Live updates (closed)
The Times of Israel liveblogged Friday’s events as they happened.
Hamas claims two children die in north Gaza hospital amid Israeli raid
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says two children died at the last functioning hospital in the territory’s north after Israeli fire hit oxygen equipment. At the same time, the military tells AFP it is unaware of strikes in the area.
“Two children have died in the intensive care unit after the hospital’s generators failed and the oxygen station was targeted,” says a health ministry statement about the Kamal Adwan Hospital in north Gaza’s Jabaliya refugee camp.
Israeli forces “are searching the hospital and firing within different departments, increasing the panic and anxiety,” the ministry adds.
The Israeli army says it is “not aware of live fire and strikes in the area of the hospital.”
Army says 65 rockets were launched by Hezbollah at northern Israel today
Some 65 rockets were launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon at northern Israel today, according to an IDF tally.
In the latest attack, three rockets were launched at Kiryat Shmona and were intercepted.
Earlier, two civilians were killed and seven wounded in a rocket impact in Majd al-Krum, and another rocket strike earlier wounded six soldiers in Shomera.
Woman in her 30s found dead in West Bank settlement home
The body of a woman in her 30s has been found in a home in a West Bank settlement.
The cause of death is not immediately clear. Hebrew media reports the police are looking into whether she died of natural causes.
At least two Israeli strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs
At least two Israeli strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanese state media reports, as footage shows smoke rising from the area after Israel issued an evacuation call.
The official National News Agency says “enemy aircraft launched two new strikes” on the Haret Hreik district, one of the areas where the Israeli military had earlier told residents to evacuate.
From the Israeli raid on Haret Hreik in the suburb of #Beirut.
#Lebanon #Israel pic.twitter.com/3AZCvlyJsQ
— Khaled Iskef خالد اسكيف (@khalediskef) October 25, 2024
IDF says alleged strike that killed 3 journalists in south Lebanon ‘under review’
The Israeli army says an alleged strike that killed three journalists in south Lebanon is “under review.”
“Several hours after the strike, reports were received that journalists had been hit during the strike. The incident is under review,” the military says in a statement to AFP, referring to the strike in Hasbaya.
IDF confirms 6 soldiers were wounded by rocket in the Galilee earlier
The IDF confirms that six soldiers were wounded in a rocket impact in the Shomera area in Western Galilee earlier today.
The soldiers are listed as moderate and in good condition.
One rocket was launched in the attack, according to the IDF.
Report: Israel offered Hamas leaders safe passage to free hostages, they refused
Mossad chief David Barnea attends a ceremony at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem on Holocaust Remembrance Day, May 5, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
The Wall Street Journal reports that Israel in recent days offered Hamas leaders safe passage to another country if they disarmed and freed the hostages they are holding.
The paper says the head of the spy agency Mossad, David Barnea, conveyed the offer during meetings in Egypt over the past week.
The Journal, citing Arab mediators, says Hamas rebuffed the proposal.
IDF tells Lebanese civilians near 3 buildings in Beirut’s Dahiyeh to evacuate
The Israel Defense Forces is calling on Lebanese civilians near three buildings in the southern suburb of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold known as Dahiyeh, to evacuate immediately ahead of airstrikes.
Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, publishes maps alongside the announcement and calls on civilians to distance themselves at least 500 meters from the sites, which the military says belong to Hezbollah.
#عاجل إلى جميع السكان المتواجدين في منطقة الضاحية الجنوبية وتحديدًا في المباني المحددة في الخرائط المرفقة والمباني المجاورة لها في المناطق التالية:
????برج البراجنة
????حارة حريك⭕️تتواجدون بالقرب من منشآت ومصالح تابعة لحزب الله حيث سيعمل ضدها جيش الدفاع على المدى الزمني القريب… pic.twitter.com/pU8e4lwxGg
— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) October 25, 2024
US sends F-16s to Middle East as region braces for Israeli strike on Iran
Multiple US Air Force F-16s have arrived in the Middle East from Germany, US Central Command has said.
U.S. Air Force F-16s from the 480th Fighter Squadron based at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany arrive in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. pic.twitter.com/myt8uWySX9
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) October 25, 2024
Their arrival comes against the backdrop of expectations of a major Israeli strike on Iran, in retaliation for the massive October 1 ballistic missile attack on the country.
Senior Israeli official: If we don’t show flexibility, there won’t be a hostage deal
IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip, in an undated handout image released for publication on October 25, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
A senior Israeli official with knowledge of negotiations for a hostage-ceasefire deal in Gaza tells Channel 12 there will be no progress if Israel does not show some flexibility in its demands.
“They’re pulling the wool over the eyes of the public and hostages’ families,” the anonymous source says, regarding hopes a deal comfortable for Israel is now more likely with Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar dead. “If there is no flexibility in Israel’s position, there will be no deal, just as previous deals fell through.”
