Operation Iron Swords - Day 161 - 15 March 2024
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NEW - War Termination NEW - Operations NEW - Operations - Gaza NEW - Operations - Judea-Samaria NEW - Operations - Lebanon NEW - Operations - Syria / Iraq NEW - Operations - Yemen NEW - Operations Maps NEW - By-Standers NEW - Axis of Resistance NEW - Allied for Democracy UPDATED - By the Numbers |
A senior political source in Tel Aviv announced that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the proposals put forward by the Hamas movement for a ceasefire and prisoner exchange. According to Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, a senior Israeli political source said that the message issued by Netanyahu, after the meeting of the war command councils in his government, the small and the expanded one today, Friday, is that he rejects the proposals of the “Hamas” movement , but he does not close the door to resuming negotiations on a deal. Ceasefire and prisoner exchange.
Netanyahu's office also announced that the War Command Council approved the Israeli army's plan to invade the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. The statement stated that in addition to this, the Israeli army is preparing to evacuate the residents and displaced people from Rafah. The statement indicated that the Israeli war cabinet meeting discussed the proposal presented by the Hamas movement , but did not take a decision, and indicated that Netanyahu described the movement’s demands as “still unrealistic.” The statement added that an Israeli delegation will go to Qatar to conduct negotiations on a prisoner exchange deal and a ceasefire, and that the delegation will present Israel’s position.
The Israeli media quoted a senior political source as saying, “ Hamas’s proposals indicate weak prospects for progress in the negotiations , but the Israeli government agreed to conduct additional deliberations in an attempt to cooperate with the mediators regarding the upcoming Doha negotiations.” It is worth noting that Netanyahu had given a negative opinion of the latest Hamas proposals when he received them yesterday evening, Thursday, despite the confirmation of a senior official in the Israeli government that the movement’s written response contains reasonable positions and positive change, allowing progress in the negotiations. Netanyahu issued an official statement in his name that downplayed the importance of Hamas’ response, saying: “Hamas is still holed up behind baseless demands.”
Over 80,000 worshipers performed the first Friday prayer of the holy month of Ramadan at Al-Aqsa Mosque , despite the severe restrictions imposed by the Israeli occupation, according to the Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem. Worshipers began arriving at Al-Aqsa Mosque at dawn today to perform Friday prayers, as the Israeli occupation police mobilized 3,000 of its members in occupied Jerusalem and installed iron barriers at the gates of Al-Aqsa.
Scenes on social media platforms showed buses running to transport worshipers from Ramallah to Al-Aqsa, and others arriving on foot hours before prayer time, while other scenes show thousands of Palestinians leaving Al-Aqsa after performing the first Friday dawn prayer there.
Thousands of occupation police and border guards were deployed in the Old City and the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the occupation forces also strengthened their presence at military checkpoints between the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem. Al Jazeera correspondent Fatima Khamaysi said that the occupation forces prevented hundreds of Palestinians from entering Jerusalem under the pretext of not obtaining permits to reach Al-Aqsa. The occupation police also prevented all medical teams, including ambulance crews from all medical institutions in Jerusalem, from entering Al-Aqsa, and also beat the ambulance crews while they were heading to the mosque.
The Israeli occupation army said that it would allow worshipers from the West Bank to enter Jerusalem on Fridays throughout the month of Ramadan, on the condition of obtaining a valid magnetic security permit, and according to an assessment of the security conditions. He added that only men over the age of 55, women over the age of 50, and children under the age of ten will be allowed to enter.
In a related context, the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas ) said - yesterday evening, Thursday - that the occupation’s attempt to install iron barriers at the doors of the Blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque is a malicious attempt to prevent worshipers from reaching the mosque during the blessed month of Ramadan and deprive them of performing prayers, especially Tarawih prayers.
In a press statement, Hamas warned the occupation against continuing its measures against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, stressing that “our stationed people will remain loyal and vigilant, and will not remain silent in the face of the occupation’s efforts to undermine the status and status of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
Hamas called on the Palestinians in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the occupied interior to mobilize and confront the occupation’s plans against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, and to confront the Zionist aggression that aims to empty it of its buildings during the greatest month for Muslims. It also called on the masses of the Arab and Islamic nations to assume their responsibilities and protect their first Qibla and the journey of their Prophet, which is subject to all forms of siege, harassment and abuse.
War Termination
The Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) announced that it had presented to the mediators in Egypt and Qatar a comprehensive vision for the negotiations based on four foundations that the movement considers necessary for agreement and the exchange of prisoners, including stopping the aggression, providing relief, the return of the displaced, and the occupation’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. The New York Times also quoted an American official as saying that Hamas' response was within the framework agreed upon at the recent Paris meeting.
The Israeli War Council is holding two meetings today to discuss Hamas’ response amid continued pressure from the families of the Israeli prisoners. Hamas said in a statement published on Thursday evening that these principles and foundations that it presented are considered necessary for the agreement and the prisoner exchange file, and stressed that it will remain biased towards the rights and concerns of the Palestinian people.
The leaks that began filtering out from government sources, and are attributed to senior sources in Israel, indicate that Hamas spoke for the first time in its new proposal about releasing 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of all Israeli civilians detained in prison. Gazans include children, women, the sick and the elderly, as part of the first phase of the exchange deal or the ceasefire “curve” that will extend for 42 days, while allowing the return of the displaced to the northern Gaza Strip. According to those leaks, negotiations will begin after this stage for a permanent and continuous ceasefire and a complete withdrawal of the Israeli occupation forces, in preparation for implementing the remaining stages of the exchange deal.
Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) presented a proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip in 3 stages, each lasting 42 days, while
- Hamas stipulated the withdrawal of the occupation forces from Al-Rashid and Salah Al-Din Streets for the return of the displaced and the passage of aid. It also offered, in exchange for the release of every living female prisoner, the release of 50 Palestinian prisoners, 30 of whom were serving life sentences. The first phase that includes “the release of women, children, the elderly, and sick Israelis in exchange for the release of a number ranging from 700 to a thousand” Palestinian prisoners, including 100 who are serving life sentences and high sentences.” This number includes 100 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences in Israeli prisons in exchange for the release of “female soldiers.”
- Hamas stated in the proposal that the final date for the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza would be agreed upon after the first phase. Hamas said that it would agree to a date for a permanent ceasefire after the first exchange of hostages for prisoners. With the start of the second phase, Hamas stipulated that a permanent ceasefire be declared before any exchange of its captured soldiers. All detainees on both sides will be released in the second phase of the plan.
- Hamas's proposal also included starting the comprehensive reconstruction process for the Gaza Strip and ending the siege with the start of the third phase of the deal.
