Negotiations over hostages held by Hamas began again on Saturday between the terror group and Israel.
Talks renewed after a new offensive by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the Gaza Strip. Hamas official Taher al-Nono said that the latest negotiations have begun without “preconditions,” according to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/hamas-confirms-new-gaza-ceasefire-talks-with-israel-qatar-saturday-2025-05-17/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reuters</a>.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has directed negotiators to stay in Qatar. An Israeli official said the prime minister has kept contact with Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff “in an effort to dissuade Hamas from its refusal and to advance a deal for the release of our hostages,” according to <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-hamas-say-gaza-talks-renewed-after-idf-initiates-major-new-offensive/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Times Of Israel</a>.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz suggested that the new round of talks is because of Israel’s latest offensive, which was announced on Saturday. Katz said that the terror group’s current stance on negotiations “is in contrast to the uncooperative position they had taken up until this moment,” according to <a href="https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-854313" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Jerusalem Post</a>.
Hamas last released a hostage on May 12. The terror group released the last living American citizen, Edan Alexander, from captivity after Alexander spent more than 18 months held hostage.
Israeli officials believe that the hostage group has as many as 23 hostages still alive. All but one of the hostages have been held by the terror group since October 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists and Palestinians rushed across the border to Israel and attacked settlements and took hundreds captive.
Israel renewed its military campaign against Hamas on Saturday with airstrikes. It is unknown how many have been killed in the strikes. Hamas officials have claimed that more than 150 have died in the airstrikes, though the numbers are unreliable and Gaza Health Ministry data is <a href="https://www.thefp.com/p/why-we-shouldnt-trust-the-facts-coming" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suspected</a> of being inflated and doctored for propaganda purposes.
Katz said that the new offensive, dubbed Operation Gideon Chariots, is being led with “great force,” according to <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israel-hamas-gaza-military-offensive-food-crisis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CBS News</a>.
“The heroism of IDF soldiers, the unity of the people and the determination of the political echelon increase the chance of the return of the hostages – as it was then and as it is now,” said Katz.
IDF spokesman Col. Avichai Adraee said the Israeli military is “expanding and increasing the bombing and pressure on Hamas throughout the Strip – from north to south, above and below ground, and even outside the Strip.”
The new offensive will not stop until Israel has accomplished its aims of rescuing the hostages or having them returned, and until Hamas has been dismantled, military officials said.

Gaza City

Hamas Agrees To New Hostage Talks After Israel Pummels Terror Group In New Offensive

Global Politics

Hamas

Hostages

Israel

Israel Defense Forces (IDF)

