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The Times of Israel liveblogged Wednesday’s events as they happened.
UNRWA says 6 staffers killed in Nuseirat, where IDF struck Hamas operatives in school
The UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA says six staffers were killed in Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip on Wednesday, marking what it says is the highest death toll among its staff in a single incident.
There is no immediate comment to UNRWA’s statement from the Israel Defense Forces, which earlier said it struck Hamas operatives at a command room embedded within a UN school in Nuseirat that is being used as a shelter.
Far-right MK confronts wounded terrorist in hospital bed: ‘We’ll make sure they kill you’
Far-right MK Zvi Succot is seen threatening a Palestinian terrorist in his hospital bed on September 11, 2024 (Screencapture X: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
Far-right MK Zvi Succot burst into a hospital room where a wounded terrorist was being treated and told the man he would work to have him put to death.
Succot, of the Religious Zionism party, was at Jerusalem’s Shaarei Zedek hospital when he learned that the Palestinian who carried out a deadly truck-ramming attack earlier in the day at a West Bank bus stop was being treated there.
Succot entered the room and told the man, “We’ll make sure they kill you. The State of Israel will kill you. We will pass a law to kill you.”
He is then escorted out of the room by a soldier.
Succot posts a video of the incident on X.
בעת ביקור בבית החולים שערי צדק גיליתי במקרה שמאושפז שם לא אחר מהמחבל שביצע את הפיגוע הקשה בגבעת אסף.
זה מה שהיה חשוב לי להגיד לנאצי הזה: pic.twitter.com/3byCWrQrG8— צבי סוכות (@tzvisuccot) September 11, 2024
Several far-right and right-wing lawmakers have been pressing for Israel to implement the death penalty for Palestinian terrorists.
The attack, in which the assailant drove his fuel tanker at speed into an IDF guard post next to the bus stop, killed Staff Sgt. Geri Gideon Hanghal, 24, of the Kfir Brigade’s Nahshon Battalion, from the northern city of Nof Hagalil.
The attacker was shot and wounded by soldiers and an armed civilian.
UN condemns Israeli strike on Hamas operatives in Gaza school
People use a blanket to transport a casualty after an Israeli air strike hit the Al-Jawni (Jaouni) school in Nuseirat, in the central Gaza Strip on September 11, 2024. The IDF says Hamas operatives were operating out of the site (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
The United Nations is condemning the Israeli airstrike on a UN school being used as a shelter in Gaza and trying to confirm reports that some UN staff members were killed in the attack.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric tells reporters that it was the fifth airstrike on the same school in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza since the start of the Gaza war.
The IDF said it targeted Hamas operatives who set up a command center at the site and used it to plan and launch attacks. Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of using UN schools and facilities as cover for their terror activities.
“We condemn all airstrikes that target civilians and those that also target UN facilities,” Dujarric says.
According to hospital officials, the Israeli airstrike killed at least 14 people, including two children, when it hit the school run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees known as UNRWA.
“Our policy is clear. UN premises should never be targeted, nor should UN premises be used by any groups or any force from which to launch military activities,” he says. “UN premises need to be protected. UN premises need to be respected, and that is by all parties to any conflict.”
Hamas says negotiation team met with Egypt, Qatari mediators
Senior Hamas politburo official Khalil al-Hayya speaks during an interview with The Associated Press, in Istanbul, Turkey, April 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
The Hamas terror group says that its negotiation team, led by Khalil al-Hayya, met Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egypt’s intelligence chief Abbas Kamel to discuss the latest developments in Gaza.
The Hamas statement says that the group remains committed to implementing a ceasefire based on the original US proposal and won’t accept new conditions from any party, an apparent reference to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence on Israeli troops maintaining positions on the Philadelphi Route on the Gaza-Egypt border.
The statement makes no mention of reported new Hamas demands to free prisoners serving life sentences in exchange for the first group of hostages that include, women children, the sick and the elderly.
The US has said it will soon present a new framework.
Tel Aviv hostage deal protest ends peacefully
Cardboard planks on Tel Aviv's Begin Street spell out 'how much more blood will be spelled for naught,' September 11, 2024. (Noam Lehmann/Times of Israel)
Protesters disperse from the anti-government, pro-hostage deal demonstration on Tel Aviv’s Begin Street. There were no clashes with police.
At its height, the protest drew some 200 people, including Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, and Ifat Kalderon, cousin of hostage Ofer Kalderon.
Protesters took over all but one of the central route’s lanes, occasionally blocking the road, with the last one for several minutes. One protester for the hostages held a sign reading “Honk until they hear,” and cheered drivers who heeded the call.
“Netanyahu don’t forget, history won’t forgive,” chanted the protesters, who accuse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of thwarting a hostage deal in order to keep his rightwing government intact.
Some protesters put up mock street signs dubbing the road “The Abandoner street: named for Benjamin Netanyahu, the greatest abandoner in the history of the people of Israel.”
On the road, with large cardboard planks, protesters spell out: “How much more blood will be spilled for nothing?”
Protesters’ signs and shirts leave little room for doubt that the slogan refers not just to the hostages, but to Gaza’s Palestinians.
One protester hoists a sign reading, in English: “From the river to the sea, only peace will set us free.”
After the protesters disperse, big white letters can be seen graffitied on the street. One line reads: “Mr. Abandonment and death,” referring to Netanyahu; the next: “genocide”; and finally, in Hebrew and English: “SOS.”
40 more rockets fired at north from Lebanon, total for day tops 100
Another 40 more rockets were launched from Lebanon at northern Israel this evening, bringing the total today to over 100.
The IDF says that some 30 rockets were launched at the Arab al-Aramshe area, and another 10 were fired at Matat.
Many of the rockets struck open areas, although some impacted Matat. There were no injuries in the attacks.
Meanwhile, fighter jets struck Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon’s Khraibeh, as well as a rocket launcher in Ayta ash-Shab, and buildings used by the terror group in Houla, Ayta ash-Shab and Marwahin, the IDF says.
לפני זמן קצר, מטוסי קרב של חיל האוויר בהכוונת פיקוד הצפון, תקפו מספר תשתיות צבאיות של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה במרחב אל-ח'ריבה שבדרום לבנון. בנוסף, הותקף משגר רקטות של הארגון במרחב עייתא א-שעב שבדרום לבנון>> pic.twitter.com/EbQfMCylX4
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 11, 2024
Justice minister proposed probe against Netanyahu, Gallant in bid to avoid war crimes charges — report
Left: Justice Minister Yariv Levin speaks during a Constitution, Law and Justice Committee meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, January 11, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90); Right: Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara attends a conference at the University of Haifa, December 15, 2022. (Shir Torem/Flash90)
Justice Minister Yariv Levin, acting at the behest of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, asked Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara to open a criminal probe into Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as a way to try and circumvent a request to issue an arrest warrant against the two at the International Criminal Court, Channel 12 reports.
The report says Netanyahu wanted the probe to be opened and then closed, with a report filed to the ICC that the charges had been investigated.
The report says Baharav-Miara rejected the request, saying that it was a blatant ploy and would not satisfy the court. Baharav-Miara believes that only a State Commission of Inquiry — Israel’s highest level probe — into October 7 and the ensuing war in Gaza, would satisfy the court.
Netanyahu has so far refused to commit to such a probe, saying it must wait until the end of the war. The report says Netanyahu fears it is a legal ploy to try and oust him from power.
The request from Levin came after ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan this week urged the court to issue the arrest warrants he requested in May against Netanyahu, Gallant, as well as Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Deif, “with utmost urgency.”
Khan requested arrest warrants against the Israeli and Hamas leaders in May on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes for the October 7 atrocities committed by Hamas, and Israel’s military policies in its subsequent war against the terror group.