Israeli Channel 12 said that Qatar had delivered Hamas’ response regarding the prisoner exchange deal to Israel. On the other hand, Israeli Army Radio said that Tel Aviv is studying Hamas’ response to the conditions for completing the exchange deal. Israeli media reported that the War Council may meet again on Friday to discuss Hamas’ response to the deal.
In this context, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a brief statement that Hamas' demands are "unreasonable and we will provide an update on this matter to the war council." He pointed out that Hamas's new position on the truce talks is still based on "unfounded demands," as he claimed. Netanyahu's statements came after his meeting with the families of Israeli prisoners detained in the Gaza Strip. These families organized a demonstration in Tel Aviv as part of the ongoing movement to pressure the Israeli government to expedite the conclusion of a prisoner exchange agreement.
For his part, Strategic Communications Coordinator at the US National Security Council, John Kirby, said that talks to reach a ceasefire agreement are still continuing. Kirby added that the American position has not changed regarding its refusal to launch a major operation in Rafah without taking into account the protection of more than a million people who have taken refuge there. Kirby also stressed the continuation of work with the allies on how to operate the temporary port in Gaza.
Last week, talks in Cairo mediated by Egypt and Qatar did not lead to any tangible result towards reaching an agreement to exchange prisoners within the framework of a temporary truce in the Gaza Strip.
Netanyahu is facing criticism from the Israeli street and a number of politicians, even those affiliated with the War Council, against the backdrop of the prisoner crisis in Gaza and the failure to find a path to guarantee their return alive, and some of them accuse him of obstructing the deal to release them. Families of detainees in the Gaza Strip demonstrate almost daily to demand the conclusion of a deal leading to the release of their children.
Israel detains at least 9,100 Palestinians in its prisons, according to official Palestinian sources, while mystery surrounds the number of Israeli prisoners held in Gaza in light of Hamas’ refusal to reveal an accurate number. While the Israeli media talks about the number of prisoners detained in Gaza ranging between 240 and 253, the Palestinian movement talks about the killing of 70 others as a result of the Israeli bombing.
Hamas released 105 Israeli and other nationalities prisoners during a prisoner exchange deal that took place in November 2023 during a temporary humanitarian truce. A humanitarian truce prevailed between Hamas and Israel for a week from November 24 until December 1, 2023, during which a ceasefire took place, a prisoner exchange took place, and very limited humanitarian aid was brought into Gaza, with Qatari-Egyptian-American mediation.
Israel decided to send a delegation to Doha to continue negotiations on a possible deal that includes a ceasefire and prisoner exchange, after it described an offer made by the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) to conclude an agreement in stages as unrealistic, while Washington expressed cautious optimism for the success of the talks. Commenting on the offer made by Hamas to mediators in Egypt and Qatar, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said that the movement's demands are still unrealistic. The PMO added that an Israeli team will head to Doha to continue negotiations after the end of the discussions in this regard in the Mini Ministerial Council for Political and Security Affairs.
Al Jazeera's correspondent said earlier today that the Israeli mini-ministerial council is meeting at the Ministry of Defense headquarters to discuss Hamas' response to the exchange deal. Israeli media reported that the War Council would hold another session on Friday to discuss Hamas’ response to the deal. For his part, a correspondent for the American news website Axios quoted informed Israeli officials as saying that Netanyahu is expected to hold a consultative meeting on Saturday evening or Sunday morning to decide on expanding the Israeli delegation’s mandate before it leaves for Qatar.
The sources added that the large gaps between the two parties require additional flexibility on the part of Israel, noting that this is not possible without expanding the powers of the negotiating delegation. For its part, Israeli Channel 12 quoted senior political officials that the gaps in the negotiation deal are very large, including Hamas’s insistence on the return of residents to the northern Gaza Strip.
The Washington Post quoted a senior US administration official who described what is happening in the Gaza Strip as chaos created by Israel, indicating that Tel Aviv bears responsibility for the mass starvation and lack of aid. The newspaper also reported, citing American officials, that the crisis in the Gaza Strip stems from what it considered Israel’s failure to develop a practical post-war strategy or plan for the consequences of open military occupation.
For his part, an Israeli official said that Tel Aviv has not yet found what it called a new partner on the ground with regard to providing aid in a better way. A knowledgeable Israeli official also indicated that it is not possible to find a family in Gaza that can impose the required control, and that the Hamas movement is not the only obstacle, as he put it.
The head of the Supreme Tribal Committee in the Gaza Strip, Abu Salman Al-Mughni, stressed that the tribes cannot accept being an alternative to the government or to whomever the people have chosen, indicating that the task of the tribes is to preserve the social fabric and support the government in performing its work. Earlier, sources told Al Jazeera that the coordinator of Israeli government activities in the Gaza Strip personally contacted the notables of Gaza families, but they rejected his offer of cooperation.
These sources indicated that family notables in Gaza informed UN officials in a meeting on Wednesday of their refusal to cooperate except through the security services in Gaza. It added that the families' notables expressed their willingness to cooperate in bringing in and distributing aid, on the condition of coordination with the security services in Gaza.
Hamas praised the tribes' refusal "to respond to the malicious plans of the Zionist occupation." Hamas said that the position of Gaza's notables and clans confirms support for the resistance, the government, and the police and security services. It stated that this position confirms the rejection of the occupation’s attempts to tamper with the Palestinian national unity. The movement also stressed that this position proves the unity and cohesion of Palestinian society behind the option of resistance and national unity.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that his country is working intensively with Egypt, Qatar and Israel to fill the remaining gaps regarding the “hostage exchange” agreement, stressing during a press conference with his Austrian counterpart in Vienna that Washington will work every effort to complete this deal. Blinken added that there are talks now taking place regarding the deal, and that Israel is sending a negotiating team to follow up on this matter, which reflects the possibility and necessity of reaching an agreement, as he put it.
In this context, the Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and seven members of the US Senate called on Qatar to redouble its efforts to ensure the release of all “hostages.” Since the end of the latest rounds of negotiations in Paris and Cairo, Washington has been offering a truce for a period of 6 weeks during which the Israeli prisoners will be released.
Meanwhile, Israelis demonstrated on Friday in front of the headquarters of the army command complex and security services in Tel Aviv to demand the return of Israeli prisoners detained in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli Channel 13 quoted Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as saying, during a government meeting discussing the agreement proposal presented by the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ), that Israel will not be able to overthrow the movement “if it does not work to create an alternative to it in the Gaza Strip .” Gallant explained that the Israeli army is paying the price for what he called the failure to make a political decision regarding who will rule Gaza after the war, noting that the most likely option for the form of governance in Gaza after the war is to strengthen local elements, according to him.
