Nov. 5: Heavy bombardment from Lebanon damages homes in Kiryat Shmona

Kiryat Shmona says seven rockets hit city, heavy damage to homes, but no injuries

A car is seen damaged after a rocket fired from Lebanon hit the northern town of Kiryat Shmona, November 5, 2023. (Erez Ben Simon/Flash90)

The Kiryat Shmona municipality says the city was targeted in two separate rocket barrages Sunday night with over half of the 13 projectiles fired hitting areas inside the city.

It says there are no injuries from either attack.

In an initial volley at 7:12 p.m. five rockets landed in open areas, one was intercepted and one landed in the city, hitting a car.

A second barrage was fired at the city at 9:25 p.m. Three rockets hit homes in the city and another three landed inside the city, the municipality says.

“Heavy damage was caused to structures,” a city spokesman says on the municipality’s Facebook page.

Fire sparked by a rocket strike from Lebanon in the northern town of Kiryat Shmona, November 5, 2023. (Erez Ben Simon/Flash90)

Power is out across much of the city, due to a rocket strike damaging a power line, the city says.

While the city has been largely evacuated, some have remained behind, and they are requested to remain close to bomb shelters.

Jews in Chicago suburb use empty strollers to spotlight children held hostage in Gaza

Empty strollers are displayed at a demonstration in Skokie, Illinois, to highlight the Israeli children being held hostage in Gaza by Palestinian terrorists. (Times of Israel)

Jewish community members in Skokie outside of Chicago have organized an exhibit of 30 empty strollers to raise awareness about the 30 children currently being held hostage in Gaza along with roughly 210 others.

In each stroller sits a flier containing a biography of a different child hostage along with an Israeli flag.

Roughly 150 community members sing psalms along with the Israeli national anthem.

Several people driving by shout obscenities at the Jewish participants, including, “kill the babies!”

Full disclosure: The mother of a Times of Israel reporter organized the demonstration.

UAE slams Israeli minister who said nuking Gaza an option

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu attends a ceremony at the Knesset, in Jerusalem, on June 19, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

The UAE joins the chorus of condemnations against Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu for saying one of Israel’s options in the war against Hamas is to drop a nuclear bomb on Gaza.

The UAE’s foreign ministry calls Eliyahu’s remarks “disgraceful and unacceptable.

“These statements constitute a violation of international law, as well as incitement to commit grave violations of International Humanitarian Law, such as war crimes, and raise grave concerns of an intent to commit genocide,” Abu Dhabi says.

The statement reiterates the Emirati call for a ceasefire in Gaza, to provide humanitarian assistance to civilians there and revamp the peace process.

Following the uproar over his remarks, Eliyahu said he was only speaking metaphorically, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly withdrew plans to fire him, following pushback from far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

Netanyahu tells Red Cross chief to demand release of hostages

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Mirjana Spoljaric, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross, to demand the organization call for the release of Israelis being held hostage by Palestinian terrorists in Gaza, his office says.

Netanyahu also told Spoljaric that the Red Cross must demand immediate access to the captives to ensure their well-being.

Netanyahu: Hamas attacked because it wants us dead, ‘not because of any internal argument’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Hamas launched its deadly assault on Israel “because it wants to kill all of us and not because of any internal argument,” after seeming to suggest that protests by reserve soldiers against the judicial overhaul were a factor in the Gaza-ruling terror group’s decision to attack.

“Together, all of Israeli society, we will win,” Minister Benny Gantz tweets in response after demanding Netanyahu retract his earlier comments.

Israeli envoy to US calls Gaza the world’s ‘biggest terror complex’

Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Herzog speaks during Israel's Independence Day reception, hosted by the Israeli embassy to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel, at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC, June 6, 2023. (SAUL LOEB / AFP)

Michael Herzog, the Israeli ambassador to the US, says Gaza is “the biggest terror complex in the world,” with tens of thousands of fighters and rockets, among other weaponry — and 310 miles (500 kilometers) of underground tunnels.

“This is what we’re up against. And we have to uproot it, because if we do not, they will strike again and again,” Herzog told CBS’s “Face the Nation,” in an interview aired Sunday.

He also says Israel is making every effort to distinguish between “terrorists and the civilian population” in its war with the Hamas terror group that rules Gaza.

“This is a very complicated military operation in a densely populated area, and we’re trying to move the population away from that war zone,” he says.

Israeli flag burned outside Swedish synagogue to a chant of ‘bomb Israel’

A demonstrator burns an Israeli flag outside a synagogue in Malmo, Sweden, on November 4, 2023. (The Council of Swedish Jewish communities)

The European Jewish Congress condemns the burning of an Israeli flag in front of a synagogue in Sweden yesterday.

“We are deeply appalled by the recent pro-Palestinian protest, which involved the burning of an Israeli flag in front of a synagogue in Malmo, Sweden,” the EJC writes today on X. “Intimidating the Jewish community and blaming them for the events in the Middle East is blatant antisemitism.”

The statement is about the actions of about 12 people who attended a protest rally outside the synagogue in the Swedish city of Malmo. In addition to the flag burning, at least one participant chanted: “Free Palestine, bomb Israel.”

The rally outside the Malmo synagogue also featured multiple Palestinian flags.

Videos of the incident show no police presence at the synagogue, which has been the target of several antisemitic acts of vandalism for years.

The anti-Israel rally was to protest Israel’s attack on Hamas in Gaza. On October 7, about 3,000 Hamas terrorists staged a cross-border assault into Israel, where they murdered some 1,400 people, and abducted some 240 more into Gaza. In response, Israel’s offensive in Gaza is aimed at destroying Hamas’s military and governance capabilities, and Israel has vowed to eliminate the entire terror group, which rules the Strip. It says it is targeting all areas where Hamas operates, while seeking to minimize civilian casualties.

Since October 7, there have been dozens of anti-Israel protests and riots across Europe and beyond. Jewish communities in Europe are reporting a surge of antisemitic hate crimes, including multiple cases of assault.

Malmo, a southern port city, has a large Muslim population that, according to some estimates, accounts for about a third of the city’s population of roughly 300,000. Its Jewish population has declined from about 800 in 1997 to fewer than 400 in 2019.

Aron Verständig, chair of the Council of Swedish Jewish Communities, on Twitter calls on Malmo Mayor Katrin Stjernfeldt Jammeh to condemn the incident. Her account on X and the city’s official website have made no references to the incident. Her office does not immediately reply to a request for comment by The Times of Israel.

Fredrik Sieradzki, a spokesperson for the Jewish Community of Malmo, criticizes police for not preventing the actions of the protesters, calling their apparent failure to intervene “reprehensible.”

The press department of The Swedish Police Authority does not immediately reply to a request for comment on Sieradzki’s comment.

Gantz lashes Netanyahu for suggestion reservist protests helped lead to Hamas attack

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shakes the hand of then-newly appointed minister Benny Gantz at a special plenum session presenting the new emergency government in the Knesset plenum in Jerusalem, October 12, 2023. (Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90)

Minister Benny Gantz blasts Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after the premier appeared to suggest that protests by reservist soldiers against his government’s judicial overhaul were a factor in the Hamas terror group’s decision to attack Israel on October 7.

“Over 100% enlistment in reserves and extraordinary mobilization by all Israeli society are the decisive response to our enemies,” Gantz writes on the X platform. “Evading responsibility and mud-slinging in a time of war harm the country.”

“The prime minister must clearly and unambiguously retract his words,” he adds.

Gantz’s comments come after several Hebrew media outlets reported that Netanyahu believes that after the war, Israel must probe any connection between “insubordination” and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar’s motivation to launch the deadly onslaught. The near identical reports suggested a leak from the Prime Minister’s Office.

“In contrast to reports, the prime minister never said in any manner that insubordination is what led Hamas to attack Israel,” a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office says in response. “The prime minister said before the war that our enemy must not mistake us, because at the moment of truth every one will enlist, as indeed happened.”

IDF says looking into reports it carried out deadly strike on car in Lebanon

The Israel Defense Forces says it is investigating, after Lebanese reports said an Israeli airstrike on a vehicle in southern Lebanon killed four civilians.

“Earlier today, the IDF struck a vehicle in Lebanese territory that was identified as a suspicious vehicle containing several terrorists,” the IDF says in response to a query on the matter.

“The claim that there were several uninvolved civilians in the vehicle is being examined. The event is under review,” the IDF adds.

US national security adviser shares Arab Israeli’s appeal for Jewish-Muslim coexistence

Arab Israeli Facebook star Nuseir Yassin in his Nas Daily video blasting Kuwait for boycotting Israel on October 1, 2017. (Screen capture: Facebook)

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, who has not tweeted from his personal account in almost three years, shares a video from Arab Israeli influencer Nas Daily calling for Jewish-Muslim coexistence during the war in Gaza.

“We are here to show you that Jews and Muslims are more similar than different. When we partner, we can achieve so much,” Nas Daily CEO Nuseir Yassin says in a video with the company’s Jewish COO Alex Dwek.

“In reality, many Muslims are against what Hamas did and cannot stand behind it,” Yassin says.

“And many Jews, like me, want peace and dignity for Palestinians,” Dwek chimes in.

“Don’t let the recent events confuse you. Our cultures are the same. there are so many Arab Jews. There are so many Muslims in Israel,” Yassin adds.

peace pic.twitter.com/LHBb4DtmW9

— Nuseir Yassin (@nasdaily) October 14, 2023

Netanyahu wanted to fire far-right minister; caved under Ben Gvir’s opposition — TV

Illustrative: Likud leader MK Benjamin Netanyahu with head of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party MK Itamar Ben Gvir at a vote in the Knesset plenum, December 28, 2022. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90/File)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wanted to fire Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu for saying one of Israel’s options in the war against Hamas is to nuke Gaza, but buckled following opposition from far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, Channel 12 news reports.

Ben Gvir, who heads the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, of which Eliyahu is a member, told Netanyahu he would not cooperate with the effort, saying the government should be focusing on destroying Hamas, not “educating ministers,” according to the network. Netanyahu then folded.

Rocket sirens activated in Tel Aviv area, Ashdod amid fresh rocket barrage

Rocket warning sirens are again activated in Tel Aviv and numerous other cities in central Israel, as terrorists in the Gaza Strip fire another salvo of rockets.