Netanyahu promises ultra-Orthodox leader to push Haredi draft law amid threat to vote against budget
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf, right, arriving for a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on September 27, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf, head of the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, and promises him that he will push to expedite a planned law facilitating blanket exemptions for the Haredi community from military service when the Knesset reconvenes later this month, Hebrew media reports.
Goldknopf had been threatening to vote against the upcoming budget if the law did not go ahead, something that would have forced elections.
Goldknopf’s threat came as dueling sides within the coalition have indicated a willingness to call early elections over the divisive demand to award blanket exemptions for yeshiva students from military service, which is compulsory for most Jewish Israelis.
Most Haredim do not currently serve, but the issue has long remained unregulated by clear laws amid a High Court of Justice demand to do so.
US grants Egypt entire $1.3 billion in military aid, waiving human rights requirements
Egyptian military personnel stand alert at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza Strip, in Rafah, Egypt, October 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Mohammed Asad)
The Biden administration notifies the US Congress that it will provide Egypt with $1.3 billion in military aid, a State Department spokesperson says, the first time since 2020 Egypt will receive the total amount of US funding despite human rights conditions.
The announcement comes as Washington has relied heavily on Cairo — a longstanding US ally — to mediate so far unsuccessful talks between Israel and Hamas on a ceasefire deal to end the war in Gaza.
Of the $1.3 billion in US foreign military financing allocated to Egypt, $320 million is subject to conditions that have meant at least some of that sum has been withheld in recent years.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken tells Congres that he waived a certification requirement on $225 million related to Egypt’s human rights record this year citing “the US national security interest,” the spokesperson says by email.
“This decision is important to advancing regional peace and Egypt’s specific and ongoing contributions to US national security priorities, particularly to finalize a ceasefire agreement for Gaza, bring the hostages home, surge humanitarian assistance for Palestinians in need, and help bring an enduring end to the Israel-Hamas conflict,” the spokesperson says.
Blinken issued a similar same waiver on the human rights conditions last year but withheld a portion of the military aid over Egypt’s failure to make “clear and consistent progress” on the release of political prisoners.
This year, Blinken determined that Egypt had made sufficient efforts on political prisoners to release $95 million tied to progress on the issue, the spokesperson said.
Islamists top Jordan election, shy of majority: official results
Electoral delegates pass out cards outside a polling station in al-Salt near the capital Amman on September 10, 2024. (Photo by Khalil MAZRAAWI / AFP)
Jordan’s leading Islamist opposition party has won 31 out of 138 seats in the kingdom’s parliament, tripling its representation in the house, according to official election results released today.
The Islamic Action Front, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, came ahead of other parties and factions in the legislature following Tuesday’s polls, but far from forming a majority.
Two Palestinians killed in strike in West Bank, Red Crescent says
Two Palestinians were killed in a strike in the West Bank on Wednesday, the Palestinian Red Crescent said.
The Israeli military said its aircraft had conducted a strike in Tulkarm, without providing details.
IDF confirms Tulkarem drone strike
The IDF confirms carrying out a drone strike in Tulkarem, amid an ongoing counter-terrorism operation in the northern West Bank.
It says further details will be provided later.
Palestinians report Israeli drone strike in West Bank city of Tulkarem
Palestinian media report an Israel drone strike against a vehicle in the West Bank city of Tulkarem.
No further details are immediately available.
تغطية صحفية: اللحظات الأولى بعد قصف طيران الاحتلال مركبة قرب ضاحية إكتابا في طولكرم. pic.twitter.com/r5WwNT4qkn
— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) September 11, 2024
Hamas claims 30-rocket barrage from Lebanon
The scene where a missile fired from Lebanon hit in Kibbutz Dan, September 11, 2024.(Michael Giladi/Flash90)
Hamas’s Lebanon branch claims responsibility for the barrage of some 30 rockets on the Western Galilee earlier this afternoon.
The terror group claims to have targeted a military base in the area.
There were no injuries in the attack.
Hezbollah, meanwhile, takes responsibility for other rocket barrages and an anti-tank missile attack today, the latter of which seriously wounded an IDF reservist.
MK Edelstein mourns son of top Ukrainian rabbi who fell fighting Russians
MK Yuli Edelstein, the chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, says that his “heart breaks” over the death of the son of Ukrainian Rabbi Moshe Azman, who fell battling the Russians.
“Like Israel, Ukraine is also in an existential war and like Israel the Ukrainian people have lost their precious sons in a terrible war that was imposed on them,” Edelstein says.
“I pray for times of peace and the return of all our children to safe and prosperous countries.”
IDF says it killed 2 Oct. 7 terrorists, including one who held slain hostage Noa Marciano
Cpl. Noa Marciano who was killed in Hamas captivity in November after being taken hostage on October 7, 2023. (Courtesy)
Two Hamas terrorists who participated in the October 7 onslaught, one of whom was involved in guarding a former slain hostage, were killed in recent airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, the IDF says.
Last Wednesday, Abdullah Abu Riala, a member of Hamas’s Shati Battalion in Gaza City was killed in a drone strike.
The IDF says Abu Riala participated in the October 7 massacre and was later among those responsible for guarding Cpl. Noa Marciano in Gaza. Marciano, who was abducted on October 7, was later killed by Hamas at Shifa Hospital.
Her body was recovered by the IDF in November.
A separate drone strike killed Ayman Khaled Ahmed Abu al-Yahni, who the IDF says was a member of Hamas’s elite Nukhba force and was involved in attacking the Erez Crossing during the October 7 onslaught.
Protesters demand hostage deal in demonstration outside IDF headquarters
Anti-government, pro-hostage deal protesters block traffic on Tel Aviv's Begin Street, outside the IDF headquarters, September 11, 2024. (Noam Lehmann/Times of Israel)
Anti-government protesters demanding a hostages and ceasefire deal begin blocking Tel Aviv’s Begin Street for a few minutes at a time, imploring drivers to get out of their cars and join the demonstration.
“This is not just hostage families’ struggle, it’s the struggle of every citizen in a country that wants life,” says one megaphone-wielding protester to the drivers, some of whom honk sympathetically. She promises the drivers they’ll be able to pass soon, “with the hope that you’ll come back tomorrow and join us.”
This is the 11th day of daily demonstrations on Begin Street. The protests were stepped up after the army last Sunday announced it recovered six executed hostages from Gaza.
“We don’t want more funerals, [both] nations want to live,” chant the roughly 75 protesters currently gathered.
‘Broken on a mental and physical level’: Gallant reveals document from top Hamas commander warning Sinwar of dire losses
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant holds a document written by the former commander of Hamas's Khan Younis Brigade, Rafa'a Salameh, at an IDF intelligence base in central Israel, September 11, 2024. (Ariel Hermoni/Defense Ministry)
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant reveals a document he says was written by the former commander of Hamas’s Khan Younis Brigade, Rafa’a Salameh, and addressed to Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and his brother Muhammad, in which the commander describes the “difficult situation” the terror group is in.
“Please consider the following: We maintain the remaining weapons and equipment, as we have lost 90-95% of our rocket capabilities; and we have lost some 60% of our personal weapons; we have lost at least 65-70% of our anti-tank launchers and rockets, and most importantly that we have lost at least 50% of our fighters between those who are martyred and wounded, and now we are left with 25%. The last 25% of our people have reached a situation where the people do not tolerate them anymore, broken on a mental or physical level,” the document says, according to excerpts provided and translated by the Defense Ministry.
Gallant says the document shows “a real hardship that affects Hamas and affects the most senior commanders.”
He says Salameh, who was killed in an IDF strike in July, “cries out for the help of the Sinwar brothers, but of course they cannot save him.”
“Why? Because we are continuing the effort that started in October and continues step by step… and reaches all senior Hamas officials. He wrote this to the Sinwar brothers, we will get to them as well,” Gallant says.
