Image: IDF Spokesperson

Gaza Strip: The IDF has announced that it has completed the takeover of Hamas’ “Leaders’ Quarter” in the centre of Gaza City, the recent operations base of Hamas’ senior leadership.

• IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari said: “From this infrastructure, they could move and spread out around the Strip. From the heart of Gaza City, they were able to go to Shifa Hospital, and from there to set out southward in ambulances and return to Shifa. [They were able to] enter the warren, head north and move around the area of Rantisi Hospital.”
• “This completes our exposure of Hamas’ underground terror city in the north [of Gaza]. We’ll dismantle it, and target their strategic infrastructure. This operation extends to southern Gaza, reaching the subterranean hideouts of Hamas leaders in Khan Yunis,” he added.
• “The ground operation will continue, aerial strikes persisting across the designated areas in Gaza. We’ve also engaged in Rafah. We will continue pursuing Hamas leadership throughout the Gaza Strip.”
• Three IDF soldiers were killed in fighting in the Gaza Strip yesterday, and eight seriously wounded.
• The dead were named as Sgt. Lavi Ghasi, 19; 1st Lt. Yaacov Elian, 20; and 1st Lt. Omri Shwartz, 21.
• Hagari said “the IDF is intensifying the fighting” in Gaza. “We’ve transitioned to combat in Tuffah, adjacent to Shajaiya, completing our efforts in Jabalya, Beit Hanoun, Shajaiya, all facing Israeli Gaza border communities. Our aim is to shape security along the border, part of our fight against terror in these zones. We’re ensuring a changed security situation for Israeli residents when the time comes for their return”
• Over the last 24 hours dozens of aircraft attacked about 230 Hamas targets in the Strip.
• In Khan Yunis, the air force destroyed a rocket launcher and buildings in which terrorists were identified, as well as killing terrorists in the Shati area.
• A rocket was fired from Gaza at Israel this morning, ending the longest lull in rocket fire since October 7^th.
• US Secretary of State Blinken spoke with UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron, French Foreign Minister Colonna and German Foreign Minister Baerbock about the “importance of urgently addressing humanitarian needs in Gaza, the imperative of minimizing civilian casualties, and the need to prevent the conflict’s further escalation.”
• Reports have emerged that the three Israeli hostages accidentally killed by the IDF on Friday were caught on film by a camera mounted on a dog from an elite canine unit five days before their death. The footage was not monitored in real time, and only reviewed later, after the hostages had been killed.
• There are reports of negotiations between Israel and Hamas for another pause in the fighting and a hostage release. White House National Security Council spokesperson Kirby said such discussions were “very serious.”

The north: Last night, a barrage of eight rockets was fired from Lebanon at Kiryat Shmona and the adjacent area. No injuries were reported. Four rocket launches at Israel from Syria were detected with Hezbollah taking responsibility for the launch.

• In response, Israeli forces returned fire and also attacked a Syrian Army position and IAF aircraft attacked a Hezbollah command centre inside Lebanese territory. Some of the Israeli strikes were as deep as 20 kilometres inside Lebanon.
• In another incident, terrorists approached the border fence. Israeli troops fired on them and reported hits.
• Gates to all civilian communities along the Israel-Lebanon border have been closed due to the threat of attack.

Context: The “Leaders’ Quarter” in Gaza City includes a network of intricate tunnels connecting apartments, offices, and hideouts. It is where Hamas’s governmental and military leadership including Ismail Haniyeh, Yayha Sinwar, and Mohammed Deif operated from.