Israel and Hamas have clashed in negotiating rooms over whether a ceasefire will constitute an end to the war; over the numbers and identities of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners to be freed; over whether Israel will maintain control over the Gaza-Egypt border; over whether Israel will allow a return of residents to north Gaza; and more.
Lebanon has been placed on financial crime watchlist, international body says
Lebanon has been placed on a so-called ‘grey list’ of countries under special scrutiny by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the financial crime watchdog says, despite requests for leniency from Lebanese officials.
The FATF says Lebanon has made progress on several recommended actions and will continue to implement reforms.
Lebanon has been in a financial crisis since 2019 and faces crisis amid the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. The grey listing is likely to further deter investment and could impact the links between some Lebanese banks and the global financial system.
IDF says it is unaware of incident in which UNIFIL claims troops fired at post
Armored vehicles of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) patrol the Marjayoun area in southern Lebanon on October 24, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
After UNIFIL claimed that Israeli troops opened fire on peacekeepers at a guard post near southern Lebanon’s Dhayra earlier this week, the IDF says it is unaware of such an incident taking place.
“On 22 October, peacekeepers on duty at a permanent observation post near Dhayra were observing IDF soldiers conducting house clearing operations nearby. Upon realizing they were being observed, the IDF soldiers fired at the post. The duty guards withdrew to avoid being shot,” UNIFIL said on X.
An Israeli military spokesperson tells The Times of Israel that after looking into the claims, the IDF is not aware of the incident.
“The IDF is in continuous and open contact with UNIFIL,” the spokesperson says, adding that Hezbollah’s activities pose a danger to the peacekeeping force.
ICC replaces judge on panel set to rule on arrest warrants for Israeli leaders
Undated photo of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Netherlands. (Oliver de la Haye / iStock)
The International Criminal Court has announced it is replacing one of the three justices in the pre-trial chamber that must decide on whether to grant Prosecutor Karim Khan’s request for arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, over alleged war crimes in Gaza.
Khan made the request in May, but no decision has yet been made by the court.
Judge Iulia Motoc of Romania asked to be excused “based on medical grounds.” She will be replaced by Justice Beti Hohler of Slovenia.
Hebrew media reports that the move is likely to delay a decision on the warrants.
Two victims of rocket in Majd al-Krum are Hassan Suad, 21, and Arjwan Manaa, 19
The two people killed in the rocket strike in Majd al-Krum have been identified as Hassan Suad, 21, and Arjwan Manaa, 19.
Arjwan Manaa and Hassan Suad were killed today in Majd al-Krum by a Hezbollah rocket. pic.twitter.com/pE2khBG1hB
— Azat (@AzatAlsalim) October 25, 2024
24-year-old woman shot dead in central town of Lod
A 24-year-old woman was shot dead in the central town of Lod a short time ago.
She was rushed to a local hospital, where doctors declared her dead.
Police are investigating the suspected murder.
IDF downs drone from Lebanon over Galilee
The IDF says it downed a drone that crossed into Israel in the western Galilee a short time ago.
No sirens sounded in the area.
Two critically injured by rocket in Majd al-Krum die of their injuries
Two people critically injured in the rocket attack on Majd al-Krum have died of their injuries, medical officials say.
WHO says it’s lost contact with north Gaza hospital staff
The World Health Organization says it has lost contact with staff at northern Gaza’s last functioning hospital, after the Israeli army said it was operating in the area.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says hundreds of patients and staff were detained at Kamal Adwan Hospital.
“Since this morning’s reports of a raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, we have lost touch with the personnel there,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says on X. “This development is deeply disturbing, given the number of patients being served and people sheltering there.”
Earlier the Israeli military said it was operating at the hospital amid “intelligence information on terrorists and terror infrastructure in the area.” In the weeks before the operation, the IDF says it enabled the evacuation of patients and staff from the hospital, while also ensuring that the medical center’s emergency systems continued to function.
Since this morning’s reports of a raid of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern #Gaza, we have lost touch with the personnel there. This development is deeply disturbing given the number of patients being served and people sheltering there.
Prior to this, @WHO and partners managed to… pic.twitter.com/KL5ElhoQia
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) October 25, 2024
IDF names three more soldiers killed in combat in the Gaza Strip
Soldiers killed in fighting in Gaza on October 25, 2024 (L-R): Sgt. Ido Ben Zvi, Sgt. Hillel Ovadia, Cpt. Barak Israel Sagan (Courtesy)
Three Israeli soldiers were killed during fighting in the northern Gaza Strip this morning, the IDF announces.
