for a future settlement with the Palestinians." Netanyahu said negotiations would only resume when "a tangible change" is observed. "There will be no negotiations until we see a change," he asserted, highlighting the steadfast stance of his government.

In response to a request from US President Joe Biden, Netanyahu disclosed that he had dispatched a delegation to Cairo. However, he clarified that this move did not signify any alteration in the ongoing negotiations. Netanyahu asserted that he would respond to the demands made by the United States with a "yes" or "no" as he deemed fit.

Richard Haass, the former long-time president of the Council on Foreign Relations, presented a plan for Palestine. Haass held talks with senior officials in the Biden administration, including Vice President Camilla Harris , presenting to them a bold plan to change policy on the war between the Israeli occupation entity and Hamas.

Haass believes it is necessary to separate President Biden from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose military campaign in Gaza has damaged the credibility of the United States abroad and the president’s popularity at home, suggesting that Biden go to occupied Palestine to deliver a speech - perhaps in front of the Knesset - to present his vision directly to the Israelis, according to the American newspaper Politico.

Haass, who previously worked in the State Department in the Bush administrations, came up with this idea after concerns about the occupying entity's defiance of Washington's warnings about the widespread human losses resulting from the bombing of the Gaza Strip and the threat to destabilize the Middle East. The newspaper indicated that Haass presented the idea in January to Harris, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and others, but the reaction of senior officials to his proposal was lackluster, according to informed sources.

The newspaper believes that the move of Haass, 72 years old, highlights the frustration hanging over the American foreign policy community. As the occupation moves toward a military operation in the Rafah area in the Gaza Strip, which the Biden administration and other allies have warned about, these fears are unlikely to subside soon.

Although the administration has chosen, at least for now, not to demonstrate widespread independence from the Netanyahu government, it has taken a series of steps to separate from the Netanyahu government and, in some cases, to help the Palestinians. Over the past few weeks, Biden began imposing sanctions on extremist Israeli settlers accused of committing violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. He also issued a memorandum aimed at strengthening US efforts to monitor whether countries receiving US military aid are violating human rights.

His administration is also working to intensify pressure on the Israeli entity to allow the entry of more humanitarian aid into Gaza, especially flour. But the Biden administration's frustration with Netanyahu runs much deeper than any administration official can express publicly. Biden has told his senior aides and advisers, in sometimes inflammatory language, that he often finds Netanyahu stubborn and unreasonable, according to three people familiar with the private conversations.

Some Biden administration officials privately wonder whether Netanyahu — whose popularity has plummeted due to the Hamas attack — sees a political opportunity in going ahead with the war. Gerald Feierstein, a former senior State Department official and Middle East expert, said the prime minister may also see gains, especially among far-right Israeli voters, in standing up to the United States. He said: “We all know that Joe Biden is temperamental and has his own concerns about his presidential election that will come in a few months. I think he is actually starting to get impatient with Netanyahu, and that is starting to show.”

White House aides point out that even in the early days of the war, Biden pressured the occupying entity to allow humanitarian aid to reach Gaza and warned Netanyahu against making the same mistakes that the United States made after the attacks of September 11, 2001. According to the newspaper, the differences may soon reach a boiling point with the occupation planning to launch a ground attack on the Rafah area in the Gaza Strip. A US official familiar with the situation said that Biden's team sees the operation as "a disaster that is best avoided."

Biden warned Netanyahu not to go ahead with the attack without a serious plan to protect civilians, a message he repeated in a phone call with Netanyahu on Thursday. But Netanyahu gave no indication that he was reconsidering the process. If he ignores the warnings, Biden may appear profoundly helpless on the global stage.

Talk has increased in the corridors of Washington about “American recognition of a Palestinian state” following signals coming out from President Joe Biden and his Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken , pointing in this direction in recent days. Biden has not completely changed his position in support of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip yet, and has not called for a ceasefire.

Also, decades of Washington's failed attempts to push towards a two-state solution have made some analysts question the seriousness of the Biden administration's commitment to this proposal, especially in the year of difficult presidential elections. On the contrary, others believe that Biden may take this step in an effort to secure the votes of Muslim and Arab voters, young people and minorities, who were shocked by his stance in support of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip.

"I think we'll be able to work on something... I think there are ways this could work," Biden said, referring to a possible post-war agreement that could establish a demilitarized Palestinian state. Reports indicate that Biden has already assigned the State Department to consider what a demilitarized Palestine would look like, “based on other models from around the world.”

At the same time, the talk of American recognition of a Palestinian state is linked to a broader framework that includes Biden’s endeavor to sponsor Saudi-Israeli normalization, preceded by the conclusion of a US-Saudi defense agreement, with all parties agreeing to formulate irreversible steps towards establishing a Palestinian state.

The American newspaper, The Washington Post, said on Thursday that American and Arab officials are working on developing a comprehensive plan to establish lasting peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis, at a time when the Israeli government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu renews its rejection of any talk about the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Michael Doran, director of the Center for Middle East Peace and Security at the Hudson Institute, who previously worked in the White House, the State Department, and the Pentagon under several Republican administrations, expected that Biden would recognize a Palestinian state this summer. Duran wrote on the institute’s website that “recognition of a Palestinian state will be an electoral ploy, as much as it is a foreign policy strategy, which the Biden team will seek to announce by early summer, just in time for the start of the presidential election campaign based on its historic achievement.”

Doran referred to the confirmation of State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, who said, on January 31, “We support the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, and we are doing a lot of work within the government to think about how to achieve this.” According to Doran, this has led to the dismay of Israeli officials because “the Biden administration has fallen in love with the idea of establishing a Palestinian state, and unilateral recognition is a means of putting pressure on Israel.”

Jonathan Schachter, a researcher at the Hudson Institute and former advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and an expert in US-Israeli relations, agreed that the Biden administration is seriously considering recognizing a Palestinian state. Schachter noted, "The Biden administration's apology tour in Michigan confirms that local political considerations will increasingly influence Washington's policy toward Israel."

Schachter highlighted what he considered to be “Biden’s remarkable commitment to American supporters of Hamas, even when they called for the mass killing of Jews, tore down the American flag, and attempted to climb the White House fence. And now, with American Arab and Muslim leaders threatening not to support Biden in the November elections.” Next, the White House shifted from silence to trying to exploit the situation.”

In an interview with Al Jazeera Net, Ambassador David Mack, former Assistant Secretary of State for Middle East Affairs and currently an expert at the Atlantic Institute in Washington, said that talk about the Biden administration studying some options for making changes in US policy regarding recognition of a Palestinian state is “completely reasonable.”

Ambassador Mack noted, "It is worth noting that this talk comes on the heels of a statement issued by the UK Foreign Secretary supporting the same idea. Most importantly, the Netanyahu government has not been very helpful by refusing to negotiate the establishment of a Palestinian state with the Palestinian Authority." He added, "I also believe that the American administration is encouraged by reports that Mahmoud Abbas is holding serious discussions with Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia about reforming his administration by playing a more symbolic role and bringing in a younger executive president to the Palestinian state."

He believes that President Abbas could play a role similar to Israeli President Isaac Herzog , leaving the real rule to someone who enjoys the trust of the main Arab countries, the United Nations, and the United States. He added, "The Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority can attract more political and financial support, to meet the needs of Palestinians in both the West Bank and Gaza."

At the same time, a number of commentators believe that the White House's efforts are primarily focused on seeking to achieve normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia. They consider that the efforts made by Brett McGurk, President Biden's National Security Council advisor for Middle East affairs, to pass the proposal to rebuild the Palestinian Authority, by focusing on a deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia, will fail.

Akbar Ahmed, a writer for HuffPost, said in a blog post on the “X” website, “I heard from an American official who was asked earlier this week to explore making Palestine a member of international institutions as a state.” He said that they realize that this effort is “comical fake steps,” and stressed that “it is impossible, given Biden’s history, for him to take these steps seriously.”