• The commander of the IDF’s 401^st Brigade, Col. Benny Aharon, told Israeli media of the Leaders’ Quarter that: “Above ground is an entirely deceptive world. Entire clusters of houses that are designed  to look innocent and which supposedly belong to civilians, but which in reality serve as safe houses for terrorists or which, right beneath them, we found briefing rooms and meeting rooms where the Hamas government met. The above-ground world is connected to the underground world, and the underground world is connected to a world we call ‘the connected people.’ It is a long, large, intricate underground world they have built here over the course of decades.”
• The underground city is fitted with blast doors and living quarters that make it possible for operatives to remain there for long periods.
• Khan Yunis may constitute the last stage of the intensive part of the operation. The next stage of the IDF’s operation will likely focus on setting up a security zone that will act as a buffer between Gaza and the Israeli communities around it. The zone will be roughly a kilometre wide.
• During this phase, IDF troops will redeploy inside Gaza, mainly in the north. A limited number of residents will likely begin to be allowed to return to specific neighbourhoods of Gaza City. The IDF will continue to carry out special raids and air strikes “until Hamas’s complete destruction,” as security cabinet ministers have put it.
• Yesterday was the first day since October 7th that there were no rockets were fired from Gaza. Prior to the rocket launched this morning, the last rocket fired from Gaza was on Tuesday at 1600.
• Talks over a potential new hostage deal involving the temporary suspension of hostilities continue, after Mossad chief Barnea met with the Qatari prime minister in Poland this week.
• According to Israeli reports, Hamas has rejected an Israeli proposal for a week-long pause in exchange for the release of 40 hostages: women, children, and those elderly males requiring medical care.
• At a press conference yesterday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said: “Israel has been very clear, including as recently as today, that it would welcome returning to a pause and the further release of hostages. The problem was, and has been, and remains Hamas.”
• The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip remains acute. The first stage of a water pipeline from Egypt to Gaza has been completed. The pipeline aims to provide clean water to 150,000 Gazans.
• Israeli Foreign Minister Cohen was in Cyprus yesterday, where he toured the port of Larnaca and met with Cypriot Foreign Minister Kombos. Israel and Cyprus have been working on a Cyprus to Gaza maritime corridor for the transport of aid. The plan, which is thought to be able to begin effect in a month, will see international aid shipped to the port, checked by Israeli officials, and then boarded onto British, Greek, and Dutch ships for transport to Gaza.
• “The Israeli DCO at the Erez crossing can be turned into a museum exhibit. We are disengaging entirely from Gaza,” Cohen said.

Looking ahead: After Arab efforts to draft a UN Security Council resolution yesterday failed due to US differences with the wording proposed, Blinken spoke with counterparts from Egypt and the UAE in an effort to find an alternative text.

• Israeli media reports this morning that significant Arab states, the UAE and Saudi Arabia among them, are threatening to scale back their aid contributions unless the fighting in the Strip is ended in January.
• Pressure from Israel’s allies to reduce the intensity of the fighting continues. Blinken said: “We continue to believe that Israel does not have to choose between removing the threat of Hamas and minimizing the toll on civilians in Gaza.  It has an obligation to do both and it has a strategic interest to do both.”
• “The conflict will move and needs to move to a lower-intensity phase, and we expect to see and want to see a shift to more targeted operations with a smaller number of forces that’s really focused in on dealing with the leadership of Hamas, the tunnel network, and a few other critical things.”

Gaza Strip: Following weeks of intense fighting, military officials said yesterday that IDF forces now have complete freedom of operation inside Gaza City.

• The neighbourhood of Jabalya has now been completely conquered, after around 1,000 combatants were killed and another 3,500 people were taken prisoner. Among the prisoners are around 500 suspected terrorists, some of whom participated in the October 7 massacre.
• The IDF noted, “since the beginning of the ground operation in the Gaza Strip, IDF troops have identified about 1,500 tunnel shafts and underground passages belonging to Hamas. Most of these subterranean structures have been found beneath schools, hospitals, mosques, UN facilities and civilian institutions.”
• Speaking on a tour of the Gaza border on Tuesday Defence Minister Gallant said, “in northern Gaza, operations are focused on completely purging the Gazan theatre and on-going underground, into the tunnels at enormous depths below ground.”
• In the southern Gaza Strip, Gallant said, “Khan Yunis has become the new capital of terrorism. We are operating there; the operation will cross stages and will continue until we achieve our objectives. We will get to every place we need. We won’t relent from this place. We will put the senior members of this murderous organisation where they deserve to be: either in the cemetery or in prison.”

Lebanon border: Fighting continued to intensify along the northern border yesterday.

• Air raid sirens were heard repeatedly throughout the day and several Hezbollah drones are thought to have crossed over Israeli airspace, which the IDF successfully intercepted.
• In one incident near Yiftah, the IDF intercepted six launches from southern Lebanon.
• In response, the Israeli Air Force continued to target Hezbollah cells responsible for attacks as well as Hezbollah infrastructure close to the border.