The slain troops are named as:
Cpt. Barak Israel Sagan, 22, from Petah Tikva
Sgt. Ido Ben Zvi, 21, from Shomrat
Sgt. Hillel Ovadia, 22, from Jerusalem
All three served with the 460th Armored Brigade’s 196th Battalion. The brigade is the IDF’s school for tank commanders during peacetime. Sagan was a commander at the school, while Ben Zvi and Ovadia were cadets.
The three were killed in northern Gaza’s Jabaliya early this morning when a bomb was detonated against the tank they were in. The fourth soldier in the tank was moderately wounded.
Lebanon says alleged Israeli strike that killed media workers a ‘war crime’
Lebanon accuses Israel of targeting journalists in a “deliberate” attack that killed three media workers in the country’s south on Friday, calling the incident a “war crime.”
The Israeli military has not yet responded to the claim.
Pro-Iran Lebanese television channel Al Mayadeen says cameraman Ghassan Najjar and broadcast engineer Mohammad Reda were killed in the strike on a journalists’ residence in Hasbaya, south Lebanon.
Another TV outlet, Al-Manar, run by Hezbollah, says video journalist Wissam Qassem was also killed in the strike on a bungalow located in a resort that several media organizations covering the Israel-Hezbollah war had rented out.
‘Darkest moment’ of war unfolding in northern Gaza — UN rights chief
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk delivers a speech at the opening of the 57th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, on September 9, 2024. (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
The UN rights chief says the “darkest moment” of the conflict in Gaza is unfolding in the north of the territory, warning that Israel’s actions as it fights Hamas there could amount to “atrocity crimes.”
“Unimaginably, the situation is getting worse by the day. The Israeli government’s policies and practices in northern Gaza risk emptying the area of all Palestinians. We are facing what could amount to atrocity crimes, including potentially extending to crimes against humanity,” Volker Turk says in a statement.
Hezbollah takes responsibility for Majd al-Krum attack
Hezbollah takes responsibility for the rocket fire that wounded at least nine people in the northern Arab town of Majd al-Krum.
The terror group claims to have targeted the adjacent city of Karmiel with a salvo of rockets.
The IDF says some 30 rockets were launched in the attack.
Medics say 9 wounded in Majd al-Krum, of which 3 critically and 1 seriously
At least nine people are wounded as a result of the rocket impacts in Majd al-Krum, medics say.
According to Magen David Adom, the victims include three people in critical condition: a 35-year-old woman and two men aged 21.
Another man in his 80s was seriously wounded, two others are in moderate condition and three more are lightly hurt, MDA adds.
הפגיעה במג'דל כרום: שני צעירים פונו במצב אנוש ובן 80 במצב קשה.
במד"א עדכנו כי מזירת הנפילה במג'ד אל-כרום פונו למרכז הרפואי לגליל בנהריה שלושה פצועים מרסיסים, בהם שני צעירים כבני 21 במצב אנוש תוך ביצוע פעולות החייאה, וגבר כבן 80 במצב קשה. pic.twitter.com/3tYMt2u5HK
— מה חדש. What's new❓ (@Gloz111) October 25, 2024
IDF says some 30 rockets were launched from Lebanon at the Galilee
The IDF says some 30 rockets were launched from Lebanon at the Galilee a short while ago.
Some of the rockets were intercepted, and others impacted in Majd al-Krum and other nearby areas.
At least five people were wounded in Majd al-Krum, including some in critical and serious condition, according to medics.
The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it is taking several people to a hospital after they were wounded by shrapnel.
The victims include two men aged 21 who are in critical condition and a man in his 80s in serious condition, MDA says.
At least 5 injured, some critically and seriously, as rocket hits northern town Majd al-Krum
Screen grab from a video on social media apparently shows the evacauation of an injured individual after a rocket fired from Lebanon hit Majd al-Krum on October 25, 2024 (Used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
Medics are responding to reports of causalities in a rocket impact in the northern Arab town of Majd al-Krum.
At least five people are injured, with some of them reportedly in critical and serious condition.
Sirens had sounded in Majd al-Krum and other towns amid the barrage from Lebanon.
Rocket sirens sound in Galilee towns, villages
Sirens sound in multiple towns and villages in the Galilee region, warning of incoming rocket fire.
IDF says jets hit Beirut sites belonging to Hezbollah’s intel division and air defense unit
Israeli fighter jets struck overnight several Hezbollah weapon manufacturing sites and command centers belonging to the terror group’s intelligence division and air defense unit in Beirut, the IDF says.
All of the Hezbollah assets were located inside or below buildings “in the heart of a civilian population,” the military says, accusing Hezbollah of using human shields.
Before the strikes, the IDF issued evacuation warnings to civilians in the area.