Khaled Al-Jundi, director of the Palestine and Palestinian-Israeli Affairs Program at the Middle East Institute in Washington, agrees with the previous proposal, and said in a blog post on the “X” website, “Just talking about the state is a distraction... This is meaningless talk, unless they talk about ending the occupation.” "The Israeli, all that doesn't matter."

Operational Update

The Israeli Channel 12 reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, will next week present the plan for the army’s attack on the city of Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, to the government. The channel reported that the plan was to transfer the Palestinians in Rafah to the central and southern regions of the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army will not allow the Palestinians to move to the northern areas of the Gaza Strip.

International newspapers and news websites highlighted the disastrous repercussions of the potential Israeli attack on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip and the increasing pressure on Israel in this regard. Analysts who spoke to the Washington Post said that Israel will not be able to completely eliminate the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ), and that the attack on Rafah “will cause untold harm to civilians and will spark an unprecedented humanitarian crisis in terms of its scope and speed.”

Patrick Wintour wrote in the Guardian newspaper that pressure is increasing from all directions on Israel regarding Rafah, while the Munich Security Conference is being held. He said, “All officials concerned with the discussions are present, and there is also the specter of a return to the International Court of Justice and another draft resolution in the UN Security Council demanding Israel to an immediate ceasefire.

A report published by the New York Times highlighted the challenges faced by what it called the peace lobby in Washington to push for a ceasefire in Gaza, and stated that there are other pressing forces in support of Israel that are more powerful and well-funded. The report also explains how these groups lead campaigns against legislators who oppose their agenda through various means, reaching the point of pumping a lot of money to support their competitors.

As for the Financial Times, it said in an article that achieving both peace and justice is an unattainable goal, and wrote, “It is difficult to achieve justice for the crimes committed in Gaza even after the end of the conflict.”

Turkish writer Hamza Rifaat says that Israel cannot launch a ground attack on Rafah because such an action would lead to increased pressure on it from the International Court of Justice , threaten to undermine the Camp David Accords , undermine the search for detainees, and weaken the possibility of regional normalization. Rifaat mentioned in his article on the "TRT World" website that the attacks launched by Israel on Rafah this week prompted South Africa - which had previously submitted a petition to the International Court of Justice regarding the acts of genocide committed by Israel in Gaza - to request intervention again.

He pointed out that despite international pressure and the ruling issued by the court, the administration of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu challenges this and continues its quest to achieve “complete victory,” commenting that this is a kind of fantasy, and that Netanyahu and his war cabinet and advisors are ignoring many variables that make “ Victory is impossible. Rifaat explained that these changes include the swelling of the population in Rafah from a few hundred thousand people to 1.4 million Palestinians, and that carrying out the ground attack will result in large human losses among civilians in order to kill a few Hamas activists.

He added that even if we take the matter seriously, Israel will operate in an area where it is difficult to determine the locations of the four brigades of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) that it claimed were present there, with heavy losses expected for the occupation forces. More Israeli military deaths would contribute to Netanyahu's popularity at home, and could thwart the attack halfway to the city.

The writer continued to mention the reasons why carrying out a ground attack was unlikely, and addressed the issue of releasing Israeli detainees held by the Palestinian resistance, saying that any attack would jeopardize the efforts undertaken by Egypt , Qatar , and the United States , and leave the fate of these detainees in limbo.

He added that the recent attack on Rafah led to Egypt mobilizing its forces along its border with Israel with the deployment of 40 tanks, including rapid fortifications on the Sinai side , along with the threat to suspend the Camp David Accords. He referred to Egypt's warning to suspend the agreements if Israel occupied the Philadelphia Corridor or the narrow strip of land that passes through its borders with the Gaza Strip. Another unacceptable outcome for Egypt is that the border with Israel will be breached and this will cause an influx of Palestinians into the country, which constitutes a test for regional peace and threatens to upend the Camp David Accords, as these agreements depend on their assurance that Egyptian national security will not be threatened.

Finally, the writer emphasized that the ground attack on Rafah jeopardizes Israel's efforts for regional normalization, noting that Jordan and Saudi Arabia warned Israel against launching an attack on Rafah. International positions continued to discourage the Israeli occupation from launching a ground attack on Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, while Tel Aviv confirmed that it would have to deal with the city, which has become the last refuge for the displaced within the Strip.

Fighter jets attacked targets of the terrorist organization Hamas in the area of Nuzirat and the area of Deir al-Balach in the center of the Gaza Strip. Based on intelligence information, a series of operational headquarters were attacked, where the terrorists of the terrorist organization Hamas were and were operating.

This morning, an alert was activated in the area of the city of Ashkelon following a launch detected from the Gaza Strip, the air defense fighters successfully intercepted the launch. In less than 30 minutes, with the cooperation of the fire complex of the Nahal Brigade and the 215th Fire Brigade of Division 162, the terrorist who carried out the launch was identified in the al-Furqan area in the north of the Gaza Strip. An air force aircraft attacked the terrorist and eliminated him.

In the south of the Gaza Strip, the forces continue to operate against terrorist targets in the Khan Yunis area. The commando formation, Sheitat 13 fighters and special forces under Division 98 operate at Nasser Hospital based on intelligence indicating terrorist activity at the hospital. This activity led to the arrest of about 100 suspects in terrorist activities at the hospital. At the same time as the scans, the fighters of the Magellan and Agoz unit eliminated terrorists around the area of the hospital. Also in the Khan Yunis area, the 7th TDF fighters raided many terrorist targets in the area where they located combat equipment including explosives, grenades and Kalashnikov weapons. In addition, in cooperation with the brigade's brigade fire complex, the forces identified and directed an aircraft that eliminated two terrorists who were moving on a motorcycle and advanced towards them.

The fire complex of the 98th Division in cooperation with the forces in the field identified three terrorists traveling to the area suspected of being a launch complex and directed an aircraft that eliminated them. As part of the encounters with terrorists and the intense fighting in Khan Yunis, the fighters of the paratroopers' combat team identified a terrorist squad a few meters away from them and eliminated them with close range fire.

At the same time, in the center of the Strip, the Nahal Brigade's combat team eliminated a number of terrorists throughout the last day. In one of the activities, the brigade's fire complex identified two Hamas operatives and in a short time a fighter jet attacked the terrorists and eliminated them.

The Palestinian street in the West Bank is boiling as a result of the occupation and settlers’ attacks, which have left hundreds of martyrs and thousands wounded.

Meanwhile, the General Political Commissioner and official spokesman for the security establishment, Major General Talal Dweikat, announced that the Palestinian security services in Jenin Governorate “arrested two people involved in an attack on two police officers in Nablus, and confiscated two weapons they were in possession of.”

According to a press statement by the spokesman, “a group of outlaws attacked two Palestinian policemen while they were on official duty in the Nablus Governorate last Saturday evening.” He pledged that "the security services will continue their efforts to pursue the remaining members of the group to arrest them and bring them to Palestinian justice."

The leader of the Palestinian National Liberation Movement “ Fatah ,” Jamal Hawiel took the initiative to announce "In light of this situation, it is shameful for us to get into internal problems in the West Bank. We are required to be united in defending Gaza to stop the aggression."

He added, "There are disputes taking place inside the street in Jenin, specifically accusing the authority of treason, and accusing the resistant youth of breaking the law and destabilizing security. If we continue with the same accusations, we will not achieve anything." He continued, "We must sit on the basis of respect and tolerance. The occupation does not want Fatah, nor the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ), nor Jihad. It does not want anyone from the Palestinian people, so we must sit with love and brotherhood."

Hawiel set general principles in his initiative, which are: shooting at security headquarters is forbidden, and shooting at citizens and resistance is forbidden. The Fatah leader confirmed, "We are all losers in the attack or any injury, whether in security or resistance." He said that he received calls from different levels to discuss his initiative, but it had not yet matured into a dialogue or solution that would end the tension, reiterating his emphasis that everyone is required to stand up to their responsibilities.