Alerts are also heard in the southern port city of Ashdod.

CIA chief to visit Israel this week for talks on war against Hamas

US Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns speaks at the Central Intelligence Agency headquarters in Langley, Virginia, July 8, 2022. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

US Central Intelligence Agency director chief Bill Burns will visit Israel this week to discuss the war against Hamas, an official familiar with the matter tells The Times of Israel.

It will be Burns’s first trip to Israel since the outbreak of the war.

He will also make stops in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt during the regional tour, which will include a particular focus on efforts to secure the release of roughly 240 hostages currently being held in Gaza.

Rockets fired from Lebanon cause damage in Kiryat Shmona; no injuries reported

Damage to a home following a rocket impact, as seen in Kiryat Shmona, November 5, 2023. (Kiryat Shmona municipality)

A number of rocket launched from Lebanon in the latest barrage have landed in Kiryat Shmona, causing damage.

According to the municipality, at least one home was hit.

First responders say there are no reports of injuries.

Kiryat Shmona has been evacuated, along with dozens of other communities along the Lebanon border, given repeated Hezbollah rocket and missile attacks on northern Israel.

French minister says 1,040 antisemitic acts recorded in France since October 7

A man walks next to a building the façade of which was covered with Stars of David painted during the night, in the Alesia district of Paris, on October 31, 2023. (VAN DER HASSELT / AFP)

PARIS, France — France has recorded more than a thousand antisemitic acts since the deadly October 7 massacre by Hamas terrorists on Israel, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin says today.

The figures have soared to 1,040, he tells France 2 television, adding that of the 486 people arrested for such offenses, 102 of them were foreigners.

TV report: Hamas downed IDF drones and a surveillance camera weeks before Oct. 7

Terrorists burst through the border fence from Gaza into Israel on October 7, 2023. (Channel 12 screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the copyright law)

In the 4-6 weeks before their devastating October 7 assault on southern Israel, Hamas carried out a series of attacks at the border fence, and gauged the IDF’s responses to them, Channel 12 reports. The IDF “failed to connect the dots,” and Hamas used all these attack skills when bursting through the fence at multiple points on the morning of October 7.

Among these, it downed drones used by the IDF divisional headquarters, partially scrambling communications with IDF posts and bases close to the fence, the report says.

It blew a hole in the border fence large enough for someone to get through — a hole that the IDF swiftly fixed, the reports says. (It has previously been reported that Hamas detonated explosives at the fence, during demonstrations there, weeks before the attack.)

And throughout the month prior to the attack, it tried to bring down cameras at the fence used by surveillance soldiers. “They finally managed to bring one down… and then stopped trying,” before using the technique widely on October 7, the report says.

Hamas operatives also timed themselves running to the fence, without coming all the way to the barrier. And they also repeatedly drove tractors close to the fence, duping the IDF into believing these were for agricultural use.

The Channel 12 report follows reports and testimony in the weeks since the October 7 massacres that surveillance soldiers at the border repeatedly warned their superiors in the months before the assault of Hamas activity at the fence, including digging, mapping, and training in plain sight.

IDF says it opened humanitarian corridor for Palestinians to evacuate northern Gaza

The head of COGAT’s Coordination and Liaison Administration to Gaza, Col. Moshe Tetro, issues a video statement from Gaza's Salah a-Din road, November 5, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)

The Israel Defense Forces says it facilitated the opening of a humanitarian corridor on the Gaza Strip’s main north-south Salah a-Din road, to allow Palestinian civilians in northern Gaza to evacuate to its south.

The IDF publishes drone footage showing Gazan civilians moving south on the road.

IDF says it facilitated in the opening of a humanitarian corridor on the Gaza Strip's main north-south Salah a-Din road, to allow Palestinian civilians in northern Gaza to evacuate to its south. The IDF publishes drone footage showing Gazan civilians moving south on the road. pic.twitter.com/caaxOOFoID

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 5, 2023

In an Arabic-language video statement, the commander of COGAT’s Coordination and Liaison Administration to Gaza asks Palestinian civilians to continue to evacuate northern Gaza for their safety.

“Today, we opened Salah a-Din road as a humanitarian corridor for civilians of the northern Gaza Strip,” says Col. Moshe Tetro from the road, near Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood.

“I ask again that all civilians of the northern Gaza Strip move to south of the Wadi Gaza (Gaza River),” he says.

“The northern Gaza Strip and Gaza City are a war zone, a very dangerous area,” Tetro continues.

“The criminal Hamas terror organization is using you as human shields,” he adds.

Rocket sirens again activated in northern city of Kiryat Shmona

Incoming rocket sirens are again sounding in the northern city of Kiryat Shmona, close to the Lebanon border.

Earlier today, Hezbollah launched a barrage of rockets from Lebanon on the city, causing some damage.

Kiryat Shmona has been evacuated, along with dozens of other communities along the Lebanon border, given Hezbollah’s repeated rocket and missile attacks on northern Israel.

Blinken and Iraqi PM discuss Israel-Hamas war, attacks by pro-Iran militias

A handout picture released by Iraq's Prime Minister's Media Office on November 5, 2023 shows Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani (R) meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Baghdad. (Handout/Iraqi prime minister's press office/AFP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani in Baghdad to discuss the Israel-Hamas war, the State Department says.

Blinken “discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza and our continued commitment to coordinating with Iraq and our other partners in the region to ensure sustained and safe access to food, water, medical care, and other assistance required to meet humanitarian needs,” the State Department says.

The pair also agreed on the need “to ensure that Palestinians are not forcibly displaced outside of Gaza,” amid several Israeli proposals suggesting as much, the US readout says

Blinken urged Sudani to hold accountable pro-Iranian militias who have been carrying out attacks against US troops in Iraq since the outbreak of the war in Gaza.

“Blinken made clear that the US will defend its interests and personnel,” the US readout says.

In Iraq, Blinken condemns ‘unacceptable’ attacks on US troops by Iran-backed militias

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with the US Marine Corps embassy security guard detachment in Baghdad, Iraq, on November 5, 2023. (Jonathan Ernst/Pool/AFP)

BAGHDAD, Iraq — US Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemns attacks on American troops in Iraq, during a surprise visit to Baghdad to discuss the risks of escalation in Israel’s war with Hamas.

“I made very clear that attacks or threats coming from militias that are aligned with Iran are totally unacceptable. And we will take every necessary step to protect our people,” Blinken says.

White House highlights opposition to ceasefire by Biden allies, amid far-left calls in favor

White House deputy communications director Herbie Ziskind tweets out quotes from Democratic Representative Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, allies of US President Joe Biden who hold opposing views, but have both voiced opposition to a ceasefire in Gaza.

The move appears aimed at demonstrating widespread support for Biden’s opposition to a ceasefire, despite growing calls from far-left lawmakers and groups who are pushing for one.

Biden is instead calling for humanitarian pauses to allow for the safe passage of aid, civilians, and to assist the hostage release effort.

‘Ashamed’ officers said to tell residents of south: We hope to die on Gaza battlefield

The destruction caused by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Be'eri, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, October 14, 2023. (Erik Marmor/Flash90)

Senior IDF officials, in conversations in recent days with residents of the south regarding the Hamas slaughter on October 7, have highlighted their sense of “shame” for having failed to protect the citizens, Channel 12 reports.

“We hope to die on the battlefield, in Gaza,” it quotes unnamed senior officers saying, “because we are ashamed that we abandoned you. We are dying of shame as it is, so at least we’ll die in an effort to protect you as needed and to restore your sense of security. We promise you that we will win this war.”

Less bleakly, the IDF releases a recording of Israel’s ground forces chief, Maj.-Gen. Tamir Yadai, and Air Force Commander Tomer Bar, both flying over Gaza, speaking with an unnamed officer on the ground below.

Commander of the IDF Ground Forces Maj. Gen. Tamir Yadai (right) and Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar are seen near a plane operated by the IAF’s 100th Squadron at the Hatzor airbase, November 5, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)

Bar asks the officer on the ground, “Do you need any assistance? We are above you.”

The unnamed officer responds: “I’ve been getting everything I need for the past week… I know that you’re with us, together with our fighters and all of Israel.”

Yadai in turn praises all of the IDF reservists who have left home to fight. “We’re very proud of them, and we’ll do whatever is needed so that they can carry out their mission.”

Netanyahu’s office says ex-Mossad chief ‘initiated meeting with an Arab leader,’ had PM’s approval

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) and then-Mossad head Yossi Cohen during a toast for the Jewish New Year on October 2, 2017. (Haim Zach/GPO)

After the Mossad and an Israeli official expressed criticism earlier in the day of Yossi Cohen’s activities around the release of hostages, the Prime Minister’s Office says the former Mossad chief “initiated a meeting with an Arab leader with the prime minister’s approval.”

“He also held a number of meetings on a diplomatic issue and remained in touch with the national security adviser,” the statement continues.

The statement seems to addressing earlier insinuations that Cohen was acting outside the proper channels.

Military says it is carrying out widespread strikes in Gaza

A picture taken from Sderot early on November 5, 2023, shows smoke and fire rising over the Gaza Strip during an Israeli strike, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian terror group Hamas. (Aris Messinis/AFP)

IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari says the military is carrying out widespread strikes in the Gaza Strip at this hour.

“There are now widespread strikes on terror infrastructure, below ground and above it,” Hagari says in response to a question at an evening press conference.

IDF says troops have encircled Gaza City, split coastal enclave into two

IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari gives a statement to the media in Tel Aviv on October 16, 2023. (Avshalom Sassoni/ Flash90)

IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari says Israeli forces have fully encircled Gaza City and split the coastal enclave in two.

He says troops led by the Golani Brigade’s reconnaissance unit “reached the coastline and are holding it.”

“Today there is north Gaza and south Gaza,” Hagari says.

He says the IDF will still allow civilians to leave north Gaza and head south.

Hamas reports ‘intense bombings’ around Gaza hospitals

The Hamas terror group says the Israeli army is carrying out “intense bombings” this evening around several hospitals in the north of the Gaza Strip, shortly after telecommunications were cut.

“For more than an hour, intense bombings have been taking place around hospitals,” says Salama Marouf, the head of the Hamas government’s media office.