World

An Israeli airstrike left the main airport in Yemen&#8217;s capital, which serves as &#8220;a central hub for the Houthi terrorist regime,&#8221; fully disabled on Tuesday, according to the Israeli Defense Forces.
On Tuesday morning, the IDF <a href="https://x.com/IsraelArabic/status/1919718827119476993" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued a warning</a> in Arabic for all individuals to immediately evacuate Sanaa International Airport and its surrounding areas. About one hour later, IDF fighter jets struck the airport and other infrastructure in Houthi-controlled Sanaa, Yemen.
The retaliatory strike comes as Israel and the United States continue attacks on Houthi terrorists, who continually shot ballistic missiles at Israel and attacked more than 100 international cargo ships, tankers, and naval vessels following Hamas’ October 7 assault on Israel.
The strike “dismantled Houthi terrorist infrastructure at the main airport in Sanaa fully disabling the airport,” according to the IDF. Flight runways, aircraft, and airport infrastructure were struck in the attack. According to the IDF, the airport “served as a central hub for the Houthi terrorist regime to transfer weapons and operatives” and was used for “terrorist purposes.&#8221;
“This underscores the Houthi terrorist regime’s brutal exploitation of civilian infrastructure for terrorist activity,” the IDF said in a statement.
The IDF said the strike on Sanaa Airport was a direct response to a missile fired by the Houthis that landed near Israel’s Ben-Gurion Airport, injuring six people and temporarily halting flights. The IDF said the missile was not intercepted due to a technical malfunction, noting that its systems typically maintain a 95% success rate against missiles launched from Yemen.
“Over the past year and a half, the Houthi terrorist regime has been operating under Iranian direction and funding, in order to target the State of Israel and its allies, undermine regional stability, and disrupt global freedom of navigation,” the IDF said. “The IDF is determined to continue operating, at any distance, against all threats posed to the citizens of the State of Israel.”
Following the strike, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that the Iranian regime will &#8220;bear direct responsibility for any attack by the Houthi tentacle against the State of Israel.&#8221;
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The IDF also targeted Al Imran Concrete Plant north of Sanaa, which the IDF says the Houthis use to build underground tunnels and terror infrastructure, as well as several central power plants in the Sanaa area. According to the IDF, the Houthis exploit energy infrastructure for terrorist purposes.
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“This strike further degrades the Houthi regime’s economic and military buildup capabilities,” the IDF said. “The strikes were carried out with prevision, and steps were taken to mitigate harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure.”
The strikes were approved by the Commanding Officer of the Israeli Air Force and the IDF’s Chief of the General Staff.
The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/israel-coordinates-us-counterstrike-houthis-following-airport-attack?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Israel+Coordinates+With+United+States+To+Counterstrike+Houthis+Following+Airport+Attack" target="_blank" rel="noopener">IDF also struck</a> Houthi infrastructure in Yemen on Monday, including the Hudaydah Port which it claims is used for the transfer of Iranian weapons and military equipment as well as the “Bajil” Concrete Plant, described by the IDF as a “significant economic resource for the Houthis” and is used for the construction of “underground tunnels and terrorist infrastructure for the terrorist regime.”
<div id="attachment_916385" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-916385" class="size-large wp-image-916385" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Cover-images-1200-x-628-px-2-1024x536.png" alt="IDF map showing Houthi targets of air strike " width="1024" height="536" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Cover-images-1200-x-628-px-2-1024x536.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Cover-images-1200-x-628-px-2-300x157.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Cover-images-1200-x-628-px-2-768x402.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/Cover-images-1200-x-628-px-2.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />The IDF struck Houthi infrastructure in Yemen on Monday, May 5, including at the Hudaydah Port as well as the “Bajil” Concrete Plant. (IDF)</div>
During Monday’s strike, around 20 Israeli Air Force fighter jets dropped 50 munitions on dozens of Houthi targets. The strike, which was coordinated with the United States, marked Israel’s sixth airstrike on the group since July 2024 in response to over 400 attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthis during the war. It was the first such strike since President Donald Trump took office.
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In March, Trump declared that “Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN.” He added that Iran would be held responsible and “suffer the consequences, and those consequences will be dire.” Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/you-will-pay-the-consequence-pete-hegseth-warns-iran-over-lethal-support-to-houthis?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=%E2%80%98You+Will+Pay+The+Consequence%E2%80%99%3A+Pete+Hegseth+Warns+Iran+Over+Lethal+Support+To+Houthis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">warned</a> last week that Iran would “pay the consequence” for providing “lethal support” to the Houthis.
The United States has been conducting <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-orders-troops-to-middle-east-to-counter-houthi-attacks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">weeks of airstrikes</a> on the Houthis in response to the group&#8217;s more than 100 attacks on international cargo ships, tankers, and naval vessels following Hamas’ October 7 assault on Israel. Since March, over 800 Houthi targets have been hit, resulting in the elimination of hundreds of fighters and leaders, and Houthi ballistic missile launches and suicide drone attacks are down 69% and 55% respectively, <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/us-strikes-kill-hundreds-houthi-fighters-hit-over-800-red-sea-targets-central-command" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fox News reported</a>.

Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Air Force

Israel Bombs Yemen’s Capital Airport, ‘Fully Disabling’ Houthi Terrorist Base

Houthis

Yemen

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned the new Syrian regime that it would “pay a heavy price” if it allowed forces hostile to the Jewish state to enter Syria.
“If you allow forces hostile to Israel to enter Syria and endanger Israel’s security interests, you will pay a heavy price,” Katz said following Israeli strikes on Syrian military infrastructure remaining from the Bashar Al-Assad regime. “Israel will not allow Syria to become a threat to its communities and security interests.” 
Katz, speaking to Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, said the strikes were a “warning for the future.”
“The IDF struck military capabilities that remained at the Syrian bases of Hama and T4, along with additional remaining military infrastructure sites in the area of Damascus in the past few hours,”  the IDF said in a Wednesday statement <a href="https://x.com/IDF/status/1907521357333819550">posted</a> to X. “The IDF will continue to operate to remove any threat to Israeli civilians.”
The Hama airport was almost entirely destroyed, according to <a href="https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-848620">Syria’s Foreign Ministry.</a>
Syria condemned the attacks as an “unjustified escalation,” <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce92g5nk55eo">reported BBC</a>
Experts believe that Israel’s strikes were meant to convey a message to Turkey that Israel opposes it spreading its influence amid reports that Turkey was moving to put aircraft and air defenses at airbases in Syria.
In a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4OXPx-LkiM">press conference</a> on Monday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa&#8217;ar accused Turkey of trying to make Syria into a Turkish “protectorate.”
“They play a negative role in Syria, they play a negative role in Lebanon &#8230; They have aspirations all over the region and other regions of the world,” Sa’ar said. “They are doing their utmost to have Syria as a Turkish protectorate. It’s clear that this is their intention.”
Sa’ar added that just as Israel opposed Iranian influence in Syria during the previous regime, it opposed Turkey filling the void.
“We don’t think it was good when Syria was an Iranian proxy, and we don’t think that Syria should be a Turkish protectorate,” he said.
Israel has had troops stationed in a buffer zone in recent months to protect any hostile actors in Syria from attacking the Jewish state.
Israel, which has a sizable Druze community with many members who serve in the Israeli Defense Forces, also <a href="https://www.jns.org/idf-prepares-to-defend-druze-suburb-of-damascus-against-syrian-regime/">vowed to protect</a> the Syrian Druze from any harm and has shipped humanitarian aid to Druze villages.
Last month, a group of Israeli Christians <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/israeli-christians-call-for-world-leaders-to-protect-syrian-christians">gathered at Israel’s border</a> with Syria in the Golan Heights to demand that the European Union, Israel, and the United States protect Christians in Syria.

Netanyahu visits the peak of Hermon Mount in Syria

Israel Warns Syria Will ‘Pay A Heavy Price’ If Hostile Forces Are Allowed To Enter Country

Syria

The Israel Defense Forces entered a new phase of the ground offensive in Gaza this week, pressuring Hamas to release the 59 hostages still in captivity.
The IDF is trying to establish the “Morag Corridor” to cut off Rafah from Khan Younis. This would help the IDF surround Rafah, which Israeli Prime Minister <a href="https://x.com/netanyahu/status/1907459855788449978" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Benjamin Netanyahu said</a> the move is an effort to increase pressure on Hamas “step by step.”
“We are now cutting off the Strip and we are increasing the pressure step by step… so they will give us our hostages,” Netanyahu said. “The longer they refuse to give them up, the more the pressure will increase until they do.”
The Morag Corridor is located where the Israeli settlement, Morag, stood before being forcibly evacuated during Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from Gaza.
The strategy is in line with other sectioning efforts by the IDF including controlling the Philadelphia Corridor that separates Gaza and Egypt as well as the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza which splits Gaza’s north and south.
The IDF is close to controlling 30% of Gazan territory, a source <a href="https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-848505" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told the Jerusalem Post</a>. If Hamas does not agree to a new hostage deal soon, the larger invasion may be ordered, sources say.
The IDF issued an evacuation order to most areas of Rafah on Monday, telling residents that <a href="https://x.com/AvichayAdraee/status/1906595629993967915?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1906595629993967915%7Ctwgr%5E7c501a14faa2378c0b7e233d0f0e36126e82d3c0%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.jns.org%2Fisrael-orders-mass-evacuation-of-rafah-as-offensive-intensifies%2F" target="_blank" rel="noopener">troops are returning</a> to the area to fight “with great force to eliminate the capabilities of terrorist organizations in these areas.”
Overnight, the Israeli Air Force carried out strikes on more than 50 Hamas sites, with dozens more carried out during the day, the Times of Israel reported.
The IDF announced on Wednesday that troops in its 14th Brigade successfully encircled the Tel al-Sultan area in Rafah. Soldiers eliminated dozens of terrorists and dismantled weapons and terrorist infrastructure, according to the announcement.
“The only thing that can halt our further advance is the release of our hostages!” Chief of the General Staff in Gaza LTG Eyal Zamir said during a visit to Rafah. “Their return would allow our forces to reposition and enable the continuation of negotiations.”
Since the collapse of the ceasefire, Israel has eliminated more than a dozen Hamas leaders.
Many experts speculate that Israel was able to use the two-month ceasefire as an opportunity to gather intelligence about the whereabouts of Hamas leaders. Many of those killed were key to maintaining Hamas’ control over Gaza’s population, beyond just its militant operations.
Gazans <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rare-anti-hamas-protests-erupt-in-gaza-as-residents-call-for-peace" target="_blank" rel="noopener">took to the streets</a> in the last week all around the strip, calling for an end to Hamas rule, in a rare display of opposition to the terrorist group. Protesters marched through Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza carrying white flags, demanding Hamas end its rule, and calling for the Israeli hostages to be released.
In response, Hamas has begun attacking protesters including Odai al-Rabei, a 22-year-Gazan who was abducted from Gaza City, tortured, and murdered by terrorists before being returned to his family home, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hamas-kidnaps-tortures-and-murders-anti-hamas-protester" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to his family</a>.