The Israeli occupation forces continue their raids on the towns of Nablus, Jenin and Qalqilya in the West Bank , while clashes broke out in the Shuafat refugee camp in occupied Jerusalem after the occupation forces stormed the house of the perpetrator of the shooting attack in Kiryat Malachi, in which two Israelis were killed.

Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that it stormed, on Saturday night, the village of Iraq Burin, south of the city of Nablus, from its northern axis, reinforced with a number of military vehicles. They also stormed the cooperative area in the city of Nablus and the village of Qablan, south of the city. Occupation vehicles were seen in the city centre.

The Israeli night raids included the villages of Hajjah and Baqa al-Hatab, east of the city of Qalqilya, and the villages of Iskaka and Yasuf in Salfit Governorate, in the northern West Bank, and Kafi in the southern West Bank, and the Kharsa area in the city of Dor, south of Hebron. They drove their vehicles and raided homes there, arresting two young men.

In the southwest of the city of Jenin, the occupation forces stormed the village of Barta'a tonight, raided homes and shops, and arrested a number of Palestinian workers from the Gaza Strip. Eyewitnesses reported that the occupation forces stormed the village and deployed in several neighborhoods there. They also launched searches for Palestinian workers and arrested about 20 of them. They were taken to a concentration camp.

Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that the Israeli occupation forces, reinforced with military vehicles, stormed villages and towns in the northern West Bank, storming the city of Yatta, south of Hebron, and pictures broadcast by activists showed the occupation vehicles storming the city from its southern axis.

The occupation forces also stormed a funeral home in the Jabal Abu Rumman area in Hebron, south of the West Bank, set up by relatives of the martyr Fadi Jamjoum, the perpetrator of the shooting attack in Kiryat Malachi, east of Ashdod. Confrontations broke out between Palestinian youth and the occupation forces, who stormed the funeral home and fired sound bombs and tear gas.

Israeli escalation aims to expand the scope of the conflict with the resistance, as it is no longer limited to the southern Lebanese region, but rather goes beyond it to the town of Jedar Iqlim al-Kharroub - in Mount Lebanon, which is about 60 kilometers from the Lebanese-Israeli border and 30 kilometers from Beirut.

IDF fighter jets attacked terrorist infrastructure and a launching point of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in the area of ??the village of Jabal Blat in southern Lebanon. In addition, the IDF fired artillery to remove a threat towards the Wadi Hamol area.

IDF warplanes attacked a military infrastructure of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in the Jebel Blat area yesterday (Friday), during the attack a terrorist was killed who was there. In addition, a military building in the Bint Jebel area was attacked. Also, in the last day the IDF attacked through artillery fire from several areas in southern Lebanon.

What is striking is the decline in the pace of Palestinian military operations on the southern front. The reasons for this differed. Some of them considered it to be a desire not to expand the scope of the confrontation in order to avoid Israel targeting Palestinian refugee camps. Some of them saw it as a response to Lebanese pressure and wishes. Some of them denied that there were external factors affecting the decision of the Palestinian factions.

Although Hamas officials did not comment on the issue publicly, sources close to the movement, which presented about 13 martyrs on the southern front, and from various Palestinian camps, confirmed to Al Jazeera Net that the implementation of the operations is due to logistical conditions, and is related to their importance in timing, time and place.

The sources indicated that its operations had a moral and operational goal, meaning to occupy the Israeli enemy, support the resistance in Gaza, and emphasize the slogan “unity of the battlefields on the one hand, and confuse the enemy and inflict as much human and material losses on it as possible on the other hand.”

For his part, the head of the Department of Arab and International Relations, a member of the political bureau of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine and its representative in Lebanon, Ihsan Ataya, told Al Jazeera Net, “The Palestinian military operations in northern Palestine, starting from southern Lebanon , depend on careful monitoring and monitoring of the rhythm of military patrols, vehicles, soldiers, and officers.” The Zionists are in the crosshairs of the groups that storm the border and lurk on the occupied Palestinian territories, directly clashing with the enemy’s military forces.”

Ataya explained, “After the success of the first heroic operation by a group of the “ Jerusalem Brigades ” within the Al-Aqsa Flood Battle, which resulted in more than 10 dead and wounded among the enemy’s army soldiers and officers, the enemy tightened its precautionary measures and increased its precautions on the northern borders of Palestine.”

Added to this is the increase in the frequency of confrontations on the southern Lebanese front, and the expansion of artillery and missile shelling, which led to “the emptying of the northern Palestine region, as it fell within the range of resistance fire, and the scarcity of Zionist military movements and their attacks, through ambushes by Palestinian military fighting groups.”

Since Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, the Islamic Jihad Movement has engaged in military operations from the south. It alone has carried out no less than 7 operations in the occupied Palestinian territories in northern Palestine, and has sacrificed 11 of its fighters as martyrs in these operations.

Ataya explains to Al Jazeera Net that the impact of the decline in military operations on the political positions of the Palestinian fighting factions is present in the confrontation with the Zionist enemy in more than one place, and their fighting is not limited only to the military operations carried out by “some of their groups in northern Palestine, as they fight in different forms in The Gaza Strip and the West Bank , and wherever you can reach the enemy."

In response to a question about whether there were internal (the Lebanese state) or external factors that influenced the decision of the Palestinian factions to reduce their military activity in northern Palestine, Ataya asserts that “there is no decision by the Palestinian factions that prevents them from fighting their enemy, and they are ready and fully prepared to strike the enemy when It reaches any military target, and is in full coordination with the resistance forces in southern Lebanon.”

From a logistical standpoint, Lebanese military expert Naji Malaeb confirms that Palestinian military operations on the southern Lebanon front have declined recently, but he tells Al Jazeera Net that there are many reasons for this, the most prominent of which is the weak impact of the operations in relation to the weapons used and compared to what Hezbollah possesses and launches against Israel.

Malaeb pointed out that the southern Lebanon front is wide, and 12,000 soldiers from the International Emergency Forces (UNIFIL) and 8,000 soldiers from the Lebanese Army are deployed in it. It is an area in which there are no military barracks for Hezbollah or others, no visible military site, and not even a military vehicle. Palestinian participation is temporary by carrying out military operations only.

Retired Brigadier General Malaeb explained that the Palestinian factions often relied on planting Katyushas in orchards near the camps, and also used Grad rockets if they were available, but with the weapons that Hezbollah possesses, such as the Russian Kornet and the Burkan, there is no longer any trace of them. Great for these small missile weapons (GRADS) in this area.

Malaeb said, “Also, let us not forget that the camps do not store heavy weapons, and any Palestinian operation must be carried out in coordination with the Hezbollah leadership, or it may be carried out at its command, while ensuring protection on the front, monitoring and follow-up, and securing certain defenses. The Palestinians announced several Operations, but they do not have the military missile capabilities and there is no room for ground combat today in the meantime.”

Malaeb believed that another reason that may have an impact on this decline is the targeting of the leaders of the Palestinian resistance. Israel has the longevity, has agents, and has a large technical, intelligence, and cyber presence in the air and on the ground.

He said that we cannot forget that the south is not a regular front, and it does not have defense lines and fighters with their barracks, and the airspace is controlled by drones and air observatories, and this matter certainly hinders the progress and movement of most fighters, whether from Hezbollah or the Palestinian resistance.

The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon carried out several attacks against the Israeli occupation sites along the border in the south, targeting the vicinity of the “Duviv” barracks, the “Ramia” site, the “Zabdin” and “Ruwaisat Al-Alam” sites in the occupied Lebanese Shebaa Farms, and the “Al-Malikiyah” site. These targeting came in conjunction with the statements of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah , who said that “the Israeli enemy’s goal in killing civilians is to pressure the resistance to stop, because all the pressures since October 7 were aimed at stopping the southern front,” stressing that the resistance cannot bear the issue of harming civilians.” The enemy must understand that he has gone too far in this matter.”