For its part, Israeli Channel 12 quoted Gallant as saying that Israel's military rule of the Gaza Strip "will cost it the lives of its soldiers and drain military resources." Sources had previously told Al Jazeera that the coordinator of the Israeli government’s activities in Gaza had personally contacted family notables in the Gaza Strip, but they rejected his offer, stressing that the tribes could not accept being an alternative to the government, and expressed their willingness to cooperate in bringing in and distributing aid, on the condition that Coordination with security services in the sector.
The Hamas movement also praised the position of the tribal notables in their refusal to “respond to the malicious plans of the Zionist occupation,” noting that this “proves the unity and cohesion of Palestinian society behind the option of resistance and national unity.”
Operational Update
Operational Update - Gaza
Intense Israeli bombardment and ground operations as well as heavy fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups continue to be reported across much of the Gaza Strip, particularly in the Hamad area of Khan Younis, resulting in further civilian casualties, displacement, and destruction of houses and other civilian infrastructure.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office said on Friday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved plans to launch a military operation in Rafah , south of the Gaza Strip , while the United Nations and the United States warned of catastrophic consequences of a potential invasion. The Prime Minister's Office added, in a statement, that "the Israeli army is ready for the operational aspect and to evacuate the population," without providing details about this operation that Tel Aviv has been threatening for weeks.
The announcement of the ratification of plans to invade Rafah comes despite international warnings that the attack on the city, crowded with displaced people, would lead to a major massacre. It also comes a day after Netanyahu announced that he would not yield to international pressure to dissuade him from carrying out a military operation in Rafah. The Israeli Prime Minister said that the goal of attacking Rafah is to eliminate the remaining Hamas brigades .
Netanyahu and other Israeli officials claim that the Israeli army has eliminated about three-quarters of Hamas' military battalions since the start of the ground invasion of the Gaza Strip late last October. Israeli media said that the Israeli army is not ready to begin a military operation in Rafah, even if the political leadership approves plans for that.
In New York, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, described the Israeli Prime Minister's approval of plans to invade Rafah as very disturbing. Dujarric said that the possible ground operation in Rafah would have serious consequences for the population and for the entry of humanitarian aid, expressing his hope that it would be prevented from happening.
In Washington, the White House warned that any Israeli military operation in Rafah without taking into account the safety of civilians would be disastrous, saying that it could not support a large-scale military operation in a way that did not guarantee the security of more than a million people there. Strategic Communications Coordinator for the US National Security Council, John Kirby, said that Washington had not seen Israel's plan regarding Rafah and would like to see it.
In this context, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that his country has not yet received any implementable Israeli plan regarding the protection of civilians in the southern Gaza Strip. Blinken added that there must be a clear and implementable plan regarding the military operation in Rafah, not just removing civilians from harm’s way, and that any plan must include taking care of civilians in shelter, food, medicine, and clothing after their removal, which is what the United States did not see, as he put it.
The Al-Quds Brigades, the military arm of the Islamic Jihad movement, announced this Friday evening that it had bombed the Sderot settlement and the settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip with missile attacks. The "Jerusalem Brigades" said in a statement on "Telegram" that it "bombed gatherings of Israeli occupation soldiers east of the central region of the Gaza Strip with a barrage of mortar shells." It added, "After returning from the clashes points north of Madinat al-Zahra in the Central Governorate, its fighters confirmed that they had targeted a number of Israeli military vehicles with anti-tank missiles, and that an Israeli force had been killed or wounded during a clash with them from zero distance."
Al-Quds Brigades said that it bombed gatherings of occupation soldiers east of the central region of the Strip with a barrage of mortar shells. The Palestinian resistance is still engaged in fierce clashes with the Israeli occupation forces in central and northern Gaza and in the Khan Yunis Governorate in the south.
In turn, the "Al-Qassam Brigades", the military arm of the Islamic Resistance Movement "Hamas", announced that it had targeted 5 Israeli tanks with homemade "Al-Yassin 105" shells. It said, "Its fighters were able to target an Israeli foot force consisting of 4 soldiers transporting a number of explosive devices to a house with an anti-fortified TBG shell in Madinat Al-Zahra, northwest of the Central Governorate, confirming their deaths." In the city of Khan Yunis, the "Al-Qassam Brigades" said that "its fighters targeted an Israeli troop carrier and a Merkava tank with "Al-Yassin 105" and "Tandum" shells. They also targeted an Israeli troop carrier with a "Shawaz" device and its surroundings with a "TBG" shell in Hamad Town. North of the city.
The Al-Qassam Brigades said that it fired an anti-fortified TPG shell "at a Zionist force of 4 soldiers" who were transporting explosive devices to a house in Madinat Al-Zahra in the central Gaza Strip. Al-Qassam said in a statement: “Our mujahideen confirmed the killing of all members of the Zionist force.” Al-Qassam also announced that it had targeted 5 Merkava tanks with “Al-Yassin 105” shells in central Gaza.
The Chief of Staff, Lt. Col. Herzi Halevi, severely reprimanded Major General Dan Goldfuss, from the 98th Army: "He acted contrary to what was expected of a senior commander in the IDF."
A launch was detected from the north of the Gaza Strip towards the city of Sderot, which was successfully intercepted by the air defense fighters. In a quick closing of the circle, within a few minutes the fire center of the Southern Command, the Air Force and the 215th Fire Brigade directed an attack on the launcher located in the north of the Gaza Strip using aircraft and artillery, as a result of which it was destroyed.
Last night (Thursday) IDF soldiers operating at the checkpoint checkpoint stopped for inspection a vehicle containing four suspects. After searching the vehicle, the soldiers located an explosive device on the side of the door and photos of weapons on the suspects' phones. The forces arrested the suspects and they were transferred to the security forces for further treatment.
During the night, the IDF forces, the Shin Bet and the Mageb, arrested 14 wanted persons throughout Judea and Samaria. In the village of Araba and Tulkarem in the Menashe Brigade, the forces arrested five wanted persons. In addition, during the night, the IDF forces arrested two suspects near the village of Eldad in the Etzion Division, on whom knives were found, and Yehuda expressed that weapons parts were confiscated.
On Thursday, March 14, 2024, the IDF allowed the passage of a convoy of 31 humanitarian aid trucks containing food and supplies intended for distribution to Gazans in the northern Gaza Strip. About an hour before the aid convoy arrived at the humanitarian corridor, Palestinian gunmen were spotted shooting in the vicinity of Gazan civilians who were waiting for the convoy. Based on a preliminary and in-depth investigation that the IDF carried out during the night, it was found that no shots were fired at the aid convoy in Kuwait Square.