במהלך הלילה, מטוסי קרב של חיל האוויר, בהכוונה מודיעינית מדויקת של אגף המודיעין תקפו בביירות מספר אתרים לייצור אמצעי לחימה ומפקדות של מטה המודיעין ומערך ההגנה האווירית של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה>> pic.twitter.com/8o7g0MKLDb
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 25, 2024
IDF: Troops operating at evacuated hospital in north Gaza amid ‘intel on terrorists in the area’
The Israeli military says it is operating at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip, amid “intelligence information on terrorists and terror infrastructure in the area.”
In the weeks before the operation, the IDF says it enabled the evacuation of patients and staff from the hospital, while also ensuring that the medical center’s emergency systems continued to function.
So far, some 45,000 Palestinian civilians have evacuated from Jabaliya amid the IDF’s operation in the area, according to the military’s latest estimates.
Hundreds of suspected terror operatives were detained, and hundreds of gunmen were also killed, the IDF adds.
Tiktoker charged for tearing down Greek flags she thought were Israeli at NJ restaurant
Greek flags torn down by a woman who mistook them for Israeli flags at Efi's Gyro in Montclair , New Jersey, in March 2024 (Screen grab/Tiktok used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
A woman who tore down a string of Greek flags at a New Jersey restaurant after mistaking them for Israeli flags has been arrested and charged, the New York Post reports.
Amber Matthews, 23, was charged with bias and intimidation over the March 11 incident at Efi’s Gyro in Montclair, police say.
Matthews filmed the incident, but only recently uploaded it to TikTok, where it quickly went viral.
The New York Post says the clip has been viewed 4.5 million times on TikTok and has millions more views on other social media platforms.
“Montclair is a community that strives to treat all individuals with dignity and respect,” police Chief Todd Conforti tells the Montclair local. “I hope this investigation sends a clear message that our agency will not tolerate any form of harassment or discrimination, and offenders will be held accountable for their actions.”
In the video, Matthews tears down a string of flags outside a restaurant.
“Free Palestine! What are you looking at? You know damn well there’s a genocide,” she said. “I’m taking this shit down.”
“I don’t stand for it. There’s genocide, and I don’t stand for Zionism,” Matthews said.
“Are you proud of your heritage,” she asked a worker, who then informs her that it is Greek flags.
“My bad,” said Matthews. “It looks like Israel. Do you want it back?”
Matthews is due in court in December.
Remember the TikToker who “mistook” the Greek flag for an Israeli one?
The video, as absurd as it seems, was not a skit.
Amber Matthews, 23, was charged with bias and intimidation for ripping down the Greek flags in her ludicrous blunder.
pic.twitter.com/yjtfZgwSaz— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) October 25, 2024
At least 6 wounded in rocket strike in Western Galilee
At least six people are wounded in a rocket impact in the Shomera area in the Western Galilee.
First responders say the victims are in moderate and good condition.
There is no immediate comment from the IDF.
Blinken: ‘Real sense of urgency’ to reach diplomatic solution in Israel-Hezbollah conflict
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, disembarks from his plane upon arrival at Stansted Airport, north of London on October 24, 2024 (Nathan Howard / POOL / AFP)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says there is a real sense of urgency in getting to a diplomatic resolution to end the conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group.
The top US diplomat is in Britain meeting Arab leaders, following a tour of the Middle East earlier this week, his first to the region since Israel killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind of the terror group’s Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel which triggered the conflict across the Middle East.
“We have a sense of real urgency in getting to a diplomatic resolution and the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, such that there can be real security along the border between Israel and Lebanon,” Blinken says, referring to a resolution in place following the last major Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006.
“Meanwhile, we want to make sure we want to see civilians protected. We want to make sure that Lebanese armed forces are not caught in the in the crossfire,” he says.
Blinken tells reporters he is “intensely engaged” in the matter.
UN Security Council Resolution 1701 requires that the Lebanese Armed Forces be the only force with arms in southern Lebanon. The resolution has gone largely unenforced since it was passed in 2006, allowing Hezbollah to build up a formidable arms cache and defensive capabilities, with neither UNIFIL peacekeepers nor the LAF willing to challenge the Iran-backed terror group.
IDF says it carried out strike on Lebanon-Syria border crossing used by Hezbollah to smuggle arms
The Israeli military confirms carrying out an airstrike against a border crossing between Lebanon and Syria overnight, which it says was used by Hezbollah to smuggle arms.
According to the IDF, Hezbollah had exploited the Syrian-run Jusiyah Crossing, located in the northern Beqaa Valley close to the Lebanese town of Qaa, for the transfer of weapons from Syria into Lebanon.
The military releases footage of the strikes which it says targeted Hezbollah infrastructure at the crossing.
The IDF says Hezbollah’s Unit 4400 was behind the smuggling efforts.
Israel has struck several other crossings between Lebanon and Syria in recent months, amid efforts by Iran to supply Hezbollah with weapons.
