Live updates (closed)
The Times of Israel liveblogged Wednesday’s events as they happened.
Syrian state TV reports Israeli ‘aggression’ in Homs countryside
An Israeli “aggression” is happening on Hasiya industrial city in Syria’s Homs countryside, Syrian state TV says.
US envoy slams Israel over Gaza humanitarian situation, effort to ban UNRWA operations
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, United States Ambassador to the United Nations, at the UN headquarters in New York, September 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)
US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield slams Israel’s handling of the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip along with its effort to ban UNRWA from operating in the Jewish state.
On Sunday, the IDF said that its troops had encircled the Gaza city of Jabaliya in a new ground operation targeting efforts by Hamas to reestablish itself in the northern Strip. Ahead of the operation, the IDF issued a fresh batch of evacuation orders for towns in the area and said it was readying to order the evacuation of all northern Gaza where tens of thousands of Palestinians still reside.
“The United States is concerned by the situation in northern Gaza, including the announcement by Israel of a new evacuation order for several communities. We are particularly concerned that Palestinian civilians have nowhere safe to go,” Thomas-Greenfield says during a Security Council session on the Middle East.
“Already, there are devastating reports of the squalid conditions in the humanitarian zone in southern and central Gaza, where more than 1.5 million displaced civilians have fled. These catastrophic conditions were predicted months ago, and yet, have still not been addressed. That must change, and now. We call on Israel to take urgent steps to do so, and I reiterate the United States’ expectation that Palestinian civilians, including those evacuated from the north be permitted to return to their communities and rebuild,” the US envoy adds.
“We are also concerned by recent actions by the Israeli government to limit the delivery of goods into Gaza. When combined with new bureaucratic limits placed on humanitarian goods arriving from Jordan, and the closure of most border crossings in recent weeks, these restrictions would only have the effect of intensifying suffering in Gaza,” says Thomas-Greenfield.
Turning to the Knesset’s recent advancement of legislation aiming to outlaw UNRWA’s operations in Israel and bar Israeli authorities from contacting officials from the UN relief agency for Palestinians, Thomas-Greenfielld says the US is “deeply concerned” by the proposals.
Noting the allegations facing UNRWA, she says only “a small percentage” of its staffers have ties to terror groups and participated in the October 7 onslaught.
“At the same time, we know that UN personnel, including from UNRWA, are vital to the humanitarian response in Gaza and face tremendous danger while performing their work,” the US envoy says, calling on Israel to provide more information regarding allegations against UNRWA and for the agency to do a better job addressing those concerns.
Lebanon says it arrested 2 Syrians on suspicion of spying for Israel
BEIRUT — The Lebanese army says it has arrested two Syrians on suspicion of having been recruited to work for Israel, as its military bombs Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
Lebanese army intelligence arrested two Syrians “for photographing different places… and documenting the results of enemy airstrikes,” an army statement on social network X says.
The arrests were “a result of surveillance and follow-up of Israeli spy networks and enemy agents,” it says in the statement.
The pair had also documented “search and rescue operations and the recovery of bodies” at Israeli strike sites and were “recruited through social media,” the statement says, adding that judicial authorities are investigating.
Lebanese security services have arrested dozens over the years on suspicions of collaborating with Israel, with some receiving jail terms of up to 25 years.
Suspicions are running particularly high after Israel killed senior Hezbollah commanders in recent weeks, including the terror group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
Regev hails decision by EU to drop recommendation that planes avoid Israeli airspace
Transportation Minister Miri Regev welcomes the European Union Aviation Safety Agency’s (EASA) decision to lift a recommendation to avoid Israeli airspace, which she presents as a personal vindication.
Tweeting a photo of herself with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Regev laments the “mountains of muck and poison” aimed at her for her recent trip to Budapest to lobby for EASA to reverse its guidance and pledges that “together we will continue to act for the benefit of the citizens of Israel.”
Last week, as Iran launched a massive ballistic missile attack on Israel, Regev was photographed outside a Budapest jeweler, sparking domestic criticism. She claimed that the photo was framed to make her look like she was shopping when she was only passing outside.
נתחיל מהסוף הטוב: רשות התעופה של האיחוד האירופי ביטלה את החלטתה לאסור טיסות לישראל ובקרוב החברות האירופאיות יחזרו לטוס ארצה. הררי רפש ורעל הוטחו ברשתות כלפיי על נסיעת הבזק שקיימתי בשבוע שעבר להונגריה >>> pic.twitter.com/dusNnvMDSr
— מירי רגב (@regev_miri) October 9, 2024
IDF shoots down drone in Red Sea area; Islamic Resistance in Iraq claims responsibility
The military says it intercepted a drone in the Red Sea area headed toward Israel, as the Iran-backed Islamic Resistance in Iraq releases a statement claiming an attack on Eilat.
The Israel Defense Forces says the drone never entered Israeli territory.
Arab-Israeli educator arrested over TikTok dance video released from custody, say police
Entisar Hijaze seen being arrested by police early on October 8, 2024, in Tamra, northern Israel. (Israel Police)
An educator who was arrested earlier this week over a TikTok clip of her dancing has been released under restrictive conditions, say police.
The arrest of Entisar Hijaze, who works bringing animals to visit schoolchildren, sparked outrage after observers suggested that the post which was accused of incitement was merely a misunderstood TikTok dance trend.
Police nevertheless double down on their claim that the video of Hijaze was posted “alongside the date of the massacre,” October 7, 2023, and deliberately included a song clip with the words “another good time.” Police say that the investigation into Hijaze will continue.
The arrest was carried out after far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir sent the video clip in question to a police unit charged with investigating incitement.
Biden stresses minimizing civilian deaths in Beirut, vows to remain in ‘close contact’ with Netanyahu in coming days
US President Joe Biden (right) is greeted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after arriving at Ben Gurion International Airport, October 18, 2023. (AP/Evan Vucci)
During his call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier today, US President Joe Biden affirmed Israel’s right to protect its citizens from the Hezbollah terror group, while emphasizing the need for a diplomatic agreement between Israel and Hezbollah that would allow civilians on both sides of the Blue Line to return to their homes, the White House says.
In recent days, the Biden administration has gradually walked away from its initiative for a 21-day ceasefire along the Blue Line, while intensifying its support for the limited Israeli raids aimed at dismantling Hezbollah posts along the border, which were launched shortly after the White House rolled out the 21-day ceasefire effort.
According to the White House readout of today’s calls, Biden stressed “the need to minimize harm to civilians, in particular in the densely populated areas of Beirut,” where Israel has been conducting airstrikes largely targeting the Dahiyeh Hezbollah stronghold.
The purpose of the call, as far as Netanyahu was concerned, was to discuss Israel’s response to the Iranian missile attack earlier this month.
But the White House readout doesn’t offer any new information on this topic, saying that Biden “affirmed his ironclad commitment to Israel’s security [and] condemned unequivocally” the Iranian missile attack.
Biden and Netanyahu “discussed the urgent need to renew diplomacy to release the hostages held by Hamas,” the US readout adds.
Biden also raised “the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the imperative to restore access to the north, including by reinvigorating the corridor from Jordan immediately.”
Recent days have seen an uptick in reports from humanitarian agencies that they have been unable to access and provide aid to northern Gaza where Israel has re-intensified military operations.
Biden and Netanyahu “agreed to remain in close contact over the coming days both directly and through their national security teams,” the US readout adds, after their first call in nearly 50 days.
Netanyahu’s office hasn’t regularly issued readouts on such calls, and has also yet to do so this time.
Couple killed in Kiryat Shmona rocket attack named as Revital Yehud and Dvir Sharvit
Israeli security and rescue forces at the site where a missile fired from Lebanon hit in the northern town of Kiryat Shmona, October 9, 2024. (Ayal Margolin/Flash90)
The couple killed in a Hezbollah rocket attack on Kiryat Shmona earlier today have been named as Revital Yehud, 45, and Dvir Sharvit, 43.
According to Hebrew media, Sharvit is originally from the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba, and Yehud is originally from Eilat, and the couple moved to Kiryat Shmona around two years ago.
הותר לפרסום: הנרצחים במטח הטילים על קריית שמונה הם תושבי העיר רויטל יהוד, בת 45, ובן זוגה דביר שרביט, בן 43 @rubih67 pic.twitter.com/yGT01tCBl9
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) October 9, 2024
While the IDF has issued evacuation orders for the city, some either never left or later returned due to the difficulty of living in a hotel for long periods or finding alternate accommodations.
Beirut says Israeli strike on south Lebanon killed 5 civil defense personnel
Illustrative: Birds fly away as a smoke cloud erupts following an Israeli airstrike on a village near Lebanon's southern city of Tyre on October 9, 2024. (Kawnat HAJU / AFP)
Lebanon’s state civil defense body says an Israeli strike today killed five of its personnel in the country’s south, with the health ministry condemning what it said was the latest deadly strike on rescue workers.
Five personnel “were killed in an Israeli strike that targeted the civil defense center in the village of Derdghaiya as they were inside on the alert to receive emergency calls,” a statement from the body says.
Lebanon’s health ministry said the toll of five was provisional, calling on the international community to take a “firm position” after Israel “renewed its targeting of rescue and ambulance teams.”
There was no immediate comment from the IDF on the claim.
Trump and Netanyahu spoke last week, says PM’s office
Former US president Donald Trump (left) hosts Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago resort, Florida, July 26, 2024. (Amos Ben Gershom/GPO)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed earlier today that the prime minister had recently spoken with former president Donald Trump.