Context: In parallel to the fighting, renewed efforts to reach another deal to release more of the hostages continue.

• There remain an estimated 129 Israelis still held captive by Hamas and other groups inside Gaza.
• For the second time this week, as part of the pressure campaign, a new hostage video was released on Tuesday evening, this time by Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The recording is of two Israeli hostages: Gadi Mozes, 79, and Elad Katzir, 47, who were kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7. Mozes’ wife, Efrat, was murdered that day. Katzir’s mother, Hannah was also kidnapped and was released last month. His father, Rami, was murdered.
• It is estimated that some of the hostages may still be held underground in northern Gaza, further complicating military operations. The IDF are cognisant of their failure last week that led to the accidental killing of three hostages. It has since been revealed that the soldiers that killed them were unaware of the improvised signs for help written in Hebrew found by other troops in the vicinity.
• Earlier this week, talks resumed between Mossad Director Barnea, CIA Director Burns and Qatari Prime Minister Al Thani in Poland.
• Israel is prioritising the release of the women who were meant to be released in the last round, and then men over the age of 60 and those who are ill or with serious injuries.
• In return, Israel is considering releasing Palestinian prisoners who were convicted of more serious acts of terrorism than in the previous deal.
• According to Barak Ravid in Walla, Israel is prepared to agree to a one week pause in the fighting in exchange for the release of 40 Israeli hostages.
• According to The Washington Post, as part of a hostage deal Israel would consider a two week ceasefire and would also gradually withdraw troops from northern Gaza.
• Last time, Israel was able to secure the release of 80 hostages in the same timeline, but the ‘price’ for releasing men is considered higher.
• Also on Tuesday, footage was released  of the director of the Kamal Adwan hospital in Jabaliya being interviewed by Shin Bet investigators. As part of his interrogation he revealed the duality of the hospital also serving as a base for Hamas to conduct operational activity. Among his revelations: 16 members of the hospital’s staff, including doctors and nurses also had roles in Hamas’s military wing. He also said that some of the hostages were held on site.
• The IDF also conducted a review of shooting in the area of the Latin Church in Shajaiya on Sunday in which two women were killed. According to the IDF, the review found that “Hamas terrorists launched a Rocket Propelled Grenade at IDF troops from the vicinity of the church. The troops then identified three people in the vicinity, operating as spotters for Hamas by guiding their attacks in the direction of the IDF troops. In response, our troops fired towards the spotters and hits were identified. While this incident occurred in the area where the two women were reportedly killed, the reports received do not match the conclusion of our initial review which found that the IDF troops were targeting spotters in enemy lookouts. We are continuing our examination of the incident.”
• They went on to note, “the IDF takes claims of strikes on sensitive sites very seriously, especially churches that are the holy sites for the Christian faith. The IDF directs its operations against the Hamas terrorist organisation and not against civilians, regardless of their religious affiliation. The IDF takes many measures to mitigate harm to civilians in the Gaza Strip. These efforts stand in contrast to Hamas that does everything in its power to endanger civilians and exploits them, as well as religious sites, as human shields for their terrorist activities.”

Looking ahead: Defence Minister Gallant confirmed that the “ground operation will be expanded to additional places.” There are several areas inside Gaza that the IDF has not yet entered including areas in central Gaza and Rafah in the south.

• Due to the sensitivity and close proximity to Egypt, the security cabinet is expected to discuss the nature of operations in Rafah and along the border. An operation to some extent will be necessary to prevent Hamas replenishing arms though their smuggling routes in the future.
• As Israel contemplates extending the fighting in the south, there is an understanding that they need to keep some infrastructure in place. In order for some entity to eventually take over, the water supply, some municipal services, schools must be protected. It is also likely that the displaced civilian population will need to remain in temporary accommodation for some time, and so (learning the lessons of other conflicts, such as Iraq) some infrastructure must be kept in place.
• Foreign minister David Cameron will travel to Jordan and Egypt this week to push for a sustainable ceasefire and further humanitarian pauses in Gaza.

Three hostages killed: IDF Chief of Staff Halevi visited troops inside Gaza and reflected on Friday’s incident where troops shot and killed three Israel hostages who managed to escape their captives.