מטוסי קרב של חיל-האוויר, בהכוונת אגף המודיעין תקפו במהלך הלילה תשתיות צבאיות של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה במעבר הגבול ג׳וסיה בצפון הבקעא.
כפי שניצל ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה את מעבר מצנע האזרחי להעברת אמצעי לחימה מסוריה ללבנון שמשמשים לפעולות טרור כנגד אזרחי מדינת ישראל וכוחות צה"ל, כך… pic.twitter.com/90cb6uVyeI— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) October 25, 2024
Mossad head Barnea holds Cairo meeting with Egypt spy chief on hostage-ceasefire deal – report
Mossad chief David Barnea at a Memorial Day ceremony at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City, May 12, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/ Flash90)
Mossad chief David Barnea returned to Israel this morning after holding a meeting with newly appointed Egyptian intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Hassan Mahmoud Rashad, the Ynet news site reports.
It was reportedly the first meeting between the two since Rashad replaced Abbas Kamel earlier this month.
According to the report, Barnea and Rashad held a lengthy discussion on a potential hostage-ceasefire deal amid the war in Gaza, as well as on increased counter-terror cooperation.
Earlier this week, Rashad reportedly met with Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.
Barnea will travel to Doha on Sunday to try to restart discussions on a deal to release the hostages held in Gaza and halt the war between Israel and Palestinian terror group Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement Thursday evening.
The talks will come amid an attempted revival of negotiations after the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza.
7 Israelis charged with spying for Iran allegedly carried out 600 missions collecting intel on bases, sensitive sites, individuals
A crater is seen near a taxiway at the Nevatim Airbase, following an Iranian ballistic missile strike, April 14, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
Seven Jewish Israeli citizens are charged after they were arrested last month on suspicion of spying for Iran for as long as two years, carrying out some 600 at the behest of the Islamic Republic.
The seven are accused of the security offenses of aiding the enemy during wartime, and providing information to the enemy.
The suspects, all residents of Haifa and the north, include a soldier who deserted the military, as well as two unnamed minors aged 16-17.
Prosecutors say Azis Nisanov was recruited by Iran as the head of the spy ring, with his deputy Alexander Sadykov managing the other agents.
The third defendant is an unnamed minor who was the main agent for tasks involving photography and sending images to the Iranian contacts, and the fourth was a second minor who was engaged in photography tasks, sending content, and receiving money from an Iranian agent.
Vyacheslav Gushchin, Yevgeny Yoffe and Yigal Nissan are named by prosecutors as the final three defendants.
If caught, Nisanov had created a cover story in which the spies were tour guides, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors say the suspects collected information on sensitive sites in Israel, military bases and human targets.
The defendants carried out hundreds of missions to photograph air bases at Nevatim, Ramat David, Tel Nof and Palmachim, as well as bases in Beer Tuvia, Kiryat Gat, Emek Hefer and the Glilot complex north of Tel Aviv.
In addition, the defendants photographed the Iron Dome missile defense systems in the Haifa area, government buildings in Haifa, the ports of Haifa, Ashdod and Eilat, the Hadera power plant, and the IDF observation balloon in the Golani Junction area.
The Iranian operators also sent one of the suspects information on military bases and strategic sites, for the purpose of carrying out future photography missions, including the dining hall of the Golani training base targeted in a drone attack earlier this month, and a site belonging to the Rafael defense firm.
Prosecutors say the suspects were also sent to photograph the Nevatim air base on April 14, the day after Iran’s ballistic missile and drone attack.
Additionally, Nisanov was asked to find details on the car, relatives and schedule of an expert in gas engineering at the University of Haifa who had lectured on Iran.
The suspects received payment and reimbursement of expenses that ranged from $500 to $1,200 per task.
The total payment received by the spy ring was $300,000, divided between the members.
IDF: 2 Hezbollah tunnels, one that would have been used in planned invasion, demolished by troops
Hezbollah weapons found by IDF troops in southern Lebanon, in an image released by the military on October 25, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
Two Hezbollah tunnels were recently demolished by combat engineers during operations in southern Lebanon, the IDF says.
The sites had been located by reservists with the Carmeli Brigade.
One of the tunnels, which served as an underground command center, was located dozens of meters below a Lebanese village. The IDF says that several Hezbollah operatives were holed up in the site, and were killed.
Another tunnel, found by the troops close to the Israeli border, served as a weapons depot for Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force, and would have been used in a planned invasion of Israel, according to the military.
The IDF says the two tunnels were demolished.
Separately, the military says that the reservists seized dozens of Hezbollah weapons during their operations in southern Lebanon, including 11 trucks packed with anti-tank missiles, launchers, grenades, and assault rifles.
IDF says drone launched from Syria shot down over the Golan Heights
A drone that crossed into Israeli airspace from Syria was shot down by air defenses over the southern Golan Heights a short while ago, the IDF says.