Halevi says IDF ‘ready at any moment to go on offense in the north’

This handout photo shows IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi holding an assessment at the 210th Division in northern Israel, November 5, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi says the military is “ready at any moment to go on the offense in the north,” as in recent weeks it has been defending against daily Hezbollah missile and rocket attacks.

“We set a goal of restoring a significantly better security situation on the borders, not only in the Gaza Strip,” says Halevi during an assessment at the 210th Division in northern Israel today.

“We are ready at any moment to go on the offense in the north. We understand that it can happen, and we trust you that the defense here is strong,” he adds.

Official vows Israelis will return to evacuated northern towns after war against Hamas

A fragment of a rocket fired from Lebanon at the northern Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona close to the border with Lebanon on October 18, 2023. (Jalaa Marey / AFP)

An Israeli official says that the IDF, and its deployment on the northern border, would change as well after the war.

“The IDF will deploy against a [massive] breach of the border, and not just a penetration of a few terrorist cells into communities,” says the official.

“The IDF will be bigger,” continues the official. “We will invest in the army.”

The official adds that Hezbollah “cannot breach the border because of our deployment and the readiness of our forces. The issue of ‘capturing the north’ is no longer relevant.”

Civilians will return to evacuated communities in the north, vows the official, “because of the scale and strength of the victory over Hamas.”

The official also stresses that efforts are underway to make sure a massive terror attack, similar to that Hamas carried out on October 7, cannot happen in the West Bank. “The possibility of a major change [in IDF operations] in the West Bank remains a realistic one.”

Israeli official optimistic about prospects for normalization with Saudis after war

An Israeli official strikes an optimistic note on the prospects of normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia after the war.

“Wise people are sitting in Saudi Arabia and in Israel,” says the official. “It will be possible to continue the process we started before the war afterwards — with the condition that we win.”

According to the White House, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman agreed in a phone call with Biden to eventually “build on” the US-brokered negotiations that had been underway to normalize ties.

The official also says Israel is seeing preliminary signs that the ground operation is pushing Hamas to seek a deal to release hostages.

“We are seeing something, but it’s not ready yet. Beforehand we didn’t see anything,” says the official, who adds that Israel believes the majority of the hostages are alive. “Hamas sees them as an asset.”

On the possibility of a ceasefire, a growing priority for Israel’s allies, the official says that “even if there is a ceasefire in exchange for the release of hostages, it will be temporary and Israel will continue to operate to topple Hamas.”

The official says that Israel does not know how many terrorists the IDF has killed. “I know we’ve killed many but I don’t know how many.”

The official also says that 800,000 Gazans have moved to the southern Gaza Strip from the north.

Israel plans to maintain significant security control over Gaza after war — official

A handout photo distributed on November 5, 2023, shows IDF soldiers operating in the Gaza Strip. (Israel Defense Forces)

Israel intends to maintain significant control over the Gaza Strip even after the war, an Israeli official says.

“I don’t see any situation in which Israel doesn’t have ultimate security responsibility in Gaza,” says the official in a Hebrew-language briefing with Israeli reporters at the Kirya in Tel Aviv.

The official adds that after Hamas is toppled, “it won’t be enough to do just a rehabilitation of Gaza.”

“It must go through a process of ‘de-Nazification,'” continues the official. “This culture [of seeking to kill Jews] still exists in the Palestinian Authority.”

Rocket alerts sound in Tel Aviv and other cities across central Israel

Rocket warning sirens sound in Tel Aviv and other communities across central Israel, as Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip fire a fresh barrage of rockets.

Hezbollah says it fired rockets at Kiryat Shmona after Israeli strike on car in Lebanon

The Hezbollah terror group claims responsibility for rocket fire on the northern city of Kiryat Shmona earlier.

In a statement, it says the barrage came in response to an alleged Israeli airstrike on a civilian car in southern Lebanon, killing a woman and three young children.

The IDF has not commented on the airstrike allegations.

صورة السيارة المدنية المستهدفة بالقرب من حي المعصرة في بلدة عيناتا بعد سلوكها طريق بليدا – عيترون – عيناتا.. والمعلومات الأولية تفيد عن وجود عائلة بداخلها! pic.twitter.com/j88FWfioXb

— bintjbeil.org (@bintjbeilnews) November 5, 2023

Bernie Sanders rejects calls for ceasefire: Hamas dedicated to destroying Israel

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont talks with reporters following his meeting with US President Joe Biden at the White House in Washington, August 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

US Senator Bernie Sanders rejects calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, breaking from a growing group of progressive lawmakers who have been leading such a call in recent weeks.

“I don’t know how you can have a ceasefire… with an organization like Hamas, which is dedicated to turmoil and chaos and destroying the State of Israel,” he tells CNN.

“I think what the Arab countries in the region understand is that Hamas has got to go,” he adds.

Sanders is one of Israel’s loudest critics in Congress, calling Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government racist and regularly blasting its policies vis-à-vis the Palestinians.

But his comments to CNN are being tweeted by several Israeli officials, ostensibly seeking to demonstrate the widespread political opposition in the US to calls for a ceasefire.

Senator @BernieSanders:

“Well, I don't know how you can have a ceasefire… with an organization like Hamas, which is dedicated to turmoil and chaos and destroying the State of Israel. And I think what the Arab countries in the region understand is that Hamas has got to go.” pic.twitter.com/oGMGdkNpqx

— Eylon Levy (@EylonALevy) November 5, 2023

Car set ablaze as rocket fired from Lebanon lands in Kiryat Shmona

A car is on fire in the northern city of Kiryat Shmona after being struck by a rocket fired from Lebanon, November 5, 2023. (X video screenshot: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

A rocket launched from Lebanon has landed in the northern city of Kiryat Shmona, setting a car ablaze.

Firefighters are at the scene working to extinguish the fire.

Police say officers are securing the area and sappers are removing shrapnel from other rocket impacts in the city.

There are no injuries, first responders say.

Rocket impact in Kiryat Shmona set a car ablaze. No injuries reported. pic.twitter.com/EDWKJTPxCz

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 5, 2023

IDF says Israeli civilian killed in anti-tank missile attack by Hezbollah

Illustrative: Smoke billows in the Upper Galilee after an exchange of fire between Israel and the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah, near Kibbutz Yiftah on Israel's border with Lebanon on November 5, 2023. (Jalaa Marey/AFP)

An Israeli civilian was killed in an anti-tank guided missile attack launched from Lebanon at an area near the northern community of Yiftah earlier today, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee, says.

The Hezbollah terror group claimed responsibility for the missile fire, claiming it attacked a group of soldiers.

Adraee says in a post on X that “Hezbollah continued to attack Israeli military sites and civilian towns, without distinguishing between civilians and military personnel.”

“One of the attacks resulted in the death of an Israeli citizen,” he adds.

Gallant: Hamas being dealt ‘tough blows on battlefield,’ will use ‘psychological warfare’ to try to hurt us

In this handout photo, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant meets with the families of Israelis held hostage in Gaza by Palestinian terrorists, November 5, 2023. (Ariel Hermoni/Defense Ministry)

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant meets with the families of Israelis being held hostage in Gaza, outlining the efforts to locate their loved ones.

“Hamas is absorbing tough blows on the battlefield and will try to hurt us with psychological warfare in the most sensitive and painful places,” Gantz tells the families, according to a statement from his office.

“The military pressure on [Hamas] is also serving the efforts to bring back the hostages,” he adds.

In a message to the international community, Gallant also reiterates “there will not be a pause in fighting until the hostages return.”

Rocket sirens sound in northern towns amid attacks from Lebanon

Incoming rocket sirens are sounding in the northern city of Kiryat Shmona and several nearby communities, close to the Lebanon border.

The alerts come amid repeated rocket and missile attacks by Hezbollah and allied Palestinian terror factions from southern Lebanon on northern Israel.

Emily Hand, 8, Irish-Israeli thought killed on Oct. 7, now believed held hostage in Gaza

Irish-Israeli Emily Kornberg Hand. (Courtesy)

Emily Hand, an 8-year-old girl from Kibbutz Be’eri, who was reported killed in the Hamas assault on October 7, is now believed to be alive and among those held hostage in Gaza. The family was informed of this by Israeli authorities five days ago, Channel 12 reports.

In the Channel 12 studio, Natalie, Emily’s sister, asks to try to speak directly to Emily, and looks directly into the camera: “I want to tell you that we are doing everything to get you home. We know you are being held hostage. We love you so much and miss you.”

Natalie says the family had cried for Emily when they were informed she had been murdered. “We were told that she had been murdered. We were in mourning,” she says. “On October 31, they told us that it was highly likely that she had been abducted.”

Natalie Hand (right), interviewed by Channel 12 about her sister, Emily, 8 (pictured left), who is believed held hostage in Gaza, November 5, 2023 (Channel 12 screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the copyright law)

Emily was at a friend’s house on the kibbutz on October 7, Natalie says, and her friend and her friend’s mother were also apparently abducted. Their family was also initially told they had been killed, Natalie says.

Natalie notes that Emily also has Irish citizenship. She says the Irish authorities have promised to do whatever they can to help.

Their father Thomas had told CNN in an emotional interview on October 12 that he welcomed the news Emily was dead, “because that is the best news of the possibilities that I knew.”

Telecom firm says Israel has again cut internet and phone service in Gaza

Israel cut internet and phone lines in the Gaza Strip, for the third time since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on October 7, Palestinian telecom firm Paltel says.

“We regret to announce the complete shutdown of communications and internet services in Gaza after the Israeli side disconnected the servers,” Paltel says in a statement.

IDF says division struck 1,600 Hamas targets, killed over 300 terrorists while crossing Gaza

IDF troops of the 36th Division are seen operating in the Gaza Strip, in a handout image issued November 5, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)

The Israel Defense Forces releases information on the 36th Division’s operations in the Gaza Strip over the past week, during which its forces led a maneuver across the territory, reaching its coastline.

“The role of the division is to surround Gaza City, to attack and destroy selected targets, including significant assets, and the headquarters of the Hamas terror organization,” the IDF says in a statement.

It says the 36th Division — made up of infantry forces, tanks, artillery, and combat engineers — struck some 1,600 Hamas targets, including infrastructure used by the terror group, weapon depots, anti-tank missile positions and observation posts.