The Republican, who is running to reclaim his seat in the White House, called Netanyahu last week and “congratulated him on the intense and determined operations that Israel carried out against Hezbollah,” according to Netanyahu’s office.
Biden tells US rabbis Hamas’s October 7 attack was a ‘second, smaller Holocaust’
US President Joe Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, and Rabbi Aaron Alexander of Adas Israel Congregation mark one year since Hamas's attack on Israel during a candle lighting in the Blue Room of the White House in Washington, DC, October 7, 2024. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)
US President Joe Biden calls Hamas’s October 7 onslaught a “second, smaller Holocaust,” during a High Holidays call with American rabbis.
During his call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier today, he offered his condolences over the somber, one-year anniversary of that attack, Biden tells the rabbis.
Biden says the call with Netanyahu lasted about an hour. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said earlier that it lasted roughly 30 minutes and Netanyahu’s office said it lasted 50 minutes.
“As you saw just last week, the United States fully supports Israel’s right to defend itself against Iran and all its proxies, [including] Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis,” Biden tells the rabbis, highlighting US involvement in thwarting Iran’s missile attack against Israel.
He goes on to reiterate his pledge to secure the release of the remaining 101 hostages in Gaza, while lamenting the price Palestinian civilians have been paying throughout the war.
Biden speaks at length regarding the “absolutely despicable” rise of antisemitism at home and abroad, and details the steps his administration has taken to combat the phenomenon.
“We respect and protect the fundamental right to free speech and to protest peacefully, but there is no place anywhere in America for antisemitism, hate speech or threats of violence of any kind against the Jews or anyone else,” Biden says in an apparent reference to some of the anti-Israel protests on college campuses.
The president urges American Jews to report incidents of antisemitism to his administration, where the Education and Homeland Security Departments are taking actions to prosecute such actions.
Biden also calls out the “vile” antisemitic harassment that some of his Jewish aides involved in the hurricane response effort have been enduring.
“It must end now,” he says. “My administration is calling on social media companies to adopt a zero-tolerance policy toward antisemitism and other hateful content.”
The US president reflects that the High Holidays present “a delicate yet profound balance between joy and pain,” which embodies the spirit of the Jewish people more broadly.
UN envoy to Lebanon says 21-day truce between Israel, Hezbollah ‘still on the table’
An armored personnel carrier of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) patrols along al-Khardali road in south Lebanon on September 17, 2024. (RABIH DAHER / AFP)
A call by the US and France for a 21-day truce between Israel and Hezbollah “is still on the table,” says the top UN official in Lebanon, as she pushes for a way to enforce a much-violated UN Security Council resolution.
“We need a realistic roadmap for the implementation, by both sides, of resolution 1701. And this must include clear implementation and enforcement mechanisms,” says UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.
“At the end of the day, it is the lack or non-implementation of resolution 1701 over the past 18 years that led to today’s harsh reality,” she tells reporters.
“The joint call for a 21-day ceasefire, as launched by the US or led by the US and France, I think is still on the table and very relevant, so we should not dismiss it. I don’t think that new initiatives will add to it,” Hennis-Plasschaert adds. “The many appeals and calls for a ceasefire are crystal clear. We need a window for diplomatic efforts to succeed.”
Israel’s UN Ambassador Danny Danon says Israel believes in the language of resolution 1701, but that “we should think about how to enforce it.”
“We have no desire to stay in Lebanon, and I think the only troops that can do that will be the Lebanese military and UNIFIL, but they need to have the strength, the power and the ability to ensure that Hezbollah is not coming back to the same places,” Danon tells reporters, referring to the UN Interim Force in Lebanon peacekeeping mission.
IDF says it killed Hezbollah operative in airstrike on southern Syria
A Syrian flag flutters in town of Quneitra, on July 30, 2024, overlooking the Israel side of the Golan Heights. (LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
The IDF says in a statement that it killed a Hezbollah operative operating in southern Syria earlier today.
According to the military, an airstrike in the Quneitra area of Syria, just across the border from the Golan Heights, killed Adham Jahout, who it says was a member of Hezbollah operating in Syria.
Jahout “passed information from Syrian regime officials to the Hezbollah organization,” as well as other information it gathered along the border to target the Golan Heights.
The statement marks a rare Israeli confirmation of IDF operations in Syria, as it generally avoids publicly claiming its activity there.
כלי טיס של חיל האוויר תקף מוקדם יותר היום במרחב קונטרה, בהכוונת אוגדה 210, וחיסל את המחבל אדהם ג׳אחות, מחבל ביחידת ״תיק הגולן״, שלוחת ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה בסוריה>> pic.twitter.com/T85Ms2EiJG
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 9, 2024
US official: Sinwar likely alive in Gaza tunnel ‘with hostages in his vicinity’
Hamas's Gaza Strip leader Yahya Sinwar in a tunnel in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, October 10, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)
The US believes that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is alive and likely hiding in an underground Gaza tunnel with hostages in his vicinity, says White House Mideast czar Brett McGurk.
“Yahya Sinwar remains the decision maker. He remains — we believe — alive and in a tunnel underneath Gaza, holding hostages, and likely with hostages in his vicinity,” McGurk says during a High Holiday call with American rabbis.
This is the most detailed update regarding the status of Sinwar from a senior US official in weeks, if not months. In recent days, Sinwar reportedly re-established contact with Hamas officials outside of Gaza after more than a month in which he had not been heard from.
McGurk reiterates the administration’s belief that the war in Gaza could end immediately if Sinwar agreed to release the remaining 101 hostages it is holding in Gaza.
In call with Jewish leaders, Biden suggests Israel needs ‘more progressive’ leadership
US President Joe Biden speaks to the media in the White House press room, Oct. 4, 2024, in Washington. (AP/Susan Walsh)
US President Joe Biden appears to lament the hardline nature of Israel’s current government during a High Holidays call with American Jewish rabbis.
Biden reiterates his identification as a Zionist and his belief that Jews around the world would be less safe without a State of Israel.
“That doesn’t mean that Jewish leadership doesn’t have to be more progressive than it is, but it does mean it has to exist, and that’s what worries me most about what’s going on now,” Biden says, apparently referring to the leadership in Israel.
European aviation regulator lifts recommendation to avoid Israeli airspace
An Israir flight takes off from Ben Gurion International Airport, outside of Tel Aviv, August 25, 2024. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) lifts a recommendation against operating in Israeli airspace, instead warning airlines to have strict risk monitoring procedures for flights over the country.
“The European Commission and European Union Aviation Safety Agency have updated the Conflict Zone Information Bulletin (CZIB) for Israel issued on September 28. The revised CZIB recommends air operators to implement a stringent monitoring process and risk assessment for each flight when intending to operate within the airspace of Israel,” it says.
“The recommendation is valid until October 31 and can be reviewed earlier and adapted or withdrawn subject to the revised assessment,” it adds.
The recommendation issued on September 28, after Israel confirmed the killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, suggested that airlines “not operate within the airspaces of Lebanon and Israel at all flight levels.”
White House ‘can’t confirm’ report Biden called Netanyahu a ‘f**king liar’
US President Joe Biden (left) with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv on October 18, 2023. (Haim Zach/GPO)
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre avoids denying that US President Joe Biden called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “fucking liar” and a “bad fucking guy,” earlier this year, as was revealed yesterday in journalist Bob Woodward’s new book.
“That is not something that I can confirm,” she says when asked about the reported remarks. “There are going to be many books that are written about this administration and many administrations… I’m not going to weigh in on particulars in each one of those books.”
When Politico first reported that Biden had called Netanyahu a “bad fucking guy” in February, the White House issued a firm denial.
US denies any talks with Iran aimed at reaching comprehensive Mideast ceasefire
US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller during a news briefing at the State Department, July 18, 2023, in Washington. (AP/Nathan Howard)
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller flatly denies a report that the US and Arab states have launched covert talks with Iran for a comprehensive ceasefire aimed at calming all Mideast war fronts at once.
“No one has reached out to the United States about such a proposal, and we’re not in talks with any countries about such a proposal,” Miller says regarding yesterday’s Channel 12 news report.
“I cannot speak to a hypothetical proposal that I’m not even sure actually exists in reality,” Miller says. “Obviously, we would welcome the end of conflict across the region.”
White House: Biden-Netanyahu phone call was ‘direct and productive’
US President Joe Biden is greeted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) after arriving at Ben Gurion International Airport, on October 18, 2023, in Tel Aviv. (AP/Evan Vucci)
Today’s phone call between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden was roughly 30 minutes long, was “direct and productive” and included a discussion regarding Israel’s response to the Iranian missile attack earlier this month, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre says.
“The US and the Israeli government have had discussions since last week after the Iran attack, and so that those discussions continued with the president and the prime minister,” Jean-Pierre says, adding that the two leaders have spoken over a dozen times since October 7 and that a full readout will be issued shortly.
The Prime Minister’s Office said earlier that the call lasted about 50 minutes.
State Department warns Israel against being ‘bogged down’ in Gaza without plan for ‘day after’
IDF troops seen operating in Gaza in a handout photo cleared for publication on October 9, 2024. (IDF)
Asked whether the US supports Israel’s renewed military operations in northern Gaza, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller says the Biden administration will always back Israel’s right to target terror operatives, while reiterating Washington’s call for Israel to plan for the post-war management of Gaza.