The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah announced that its fighters carried out Saturday six operations against Israeli occupation military sites and gatherings on the border with occupied Palestine. The operations are as follows:

1. 1:00 pm, Hezbollah fighters targeted "Branit" Barracks with a Falaq 1 rocket, causing direct hits.
2. 2:00 pm, the Resistance targeted the Roueissat al-Alam site in the occupied Lebanese Shebaa Farms with rockets, achieving direct hits.
3. 2:00 pm, the Resistance also targeted the al-Samaqah site in the occupied Lebanese Shebaa Farms with rockets, achieving direct hits.
4. 2:45 pm, Hezbollah fighters targeted a gathering of Israeli occupation soldiers in the vicinity of the Al-Dhayrah site with rockets, causing direct hits.
5. 4:00 pm, the Islamic Resistance targeted the espionage equipment at the Birket Risha site with appropriate weapons, achieving direct hits.
6. 4:40 pm, Hezbollah targeted the Ramya site with appropriate weapons, achieving direct hits.

The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah reiterates in its statements that these operations come in support of the steadfast Palestinian people in Gaza and in solidarity with their honorable and courageous Resistance.

For his part, the former head of the Israeli Mossad , Danny Yatom, confirmed that it is not in Israel's interest to initiate a war front with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Yatom said in statements to an Israeli media outlet that “Israel” today stands alone against the axis of resistance, “and instead of the liberal democratic axis, led by the United States of America, fighting this axis, we are forced to fight it.” He continued: “I was shocked on October 7, when I found that we needed two aircraft carriers to save Israel, and we were fighting barefoot as we thought (Hamas fighters),” stressing that Israel must learn from reality so as not to return to nonsense.

In turn, the former Commander of the Staff Corps, Major General Reserve Gershon Hacohen, said: “We are in an unprecedented and truly disastrous situation, and the situation in the north (Hezbollah) is very difficult.” As Israeli Channel 13 reported, “We are not in the year 1967. There is no army, and we do not have the ability, to engage in a ground operation to return Hezbollah beyond the Litani, and all threats aim to trigger an international operation.”

Lebanon’s Hezbollah resistance group and Amal movement announced that six of their members were killed in Israeli strikes in the country's south. The Amal movement mourned four members, stating, “They were martyred while they were fulfilling their duty of defending Lebanon.” The members were killed in a strike on a home in the village of Qantara in southern Lebanon, according to the Amal movement. Hezbollah also announced that two of its fighters were killed in southern Lebanon, stating they "rose as martyrs on the road to Al-Quds."

Israeli media considered that the sudden launch of precision missiles by Hezbollah towards sensitive Israeli sites would give Hezbollah a major advantage before the start of the war. Israeli media also mentioned what the Secretary-General of Hezbollah said in his speech on Friday, that the Resistance possesses massive missile power that would allow it to strike Israeli targets from "Kiryat Shmona" all the way to "Eilat".

Meanwhile, the former head of the Israeli Shin Bet, Ilan Lotan, discussed "Israel's" war with Hezbollah and the prospect of settlers' return to the occupied north. In a talk on Israeli Channel 13, he said “A decision must be taken about our course of action. Will Israel opt for a political settlement?" which he claims Hezbollah would use to mobilize toward the south, adding that he does not see the possibility of settlers returning to the northern settlements before a "large military battle" [against Hezbollah].

In the same context, Zehava Galon, former leader of the Meretz party, previously doubted "Israel's" ability to wage war against Hezbollah, saying the occupation cannot fight on two different fronts. "They [Israeli government] told us they're ready for war in Gaza, but we all saw what happened. Currently, we are not capable, and there is a policy of acknowledgment now. Nasrallah tries, and we respond, and I think the security minister's remarks were unnecessary," she said. She also noted that the involvement of Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot in the Israeli War Cabinet specifically served to "stop Yoav Galant from daring to authorize fighting in the north".

The mayor of the "Kiryat Shmona" settlement also revealed that Northern settlers descended into a "state of absolute worry and are under unbearable pressure", and then questioned what would happen following Galant's speech, specifically considering what Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said: "As Hezbollah's missiles could reach Eilat, are settlers supposed to leave more settlements in the North?"

Channel 12's correspondent in the North, Gary Faron, stated that Galant announced that Hezbollah raised half a notch of its operations against "Israel" while the latter raised a notch in its operations but is still first level out of 10. Faron added that the settlers in the occupied North heard that and lost their minds wondering how after 130 days of daily fighting, rockets, injuries, and deaths in the North, the Israeli occupation forces and "Israel" are only at the first level out of 10.

Israeli media reported that the situation in northern occupied Palestine has become "unacceptable," with an absolute absence of the "state", i.e., the Israeli regime, all over the north as it is subjected to the immense firepower of the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah. The situation in the northern Israeli settlement of "Margaliot" is "unreasonable", and residents do not have freedom of movement, "Margaliot" settlement council chief Eitan Davidi said on Saturday. "We cannot move. We are hiding behind the walls."

"The state is not present anywhere in the north, and civilians are the ones managing affairs there," he added. According to Davidi, "Israel is doing everything it can to avoid confrontation with Lebanon and to reach a political settlement." He went on to call on the Israeli regime to find a solution that ensures the safe return of settlers to the north after the mass displacement northern settlements have witnessed since October 8 in the wake of Hezbollah's operations in northern occupied Palestine.

The Israeli army announced that it bombed a Syrian army weapons depot in Daraa, southern Syria, in response to the firing of shells into the southern Golan. The Israeli army statement said: “During the night, in response to shooting operations from Syria towards the southern Golan Heights that did not cross into Israeli territory, Israeli army artillery bombed the source of the fire, and fighter jets bombed a weapons storage facility belonging to the Syrian army in the Mahajah area (Daraa Governorate). The statement added: “Yesterday, Friday, Israeli army fighter planes bombed Hezbollah’s terrorist infrastructure in the Jabal Balat area, and a terrorist was killed. A military complex was also targeted in the Bint Jbeil area. Over the past day, IDF artillery bombed a number of areas in southern Lebanon.”

US Central Command reported that its crews had monitored the launch of 4 anti-ship ballistic missiles from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen towards the Red Sea. According to the Central Command statement, "At 1:15 p.m. Sana'a time on February 16 and until one o'clock in the morning on February 17, 4 anti-ship ballistic missiles were launched from Houthi-controlled areas towards the Red Sea."

The statement added, "It is estimated that at least 3 missiles were fired towards the merchant ship MT Pollux, a Panamanian-flagged ship owned by Denmark and registered in Panama. No injuries or damage were reported from the MT Pollux or any other ship in the area." The statement indicated that the US Central Command carried out two successful strikes between 1:40 pm and 6:45 pm as part of a self-defense measure against a mobile anti-ship cruise missile and an unmanned mobile surface vessel (USV) in Yemen.

According to the statement, "US Central Command identified the mobile missile and USV in Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen and determined that they represented an imminent threat to US Navy ships and commercial vessels in the region."

The Houthis announced earlier today that they had targeted the British oil ship "Pollux" in the Red Sea with a large number of missiles. Since the start of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, the Houthis announced the targeting of 35 ships in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab with missiles and drones, during the implementation of their decision to prevent ships linked to Israel or heading to its ports, as well as American and British ships, from passing through the Red and Arab Seas, in solidarity with the Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip. In the face of Israeli army operations.

Navigational data showed more than 20 cargo ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden adding phrases in their data denying their connection to Israel, Britain and America, so as not to be targeted by the "Ansar Allah" group ( Houthis ). The phrases included varied between, “We have no connection to Israel, America, or the United Kingdom,” “No connection to Israel,” “The entire crew is Chinese,” or “The crew is Russian.”

It is noted that 8 of these ships belong to Greek companies, in addition to 4 ships belonging to Chinese companies, 3 belonging to companies in Hong Kong, and 6 of the observed ships departed from China. In this context, Petros Pappas, CEO of Star Bulk Carriers, said, “We will no longer pass through the Suez Canal, because the company’s ship, Star Iris, was attacked on February 12, as it is a company registered in America.