The IDF says the division also killed more than 300 Hamas terror operatives amid the fighting.

It adds that in the last few hours alone, some 50 Hamas sites were hit and several gunmen were killed in close-quarters fighting.

The division has been moving at a slow pace, in order to properly clear areas of potential threats, including tunnels which are later destroyed.

A major threat that the division is working to counter is the large number of tunnels Hamas has, from which operatives pop out and launch RPGs at armored vehicles, and attempt to ambush forces.

Still, the 36th Division has identified that Hamas has recently struggled to carry out large-scale organized attacks on troops, after Israeli airstrikes killed senior Hamas field commanders.

Heavy artillery strikes have been carried out within just a few hundred meters of the Israeli forces to push back any Hamas operatives seeking to target troops.

The military says it has ways to target Hamas operatives inside tunnels as well.

Amid the incursion, the division made various adjustments to counter Hamas’s use of drones to drop explosives on troops in the Gaza Strip, The Times of Israel has learned.

Meanwhile, rockets have not been fired at Israel from the areas that the 36th Division captured.

The IDF believes the ongoing stage in the ground offensive will last several months, in order to achieve the objective of eliminating Hamas’s Gaza City stronghold with minimal casualties to Israeli forces.

Rocket sirens sound in border towns as intense Israeli strikes reported in Strip

Rocket warning sirens are activated in Sderot and several other Israeli communities near the Gaza border, as an intense Israeli bombardment is reported in the Strip.

Education Ministry to provide free daycare for evacuee toddlers

Young children of families who have been evacuated from their homes will receive free daycare, the Education Ministry announces.

“The state will fully finance alternative care programs for toddlers up to the age of three, whose families had to evacuate their homes due to the war. The funding will continue for the entire duration of their displacement from home,” the ministry says.

It also says an agreement has been reached so that children enrolled in subsidized day care centers throughout Israel will not have to pay during periods when the centers “are closed for security concerns.”

In the same announcement, the ministry notes that a new school is to open this week in the Dead Sea area to serve evacuated students who have relocated there, and another new school is to open “in the coming days” in Eilat, where the population has doubled in size due to the influx of internally displaced citizens.

Since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, some 250,000 Israelis, from communities bordering Gaza and along the Lebanon border, have been displaced from their homes.

Netanyahu: Yahya Sinwar doesn’t care about Gazans, ‘is acting like a little Hitler in his bunker’

Left, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs the weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem on December 22, 2019. (AP/Tsafrir Abayov, Pool). Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar meets with the head of the Central Elections Commission, Hanna Nasser, in Gaza City on October 28, 2019. (AP/Khalil Hamra)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar “doesn’t care about his nation and is acting like a little Hitler in his bunker.”

In the final days of his life, German Chancellor Adolf Hitler hid out in a Berlin bunker and blamed the German people for the country’s defeat in World War II. They “deserved to perish,” he said.

“[Sinwar] cares about his people as much as he does about a speck of dust,” says Netanyahu.

IDF reservist injured in tank accident dies of wounds

The Israel Defense Forces says a reservist soldier who was critically wounded in an accidental tank roll-over in northern Israel on October 29 has died of his wounds.

He is named as Master Sgt. (res.) Naaran Eshchar, 33, of the 181st Armored Brigade’s 71st Battalion, from Shadmot Mehola.

Another soldier was killed in the same incident, and two others were wounded.

Lapid to families of hostages: Opposition will back ‘any deal, however far-reaching’

Opposition leader Yair Lapid meets with relatives of Israelis being held captive in Hamas-ruled Gaza by Palestinian terrorists.

Lapid tells the families that in a recent meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he stressed “the opposition will back any step, any deal, however far-reaching it may be. The important thing is that the hostages return.”

“There is no price too expensive. [The captives] need to come back and it’s our duty to bring them back,” adds Lapid in a post on X.

He also pledges to be upfront with the families.

“We will not conceal information from you, even if it’s difficult. You are grownups and citizens, and you deserve to know the truth,” he says.

Haredi leader confines students to yeshiva, preventing war-related volunteering and recreation

Dov Lando, a top leader of Ashkenazi Haredi Jews, introduces a weekday curfew at his Bnei Brak yeshiva, preventing students from both volunteering for the war effort and engaging in recreational activities.

The call by Lando, the 93-year-old head of the Slabodka Yeshiva and a candidate to become the leader of the non-Hasidic stream of ultra-Orthodox Judaism, orders students to be in the yeshiva at all times, except Shabbat, when they go home and are forbidden under Orthodox law from performing most types of labor.

“Due to the difficult situation in our land, and the duty incumbent upon yeshiva students to study Torah with reinforced vigor, the students going away on Shabbat to their homes will leave only on Friday and will return on [Saturday evening],” reads a printed notice announcing the new rule at Lando’s yeshiva.

“These times are strictly mandatory,” Lando writes. The letter also says that “this is not the time to be out and about.”

US shoots down another drone targeting American troops in Syria

WASHINGTON – US forces shot down another one-way attack drone today that was targeting American and coalition troops near their base in Tel Baider, Syria, a US official says on the condition of anonymity because the official is not authorized to discuss the strike.

There is no information immediately available on the origin of the attack drone, but it marks at least the 32nd attack on US and coalition military facilities in Iraq and Syria since October 17. To date there have been at least 17 attacks in Iraq and 15 in Syria. At least 21 servicemembers have been injured by the attacks but all have returned to duty, the Pentagon says.

In Ankara, Islamist protesters call for Turkish troops to be sent to Gaza

ISTANBUL – Supporters of an Islamist group march to the US Embassy in Ankara, hours ahead of Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s expected arrival in the Turkish capital.

Several hundred protesters chant “God is Great” and hold their index fingers skywards as they approach the compound in the city’s Cukurambar neighborhood.

Riot police line up in front of the US complex as the crowd, many carrying black and white flags with Arabic script, call for Turkish soldiers to be sent to Gaza.

The demonstration was organized by Radical Change, which says it promotes the “living of authentic Islamic ideas” and “the intellectual and political aspects of Islam.”

The demonstration is the latest in Turkey to highlight the deaths of Palestinian civilians in Israel’s war against the Hamas terror group in Gaza.

“We, as Muslims, gathered to state that we will speak out against this genocide and that we will not accept it, that our armies and our nation are against Israel and on the side of the people of Gaza,” protester Ebru Petek tells The Associated Press.

Hebrew University announces NIS 15 million emergency fund

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem has allocated NIS 15 million ($3.82 million) to an emergency fund “supporting students serving in the reserves, residents of the Gaza envelope affected by a recent terrorist attack, and evacuees from the northern region,” the university announces.

University officials raised the money over the last three weeks from donors, as part of a larger effort by Hebrew University to support the war effort.

Hebrew University previously announced a financial aid package for students, including delayed tuition payments and deferred rent for students living in university housing. About 4,000 Hebrew University students have been called up to IDF reserve duty.

The announcement comes after similar initiatives from Tel Aviv University, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Bar-Ilan University and other institutes of higher learning. About 30% of all university students have been called up for reserve duty during the current crisis, as well as thousands of faculty and staff.

The start of the current academic year, which was to have begun on October 15, has been pushed back to at least December 3.

Iranian supreme leader hosts Hamas chief Haniyeh for talks in Tehran

Illustrative: Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei meeting in Tehran with Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip, Ismail Haniyeh. (AP)

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s office announces that he hosted Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh for talks in Tehran.

According to a statement on his official website, Khamenei “reiterated his appreciation for the patience and perseverance of the steadfast people of Gaza and strongly deplored the crimes committed by the Zionist regime with the direct support of the United States and some Western countries.”

“He also underlined the Islamic Republic of Iran’s permanent policy of supporting the Palestinian resistance forces against the Zionist occupation,” the statement adds.

IDF says troops uncovered weapons, military equipment at homes in northern Gaza

These handout photos show a Hamas drone and explosives recovered by IDF troops from a home in north Gaza's Beit Hanoun, November 5, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)

The Israel Defense Forces says troops of the 551st Brigade scanning residential homes in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza found dozens of weapons, equipment, and intelligence materials.

The IDF says the cache included assault rifles, submachine guns, grenades, explosive devices, protective gear, and drones that are used by Hamas to drop explosives.

Some of the weapons and equipment were destroyed, while some were taken to Israel for further research, the IDF says.

Separately, the IDF says special forces located and destroyed a bomb-making lab in the Gaza Strip today.

The military also publishes a new video showing troops in the Strip.

IDF releases new footage of troops operating in the Gaza Strip. pic.twitter.com/45KTX5w9Zx

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 5, 2023

Ra’am party demands resignation of MK for casting doubt on October 7 massacres

MK Iman Khatib-Yasin leads a Committee meeting at the Knesset, November 30, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Ra’am leader Mansour Abbas demands the Islamist party’s MK Iman Khatib-Yasin resign immediately, after remarks she made about the October 7 massacres by Hamas.

In an interview with the Knesset channel earlier today, Khatib-Yasin asserted the videos circulated by the IDF of the atrocities committed by Hamas did not show “rape of women” nor “slaughtering of babies.”

Though admitting she had not seen the video herself, Khatib-Yasin claimed she heard from three party members who watched it that it did not contain footage of those acts, but if indeed they had indeed taken place, they would have been “shameful.”

Rocket alerts activated in Gaza border towns

Incoming rocket alerts sound in numerous communities bordering the Gaza Strip.

4 suspects nabbed for stealing from protest encampment set up by families of hostages

Police say they have arrested four suspects for stealing from a protest encampment in Tel Aviv set up by families of Israelis being held hostage by Palestinian terrorists in Gaza.

A statement from the force says officers tracked down the stolen property and returned to its owners, adding the four suspects were taken in for questioning.

Rocket alerts activated in Beersheba

Rocket warning alerts sound in Beersheba, as Palestinian terrorists in Gaza appear to target launch rockets at the southern city.

Sirens are also activated in Hatzerim, a nearby kibbutz that houses an air force base.

Netanyahu: No ceasefire unless Hamas releases hostages

In this handout photo, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tours the Israeli Air Force's Ramon base on November 5, 2023. (Kobi Gideon/GPO)

Touring an Israeli Air Force base, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterates that Israel will not agree to a ceasefire in Gaza unless the Hamas terror group releases the hostages it is holding.