Palestinian gunmen were seen shooting in the vicinity of Gazan civilians. IDF sted "We would like to emphasize that there was no shooting by IDF forces at the aid convoy in Kuwait Square. The IDF continues to investigate the incident while making strenuous efforts to bring in humanitarian aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip, while Hamas terrorists are harming the residents of Gaza and spreading lies in order to blame the State of Israel for this.""
Soldiers of the 7th TDF uncovered a terror tunnel and a large amlach under an agricultural field. The forces of the 98th Division continue to operate in the Khan Yunis area, during the last day the fighters together with the Air Force forces closed circles on terrorists and located weapons. The combat team fighters of the 7th Brigade and the Givati Brigade eliminated terrorists through tank fire and sniper fire as well as destroyed terrorist infrastructures where Hamas operatives were staying.
In another activity by the fighters of the 7th Brigade's combat team, the forces identified a number of armed terrorists loading explosives onto a vehicle in their possession, an aircraft attacked the terrorists and eliminated them. Later, a number of terrorists were identified who tried to plant explosive charges in the area, an aircraft attacked and eliminated the terrorists before they were able to capture the area.
The fighters of the Nahal Brigade's combat team continue to operate in the center of the Gaza Strip and have eliminated about 10 terrorists throughout the last day. In one of the activities in the area, the forces identified a squad of terrorists near them and fired shells at them. A few minutes later, another terrorist was identified in the area and was also eliminated. In another activity In the area, the forces eliminated an armed squad during a face-to-face fight.
Following launches carried out yesterday into the surrounding settlements, the IDF attacked from the air and with artillery a number of terrorist infrastructures in the northern area of the Gaza Strip.
Newsweek stated that Israeli sources have been confirming that they have succeeded in reducing the number of rocket attacks launched by resistance factions from Gaza , but at the same time they admit that they have not yet achieved their original goals, which complicates the situation for them. The report quoted pro-Israel analyst Joe Trosman as saying that the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) and its allies are now focusing on targeting Israeli forces inside Gaza, instead of launching rockets towards Israel. He added that this does not mean that the bombing of Israel has stopped, but rather that the pace has decreased, and the Israeli army announces from time to time the launch of missiles towards areas inside Israel.
Trosman admitted - speaking to Newsweek - that time is not in Tel Aviv's interest, as pressure is increasing on it "to limit its operations." He said that Hamas benefits from prolonging the conflict, such that the longer it persists, the more difficult it becomes for Israel to achieve its goals.
Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper quoted Israeli security estimates that there are still between 4 and 6 thousand Hamas fighters in the central and northern Gaza Strip. Israeli estimates warned that the reduction of forces in Gaza and the absence of a force to fill the vacuum would lead to renewed Hamas military and administrative control over the Strip.
In February, Haaretz newspaper reported from Israeli military, media and political sources that reports had increased in recent days about renewed fighting in Gaza City and the northern areas of the Strip, indicating that Hamas and the rest of the Palestinian factions had renewed their ability to move in those areas. The newspaper added that Hamas is trying to escalate the fighting in these areas, which Israel claims to have tightened control over, so that the movement can demonstrate its organizational and operational capabilities, and at the same time reduce Israeli military pressure on the southern Gaza Strip.
The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, revealed in a video dated “March 7 this year” a new launcher bearing the names of the martyrs “Khairy Alqam” and “Uday Al-Tamimi.” Military expert Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi confirmed to Al-Jazeera that what appeared in the video indicates that it may be a simulation of a 122 mm Katyusha missile , meaning that its range reaches 14 kilometers, which means that all settlements surrounding Gaza will be within its range. The launcher carries 8 missiles, and it may be one of the achievements of the current battle, according to Al-Duwairi, who suggested that it was made through reverse engineering.
He believes that the unveiling of the new weapon at this time, after 5 months of war, means that Al-Qassam is still managing the battle and controlling the command system, and that it has something to offer after this period of fighting.
In early February, the Israeli Army Radio said that the Israeli forces are still far from achieving their goal of eliminating the missile capabilities of the Hamas movement, stressing that this mission requires, according to estimates, between one and two years. The radio reported that many of the rocket launching pads in the Gaza Strip are buried underground, which makes it difficult for Israeli forces to find them. It added that estimates indicate that Hamas still has about 1,000 rockets so far, most of which are in platforms buried underground.
Researchers at the Israeli Military Intelligence Division said in February that Hamas is capable of surviving as an armed organization capable of waging a guerrilla war. They explained in their report that the occupation army may succeed in eliminating the movement as a ruling system, but it will not be able to end its existence as an armed organization, according to what Israeli Channel 12 reported last month.
The channel said that the head of the research department in the Israeli Military Intelligence Division presented these findings in the occupation army to officials in the Israeli occupation government, in a warning message that the Hamas movement still enjoys real support despite the devastating war on Gaza.
Recently, there has been talk in Western and Hebrew media that the Israeli occupation is unable to defeat or eliminate Hamas militarily, and they considered this to be an unrealistic idea.
Friday, the first aid ship to reach the Gaza Strip began unloading via the sea corridor from the port of Larnaca in Cyprus. A spokeswoman for the World Center Kitchen confirmed that about 200 tons of aid had begun to be unloaded after the Open Arms ship stopped near a temporary pier on the coast of Gaza. Al Jazeera's correspondent said that the cargo, which includes foods such as rice, flour, legumes, and canned vegetables, will be lowered into small boats and transported to the shore under the supervision of international institutions.
Anatolia News Agency quoted eyewitnesses as saying that small boats began unloading the ship's cargo and transporting it towards the shore of Gaza City. The witnesses said that the ship was standing hundreds of meters from the Gaza coast, opposite the new pier being constructed on the coast of the Al-Baidar area, southwest of the city, explaining that the pier paving work had not yet been completed.
The owner of World Center Kitchen, Jose Andres, confirmed on the “X” platform that the ship had reached the shores of Gaza, and published a video clip showing the ship and its cargo.
For its part, the Israeli army said in a statement that its forces were deployed to secure the area where the aid was being unloaded, noting that the ship had undergone a full security inspection.
A second aid ship is being prepared in the Cypriot port of Larnaca, scheduled to transport 300 tons of food, and no date has been set for its departure to Gaza. The United Nations, the United States, and other Western countries stressed that transporting aid by sea to Gaza cannot be an alternative to delivering it through land ports.
Operational Update - Judea-Samaria
The Israeli authorities have announced measures on the entry of Palestinians holding West Bank IDs, with valid permits and magnetic cards, to Al Aqsa Mosque on the first Friday of the month of Ramadan (15 March), limiting entry to children under 10 years of age, women over 50, and men over 55. In 2023, men over 55, women of all ages and children under 12 were allowed entry without a permit on Fridays during Ramadan.
