Hamas launches war on Israel

[Exocet25fr]

Big attack on Israelian airbase at Haifa yesterday sunday: 4 military dead and 60 wounded.
Sorry, but I didn't find media in english (of course!) but in french only!

[mapuc]

^ Here is an English article about this assault

In a video statement, military spokesperson Daniel Hagari provided the first official comment on the attack, which Israeli media reported had caused 67 injuries.

Hagari said a Hezbollah drone struck “a military base near Binyamina [south of Haifa], and all casualties were transported to hospitals, and their families have been notified.”

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20...ck-near-haifa/

Markus

[Jimbuna]

Hezbollah drone attack kills four Israeli soldiers and injures 58

Four soldiers have been killed and 58 injured in a drone strike targeting an army base in northern Israel, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has said.

The IDF added seven soldiers had been severely injured in the attack on a base "adjacent to Binyamina" - a town around 20 miles (33km) to the south of Haifa.

Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for the attack, which it said targeted a training camp of the IDF's Golani Brigade in the area, which is based between Tel Aviv and Haifa.

The armed group's media office said the strike was in response to Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon and Beirut on Thursday.

The group said it targeted the camp in northern Israel using a "swarm of drones".

The attack was one of the biggest on an Israeli position in more than a year.

The Israeli ambulance service, Magen David Adom (MDA), earlier said 61 people had been injured in the attack - including three critically. It added 37 of them had been taken to eight regional hospitals, either by ambulance or helicopter.

In a statement before the IDF confirmed the deaths, MDA said that alongside the three critically injured, 18 of the victims were in a moderate condition, 31 sustained mild injuries and nine people were "suffering anxiety".

The reason for the discrepancy in the number of critical injuries between MDA and the IDF is not clear.

Israeli censorship rules had initially prevented media outlets reporting exactly where or what was targeted, before the IDF confirmed it was the Binyamina base.

Some Israeli media outlets have reported the base was hit by a low-level drone launched from Lebanon - a relatively unsophisticated weapon that appears not to have activated early-warning alarms.

Throughout the evening, television bulletins, social media posts and online reports showed footage of emergency vehicles, including helicopters, taking casualties to hospitals across northern Israel.

Many of the wounded have been evacuated to Hillel Yaffe Medical Centre in nearby Hadera - with others being taken to hospitals in Tel Hashomer, Haifa, Afula and Netanya.

Details are still scarce but many of the injured appear to have been in a communal canteen at the time and were caught completely by surprise. Images circulating on social media appear to show an empty mess hall with a hole in the roof.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9dy294gweyo

[Aktungbby]

Death in the City of Abraham by Yardena Schwartz:

On Aug. 24, 1929, 3000 Muslimmen with swords, axes, and daggerswent from house to house in the Jewish quarter of Hebron in theBritish controlled Palestine Mandate. Shouting "Palestine is ours and the Jews are our dogs", they raped women and girls, killed infants in their mothers arms, mutilated the corpse of elderly rabbisans Yesheva students, set houses on fire, and stole everything they could. The British, unprepred and caught by surprse extracted the surivors in armored cars, and told them not to return. For the first time in 900 years, the city of Abraham was a city without Jews.

...and these were Sephardic (native Palistinian Jews) 'friends, business partners and neighbors; not the subsequent immigrant Ashkenazi Jews arriving after WWII....nothing has gone out of style in 95 years: murder, rape and pillage-wise in my-god-is-better-than-your-god warfare?!!

[Exocet25fr]

Many young Palestinian children who have been shot in the head or the chest.........


https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...nterviews.html

[Skybird]

Some media report a decision was made in Israel to strike neither Iran's oil facilities nor its nuclear progam components.
There's not much left then. Why practice deterrence at all?
I assume the US have threatened consequences if Israel does something that would kick the gasoline prices upwards during election campaign.

Some media also reported that israle may aim at wanting to destaiblise and tzopplke th eregime. Well, its over 20 years that I was in Iran, but if I recall that time back then and the patriotic sentiment of the people in general, i can only say: good luck with that.