“Take this [word “ceasefire”] out of the lexicon. We say this to both our enemies and friends. We will continue until we defeat them; we do not have an alternative,” Netanyahu is quoted saying in a statement from his office.

Speaking with air force personnel, he also alludes to opposition in the ranks to his government’s now-paused judicial overhaul, which earlier this year drew protests from some reservists who announced they would stop reporting for volunteer reserve duty.

“Our enemies mistook us. They thought that on the crucial day, [soldiers] would not show up. We showed up together and now we are fighting shoulder to shoulder,” the premier says.

Herzog accepts credentials of new US Ambassador Jack Lew

New US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew (left) presents his credentials to President Isaac Herzog at the President's Residence on November 5, 2023 in Jerusalem. (Screenshot)

President Isaac Herzog accepts the credentials of US Ambassador Jack Lew, whose confirmation as the new American envoy in Jerusalem was fast-tracked due to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

“A crisis is always when you’re reminded who you’re friends are. This is true of people and true of countries. I am speaking for all Israelis when I say that never has American friendship been more evident or more valued than it is today,” Herzog tells Lew during a ceremony at the President’s Residence.

“We are grateful for everything that the United States of America has done for us and is doing as we speak. We will never forget it,” Herzog adds.

The president says Lew is taking up his ambassadorial post at “a tipping point for Israel and the region, maybe for the world,” citing the October 7 massacres by Hamas “that changed this country forever.”

“This war is about much more than Israel and Hamas,” Herzog continues. “It is about whether the world will accept the violation of our basic values as human beings.”

Speaking after Herzog, Lew says “these are not normal times.”

“This past month has tested Israel and it has also proven that the bond between our nations is unshakable. As two great democracies, we share values that underlie how we make decisions and explains why we remain so close,” he says.

Lew adds that he met earlier in the day with the families of hostages held by Hamas: “There are no words to explain the pain they feel and we share.” He says working to secure their release will be a “top priority.”

“The United States stands with you, we will work together and our resolve remains strong,” Lew says.

UK’s Johnson: Marchers for ‘Free Palestine’ are condoning the brutality of the Hamas terrorists

Former British prime minister Boris Johnson in Israel on November 5, 2023. (Channel 12 screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the copyright law)

Former British prime minister Boris Johnson, visiting Israel, says he is here “to show my support, my solidarity, with the people of Israel after that appalling attack” on  October 7, “the worst atrocity, the worst massacre of Jewish people, that we’ve seen since the Second World War.”

Speaking to Channel 12 news, he says he also wants to highlight that “since that appalling massacre of October 7, you’re seeing a kind of fog descend, a moral fog, and I just want to remind people of the absolute barbarism of what took place
and to make it clear that Israel has the right to defend itself.”

His key point, he says, is that “there can be no moral equivalence between the terrorism of Hamas and the actions of the Israeli Defense Forces.”

Asked about the massive protests in the UK in support of Hamas and condemning Israel, Johnson replies: “My message is: look at the facts. Look at what happened to those poor innocent people — those people in the kibbutz, those people at the music festival. They were entirely blameless civilian targets.”

He says he talked this morning to IDF soldiers, “and it was so clear that they are trained to avoid civilian targets, they’re trained to do everything they can to minimize innocent loss of life, minimize suffering. It is the exact opposite of the objectives of the Hamas terrorists.”

“I would say to everybody marching across the world right now, supposedly in support of ‘free Palestine,’ in fact what they are doing, whether they intend it or not, is condoning the brutality and the murder that was conducted by those Hamas terrorists — and which, by the way, they would do again,” says Johnson.

“And that is why it is so important that Israel is given the time and the space to do what it needs to do — to catch the murderers and to make sure that they can’t do it again.”

Asked about rising antisemitism in the UK, with many Jews feeling unsafe walking the streets of London, Johnson notes that he used to be the mayor of London “and it’s one of the safest big cities in the world.”

“But I don’t think that we should tolerate antisemitism. I don’t think that we should tolerate inflammatory language, incitement to persecution of any group, in our city and in our country.”

He goes on: “I want people also to understand: Antisemitism is like a spore of a virus. The tragic truth is that for centuries it lurks beneath the floorboards — in Western Europe, across the world.” He says, “People are misled, misguided into expressing this kind of nonsense.”

Stresses Johnson: I want to… try to draw the contrast between what I see as Israel, a decent, civilized democracy that has been cruelly and barbarically attacked, trying to deal with the immense moral complexities that throws up… and the savagery of the Hamas terrorists. I just think the world needs to focus on that.”

Asked whether October 7 and the protests in support of Hamas mark a wake-up call for the UK and Europe, Johnson says: “It shows we can never be complacent about antisemitism. It shows we’ve got to be vigilant. But I’m afraid it also shows that Hamas has become, perhaps always was, an ISIS-like death cult. And it is going to require a security solution.

“Everybody can see how difficult it is going to be for the IDF, the Israeli security forces, to deal with this on the ground. I’m afraid tragic mistakes are going to be made. But the challenge has been placed by Hamas. They’ve caused, I’m afraid, an appalling moral problem for the Israeli forces.”

IDF releases new intel detailing Hamas use of Gaza hospitals for terror

A picture shows the Rumah Sakit Indonesia hospital in Gaza City on November 1, 2023. (Bashar TALEB / AFP)

In a briefing to international media outlets, IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari reveals new intelligence information and evidence showing Hamas’s use of medical facilities in the Gaza Strip for terror purposes.

Hagari presents a video showing an underground entrance from Sheikh Hamad Hospital, which he says connects to Hamas tunnel networks.

Another video shows Hamas gunmen opening fire at Israeli forces from the hospital.

“If it weren’t enough that we exposed a tunnel under the hospital, the terrorists also shot at our soldiers from within the hospital,” Hagari says.

In a briefing to international media outlets, IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari reveals new intelligence information and evidence showing Hamas's use of medical facilities in the Gaza Strip for terror purposes.

Hagari presents a video showing an underground entrance from… pic.twitter.com/CzRyXnwnel

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 5, 2023

He says the IDF has intelligence of a tunnel network under the so-called Indonesian Hospital, as well as aerial imagery showing rocket launchers a few dozen meters from the complex.

“Hamas systematically built the Indonesian Hospital to disguise its underground terror infrastructure,” Hagari says.

He also presents recordings of calls between Hamas officials describing their use of fuel reserves that belong to the Indonesian Hospital.

The IDF has previously accused Hamas of having its main base of operations under Shifa Hospital, the largest medical center in Gaza, as well as hoarding fuel for terror purposes.

Separately, Hagari says the IDF has carried out intense efforts to warn Palestinians to evacuate from northern Gaza to its south.

He says the Israeli Air Force dropped more than one and a half million fliers in northern Gaza, and made over 20,000 phone calls to key people in those areas, in order to get the civilian population to evacuate.

“Our war is with Hamas, not the civilians in Gaza. We will not accept Hamas’s cynical use of hospitals, to hide their terror infrastructure. Hamas’s exploitation of hospitals must come to an end,” Hagari says.

Sirens sound in Gaza border towns

Rocket warning sirens are activated in the southern city of Sderot and two other communities near the Gaza border.

Blinken tells Abbas US is committed to ‘realization of the Palestinians’ legitimate aspirations’

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist terror group Hamas, in Ramallah in the West Bank, November 5, 2023. (Jonathan Ernst/Pool photo via AP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during his meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah earlier today, stressed Washington’s commitment to work “toward the realization of the Palestinians’ legitimate aspirations for the establishment of a Palestinian state,” the State Department says in its readout.

US readouts since the war have begun stressing this point after two years of more generic messaging about how Palestinians and Israelis deserve equal measures of freedom and rights.

Forum of business leaders urges government to focus on helping economy during war

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) speaks with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich during a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on June 18, 2023. (Amit Shabi/Pool)

A forum of 200 leading businesses is urging the government to stop the transfer of coalition funds and instead put into effect an economic wartime aid plan.

In a public plea to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the business forum, which consists of the heads of about 200 of the largest companies in the Israeli economy, calls for the government to take immediate steps to ensure the economic resilience of the home front.

“Although we are already a month into the war, a substantial economic plan has not yet been launched to support the economy in general, and affected businesses and households in particular,” the business forum writes in a statement. “Most of the statements have not yet become actions, and in the meantime hundreds of businesses are collapsing and so are households.”

“It’s time to stop talking and start taking action!” the forum insists.
In addition, the forum demands that the government fundamentally change the order of priorities in the state budget to prevent a long-term economic disaster.

“All coalition budgets and any other budget that is not related to the management of the war or supporting the economy must be diverted solely for the purposes of financing the war and economic strengthening of the home front – businesses and households – while focusing on creating long-term growth,” the forum declares.

Saudi Arabia decries minister’s ‘extremist’ suggestion that Israel nuke Gaza

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on January 8, 2023. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

The Saudi foreign ministry condemns the “extremist” suggestion by Heritage Minister Avichai Eliyahu that Israel might drop a nuclear bomb on Gaza, saying that it “shows to what extent extremism and brutality have penetrated the Israeli government.”

The fact that Eliyahu was only suspended and not immediately fired, the Saudi statement continues, “reflects the Israeli government’s disregard for all values of humanity, morality, religion and law.”

PA should play central role in Gaza’s post-Hamas future, Blinken said to tell Abbas

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the meeting in Ramallah earlier today that the PA should play a central role in the Gaza Strip’s future if and when Israel’s goal of rooting out Hamas there is fulfilled, according to the Reuters news agency, which cites an unnamed senior State Department official.

“The future of Gaza was not the focus of the meeting but the Palestinian Authority seemed willing to play a role,” the report says.

One Israeli hurt from anti-tank missile, as IDF confirms attack from Lebanon

Israeli forces make their way to the scene of an anti-tank guide missile attack from Lebanon on a vehicle near Kibbutz Yiftah, near the border with Lebanon, November 5, 2023. (David Cohen/Flash90)

The Israel Defense Forces confirms reports of anti-tank guided missile fire from Lebanon at the Yiftah area.

The IDF says it is striking the source of the missile fire.

One Israeli is hurt in the attack.

Blinken meets Cyprus leader, thanks country for hosting Americans who fled Israel

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is making a short detour on his urgent Middle East diplomacy tour, stopping in Cyprus where he’s meeting the nation’s leader.