Western officials revealed on 16 February 2024 that Israel launched secret attacks on two major gas pipelines in Iran this week, disrupting the supply of heat and cooking gas to several Iranian provinces. The New York Times quoted Western officials and a military strategist affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, saying: “Israel carried out secret attacks on two major gas pipelines inside Iran this week, disrupting the flow of heat and cooking gas to provinces inhabited by millions of people.”

They added, "The attacks launched by Israel on the two pipelines require deep knowledge of the Iranian infrastructure and careful coordination, especially since the two pipelines were hit in multiple locations at the same time." They explained that Israel also caused an explosion on Thursday inside a chemical factory on the outskirts of the capital, Tehran , which led to columns of smoke and fire rising into the air.

One of the officials described the attacks as “very symbolic attacks and it was easy for Iran to repair the damage caused by them, and they caused only relatively minor harm to civilians,” according to the newspaper. The official pointed out that the attack "sent a strong warning of the extent of the damage that Israel could inflict if the conflict expands to include all parts of the Middle East, as well as escalating tensions between Iran and its opponents, especially Israel and the United States."

Iranian Oil Minister Javad Oji had earlier announced that an act of sabotage had occurred targeting the gas pipelines supplying the cities of Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari province, pointing out that gas supplies to the province would not be cut off. The Iranian minister said, in televised statements, “Around 2 to 3 o’clock after midnight, a terrorist act of sabotage led to an explosion at three points of the gas lines that feed the cities of Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari provinces...and today all gas lines will be repaired.”

He added, "We were prepared to confront incidents like this, and firefighters and officials were present at the scene from the first minutes," stressing that "the enemies' goal of cutting off gas from a large governorate like Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari will not be achieved. We are rehabilitating the lines to return pumping gas to the cities of the governorate as quickly as possible."

In December 2023, the Iranian Oil Minister announced that a technical failure had struck gas stations throughout the country, as a result of a cyber attack. Oji said, in statements to Iranian state television at the time: “Gas stations reported that some stations were subjected to a cyber attack, and the process of refueling cars was stopped.” The minister added that there are "1,650 gas stations operating throughout the country and they are supplied with fuel manually without using a subsidized fuel card."

The Times of Israel newspaper said, “A hacker group previously linked to Israel announced that it disrupted gas stations throughout Iran as a result of a cyber attack,” noting that the group calls itself the “predatory bird.” The newspaper quoted a statement issued by the hacker group, saying that the cyber attack “comes in response to the aggression of the Islamic Republic and its agents in the region,” and the group added: “A month ago, we warned you that we were back, and that we would impose a cost on your provocations. This is just a glimpse of what we have up our sleeve.”

In late 2021, a major cyber attack disrupted the sale of subsidized gasoline in Iran, and citizens subsequently piled up in long lines in front of stations across the country.

Maps

All maps are lies. “Not only is it easy to lie with maps, it is essential,” wrote cartographer Mark Monmoneir in his book How to Lie with Maps. He showed that condensing complex, three-dimensional spaces onto a two-dimensional sheet of paper [in old days] is bound to be reductive. But it is impossible to comprehend the war in Gaza without reference to maps, otherwise the entire conflict is reduced to an endless series of meaningless acts of random violence and the suffering of civilians. The first characteristic of guerrilla warfare is the loss of a front line. Evidently, different mappers have different ideas of how to depict the war in Gaza, notably those that seek to depict Israeli progress in the ground campaign. Part of the problem is latency. The news that forms the basis of the maps takes time to filter out to mappers, and the cartographers take time in crafting their maps, and it takes time to curate them. These processes are uneven among mappers, so their maps may differ in detail. Probably there is some ideological bias, or at least thematic apperception, which is understandable in wartime. It may come as no surprise that al-Jazeera maps depict rather less Israeli territorial progress than other sources. Finally, there remains the epistemological question of just exactly what are the colored in areas depicting. Naively, this might be understood as areas of Israeli control, that are no longer contested by the HAMAS. Or possibly these are areas of Israeli presence, in many of which the possibility of an RPG-wielding HAMAS militant popping out of a tunnel unexpectedly remains a live possibility. With the "zero-range" combat characterized by small unit tactics on both sides, maps may be prey to a fallacy of misplaced concreteness.

Bystanders

The International Court of Justice announced that what it called the dangerous situation in the Gaza Strip requires immediate implementation of the measures of the order issued on January 26 , in reference to Israel’s threats to invade the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. The court said that the developments, especially in Rafah, would “severely increase what is considered a nightmare,” stressing that “Israel remains obligated to comply with the Genocide Convention, including ensuring the security of the Palestinians in Gaza.”

Israel had called on International Justice to reject a request submitted by the South African government two days ago to use its full authority to stop the military operation that Israel plans to launch against Rafah. In documents published by the International Court of Justice on Thursday, Israel said that the emergency measures issued three weeks ago already cover “the situation of hostilities in Gaza as a whole,” and the court must reject South Africa’s request.

The Arab League identified 60 Israeli organizations and extremist settler groups as terrorist entities, citing their participation in repeated incursions into al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the occupied Old City of al-Quds and their involvement in illegal settlement expansion throughout the occupied West Bank. In a meeting on Friday, the Arab League decided to endorse a list of 22 Israeli figures accused of supporting the genocide against the Palestinian people, laying the groundwork for legal proceedings against them.

Moreover, the Arab League reached a consensus to boycott 97 companies and institutions operating in Israeli settlements, aligning with the Human Rights Council's database. The Arab League now expects member states to promptly enforce these resolutions.

The regional organization also denounced "Israel's" systematic campaigns of incitement against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), calling on countries that have reduced their funding to the humanitarian agency to reconsider their decision.

The Arab League also urged Arab ministries, and organizations related to childhood and motherhood, to collaborate in delivering medical and humanitarian assistance to numerous Palestinian children, particularly those who have been amputated or orphaned as a result of Israeli aggression and massacres.

The organization emphasized the critical conditions in Rafah, cautioning against the forcible displacement of approximately 1.5 million Palestinians to the southern regions of the Gaza Strip, near the Egyptian border, viewing it as methodical Israeli aggression and labeling it an "attack on Arab national security."

The league urged the UN Security Council to pass a binding resolution to put an end to Israeli aggression and the forced displacement of Palestinians. It also called for ensuring the uninterrupted delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, enforcing the provisional measures mandated by the International Court of Justice, and complete implementation of relevant Security Council resolutions concerning the Palestinian issue, particularly Resolutions 2720 and 2721.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said that any comprehensive military operations in Gaza would have catastrophic humanitarian repercussions, while his Saudi counterpart said that an unrestrained Israeli response would inflame feelings, in their comments on the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip during the Munich Security Conference.

Shukri said that Egypt does not intend to prepare any safe places for civilians in Gaza, and that talk of building a wall on Egypt’s border with Gaza is just an assumption, and what is being done is only maintenance operations. Shukri added that there are rights for Palestinians and Israelis, and we acknowledge the rights of everyone to live in security and peace within their national identities, noting that there are matters related to the right to self-defense, as well as the right to resist occupation and self-determination.

For his part, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said in his speech at the Munich conference that the priority now must be to end the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, a ceasefire, and the arrival of aid to Gaza. The Saudi minister added that the only way to stabilize the region is through establishing a Palestinian state. He said, “We pointed out from the beginning that an unrestrained Israeli response would inflame feelings, and we must understand that we are not only dealing with a moral issue, but rather it is related to the security of the entire region.”

Axis of Resistance

The Secretary-General of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, confirmed yesterday, Friday, that “the resistance in Lebanon possesses a massive and accurate missile capability that extends from Kiryat Shmona to Eilat.” Nasrallah explained in a speech, saying: “The resistance in Lebanon possesses capabilities that the enemy is unaware of. Its hand extends from Kiryat Shmona to Eilat.” Nasrallah said: “We do not tolerate the issue of harming civilians. The enemy must understand that he has gone too far in this matter, and his goal, by killing civilians, is to pressure the party to stop.”