“We continue to have concerns that without a political plan, a plan for the day after in Gaza that includes a political path for the Palestinian people to realize their legitimate… aspirations, Israel is going to be bogged down conducting these types of operations for some time to come with terrible humanitarian effects for the Palestinian people and with real security problems for the Israeli people,” Miller says during a press briefing.
Miller adds that the US still wants to see the implementation of its staged Gaza ceasefire proposal, which “would help answer this question about what the day after looks like for the situation in Gaza.”
However, he explains that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar remains unwilling to engage in negotiations — as has been the case for several weeks.
“It is probably reasonable to conclude he’s watching what’s happening in the north, he’s watching Iran’s attacks against Israel, and thinking maybe he’s about to get what he’s always wanted, which is a full-scale regional war,” adds Miller.
Drone infiltration siren sounds in towns along Lebanon border; IDF: False alartm
Sirens warning of a possible drone infiltration sound in the border communities near Lebanon of Dovev, Sasa and Mattat.
The IDF later says the sirens were set off by a false alarm.
State Department: US doesn’t want to see Lebanon ‘turn into anything like situation in Gaza’
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller answers questions during a news briefing at the State Department on July 18, 2023, in Washington. (AP/Nathan Howard)
While the US supports the limited ground incursions that the IDF is currently conducting inside Lebanon, it does not want them to extend deeper into Lebanon or for Israel’s presence to turn indefinite as was the case in the past, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller says.
“We are cognizant of the long history of Israel, starting with limited ground operations in Lebanon, turning those into more full-scale ground operations, turning those into occupation, something that we are very clear we are opposed to,” Miller says during a press briefing.
While US officials have gone on record talking about their concern of Israeli “mission creep,” this appears to be one of the first times that one of them has publicly gone into detail regarding what that means.
“We want to see them limit their operations to what we have seen to date… this refers to the amount of land that they are going into in Lebanon, not the number of troops that they’re deploying,” Miller explains.
“Ultimately, we want to get back to implementation of [UN Security Council Resolution] 1701, which means the government of Israel withdrawing back behind the border,” he says.
“We cannot and must not see the situation in Lebanon turn into anything like the situation in Gaza,” Miller later adds.
Report: Mossad chief pushing to link any Lebanon ceasefire deal with hostage release
Illustrative: Mossad chief David Barnea attends a farewell ceremony in his honor, at the National Police Academy in Beit Shemesh, on July 14, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Mossad chief David Barnea has reportedly told his US counterpart that any ceasefire deal with Hezbollah in Lebanon must also include the release of the hostages being held in Hamas.
According to a Channel 12 news report, the Mossad chief told CIA head Bill Burns that the deals must be linked together. The strategy is reportedly aimed at getting Iran and Hezbollah — who have indicated they are open to a ceasefire in the north — to exert additional pressure on Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar to agree to a deal in Gaza that has proved elusive for many months.
For the past year, Hezbollah officials have said they will not stop firing rockets at Israel until there is an end to fighting in Gaza, although in recent days the terror group has appeared to soften that demand, saying it would consider a ceasefire just in Lebanon.
Biden-Netanyahu phone call said to be conducted ‘in a positive atmosphere’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his advisers hold a phone call with US President Joe Biden on October 9, 2024. (Prime Minister's Office)
The phone call earlier this evening between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden was conducted “in a positive atmosphere,” says Channel 12 news, citing an Israeli official.
The discussion focused on Israel’s response to the Iranian attack, says the outlet.
In addition, Biden urged Netanyahu to plan for the “day after” the ground operations in Lebanon.
So far, neither the White House nor the Prime Minister’s Office has issued a readout of the phone call, the first between the leaders since late August.
Lapid calls on activists to respect court ruling, not protest gender-separated Yom Kippur prayer
Activists opposed to a gender-separated public prayer event confront worshippers in Dizengoff Square, Tel Aviv, on Yom Kippur eve, September 24, 2023. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
Following the High Court of Justice’s ruling requiring the Tel Aviv Municipality to allow an Orthodox organization to hold public gender-separated prayers on Yom Kippur, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid calls on the “liberal public” to refrain from giving those organizing the services “the quarrel they want.”
“Don’t go and protest because that’s what they’re looking for. It’s better to ignore them,” he states, adding: “We will go to joint ceremonies of a tolerant, welcoming Judaism that respects the true tradition of Israel.”
Lapid’s comment contrasts sharply with that of Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu, who tweets that the ruling represents “the victory of traditionalism over progressiveness.”
“To those who feared that prayer in Dizengoff Square would harm the ‘character of the city’, I say — on the contrary, it will enrich it. Tel Aviv is not only a city of parties, it is also a city of Judaism and light,” Eliyahu writes.
IDF chief says Hezbollah is trying to cover up its immense losses
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi speaks in a video statement from northern Israel, October 3, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi says the Hezbollah terror group is trying to hide its losses amid intensive fighting and Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon.
“Hezbollah is trying to hide the significant harm we have inflicted on the organization in the past weeks,” says Halevi, according to the IDF.
The terror group “is experiencing control and command difficulties, leading to confusion at the decision-making level and challenges in its ability to function,” says the military chief.
Halevi says that “even in Iran they still don’t realize the full damage to the front they built along the northern border.”
Amid reports that the terror group is interested in a ceasefire, Halevi says the IDF will continue to strike at Hezbollah and “not allow it any respite or recovery.”
Right-wing lawmakers applaud Supreme Court for ruling on Yom Kippur prayers
Activists protest against gender segregation in the public space during a public prayer event in Dizengoff Square in Tel Aviv, on Yom Kippur, September 25, 2023. (Itai Ron/ Flash90)
Right-wing and religious lawmakers welcome the High Court of Justice’s ruling requiring the Tel Aviv Municipality to allow an Orthodox organization to hold public gender-separated prayers in the city over the upcoming Yom Kippur holiday.
“The High Court was right when it overturned the Tel Aviv Municipality’s unfathomable decision to prevent Jews from praying in public according to the tradition of Israel on Yom Kippur,” tweets New Hope MK and Minister Gideon Sa’ar.
“To stand for this simple and important thing in the only Jewish country in the world against the arbitrariness of a governmental authority is not only the right judicial decision, in my view, it’s a sanctification of God’s name.”
The court’s ruling is the “most logical, most Jewish and most democratic” response, states MK Moshe Gafni of the ultra-orthodox United Torah Judaism party. “Although the decision is limited to certain prayers and a certain year, I praise this precedent which is completely rare in the court for everything related to religious issues and the religious and ultra-Orthodox public.”
“Tel Aviv will remain Tel Aviv” even after the ruling, states National Unity MK and former Religious Services Minister Matan Kahana, calling social cohesion during wartime an “existential need.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir calls the ruling “the natural, correct and most appropriate decision” and says that the justices “did well to put the Tel Aviv Municipality in its place.”
Saudi Crown Prince meets with Iranian foreign minister in Riyadh
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (R) meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Riyadh, October 9, 2024. (Saudi Press Agency / AFP)
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi discuss developments in the region at a meeting in Riyadh, the Saudi state news agency reports.
Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia has had a political rapprochement with Tehran in recent years, which has helped ease regional tensions, but relations remain difficult.
Speaking earlier, a senior Iranian official said Araqchi would discuss bilateral issues and efforts to secure a ceasefire in Lebanon and Gaza on his visit, adding that he will also visit Qatar later in the day.
Earlier this week, Tehran told Gulf Arab states it would be “unacceptable” if they allowed the use of their airspace or military bases against Iran and warned that any such move would draw a response, a senior Iranian official said.
Gallant: When Israel strikes back, Iran ‘won’t understand what happened to it’
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant visits the IDF Intelligence Unit 9900 on October 9, 2024. (Elad Malka/Defense Ministry)
Israel’s strike on Iran will be “lethal, precise and especially surprising,” says Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
Speaking during a visit to IDF Intelligence Unit 9900 — a unit that gathers intelligence in theaters of war — Gallant says that Iran “won’t understand what happened to it, or how.”
Iran’s strike last week, on the other hand, was “aggressive, but they failed because they were inaccurate.”
Gallant stresses that the IAF was not harmed in the attack, and that all runways are in operation, no plane was harmed, nor were any soldiers or civilians.
Gallant says that the entire Israeli security system, from the soldier on the ground up to the prime minister, is in sync around the strike on Iran: “The entire chain of command is in line and focused around this issue.”
IDF: Troops in south Lebanon have destroyed more than 500 Hezbollah targets
IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip, in an image cleared for publication on October 9, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
The IDF says that troops with its 36th division, which deployed in south Lebanon a week ago, have so far destroyed more than 500 Hezbollah infrastructure targets and destroyed underground tunnels.
The troops also destroyed weapons and weapons storage units and “eliminated many terrorists,” the IDF says.
The military releases footage of the division’s troops operating in south Lebanon.
500 תשתיות אויב מבצעיות שהושמדו ותשתיות תת-קרקעיות שנוטרלו וחיסול מחבלים רבים: אוגדה 36 פועלת בעוצמה בדרום לבנון
לכל הפרטים>>https://t.co/jqdDmNhVu3 pic.twitter.com/vHGowAiloo— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 9, 2024
Supreme Court orders Tel Aviv to allow gender-separated prayer service on Yom Kippur
Activists opposed to a gender-separated public prayer event confront worshippers in Dizengoff Square, Tel Aviv, on Yom Kippur eve, September 24, 2023. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
The Supreme Court unanimously orders the Tel Aviv Municipal Authority to allow the Rosh Yehudi Orthodox outreach organization to hold the first and last prayer services of Yom Kippur in the Meir Park with gender separation and a dividing partition for men’s and women’s sections.