IDF Holds Exhibition Of Hamas October 7 Attack Materials

Israel Heats Up Ground Offensive In Gaza In Effort To Pressure Hamas To Return Hostages

Gaza

The Iranian-backed Ansar Allah terrorist organization, also known as the Houthis, fired a missile at southern Israel on Tuesday. The attack comes amid ongoing American airstrikes on Houthi infrastructure and terrorists in Yemen.
The missile was intercepted by the Israeli air force prior to crossing into Israeli territory, according to the Israeli Defense Forces.
The missile set off alarms in the Negev area, including in Beersheva, one of Israel’s largest cities, and Dimona, the site of a nuclear reactor.
Trump said that his strikes on the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-gop-congressman-named-houthi-terrorists" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Houthis</a> are in response to the group waging an “unrelenting campaign of piracy, violence, and terrorism against American, and other, ships, aircraft, and drones.” The strikes, which have been conducted for several days, could increase depending on the Houthi’s response.
<a href="https://x.com/CENTCOM/status/1901784324812218796" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://x.com/CENTCOM/status/1901784324812218796</a>
The IDF <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/israel-resumes-extensive-airstrikes-in-gaza-for-the-first-time-since-ceasefire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">resumed extensive airstrikes</a> on Hamas targets in Gaza Monday night, following Hamas’s repeated refusal of ceasefire extension proposals and release of the 59 hostages still in captivity.
The strikes are the most significant IDF strikes on Gaza since the beginning of the ceasefire on January 17.
The strikes resulted in the killing of four senior Hamas officials, including Issam al-Da&#8217;alis, Hamas’s political Gazan prime minister, Bahjat Abu Sultan, operational chief of Hamas&#8217;s internal security apparatus, Mahmoud Abu Watfa, the director-general of Hamas&#8217;s Interior Ministry, and Ahmed Omar al-Hatta, Hamas justice minister.

Houthis stage anti-governent protest in Sanaa

Houthis Shoot Missile At Israel Following U.S. Airstrikes

The Israel Defense Forces announced on Monday night that it has resumed extensive airstrikes on Hamas targets in Gaza.
The strikes are the most significant IDF strikes on Gaza since the beginning of the ceasefire on January 17 and come after Hamas failed to agree to proposals to extend the ceasefire.
The prime minister&#8217;s office released a statement:
<blockquote>Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have instructed the IDF to take strong action against the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip. This follows Hamas&#8217;s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received from US Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators. The IDF is, at this time, attacking targets of the Hamas terrorist organization throughout the Gaza Strip in order to achieve the objectives of the war as they have been determined by the political echelon including the release of all of our hostages, the living and the deceased. Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength. The operational plan was presented by the IDF over the weekend and approved by the political leadership.</blockquote>
A later statement added that the Israeli civilian communities near the Gaza Strip would enter “limited activity” defensive guidelines, which is a heightened level of security that will not allow for education activity.
Earlier on Monday, the IDF struck two terrorists who were attempting to plant an explosive device near IDF troops in central Gaza.
The IDF also struck targets in Syria, including command centers and military sites containing weapons and military vehicles belonging to the deposed regime of Bashar Al-Assad.
“The presence of military assets in southern Syria poses a threat to the State of Israel,” the IDF said in a statement. “The IDF will not allow the presence of military threats in southern Syria and will operate against it.”
Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon were also targeted by the IDF on Monday.