Yahya Sinwar is the leader of Hamas in Gaza, and was recently appointed as the head of the terror group following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh. His brother Muhammad is a senior commander in Hamas’s military wing.
Ukraine issues urgent plea to Hasidim to forgo annual Uman pilgrimage due to war
Jewish pilgrims arrive in Uman, Ukraine ahead of the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah, September 14, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Ukraine issues an urgent request asking Jewish worshipers to opt out of the annual Rosh Hashanah pilgrimage to Uman this year.
Ukraine’s embassy shares a message from the Cherkasy Regional Military Administration urging “Hasidim” not to come during the war.
“We recommend pilgrims to consider the security situation in our country and refrain from visiting Uman,” says oblast governor Igor Taburets. “Regular Russian attacks and damage to civilian objects, provocations are Ukrainian everyday life, unfortunately.”
The US State Department issued a travel warning in August asking citizens not to attend the annual pilgrimage to Rebbe Nachman’s grave.
“Local authorities have advised that Uman does not have enough air raid shelters to accommodate all anticipated travelers to the pilgrimage,” says the Ukrainian statement. “Ukraine remains under martial law, with curfew and movement restrictions that would also affect pilgrims to Uman.”
Ancient jar smashed by a 4-year-old is fixed and back on display at a Haifa museum
A rare bronze-era jug, newly reassembled, returned to public exhibition after a four-year-old accidentally broke the jar in August during a visit in Hecht Museum in Haifa, on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
A rare Bronze Age-era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display today after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.
Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.
Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.
The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.
It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 BC.
Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.
Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.
The only noticeable difference in the exhibit is a new sign reading “Please don’t touch.”
Palestinians say 14 killed in strike targeting Hamas command center in Gaza school
A member of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) checks the courtyard of a school after an Israeli air strike hit the site where Hamas had set up a command center, in Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip on September 11, 2024 (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
An Israeli airstrike killed at least 14 people, including two children, when it hit a former school sheltering displaced Palestinian families in central Gaza, hospital officials say.
The Israeli military said it was targeting Hamas terrorists who were using the school to plan and carry out attacks against troops and Israel. The army says it took steps to mitigate civilian casualties.
Officials from Awda Hospital in Nuseirat say they had received 10 dead from the strike, and another four dead were brought to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. At least one woman and two children were among those killed, and at least 18 people were wounded in the strike, hospital officials say.
Netanyahu promises stronger Jordan barrier, vows to keep frontier a ‘border of peace’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks out over the Jordan Valley on September 11, 2024. (Kobi Gideon/GPO)
Overlooking the Jordan Valley, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stresses the joint effort with Amman to secure their shared border.
“In this multi-theater struggle,” he says, “we know that we need to secure our eastern border with Jordan. This is a border of peace. We are partnering with the Kingdom of Jordan to ensure that it remains so.”
Challenges are increasing, says Netanyahu, days after a terrorist attack at the Allenby Border Crossing left three Israelis dead: “There is an attempt to smuggle both terrorists and weapons across Jordan into Judea and Samaria and into the cities of Israel. We are working here in cooperation with all parties to stop this.”
Netanyahu says Israel will build a stronger border barrier to fight smuggling.
“We will do it in coordination with the neighbors,” he promises. “It is important for us to ensure that this border remains a border of peace — peace and security.”
Jordan has been a leading critic of Israel’s war in Gaza, and more recently, of visits by government ministers to the Temple Mount. It has recalled its ambassador, but has continued close security cooperation, including during the April 13-14 drone and missile attack on Israel by Iran.
Netanyahu is accompanied by the IDF’s Deputy Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Amir Baram, head of the IDF Central Command. Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, and Col. Aviv Amir, commander of the Jordan Valley Brigade.
IDF says a soldier was killed in this morning’s West Bank ramming attack
Staff Sgt. Geri Gideon Hanghal (Courtesy)
An Israeli soldier was killed in this morning’s ramming attack near the West Bank settlement of Givat Asaf, the IDF announces.
He is named as Staff Sgt. Geri Gideon Hanghal, 24, of the Kfir Brigade’s Nahshon Battalion, from Nof Hagalil.
Hanghal was killed when a Palestinian truck driver rammed his fuel tanker into an army post adjacent to a bus stop at the Givat Asaf Junction.
The assailant, 58-year-old Hayil Dhaifallah, from the central West Bank town of Rafat, was shot by IDF troops and an armed civilian.
Son of prominent Ukrainian rabbi killed in fighting with Russians
The son of Moshe Azman, the leader of Kyiv’s Brodsky synagogue and one of several self-declared Ukrainian “chief rabbis,” has died in battle against the Russians.
“Tomorrow in the Central Synagogue there will be a farewell to my son Matityagi (Anton), who died at the front defending Ukraine,” Azman tweets.
In an earlier Facebook post, Azman shared that he had given Anton Samborski, whom he had adopted at the age of 11 in 2002, the Hebrew name Matityahu “in honor of the heroic leader of the Maccabees” — and stated that he had been officially listed as missing in action in late July.
Tomorrow in the Central Synagogue there will be a farewell to my son Matityagi (Anton), who died at the front defending Ukraine pic.twitter.com/b93bNAxPxj
— Chief Rabbi Of Ukraine Moshe Azman (@RabbiUkraine) September 11, 2024
Biden, Harris and Trump visit 9/11 site in New York
From left, Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, President Joe Biden, Michael Bloomberg, Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, attend the 9/11 Memorial ceremony on the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
US President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump make a rare joint appearance at the New York City site that marks the September 11 plane attacks in 2001 that killed nearly 3,000 people.
Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee and Trump, her Republican rival in the November 5 US presidential election, shook hands and exchanged a few words, despite their contentious debate the night before, then lined up for the commemoration. Trump’s running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, also attended.
Instead of formal remarks, the ceremony at the “ground zero” site where planes brought down the World Trade Center’s twin towers included wives, husbands, sisters, brothers and grandchildren reading the names of family members killed 23 years ago.
The annual rite marks the suicide attacks by al Qaeda Islamist militants that hit Manhattan, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field.
IDF says strike hit Hamas command center set up in former Gaza school
The IDF says it carried out an airstrike against a group of Hamas operatives at a command room embedded within a former school in the central Gaza Strip a short while ago.
According to the military, Hamas was using the Al-Jaouni School in Nuseirat to plan and carry out attacks against troops and Israel.
The school has been serving as a shelter for displaced Gazans, and Palestinian media report several casualties in the attack.
To mitigate harm to civilians in the strike, the IDF says it carried out “many steps,” including using precision munitions, aerial surveillance, and other intelligence.
“The Hamas terror organization systematically violates international law, brutally exploiting civilian institutions and the population as a human shield for terror activity,” the military adds.
In recent months, dozens of airstrikes have been carried out against Hamas sites embedded within schools and other sites used as shelters for civilians, according to the IDF.
US sanctions Lebanese network over alleged oil, LPG smuggling for Hezbollah
Hezbollah operatives form a human barrier during the funeral procession of slain top Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut's southern suburbs on August 1, 2024. (Khaled Desouki/AFP)
The Biden administration issues sanctions on a Lebanese network it accuses of smuggling oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to help fund the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.
The sanctions target three people, five companies and two vessels that the US Treasury Department says were overseen by a senior leader of Hezbollah’s finance team and used profits from illicit LPG shipments to Syria to aid generate revenue for the group.
Acting Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Bradley Smith, in a statement, says Hezbollah “continues to launch rockets into Israel and fuel regional instability, choosing to prioritize funding violence over taking care of the people it claims to care about, including the tens of thousands displaced in southern Lebanon.”