The municipality had refused to allow such a service anywhere outdoors in the city, citing a municipal ordinance banning public gender separation.
The three justices were highly critical of the Tel Aviv Municipality’s position during the court hearing earlier in the day, accusing it of discriminating against Orthodox worshipers, since it does allow non-Orthodox prayer in outdoor public spaces.
The ruling itself is issued without the reasoning behind it. Rosh Yehudi welcomes the ruling, saying “Tel Aviv is part of the Jewish state, and those who want to pray with gender separation and a divider are able to do so also there.”
Lebanese government source: Hezbollah had agreed to ceasefire before Nasrallah killed
Workers hang billboards bearing a portrait of slain Lebanese Hezbollah terror group leader Hassan Nasrallah along the airport highway in Beirut on October 4, 2024. (Fadel ITANI / AFP)
Hezbollah told Lebanese authorities it accepted a ceasefire with Israel the day an Israeli strike killed its leader Hassan Nasrallah, a government source tells AFP.
“On September 27, Hezbollah officially informed the Lebanese government, via parliament speaker Nabih Berri, that he accepted an international initiative for a ceasefire,” the source says.
Prime Minister Najib Mikati was at the UN General Assembly in New York that day, when the United States and its allies put forward a proposal for a 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon. Mikati informed his counterparts of Hezbollah’s position, the source says, and international negotiators were waiting to hear back from Israel.
But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in his speech to world leaders the same day that there would be no let-up in the battle against Hezbollah until Israel’s northern border was secured. After he spoke, Israel’s air force carried out a huge strike on Hezbollah’s south Beirut stronghold, killing Nasrallah.
Since his death, the Lebanese government “has had no contact with Hezbollah”, the source adds.
Police say officers kill 5 wanted Palestinian suspects during operation in Nablus
People inspect the bullet-riddled car in which four Palestinian terror suspects were reportedly killed by Israeli special forces in Nablus in the West Bank on October 9, 2024. (Zain JAAFAR / AFP)
The Israel Police says that officers with the Yamam counter-terror unit killed five wanted Palestinian terror operatives during an operation in Nablus in the West Bank earlier today, including what it said was the head of operations for the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades.
The Palestinian health ministry confirmed the deaths of four men.
The Palestinian official news agency WAFA said Israeli special forces had opened fire on a vehicle the men were traveling in. Video shared on social media showed heavy gunfire surrounding a vehicle.
תיעוד מחיסול המחבלים בשכם@anastasia___stu @ItayBlumental pic.twitter.com/Bv0EtqasUX
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) October 9, 2024
The Israel Police says no Israeli forces were hurt and that the operation was carried out in coordination with the IDF, Shin Bet and Border Police.
The five armed men presented an immediate threat to Israeli forces during an attempt to arrest them, the police statement says, adding that they were involved in “planning acts of terror against civilians and IDF forces.”
UK’s Tom Fletcher named new head of UN’s humanitarian agency
The United Nations names British diplomat and academic Tom Fletcher as head of its humanitarian agency, as the organization grapples with unprecedented crises and budget pressures.
“United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres today announced the appointment of Tom Fletcher of the United Kingdom as Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA),” the UN says in a statement.
Fletcher replaces Martin Griffiths, who stepped down at the end of June for health reasons.
Griffiths has faced sharp criticism from Israel for his actions and statements over the past year, including meeting with the Iranian foreign minister to discuss the future of Gaza, condemning “all sides” in a statement on October 7, 2023, and saying during an interview in February that “Hamas is not a terrorist group for us, of course, as you know. It’s a political movement.”
IDF destroys rocket launcher that fired missiles at Safed, shoots down drone from Lebanon
Smoke trails are seen as rockets launched from Lebanon into northern Israel are intercepted over Safed, October 9, 2024. (David Cohen/Flash90)
The IDF says it struck and destroyed a rocket launcher that fired missiles toward the towns of Safed and Shlomi Wednesday.
In addition, the military says, earlier today an Israeli missile boat shot down a drone launched from Lebanon to Israel that did not cross into Israeli territory.
The military releases footage of the incidents.
צה״ל תקף והשמיד את המשגר ממנו זוהו השיגורים לעבר צפת ושלומי.
מוקדם יותר היום, ספינת טילים יירטה בהצלחה כלי טיס בלתי מאויש ששוגר מכיוון לבנון.
כלי הטיס לא חצה לשטח מדינת ישראל pic.twitter.com/RjW17PFhTe— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 9, 2024
Israeli official says authorities are aware of and handling arrest of Israeli citizen in Lebanon
The relevant officials in Israel are aware of the arrest of Israeli citizen Joshua Tartakovsky in Lebanon, says an Israeli official, and the case is being handled by the appropriate officials.
“Unfortunately,” says the official, “this is not the first time that Israeli citizens have entered the territory of enemy countries, even though this is prohibited by law, and constitutes a clear danger to their security.”
The National Security Council also issues a statement: “We would like to sharpen the ban on entering these countries, as the issue appears in messages to the public on the NSC website and has been sharpened even recently around the holidays.”
IDF: Over 1,100 airstrikes in Lebanon carried out in coordination with ground troops over past 10 days
This picture taken from the southern city of Tyre shows smoke billowing from the site of an Israeli airstrike in a southern Lebanese village, on October 7, 2024 (KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)
The Israeli Air Force has launched more than 1,100 airstrikes in southern Lebanon that were carried out in coordination with ground forces, amid an ongoing offensive against Hezbollah launched at the end of last month, the military says.
These airstrikes, carried out by fighter jets, attack helicopters and drones, have been led by the IAF’s Cooperation Unit 5620, which coordinates operations between the IAF and ground forces during maneuvers.
The targets included cells of Hezbollah gunmen, weapon depots, tunnels and observation and sniper posts.
According to the IDF, the shortest time to carry out a strike from the moment ground troops called it in was seven minutes, and the closest target to the forces was some 50 meters away.
Netanyahu-Biden call ends after 50 minutes, says PM’s office
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his advisers hold a phone call with US President Joe Biden on October 9, 2024. (Prime Minister's Office)
The phone call between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris ends after 50 minutes, Netanyahu’s office tells The Times of Israel.
No readout of the call has been issued yet.
Officers who arrested women for distributing hostage flyers in synagogue questioned for misconduct
Three women who were later arrested for trespassing are seen placing flyers urging the release of hostages held by Hamas, at a synagogue in Herzliya, September 13, 2024. (X screenshot, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
The Police Internal Investigations Department says it questioned Wednesday two police officers on suspicion of abuse of power and breach of trust over the arrests last month of women who placed flyers calling for the release of the Hamas hostages on seats inside a synagogue.
Three women were arrested last month a day after they distributed flyers at a synagogue where Likud MK Yuli Edelstein is a regular. The women said the synagogue was unlocked when they entered the building and there was no intent to harm or threaten. Many activists decried their arrests as blatantly political.
In a statement, PIID says that one of the officers was also questioned over possible obstruction of justice, and says the investigation into the incident is ongoing.
France to host international conference on Lebanon later this month
Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati meets with the French Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot in Beirut on September 30, 2024. (Anwar Amro / AFP)
France’s international conference in support of Lebanon will take place in Paris on October 24, France’s foreign ministry announces.
The conference is an initiative of President Emmanuel Macron and Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, who was in Israel this week.
“France will recall through this conference the urgency of a cessation of hostilities and a diplomatic solution based on Security Council Resolution 1701 and allowing the safe return of displaced persons in Israel and Lebanon to their homes,” says the Quai d’Orsay.
“The election of a president in Lebanon is the first step in restoring political institutions, and we support efforts in this direction.”
Tel Aviv rejects court’s compromise deal over gender-separated Yom Kippur services
Israelis hold a gender-separated protest prayer event in Tel Aviv's Dizengoff Square, organized after the municipality rejected a request for gender-segregated prayers there during the upcoming Yom Kippur, in Tel Aviv, August 8, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
The Tel Aviv Municipality rejects a compromise offer made by the Supreme Court to enable the Rosh Yehudi Orthodox Jewish outreach movement to hold a traditional, gender-separated Yom Kippur prayer service in an outdoor area of Tel Aviv, during a hearing on the issue in court.
The Supreme Court justices suggest the prayer service be held in Meir Park instead of in Dizengoff Square as planned by the organizers, but the legal representative for the municipality rejects the offer, saying it is opposed to gender separation anywhere in the city’s outdoor public spaces, Ynet reports.
The justices express deep frustration with the Tel Aviv Municipality’s position, with Justice Yechiel Kasher arguing that its stance was discriminatory against Orthodox prayers since the municipality does allow non-Orthodox, mixed-gender prayers in public spaces.
“I don’t understand, the municipality cannot allow prayer according to traditional practices in the public space?” demands liberal justice Ofer Grosskopf.
“You are saying that in a closed space like a synagogue, gender separation is possible, but outdoors its forbidden? Those who want Orthodox prayer have to go, and those who don’t, don’t have to go? Why does the municipality need to prevent this kind of prayer?” Grosskopf demands.