The State Department says Blinken is meeting briefly with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos mainly to thank them for Cyprus’s role in temporarily hosting some American citizens who fled from Israel in the first weeks of the Gaza war.

The US chartered at least one cruise liner that took Americans from the port of Haifa to Larnaca as Israel’s military operations against Hamas intensified and the terror group accelerated rocket attacks on Israeli cities and towns following its Octover 7 massacres.

Blinken is on his way to Turkey to meet senior officials tomorrow.

At least 1 said hurt in anti-tank missile attack from Lebanon on vehicle in Israel

An anti-tank guided missile launched from Lebanon has reportedly struck a vehicle near the northern community of Yiftah.

Several Hebrew media outlets report that at least one person is wounded in the strike.

There is no immediate comment from the military on the incident.

Thousands rally in London for release of captives held by Hamas

Thousands of people demonstrate at London’s Parliament Square, singing songs for peace and demanding the release of over 240 hostages kidnapped by terror group Hamas and held in the Gaza Strip.

Incredible scenes in Parliament Square as thousands sing songs of peace and call for the return of the 240 kidnapped by Hamas pic.twitter.com/em22yDbPtt

— Jewish News (@JewishNewsUK) November 5, 2023

Abbas: PA will take responsibility for Gaza if comprehensive political solution reached

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah on November 5, 2023 (JONATHAN ERNST / POOL / AFP)

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas says during a meeting in Ramallah with US State Secretary Anthony Blinken that the PA is ready to shoulder full responsibility for the Gaza Strip in the framework of a comprehensive political solution that will include the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza after Israel’s war against the Hamas terror group ends.

Abbas stresses that security and peace can only be achieved by ending Israel’s military rule over the territories of the “State of Palestine,” and by recognizing East Jerusalem as its capital.

Abbas also reiterates that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), which runs the PA, is the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people and its sole decision-maker, thereby disavowing rival party Hamas, the terror group that has controlled the Gaza Strip since evicting the PA in a bloody 2007 coup.

The statement comes amid speculation about who will run the coastal enclave in the future and concerns about a power vacuum, as Israel has vowed to eradicate Hamas in the ongoing war.

Rocket alarms sound in Lebanon border town of Arab al-Aramshe

Incoming rocket sirens are sounding in the northern village of Arab al-Aramshe on the Lebanon border.

The alerts come amid repeated rocket and missile attacks by Hezbollah and allied Palestinian terror factions from southern Lebanon on northern Israel.

Blinken condemns settler violence, tells Abbas Gazans must not be ‘forcibly displaced’

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) meets with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah on November 5, 2023 (JONATHAN ERNST / POOL / AFP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has told Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas that Palestinians in Gaza “must not be forcibly displaced,” a State Department spokesman says.

Blinken met with Abbas in Ramallah as he made a visit to the West Bank as violence surges there in tandem with the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller says the pair also discussed “the need to stop extremist violence against Palestinians” in the West Bank, presumably referring to recent acts committed by extremist settlers.

IDF: Iron Dome intercepted drone from Lebanon; troops returning fire after anti-tank fire

A drone approaching Israeli airspace from Lebanon was intercepted by the Iron Dome air defense system earlier today, the military says.

The Israel Defense Forces says the drone was tracked throughout its flight by Air Force systems, and it was intercepted “deep within Lebanon,” without ever penetrating Israeli airspace.

Separately, the IDF says a number of anti-tank guided missiles were fired at an area near the northern community of Avivim, and rockets were fired at the Malkia area on the Lebanon border.

No injuries have been caused in the attacks, and the IDF says troops are responding with artillery shelling toward the sources of the fire.

Air raid sirens sound in Netivot

Rocket alarms blare in the city Netivot, near Gaza.

There are no immediate reports of impacts in the city, some of whose residents have left following Hamas’s October 7 atrocities and the frequent rocket fire ever since.

Palestinian Authority condemns ‘fascist’ Eliyahu over remark on nuking Gaza

The Palestinian Authority foreign ministry issues a statement condemning the assertion by Israeli Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu that dropping a nuclear bomb on the Gaza Strip is an option.

“The statements by fascist minister Eliyahu are an honest declaration and clear acknowledgment of what the occupying state [Israel] is doing against our people… particularly in Gaza,” says the statement.

Eliyahu’s comments were quickly disavowed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who also suspended the minister from cabinet meetings.

After months of refusal, Justice Minister Levin agrees to convene judge-selecting panel

Justice Minister Yariv Levin seen during a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on September 10, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

After over 10 months in office, Justice Minister Yariv Levin agrees to convene the Judicial Selection Committee and says he will present it with “decisions over which there is broad consensus.”

A spokesperson for the minister says this means he will work towards finding judicial appointments that can be approved with broad consensus by the committee.

Attorneys representing Levin in petitions to the High Court against his refusal to convene the panel write to the court that he has agreed to bring the committee together within 15 days, adding that he is doing so “to avoid dispute.”

Levin has refused to convene the crucial committee, which appoints all judges, due to his stated desire to first change the composition of the panel to give the government control over appointments. This was one of the most central and controversial aims of the hard-right government as part of its judicial overhaul plan, which has been put aside since Hamas’s October 7 onslaught and the ensuing war.

A hearing at the High Court of Justice on petitions demanding that the court order Levin to convene the committee is currently set for November 12, but could now be postponed due to the justice minister’s announcement.

In Qatar, French FM urges ‘immediate humanitarian truce’ in Israel-Hamas war

France’s Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna calls for an “immediate” humanitarian pause in the Israel-Hamas war as casualties climb in the besieged Gaza Strip, whose population is living on dwindling supplies plundered by the Palestinian terror group.

“An immediate, durable and observed humanitarian truce is absolutely necessary and must be able to lead to a ceasefire,” Colonna tells reporters during a visit to Qatar.

Israel, whose offensive is aimed at vanquishing Hamas, which rules the Strip, has rejected a ceasefire since it would allow the group to restock and regroup.

IDF shares footage of troops finding rocket launchers near Gaza playground, pool, homes

Hamas rocket launchers found by Israeli troops within a playground and amusement park compound in the northern Gaza Strip, November 5, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)

Israeli ground forces operating in the northern Gaza Strip have located Hamas rocket launchers in close proximity to a swimming pool and a playground, the Israel Defense Forces reveals.

The IDF shares footage of troops locating the rocket-launching positions, amid efforts to uncover and destroy Hamas infrastructure.

Israeli ground forces operating in the northern Gaza Strip have located Hamas rocket launchers in close proximity to a swimming pool and a playground, the IDF reveals. pic.twitter.com/WQbVX2IPps

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 5, 2023

Troops of the 551st Brigade find four underground launchers some five meters (16 feet) from a children’s swimming pool, and around 30 meters from residential homes in the northern Gaza Strip, footage shows.

Another clip shows troops of the 401st Brigade locating a number of rocket launchers within a children’s playground and amusement park compound.

“This is further proof of the Hamas terror organization’s constant use of the civilian population as a human shield for terror purposes,” the IDF says in a statement.

Blinken meets Palestinian Authority President Abbas in West Bank visit

This handout picture provided by the Palestinian Authority's press office (PPO) shows Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (R) meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the West Bank city of Ramallah on November, 5, 2023, amid ongoing battles between Israel and terror group Hamas. (Photo by PPO / AFP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has made a high-security, previously unannounced visit to the West Bank, meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, according to photographs released by the PA.

The top US diplomat met with Abbas in Ramallah as global concern grows over rising violence in the West Bank in tandem with the Israel-Hamas war raging in Gaza since the terror group’s October 7 massacres.

Blinken has visited Israel three times since the start of the war, but this is his first trip to the West Bank.

The plan to hold the meeting was first reported by The Times of Israel yesterday.

Centrist parties oppose cabinet initiative to give Haredi schools NIS 300 million during war

Centrist parties criticize a government initiative to approve later today some NIS 300 million ($76 million) for Haredi educational institutions, arguing that aid to the hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people and others affected by the war with Hamas must take precedence.

“Transferring money for any purpose other than strengthening the residents of the south and north, bereaved families and relatives of the hostages, along with various war efforts, is wrong both economically and morally at this time,” says Benny Gantz’s National Unity party, which joined the government to form a wartime cabinet.

The party says it has told the ruling Likud party that it will oppose providing funds for other matters as long as not all wartime causes have been budgeted.

The opposition Yesh Atid party backs National Unity’s stance.

The planned transfer of the money to Haredi schools was frozen after the war broke out, which means the government must reapprove its unfreezing.

IDF says Islamic State operative killed, 36 suspects arrested overnight in West Bank

A view of roadblocks over a destroyed street at the Jenin camp in the West Bank on November 4, 2023, as violence surges amid the war between Israel and Palestinian terror group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. (Photo by Aris MESSINIS / AFP)

The Israel Defense Forces says troops killed an Islamic State operative and detained 36 wanted Palestinians, including 18 Hamas members, during overnight raids across the West Bank.

Israeli forces had entered the village of Abu Dis, on the outskirts of Jerusalem, to arrest Nabil Halabia, a Palestinian affiliated with the Islamic State jihadist movement and until recently jailed in Israel.

The IDF says that from the moment Halabia was released in July, he “recruited a squad, purchased weapons and carried out a shooting attack against IDF forces in the area.”

“When forces arrived to arrest him, the terrorist opened fire, and in the exchange of fire, he was shot and killed,” the IDF says, adding that troops seized Halabia’s makeshift submachine gun.

Troops also operated in the West Bank cities of Jenin and Hebron, with some clashes reported.

Since October 7, the IDF says troops have arrested 1,350 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 850 affiliated with Hamas.

According to the Palestinian Authority health ministry, more than 130 West Bank Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, and in some cases by settlers, since October 7.

The IDF also says that on Friday, the head of the Central Command, Maj. Gen. Yehuda Fox, signed a demolition order for the home of Kamel Abu Bakr, the terrorist behind a deadly Tel Aviv shooting in August. Abu Bakr, from the village of Rummanah, killed Tel Aviv patrolman Chen Amir.

IDF announces death of Sgt. Yehonatan Maimon in Gaza, raising ground op toll to 29

Sgt. Yehonatan Maimon (Israel Defense Forces)

The Israel Defense Forces announces the death of a soldier killed during the ground operation in the Gaza Strip.