KKL-JNF announces NIS 225 million aid package for residents of north, south
Residents of the northern Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona leave amid orders to evacuate, due to threats on Israel's northern border from Lebanon, October 22, 2023. (David Cohen/Flash90)
The Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund announces emergency funding of NIS 225 million ($60 million) for residents of northern and southern Israel affected by the war.
The fund says the aid is going to local authorities in these regions, “addressing uncertainty around government assistance and the ongoing conflict along Israel’s borders.”
“During these challenging times, KKL-JNF stands firmly with the residents of northern and southern Israel,” says chairperson Ifat Ovadia-Luski.
“We are committed to ensuring the continued survival and prosperity of these frontier communities. The assistance we provide is part of our broader efforts to restore vital infrastructure, support local agriculture, and strengthen community resilience,” she says.
IDF says man seriously wounded in missile attack is reservist; 30 more rockets fired at north
The man wounded in the Hezbollah anti-tank missile attack on Kibbutz Dan is a reservist soldier, the IDF says.
He is listed in serious condition.
Meanwhile, the IDF says a barrage of another 30 rockets was fired from Lebanon at the Galilee Panhandle area, impacting open areas near Kfar Szold.
In all, more than 60 rockets have been launched from Lebanon at northern Israel in the past hour.
There have been no injuries in the rocket attacks.
UK summons Iranian charge d’affaires over transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia
A woman walks past a banner depicting launching missiles bearing the emblem of the Islamic Republic of Iran in central Tehran on April 15, 2024. (ATTA KENARE / AFP)
Britain’s foreign ministry summons Iran’s charge d’affaires, the country’s most senior diplomat in London, over the transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia.
“Today, in coordination with European partners and upon instruction from the Foreign Secretary, the Chargé d’Affaires of the Iranian Embassy in London was summoned to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,” the foreign ministry says in a statement.
“The UK Government was clear in that any transfer of Ballistic Missiles to Russia would be seen as a dangerous escalation and would face a significant response,” the statement says.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday during a visit to London that Russia had received ballistic missiles from Iran and would likely use them in its war in Ukraine within weeks.
Source says Smotrich part of Netanyahu’s new war council, but largely does not attend meetings
Fainance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks during a press conference at the Ministry of Finance in Jerusalem, September 3, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new forum to manage the war in Gaza includes Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, but the far-right Religious Zionism leader is absent from most meetings, an official in one of the ministers’ offices tells The Times of Israel.
When Smotrich is a no-show, the limited forum is made up of Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, Foreign Minister Israel Katz, and MK Aryeh Deri, says the official.
Smotrich’s office does not respond to request for comment.
Israeli wounded by anti-tank missile fired from Lebanon, 30 rockets fired at north
A shell fired from Israel explodes over the southern Lebanese border village of Khiam on September 11, 2024. (Photo by Rabih DAHER / AFP)
An Israeli man was wounded in an anti-tank guided missile attack from Lebanon earlier today.
The 39-year-old was taken to Rambam Hospital in Haifa after being hit by a missile in the Kibbutz Dan area. The medical center says he is conscious and suffering shrapnel injuries.
Meanwhile, a barrage of some 30 rockets was fired from Lebanon at the Western Galilee, impacting open areas near the community of Abirim, the IDF says.
UNRWA says 530,000 children received polio vaccine in Gaza
A health worker administers the polio vaccine to a Palestinian child in Zawayda in the central Gaza Strip on September 1, 2024. (Eyad Baba/AFP)
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees says that nearly 530,000 children had now received the polio vaccine across the Gaza Strip.
UNRWA says its vaccination campaign is ongoing in north Gaza.
Harris says death of activist Aysenur Eygi ‘a horrific tragedy that never should have happened’
US Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives at LaGuardia Airport, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
US Vice President Kamala Harris says the death of activist Aysenur Eygi was “a horrific tragedy that never should have happened.”
Eygi, an American peace activist, was shot dead in the West Bank last week. Yesterday, the army said she had “with high probability” been accidentally hit by IDF troops’ gunfire. The IDF expressed regret for the killing.
Harris’s comments come after US President Joe Biden said he was outraged by her death.
“Aysenur was peacefully protesting in the West Bank—standing up against the expansion of settlements—when her young life was senselessly cut short. No one should be killed for participating in a peaceful protest,” Harris says.
“The shooting that led to her death is unacceptable and raises legitimate questions about the conduct of IDF personnel in the West Bank. Israel must do more to ensure that incidents like this never happen again,” say the Democrat nominee.
“The United States will continue to hold accountable anyone in the West Bank – Israelis and Palestinians – who stokes violence and undermines peace and stability,” she says, calling for full accountability.
Netanyahu visits Jordan Valley after terror attack
Israeli security forces gather at the scene of a terror attack near the Allenby Crossing between the West Bank and Jordan on September 8, 2024 (Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Jordan Valley earlier today, his office announces after deadly terrorist attack earlier this week.
Three Israeli men were killed in a terrorist shooting attack at the Allenby Bridge Crossing between Jordan and the West Bank on Sunday morning.
UK said to condition resumption of blocked arms sales to Israel on ceasefire, access to Palestinian prisoners
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy attends a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal (not pictured) and other officials Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024 in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Leon Neal/Pool via AP)
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy told his US counterpart Antony Blinken in August that the UK would reconsider its restrictions on weapons sales licenses to Israel if two conditions are met, Politico reports.
The first is a ceasefire in Gaza, and the second is for human rights organizations to be granted access to Palestinians in Israeli prisons, two US officials tell Politico.
The call was held on August 20, and the two diplomats met yesterday in London.
The US has privately warned Britain against suspending some arms sales to Israel, amid concerns it could damage attempts to broker a ceasefire and hostage deal in the Gaza war against Hamas, a senior British government source told UK’s The Times newspaper last week.
Lammy announced earlier this month that 30 out of 350 arms export licenses were being suspended amid concerns the equipment could be used for human rights violations in Gaza, while insisting it was not a blanket embargo.
Settlers allegedly set several West Bank olive groves on fire
Numerous fires are burning in olive groves east of the village of Burin belonging to a Palestinian farmer, after allegedly being set by settlers from surrounding settlements and illegal outposts.
According to the farmer, Bashar Eid, the fires were set by settlers from the Givat Ronen outpost east of Burin in the northern West Bank, and are not currently being tackled by the fire service.
A spokesperson for the Judea and Samaria District Fire Service says the details and location of the fires provided by Eid have been passed to the district control center.
Fires were also set west of Burin earlier in the day between the Palestinian town and the settlement of Yitzhar, well known for its radicalism.
The fire service spokesperson says that four teams are currently tackling those fires.
A spokesperson for the Israel Police Samaria District says the police are “unaware” of the alleged arson incidents. The IDF did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
[1] At around 6 am this morning, five masked settlers equipped with saws arrived from the direction of the Yitzhar Yeshiva (the buildings under renovation) to an olive grove owned by a Palestinian farmer from Burin, where they cut down and burned dozens of trees. >> pic.twitter.com/BYygRdivKJ
— Yesh Din English (@Yesh_Din) September 11, 2024
Iran denies delivering ballistic missiles to Russia, says sanctions ‘part of the problem’
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard launch underground ballistic missiles during a military exercise, July 29, 2020. (IRGC via AP)
Iran’s foreign minister says that Tehran has not delivered any ballistic missiles to Russia, and says sanctions imposed on Iran by the United States and three European powers would not solve any problems between them.
“Once again, US and E3 act on faulty intelligence and flawed logic. Iran has NOT delivered ballistic missiles to Russia. Period… Sanctions are not a solution, but part of [the] problem,” Minister Abbas Aragchi says in a post on X.
The E3 comprises Britain, Germany and France.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that Russia had received ballistic missiles from Iran and was likely to use them in Ukraine within weeks. Cooperation between Moscow and Tehran threatened wider European security, he said.