Rosh Yehudi appealed the decision of the Tel Aviv District Court not to overrule the municipal authority’s decision to prohibit the gender-separated service, leading to the hearing in the Supreme Court which is ongoing. A gender-separated prayer led by Rosh Yehudi on Yom Kippur last year led to angry scenes in Tel Aviv that sparked a national outcry.
Undercover Israeli security forces reportedly open fire on vehicle in Nablus
Undercover Israeli special forces opened fire on a vehicle in the West Bank city of Nablus, killing several men, Palestinian media report.
There is no immediate comment from the IDF or police on the incident.
تغطية صحفية: اللحظات الأولى لإطلاق قوة خاصة إســ.ـرائيلية النار على مركبة واغتيال عدد من ركابها في نابلس. pic.twitter.com/eQssaUJVwH
— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) October 9, 2024
Netanyahu speaks by phone to Biden and Harris
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his advisers hold a phone call with US President Joe Biden on October 9, 2024. (Prime Minister's Office)
US President Joe Biden is speaking now with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by phone, the Prime Minister’s Office tells The Times of Israel.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate for president, also joins the call.
The conversation comes as Israel prepares a response to Iran’s missile attack last week.
Netanyahu and Biden last spoke on August 21, according to a White House statement.
Netanyahu is joined by diplomatic adviser Ophir Falk, Military Secretary Roman Gofman, Chief of Staff Tzachi Braverman, and deputy head of National Security Council Gil Reich, among other advisers.
More than 90 rockets fired in barrage at Upper Galilee, says IDF
Israeli security and rescue forces at the site where a missile fired from Lebanon hit in the northern town of Kiryat Shmona, October 9, 2024. (Ayal Margolin/Flash90)
A barrage of some 90 rockets was fired by Hezbollah from Lebanon at the Upper Galilee an hour ago, the IDF says.
According to the military, some of the rockets were intercepted.
Impacts were reported in Safed and nearby towns, causing damage. There are no immediate reports of injuries.
Fires were also sparked by impacts in open areas.
Meanwhile, the IDF says it struck the launchers used to fire a barrage of rockets at Kiryat Shmona earlier today, in an attack that killed two Israeli civilians.
It releases footage of the strikes.
צה״ל תקף והשמיד את המשגר ממנו זוהו השיגורים שחצו ונפלו במרחב קריית שמונה בשעה 14:16.
בהמשך להתרעות שהופעלו בין השעות 16:41-16:49 במרחב גליל עליון, גליל מערבי ודרום הגולן, זוהו כ-90 שיגורים שחצו מלבנון, חלקם יורטו על ידי חיל האוויר, זוהו נפילות>> pic.twitter.com/4baJS3A0Tl
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 9, 2024
Air France opens internal probe after plane flew over Iraq during Iranian attack on Israel
An Air France Airbus A320 approaches for landing in Lisbon at sunrise, October 10, 2023. (AP/Armando Franca)
Air France says it has opened an internal investigation after one of its planes flew over Iraq on October 1 during an Iranian missile attack on Israel.
The company says flight AF662 from Paris to Dubai was traveling at the time of the attack through a special corridor used by all airlines in southern Iraq and 15 minutes later it left the country’s airspace, which was not closed to airplane traffic until 1756 GMT.
“Without waiting for instructions from the Iraqi authorities, Air France has decided to suspend overflight of the country’s airspace by its aircraft from 1700 GMT,” the airline says. “An internal investigation has been launched into this event.”
Home in Safed reportedly suffers direct hit in rocket barrage from Lebanon
Smoke trails are seen as rockets launched from Lebanon into northern Israel are intercepted over Safed, October 9, 2024. (David Cohen/Flash90)
A heavy rocket barrage from Lebanon not long ago reportedly caused a direct hit on a home in Safed, according to initial reports.
The Israel Police say in a statement that its officers are responding to reports of several impact sites in Safed, with no reports so far of any injuries.
Rockets sounded in a wide swath of towns about 20 minutes ago, and heavy booms were heard with a number of interceptions seen in the skies over the northern city.
תיעוד: יירוטים בשמי צפת@rubih67
(צילום: סטודיו A) pic.twitter.com/z8j5g1wgLb— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) October 9, 2024
Foreign Ministry ceremony honors foreign citizens killed on October 7
A ceremony at the Foreign Ministry to honor the foreign citizens killed in Hamas's October 7 attack, October 9, 2024. (Kobi Amsalem/GPO)
The Foreign Ministry holds a ceremony to remember foreigners who were killed and kidnapped on October 7 of last year.
About 100 foreign diplomats attend the event, which begins with a minute of silence.
US envoy Jack Lew, representing the diplomatic corps in Israel, pledges that the US will not give up until every hostage is brought home.
Thailand’s ambassador lights a memorial candle. Hamas and other Palestinian groups killed 41 Thai citizens and kidnapped 30 during their attack.
Memorial wreaths were laid by the ambassadors of Tanzania and Nepal, both of whom have countrymen still held hostage in Gaza.
Pro-Israel Iranians also participate in the event.
Biden and Netanyahu to speak today, PM’s office confirms
US President Joe Biden, right, meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, July 25, 2024. (AP/ Susan Walsh)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will speak this evening with US President Joe Biden, his office confirms.
The phone call is expected to focus on Israel’s plan for retaliation after an Iranian ballistic missile attack last week.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant’s office says that Netanyahu suspended his planned trip to Washington until after the call with Biden. Netanyahu claims the trip had never been approved.
IDF releases footage of drone strikes on Hezbollah operatives in south Lebanon
Illustrative: Birds fly away as a smoke cloud erupts following an Israeli airstrike on a village near Lebanon's southern city of Tyre on October 9, 2024. (Kawnat HAJU / AFP)
The IDF releases footage of drone strikes on Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon, directed by troops of the 636th Combat Intelligence Collection Unit.
The unit is operating alongside the 36th Division in southern Lebanon, and using drones to identify Hezbollah members.
One of the recent strikes killed a Hezbollah company commander, the IDF adds.
The IDF releases footage of drone strikes on Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon, directed by troops of the 636th Combat Intelligence Collection Unit.
The unit is operating alongside the 36th Division in southern Lebanon, and using drones to identify Hezbollah members.
One… pic.twitter.com/wr6G1DbACh
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) October 9, 2024
Rocket alert sirens sound in towns across Upper Galilee and Golan
Sirens warning of incoming rockets sound in a number of towns across the Upper Galilee and the Golan Heights, including Safed, Rosh Pina, Katzrin and Tuba-Zangariyye.
Report: Israeli reporter arrested after entering Lebanon on foreign passport
People pass in front of destroyed buildings that were hit by Israeli airstrikes targeting Hezbollah in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Oct. 6, 2024. (AP/Hussein Malla)
According to several Hebrew media language reports, an Israeli reporter named Joshua Tartakovsky has been arrested in Beirut after entering on a foreign passport.
The reports, citing Lebanese news outlets, say that Tartakovsky entered Lebanon on a British passport around two weeks ago but aroused suspicions, and was arrested by Lebanese authorities after he was found to also be holding an Israeli ID.
It is illegal for Israelis to enter Lebanon under both Israeli and Lebanese law.
Israeli hostage point man holds meetings with US counterpart, says PM’s office
Government pointman for hostages Gal Hirsch (left) meets with his US counterpart, special envoy Roger Carstens, in Glilot in early October 2024. (Courtesy)
Government point man for hostages Gal Hirsch met with his US counterpart, special envoy Roger Carstens, several times this week, the Prime Minister’s Office says.
It adds that the pair discussed “efforts to bring back the hostages.”
They also visited the Israel Intelligence Heritage and Commemoration Center to view items captured by the IDF in Gaza, and viewed footage of the October 7 kidnappings.
Russia claims Hezbollah has not lost its chain of command
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a Hezbollah site in Beirut's southern suburbs on October 8, 2024. (Mohammad Abou Al Ainain/AFP)
Russia’s foreign ministry says Hezbollah is still organized and has not lost its chain of command despite Israeli strikes.
“According to our assessments, Hezbollah, including the military wing, has not lost its chain of command and is demonstrating organization,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova tells reporters.
Zakharova blames the West, in particular the United States and Britain, for stoking the conflict in the Middle East and showing hypocrisy by its support for Israel.
Russia also scolds Israel for a strike on Syria attributed to but not claimed by the Jewish state.
“Once again, Israel has grossly violated the sovereignty of Syria by launching a missile attack on a multi-story apartment building in a densely populated area of Damascus,” Zakharova says.
“It is outrageous that such actions have literally turned into a routine practice applied to Syria, Lebanon, and the Gaza Strip,” Zakharova says, adding that it shows Israel’s “desire to further expand the geography of armed escalation in the region.”
Bank of Israel holds interest rate, slashes growth outlook for 2024-25
View of the Bank of Israel's main offices in Jerusalem, January 2, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
The Bank of Israel slashes its growth outlook for this year and next as the prolonged war with Hamas and the recent intensified fighting with Hezbollah continue to take a heavy toll on the country’s finances.
The central bank now expects the economy to grow by 0.5 percent in 2024 and 3.8% in 2025, assuming that the war will continue with high intensity into early next year. That forecast was revised from a previous growth projection in July of 1.5% in 2024 and 4.2% in 2025.
The central bank says the trimmed growth forecast for 2025 “reflects more intense fighting in early 2025 (relative to the assessment in the July forecast) and a delay in the gradual recovery of economic activity to the second half of 2025.”