He is named as Sgt. Yehonatan Maimon, 20, of the Nahal Brigade’s reconnaissance unit, from Ofakim.

Maimon was killed yesterday during fighting in the northern Gaza Strip.

His death brings the toll of slain soldiers in Israel’s ground offensive in Gaza to 29, and 346 since October 7.

Additionally, another soldier of the Nahal Brigade’s reconnaissance unit and a reservist officer in the Armored Corps were seriously wounded during the fighting, the IDF adds.

Air raid sirens heard in 2 northern communities

Incoming rocket sirens are sounding in the northern communities of Avivim and Yir’on, close to the Lebanon border.

The alerts come amid repeated rocket and missile attacks by Hezbollah and allied Palestinian terror factions from southern Lebanon on northern Israel.

There have also been several false alarms in northern Israel amid the heightened tensions.

Smotrich announces aid for businesses up to 40 km from Gaza, surprising treasury officials

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich says during a discussion of government aid to ailing businesses deeply affected by the ongoing war that compensation will be paid to businesses located up to 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the Gaza border, to make it include cities such as Ashdod and Beersheba.

Last week, the government approved aid to businesses up to 20 kilometers from the Strip.

Finance Ministry officials tell the Ynet news site that Smotrich’s remark is the first they’re hearing of this expansion of aid, saying it will cost billions and will prompt pressure from more municipalities to get compensation, such as Rishon Lezion which has suffered “no less and even more” rocket impacts than Ashdod or Beersheba.

Report: IDF commander suspends reservist for criticizing him online 7 months ago

File: Col. Avinoam Emunah during a military ceremony in 2020. (Israel Defense Forces)

A senior IDF official has reportedly ordered the suspension from duty of a reserve soldier in his brigade due to criticism the serviceman voiced of him on social media seven months ago.

Col. Avinoam Emunah, commander of the Hermon Brigade, used his authority to take revenge on the reservist, Channel 12 news reports.

Earlier this year, Emunah met National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir to check the option of being appointed as head of the national guard, which the far-right minister was and still is planning to form. Channel 12 says Emunah had violated army rules by having the meeting.

The reservist at the time criticized Emunah over the meeting.

When war erupted last month, he was called up to the northern front and was stationed there until last week, when Emunah ordered his direct commander to suspend him from duty immediately.

The report cites unnamed members of the unit as saying that after the reservist went home, Emunah told him to “not come back.”

The IDF hasn’t commented on the incident.

Ministers said to dismiss PM’s sanction on minister as meaningless

Government ministers are reportedly saying that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s suspension of Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu from cabinet meetings — after the latter said nuking Gaza is an option — is meaningless.

“This is a joke, there barely are any cabinet meetings anyway, and most of the work is being done in rounds of votes by phone,” an unnamed minister is quoted as saying by the Ynet news site.

A cabinet meeting scheduled for today has been canceled, with no alternative date set.

Netanyahu suspends from cabinet meetings minister who touted option of nuking Gaza

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu arrives at a meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on January 29, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suspends Heritage Minister Amihai Eliyahu from government meetings indefinitely, the premier’s office announces.

Earlier today, Eliyahu indicated Israel might consider dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza, which he later walked back as a “metaphorical” remark.

The remark has been slammed across the political spectrum, including by Netanyahu who called it “detached from reality.”

Israel trying to get footage of Hamas atrocities screened at parliaments around the world

Israel is working to spread the footage of massacres perpetrated by Hamas on October 7 to parliaments and press offices around the world, at the instruction of Foreign Minister Eli Cohen.

Legislatures in the US, Germany, the UK and Japan have already seen the videos, which were initially screened to journalists in Israel, and later to the Knesset.

“Hamas monsters documented their atrocities against our civilians using inhumane boasting,” says Cohen. “We will tell the entire world, through the movie screening, the unbelievable cruelty from bloodthirsty terrorists who killed entire families and celebrated the harsh violence.”

IDF: Sirens in north caused by Iron Dome interceptor launched at target entering from Lebanon

The Israel Defense Forces says incoming rocket sirens that sounded in the northern community of Mattat a short while ago were caused by an Iron Dome interceptor launch.

The IDF says the Iron Dome missile was fired at a suspicious target that entered Israeli airspace from Lebanon. It is unclear what the target was, and whether it was actually intercepted.

Earlier today there was a false alarm in the northern community of Misgav Am.

Minister says his remark about nuking Gaza was ‘metaphorical’

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu attempts to walk back his widely slammed assertion that dropping an atomic bomb on Gaza is one of Israel’s options, tweeting that “it’s clear to anyone with a brain that the remark about the atom was metaphorical.”

He adds that “we indeed must display a forceful and disproportional response to terror, which will clarify to the Nazis and their supporters that terrorism isn’t worthwhile. This is the only formula with which democracies can deal with terror.

“Simultaneously, it is clear that the State of Israel is obligated to do everything to return the captives alive and in good health.”

Lapid slams Eliyahu’s ‘horrifying and insane remark,’ urges PM to promptly fire him

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid lambastes Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu’s assertion that dropping a nuclear bomb on the Gaza Strip is a possibility, branding it “a horrifying and insane remark by an irresponsible minister.”

“He offended the families of the [241 Gaza] captives, offended Israeli society and harmed our international standing,” Lapid says. “The presence of the extremists in the government endangers us and the success of the war goals — defeating Hamas and returning the hostages.

“Netanyahu must fire him this morning.”

Netanyahu says minister’s remark about nuking Gaza is ‘detached from reality’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly disavows Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu’s contention that dropping a nuclear bomb on the Gaza Strip is a possibility.

“Amichai Eliyahu’s words are detached from reality,” Netanyahu says in a statement. “Israel and the IDF are acting in accordance with the highest standards of international law in order to prevent harm to uninvolved people, and we will continue to do that all the way to victory.”

Rocket alert blares in northern community amid repeated fire from Lebanon

Incoming rocket sirens are sounding in the northern community of Mattat, close to the Lebanon border.

The alerts come amid repeated rocket and missile attacks by Hezbollah and allied Palestinian terror factions from southern Lebanon on northern Israel.

Chad recalls its top envoy in Israel, slamming deaths of ‘many innocents in Gaza’

Chad recalls its charge d’affaires from Israel, denouncing the “loss of life of many innocent citizens in Gaza.”

The African country calls for a ceasefire “that will lead to a stable solution for the Palestinian question.”

It becomes the sixth country to recall its top envoy from Israel during the war with the Hamas terror group, following in the footsteps of Turkey, Honduras, Chile, Colombia and Jordan.

Today, #Chad recalled its chargé d'affaires from #Israel amid increasing violence in #Gaza, and called for a ceasefire. pic.twitter.com/aIx9CSjQtk

— Patrick Heinisch (@PatrickHeinisc1) November 4, 2023

Far-right minister: Nuking Gaza is an option, population should ‘go to Ireland or deserts’

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu attends a ceremony at the Knesset, in Jerusalem, on June 19, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

A minister from the extremist Otzma Yehudit party says one of Israel’s options in the war in Gaza is to drop a nuclear bomb on the Strip.

Asked in an interview with Radio Kol Berama whether he was suggesting that some kind of nuclear bomb might be dropped on the enclave, Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu says “That’s one way.”

Eliyahu, of Itamar Ben Gvir’s far-right party, is not part of the security cabinet which is involved in the wartime decision-making, nor does he hold sway over the war cabinet directing the war against the Hamas terror group.

Eliyahu also voices his objection during the interview to allowing any humanitarian aid into Gaza, saying “we wouldn’t hand the Nazis humanitarian aid,” and charging that “there is no such thing as uninvolved civilians in Gaza.”

He backs retaking the Strip’s territory and restoring the settlements there. Asked about the fate of the Palestinian population, he says: “They can go to Ireland or deserts, the monsters in Gaza should find a solution by themselves.”

He says the northern Strip has no right to exist, adding that anyone waving a Palestinian or Hamas flag “shouldn’t continue living on the face of the earth.”

IDF says 2,500 Gaza targets struck since ground op began, battles continued overnight

A handout photo shows IDF forces operating in the Gaza Strip, in pictures distributed on November 5, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)

The Israel Defense Forces says that since the beginning of the ground offensive in the Gaza Strip a week ago, it has struck more than 2,500 targets by land, air and navy forces.

Overnight, the IDF says, troops continued battles with Hamas terror operatives in northern Gaza.

It says ground forces also directed aircraft to strike Hamas infrastructure, weapons storage sites, observation posts and command centers.

The IDF does not immediately provide new information on potential casualties among Israeli forces.

IDF says that since the start of the ground offensive in the Gaza Strip it has struck more than 2,500 targets. The IDF also reports several gun battles with Hamas overnight, and publishes footage showing troops operating in Gaza. pic.twitter.com/tOCaraRran

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) November 5, 2023

כוחות צה"ל ממשיכים לחסל מחבלים בקרבות פנים אל פנים ולהכווין כלי טיס להשמיד תשתיות טרור, מחסני אמצעי לחימה, עמדות תצפית ומפקדות מבצעיות של ארגון הטרור חמאס ברצועת עזה. pic.twitter.com/Xx7NVueZZO

— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) November 5, 2023

PA says 9 arrested by IDF in Jenin; no troops said hurt amid gunfire, bombing

Official Palestinian Authority news agency Wafa reports that one person was injured and nine were arrested overnight as IDF forces operated in the West Bank’s Jenin.

According to the Ynet news site, the Israeli troops were attempting to locate and defuse explosive devices hidden in the ground, presumably with the goal of harming soldiers in the future.

The report says there were no Israeli casualties, despite gunfights with Palestinian gunmen and Hamas claiming its terror operatives detonated bombs near the Israeli forces.

Rocket alarms blare in Gaza-area towns for 3rd time this morning

Air raid sirens are sounding in several Gaza border towns for the third time this morning.

There are no immediate reports of impact, casualties or damage following the rocket alerts in Mivtahim, Amioz and Yesha, which along with many other communities have largely been evacuated.

Former Australian PM Morrison, ex-UK leader Johnson arrive in Israel to show support

Former British prime minister Boris Johnson and former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison have arrived in Israel for a surprise solidarity visit in which they’ll reportedly meet President Isaac Herzog and relatives of hostage held in Gaza by terrorists.