Egypt’s Sissi: ‘Hunger is being used as a weapon against Palestinians’
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi gestures during a meeting with the French armies minister at the Ittihadia presidential Palace in Cairo on November 15, 2023. (Khaled DESOUKI / AFP)
Speaking alongside his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi says that “hunger is being used as a weapon against Palestinians, and this is very dangerous.”
Without mentioning Israel by name, he says this is a “flagrant violation of human rights before our eyes and we were not able to do anything about it.”
Sissi stresses “the importance of reaching a ceasefire [in Gaza] and developing a mechanism to help the entry of more humanitarian aid as well as the release of the hostages, and to also discuss the postwar stage.”
Sissi calls for “Europe to play its role” in encouraging a ceasefire. Sissi says Egypt is “very keen to play a positive role, whether it’s with the Palestinians and Hamas, in particular, in cooperation with the Qataris and the United States.”
He wants to see “extra pressure on the different parties” to end the fighting.
Steinmeier is the first German head of state to visit Egypt in a quarter-century.
IDF confirms strike on 2 Hezbollah members this morning; one killed
The IDF confirms carrying out a drone strike in southern Lebanon’s Mays al-Jabal this morning, targeting two Hezbollah operatives.
One was killed and the second was wounded in the strike.
Separately, fighter jets struck a Hezbollah rocket launcher in Marimin, which had been used in previous attacks on Israel, the military says.
Another primed rocket launcher was struck in Rashaya al-Foukhar, the IDF adds.
במהלך היום, חטיבת האש של אוגדה 91 זיהתה שני מחבלים של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה במרחב מיס אל ג'בל שבדרום לבנון, בסגירת מעגל מהירה, כלי טיס של החיל האוויר תקף את המחבלים>> pic.twitter.com/00GVhZI3Tm
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 11, 2024
In Serbia, Herzog mourns death of soldiers in Gaza: ‘Families whose worlds were destroyed in an instant’
President Isaac Herzog speaks in Serbia during an official visit, September 11, 2024 (Screen grab/GPO)
After meeting Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić in Serbia, President Isaac Herzog says it is a “difficult and painful morning for Israel, in which precious and beloved sons fell in battle, leaving behind families whose worlds were destroyed in an instant.”
Two soldiers were killed and several were injured when an Israeli Air Force helicopter crashed in the southern Gaza Strip early Wednesday, in what the military described as an accident.
“In the name of the entire nation, I send strength to the IDF soldiers and their commanders at this difficult time, and especially the women and men of the Air Force, who are working to protect the people and the homeland both near and far,” he says.
Herzog also “strongly condemns” the apparent ramming attack in the West Bank by a Palestinian driver of a fuel tanker in which a man was critically injured.
“I call from here, to the leaders of Europe and the whole world in general, to mobilize and fight together against terrorism,” he says.
Coalition lawmaker Gafni accuses Labor’s Lazimi of abandoning the hostages
Labor MK Naama Lazimi joins in hostages families' four-day march from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem calling for a hostage deal and end to war on July 11, 2024. (Charlie Summers/Times of Israel)
United Torah Judaism MK Moshe Gafni accuses Labor MK Naama Lazimi — a prominent advocate for a hostage deal — of abandoning the captives held in Gaza, after the two engage in a heated shouting match in the Knesset Finance Committee.
At one stage, Lazimi says that the blood of those abducted by Hamas “is on [Gafni’s] hands.”
“Shut up already,” Gafni, the committee chairman, screams back, prompting opposition MKs to remind him of his own history of incendiary rhetoric, specifically when he called then-prime minister Naftali Bennett a “murderer” from the Knesset rostrum in 2021.
חברת הכנסת נעמה לזימי תקפה את יו"ר ועדת הכספים משה גפני על כך שהוא נותן יד להפקרת החטופים, הוא השיב: "תסתמי כבר".@DaphnaLiel pic.twitter.com/fXGKb4O7eW
— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) September 11, 2024
“The redemption of captives, the sanctity of life and Jewish ethics should be Gafni’s task and not the incessant preoccupation with covering debts for his networks and huge budgets for associates,” Lazimi later tweets.
Gafni’s United Torah Judaism party recently threatened to boycott discussions about the state budget until the issue of funds for private Haredi education is resolved.
However, the party’s MKs did in the end to approve the first reading of a bill on Monday, and on Tuesday, Calcalist reported that the UTJ-affiliated Independent Education school network would receive NIS 50 million ($13.2 million) to cover its tax debts.
Responding to Lazimi, Gafni accuses her of treating the Finance Committee like Tel Aviv’s Kaplan Street, the site of numerous anti-government protests.
Gafni claims that Lazimi shouts during hearings, distributes footage to the press “and leaves without staying for the intense discussions themselves,” adding that “the issue of the hostages is not a political issue and if there is anyone who is abandoning the hostages it is her.”
Lazimi has been active in advocating for the hostages, participating in a march from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem to draw attention to the issue and attending numerous protests calling for a deal to secure their release — on at least one occasion blocking a road — as well as aiding those arrested at demonstrations.
Earlier this month, the liberal lawmaker was lightly injured by a police stun grenade at a Tel Aviv demonstration.
While Gafni has reportedly expressed support for a deal “at any price,” his party does not appear to have used its leverage in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hardline coalition to advance an agreement in the same way that it has on other issues.
7 soldiers injured in helicopter crash in serious condition at Soroka Hospital
The site of an IDF helicopter crash in the southern Gaza Strip, September 11, 2024. (Courtesy)
Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba says seven soldiers injured in today’s helicopter crash are in serious condition in intensive care units at the hospital.
They have already undergone surgeries by teams from various specialties.
There is no immediate threat to their lives.
Another soldier is in moderate condition in the orthopedic department.
Among the seriously wounded in the crash are two pilots and a mechanic with the IAF’s 123rd Squadron; and a reservist doctor and another soldier with Unit 669.
Two soldiers were killed in the accident.
Biden says he’s ‘outraged’ by West Bank killing of US activist last week, Israel ‘must do more’ to prevent similar incidents
US President Joe Biden speaks to reporters outside of St. Edmond's Roman Catholic Church in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, after attending a mass, August 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
US President Joe Biden says he is “outraged and deeply saddened” by the death of activist Aysenur Eygi, and says Israel “must do more” to ensure similar incidents do not occur again.
Eygi, an American peace activist, was shot dead in the West Bank last week. Yesterday, the army said she had “with high probability” been hit by IDF troops’ mistaken gunfire. The IDF expressed regret for the killing.
Biden says in a statement that the shooting that led to the US citizen’s death was “totally unacceptable,” and that her “idealism led her to travel to the West Bank to peacefully protest the expansion of settlements.”
“Israel has acknowledged its responsibility for Aysenur’s death, and a preliminary investigation has indicated that it was the result of a tragic error resulting from an unnecessary escalation,” Biden says.
“The US government has had full access to Israel’s preliminary investigation, and expects continued access as the investigation continues, so that we can have confidence in the result. We will continue to stay in close contact with Israeli and Palestinian authorities regarding the circumstances that led to Aysenur’s death,” he says.
“There must be full accountability. And Israel must do more to ensure that incidents like this never happen again,” Biden says.
The US president concluded by saying that the violence in the West Bank has continued for “too long.”
“Violent extremist Israeli settlers are uprooting Palestinians from their homes. Palestinian terrorists are sending car bombs to kill civilians. I will continue to support policies that hold all extremists – Israelis and Palestinians alike – accountable for stoking violence and serving as obstacles to peace,” Biden says.