• The three hostages had stripped to their waist to prove they did not have an explosive belt and carried an improvised white flag (a white cloth on a poll). They came out speaking Hebrew and asking for help.
• Two were shot by an IDF sniper, while the third was killed after he ran back inside a building.
• Since the incident, it also became apparent they had made a banner and written, “three hostages, help” in Hebrew as well as other signs.
• Halevi told the troops, “you see two people, they are with hands up and without shirts, take two seconds, and I want to tell you something just as important, and if it’s two Gazans with a white flag coming out to surrender why would we shoot at them? Absolutely not. Absolutely not. That’s not the IDF.”
• “I’m telling you whoever got confused here, even those who fought and now lay down their arms and raise their hands, we arrest them, we don’t shoot them. We get a lot of intelligence from the captives we have, we already have over a thousand. We don’t shoot them because the IDF doesn’t shoot a person who raises their hands. That’s strength, not weakness.”

Largest tunnel exposed: The IDF exposed a Hamas tunnel system with its exit point in close vicinity (400 metres) of the Erez crossing, at the northern tip of the Strip.

• According to the IDF, “this massive tunnel system, splits into branches of tunnels, spans well over four kilometres,” and reached 50 metres underground.
• The IDF described this tunnel as a “strategic attack tunnel network,” noting it was “large enough to drive vehicles through, was spearheaded by Muhammad Sinwar (the brother of Hamas leader) and intentionally dug near a crossing dedicated to the movement of Gazans into Israel for work and medical care.”
• Overall, the IDF has already exposed hundreds of tunnel shafts, but this one was significantly wider and more sophisticated than most. As with other tunnels, the IDF noted it was, “equipped with electricity, ventilation, sewage, communication networks and rails.”
• Many of the tunnels were deliberately built under hospitals, mosques, schools, and kindergartens. This largely explains the significant damage caused during Israel’s operations, particularly in northern Gaza, due to the need to destroy this underground network.
• It also speaks to the enormous investment, both financial and resources, that Hamas placed on this project though many years, with the sole objective of attacking Israel.
• Prior to the war, the Erez Crossing was the main crossing for Gazan civilians to enter Israel for work and to receive treatment in Israeli hospitals. According to the IDF, “in 2022, over 800,000 Gazans crossed via Erez Crossing; in the first half of 2023, 550,000.”

Fighting continues: The IDF continues its campaign fighting in both northern and southern Gaza.

• Over the weekend, troops continued to target Hamas fighters, including the latest example of Hamas combatants hiding in schools and hospitals.
• For example, in the Kamal Adwan hospital in Jabalya, around 80 fighters were arrested, some of whom terrorists who took part in the October 7th massacre. In addition, according to the IDF, “troops destroyed terror infrastructure in the area and located numerous weapons including AK-47s, RPGs, explosive devices, Nukhba military equipment, technological equipment, and Hamas intelligence documents.”
• They also questioned the hospital workers. “The workers confessed that weapons were hidden in incubators in the NICU, incubators that were supposed to be used to treat premature babies. Following the questioning, IDF troops located weapons, classified documents, and tactical communications equipment.”
• In the south, IDF forces in Khan Yunis “eliminated numerous terrorists, located approximately 30 tunnel shafts, and destroyed numerous anti-tank and lookout posts in the area. They also confiscated grenades and RPGs, and found intelligence materials including phones, computers and Hamas guidebooks.”
• Overall, the cost in terms of soldiers’ lives continues to rise, with three more soldiers’ deaths announced this morning, taking those killed since the ground incursion to 126.

Hostages: Despite numerous examples of tactical successes, the overall objectives of destroying Hamas and returning the remaining 129 hostages appear far from completion.

• On Friday, the head of the Mossad met with the Qatari prime minister to revisit the possibility of another hostage deal.
• At present, Israel is insisting that the first component includes the female captives that were supposed to be released as part of the first agreement.
• After that, Israel is keen to see the release of wounded and elderly men, and there is speculation that Israel would be willing to be “more generous” when it come to releasing Palestinian security prisoners.
• The head of Mossad is expected to travel to Europe later this week and again meet with Qatari prime minister to explore a new deal with Hamas.

Northern front: Hezbollah has kept up a persistent level of attacks across the length of the Israel-Lebanon border.