I would go after the nukes program, if in any way technically-militarily possible. And leave no stone unturned.

I would have done so already 10+ years ago. But lets face it, the West already has accepted a nculear armed Iran. We tolerate ourselves to death.

[Jimbuna]

I was in Iran in 77 (Khorramshahr) during the reign of the Shah and was quite surprised to see children in particular begging on some street corners despite the fact Iran at the time was a seriously wealthy nation.

How times have changed.

[Jimbuna]

Benjamin Netanyahu considering cutting off humanitarian aid to Gaza to starve out Hamas

Benjamin Netanyahu is considering emptying northern Gaza of all civilians and cutting off aid to anyone left inside in a desperate bid to starve out Hamas that could trap thousands of innocent Palestinians without food or water.

The Israeli Prime Minister has reportedly "read and studied" the plan to root out the militants as its now year-long war against the organisation drums on, with 97 hostages still unaccounted for. Israeli action has so far killed 42,979 people in Palestinian territories, and led to accusations of war crimes, and the latest considerations have only sparked further controversy.

The plan, proposed to Netanyahu and the Israeli parliament by a group of retired generals, would give Palestinians a week to leave the northern third of the Gaza Strip, including Gaza City, before declaring it a closed military zone. Israel would consider anyone who remains in the area - including those unable to flee or unwilling to give up their homes - an active combatant.

The designation would mean military regulations allow Israeli troops to kill them, deny them food and water, medicine and fuel. The plan's chief architect claimed while presenting the document to the Associated Press that it is the only way to break Hamas in the north and pressure it to release the remaining hostages.

Once carried out, the plan calls for Israel to wrest control of the north for an indefinite period and create a new administration without Hamas, splitting the Gaza Strip into two territories. Israel's government has not decided to carry out the so-called "Generals' Plan" and it is unclear how strongly it's being considered, with officials denying they have received it at all.

Israeli military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told the AP: "We have not received a plan like that." But one official with knowledge of the matter said parts of the plan are already being implemented, without specifying which parts. A second official, who is Israeli, said Netanyahu "had read and studied" the plan, "like many plans that have reached him throughout the war".

Responses to Israeli evacuation orders have suggested that any bid to clear a large area of civilians would leave thousands of innocents behind. Many people have been unable to leave evacuation zones as they are older, sick or afraid to leave, with others fearing there's nowhere safe to go and that they will never be allowed back.

Israel has prevented those who fled earlier in the war from returning. Jomana Elkhalili, a 26-year-old Palestinian aid worker for Oxfam living in Gaza City with her family, said: "All Gazans are afraid of the plan. Still, they will not flee. They will not make the mistake again... We know the place there is not safe."

Ms Elkhalili was referring to southern Gaza, where most of the population is huddled in dismal tent camps and airstrikes often hit shelters. She added: "That's why people in the north say it's better to die than to leave."
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world...07fad056&ei=32

[Exocet25fr]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should not forget his country was created as a result of a resolution adopted by the United Nations, French President Emmanuel Macron told cabinet on Tuesday, urging Israel to abide by UN decisions.

https://english.aaj.tv/news/33038428...by-un-decision




BERLIN — Top German leaders blocked the sale of weapons to Israel despite Berlin's insistence the country was not under an arms embargo, a person familiar with the matter told POLITICO.

That confirms part of an earlier report by German tabloid Bild that, like POLITICO, is owned by Axel Springer.