Israel announced it struck military targets in Iran

Israel Resumes Extensive Airstrikes In Gaza For The First Time Since Ceasefire

Hamas released six hostages on Saturday, the last living hostages slated for release under the first phase of the tenuous ceasefire agreement struck last month.
The six hostages were turned over to the Red Cross for transport into Israel in three groups. The first released were 40-year-old Tal Shoham and 39-year-old Avera Mengistu, according to <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/hamas-releases-more-hostages-exchange-more-than-600-palestinian-prisoners-part-ceasefire-deal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fox News</a>. Hamas terrorists escorted them to Red Cross vehicles after holding a staged ceremony in front of hundreds of cheering Palestinians. Israel has condemned such displays.
Omer Wenkert, 23, Omer Shem Tov, 22, and Eliya Cohen, 27, were released in the second group. Hamas terrorists conducted another ceremony for them, bringing the trio out in military garb &#8212; though none were soldiers &#8212; before handing them to the Red Cross.
Hisham Al-Sayed, 36, was the last of the hostages to be released to the Red Cross on Saturday. Al-Sayed and Mengistu had each been held in Gaza for more than a decade after venturing into the Hamas-run enclave on their own.
The Israel Defense Forces posted several videos of the returning hostages.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
3,821 days. 10 years apart.
Avera Mengistu’s family has suffered his absence for a decade, not knowing if he was safe or even alive. Today, they can finally hold him again. <a href="https://t.co/grhNjPsgZg">pic.twitter.com/grhNjPsgZg</a>
&mdash; Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) <a href="https://twitter.com/IDF/status/1893249284792778809?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 22, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Omer Shem Tov is home. 
After 505 days, Omer is back in Israel and finally reunited in the arms of his parents. <a href="https://t.co/ZU5MQLjHd1">pic.twitter.com/ZU5MQLjHd1</a>
&mdash; Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) <a href="https://twitter.com/IDF/status/1893300159296962656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 22, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
For 505 days, his family dreamed of this hug. 
Today, that dream is reality—Omer Wenkert is home. <a href="https://t.co/hPpvbDYYXN">pic.twitter.com/hPpvbDYYXN</a>
&mdash; Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) <a href="https://twitter.com/IDF/status/1893307713532183038?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 22, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Israel is set to release 620 Palestinian prisoners on Saturday as part of the ceasefire agreement, according to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/live-blog/israel-hamas-ceasefire-live-updates-rcna193120" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NBC News</a>. The release, the largest of the ceasefire so far, will contain over 150 prisoners serving lengthy sentences and hundreds of prisoners taken after the October 7 terror attack.
With the last living hostages released under the first phase of the agreement, it remains unclear whether the agreement will continue to phase two. The ceasefire has lasted tenuously for over a month despite multiple violations Israel said Hamas committed. Images of the released hostages, often showing emaciated victims of abuse, have riled Israeli leaders and the public.
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The next phase of the agreement would involve the release of Israeli military members and more remains held captive by Hamas.
The latest violation of the agreement came on Thursday when Hamas terrorists turned over the remains of who the terror group said were the Bibas family. While forensic testing confirmed the remains of the Bibas children – 4-year-old Ariel and 9-month-old Kfir – tests showed that the remains said to be of their mother, Shiri, were actually that of an unnamed Palestinian woman.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the incident a “cruel and wicked violation” of the ceasefire agreement. Hamas blamed the incident on a mistake and turned over more remains that were identified on Saturday as those of Shiri Bibas.
Forensic testing on the remains of the children revealed that they were likely killed in November 2023 through strangulation, according to the IDF. Hamas had claimed that the children were killed in an Israeli airstrike.
“Ariel and Kfir Bibas were murdered by terrorists in cold blood. The terrorists did not shoot the two young boys — they killed them with their bare hands. Afterwards, they committed horrific acts to cover up these atrocities,” IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari <a href="https://x.com/IDF/status/1892938062730055854" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.

