Many incidents are occurring in the Gaza and Israel since Palestinian armed groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad launched thousands of missiles at Israel and sent its militants across the border from Gaza on October 7. At least 1,300 Israelis were killed and thousands injured as a result of the surprise incursion, according to local authorities. In Gaza, the number of deaths from Israeli air strikes and bombings has reached at least 5,000.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that the country was “at war” and promised retaliation against Hamas that they “have never known before.” The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) responded by sending warplanes to strike targets in Gaza, ordering a blockade of the Palestinian enclave, and announcing plans for a ground invasion of the densely populated territory.
Israel Has No ‘Clear’ Plan For Gaza Invasion, Fears U.S.
U.S. officials have expressed concerns that Israel has no workable plan for sending ground forces into Gaza, and are questioning whether the IDF can achieve its goal of annihilating the Hamas militant group without the right preparations, according to the New York Times.
In recent discussions with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has emphasized the need for “careful consideration” before launching a ground campaign in the densely populated territory, the New York Times reported on Monday.
“The U.S administration is also concerned that the Israel Defence Forces do not yet have a clear military pathway to achieve Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s goal of eradicating Hamas,” the New York Times said.
It added: “In conversations with Israeli officials since the Hamas attacks on Oct. 7, American officials said they have not yet seen an achievable plan of action.”
Although the White House has maintained that American officials are not making decisions on Israel’s behalf, the Pentagon has reportedly dispatched three-star Marine Lt. Gen. James Glynn to advise the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on urban operations. The officer previously led US special operators tasked with fighting Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS), and before that served in Fallujah, Iraq during some of the most vicious house-to-house fighting following the 2003 US invasion.
Glynn will reportedly advise Israeli forces on “how to mitigate civilian casualties in urban warfare,” according to the Associated Press, which cited an unnamed U.S. official.
U.S. National Security Council Coordinator John Kirby told reporters on Monday that American advisers will not serve in a combat role, and would merely consult with Israeli commanders.
Another unnamed official told the New York Times that Glynn would not remain on the ground in Israel should a ground invasion begin.
During a call with Gallant on Monday, U.S. Defense Secretary Austin reportedly emphasized “the importance of civilian protection,” and “encouraged” the Israeli military to “conduct their operations in accordance with the law of war.”
The IDF has already come under fire from some human rights groups for indiscriminate strikes on civilian structures in Gaza, which have left at least 5,000 Palestinians dead and thousands more injured, according to local officials.
Hundreds of thousands of residents in Gaza have been displaced amid the violence, with many in dire need of aid, also prompting warnings of a looming humanitarian disaster from the United Nations and other organizations.
IDF Strikes 400 Targets In Gaza
The IDF has said that it struck some 400 targets in Gaza over the past day, and “eliminated a number of commanders in the terrorist organization Hamas,” releasing footage that purports to show some of the latest air raids. Among other things, the Israeli warplanes targeted multiple “operational headquarters,” and alleged “assembly points of the terrorist organization located inside mosques.”
Google And Apple
US tech giants Google and Apple have reportedly disabled real-time traffic information features in their map services in Israel and the Gaza Strip, at the request of the IDF which is worried that such information could reveal the movements of Israeli forces ahead of a looming invasion, sources told Bloomberg and other media on Monday.
“As we have done previously in conflict situations and in response to the evolving situation in the region, we have temporarily disabled the ability to see live traffic conditions and busyness information out of consideration for the safety of local communities,” a Google spokesperson confirmed in a statement to the Hill.
Biden and Netanyahu Talks
U.S. President Joe Biden has updated Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Washington’s “ongoing efforts at regional deterrence” and “new U.S. military deployments,” according to the White House.
In a phone call on Monday, the U.S. leader also “underscored the need to sustain a continuous flow of urgently needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza,” and reaffirmed U.S. “commitment to ongoing efforts to secure the release of all remaining hostages taken by Hamas.”
U.S. President Joe Biden said he would be willing to “talk” about a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel only after the Palestinian militant group freed hostages being held in Gaza.
“We should have those hostages released and then we can talk,” Biden said during a press conference.
Israel’s Ground Offensive
Israel will not delay a possible ground offensive against Hamas to buy more time for hostage talks, the country’s energy minister told Germany’s Bild newspaper.
Efforts to bring home the more than 200 hostages held in the Gaza Strip “cannot hinder our actions, including the ground offensive, if we decide it,” Israeli Energy Minister Israel Katz said. He added, “Hamas wants us to deal with the captives and wants the military to not go in to eliminate their infrastructure. That will not happen.”
Hospitals In Gaza
Hospitals in the Gaza Strip face “catastrophic consequences” if emergency fuel supplies aren’t delivered within the next 48 hours, the territory’s health ministry told Al-Jazeera. The Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza has already run out of fuel, leaving it in “total darkness,” while several other hospitals could suffer the same fate in several days, according to the report.
Hamas released two hostages on Monday, the second such move in three days, amid media reports that President Joe Biden’s administration is urging Israeli officials to delay their ground offensive to allow more time for negotiations.