He continued: "The screams of the northern settlers are getting louder day after day, and the resistance has increased its presence on the front. The response will be to escalate the military operations on the front, and he must wait and expect that." The Secretary-General of Hezbollah continued: “Your killing of our women and children will increase our faith, strength, and presence on the front, as happened yesterday with the targeting of Kiryat Shmona, and this is a preliminary response.” He continued: “Our women and children who were killed will pay the enemy’s price for shedding their blood in blood...I will not specify and will not.” "Better...we leave it to the field...this blood will be paid for in blood, and let the enemy make sure he cannot harm civilians."

Naim Qassem, Deputy Secretary-General of the Lebanese Hezbollah, affirmed that “there is no solution in the face of arrogance, injustice, and Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories and other lands except through armed resistance.” In his speech, Naim Qassem, Deputy Secretary General of the Lebanese Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah, said: “There is no solution in the face of arrogance, injustice, and Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands and other lands except through armed resistance, and this resistance, when it carries the principles of faith and the willingness to sacrifice, will be victorious, God willing.”

Naeem Qassem added: “We want to liberate the land and people together, and this liberation occurs when the accumulation of years, donations and martyrs occurs, and we will have an independent Middle East free of the Israeli presence in our region.” Nasrallah's deputy added: "Israel, at the height of its power, kills civilians and children and is unable to confront the fighters. This is a failure, and the 'Al-Aqsa Flood' revealed Israel's weakness and laid the foundations for the beginning of the collapse." He continued: "After 4 months, the resistance is still steadfast, fighting, donating, and adept at inflicting painful losses on the enemy's ranks."

Under the title "From Kiryat Shmona all the way to Eilat," the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah published a new video in Hebrew showcasing its missile capabilities. In a clear message to "Israel", the video includes footage of missile launches carried out by Hezbollah and maps highlighting the range of these missiles, which can reach southern occupied Palestine, specifically the occupied city of Umm al-Rashrash (called "Eilat" by the Israelis) on the northern coast of the Red Sea. In addition, the video features an earlier statement by Hezbollah's Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah during his earlier speech, where he warned the Israeli occupation's leaders that the Resistance has a massive missile power that would allow it to strike Israeli targets from "Kiryat Shmona" all the way to "Eilat". The Lebanese leader also pointed out that "Israel" must prepare shelters and tents to host two million displaced Israeli settlers from northern occupied Palestine as a result of the Resistance's rockets.

Allied for Democracy

Israeli Broadcasting Authority said that great tension prevailed at the war cabinet meeting last Thursday, and that war council members Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot threatened Netanyahu to dissolve the war cabinet if he continued to make unilateral decisions regarding the prisoners. During the meeting, Gantz and Eisenkot expressed their dissatisfaction with Netanyahu’s decision not to send another delegation to the Egyptian capital, Cairo, to participate in negotiations to release detainees, according to the same source, noting that Defense Minister Yoav Galant - also - expressed his dissatisfaction with Netanyahu’s decision not to send the negotiator delegation to Cairo. For several weeks, disagreements have grown within Israeli political circles, led by the government, following Netanyahu’s failure to achieve any of the goals of the war on the Gaza Strip, the first of which was the return of detainees and the elimination of Hamas.

The war council within the emergency government consists of 3 main members: They are: Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Benny Gantz, along with two observer ministers, Gadi Eisenkot and Robin Dermer.

Senior officials in the Israeli Likud Party criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who responded to calls for elections by saying that "the date of the elections will be within a few years." A senior Likud official said, “Whoever was prime minister on October 7 will leave his position at the end of the war,” while another senior official in the party affirmed that “it does not matter how much Netanyahu postpones the end and how much he does not want (the elections), at the end of this war we will go to "The elections. If not through Likud, then through the party's coalition partners. Everyone understands that this is what will happen."

It is worth noting that thousands of Israelis are demonstrating on Saturdays, in several cities, including Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Herzliya and Haifa, demanding the dismissal of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, holding early elections, and reaching a deal that returns prisoners from the Gaza Strip. The protesters accused Netanyahu of torpedoing the ongoing negotiations with Hamas through international mediators, demanded that the government step down, and called for new elections.

Israeli settlers took to the streets in both Tel Aviv and occupied al-Quds demanding that Netanyahu reach a prisoner swap agreement with the Hamas Resistance movement and hold snap parliamentary elections at once. The Israeli protests, which have been taking place since the start of the war on Gaza, are calling for an early election as Netanyahu's unpopularity skyrockets due to his neglect of the Israeli settlers taken captive by the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza during October 7's Operation al-Aqsa Flood. Thousands of settlers last Saturday took part in similar demonstrations in Tel Aviv and Haifa, calling for Netanyahu's resignation and for new elections to be held. They also called for leadership to negotiate a potential prisoner swap agreement with the Palestinian resistance.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog called on Saudi Arabia to normalize relations with his country, saying that this would represent a "victory over Hamas." During his participation in the Munich Security Conference, Herzog said: “One of the goals of Hamas’ attack on Israel is to disrupt the talks to establish Israeli relations with Riyadh.” He added that for this specific reason, moving forward with Saudi Arabia would be a victory over what Hamas did, saying, “For this reason I believe that moving forward toward normalization and making all the efforts that can be made represents a very important historical opportunity.”

The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement regarding the ongoing discussions between the Kingdom and the United States regarding the path to Arab-Israeli peace. The statement added: “The Kingdom also communicated its firm position to the American administration that there will be no diplomatic relations with Israel unless the independent Palestinian state is recognized on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip is stopped, and all members of the Israeli occupation forces are withdrawn from the Gaza Strip.”

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said earlier that Saudi Arabia still has a “strong interest” in normalizing relations with Israel , but Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman made clear that the war in Gaza must end and there must be a “clear, credible and defined path.” timeline for the establishment of a Palestinian state. After months of US-led diplomatic efforts to get Saudi Arabia to normalize relations with Israel and recognize it for the first time, Riyadh halted them in October in the face of growing Arab anger over the war sparked by the October 7 attack by Hamas.

The US envoy for humanitarian issues in the Middle East, David Satterfield, said that Israel has not provided any evidence that the Hamas movement is diverting UN aid. Satterfield pointed out that the recent killings of Gaza police commanders guarding aid truck convoys have made it impossible to distribute it safely, noting that “Israeli officials have not provided specific evidence of diversion or theft of UN aid, but extremists have their own interests in using channels of aid.” Others to help determine where help goes and to whom.”

He added that as a result of the absence of police accompanying aid convoys in the wake of the recent Israeli strikes, criminal gangs are increasingly targeting these convoys, in addition to obstructing the entry of these convoys into the Gaza Strip as a result of chaos and regular Israeli protests at crossing points by those opposed to the arrival of this aid to Gaza.

Satterfield said in an interview with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace last Friday: “We are working with the Israeli government and the Israeli army to find out what solutions can be found in this regard, because everyone wants to see the continued arrival of aid, and the solution will require the return of some form of security guard.”

Satterfield stated earlier that Israeli forces killed members of the Palestinian police who were guarding a United Nations aid convoy in Rafah. He stressed that "as a result, the Palestinian police refuse to protect the convoys, which hinders the delivery of aid into Gaza due to threats from criminal gangs."

US President Joe Biden said that he urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to establish a temporary ceasefire to enable the release of prisoners, coinciding with the escalation of disputes within Israel and the threat of War Council members Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot Netanyahu to dissolve the war government. Biden added to reporters at the White House Friday evening that he held extensive conversations with Netanyahu over the past few days, each of which lasted approximately an hour, and he made clear the matter he strongly supports: There must be a temporary ceasefire in order to get the prisoners out.