The occupation army usually storms Palestinian areas to carry out arrests against Palestinians, leaving great destruction, especially the camps in the northern West Bank. The Israeli occupation forces stormed, at dawn today, Friday, the fifth of the holy month of Ramadan, several cities in the West Bank and carried out raids and arrests. Clashes also took place with Palestinian resistance fighters in the city of Tulkarm , while extremist settlers stormed the outskirts of the town of Kafr Ni’ma, west of the city of Ramallah, and attacked the residents and their property in the center with heavy gunfire.
Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that the occupation forces stormed Tulkarm with a number of military vehicles and were stationed near the Shweika roundabout northwest of the city, while local media reported that clashes took place between Palestinian resistance fighters and the occupation forces storming the city. The Palestinian News Agency (Wafa) said that the occupation forces arrested 4 Palestinians from the city of Tulkarm at dawn today, and raided the town of Ba’a, north of the city.
Local sources confirmed that more than 12 Israeli military vehicles stormed the city of Tulkarm and deployed in several areas. The sources stated that the occupation forces raided several commercial stores and residential buildings in the city, and wreaked havoc there. The same sources reported that confrontations broke out between young men and the occupation forces in the city of Tulkarm and on the outskirts of the Tulkarm camp, but no injuries were reported.
In Yatta, south of Hebron, the occupation forces stormed the city and positioned themselves in its centre. The occupation forces also arrested two Palestinians, one of whom was a freed prisoner, during their storming of the town of Arraba in Jenin. The occupation forces carried out extensive searches of homes during their storming of the town of Burqa, northwest of Nablus.
The Israeli occupation forces stormed the town of Al-Ram, north of occupied Jerusalem, at dawn on Friday. Local sources reported that 4 Israeli military vehicles stormed the town and toured several neighborhoods, without any arrests being reported. The occupation forces also stormed the vicinity of Qalandia camp, northeast of Jerusalem.
Israeli occupation forces continued their attacks in the Holy City and the occupied West Bank , while resistance factions announced that they would confront them and thwart their advance in the Al-Far’a camp, south of Tubas, in the northern West Bank. In occupied Jerusalem, the occupation army intensified its military measures today near the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque , and arrested a Palestinian and soldiers assaulted him by beating him in the Damascus Gate area .
The occupation authorities imposed strict restrictions at their military checkpoints between the West Bank and Jerusalem, including repelling the majority of Palestinians and preventing them from reaching the Holy City. Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that the occupation authorities prevented medical teams from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque on the first Friday of the month of Ramadan.
In the northern West Bank, the occupation forces stormed Al-Faraa camp, south of Tubas. Eyewitnesses said that a military force stormed the camp, amid armed clashes. According to witnesses, military bulldozers accompanied the Israeli force and participated in destroying the infrastructure. They indicated the outbreak of armed clashes and the sounds of explosions were heard from time to time.
Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that clashes took place between the occupation forces and resistance fighters in the camp. The Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades in the West Bank said that its fighters in the Faraa camp confronted the occupation forces and their vehicles, and forced them to retreat.
Meanwhile, at dawn today , extremist settlers stormed the outskirts of the town of Kafr Ni'ma, west of the city of Ramallah, and the settlers attacked the Palestinians and their property amid heavy gunfire. The settlers also burned a number of vehicles and facilities in the town before withdrawing from the place. It is noteworthy that settler attacks on Palestinians and their property have escalated in the West Bank since the seventh of last October.
In this context, the US State Department announced the imposition of sanctions on 3 Israeli settlers and two Israeli settlement sites against the backdrop of acts of violence against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank. The Department said in a statement that the step comes within the framework of holding accountable individuals and entities that undermine security and stability in the West Bank, as well as the two-state solution.
The sanctions included 3 settlers, namely Zvi Bar-Yosef, Moshe Sharfeit, and Neria Ben Bazi, whom Washington accuses of engaging in acts of violence and threatening Palestinian civilians and human rights defenders. US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that the United States will continue to take action against those involved in extremist violence in the West Bank.
In his reaction to the US sanctions, Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir considered that the US Treasury’s imposition of sanctions on settlers is further evidence that the administration of US President Joe Biden does not distinguish between enemy and friend, as he put it. Ben Gvir claimed that the settlers bring security to Israel and deserve appreciation instead of sticking a knife in the back, according to him.
Operational Update - Lebanon
Fighter jets attacked a military site of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in the Hula area and an observation post of the organization in the Marvin area. Also, the IDF attacked with artillery to remove a threat in the Vedai Hamol area. Terrorist infrastructures of the organization were attacked in the Kfar Kila area and in the Lavona area. In recent hours, launches from Lebanese territory into Israeli territory have been detected in the areas of Shetula, Har Dov and Zareit.
Fighter jets attacked a Hizbollah observation post in the Ayta al-Sha'ab area, a military structure of the organization in the Alma al-Sha'ab area and a terrorist infrastructure of the organization in the Lavona area. Another military structure of the organization was attacked during the night in the Livona area, the IDF attacked with artillery to remove a threat in the Wadi Hamul and Khula areas. A number of launches from Lebanese territory were identified that crossed into Israeli territory in the areas of Margaliot, Malkiah and Shatula. The IDF attacked the sources of the fire with artillery.
In the words of its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, the Lebanese Hezbollah sent a message in Hebrew to the Israeli army, via a video clip showing scenes from its operations. Hezbollah's military media published a video clip showing scenes from operations carried out by the party against the Israeli army. The video also showed the launching of rockets and the use of various weapons to target Israeli sites, vehicles, and marches, and their injuries. Hezbollah concluded the video clip with words of a threat to Hassan Nasrallah, in Hebrew and Arabic: “By expanding... expanding.” “By rising... high.” This means that Hezbollah is ready to expand the war with Israel if it does so.
Reuters reported, citing 7 sources, that amid the attack on Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah informed Iran that it would fight alone in any war with Israel. The sources told Reuters that the commander of the Iranian Quds Force, Ismail Qaani, visited Beirut in February to discuss the risks that might arise if Israel targeted the Lebanese Hezbollah after that.
The sources added that Qaani met in the Lebanese capital with Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah for at least the third time since Hamas launched Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on October 7 and the subsequent Israeli military campaign in Gaza. It also indicated that the conversation turned to the possibility that Israel would launch a comprehensive attack in Lebanon.
Reuters quoted three sources, who are Iranians from the inner circle of the authority (according to the agency), that such an escalation may put pressure on Iran to respond more forcefully compared to what it has done so far since the seventh, in addition to the “devastating effects” on “Hezbollah.” . Over the past five months, Hezbollah has demonstrated its support for Hamas by launching a limited barrage of rockets across Israel's northern border.