Arms export decisions are approved by the Federal Security Council made up of senior ministers. Bild reported that Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock — Green politicians who are in governing coalition with Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats — withheld approval for arms exports in the council pending assurances from Israel that it would not use German weapons in a genocide.

https://www.politico.eu/article/germ...nst-civilians/


Esmail Qaani Mystery Ends: Iran Publishes QUDS Force Chief Video Amid Speculation About Whereabouts

[Jimbuna]

Six people, including the local mayor, have been killed by Israeli air strikes on the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh

The local governor tells the BBC the strikes hit a meeting of the council's crisis co-ordination team - Israel says it struck "dozens" of Hezbollah targets in the area

The strikes came after Israel hit Beirut for the first time in five days - Israel says it targeted "strategic weapons" hidden by Hezbollah underground

Israel's war in Gaza also continues - it says it killed a Hamas commander in the north of the Strip, as well as more than 50 "terrorists"

This week, the US told Israel to boost aid to Gaza or face losing some US military assistance - Israel says 50 trucks entered on Wednesday, after deliveries on Monday and Tuesday

Hezbollah has fired more rockets into northern Israel, with at least two people injured

[Jimbuna]

Hamas leader 'may have been killed', Israel's army says

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar – the architect of the October 7 raid on Israel, in which 1,200 people were massacred – has reportedly been killed in Gaza.

The Israeli military said it was ‘checking the possibility’ that it has killed Sinwar in an attack on three militants today.

‘At this stage, their cannot be confirmed,’ it said in a statement.

Sinwar was chosen as the group’s top leader following the assassination of Ismael Haniyeh in July in an Israeli strike in the Iranian capital Tehran.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world...a717c672&ei=19

[Jimbuna]

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar killed in Gaza, Israel confirms

The leader of Hamas, Yahya Sinwar, has been killed in Gaza, Israel says

Sinwar, who topped Israel's most-wanted list, was a key figure believed to have been behind the 7 October attacks

Israel's president says Sinwar's "evil endeavours were dedicated to terror, bloodshed, and destabilising the Middle East"

[Shadowblade]

nice work, IDF
another terrorist leader down

[Jimbuna]

How Israel killed Hamas leader Sinwar in a chance encounter

Routine patrol
The Israel Defense Forces says a unit from its 828th Bislamach Brigade was patrolling Tal al-Sultan, an area of Rafah, on Wednesday.

Three fighters were identified and engaged by the Israeli troops - and all were eliminated.

At that stage nothing seemed particularly remarkable about the firefight and the soldiers did not return to the scene until Thursday morning.

It was then, as the dead were inspected, that one of the bodies was found to bear a striking resemblance to the leader of Hamas.

The corpse however remained at the site due to suspected booby traps and instead, part of a finger was removed and sent to Israel for testing.

His body was finally extracted and brought to Israel later that day as the area was made safe.

Daniel Hagari, the IDF's spokesman, said his forces "didn't know he was there but we continued to operate".

He said his troops had identified the three men running from house to house, and engaged them before they split up.

The man since identified as Sinwar "ran alone into one of the buildings". After being located by a drone, he was killed when a tank launched a shell at the building.

Sinwar's body was found with a flak jacket, a gun and 40,000 shekels (£8,240).

None of the hostages Sinwar was believed to be using as a human shield were present and his small retinue suggests either he was trying to move unnoticed, or had lost many of those protecting him.

Hagari also said the IDF had gained an indication of Sinwar's previous movements when they found his DNA in a tunnel close to where the bodies of six hostages were recovered around six weeks ago.

Israel is now searching for Sinwar's brother, Muhammad Sinwar, and all Hamas military commanders, Hagari said.

Yoav Gallant, Israel's defence minister, said: "Sinwar died while beaten, persecuted and on the run – he didn't die as a commander, but as someone who only cared for himself. This is a clear message to all of our enemies."

Drone footage released by the Israeli military late on Thursday was said to show Sinwar's final moments before he was killed.

The video appears to be shot from a drone flying through the open window of a mostly destroyed building.

It approaches a man, with his head covered, sitting in an armchair on the first floor of a house that is littered with debris.

The man, who seems to be injured, then throws what appears to be a stick at the drone and the video ends.

Sinwar 'eliminated'
Israel first announced it was "investigating the possibility" that Sinwar had been killed in Gaza on Thursday afternoon local time.