The US President expressed his hope that the Israelis will not carry out any large-scale ground invasion in the Rafah area, south of Gaza, and that a prisoner exchange deal will be completed and the Americans will be returned to their country, noting that the deal is currently being negotiated pending the results of that. The White House said that Biden informed Netanyahu again - last Thursday - that he should not proceed with military action in Rafah without a convincing and implementable plan to protect Palestinian civilians.

This comes at a time when the American newspaper Politico quoted American officials as saying that the differences between Biden and Netanyahu may soon reach a boiling point, with Israel planning to launch a ground attack on Rafah. The newspaper quoted a well-informed American official as saying that Biden’s team believes that the Israeli military operation in Rafah is a disaster that would be better avoided, and said that Netanyahu did not give Biden any indication during their recent call that he was reconsidering the possible operation in Rafah.

The Washington Post published a letter to five Senate Democrats urging the United States to immediately launch what they called the " Gaza relief operation ." They said that given the lack of a meaningful response to the Biden administration's appeals to the Netanyahu government for humanitarian aid, the responsibility for leadership falls on Washington as the largest provider of military aid to Israel , which it used in its campaign on the Gaza Strip. They added that the matter falls on the United States because of its enormous maritime transportation power to deliver aid, and it may be the only country that Israel will allow to coordinate the provision of direct aid to Gaza.

The five Senators - Jeff Merkley, Dick Durbin, Elizabeth Warren, Chris Van Hollen, and Peter Welch - commented that the war strategy chosen by the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had a tremendous and unacceptable impact on Palestinian civilians. Moreover, the Senators added, “Our values demand providing life-saving humanitarian support in Gaza. In conflict after conflict around the world, we highlight humanitarian tragedies and blame responsible governments. We stand against bombing campaigns that result in mass casualties.” "Among civilians. We are coordinating aid to help those who are suffering. Because of our close partnership with Israel, it is imperative that we act in Gaza."

The Senators continued that the administration has so far emphasized two strategies in this regard: urging Israel to significantly expand the circle of aid, and following a diplomatic strategy to formulate a truce in the fighting that will stop the bombing and provide an opportunity to pump aid. Although these two strategies reduce the conflict with the Netanyahu government and avoid the complexity and responsibility of coordinating direct assistance, they have failed. The Palestinians cannot wait any longer, and our country must act now.

The Senators summarized the role that the United States should play in the “Gaza Relief Operation” into 4 main needs or roles:

First, providing urgently needed medicines and medical equipment because the 11 partially functioning hospitals remaining in Gaza cannot provide the care needed by thousands of Palestinians suffering from life-threatening injuries.

Second, the impending famine must be stopped by immediate food deliveries and fuel to restart bakeries and cooking stoves.

Third, addressing the acute water shortage, and addressing the water crisis in general, especially with regard to polluted water, which actually leads to the spread of diseases on a large scale. And ensuring that desalination plants on the coast have the fuel required to operate them.

Fourth, providing safe shelter. The Netanyahu government has repeatedly directed the Palestinians to locations that were later subjected to military attack. The Gaza relief operation must facilitate the provision of assistance to relief organizations to deliver and establish emergency shelters in areas that are coordinated with Israel and the United Nations to ensure that they are safe areas.

The American Senators' message concluded that to improve humanitarian conditions in Gaza, Washington should continue to press for a ceasefire in addition to the release of the hostages. But given the difficult circumstances, these efforts alone are not sufficient, so the Gaza relief operation is necessary, and our American values require rapid action.

Butcher's Bill / Oasis of Martyrs

On 7 October 2023, Hamas and other armed groups present in the Gaza Strip carried out an attack in Israel, killing more than 1,200 persons, injuring thousands and abducting some 240 people, many of whom continue to be held hostage. It was the second largest loss inflicted on the Israeli forces after the 1973 war. Palestinian armed groups launched thousands of missiles at Israel Following this attack, Israel launched a large-scale military operation in Gaza, by land, air and sea.

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."

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant considered 05 February 2024 that half the number of Hamas militants were killed or seriously injured by Israeli army forces.

The HAMAS Ministry of Health in the besieged sector announced that the number of victims of the Israeli operation its beginning had risen to 28,4730 martyrs, "including 12,300 dead children, 8,400 women, 340 medical personnel, 46 civil defense, and 124 journalists." He pointed out that "7,000 people are missing, 70% of whom are children and women, The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

The number wounded was 68,146. The Palestinian Government Media Office in Gaza had said much earlier that the number of missing people had risen to more than 8,000, including including 4,700 children and women, amid expectations that the toll will be double thi figures.

The IDF intensified its military operations in the West Bank, and increased the pace of incursions and raids into cities, towns, and camps, resulting in the martyrdom of 394 Palestinians, the injury of about 3,950, and the arrest of 5,780, according to official HAMAS sources. As of 17 January 2023, the Israeli escalation in the West Bank led to the death of 360 Palestinians, the injury of nearly 2,200, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, and the arrest of about 6,000, according to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club.

More than 202 Hezbollah fighters were killed in Lebanon during exchanges of bombing operations with Israel.

Israel revised down the death toll from the October Hamas attacks in southern Israel from 1,400 to 1,200. IDF had said previously it was holding 1,500 bodies of terrorists, a total that now would increas to about 1,700.

The total announced number of Israeli officers and soldiers killed had risen to 573 since the start of the war on October 7, including 241 killed since the ground invasion as a result of the ongoing clashes with the Palestinian resistance. Among them were at least 56 with the rank of platoon commander, 43 with the rank of company commander, 9 with the rank of battalion commander, and 5 with the rank of brigade commander. These officers constitute 23% of the total deaths of the Israeli army in the war on Gaza.

Israeli media reported that 27% of the Israeli military casualties in the war were officers. In detail, the media highlighted that three brigade commanders, four battalion commanders, and other senior officers have been killed in the war so far.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation reported that 29 of the army's deaths were caused by "friendly fire" and operational incidents since the start of the ground war in Gaza, late last October. The Israeli authority explained that "18 army soldiers were killed by friendly fire, two were killed as a result of gunfire (without explanation), and 9 Israeli soldiers were killed in ammunition, weapons, or run-over accidents." The Jerusalem Post newspaper revealed that 15 soldiers were killed in the Strip without their bodies being found.

According to some reports statistics indicate that 20% of the Israeli losses were due to friendly fire. Because the nature of the battle has become completely different from what was expected, and it lacks a front line.

Haaretz newspaper quoted the Israeli Ministry of Defense as saying that the Medical Rehabilitation Department has treated more than 5,500 wounded since the beginning of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7. Israeli Army Radio reported that the Rehabilitation Department of the Ministry of Defense is preparing to receive 20,000 wounded this year, compared to 5,500 wounded received last year since the start of the war. It was announced that soldiers wounded in the Gaza Strip battles numbered to 2,918 since the beginning of the war, including 1,296 who had been wounded since the start of the ground attack on October 27, 2023.

The Israeli army reported that 407 who are still receiving treatment for their injuries in the Gaza battles, and the condition of 48 of them is serious. The number of injured among the Israeli army since the start of the ground operation in the Gaza Strip on October 27 included 602 minor cases, 430 moderate cases, and 264 critical cases.

The Israeli army published new data about those wounded in the military operation in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army announces that 540 soldiers were injured in the Gaza Strip. According to army data, 540 soldiers, including 27 seriously injured, were injured in operational incidents since the start of the bombing of the Gaza Strip. There were also 21 accidental shooting incidents in the Gaza Strip, 54 bilateral shooting incidents and 31 traffic accidents. In addition, 388 incidents occurred, including ramming anti-tank rifles, anti-aircraft guns, weapons and machine guns.

At least 14,070 Israelis were injured, according to i24 TV.

Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper had reported that 5,000 soldiers had been wounded since the beginning of the war on October 7, and that the Ministry of Defense had recognized 2,000 soldiers as disabled so far.

An estimate by the Israeli Ministry of Defense expected that the number of soldiers with disabilities in the war taking place in the Gaza Strip since October 7 of last year would reach 12,500 soldiers. The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth said that the Soldiers' Rehabilitation Department of the Ministry of Defense has dealt with 3,400 soldiers who were classified as disabled in the army since last October 7.