Sirens had sounded in several towns in the Golan and near the Sea of Galilee amid the incident.
Palestinian outlet publishes handwritten docs attributed to Sinwar with instructions for guarding hostages
Gaza Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza City on March 30, 2022 (Attia Muhammed/Flash90)
The Palestinian newspaper Al-Quds publishes three documents allegedly handwritten by slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, in which he lays out instructions for the captors of hostages.
The first document stresses the obligation to “take care of the lives of the enemy’s prisoners and keep them safe, since they are an important bargaining chip in our hands” to free Palestinian prisoners, and includes Quranic verses on that matter.
The second document includes data on 112 unnamed hostages held in three areas: Gaza City (14), the center of the Strip (25), and Rafah (51). A fourth group of 22 hostages is listed without a location.
Hostages in each location are broken down into different categories, according to their age (above or below 60, or young), gender, and whether they were civilians or soldiers.
It also notes that one Bedouin hostage was held in Gaza City, and four in Rafah, among them a 55-year-old man (presumably Youssef Ziyadne with his three children, two of whom were released in a November ceasefire).
The third document includes a list of eleven female hostages who were released early on in the war, most of them during the week-long November truce. The eleven hostages are listed with their name, age and whether they held foreign citizenship.
It is believed that 97 of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 34 confirmed dead by the IDF.
Hamas released 105 civilians during the truce in late November, and four hostages were released before that. Eight hostages have been rescued by troops alive, and the bodies of 37 hostages have also been recovered, including three mistakenly killed by the military as they tried to escape their captors.
Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the bodies of two IDF soldiers who were killed in 2014.
♦️ سري للغاية وخاص بـ #القدس #القدس تنشر وصايا الشهيد #يحيى_السنوار للمقاتلين وتفاصيل بخط يده حول المحتجزين:
• «فإما مَنّاً بعدُ وإما فداءً» الآية رقم ٤ من «سورة محمد»
• «وعودوا المريض وأطعموا الجائع وفكّوا العاني» حديث شريف.
• «ما لا يتم الواجب إلا به فهو واجب» قاعدة… pic.twitter.com/5GAl3h74q6— جريدة القدس (@alqudsnewspaper) October 24, 2024
Reservist soldier killed in Lebanon is cousin of hostage: ‘He won’t get to see him come home from Gaza’
(R) Warrant Officer (res.) Guy Idan, killed in Lebanon, (R) his cousin Tsahi Idan, held hostage in Gaza (COurtesy)
One of the soldiers killed in the Hezbollah attack on troops in south Lebanon last night is the cousin of a man held hostage in Gaza.
Warrant Officer (res.) Guy Idan, 51, from Shomrat, is the cousin of Tsahi Idan, who was taken captive by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023 from his home in Kibbutz Nahal Oz, after his oldest daughter, Maayan, 18, was shot and killed through the door of their safe room.
Guy Idan was one of five soldiers killed by a Hezbollah rocket attack on a building in a southern Lebanon village last night.
Having already reached the age where he was no longer required for reserves duty, he had volunteered to serve.
“[Guy] won’t get to see [Tsahi] come home from captivity in Gaza,” a relative told the Ynet news site.
Sirens sound in towns on Sea of Galilee coast, warning of suspected drone attack
Sirens sound in towns on the coast of the Sea of Galilee, warning of a suspected drone attack.
Hezbollah-affiliated minister says IDF strike targeted Lebanon-Syria border crossing
Lebanon’s transport minister says an Israeli strike put a second border crossing between the country and Syria out of service, leaving one official passage between the two nations operational.
“The Qaa crossing has been put out of service after an Israeli strike on Syrian territory, hundreds of meters from Syrian border guards,” Hezbollah-backed Ali Hamieh says, adding that the strike blocked the passage of vehicles.
Israeli has accused Hezbollah of smuggling weapons from Syria through land crossings, however there is no comment from the IDF on this specific alleged strike.
5 reservists killed during fighting with Hezbollah in Lebanon last night, IDF announces
IDF reservists killed during fighting in southern Lebanon on October 25, 2024: (L-R) top: Maj. (res.) Dan Maori, 43; Warrant Officer (res.) Omri Lotan, 47; bottom: Warrant Officer (res.) Guy Idan, 51; Cpt. (res.) Alon Safrai, 28; and Master Sgt. (res.) Tom Segal, 28.
Five Israeli reserve soldiers were killed and 19 were wounded during fighting in southern Lebanon last night, the military announces.
The slain troops are named as:
- Maj. (res.) Dan Maori, 43, from Beit Yitzhak-Sha’ar Hefer
- Cpt. (res.) Alon Safrai, 28, from Jerusalem
- Warrant Officer (res.) Omri Lotan, 47, from Bat Hefer
- Warrant Officer (res.) Guy Idan, 51, from Shomrat
- Master Sgt. (res.) Tom Segal, 28, from Ein HaBesor.