This undated family photo provided by the International Solidarity Movement on September 6, 2024, shows Aysenur Ezgi Eygi of Seattle. (Courtesy of the Eygi family/International Solidarity Movement via AP)
IDF names victims of helicopter crash as Sgt. Maj. (res.) Daniel Alloush, Sgt. Maj. (res.) Tom Ish-Shalom
Sgt. Maj. (res.) Tom Ish-Shalom (left) and Sgt. Maj. (res.) Daniel Alloush (right), killed in a helicopter crash in southern Gaza, early September 11, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
The IDF releases the names of the two Israeli Air Force soldiers who were killed in the Black Hawk helicopter crash in the southern Gaza Strip early this morning.
They are named as Sgt. Maj. (res.) Daniel Alloush, 37, from Tel Aviv, and Sgt. Maj. (res.) Tom Ish-Shalom, 38, from Nes Harim.
Both served in the IAF’s elite search and rescue Unit 669.
Among the seriously wounded in the incident were two pilots and a mechanic with the IAF’s 123rd Squadron, a reservist doctor and another soldier with Unit 669. A reservist doctor and another mechanic were moderately wounded.
Separately, a soldier with the 710th Combat Engineering Battalion was seriously wounded during fighting in Rafah. He was supposed to be evacuated by the Black Hawk that crashed during the landing sequence.
At High Court hearing, Ben Gvir stands by decision to prevent Tibi meeting Barghouti
Addressing reporters inside the High Court of Justice, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir stands behind his decision to prevent Hadash-Ta׳al MK Ahmad Tibi from meeting with Palestinian security prisoners.
In April, the veteran Arab lawmaker petitioned the court to allow him to meet such prisoners jailed for terror offenses, especially top Fatah figure Marwan Barghouti, arguing that Ben Gvir’s blanket refusal to allow such meetings is discriminatory and contravenes the principle of legislative oversight.
“It is sad that on the day we are burying soldiers, we have to deal with a petition from a member of the Knesset in the State of Israel, who receives money out of our salaries and wants to meet and talk with his partner Marwan Barghouti, a murderer who has the blood of Jews on his hands,” Ben Gvir says after attending a hearing on the matter.
“This is a shame, It’s a disgrace,” he continues. “I determined that they cannot meet, and I stand behind this decision.”
Family of woman charged for allegedly throwing sand at Ben Gvir files complaint over police publication of evidence
Noa Goldenberg, 27 (C), during a hearing at the Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court after being charged with throwing sand at National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on a beach in Tel Aviv, September 9, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
The family of Noa Goldenberg, who was indicted earlier this week for allegedly throwing wet sand at National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, files a complaint against the police for publicizing investigative material before it was sent to the Tel Aviv court.
Writing on X, Noa’s mother Sharon Goldenberg accuses the police of “harassment and bullying,” as well as “severe criminal violations, including disclosure in breach of duty, obstruction of justice, violation of privacy, and forbidden publication of a humiliating interrogation which the police officer conducted on the beach.”
The complaint was submitted to the Department for Internal Police Investigations (DIPI), a department of the State Attorney’s Office.
Goldenberg says the publication of investigative material constitutes “civil wrongs” and says the family will consider further action in that regard, hinting at a civil lawsuit against the police.
“Noa and I trust DIPI of the State Attorney’s Office, and obviously the court, and are determined to put an end to the illegal and injurious behavior of the police,” she adds.
Perpetrator of ramming attack near Givat Asaf named as 58-year-old Palestinian
The perpetrator of the ramming attack near Givat Asaf is named in media reports as 58-year-old Hayil Dhaifallah, from the central West Bank town of Rafat.
الاحتلال يزعم اعتقال منفذ عملية الدهس شرق رام الله، الجريح هايل عيسى ضيف الله (58 عامًا)، من قرية رافات جنوب نابلس، وتم نقله لمستشفى "هداسا هار هتسوفيم". pic.twitter.com/TfUqm2Ah86
— ق.ض ???? (@jalestinian) September 11, 2024
He was “neutralized” by troops at the scene, the IDF said earlier.
An Israeli man was critically wounded in the attack.
Reports of Israeli strike on motorbike in south Lebanon; Saudi media says Hezbollah member killed
Lebanese media outlets report an Israeli drone strike on a motorcycle in the southern town of Mays al-Jabal.
The Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya reports that a Hezbollah member was killed and another was wounded in the strike.
There is no immediate comment from the IDF.
معلومات أوّلية عن وقوع إصابتين جرّاء الغارة الإسرائيلية التي استهدفت دراجة نارية في #ميس_الجبل.#لبنان #جنوب_لبنان #طوفان_الأقصى #إسرائيل #الاحتلال_الإسرائيلي #الحدود_الشمالية #حزب_الله #ليبانوس pic.twitter.com/SHMAofYweV
— Lebanos (@lebanosnews) September 11, 2024
Settlers damage dozens of olive trees belonging to Palestinian farmer in West Bank’s Burin
Dozens of olive trees belonging to a Palestinian farmer from the village of Burin in the northern West Bank were damaged early this morning, reports the Yesh Din organization, which campaigns against settler violence.
The group sends video footage of the incident in which masked individuals holding chainsaws and wearing tzitzit are seen leaving the olive grove where fires have been set near several trees.
The five young men are then seen walking back up to the yeshiva in Yitzhar, a settlement with a long history of extremism which lies just southwest of Burin.
Yesh Din says that dozens of trees were cut down and burned in the attack.
“The olive harvesting season will soon begin and the settlers are already damaging the olive trees which are the source of income for many Palestinians,” says Yesh Din following the incident.
“We demand that the army prepare properly, already now, to prevent damage to the trees and further agriculture violence and ensure the harvest takes place.”
Russian lawmaker warns West over supplies of long-range missiles to Ukraine
This photo released by Belgorod regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov's Telegram channel on Sept. 2, 2024 shows firefighters extinguishing burning cars in the courtyard of an apartment building after a missile attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the city of Belgorod, Russia. (Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov Telegram channel via AP)
Russia will consider the United States and its allies to be parties to the Ukraine war and Moscow will use more powerful weapons if the West allows Ukraine to use long-range weapons for strikes deep into Russia, a senior lawmaker says.
“Washington and other European states are becoming parties to the war in Ukraine,” Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of Russia’s Duma, the lower house of parliament, says on Telegram.
Volodin says that the United States, Germany, France, and Britain were becoming parties to the conflict.
“All this will lead to the fact that our country will be forced to respond using more powerful and destructive weapons to protect its citizens,” Volodin says.
2 soldiers killed, several wounded in helicopter crash in south Gaza
The site of an IDF helicopter crash in the southern Gaza Strip, September 11, 2024. (Courtesy)
Two soldiers were killed and several were wounded after an Israeli Air Force helicopter crashed in the southern Gaza Strip last night, in what the military describes as an accident.
According to an initial IAF probe, a UH-60 Black Hawk from the 123rd Squadron had flown to Rafah with a Unit 669 medical team to evacuate a seriously wounded combat engineer during fighting in the area.
During the final landing stage inside an IDF encampment in Rafah at around 12:30 a.m., the helicopter impacted the ground instead of touching down correctly. According to the probe, the helicopter was not hit by enemy fire, and the crash occurred moments before the aircraft was supposed to land, meaning it did not fall from a significant height.
The helicopter was still heavily damaged in the crash, and all those aboard it were hurt.
In all, two soldiers were killed and another eight were taken to hospitals, four of them in serious condition. Among the four seriously wounded is the combat engineer who was injured separately.
It is still unclear what led to the crash, although the IAF describes it as an accident. A probe has been launched to determine why the helicopter impacted the ground in the encampment instead of landing correctly.
The names of the killed soldiers have not yet been released but their families have been informed.
Israeli critically wounded in suspected ramming attack near West Bank settlement Givat Asaf
The scene of a reported ramming attack near the West Bank settlement of Givat Asaf, September 11, 2024 (Rescuers Without Borders)
The IDF and medics are responding to reports of a ramming attack near the West Bank settlement of Givat Asaf.