The Treasury, which lowered its growth projection last month, sees the economy expanding by 1.1% in 2024 and 4.4% in 2025.
Alongside the revised growth forecasts, the central bank decides to hold the benchmark interest rate at 4.5% for a sixth consecutive meeting, citing a broad increase in the pace of inflation. The decision is in line with forecasts by most economists.
In January, the central bank lowered borrowing costs for the first time in almost four years by 25 basis points, from 4.75%, to support households and businesses in the early months of the Hamas war, and as the inflation environment was easing.
Hospital: One victim of Hadera stabbing attack in critical condition
The scene of a stabbing incident in Hadera, October 9, 2024. (Magen David Adom)
The Hillel Yaffe Medical Center in Hadera says that one victim of the stabbing attack in Hadera today is in critical and unstable condition.
Overall, the hospital says, eight people were brought there for treatment after the attack, with another in serious condition, four in moderate condition, another lightly hurt and one person suffering severe anxiety.
IDF intercepts rocket fired from Gaza at border towns
One rocket launched from the Gaza Strip at southern Israel was intercepted by air defenses, the IDF says.
Sirens had sounded in the border communities of Netiv Ha’asara and Yad Mordechai.
There are no reports of injuries or damage.
Leaders have made key decisions on response to Iran attack, which may focus on Iranian military sites — official
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds a meeting with security chiefs in Tel Aviv on October 2, 2024. (Maayan Toaf/GPO)
In an hours-long security meeting at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv last night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to key decisions — along with his top ministers, security and military officials — about the impending Israeli attack on Iran, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.
For now, says the source, the focus is on Iranian military facilities, but that could change.
Iran launched around 200 ballistic missiles last week, and Israel is expected to respond forcefully.
Officials tell the Kan public broadcaster that the meeting was “a decisive discussion about the Iranian issue.”
The next stage is a call between US President Joe Biden and Netanyahu later today.
Hezbollah claims deadly barrage on Kiryat Shmona; fatalities said to be couple walking their dogs
Firefighters work to put out a blaze in a home following a rocket impact in Kiryat Shmona, October 9, 2024. (Fire and Rescue Services)
Hezbollah takes responsibility for the rocket fire that killed a man and a woman in Kiryat Shmona, with the terror group claiming to have targeted a “gathering of Israeli enemy forces” in the mostly evacuated border city.
However, Hebrew media reports indicate that those killed were a couple out on a walk with their dogs.
The Fire and Rescue Service says the impacts have started fires in several buildings in the city, with five teams working to put them out.
Gallant: Netanyahu approved my US trip, then nixed it; PM’s associates: Visit was never okayed
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant attend vote on the state budget at the Knesset plenum in Jerusalem, March 13, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly delayed a key visit to Washington by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant until the premier could speak to US President Joe Biden, Gallant’s office puts out a statement stressing that his trip had been approved by Netanyahu before he postponed it — something the prime minister’s team denies.
“Last week, [US] Defense Secretary [Lloyd] Austin invited the defense minister for a professional visit to the US,” says Gallant’s office, as Israel prepares to respond to last week’s Iranian ballistic missile attack. “The defense minister updated the prime minister about the invitation, and the two agreed that the minister would prepare to fly on Tuesday night after security meetings were held.”
Gallant’s office says that at Netanyahu’s request, the defense minister “delayed his trip last night until after the prime minister’s diplomatic conversation with the US president.”
“The defense minister is a representative of Israel and the prime minister,” Gallant’s office stresses, “and every official trip is undertaken only after official approval.”
Officials close to Netanyahu say that the prime minister didn’t cancel any trip, since he never approved it, the Kan public broadcaster reports. “Minister Gallant chose to fly of his own volition,” they say.
Man, woman in their 40s killed by rocket impact in Kiryat Shmona
The scene of a deadly rocket impact in Kiryat Shmona, October 9, 2024. (Magen David Adom)
Two people, a man and a woman in their 40s, hit by a rocket launched from Lebanon at Kiryat Shmona, have died, the Magen David Adom ambulance service says.
2 critically injured as rocket from Lebanon hits Kiryat Shmona
Two people were critically wounded in a rocket impact in Kiryat Shmona a short while ago, medics say.
According to the IDF, a barrage of some 20 rockets was fired from Lebanon at the city.
The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it is treating a man and a woman in their 40s in critical condition.
IDF says it struck Hezbollah drone stockpiles yesterday, several Beirut sites overnight
Several Hezbollah drone storage sites were destroyed in Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon yesterday, the military says.
According to the IDF, the drone caches were located both above and below ground. Additionally, drone launchers that were to be used by Hezbollah were struck.
In a separate strike overnight, the IDF says fighter jets struck a Hezbollah weapons manufacturing plant in Beirut, and a command center belonging to the terror group’s intelligence division.
Before the strike, the IDF issued a warning to civilians in the area.
במהלך הלילה, מטוסי קרב של חיל האוויר בהכוונה מודיעינית מדויקת של אגף המודיעין, ביצעו תקיפות ממוקדות במרחב הדאחייה בביירות של אתר לייצור אמצעי לחימה של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה ומפקדה של מטה המודיעין של הארגון>> pic.twitter.com/AJ0yjt6YJy
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 9, 2024
At scene of Hadera stabbing, police chief signals force unable to deal with terror threat
Police Commissioner Daniel Levy near the scene of a stabbing attack at Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City on September 15, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
New police chief Daniel Levy raises some eyebrows by implying at the scene of today’s stabbing attack in Hadera that the police are currently unable to adequately prevent terror attacks.
“I want to stress that the Israel Police, these days, as you understand, is stretched to the limit,” he says. “My heart is with the injured, but it seems like this is what we’ll have to face in this period and we need to be strong.”
The attack, in four different locations, was committed by an Israeli citizen from the nearby Arab city of Umm al-Fahm, and left six people injured, including two in critical condition and three in serious condition.
5 injured, including teenager in moderate condition, in rocket barrage on Haifa area
The scene of a rocket impact on Route 22 in the Haifa area, October 9, 2024. (Magen David Adom)
Five people are wounded by shrapnel as a result of rocket impacts in the Haifa area, medics say.
The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it is taking a 16-year-old boy in moderate condition, and four others in their 40s and 50s in light condition, to Rambam Hospital after they were hit by shrapnel.
In addition, a 36-year-old cyclist was lightly hurt in a crash with a car as sirens sounded in the area. He is also being taken to Rambam Hospital, MDA says.
Some 40 rockets were launched at the area, according to the IDF.
Nobel Prize in chemistry goes to David Baker, Demis Hassabis and John Jumper for work on proteins
Johan Åqvist, member of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, Hans Ellegren, Permanent Secretary and Heiner Linke, Chairman of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry award this years Nobel Prize in Chemistry to David Baker, Demis Hassabis, and John M Jumper at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, in Stockholm, Sweden, October 9, 2024. (Christine Olsson/TT News Agency via AP)
The Nobel Prize in chemistry is awarded to David Baker, Demis Hassabis and John Jumper for their work with proteins, the building blocks of life.
Baker works at the University of Washington in Seattle, while Hassabis and Jumper both work at Google Deepmind in London.
Baker designed a new protein in 2003 and his research group has since produced one imaginative protein creation after another, including proteins that can be used as pharmaceuticals, vaccines, nanomaterials and tiny sensors, the Nobel committee says.
Hassabis and Jumper created an artificial intelligence model that has been able to predict the structure of virtually all the 200 million proteins that researchers have identified, the committee adds.
Hassabis received Israel’s Dan David Prize in 2020.
Heiner Linke, chair of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, says scientists had long dreamt of predicting the three-dimensional structure of proteins.
“Four years ago in 2020, Demis Hassabis and John Jumper managed to crack the code with skillful use of artificial intelligence. They made it possible to predict the complex structure of essentially any known protein in nature,” Linke says.
“Another dream of scientists has been to build new proteins to learn how to use nature’s multi-tool for our own purposes. This is the problem that David Baker solved,” he adds. “He developed computational tools that now enable scientists to design spectacular new proteins with entirely novel shapes and functions, opening endless possibilities for the greatest benefit to humankind.”
IDF says 40 rockets launched at Haifa area; blackout reported in Kiryat Bialik after impact
The IDF says some 40 rockets were launched from Lebanon at the Haifa area in the Hezbollah attack a short while ago.
Some of the rockets were intercepted, but several impacts were identified in the area, the IDF adds.
At least two people were injured by shrapnel in one of the impacts.
The Ynet news site reports that an impact in Kiryat Bialik has caused power outages.
2 people injured by shrapnel after rocket from Lebanon impacts Haifa area
Two people are wounded by shrapnel following a rocket impact in the Haifa area, medics say.
The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it is treating a 16-year-old boy in light-to-moderate condition and a man in his 50s in good condition.
A third person, a cyclist, was lightly injured in a crash with a car amid the sirens, MDA adds.
Rocket alerts sound in Haifa, Acre, nearby cities
Alarms are blaring in Haifa, Acre and the Krayot area, indicating possible rocket fire from Lebanon.
There are no immediate further details.
Escalating his extremist rhetoric, Erdogan calls Israel a ‘Zionist terrorist organization’
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks at the presidential palace in Ankara, Turkey, on September 4, 2024. (AP/ Francisco Seco)
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan calls Israel a “Zionist terrorist organization” over its attacks on Iranian proxy terror groups in Gaza and Lebanon, and repeats his criticism of Western powers, namely the United States, over the support given to Israel.