They all served with the 8th Armored Brigade’s 89th Battalion. Maori was the deputy battalion commander.
According to an initial IDF probe, the soldiers were hit by a rocket launched by Hezbollah at a building in a southern Lebanese village, while the troops were accepting a logistics supply.
A barrage of rockets was fired at the meeting point for the supply of equipment, one of which hit near the building where the soldiers were standing. Members of the logistics convoy were also hurt.
Among the 19 injured, four soldiers are listed in serious condition.
The wounded reservists, along with another reservist who was seriously wounded during fighting in south Lebanon this morning, were taken to hospitals for treatment.
Rocket sirens sound in northern border towns
Sirens sound in a number of communities close to the northern border with Lebanon, warning of incoming rocket fire.
5 rockets fired at Haifa area, IDF says; some intercepted, others hit open ground; no injuries
A barrage of five rockets was launched from Lebanon at the Haifa area a short while ago, according to the IDF.
The military says some of the rockets were intercepted, while other struck open areas.
There are no reports of injuries.
Rocket sirens sound in Haifa, Acre and surrounding towns
Sirens sound in the Haifa area, warning of incoming rocket fire.
Alerts are also heard in Acre and surrounding towns and villages.
Earlier this morning, a missile was fired from Lebanon toward the Caesarea area.
Man shot and killed in Tamra
A man was shot and killed overnight in the northern town of Tamra.
According to the Abraham Initiatives organization, Muhammed Qaddura, 37, is the 194th Arab killed since the start of the year.
The watchdog said that 161 of the victims were killed in gun crime.
In its 2023 year-end report, the group pinned much of the blame for the surge in violence on Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel’s national security minister since the end of 2022. Ben Gvir, the organization said, had gutted a plan put in place by his predecessor, in cooperation with Arab municipal leaders, to stem the tide of crime in the Arab community.
Hezbollah Radwan Force commander in Lebanon’s Aitaroun killed in recent strike, IDF says
The commander of Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force in southern Lebanon’s Aitaroun region was killed in a recent airstrike, the IDF says.
Abbas Adnan Moslem, according to the military, was responsible for numerous rockets attacks on troops and Israeli towns, from the Aitaroun area.
The IDF says it also carried out strikes against some 200 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon in the past day.
Settler activists breach IDF border with Gaza, but do not enter Strip
A group of settler activists breached the IDF’s security barrier on the border with the Gaza Strip overnight.
The military says the suspects entered an Israeli buffer zone, but did not enter Gazan territory amid the incident.
IDF troops dispatched to the scene detained the suspects, brought them back to Israel, and handed them over to the police, the military says.
“Approaching the barrier zone is dangerous and harms the activity of security forces in the area,” the IDF adds.
קבוצת צעירים יהודים פרצו הלילה למרחב הגבול של רצועת עזה במטרה להיכנס לרצועה. כוח צבאי קפץ למקום באמצע הלילה כדי לפנות אותם – המשטרה עצרה מספר נערים@hod_barel pic.twitter.com/J5qDd0wR0Y
— גלצ (@GLZRadio) October 25, 2024
Video shows the group wearing bright orange, the color adopted by activists who protested Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza in 2005.
Pro-settlement activists have attempted several times to enter Gaza in the last year, in a bid to reclaim communities evacuated by Israel.
IDF says missile fired from Lebanon at northern Israel was intercepted
One missile launched from Lebanon at northern Israel was successfully intercepted by air defenses, the IDF says.
Sirens had sounded in numerous towns amid the attack, including in Caesarea.
Lebanon rocket fire sets off sirens in numerous northern Israeli towns, including Caesarea
Incoming rocket sirens are sounding in communities across the Menashe, Wadi Ari and Carmel areas of northern Israel.
An initial IDF statement says the sirens were triggered by rockets fired from Lebanon.
Among the towns where sirens are activated is Caesarea, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has a home that was targeted in a Hezbollah drone attack over the weekend.
Cameramen for Hezbollah’s Al-Manar, pro-Iran Al-Mayadeen said among those killed in stirke
An Israeli strike killed at least three media staff staying at a guesthouse where several other reporters were staying, Lebanese media say.
They include a cameraman and engineer working for the pro-Iranian outlet Al-Mayadeen and one cameraman working for Hezbollah’s Al-Manar. Other reporters at the scene say the bungalow where members of those specific outlets were sleeping was directly targeted.
Lebanese state media says 3 journalists killed in Israeli strike near Syria border
BEIRUT — Lebanese state media says three journalists were killed in an Israeli airstrike overnight in eastern Lebanon near the border with Syria.