Red Cross

Hamas Releases Six Hostages As First Phase Of Ceasefire Winds Down

Terrorism

Following a forensic assessment of the bodies of Kfir and Ariel Bibas, the Israel Defense Forces announced on Friday that Hamas terrorists killed the young boys “with their bare hands.”
Kfir was nine months old when he was kidnapped, and Ariel was 4.
In a statement, Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Hamas’ claims that the brothers were killed in an IDF airstrike are false. 
“Ariel and Kfir Bibas were murdered by terrorists in cold blood,” Hagari said. “The terrorists did not shoot the two young boys—they killed them with their bare hands.”
He added that the terrorists “committed horrific acts to cover up these atrocities.” According to the IDF, Hamas attempted to make the bodies appear as if an airstrike had killed them. Hagari cited the forensic findings and intelligence to support his assessment. 
The IDF confirmed the remains of the boys on Thursday after they underwent an identification process by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine in collaboration with the Israel Police. 
The IDF concluded from intelligence and from the forensic findings that Ariel and Kfir were brutally murdered in captivity in November 2023.
Hagari said the findings were shared with Israel’s global allies so “the entire world will know exactly how the Hamas terrorist organization operates.”
The IDF also stated that the remains handed over by Hamas on Thursday that were purported to be Shiri Bibas, the boys&#8217; mother, were not her or any other hostage. Israel received the anonymous body along with the Bibas brothers and Oded Lifshitz after the terror group paraded them on stage in front of cheering crowds in a propaganda spectacle.
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“The abduction and murder in captivity of Oded, Ariel, and baby Kfir, all innocent civilians, are crimes against humanity,” Hagari said. “The whole world must condemn these barbaric acts of terror. We demand that Hamas release Shiri in accordance with the agreement.”
The coffins each had a picture of the hostages with a sticker that said “date of arrest October 7 2023.”
On the stage was a picture of the four fallen hostages with an image of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu depicted as a vampire with the text, “This War Criminal Netanyahu &amp; His Nazi Army Killed Them with Missiles from Zionist Warplanes.” There was also a missile with a sign in English reading, “They were killed by USA bombs.”
Four masked men carried the coffins, each wearing a headband symbolizing a different Palestinian terrorist organization, including Hamas, Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Palestinian Mujahideen Movement’s Mujahideen Brigades, and Fatah’s Al-Aqsa Brigade. Fatah is chaired by Mahmoud Abbas, the President of the Palestinian Authority, which controls the Palestinian areas of Judea and Samaria, also known as the West Bank.
Hamas threatened to keep the bodies after the Red Cross initially refused to take part in the handover ceremony, according to Israel’s Channel 12. Red Cross representatives eventually gave in and signed documents on stage to receive the bodies.
The coffins were then transported to the Israel Defense Forces in the Gaza Strip, where they underwent an evaluation by a bomb squad to ensure the terrorists did not booby trap them, as they had done to other bodies of others who had been taken on October 7.
The IDF wrapped the coffins in Israeli flags, and the Military Rabbinate chief, Brigadier-General Rabbi Eyal Krim, recited Psalm 83.
The Lifshitz family received final confirmation that Oded’s body had been identified only hours after he arrived for identification.
“503 agonizing days of uncertainty have come to an end,” the family said in a statement. “We had hoped and prayed so much for a different outcome. Now we can mourn the husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather who has been missing from us since October 7. Our family’s healing process will begin now and will not end until the last hostage is returned.”
The news of the death of Ariel and Kfir has sparked international outrage and brought the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bibas-brothers-join-count-of-55-israeli-children-killed-since-october-7-attacks">total number of children</a> from Israel who have died in the fallout of the October 7 attacks to 55.

COMBO-ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN-CONFLICT-HOSTAGES

IDF Reveals Terrorists Brutally Murdered Bibas Brothers ‘With Their Bare Hands’

Politics

At least three buses were bombed in Central Israel on Thursday evening in what officials believe was an attempted strategic terrorist attack.
The three buses were all empty when the bombs were detonated, reports say. Two additional bombs that failed to detonate were discovered on separate buses.
Israeli Transport Minister Miri Regev ordered that all modes of public transportation — buses, trains, light rail, etc. — be halted so that officials could search for any additional bombs.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨🚨 Update on the massive terror attacked that failed tonight in Israel
🚨 5 explosive devices were planted on board 5 different buses in Central Israel
🚨 3 devices exploded on empty buses; 2 didn&#8217;t explode
🚨 Israeli transport minister ordered all buses, trains and light… <a href="https://t.co/MS8Qz0Ndrr">pic.twitter.com/MS8Qz0Ndrr</a>
— Amichai Stein (@AmichaiStein1) <a href="https://twitter.com/AmichaiStein1/status/1892679447410881001?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
Officials said that the bombs that were planted by the terrorists would have killed hundreds of civilians had the buses been full.
&#8220;This is a large-scale incident and we are deployed to a large number of locations,&#8221; said Tel Aviv Police District Commander Asst.-Ch. Haim Sargaroff. &#8220;We have scanned the trains and buses and are trying to understand how many suspects are involved.&#8221;
The Jerusalem Post <a href="https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-843086#google_vignette" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that one of the buses was carrying a lot of people when one of the passengers noticed a suspicious package that was left behind and alerted the driver.
Everyone was quickly evacuated from the bus and the bomb squad was called.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that it is working with Shin Bet, one of Israel&#8217;s intelligence services, and local police in investigating the attack.
The IDF has blocked entry into some areas of Judea and Samaria as it carries out intelligence gathering activities.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Two explosions were reported in Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv. The explosions reportedly occurred on two buses. Nobody was inside the vehicles at the time. Terrorism is suspected. <a href="https://t.co/doRwo2hymN">pic.twitter.com/doRwo2hymN</a>
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeTruzman/status/1892657141867016348?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2025</a></blockquote>