All sources explained that in the previously unannounced meeting, Nasrallah Qaani reassured that he did not want Iran to be drawn into a war with Israel or the United States and that Hezbollah would fight alone. According to what an Iranian source familiar with the discussions told Reuters, Nasrallah told Qaani: “This is our battle.”
Operational Update - Syria / Iraq
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Operational Update - Yemen
The US military said today (Friday) that the Houthis fired two anti-ship ballistic missiles from Yemen towards the Gulf of Aden and two missiles towards the Red Sea, but there were no reports of injuries or damage to US or coalition ships. The US Central Command said in a statement on the “X” platform that it destroyed nine anti-ship missiles and two drones in areas controlled by the Houthis in Yemen.
Maps
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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.
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Bystanders
The Palestinian National Liberation Movement "Fatah" stated in a press statement that whoever "caused Israel's reoccupation of the Gaza Strip has no right to determine the priorities of the Palestinian people." It said in the statement, “The Palestinian National Liberation Movement Fatah confirms that whoever caused Israel’s reoccupation of the Gaza Strip, and caused the Nakba that the Palestinian people are experiencing, especially in the Gaza Strip, does not have the right to dictate national priorities.”
The statement added: "The real disconnect from reality and the Palestinian people is the leadership of the Hamas movement, which has not, until this moment, sensed the extent of the catastrophe that our oppressed people are experiencing in the Gaza Strip and in the rest of the Palestinian territories."
The Fatah movement’s statement comes in response to a statement issued today by the Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements, in addition to the Popular Front and the Palestinian Initiative movement, in which they objected to the decision of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to form a new government, accusing the Palestinian Authority of exclusivity and hegemony in making... the decision.
The Fatah movement expressed its surprise and disapproval of Hamas’ talk of exclusivity and division, asking, “Did Hamas consult the Palestinian leadership or any Palestinian national party when it made its decision to carry out the adventure of last October 7, which led to a catastrophe more massive and cruel than the catastrophe of last year?” 1948".
Fatah asked: "Has Hamas consulted with the Palestinian leadership and is now negotiating with Israel and offering it concessions after concessions, and that its only goal is for its leadership to receive guarantees for its personal security?" The Fatah movement also accused Hamas of trying to reach an agreement with Netanyahu again "to maintain its divisive role in Gaza and the Palestinian arena."
Fatah criticized the actions and practices of the Hamas leadership and its behavior towards the war in the Gaza Strip, noting that “it seems that the comfortable life that this leadership lives in seven-star hotels has blinded it to what is right, wondering why most of Hamas’ leaders live abroad, and why She and her families fled and left the Palestinian people facing a brutal war of extermination without any protection.”
Fatah called on the leadership of the Hamas movement to “stop its policy of being dependent on foreign agendas, and return to the national side in order to stop the war and save our people and our cause from liquidation, and to provide relief to our people and rebuild Gaza, leading to complete withdrawal from the land of the State of Palestine, with Jerusalem as its capital.”
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said on Friday that Egypt seeks to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, increase the entry of aid, and allow the displaced in the south of the Strip to move to the north. In his speech during a visit to the headquarters of the Police Academy in Cairo, Sisi stressed the importance of the ceasefire in bringing the largest volume of aid into Gaza, and said that “the failure to enter aid leads to famine.”
He also stressed that the ceasefire would allow residents of the center and south to move towards the north, warning at the same time of the danger of the Israeli invasion of the border city of Rafah, to which estimates indicate the displacement of more than 1.5 million people near the Gaza Strip border with Egypt.
This is the second time this week that the Egyptian President has warned publicly and directly of the dangers of invading the Palestinian city of Rafah. The day before yesterday, Wednesday, Al-Sisi said during a joint press conference with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte that the Israeli plan to invade Rafah threatens the lives of more than 1.5 million displaced people, whom Israel bears the responsibility to protect (..) in accordance with the rules of international law.
Egypt, Qatar, and the United States are leading mediation efforts to stop the devastating Israeli war on the Gaza Strip since last October 7 , and the efforts succeeded in concluding a first truce last December, which only lasted for about a week.
Axis of Resistance
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi deplored the attempts by the Western media outlets to draw the world’s attention away from the crisis in Palestine and Gaza and prevent the Israeli atrocities from being publicized. In a meeting with a group of Iranian media people and officials of news agencies and newspapers, held in Tehran on Thursday, President Raisi decried the role of the Western media outlets in diverting the public opinion of the people of the world away from the events in Palestine and Gaza.
“Some media are mercenaries for the United States and the Zionist regime, while censoring the widespread and unprecedented demonstrations of the people of different parts of the world against the crimes of the Zionists,” Raisi said, his official website reported.
In a meeting with Iranian students on November 1, 2023, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said one of the many shameless actions of Western politicians and Western media is calling the Palestinian fighters “terrorists.” When the Western media label the Palestinian fighters as terrorists, it is a sign of how truly disgraceful they are, the Leader stated. “When a person defends their own home or country, does that make them a terrorist? When the French fought the Germans in Paris in World War II, did that make them terrorists? How come they were considered fighters and a source of pride for France, yet you consider the youth of the (Palestinian Islamic) Jihad and Hamas as terrorists?” Ayatollah Khamenei said.
The Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) and Palestinian factions described the efforts to form a new Palestinian government “without national consensus” as deepening the division and indicative of “the crisis of the Authority’s leadership and the gap between it and the Palestinian people and their aspirations.” A statement by those factions - which included Hamas, Islamic Jihad , the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and the Palestinian National Initiative - said that the national priority is currently “to confront the Israeli aggression and the war of extermination and starvation” that the occupation is waging against the Gaza Strip .
The factions' statement stressed that "making individual decisions, such as forming a new government without national consensus, is a reinforcement of the policy of exclusivity and a deepening of division at a historical moment when the Palestinian people need unity." The statement pointed out that "the Palestinian people have the right to question the feasibility of replacing one government with another, and one prime minister with another, from the same political and partisan environment."
In their statement, the Palestinian factions called on all national forces, especially in the Palestinian National Liberation Movement ( Fatah ), to agree on managing this critical stage “in a way that serves the Palestinian cause and meets the aspirations of the Palestinian people to extract their legitimate rights, liberate their land and sanctities, and establish their independent state.” "full sovereignty, with Jerusalem as its capital."
This comes after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas , yesterday, Thursday, assigned economist Muhammad Mustafa to form the new Palestinian government, 3 weeks after Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh resigned from his position. The tasks of the new Prime Minister in the text of the assignment included coordinating efforts to reconstruct Gaza , reunifying Palestinian institutions, continuing reform leading to a system based on governance and transparency and combating corruption, and preparing to hold legislative and presidential elections in all Palestinian governorates, including occupied Jerusalem.