Speaking to lawmakers from his ruling AK Party in parliament, Erdogan also says the Iranian missile attack on Israel last week and Israel’s anticipated response has heightened the risk of a regional conflict.
Police say Hadera stabbing was a terror attack, suspect ‘neutralized’ after fleeing on moped
The scene of a stabbing incident in Hadera, October 9, 2024. (Magen David Adom)
Ending the widespread speculation, the Israel Police says the Hadera stabbing in which six people were wounded, two of them critically, was a terror attack.
Police say a suspect has been located and “neutralized,” without elaborating.
They say he stabbed people in four different locations and fled on a moped.
Security sources name the assailant as Ahmad Jabareen, 36, an Israeli citizen from the nearby Arab city of Umm al-Fahm.
Hadera stabbing now reported to be likely terror attack; 6 hurt, 2 critically
The scene of a stabbing incident in Hadera, October 9, 2024. (Magen David Adom)
Hebrew media increasingly speculates that the stabbing incident in Hadera was a terror attack, as footage circulating online shows a man — reportedly a suspect — being shot and arrested.
The assailant was reportedly on a motorcycle when he stabbed passersby and fled.
Hillel Yaffe Medical Center meanwhile says six people have been injured and brought for treatment, including two in critical condition, three in serious condition and one in moderate condition. That is more than the five wounded reported earlier by Magen David Adom, and their conditions appear to be worse than initially assessed.
In Lebanon, IDF general tells troops ground op will make it safe for northern Israel residents to return home
Chief of the IDF Northern Command, Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin (center) is seen in southern Lebanon, in a handout photo published on October 9, 2024 (Israel Defense Forces)
The chief of the IDF Northern Command, Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin, tells troops in southern Lebanon that the ground operation against Hezbollah will enable the return of Israel’s displaced residents back to their homes in the north.
“The way back home for the residents of the north passes through… the removal of this direct and concrete threat to the communities of the north. As I’ve said, we are determined to bring them back and you are doing it with your tank treads and your legs,” Gordin tells soldiers of the 188th Armored Brigade this week.
Police say possibility that Hadera stabbing was terror is still being examined
The scene of a stabbing incident in Hadera, October 9, 2024. (Magen David Adom)
The police say today’s stabbing in central Hadera is being probed, stressing that the possibility that it was a terror attack is still being looked into.
In a statement, the Israel Police says there are reports of three separate crime scenes, and large forces are in the area to search for suspects.
Syria says member of security forces killed in Israeli strike near Quneitra
Syria’s state-run SANA news agency, citing a police source, says a member of the country’s security forces has been killed and another wounded in an Israeli strike near the southern city of Quneitra, close to the Israeli border.
No further details are given.
5 people sustained moderate to serious injuries in Hadera stabbing incident, medics say
The scene of a stabbing incident in Hadera, October 9, 2024. (Magen David Adom)
The Magen David Adom ambulance service says five people have suffered moderate to serious wounds in the stabbing incident in Hadera, which police have said is likely not a terror attack, declining to give additional details for now.
MDA says medics have treated and taken five men with stab wounds to the city’s Hillel Yaffe Medical Center, of whom two are in serious condition — one in his 70s and one in his 50s — and three are in moderate condition — one in his 50s, one in his 60s and one in his 70s.
Police say Hadera stabbing is likely not a terror attack
Police say the stabbing in Hadera is likely not a terror attack.
It says the incident is still being looked into, and further details will be provided soon.
IDF says Palestinian suspect tried to grab gun from soldier while being treated yesterday
The IDF says a Palestinian suspect was shot yesterday after resisting arrest at the Tarqumiyah crossing from the West Bank into Israel, and that while being treated, he tried to grab a firearm from a soldier.
According to the army, IDF forces spotted a suspect at the Tarqumiyah crossing, in the South Hebron hills, and tried to detain him. The man resisted arrest and was shot in the leg as a result.
“While receiving medical treatment due to the shooting, the terrorist tried to grab a gun from the military force that was accompanying him,” but was prevented from so doing, the IDF says.
2 people stabbed in Hadera, assailant flees; motive being probed
Medics are treating two people who were stabbed in the central city of Hadera.
The Magen David Adom ambulance says both victims are conscious.
The assailant reportedly fled the scene.
The background of the incident is still under investigation by police.
IDF airs footage of drone strike on Hezbollah fighters who killed a soldier last week
Illustrative: IDF troops operate in southern Lebanon, in an image cleared for publication on October 9, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
Hezbollah operatives who killed a paratrooper officer last week in southern Lebanon were eliminated in an airstrike, the IDF says, releasing footage of the incident without specifying when the airstrike took place.
Cpt. Ben Zion Falach, 21, of the Paratroopers Brigade’s 202nd Battalion, was killed during an exchange of fire with Hezbollah gunmen in a village in southern Lebanon on October 2.
The military says that the Hezbollah operatives were spotted by the paratroopers using a small drone, and they directed the Israeli Air Force to carry out a drone strike against them. Another operative was killed in an exchange of fire in a building, the IDF adds.
Separately, the IDF says the paratroopers have located hundreds of weapons, including in a 7-meter-deep bunker in a village where they are operating.
Iran’s foreign minister to arrive in Qatar tonight, source says
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will arrive in Qatar tonight as part of his tour of Gulf states, a source with knowledge of the visit tells Reuters.
German police close anti-Israel protest camp Greta Thunberg planned to visit
Activist Greta Thunberg, left, attends an anti-Israel rally in Berlin, October 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
German police say they have dissolved an anti-Israel protest camp in the western city of Dortmund after organizers told them that Swedish activist Greta Thunberg was planning to visit the camp.
Dortmund police says the decision last night was made, among other reasons, because Thunberg’s appearance would probably have drawn more people to the protest camp than originally permitted.
The dismantling of the camp, which has been in existence for months, was accepted without resistance, police says. Seven protesters were present at the camp yesterday, but Thunberg did not appear, German news agency dpa reports.
On Monday, Thunberg participated in an anti-Israel protest in Berlin.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
IDF says 185 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, 45 Hamas sites in Gaza struck in past day
IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip, in an image cleared for publication on October 9, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
The Israeli Air Force struck over 230 targets in the Gaza Strip and in Lebanon over the past day, the military says.
According to the IDF, the targets included 185 Hezbollah sites in Lebanon, and some 45 Hamas sites in Gaza, including sites where cells of operatives were gathered, observation posts, rocket launchers and weapon depots.
The IDF says troops continue to battle Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon, and several gunmen were killed during the past day in close-quarters combat and in airstrikes.
Weapons and rocket launchers were also found by the troops in southern Lebanon.
In Gaza, the 162nd Division continues a new offensive in Jabaliya, while the 252nd Division continues to operate in the Netzarim Corridor and in a fresh raid in Bureij.
During the operations in Gaza, the IDF says troops killed gunmen and located weapons.
Trump scrutinized after making baseless claim he’s been to Gaza
Former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event in Mint Hill, North Carolina, on September 25, 2024. (Logan Cyrus/AFP)
Republican US presidential candidate has been under scrutiny after claiming in a Monday interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt that he has previously visited Gaza.
“I’ve been there and it’s rough,” he said. “It’s a rough place before the, you know, before all of the attacks and back and forth what’s happened over the last couple of years.”
Multiple major American outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post and CNN, have since said there is no record of any such trip.
The Times of Israel has previously reported that Trump never even visited Israel before his presidency, and public records show Trump wasn’t in Gaza as president.
Trump’s campaign has not been forthcoming with information about the alleged visit to Gaza.
“President Trump has been to Gaza previously and has always worked to ensure peace in the Middle East,” campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told CNN, refusing to provide further details.
And The New York Times quoted a campaign official, speaking on condition of anonymity, making a different claim: that Trump has been to Israel, and “Gaza is in Israel.”
Beyond the fact that Trump in the interview had been talking specifically about Gaza, that latter claim isn’t true. Israel has never annexed the Strip, even when it controlled the territory militarily.
‘No tunnel is too deep’: Flyers in Gaza warn Sinwar’s fate will be same as slain terror chiefs’
Hebrew media reports that flyers have emerged in the Gaza Strip, warning Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar that his fate will be the same as Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and slain top Hamas officials.
“No tunnel is too deep, Sinwar, ask Sayyed Hassan…” the flyer says, referring to Nasrallah.
It includes an image of Sinwar near the bottom of the top half of an hourglass, indicating his demise is nearing, while the faces of assassinated Hamas leaders Ismail Haniyeh, Muhammad Deif and Saleh al-Arouri are in the lower part.
כרזות הוטלו ברצועה: "סינוואר, אין מנהרה עמוקה מדי. שאל את נסראללה" pic.twitter.com/dZEXJLram5
— ynet עדכוני (@ynetalerts) October 9, 2024
Member of Netanyahu’s party urges PM to order strike on Iranian nuclear sites
Likud MK Moshe Saada speaks during a Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee meeting on the ultra-Orthodox draft law at the Knesset in Jerusalem, June 25, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Likud MK Moshe Saada calls on his party chief, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to order a strike on Iran’s nuclear sites in retaliation for Tehran’s missile attack on Israel last week.
“I think Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu needs to do what’s good for the State of Israel,” Saada tells Radio 103FM. “He now has a unique historic opportunity to be remembered in the history books as a defender of Israel and the West, and all he needs to do is to attack the nuclear [sites]. That’s what needs to be done.”