• Alarms were sounded across northern Israel throughout the weekend. This morning six rockets landed in uninhabited areas.
• Overall, hundreds of rockets and missiles have been fired from Lebanon. However, according to the IDF around 20 per cent of their rockets have landed inside Lebanon.
• The IDF also claims overall to have struck 120 terrorist cells firing or preparing to launch attacks from southern Lebanon.
• Syrian sources claimed that overnight Israeli air strikes targeted Hezbollah military sites inside Syria along with Syrian army air defence batteries.

Gaza Strip: The IDF announced that eight soldiers were killed yesterday as fighting continues in north and south Gaza.

• The soldiers were named as Lieutenant Colonel Tomer Grinberg, the commander of the Golani Brigade’s 13th Battalion; Major Roei Meldas; Major Moshe Avram Bar On; Major Ben Shelly; Captain Liel Hayo; Staff Sergeant Oriya Yaakov’ Sergeant First Class Rom Hecht; and Sergeant Achia Daskal.
• Seven of the soldiers fell in battle in the Shajaiya neighbourhood in northern Gaza. Hamas terrorists opened fire at a Golani force that was operating in the area. When the soldiers approached the source of the shooting, an explosive device was detonated which wounded several soldiers. Israeli forces who arrived to rescue the soldiers, assisted by air force and artillery, were hit by another bomb that was detonated. A third force that tried to locate the disconnected soldiers was also injured in the fighting.
• Prior to the incident in Shajaiya, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held a situation assessment meeting at the 162nd Division’s forward command post. Gallant said at the meeting: “The operation is very serious, very resolute, and the results speak for themselves. Gaza City is gradually breaking, and we will shortly destroy Hamas’s entire infrastructure in Gaza City.”
• The Wall Street Journal reported that Israel had recently begun pumping seawater into Hamas’ vast labyrinth of tunnels underneath Gaza, in a process that would likely take weeks.
• Israel declared 19 of 135 hostages still in captivity in Gaza dead in absentia on Tuesday, after announcing its forces had recovered the bodies of two hostages.
• The IDF said it has repatriated the bodies of Eden Zacharia, 28, and First Sergeant Ziv Dado, 36. Zacharia was kidnapped from the party near Re’im.
• Egyptian sources told Sky News Arabia that Israel asked Egypt and Qatar to help mediate another cease-fire agreement with Hamas. There was no confirmation from Israel.

The West Bank: The Palestinian Health Ministry said seven Palestinians were killed in an IDF drone attack in the West Bank targeting members of Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, which is considered a part of the Palestinian Fatah organisation’s military wing.

• This comes as the Israeli government continues to weigh whether to allow entry to Israel of work permit holders from the West Bank. The security and defence establishments support the move, in a bid to prevent the West Bank spiralling into further violence.
• A “reformed” Palestinian Authority (PA) – of which Fatah is largest faction – remains the US’s preference for taking control of Gaza after the defeat of Hamas.

Israel-US: President Biden laid out his thoughts on the fighting in Gaza and the future for the Strip at a US fundraiser yesterday.

• “We continue to provide military assistance to Israel as it goes after Hamas,” he said. “We’ll continue leading the world in delivering humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian civilians as well to emphasise to our friends in Israel the need to protect civilian life. And they understand it, the vast majority of the population.”
• He later added what the US needs to do: “First and foremost, do everything in our power to hold Hamas accountable — every single thing in our power. They’re animals. They’re animals.”
• “Secondly, we have to work toward bringing Israel together in a way that provides for the beginning of the option of… a two-state solution.”
• Speaking of the current Netanyahu government’s position, President Biden said, “You cannot say there’s no Palestinian state at all in the future.” The president also warned that Israel was beginning to lose international support because of “indiscriminate” bombing.
• US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday that he would soon be discussing with Israel officials their timetable for the war in Gaza.
• With military officials estimating that achieving the operation’s goals in Gaza could take months, maintaining US support is crucial to Israel being able to withstand international pressure to cease its operation before then.
• PM Netanyahu also clarified that Israel and the US “have differences regarding ‘the day after Hamas.'” Following Biden’s comments, Netanyahu posted a video in which he said, “I won’t allow Israel to repeat the mistake of Oslo. I won’t allow, after the immense sacrifice made by our citizens and fighters, for us to put [into power] in Gaza people who teach terrorism, support terrorism, finance terrorism. Gaza won’t be either Hamastan or Fatahstan.”
• This is Netanyahu’s second reference to the Oslo process in the last few days. He made a similar connection to the US’s proposed steps towards a two state solution after the defeat of Hamas at a meeting of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee on Monday.
• Netanyahu has publicly confirmed that his government has no intention to reoccupy the Gaza Strip in the long term, nor to allow Israeli resettlement there. However, the prospect of a post-Hamas interim in which Israel retains a security presence in the Strip is likely to put the US and Israel at loggerheads.
• Partially responding to Biden’s comments, Daniel Hagari said that the IDF makes every effort to prevent civilian casualties, adding: “Even when things get said, the right thing to do is to show and explain with facts. We know how to explain exactly how we act with precision, based on intelligence, even when we are operating on the ground against Hamas’s centres of gravity in a way to differentiate the civilians, who aren’t involved in terrorism, from the terrorist objectives.”
• The IDF has opened the Nitzana and Kerem Shalom crossings to enable security screening of aid. This includes trucks containing water, food, medical supplies and shelter equipment that will then be forwarded to the international aid organisations. The goods will continue to enter via the Rafah crossing from Egypt.