Allied for Democracy
Two prominent media organizations in the United States published two articles by two leading researchers in Middle East affairs about the dispute between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. While the Foreign Affairs magazine article focused on the pressure points that give the United States the ability to influence Israel, the author of the article in the New York Times asked about the reasons that prevent Biden from exerting pressure on Tel Aviv.
Jonah Blank, a researcher at the RAND Corporation and the Middle East Institute of the National University of Singapore, says in his article in Foreign Affairs magazine that the opinion that has remained common regarding Biden’s political path is that strict dealings with Israel are futile and rather entail great risks. But things are no longer that simple, as the writer believes, because after more than 5 months have passed since the devastating war in the Gaza Strip , the inability to take a firm stance towards Israel has also become a major danger.
Blank believes that Biden has not yet shown a willingness to challenge Israel in a meaningful way, but there are indications that he has become increasingly frustrated with Netanyahu. But if the president wants to get tough with Netanyahu, he has a range of options. Ranging from withholding military aid to recognizing a Palestinian state.
Although implementing these options - as the author acknowledges - is not easy from a political standpoint, they may become more feasible in light of the rising death toll from the war and the spread of famine in the Gaza Strip.
Although Biden's tone in his criticism of Netanyahu's military campaign in Gaza has become sharp and frank since last February, and his call on Israel to increase humanitarian aid and limit the size of its military operations and civilian casualties, he must announce in a televised speech from the White House that he will stop dealing with the Israeli Prime Minister “is if he wants to give his demands more weight,” according to Blank.
The writer believes that if he does so, he must make clear that his criticism is directed at the extreme right-wing government of Israel, and not at its people, which would increase the pressure on Netanyahu at home, which would “make him moderate his positions.” The other step - in the opinion of the American researcher in his article - is to “reduce” American diplomatic support for Israel at the United Nations, “without a specific political commitment.” Another pressure point is that Biden has the authority to recognize a sovereign Palestinian state through executive action. Washington could also stop offering incentives to encourage the conclusion of a normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, according to the New York Times article.
In his article, Aaron David Miller, an analyst and former negotiator at the US State Department for Middle East affairs, expressed his belief that President Biden’s statements regarding the Israeli war on Gaza, which were contained in his State of the Union address and in his interview with MSNBC on Saturday, it signaled a more critical American policy towards Israel.
Miller, who works as a senior researcher at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, stated that the president called in that speech for at least a temporary ceasefire, speaking about the losses and suffering suffered by the people of Gaza, and sending a message to Israel of the necessity of working to deliver humanitarian aid to the Palestinian Strip considering that's a priority.
Instead of heralding a major shift in policy - as the writer put it - the president’s words and Vice President Kamala Harris’ recent meeting with Benny Gantz, Netanyahu’s opponent and potential successor, most likely came within the framework of the US administration’s approach, which does not seem happy with Netanyahu’s government.
Miller said that the president’s speech carried several messages, including “rebuking” Israel for its indiscriminate bombing of Gaza; He expressed his frustration with some of Tel Aviv's actions, its indifference and even its opposition to facilitating the entry of aid into the Gaza Strip. He also expressed his anger at Israel's unwillingness to curb settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
The former analyst at the US State Department believes that the phrase, “I am not happy with Israel, but I will not do much about it,” which Biden launched is an expression of his policy driven by his sensitivity and the political choices he faces in dealing with the current war.
Then the president certainly knows that there is a price he will pay at home and abroad for allowing Netanyahu to disdain American interests and values, and here lies the problem, according to Miller, who added that it was Biden’s connection to Israel that prevented him from imposing conditions on it throughout the war. The writer added that no American president has repeatedly described himself as a Zionist except Biden. Biden believes that his political life is intertwined with the story of the Israeli state, but these feelings of love do not include the current Israeli Prime Minister.
US President Joe Biden said on Friday that Senate Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer gave a “good speech” on Thursday when he called for new elections in Israel and strongly criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, describing him as an obstacle to peace. “He gave a good speech,” Biden told reporters at the White House when asked about Schumer’s statements on the Senate floor on Thursday. Biden added: “(Schumer) expressed serious concerns...which are shared by a large number of Americans,” noting that Schumer informed presidential staff about the speech earlier than he delivered it.
In a remarkable “coincidence” with Schumer’s statements in which he criticized Israel for its failure to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and called for new elections to change its government, the Axios website quoted Israeli officials as saying that Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant signed a letter on Thursday confirming To the administration of President Joe Biden, Israel will use American weapons in accordance with international law, and will allow US-supported humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. This is a response to increasing American pressure on Israel to control its ongoing military operation in Gaza, in light of fears that the Netanyahu government’s insistence on invading Rafah “without a clear plan to protect civilians” will lead to increased objections, outside and within the United States.
While Schumer's statements were considered the culmination of an American pressure campaign that has been ongoing for months, and has moved from the shadows to the public, they are also considered an indication that Biden and Schumer, who are strong supporters of Israel, have run out of patience with Netanyahu, and pave the way for criticism that is expected to increase in the coming period, from many. Among the American opponents to Netanyahu's policies, who apparently lost Biden's trust, after he seemed to be working in favor of the Republican agenda in the upcoming US presidential battle.
Ghaith Al-Omari, senior researcher at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, considered Schumer's statements a coordinated message with the administration, and a warning that Israel is losing its closest allies. Al-Omari added to Asharq Al-Awsat that these statements will now remain within the framework of media pressure, but if Israel invades Rafah, the scene could change and some American-backed moves could take place in the Security Council, for example. He added that the manifestation of disagreement between Biden and Netanyahu is not due only to internal American electoral reasons, but also to fundamental differences over policies.
Al-Omari conveyed impressions from conversations with Israelis themselves, that there is discomfort with Netanyahu’s policies towards Biden, and they see that the recent reception of Minister Benny Gantz by senior American officials is a clear message that Washington is not dealing with the government, but rather with Israel as a state.
A senior administration official declared that the change in tone was intentional, saying: “Our rhetoric on humanitarian aid has become more strident as the humanitarian situation in Gaza has worsened.” He added that the general principles of the administration remained the same, which are to seek the return of the hostages, defeat Hamas, protect civilians, and ultimately seek a two-state solution.