An Israeli man in his 20s is critically wounded in the attack, the Magen David Adom ambulance service says.
The military says the assailant was “neutralized” at the scene.
A truck was used in the attack, according to photos, and hit a bus stop.
Energean posts higher first-half profit on strong summer demand in Israel
An Israeli Navy Sa’ar 6-class corvette guards the Energean floating production, storage and offloading vessel at the Tamar gas field, in an image published by the military on April 23, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)
Gas producer Energean posts a higher first-half profit, helped by a rise in production due to strong summer demand in Israel.
Energean, whose main production comes from a gas facility offshore Israel, is looking to expand to the wider Europe, Middle East and Africa regions, particularly where there is long-term policy support for gas and displacement of coal.
The company says production for the reported period rose to 146 thousand barrels of oil equivalent (kboepd), from last year’s s 106 kboepd, with the Karish and Karish North fields in Israel contributing more than 70% of total output.
Energean aims to double its production in the coming years, primarily through development of new prospects in Israel including the Katlan field.
The company reports a profit after tax of $89 million, or 48 cents per share, for the six months ended June 30, from $70 million, or 39 cents per share it posted last year.
New Iranian president Pezeshkian arrives in Iraq on first foreign visit
Iraq's Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani (L) walks with Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian in Baghdad on September 11, 2024 (Murtada AL-SUDANI / POOL / AFP)
Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, arrives in neighboring Iraq as he moves to deepen already close ties on his first foreign visit since taking office.
Pezeshkian has vowed to make relations with neighboring countries a priority as he seeks to ease Iran’s international isolation and mitigate the impact of US-led sanctions on its economy.
His visit comes after Western powers yesterday announced fresh sanctions on Iran for supplying Russia with short-range missiles for use against Ukraine.
It also comes amid turmoil in the Middle East sparked by the war in Gaza, triggered by the devastating October 7 attack on Israel by Tehran-backed Hamas, which has led to attacks from other Iran-backed armed groups around the region and complicated Baghdad’s ties with Washington.
Last night, an explosion was heard at a US-led anti-jihadist coalition’s base at the Baghdad international airport, according to Iraqi security officials.
A spokesperson for the Iranian-backed Ketaeb Hezbollah (Hezbollah Brigades) in Iraq said the “attack” aimed to “disrupt the Iranian president’s visit to Baghdad.”
Ties between Iran and Iraq, both Shiite-majority countries, have grown closer since the US-led invasion of 2003 toppled the Sunni-dominated regime of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
Iran has suffered years of crippling Western sanctions, especially after the United States, under then-US president Donald Trump, unilaterally abandoned a landmark nuclear deal between the Islamic Republic and major powers in 2018.
Pezeshkian, who assumed the presidency in late July, has made the top diplomat who negotiated the 2015 deal, Mohammad Javad Zarif, his vice president for strategic affairs as part of his bid for a more open Iran.
Police arrest suspect in 2020 rape of woman in Bnei Brak park
Police say they have arrested a suspect in the 2020 rape of a woman in a park in Bnei Brak.
The 28-year-old woman was attacked and raped in a park in the city’s Pardes Katz neighborhood.
According to police, the 33-year-old suspect — a resident of the city — was arrested after “a new forensic finding” in recent days.
Police sources tell the Kan public broadcaster that the suspect is an Azerbaijani citizen with temporary resident status, and he is married to an Israeli.
The outlet says the man was recently arrested in connection with another offense, and the DNA sample taken from him led to a match with the evidence collected from the scene of the 2020 rape.
The suspect appeared in court yesterday and his detention was extended until tomorrow.
IDF: Jets hit some 30 Hezbollah rocket launchers, targets in south Lebanon overnight
Israeli fighter jets struck some 30 Hezbollah rocket launchers and other infrastructure in southern Lebanon overnight, the IDF says.
The strikes were carried out in the towns of Jebbayn, Naqoura, Deir Seryan, and Zibqin.
The military says the launchers and other targeted sites “posed a threat to Israeli civilians.”
מטוסי קרב של חיל-האוויר תקפו במהלך הלילה במרחבים אל ג׳בין, א-נקורה, דיר סירקין וזבקין שבדרום לבנון, כ-30 משגרים ותשתיות צבאיות של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה, אשר היוו איום על אזרחי מדינת ישראל. pic.twitter.com/ghYotXS02P
— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) September 11, 2024
Police clash with anti-Israel, anti-war protesters at Melbourne defense expo; 24 officers injured
Victoria Police clash with anti-war and anti-Israel protesters outside a military arms convention in downtown Melbourne, Australia, Sept. 11, 2024. (Joel Carret/AAP Image via AP)
Anti-Israel and anti-war protesters and police clash outside a defense exhibition in Australia’s second-largest city of Melbourne, with police using sponge grenades, flash-bang devices and irritant sprays to control parts of the hostile crowd.
Police were pelted with rocks, horse manure and bottles filled with liquid as they tried to protect attendees of the expo, some of whom were assaulted by protesters, a Victoria state police spokesperson says in a statement.
Two dozen police officers require medical treatment and 33 people were arrested for offences including assaulting, obstructing or hindering police, arson and blocking roads, police said.
“Victoria police is appalled at the behavior of some of the protesters in attendance,” the police spokesperson says.
“Some police have been spat at by protesters, whilst other officers have been sprayed with a liquid irritant, some of which has been identified as acid.”
Come down to the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre to block entrance to the Land Forces weapons expo, the peak gathering of global war mongers who commit genocide and war crimes with the showcased weapons. The more people here the better pic.twitter.com/TCIHrupPCp
— James Conlan ????️???? (@JamesMConlan) September 10, 2024
Protesters lit fires in the street, disrupted traffic and public transport, while missiles were thrown at several police horses but no serious injuries were reported, police say.
About 1,200 people attended the protest outside the venue hosting the biennial Land Forces International Land Defence Exposition, authorities say.
The protesters were organized by Students for Palestine and Disrupt Wars groups.
Many chanted pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel slogans through loud speakers and waved Palestinian flags while dumpsters were pushed towards police lines, video showed.
Video showed dozens shouting “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” a chant often heard at protests against Israel’s war against the Hamas terror group, condemned by many as a call for the elimination of Israel.
Some held signs calling for an “unconditional ceasefire,” apparently dismissing the need for the release of the 101 hostages held by terrorists in the Gaza Strip.
“We’re protesting to stand up for all those who have been killed by the type of weapons on display at the convention,” Students for Palestine national co-convenor Jasmine Duff says in a statement.
Rocket sirens sound in Erez close to Gaza border
Sirens warn of incoming rocket fire in the Erez area close to the Gaza border.
The alert comes minutes after sirens sounded in Kissufim.
The IDF later announces that both sirens were false alarms.
Rocket sirens sound in Kissufim near Gaza border
Sirens sound in the Gaza border town of Kissufim, warning of potential incoming rocket fire.
Lebanese media reports overnight airstrikes in south Lebanon
Hezbollah-affiliated media reports a number of Israeli airstrikes overnight against targets in south Lebanon.
There were strikes in Zebqine, Qlaileh and Chaaitiyeh, according to Al Mayadeen.
‘Childless cat lady’ Taylor Swift endorses Harris for US president after debate ends
FILE - Taylor Swift performs at Wembley Stadium as part of her Eras Tour, June 21, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP, File)
WASHINGTON — Taylor Swift, one of the music industry’s biggest stars, endorses Kamala Harris for US president shortly after the debate ended.
“I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos,” Swift writes in an Instagram post, which included a link to a voter registration website.
Swift has a dedicated following among young women, a key demographic in the November election, and her latest tour has generated more than $1 billion in ticket sales. In a half hour, the post received more than 2.3 million likes.