Disintegrate Hamas
A top Israeli general has vowed to “bring Hamas to a point of disintegration” when a ground offensive begins in the Gaza Strip. “That is why we attack with great force,” IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi told commanders in a video posted on X (formerly Twitter). “We are killing senior commanders, killing operatives, destroying infrastructure and acting with great determination.”
The IDF will take out Hamas leaders and the group’s military wing, Halevi said. Delays in the ground offensive gave Israeli forces more time to make their attack plans, so the IDF is “very well prepared,” he added.
“We want to bring Hamas to a state of full dismantling—its leaders, its military branch, and its working mechanisms. That is why we are striking, and eliminating high ranking commanders and members, destroying infrastructure, and acting with great determination.”Watch this… pic.twitter.com/4wUwiN1s22
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 23, 2023
The IDF posted a video to X (formerly Twitter) on Monday purporting to show an IDF drone strike hitting a terrorist cell in southern Lebanon. The targets were allegedly preparing to launch rockets at the Mount Dov area, near the country’s northern border. The IDF has conducted several airstrikes on Lebanon, allegedly in response to rocket attacks by Hezbollah and its Palestinian allies.
Hostage And Fuel
Negotiations surrounding the release of 50 hostages were derailed over the issue of fuel supply to Gaza on Monday, according to the Wall Street Journal. While the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA has warned it only has three days worth of fuel left for the trucks it uses to bring in vital humanitarian aid and Gaza hospitals are having difficulty fueling their medical equipment, Israel has opposed allowing energy into the territory, arguing it will be used by Hamas.
Two Hostages Released
Hamas has published a video showing the release of two elderly Israeli hostages, Nourit Yitshaq and Yokheved Lifshitz, who had been held captive in Gaza. Footage shows the militants transferring the two women to representatives of the International Red Cross (ICRC).
The ICRC said that it had “facilitated the release of two more hostages” held by Hamas in Gaza. While the humanitarian body did not name the hostages, it apparently referred to Nourit Yitshaq and Yokheved Lifshitz, two elderly Israelis, the Palestinian militant group said it had set free on humanitarian grounds.
A Hamas spokesperson has said the group has released two elderly Israeli hostages, Nourit Yitshaq and Yokheved Lifshitz, following Egyptian and Qatari mediation. Previously, the militant group had said Israel had refused to take the two of them in. Israel has dismissed such claims as “false propaganda,” insisting it has continued “to act in every way to return all the kidnapped and missing people home.”
6 More UN Aid Workers Killed
Another six aid workers for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) have been confirmed killed in the Gaza Strip, the agency said in its latest status report. The new casualties bring the death toll for the agency staff to 35 since October 7.
Russia Condemns Hamas And Israeli Attacks
Russia condemns both the attack of Hamas on Israel and the indiscriminate bombings of the densely populated Gaza area, Russia’s deputy permanent representative to the UN, Dmitriy Polyanskiy, has said.
“We cannot condemn some actions and pretend that other actions that violate international law not happening,” Polyanskiy stated on Soloviev LIVE TV’s social media channel.
Palestine Will Lodge Complaint with ICC
The Palestinian Authority (PA) will lodge a complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the alleged “genocide” committed by Israel, personally citing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“We will sue the Israeli prime minister, the chief of staff, and all the commanders who ordered the soldiers and officers to wage this war of aggression, commit genocide against defenseless people, and destroy civilian objects, hospitals, and homes,” Palestinian Justice Minister Mohammad Al-Shalaldeh told RIA Novosti.
Hamas’s armed wing, Al-Qassam Brigades, has claimed that it launched two drone attacks against the Israeli military. One of the UAVs targeted the Hatzerim base of the Israeli Air Force, while another took aim at the headquarters of the IDF Sinai Division at Taslim military base, the group said on its Telegram channel. Missiles were also fired at several locations within Israel, near the border with Gaza, it added.
The IDF has confirmed on X (formerly Twitter) that two drones, which arrived from Gaza, were spotted near the settlements of Nir Oz and Ein HaBesor in southern Israel.
The PA has blamed the UN Security Council for failing to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza caused continued Israeli airstrikes and the blockade of the enclave. The UNSC “is drowning in miserable double standards and lacks the minimum consensus on its duties and responsibilities towards the humanitarian catastrophe that has befallen our people,” the PA’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. It stressed that it “strongly rejects the politicization of the entry of all humanitarian relief aid into the Gaza Strip and considers it a blatant violation of international law and international human rights law.”
Last week, a Russian draft resolution on the Israel-Hamas conflict was rejected by Western countries during a vote at the UN Security Council. Another text, prepared by Brazil, received support from most of the 12 UNSC members, but ended up being vetoed by the U.S.
Poll On Trust On Israeli Government – 20 Year Low
A poll by the Israel Democracy Institute suggests that trust in the Israeli government is currently at a 20-year low, the Times of Israel paper has reported. According to the survey, only 20.5% of Jewish Israelis and 7.5% of Arab Israelis retain confidence in the cabinet of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The figures stood at 28% and 18%, respectively, when a similar study was carried out by the independent Jerusalem-based pollster in June.