Schumer, the Jewish senator, who was one of the most prominent defenders of Israel and stood in the face of the growing pro-Palestinian trend in the Democratic Party, seemed closer to the progressive senator Bernie Sanders, who has long criticized Netanyahu. He said on Thursday: “Netanyahu’s coalition no longer suits Israel’s needs after October 7.” The world has changed radically since then, and the Israeli people are now suffocated by a vision of governance stuck in the past. He said that if Israel refuses to change course, that is, to protect the 2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza and seek a two-state solution, then the United States must play “a more active role in shaping Israeli policy by using our influence to change the current course.”
Despite this, Schumer was subjected to criticism, especially from Republicans. House Speaker Mike Johnson, who pushes for military aid to Israel separately from foreign aid to Ukraine, said his speech was “completely inappropriate.” But Schumer's speech would not have been possible without the shifts witnessed by the Biden administration in recent weeks, driven by increasing political pressure from Democrats and pro-Palestinian voices inside and outside Washington.
At this time, Axios said that the request for guarantees submitted by the Biden administration, last month, under the National Security Memorandum, does not constitute a change in policy towards Israel specifically. But it came after some Democratic senators expressed concern about the Israeli military campaign in Gaza.
The Biden administration asked Israel to sign the letter of guarantees by the middle of this month. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has until March 25 to confirm the credibility of Israel's written commitments. If certification is not granted, US arms transfers to Israel will be suspended. While the Israeli war government gave Gallant the green light to sign the letter of guarantees last Sunday, he did not sign it until Thursday. An Israeli official said that the letter was then delivered to the US Ambassador to Israel, Jack Lew.
The National Security Memorandum, published on February 8, states that before supplying US weapons, a country must provide the United States with “credible written assurances” that it will use them in accordance with international humanitarian law. It also stipulates that humanitarian assistance provided by the United States and international efforts supported by the United States government to provide humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians shall not be prevented or restricted.
On the other hand, American and Israeli officials said that before signing the memorandum, Israel asked the Biden administration to add to the written guarantees another message confirming the United States’ commitment to Israel’s security, its right to defend itself, and military assistance. But Biden administration officials responded that such a request would require a long time of consultations and negotiations that would not meet the deadline specified in the memorandum, preferring to keep this process in a “technical framework” as much as possible, and not turn it into political negotiations that might require Israel to provide more written guarantees.
Last week, more than 30 Democratic representatives expressed, in a letter to Biden, their fears that the Rafah invasion would lead to a violation of his demand to use US military aid in accordance with international law, pointing to the “absence of a credible plan” to protect civilians.
Operation Iron Swords - By the Numbers
- 73,439 Gazans injured, 28% adult male
- 40,000 Gazans killed, including buried under rubble
- 33,000 Gaza targets attacked
- 31,490 Gazans martyred
- 15,000 rocket launched from Gaza
- 14,664 Israelis were injured [i24 TV]
- 13,430 Gazan children martyred
- 13,000 HAMAS combatants killed [N12]
- 12,000 HAMAS combatants killed [IDF]
- 11,000 arrested by Israelis in the West Bank in 2023
- 9,000 Palestinians in Israeli prisons
- 9,000 IDF psychological assistance
- 9,000 Gazan women martyred
- 8,000 Gazans missing
- 7,500 arrested by Israelis in the West Bank since Oct.7th
- 6,000 HAMAS combatants killed [HAMAS]
- 5,500 IDF wounded [reports]
- 4,700 West Bank Palestinians wounded
- 3,484 administrative detainees
- 3,400 wanted persons arrested throughout Judea and Samaria
- 2,976 IDF wounded [IDF]
- 1,609 terrorists killed on the first day
- 1,500 wanted persons arrested throughout Judea and Samaria affiliated with Hamas
- 1,200 Israelis killed on the first day
- 575 Israeli officers and soldiers killed
- 433 West Bank Palestinians martyred
- 247 Israeli officers and soldiers killed in Gaza
- 222 Hezbollah fighters killed in Lebanon
- 126 people recovered, including 91 Israelis, 11 bodies, and 24 foreign workers
- 116 living hostages in Palestinian custody
- 50 civilians killed in Lebanon
- 29 IDF deaths were caused by "friendly fire"
- 15 Israelis killed in the West Bank and Israel
Many of these numbers fluctate, up and down, with no apparent explanation. This list records the highest number reliably reported for each matter, under the theory that reality with catch up with reports, as is relentlessly the case.
The Palestinian resistance says that the losses of the Israeli forces are much greater than what is announced. 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."
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.
Abraham Wyner, Professor of Statistics and Data Science at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, reported 06 March 2024 that : "While the evidence is not dispositive, it is highly suggestive that a process unconnected or loosely connected to reality was used to report the numbers.... Another red flag, raised by Salo Aizenberg and written about extensively, is that if 70% of the casualties are women and children and 25% of the population is adult male, then either Israel is not successfully eliminating Hamas fighters or adult male casualty counts are extremely low. This by itself strongly suggests that the numbers are at a minimum grossly inaccurate and quite probably outright faked.... Taken together, Hamas is reporting not only that 70% of casualties are women and children but also that 20% are fighters. This is not possible unless Israel is somehow not killing noncombatant men, or else Hamas is claiming that almost all the men in Gaza are Hamas fighters....
"Israel estimates that at least 12,000 fighters have been killed. If that number proves to be even reasonably accurate, then the ratio of noncombatant casualties to combatants is remarkably low: at most 1.4 to 1 and perhaps as low as 1 to 1. By historical standards of urban warfare, where combatants are embedded above and below into civilian population centers, this is a remarkable and successful effort to prevent unnecessary loss of life while fighting an implacable enemy that protects itself with civilians."
This makes perfect sense under a third possibility, namely that the IDF doing a really good job of targeting male combatants, most of whom are in proximity to their families. There are no HAMAS barracks, so everyone lives at home, en famille. Co-habiting extended families are common [hence reports of dozens of family members killed in a single strike]. The HAMAS battalions are organized by neighborhoods, so it would not be surprising that multiple HAMAS combatants live in a single building. So casualties structured as one male combatant, one female cohabitant, and two children are approximately consistent with both expectations and reports.
Lord Roberts of Belgravia (Con) stated 08 February 2024 "My Lords, even if we were to take as accurate Hamas’s statistics and the 27,500 figure — there is no reason why we should; we do not do that with Putin or ISIS — if one subtracts the number of Gazans who have been killed by the quarter or so of the Islamic Jihad and Hamas rockets that fall short, one is left with a less than 2:1 ratio of civilians to Hamas terrorists killed, of whom there have been more than 9,000 so far. War is hell, and every individual civilian death is a tragedy, but — I speak as a military historian — less than 2:1 is an astonishingly low ratio for modern urban warfare where the terrorists routinely use civilians as human shields. It is a testament to the professionalism, ethics and values of the Israel Defense Forces."
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