She includes a picture of herself holding her cat Benjamin Button, and she signs the message “Childless Cat Lady.” The remark is a reference to three-year-old comments made by JD Vance, Donald Trump’s running mate, about women without children not having an equal stake in the country’s future.
Swift writes that her endorsement is partially prompted by Trump’s decision to post AI-generated pictures suggesting that she had endorsed him. One showed Swift dressed as Uncle Sam, and the text said “Taylor wants YOU to VOTE for DONALD TRUMP.”
Trump’s posts “brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter,” Swift writes. She adds that “I’ve done my research, and I’ve made my choice.”
Swift’s endorsement is not exactly a surprise. In 2020, she supported US President Joe Biden, and she cheered for Harris in her debate against then-Vice President Mike Pence. She also was openly critical of Trump, saying he had stoked “the fires of white supremacy and racism.”
Swift is a popular figure nationwide, but especially among Democrats. An October 2023 Fox News poll found that 55% of voters overall, including 68% of Democrats, said they had a favorable view of Swift. Republicans were divided, with 43% having a favorable opinion and 45% an unfavorable one.
Palestinian Red Crescent reports at least 5 killed in Israeli airstrike on Tubas
At least 5 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on Tubas in the West Bank, the Palestinian Red Crescent reports.
IDF says it launched airstrike on terror cell as part of overnight op in Jordan Valley
The military announces that it launched a counter-terror operation around Tubas in the northern Jordan Valley together with forces from the Shin Bet and Israel Prisons Service.
An IDF statement adds that a military aircraft just carried out a strike on a terror cell in the area.
Trump: Harris ‘hates Israel,’ which may ‘not exist within 2 years’ if she’s president
This combination of pictures created on September 10, 2024, shows
former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (L) and US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris participating in a presidential debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Saul Loeb/AFP)
Former US president Donald Trump is now asked how he would “negotiate with Netanyahu and also Hamas to get the hostages out and prevent the killing of more innocent civilians in Gaza?”
Trump repeats his assertion that the war in Gaza would have never started if he was president, before claiming Harris “hates Israel.”
“She wouldn’t even meet with Netanyahu when he went to Congress to make a very important speech. She refused to be there because she was at a sorority party of hers… she hates Israel. If she is president I believe Israel will not exist within two years from now,” he claims. “I’ve been pretty good at predictions, but I hope I’m wrong on that one.”
“At the same time in her own way, she hates the Arab population, because the whole place is going to get blown up: Arabs, Jewish people, Israel. Israel will be gone,” he continues to insist. “It would’ve never happened. Iran was broke under Donald Trump… Iran had no money for Hamas, or Hezbollah or any of the 28 different spheres of terror… horrible terror… they were broke.”
“Look at what’s happening with the Houthis in Yemen. Look at what’s going on in the Middle East. This would’ve never happened. I will get that settled and fast.”
Asked to respond to his claim that she hates Israel, Harris says “that’s absolutely not true,” describing herself as a lifelong supporter of the Jewish state.
Harris vows to ‘always give Israel the ability to defend itself,’ says Gaza war ‘must end’
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks as former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump listens during a presidential debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on September 10, 2024. (Saul Loeb/AFP)
US Vice President Kamala Harris is asked about her remarks from months ago that “Israel has a right to defend itself, but it matters how,” with one of the moderators asking she would secure a hostage-ceasefire deal.
“Let’s understand how we got here. On October 7, Hamas, a terrorist organization, slaughtered 1,200 Israelis, many of them young people who who were simply attending a concert where women horribly raped and so absolutely… Israel has a right to defend itself, we would,” she says. “And how it does so matters, because it is also true that far too many innocent Palestinians have been killed, children, mothers. What we know is that this war must end, it must end immediately and the way it will end is we need a ceasefire deal and we need the hostages out. So we will continue to work around the clock on that.”
Harris then says “we must chart a course for a two-solution,” which she says must ensure security for Israelis and “in equal measure” for Palestinians.
“The one thing I will assure you always: I will always give Israel the ability to defend itself, in particular as it relates to Iran and any threat that Iran and its proxies pose to Israel. But we must have a two-state solution, where we can rebuild Gaza, where the Palestinians have security, self-determination and the dignity they so rightly deserve,” she adds.
Anti-Israel protesters rally outside US presidential debate venue in Philadelphia
Pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel demonstrators rally and block roads around Philadelphia on September 10, 2024, ahead of the presidential debate between US Vice President Kamala Harris and former US president Donald Trump. (Andrew Thomas/AFP)
Demonstrators are protesting against Israel over the war with Hamas, outside the venue in Philadelphia where the US presidential debate is scheduled.
Scores of people line the streets shouting: “Justice is our demand,” carrying banners and flags and holding signs that read “arms embargo now.”
At least two of the demonstrators wave flags of Palestinian terror groups — one holds up a green banner for the Islamist Hamas, and the other a red flag for the Marxist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
NOW: "Come November we'll remember!" – hundreds chant as they march through Philadelphia headed towards the Kamala Harris vs Donald Trump debate. pic.twitter.com/0HqVpbEaP6
— Oliya Scootercaster ???? (@ScooterCasterNY) September 10, 2024
Harris and Trump set to square off in high-stakes US presidential debate
Left: Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, August 20, 2024. (AP/Jacquelyn Martin); Right: Republican presidential nominee former president Donald Trump, August 21, 2024. (AP/Chuck Burton)
Donald Trump has arrived in Philadelphia for a potentially game-changing televised debate with Kamala Harris, the rivals’ first and possibly only clash before November’s knife-edge US presidential election.
The stakes could hardly be higher for the Democratic vice president and Republican former president, with tens of millions of American voters expected to watch them at 9 p.m. Eastern Time Tuesday (4 a.m. Wednesday in Israel).
A single zinger or gaffe during the 90-minute debate could tip the balance of one of the most dramatic White House races in US history, with the candidates neck-and-neck in the polls just 56 days before the November 5 vote.
Trump, 78, touched down in his plane — dubbed Trump Force One — just over two hours ahead of the ABC News-hosted broadcast, while Harris had arrived in the eastern city on Monday.
The pressure is arguably greater for Harris, America’s first female, Black and South Asian vice president, as she takes part in her first presidential debate.
It will be a critical chance to win over voters who still know little about her, as polls showing her honeymoon starting to fade after jumping into the race to replace 81-year-old President Joe Biden in July.
Former reality TV star Trump will attack Harris on issues like the economy and immigration, but may also unleash more of the racist and sexist insults that he’s directed her way during the campaign.
Harris, who enjoys a significant advantage among women according to the polls, is expected to press Trump on reproductive rights after his contradictory comments recently on abortion access.
The debate will be held without an audience, while the rivals’ microphones will only be on when it’s their turn to speak and remain muted otherwise.
Iraqi security officials report explosion at US-led coalition’s Baghdad airport base
BAGHDAD — Iraqi security officials say an explosion was heard late Tuesday at a US-led coalition’s base at Baghdad airport, a day before Iran’s president was due to visit.
The Iraqi forces’s statement, published by state news agency INA, says they are unable to determine “the origin of the explosion” but that air traffic is continuing normally and no flights were interrupted.
Pentagon: Austin urged Gallant ‘to reexamine IDF’s rules of engagement in West Bank’
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, standing right, and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, standing left, listen to the playing of the Israeli National Anthem during an arrival ceremony at the Pentagon in Washington, June 25, 2024. (AP Photo/ Susan Walsh)
WASHINGTON — US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin tells Defense Minister Yoav Gallant that he has “grave concern for the Israel Defense Force’s responsibility for the unprovoked and unjustified death” of American citizen Aysenur Eygi in the West Bank, the Pentagon says.
“The Secretary urged Minister Gallant to reexamine the IDF’s rules of engagement while operating in the West Bank,” the Pentagon says in a statement.
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