“Think what would have happened in the latest attack if Iran didn’t have ballistic missiles but rather an atomic bomb. What would Israelis do? The stocking up on water bottles, the bomb shelters, wouldn’t have helped,” he says.
“I think it’s possible,” he says, while acknowledging the complexity of such a move and adding that it should be coordinated with the United States.
German reporter was arrested in Lebanon after giving live interview to Israeli TV from Beirut
Germany’s Bild news site says that several of its journalists were arrested in Beirut and taken for questioning the day after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s assassination.
The outlet says correspondent Paul Ronzheimer and his team were taken from their hotel rooms, handcuffed and blindfolded, to an unknown location. While describing those who made the arrest as “unknown men,” Bild also adds that they are “said” to have been members of Lebanon’s military intelligence service.
While the outlet doesn’t note the reason for the arrests, Hebrew media notes that they came a day after Ronzheimer gave a live TV interview to Israel’s Kan public broadcaster. It was possibly the first live broadcast from Beirut on Israeli television since the IDF withdrew from the Lebanese capital in 1982.
Bild says Ronzheimer was released later the same day, after Germany’s embassy in Beirut contacted Lebanese authorities, who intervened. He then continued reporting but was forced to leave Lebanon, only after which Bild has now revealed the ordeal.
כעת ניתן לספר שכתב המלחמות של העיתון הגרמני הנפוץ BILD, פול רונצהיימר, נעצר בביירות ביום שלאחר חיסול נסראללה לאחר שהתראיין לתכנית ״חדשות שישי״ עם מואב ורדי בשידור חי מביירות. pic.twitter.com/IyUq25tdOz
— Dov Gil-Har (@DovGilHar) October 9, 2024
IDF intercepts 2 rockets fired from Lebanon to Carmel region, south of Haifa
Two missiles launched from Lebanon were successfully intercepted by air defenses over the Carmel region in northern Israel a short while ago, the IDF says.
Sirens had sounded in Israel’s northern coastal plain, including Caesarea and Zichron Yaakov and nearby towns south of Haifa amid the attack.
There are no reports of injuries or damage.
Biden-Netanyahu phone call on Iran to be held today, source says
The expected phone call between US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss plans to strike Iran is set to be held today, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Report: Sinwar ordered suicide bombings renewed after taking power, has been cast as ‘megalomaniac’ by Hamas officials
Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip Yahya Sinwar speaks during a rally marking Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day, in Gaza City, April 14, 2023. (Mohammed Abed/AFP)
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar ordered the terror group’s leaders in the West Bank to renew suicide terror attacks in Israel shortly after he replaced the slain Ismail Haniyeh as head of Hamas’s politburo, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing unnamed Arab intelligence officials.
The order was given shortly before a failed suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, the report says. Some senior Hamas members reportedly have reservations about the decision, but have not been speaking up on the matter since Sinwar took power.
The practice was commonplace during the bloody Second Intifada in the early 2000s, as well as in the 1990s, but has become rare since Israel built a security barrier around the West Bank and boosted its intelligence-gathering methods to thwart such plots.
The Wall Street Journal report also confirms previous reports that Sinwar has recently renewed contact with ceasefire-and-hostage deal mediators, citing unnamed Arab officials involved in the mediation.
The outlet says it has viewed a handwritten letter by Sinwar from last month, saying Hamas is ready for a prolonged war of attrition to “break Israel’s will” and pave the way for the Jewish state’s demise.
The report paints a story in which Sinwar is an extremist figure even among the ranks of the Palestinian terror group, having refused last year to travel out of Gaza for reconciliation talks with rival Palestinian factions due to fears Haniyeh would unseat him during this time.
It says Sinwar surprised even other Hamas members overseas with the timing of the October 7, 2023, onslaught in southern Israel, citing unnamed current and former Arab and Israeli officials.
This prompted Hamas officials in Qatar to privately call Sinwar a “megalomaniac,” the report says, adding that Sinwar has recently been talking about the current war and his own role in it in “increasingly grandiose terms.”
After Haniyeh’s assassination in July, Hamas political officials had reportedly suggested former leader Khaled Mashaal as his successor, before the Sinwar-led military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, sent a message that Sinwar must be picked.
Report: After uncoordinated Nasrallah killing, US warned Israel it could be alone in repelling response
File: US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin (L) and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant give a joint press conference in Tel Aviv on December 18, 2023. (Alberto Pizzoli/AFP)
The Wall Street Journal reports that US President Joe Biden’s administration is frustrated that the Israeli government is refusing to tell it anything about its planned retaliation to Iran’s missile attack last week, adding details from a previous time this recently happened.
Citing unnamed US officials, the American news site says that after Jerusalem surprised Washington by assassinating Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah late last month without coordination with the White House, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was blunt in a subsequent phone call with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
“Excuse me, what did you say?” Austin reportedly asked Gallant when the latter told him about the operation.
Later that day, during a second phone call between the two, Austin asked Gallant if Jerusalem was ready to defend itself on its own, since the US hadn’t had time to deploy its forces to deflect a potential immediate reprisal by Hezbollah, according to the report.
IDF troops raise Israeli flag in Lebanon, on ruins of site where Iranian flag previously stood
A man fixes a Hezbollah flag at the 'Garden of Iran' Park in the Lebanese village of Maroun al-Ras on September 1, 2019, as fires blaze on the Lebanese side along the border following an exchange of fire with Israel. (Mahmoud Zayyat/AFP)
Israeli troops have razed the so-called “Garden of Iran” on the outskirts of the southern Lebanese village of Maroun al-Ras, and raised an Israeli flag over the area.
The park, located less than a kilometer from the Israeli border, used to feature a statue of assassinated IRGC Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani pointing at Israel and a replica of Jerusalem’s Dome of the Rock.
Footage shared on social media yesterday shows the heavily damaged park following Israeli operations in the area, and troops placing an Israeli flag there, where an Iranian one once flew.
דגל ישראל מונף מעל הכפר מארון א-ראס בלבנון
צילום: צוות אביר 91 ביחידת הבלנ"מ pic.twitter.com/kljzyAl2H6
— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) October 8, 2024
ارتش اسرائیل امروز وارد بوستان ایران شد!
"حدیقة إیران" سال 1386 با هزینه بودجه دولتی ایران در روستای مارون الارس ساخته شد و سال های متوالی با امکانات تفریحی توسعه یافت.
در این پارک علائمی نظیر مجسمه قاسم سلیمانی، تندیس خامنه ای، ماکت مسجد الاقصی وجود داشت که توسط IDF تخریب شد pic.twitter.com/yONWziaUuE— سرباز میهن (@IRANIANguardian) October 8, 2024
The Location where Israeli Soldiers were seen planting the Israeli Flag earlier today in the Southern Lebanese Village of Maroun al-Ras, is believed to be on the Site of the “Iran Garden” a Park which was Funded by the Iranian Government and contained a Statue of the Former… pic.twitter.com/PxjXCj6Z76
— Alex Kennedy (@therealmindman) October 8, 2024
Netanyahu and Biden said expected to hold call on Iran after not speaking for weeks
US President Joe Biden, right, meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, July 25, 2024. (AP/ Susan Walsh)
WASHINGTON — US President Joe Biden is expected to hold a phone call on Wednesday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about any plans to strike Iran, Axios reports, citing three US officials.
“We want to use the call to try and shape the limitations of the Israeli retaliation,” a US official is quoted as saying by Axios.
Axios cites the US official as saying that Washington wants to make sure Israel attacks targets in Iran that are significant without being disproportionate.
The White House doesn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the report, which comes after Defense Minister Yoav Gallant delayed his scheduled trip to Washington due to reported last-minute demands from Netanyahu, including a phone call with Biden.
The two leaders haven’t spoken in nearly 50 days amid growing frustration in Washington with Netanyahu’s handling of the war and perceived lack of a strategy for how to bring it to an end.
IDF says 3 soldiers seriously wounded in southern Lebanon fighting
An IDF handout photo cleared for publication on October 9, 2024, shows troops operating in southern Lebanon. (Israel Defense Forces)
The IDF says three soldiers have been seriously wounded in separate incidents in southern Lebanon.
In the first incident, the IDF says a NCO and reservist from the Military Intelligence Directorate’s Unit 504 were seriously hurt yesterday, and that the third soldier — of the Alon Brigade’s 8207th Battalion — was seriously injured today.
All three have been taken to hospitals for medical care.
Rocket alerts activated in Western Galilee communities near Lebanon
Incoming rocket alerts blare in several Western Galilee towns near the border with Lebanon.
IDF says it intercepted drone ‘from the east’ as Iraqi militia claims attack on southern Israel
The IDF says that it intercepted a drone “launched from the east,” a term used to refer to Iraq.
No air raid sirens were activated before the interception, which an IDF statement says was “in accordance with protocol.”
The statement from the military comes shortly after the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an Iran-backed militia network, claimed an attack on southern Israel.
Harris: There’s been progress in Gaza talks but it’s ‘meaningless’ unless deal reached
US Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris walks to board Air Force Two as she departs for New York at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on October 7, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool/AFP)
NEW YORK — There has been some progress on a Gaza ceasefire deal but it is “meaningless” unless a deal is actually reached, US Vice President Kamala Harris says during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
The full interview with Harris, who faces Donald Trump in next month’s presidential election, will air during Tuesday night’s edition of the program.
“We must have a ceasefire and a hostage deal as immediately as possible,” she says.
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