The north: Following mortar and antitank fire against Israel, the IDF launched a series of attacks on Hezbollah positions in Lebanon.

• The IDF also identified three launches from Syria – two of which fell inside Syrian territory and one which landed in an open area in Israel.
• According to a statement issued early Wednesday, Israeli tanks and attack helicopters targeted Hezbollah missile launching sites and other terrorist infrastructure in Lebanon, as well as military infrastructure and positions belonging to the Syrian army.
• Israel maintains that the pre-October 7^th status quo on the northern border cannot be returned to, and that that Hezbollah, and its elite Radwan force in particular, must be moved north of the Litani river, as called for by UN Resolution 1701.
• The US and France have made efforts to induce the Lebanese government to act to remove Hezbollah fighters from the border area, but Israel has also affirmed that if diplomatic initiatives fail it will be forced to take military action to secure the north.

The international arena: The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. The resolution garnered 153 votes in favour, while 23 countries abstained from the vote. General Assembly resolutions are non-binding. This follows the US vetoing a Security Council vote, which would have been binding, on Friday calling for a ceasefire.

• Israeli Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan said “not only does this resolution fail to condemn Hamas for crimes against humanity, it does not mention Hamas at all. This will only prolong the death and destruction in the region, that is precisely what a ceasefire means,” he said.
• He added that the only intention of Hamas is to destroy Israel and that the group has declared that it will repeat its atrocities again and again until Israel ceases to exist. Erdan said that a ceasefire means one thing only – “the survival of Hamas.”
• Both Austria and the US tabled amendments that failed to pass. Austria’s inserted the phrase, “held by Hamas and other groups” in relation to the hostages still being held in Gaza as well as inserting the word “immediate” in reference to ensuring humanitarian access. The US amendment called for wording to be inserted “unequivocally” rejecting and condemning “the heinous terrorist attacks by Hamas that took place in Israel starting October 7^th 2023 and the taking of hostages” as the first operative paragraph. The Austrian draft amendment secured 89 for, 61 against and 20 abstentions while the US draft amendment saw 84 in favour, 62 against and 25 abstaining. Both failed under the two-thirds rule.
• Hamas welcomed the UN vote and urged the international community to pressure Israel to abide by decision.

Gaza Strip: Over the weekend, the fighting continued to focus on Shajaiya and Jabalya in the north as well as Khan Yunis in the south.

• According to the IDF, they are conducting raids on “terrorist strongholds, eliminating terrorists, and locating and destroying terrorist infrastructure. In addition, IDF naval troops are operating off the coast of the Gaza Strip, supporting IDF ground troops and striking terror targets from the sea.”
• The IDF announced last night that the new commander of the Shajaiya battalion was killed in an air strike, a few days after his predecessor was killed.
• On Sunday night, IDF Spokesperson Hagari declared that the IDF had completed its takeover of Palestine Square in the heart of Gaza City. He said: “Palestine Square is where Yahya Sinwar’s office is located, it is where government offices are located, it is where senior Hamas leaders’ assets are located and that’s where a terrorist network of tunnels is located. These are strategic tunnels in the sense that they run from northern Gaza City to Shifa Hospital.”
• Since the end of the operational pause, the Israeli Air Force has struck over 3,500 targets in the Gaza Strip and overall over 22,000 Hamas targets.
• Despite IDF advances, Hamas are still firing rockets into southern Israel.