Israeli-Palestinian conflict – Tel Aviv

Multiple Buses Bombed In Widespread Terror Attack In Israel

In a comprehensive <a href="https://www.thecipherbrief.com/column_article/correcting-the-record-on-the-idf-and-lethal-targeting">must-read article</a> for its explanation of how a moral war can be conducted, the U.S. General who was responsible for developing the air campaign in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and the U.S. Army judge advocate officer who served as the Army&#8217;s senior law of war advisor harshly criticized The New York Times for its spurious implication that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) made a deliberate decision to green-light increased civilian casualties.
General Charles Wald and Geoffrey Corn referred to the New York Times article titled, “Israel Loosened Its Rules to Bomb Hamas Fighters, Killing Many More Civilians,” and stated that the information provided by the Times was presented “in a manner designed to lead to an invalid inference: that the IDF’s civilian casualty thresholds were a quota that every attack was designed to meet and, by raising those thresholds, the IDF displayed potentially illegal indifference towards civilian casualties.”
“This is a misrepresentation of the function of civilian casualty thresholds and what the Law of Armed Conflict (LOAC) <a href="https://jinsa.org/jinsa_report/israel-hamas-law-of-armed-conflict/">demands</a>,” they bluntly declare. “Crucially, civilian casualty thresholds indicate nothing about whether a particular attack does or does not comply with the LOAC proportionality rule. An attack falling within the scope of the threshold authority may not be proportional, while one exceeding it may be. Nor does the raising of the threshold mean that every IDF attack caused civilian casualties up to the authorized number. The Times cites examples of IDF strikes that did result in many casualties, but it fails to cite the numerous attack proposals that were <a href="https://www.israelhayom.com/2023/05/11/idf-cancels-gaza-strike-due-to-presence-of-children/">canceled</a> or <a href="https://x.com/IDF/status/1722801833691726111">suspended</a> because a commander who could authorize them decided not to do so. Without such balance, the true meaning of this threshold expansion is lost.”
“The article’s implication seems obvious: that the decision to modify these thresholds and expand attack authority at lower levels of command was indicative of an overall disregard for the laws of armed conflict,” they wrote. “But this implication is almost impossible to square with our observations as well as those of a number of military experts who have interacted with the IDF to assess operational and tactical practices. As we, together with other retired U.S. military commanders, argued in a <a href="https://jinsa.org/jinsa_report/gaza-war-observations-2023-2024/">JINSA report</a> informed by a fact-finding visit to Israel in which we were briefed by the IDF about their operations: ‘the IDF has carried out its mission to eliminate the Hamas threat with operational and tactical excellence and in overall compliance with the Law of Armed Conflict (LOAC). This occurred despite encountering a complex urban and subterranean battlefield….’”
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The authors quoted urban warfare expert John Spencer, who <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/israel-implemented-more-measures-prevent-civilian-casualties-any-other-nation-history-opinion-1865613">asserted</a>, “Israel has taken precautionary measures even the United States did not do during its recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.”
The authors spent considerable time explaining how armed conflict is supposed to work when civilian casualties are part of the issue: “Civilian casualty thresholds are best understood, as one of us has <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2485624">explained</a>, as an important civilian risk mitigation precaution. When such thresholds are imposed, they do not, as is suggested in the Times critique, authorize inflicting that number of civilian casualties. Instead, they limit the attack decision authority at different levels of command to those expected to create a certain level of civilian risk. If the anticipated civilian risk exceeds the threshold, the decision whether to attack has to undergo greater scrutiny and be made at a higher-level command.&#8221;
“Nothing about the ground campaign the IDF was compelled to launch against Hamas mirrors prior confrontations with that enemy,” the authors noted. “As noted in our JINSA <a href="https://jinsa.org/jinsa_report/gaza-war-observations-2023-2024/">report</a>, this was a combined arms maneuver campaign involving up to five maneuver divisions (approximately 100,000 troops) against a determined enemy numbering somewhere between 35-40,000 fighters organized into 24 battalions operating under, on, and above ground.”
“Unfortunately, the Times article ignores this military operational reality that almost certainly influenced this modification,” they continued. “Anyone reading the critique would assume that nothing changed in the operational situation confronted by the IDF between October 6, 2023, and the commencement of its Gaza campaign. But such an assumption is simply absurd. The campaign the IDF conducted against Hamas and other organized armed groups in Gaza was unprecedented in scale and intensity, certainly the most extensive campaign against an enemy in decades.
“There is nothing remarkable or unusual about the fact that the IDF leadership modified these thresholds to align with the nature of the campaign they were about to conduct. If anything, the fact that limits were retained is an indication of their consistent commitment to the precautions obligation,” they declared.
They concluded:
<blockquote>
Educating the public on the procedures implemented by professional armed forces to balance the needs of military necessity with the imperative of mitigating civilian risk is both important and valuable. However, it is imperative that such education reflect both the true nature of the law that regulates war and the military operational realities in which it is applied. Ironically, to suggest an indiscriminate campaign, the Times article employed indiscriminate analysis. In the context of an unprecedentedly complex conflict, the IDF’s decision to expand civilian casualty thresholds was both logical and justified, and in no way supports the inference of a military indifferent to the human costs of war.  
</blockquote>