“Our correspondent in Zahle reported the death of three journalists in an Israeli raid on Hasbaya,” Lebanon’s National News Agency reports, adding that “Israeli warplanes raided at 3:30 a.m. on the Lebanese-Syrian border.”
Iran readying for war with Israel as it braces for response to missile attack — NYT
A 'Fattah' missile is displayed during the annual military parade marking the anniversary of the outbreak of Iran's 1980-1988 war with Saddam Hussein's Iraq, in Tehran on September 21, 2024. (Atta Kenare/AFP)
Iran is readying for a war with Israel while at the same time seeking to avoid one, according to a New York Times report that comes as the Islamic Republic waits for Israel’s response to its latest missile attack. “Iran has ordered the armed forces to be prepared for war but also to try to avoid it,” the report says.
The report cites four Iranian officials who say Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered Iran’s armed forces to formulate numerous plans for responding to the expected Israeli retaliation. They warn Iran will attack if there is significant damage or casualties, but may stay its hand if Israel only targets a limited number of military sites and weapons depots.
The officials — two of whom belong to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — say that Iran will definitely respond if Israel hits oil sites, nuclear facilities or targets senior officials, with potential options including an attack with up to 1,000 ballistic missiles or the disruption of energy supplies in the region.
Democrats urge probe of Kushner for speaking to MBS about Israel-Saudi normalization
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, right, meets with senior advisor to the US President, Jared Kushner in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, September 1, 2020. (Saudi Press Agency via AP)
WASHINGTON — The Democratic chair of the US Senate Finance Committee and a prominent Democratic congressman have asked the US attorney general to appoint a special counsel to investigate whether Jared Kushner, former president Donald Trump’s son-in-law, was functioning as an unregistered foreign agent for Saudi Arabia, according to a letter from the lawmakers.
The letter from US Senator Ron Wyden and US Representative Jamie Raskin cites an October 4 Reuters report that revealed that Kushner on multiple occasions had discussed US-Saudi diplomacy concerning Israel with Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, since leaving government.
“This revelation is deeply disturbing, as Mr. Kushner appears to be influencing US foreign policy by acting as a political consultant to the Saudi government while also accepting their money,” Wyden and Raskin wrote in the eight-page letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland. The letter has not been previously reported.
“Mr. Kushner’s proximity to President Trump and the potential for political interference warrants the appointment of a Special Counsel,” the letter adds.
Saudi Arabia has invested $2 billion into a private equity fund, Affinity Partners, that Kushner, who was a top adviser on the Middle East during Trump’s administration, founded in 2021 after leaving government, according to congressional investigators.
In a statement, Kushner says, “There is no conflict of interest.” He dismissed the letter as “silly political stunts” and says it is ” beneath the level of seriousness that both of their chambers deserve.”
Chad Mizelle, Chief Legal Officer at Affinity Partners, calls the request for a special counsel “a disgraceful attempt by Wyden and Raskin to turn an already weaponized DOJ into a fully political operation with accusations that have no merit or evidence.”
The Department of Justice acknowledges receipt of the letter but declines further comment.
The Saudi Arabian embassy doesn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Drone launched from Iraq crashes in Red Sea near Eilat
A drone launched from Iraq at Israel crashed in the Red Sea a short while ago, close to Eilat.
The IDF says the drone was identified heading toward Israel, but it impacted an “open area” in the Red Sea, before reaching Israeli territory.
The drone had been launched “from the East,” a term the IDF uses to refer to attacks from Iraq.
Locals in Israel’s southernmost city of Eilat reported seeing interceptor missiles launched amid the incident.
UNRWA confirms Hamas Nukhba force commander killed in IDF strike was a staff member
A screenshot provided by the IDF on October 24, 2024, from an UNRWA spreadsheet, shows that Hamas terrorist Muhammad Abu Attawi is listed.
UNRWA confirms that Muhammad Abu Attawi was a staffer and killed on Wednesday, after Israel announced it had targeted him in a strike.
The IDF and Shin Bet said that Attawi, a Hamas Nukhba Force commander who led the killing and kidnapping of Israelis from a roadside bomb shelter near Kibbutz Re’im on October 7, had been employed by UNRWA since July 2022.
According to UNRWA, Attawi’s name was included in a letter the Palestinian refugee agency received from Israel in July that included a list of 100 staff members who were also allegedly members of armed groups, including Hamas.
“The UNRWA commissioner general responded to that letter immediately stating that any allegation is taken seriously. He urged (the government of Israel) to cooperate with the agency by providing more information so he could take action. To date, UNRWA has not received any response to that letter,” says Juliette Touma, UNRWA’s director of communications.
IDF Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari says Israel “has requested urgent clarifications from senior UN officials and an urgent investigation into the involvement of UNRWA employees in the October 7 massacre.”
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