Lebanon border: Over the weekend, fighting has continued in a similar pattern, with Hezbollah firing rockets, anti-tank missiles and launching UAVs into northern Israel.

• Yesterday IDF Chief of Staff visited the northern border and told troops, “for the return to all the communities, both in the south and in the north – first, we need to return to a different situation, and return to both safety and a sense of security. There is a military way to do this, the beginning of which is also what you are doing here, to damage, to deter, to kill Hezbollah operatives, to demonstrate our superiority.”
• On Sunday night, Hezbollah launched several rockets. According to the IDF, “one of the rockets was launched from 20 metres away from a United Nations compound.”
• “In doing so, the terrorist organisation endangers the lives of UNIFIL soldiers and continues to systematically violate UNSC Resolution 1701. The UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander was notified of the incident.”
• This morning eight rockets were launched into northern Israel, six were intercepted, two landed in open areas
• The IDF continues to return fire to the source, and also target Hezbollah compounds from where their fighters emerge.
• Hezbollah has publicly confirmed 100 of its fighters killed since October 7^th, though the IDF believes the number could be higher.
• Overall, six IDF soldiers and four Israeli civilians have been killed in the north.

Context: In Gaza, the IDF is making significant progress in its ground offensive but appears still far from achieving its two main objectives of removing Hamas from power and returning the remaining 137 hostages.

• The latest estimate is that 7,000 Hamas fighters have been killed, including half of Hamas’s battalion and company commanders.
• As a result of the intense fighting, the IDF announced the deaths of another four soldiers this morning, taking the total since the beginning of the land incursion to 101.
• On Friday, the debate at the UN Security Council underlined once more how reliant Israel is on the US when they vetoed a motion demanding a ceasefire. The UK abstained, whilst all 13 other counties supported the motion.
• Prime Minister Netanyahu called on other countries to recognise that it is a contradiction in terms to support the destruction of Hamas while also calling for a ceasefire. He said Israel would continue its just war to eliminate Hamas and to achieve all the other war objectives.
• Placing Israeli flags and other symbols inside Gaza serves a short term purpose for confirming the IDF are in control and is part of their psychological warfare against Hamas, but should not be construed as an Israeli statement to remain there in the long term.
• There is also significant debate in Israel over the wisdom of releasing the images of Palestinian prisoners in their underwear.
• Security officials have explained the operational necessity for them to remove their clothes to ensure none of them are wearing an explosive suicide vest, but that does not mean they need to be photographed at that moment, or that once checked they cannot put their clothes back on.
• The arrested men were captured in northern Gaza, and once arrested they were questioned. So far around 40 per cent were found to be terrorists or members of Hamas. The remaining 60 per cent were released into the safe zones in southern Gaza.
• Some of the arrested Hamas men are thought to hold valuable information.
• The fighters who have surrendered attests to the erosion of Hamas’s fighting capabilities, however, there is still thought to be a vast network of fighters underground.
• Another significant issue on the political agenda is whether to allow Palestinians from the West Bank with work permits to re-enter into Israel. It is understood that the prime minister and the security establishment support a limited return, primarily over concerns that exacerbating economic hardship that could lead to increased violence. However, there was almost no support for this in the socio-economic cabinet.
• The issue will soon be discussed in the security cabinet.

Looking ahead: The IDF could complete the takeover of the Shajaiya and Jabalya strongholds in the next few days, but the operation in Khan Yunis could still last several weeks.

• The timing will be determined both by operational considerations and the extent of the US providing diplomatic support.
• Even if the operation in Khan Yunis is completed, it is currently unclear if the IDF will be able to extend the ground operation to other areas in central Gaza or Rafah in the south.
• IDF Spokesperson Hagari maintains that the IDF will target all members of Hamas’s leadership. On Sunday night he said, “Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, Marwan Issa—that trio—we’ve got to reach them. That’s our job. And we intend to reach them. However long it takes, we will reach them. Them, and the other Hamas leaders.