The former leaders, both supportive of Israel during their tenures, are also set to tour southern Gaza border towns devastated by the October 7 Hamas onslaught.

The visit is hosted by Likud MK Danny Danon, a former Israeli envoy to the UN.

Early this morning, at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport, I received my friends Boris Johnson, the former Prime Minister of Great Britain and Scott Morrison, the former Prime Minister of Australia – both true friends of Israel.
During the day we will visit Israel's Southern communities… pic.twitter.com/kGgHsCp2yz

— Danny Danon ???????? דני דנון (@dannydanon) November 5, 2023

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Morrison says he’s “thankful for the opportunity to join former prime minister Johnson to come to Israel as a demonstration of solidarity with the people and State of Israel and the Jewish community throughout the world.

“It is an opportunity to understand firsthand what is occurring on the ground, honor those who have been lost, show support to those who have suffered and are now engaged in this terrible conflict and discuss how to move forward.”

Republican Jewish Coalition slams Obama remark, charges ex-president strengthened Hamas

The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) slams former US president Barack Obama, accusing him of being “complicit in the death and suffering over the last month in Israel and in Gaza” due to his past policies, after Obama criticized Hamas but also Israel on a podcast.

“What Hamas did was horrific and there’s no justification for it, and what is also true is that the occupation, and what is happening to Palestinians, is unbearable,” Obama told a panel hosted by the Pod Save America podcast manned by his former administration staffers, receiving applause.

Obama: “What Hamas did was horrific, and there is no justification for it. And what is also true is that the occupation, and what’s happening to Palestinians, is unbearable…

“You have to admit that all of us are complicit to some degree.” pic.twitter.com/FtAGFAexz1

— Yonah Lieberman ???? (@YonahLieberman) November 4, 2023

RJC responds: “At a time when morality, international law, and the welfare of our chief ally in the Middle East all demand that we stand with Israel, full stop, Barack Obama says it’s complicated. It’s not.”

Detailing Hamas’s atrocities and exploitation of Gaza’s resources and civilians, the RJC says: “Hamas is to blame for the current war. The US should be fully behind Israel as it seeks to end Hamas’s capability to harm Israelis and Gazans alike. But instead, when Israel faces a barbaric attack from Hamas, Obama blames Israel.”

The group charges that Obama’s policies as president, as well as those of President Joe Biden, “put billions of dollars into Iranian coffers, money used to fund and train Hamas and other terrorist groups whose stated goals are the destruction of Israel and the annihilation of Jews.

“Obama’s attempt to dilute his own culpability in this situation doesn’t change the facts.”

Hamas says it bombed Israeli troops entering Jenin

Hamas’s al-Qassam Brigades claims that members of its Jenin battalion are facing off against Israeli forces entering the West Bank city and refugee camp.

The group claims it is denoting bombs against troops and armored bulldozers, the latest clash in the city, which has seen repeated battles on a nearly nightly basis for the past week.

Footage, which cannot be verified, appears to show at least one large blast in the city.

The moment of a powerful explosion caused by a bomb detonated in an Israeli occupation army vehicle during the incursion into the vicinity of the #Jenin camp,#WestBank.#Gaza#PalestineGenocide #فلسطين_الان #ولعت #Palestine #PalestineHolocaust #غزة_الآن pic.twitter.com/o1cmnmXGPQ

— أ7مد افندي (@a7med_afandi) November 5, 2023

IDF says sirens in northern border town were false alarm

The Israel Defense Forces says rocket sirens that sounded in the community of Misgav Am about half an hour earlier were a false alarm.

Misgav Am sits on the Israel-Lebanon border, an area that saw several bouts of cross-border shelling Saturday.

New rocket alert [05:34:04] – 1 Red alert:

• Confrontation line — Misgav Am#Israel #RocketAlert #RedAlert pic.twitter.com/n1oetx9mO8

— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) November 5, 2023

Obama: Hamas attacks were horrific, but you need to look at ‘unbearable’ occupation too

Tiptoeing carefully, former US president Barack Obama condemns the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, while also urging people to “take in the whole truth.”

“If there’s any chance of us being able to act constructively, to do something, it will require an admission of complexity,” Obama says on a panel hosted by the Pod Save America podcast manned by his former administration staffers.

“That what Hamas did was horrific and there’s no justification for it, and what is also true is that the occupation, and what is happening to Palestinians, is unbearable,” he says to applause.

Obama: “What Hamas did was horrific, and there is no justification for it. And what is also true is that the occupation, and what’s happening to Palestinians, is unbearable…

“You have to admit that all of us are complicit to some degree.” pic.twitter.com/FtAGFAexz1

— Yonah Lieberman ???? (@YonahLieberman) November 4, 2023

Obama goes on to juxtapose stories of the Holocaust and “the madness of antisemitism” with the fact that “there are people right now who are dying, who had nothing to do with what Hamas did.”

“If you want to solve the problem, then you have to take in the whole truth,” he says. “And then you have to admit nobody’s hands are clean, that all of us are complicit to some degree.”

Last month, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres came under harsh censure from Israel for noting that Hamas’s attacks “did not occur in a vacuum,” which Israeli officials interpreted as a justification for terror.

IDF says it will open Gaza evacuation route again despite Saturday attack

IDF Arabic Spokesman Avichay Adraee says Israel will reopen a corridor for Gazan civilians in the north of the Strip to escape south on Sunday, despite coming under attack while trying to open the road Saturday.

Adraee writes on X that Israel will open Salah-al-Din Street for southward traffic between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday.

“For your safety, take advantage of the time to move south beyond Wadi Gaza,” he says, reiterating the Israeli military’s long-standing insistence that civilians move out of harm’s way by heading to the south of Gaza.

#عاجل يا سكان غزة،
????قامت حماس اليوم باطلاق قذائف هاون وأخرى مضادة للدروع نحو قواتنا التي حرصت على فتح الطريق من شمال قطاع غزة نحو جنوبه لتتمكنوا من حماية أنفسكم. عناصر حماس نفذوا ذلك لانهم أرادوا ان تبقوا دروعًا بشرية لهم ولقادتهم.
????أود أن أخبركم أنه بالرغم من ذلك فان جيش… pic.twitter.com/Z2LIs4J2FR

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) November 4, 2023

Some 800,000 people are thought to have fled south so far, though many have insisted on staying in the enclave’s north, noting humanitarian woes and airstrikes taking place in the south as well.

Israel has concentrated most of its air power and ground forces in the north of Gaza, surrounding Gaza City from three sides as it seeks to eliminate the Strip’s Hamas rulers entrenched in the city.

Adraee says that Hamas members fired mortars and anti-tank shells at troops when they tried to open the road on Saturday “because they wanted you to remain there as human shields for themselves and their leaders.”

An infographic released by the military on November 4, 2023, shows where the Israel Defense Forces says Hamas terrorists attacked Israeli troops as they worked to open an evacuation corridor for Palestinians in the northern Gaza Strip. (Israel Defense Forces)

No soldiers were hurt in the attack, the IDF said earlier.

The IDF has already accused Hamas of attempting to prevent Palestinians from evacuating northern Gaza, where the military has focused most of its airstrikes and ongoing ground offensive.

Troops said targeted by anti-tank fire near Kissufim

Troops operating in Israel near Kissufim on the Gaza border came under anti-tank missile fire recently, Hebrew media outlets report.

No troops were hurt in the attack and Israel returned fire, hitting its source, according to the reports.

There is no confirmation from the Israel Defense Forces.

Hamas’s al-Qassam brigades claim on Telegram that they fired anti-tank missiles at soldiers entering Gaza east of Khan Younis, in southern Gaza.

Protesters at White House call for elimination of Jewish state

A crowd of protesters from a pro-Palestinian rally earlier today in Washington have marched to the gate of the White House, where they are filmed chanting, “We don’t want a Jewish state. We want ‘48!”

The chant is a reference to the year 1948, when five Arab armies attacked the fledgling state of Israel seeking its destruction.

A group of protesters dip their hands in red paint and smear the concrete posts along the White House outer fence to symbolize blood being shed in Gaza.

Tens of thousands of people participated in today’s rally at Freedom Square near the White House.

https://twitter.com/stevennelson10/status/1720942051011735772?s=46&t=2QPPi9rxX2oLg7Aq3kCoOQ

Rapper Macklemore was one of the most high-profile participants to address the rally, saying, “I don’t know everything, but I know enough that this is a genocide.”

There were no immediate reports of arrests from the protest.

London police say 29 arrested at pro-Palestinian rally, including antisemitic speaker

A protester waves a Palestinian flag as people take part in a sit-in protest inside Charing Cross station following the 'London Rally For Palestine' in, central London on November 4, 2023, as they call for a ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. (JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)

London’s Metropolitan Police say they arrested 29 people at a pro-Palestinian rally at Trafalgar Square.

Police say they used facial recognition technology to track down and arrest a person seen on social media making an antisemitic speech.

Two others were arrested for “displaying a banner appearing to support a proscribed organisation,” according to a statement, likely referring to Hamas, which the UK considers a terror group.

Other arrests were for “inciting racial hatred, other racially motivated crimes, violence and assaulting a police officer.”

Four officers were injured by fireworks.

Met Police Commander Karen Findlay blames the violence and racism on troublemakers at the fringes of the protest, saying most of the estimated 30,000 at the rally demonstrated peacefully.

“It is disappointing that various splinter groups were again responsible for behaviour which has no place in London and we are determined to deal with this robustly,” she says in the statement.

Missile from Yemen downed over Saudi Arabia — report

Footage shared online purports to show a missile being downed over Saudi Arabia, allegedly fired from Yemen at Israel.

The video cannot be verified, and there is no immediate comment from authorities in Saudi Arabia.

تصدي الدفاعات الجوية السعودية لصاروخ يمني كان متجها لجنوب فلسطين المحتلة pic.twitter.com/9SLRvFUSrD

— Newpress | نيو برس (@NewpressPs) November 4, 2023

No air raid sirens are reported in Israel.

The interception allegedly occurs in the northwest of the country, near its border with Jordan.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels have claimed to shoot a number of drones and missiles at Israel in recent weeks, most of which have been intercepted.