Within minutes of the announcement, pictures posted to social media showed the body of a man with very similar features to the Hamas leader, who had suffered catastrophic head wounds. The images are too graphic to republish.

However, officials warned "at this stage" the identity of any of the three men killed could not be confirmed.

Not long after that, Israeli sources told the BBC leaders were "increasingly confident" they had killed him. However, they said all necessary tests must be carried out before the death could be confirmed.

Those tests did not take long. By Thursday evening, Israel had announced they had been completed and that Sinwar was confirmed "eliminated".

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said "evil" had been "dealt a blow", but warned the Israeli war in Gaza had not been completed.

A tightening noose
While Sinwar was not killed during a targeted operation, the IDF said that it had for weeks been operating in areas where intelligence indicated his presence.

In short, Israeli forces had narrowed Sinwar's rough location to the southern city of Rafah, and were slowly moving in to get him.

Sinwar had been on the run for more than a year. He had undoubtedly felt the Israeli pressure growing as other Hamas leaders, such as Mohammad Dief and Ismail Haniyeh, were killed, and as Israel destroyed the infrastructure he had used to prosecute the atrocities of 7 October.

In a statement, the IDF said its operations in recent weeks in the south had "restricted Yahya Sinwar's operational movement as he was pursued by the forces and led to his elimination".

Major goal, but not the end
Killing Sinwar was a major goal for Israel, which marked him for death soon after the 7 October attacks. But his end does not end the war in Gaza.

On Friday, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, Basem Naim, said in a statement that it seems “Israel believes that killing our leaders means the end of our movement and the struggle of the Palestinian people”, but said Hamas as a movement could not be eliminated.

Naim did not directly name Sinwar or confirm his death, but said “it is very painful and distressing to lose beloved people”.

While Netanyahu said he had "settled the score", he insisted the war would continue - not least to save the 101 hostages still held by Hamas.

"To the dear hostage families, I say: this is an important moment in the war. We will continue full force until all your loved ones, our loved ones, are home."

In Israel, families of hostages said they hoped a ceasefire could now be reached that would bring home the captives.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czj9zzz8xm7o

[Dargo]

That Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed by the Israeli army in Gaza does not mean that Hamas as an organisation has suffered a major blow. Countless Hamas leaders have been killed by Israel over the past decades, but new ones have come each time. As long as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not resolved, there will always be some form of Hamas. It is now mainly about Hamas fighters, but it is also a political and administrative organisation, deeply rooted in Palestinian society. Hamas leaders derive part of their popularity from the fact that they too take the blows. Previous leaders who were liquidated, such as Ahmed Yassin, were portrayed as martyrs on posters. Giving meaning to one's constant losses is very much in the Palestinian national consciousness anyway. There are still a lot of prominent Hamas leaders alive who could take over from Sinwar. It is a different story from Hezbollah, where Israel wipes out the entire upper layer of the organisation in a week or two and the organisation can no longer communicate among itself.

Sinwar held two positions. He was leader of Hamas in Gaza and, since last summer, political leader of the entire organisation. Khaled Mashal was the international face of Hamas for many years, and could become so again. Musa Abu Marzuq has clear roots in Gaza. But there is also a younger generation that is now becoming somewhat more prominent. Possibly, Hamas is shifting slightly towards a diplomatic process. They have succeeded in putting the Palestinian issue on the map, whatever you thought of the October 7 attack and the war that followed. A lot has also happened: Spain, Ireland, and Norway have recognised Palestine, there is a genocide charge against Israel, and the Israeli occupation has been declared illegal by the International Court of Justice. Hamas now has only the hostages as a trump card. They are not going to give them back to Israel, only to unleash another conflict a few weeks later. Hamas obviously wants to secure a future for them, but above all it wants the war to end. Because with that, they have nothing more to gain.

Arabist Joas Wagemakers, associate professor of Islamic and Arabic Studies at Utrecht University and the director of the Netherlands Interuniversity School for Islamic Studies (NISIS).