The Israeli army revealed that about 9,000 of its soldiers have received “psychological assistance” since the beginning of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, and about a quarter of them have not returned to combat. This came according to a new statement revealed by the Army Medical Corps, according to Channel 12 and the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth. According to the statement, nearly 9,000 soldiers have applied for psychological assistance since the beginning of the war, and approximately a quarter of them have not returned to combat.

The statement continued, "In total, about 13,000 regular and reserve soldiers required accompaniment or medical treatment at some level during the fighting, and thousands of them were injured in the battles."

Al Jazeera military and strategic expert Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi expressed his conviction that the numbers of dead and wounded announced by Israel “cannot represent the truth,” due to a discrepancy between the Israeli army’s data and the Walla website, which is close to the army itself.

In an interview with RT, Military strategist retired Tunisian Brigadier General Tawfiq Didi said that the number of Israeli army deaths in the Gaza battles is much greater than what Israel announces. Didi explained in an interview with the “Best Saying” program on RT channel, “The number of people killed in battles can be easily known, as the equation in wars is that for every 3 wounded there is a dead person, and the numbers now in Israel hover around 12,500 wounded and disabled people, and when we divide by Three, we find that the death toll exceeds 4,000, especially after eliminating more than a thousand tanks and armored vehicles, and I know what happens when Kornet missiles hit a tank. Its ammunition explodes and no one is left alive.”

He added, "The Israelis announce their dead only of those of Jewish origin and of the first race, meaning all Arabs, Falash, and those who are among them. They are not counted because they are of the second category. So I am sure that the number exceeds 4 thousand dead, and this is a very easy military calculation."

He pointed out, "The Palestinian resistance documented everything it did, unlike the Israelis. The resistance documented shooting at tanks and armored vehicles and destroying the houses in which the Israeli soldiers were holed up, and we saw them being killed... We saw the Kornet hitting the tanks, we saw Al-Yassin 105, so the difference is clear."

Hostages

Israel announced 12 February 2024 that the total number of prisoners that the army was able to recover in exchange deals and through military operations was 126 people, including 91 Israelis, 11 bodies, and 24 foreign workers.

Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed have been held as hostages in Gaza since 2014 and 2015, respectively. Unlike the roughly 240 people kidnapped in the Hamas October 7 terrorist attacks, the campaign for the release of Mengistu and al-Sayed has received little publicity. Mengistu is known to suffer from what HRW deemed "serious" mental health issues. "Avera crossed one of the safest borders in the world, under the eyes of the security services," recalled Gil Elias, a relative. "We're talking about a mentally ill person who got lost." The calls for the release of Mengistu and al-Sayed have been barely audible during the many years they have been held captive in Gaza.

Israel had previously estimated there were 116 living hostages in Palestinian custody. Israel declared 20 out of 136 people in Gaza captivity dead in absentia, after announcing its forces had recovered the bodies of two hostages. By another count, 132 of them are still being held in Gaza, and 25 of them have been confirmed dead. Israel considers those still held by Hamas to be hostages regardless of whether they are dead or alive.

Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy earlier had told reporters that Hamas still held 137 captives. The resistance released 10 Israeli detainees, 4 Thais and 2 Russian women, who were released outside the agreement. Over the course of 6 days, Israel has received 102 detainees, women and children, including 78 Israelis, in exchange for the release of 234 Palestinian prisoners, women and children.

Eylon Levy, the Israeli government spokesperson, told reporters 01 December 2023:

• Hamas still held 137 hostages from the October attacks, in addition to four others who went missing before the war
• The hostages include two children aged four and 10 months, who, Hamas now claims, are dead
• 117 male hostages are still kept in Gaza, including the two children, as well as 20 females
• 126 hostages are Israelis, and 11 others are foreign nationals
• Foreign nationals are eight Thais, one Nepalese, one Tanzanian and one French Mexican citizen
• Ten of the remaining hostages are 75 and older.
• There are seven missing people since the October 7 attack
• Hamas had released 110 hostages so far – 86 Israelis and 24 foreign nationals.

Some of the rest are soldiers, seized when Hamas raided military bases in Israel. They may end up being held the longest. The Israeli military had not specified how many soldiers were captured, nor their ranks.

Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari announced on 07 February 2024 that 31 hostages detained in Gaza had died. He added in a press conference, "We informed 31 families that their detained relatives had died, and thus we announce their deaths."

According to some estimates, Hamas was initially holding nearly 210 of the 240 hostages, while Palestinian Islamic Jihad was holding the remaining 30. About 40 Israelis remained missing. More than 40 hostages taken from Israel into Gaza on October 7th are not currently in the custody of Hamas, the group responsible for the attack, according to a CNN report based on a diplomatic source briefed on the negotiations, CNN's prior reports had indicated that an estimated 40 to 50 hostages were held by Palestinian Islamic Jihad or other unidentified groups or individuals.

Abu Ubaida, the spokesperson for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said on Hamas’ telegram account that 23 bodies of the 60 missing Israel hostages were trapped under the rubble. “It seems that we will never be able to reach them due to the continued brutal aggression of the occupation against Gaza,” he said.

The Al-Qassam Brigades announced on 11 February 2024 that the continuous Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip during the past 96 hours led to the death of 2 prisoners and the serious injury of 8 others.

The Palestinian Prisoners' Club revealed that about 11,000 arrests were carried out by the Israeli army during the year 2023 in the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, in addition to arrests from the Gaza Strip before the seventh of last October. The number of people arrested by the Israelis in the West Bank since that date has exceeded 7,000. The total number of prisoners in Israeli prisons exceeds 9,000 Palestinians. Palestinian prisoner institutions said 661 were classified as “unlawful combatants” from Gaza, and this is the number available only as a clear given.

The Palestinian Prisoners' Club said that there has been a significant increase in the number of Palestinian administrative detainees in Israeli prisons since October 7, with 3,484 detainees recorded, including children and women. The club added in a statement that "this number was not actually recorded even during the years of the 1987 uprising."

Israel said on 14 January 2024 that, since the beginning of the war, over 2,960 wanted persons have been arrested throughout the Judea and Samaria Division and the Bekaa and Valleys Division, over 1,350 of whom are affiliated with Hamas. On 08 January 2024 it was reported that more than 1,350 wanted persons had been arrested throughout the Judea and Samaria Division and the Bekaa and Valleys Division, more than 870 of whom are associated with the terrorist organization Hamas.

The institutions added in the statement that “the occupation arrested 210 women during the aforementioned period, and this statistic includes women who were arrested from the territories in 1948, and more than 355 children,” pointing out that “the outcome of the arrest campaigns includes all those who were arrested from homes, and through military checkpoints, Those who were forced to surrender themselves under pressure, and those who were detained.” It explained that "the number of arrests among journalists reached 50, of whom 35 remain in detention, and 20 of them were transferred to administrative detention."

The announced numbers of detainees do not include those who were detained from Gaza since the start of the operation in the Gaza Strip, as there is no accurate census of these numbers.

Israel has rejected international legal adaptations since 1967, and has treated the Palestinians as criminals, and tried them before military courts and not as prisoners of war. Because the POW is not tried, but is released when the war stops, or as a result of a political agreement.

But international humanitarian law sets clear conditions relating to the Palestinians, whether as prisoners of war or organized groups with one leadership and carrying a unified slogan, and these conditions apply to Palestinian resistance fighters, specifically armed groups. International law, through the Third Geneva Conventions, which relate to prisoners of war and armed conflicts, and the Fourth Geneva Convention, which relates to civilians under occupation; Provide full protection to Palestinian prisoners and groups, including resistance factions.

The obstacles imposed by the Israeli occupation authorities became very different after the seventh of last October. They decided to cancel all trials in order to double the sentences issued against detainees, and now The scope of arguments before lawyers is very limited, due to military orders, and not according to legal data.