New York Times Headquarters in New York City

U.S. General, Army’s War Advisor Rip NY Times For Implying IDF Indifferent To Civilian Casualties

civilian casualties

Media

The New York Times

In the face of those who have criticized the Israeli military for targeting hospitals where Hamas terrorists hide, on Tuesday, Israel Defense Forces released a video in which a member of the terrorist group Hamas admitted that Hamas and Islamic Jihad use hospitals to hide their terrorists and weapons specifically so that the Israeli military won’t target them.
The Israel Defense Forces released a video of Anas Muhammad Faiz Al-Sharif, 21, a Hamas terrorist who had been hiding out at Kamal Adwan Hospital, being questioned. Using a civilian or another protected person as a shield for military operations is a direct violation of International Humanitarian Law and is considered a war crime. That is clearly stated in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
“I work at Kamal Adwan Hospital as a cleaning supervisor,” Al-Sharif stated. “I joined the Al-Qassam Brigades (Hamas) in 2021 in the Nukhba forces in the Western Battalion.”
The “Nukhba forces” are an “elite unit within Hamas, which includes operatives chosen by senior Hamas leaders,” CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbctv18.com/world/israel-hamas-war-who-are-nukhba-force-military-unit-palestine-army-gaza-idf-18042121.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noted</a>. “Five Hamas leaders secretly planned the bloody invasion of southern Israel on Oct. 7, with 70 commandos from the terrorist group’s elite Nukhba Force leading the charge across the Gaza border, the London-based, pan-Arab Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported on Wednesday,” JNS <a href="https://www.jns.org/five-hamas-leaders-planned-oct-7-attack-70-nukhba-fighters-led-the-charge/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> in January 2024.
“Where were you arrested?” the interrogator asked.
“Inside Kamal Adwan Hospital,” he replied.
“When you were at Kamal Adwan Hospital, who else was there?” the interrogator continued.
“There were people there, the staff — the medical team I work with daily and directly. There were also operatives from Hamas and Islamic Jihad from the Al-Nasser Division and other organizations in Northern Gaza,” Al-Sharif admitted.
“Why were you hiding in Kamal Adwan Hospital?” the interrogator queried.
“They believe it is a safe haven for them because the military cannot directly target it,” Al-Sharif said.
“What do you mean when you say it is a ‘safe haven’?” the interrogator pressed.
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“Because there are civilians and patients there,” Al-Sharif answered. “They think the military cannot bomb it, such as with a missile from an F-16 or by demolishing the building.”
“Now, when the operatives were in the hospital, what were they doing?” the interrogator wanted to know.
“The operatives were there transporting equipment and weapons like AK-47s &#8230; and pistols,” Al-Sharif revealed. “The weapons were transferred to and from the hospital from the outside in and from the inside out within the hospital. It was used for observation and patrols. They leave the hospital late at night; they arrive at the hospital in the morning. Inside the hospital, they distribute the grenades and mortars equipment for attacking tanks, for ambush positions and for tunnels underground to the command and control center, whether at Kamal Adwan, Faluja (Jabaliya Camp), or in new locations where the operatives are located.”
<iframe loading="lazy" title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/asBARDtg4P0?si=b8sGNGql1budYx0s" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

Kamal Adwan Hospital after Israeli attacks on Gaza

WATCH: Hamas Member Admits Terrorists And Lethal Weapons Are In Hospitals So Israel Won’t Attack

Hospitals

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/israel-defense-forces-idf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Israel Defense Forces</a> (IDF) declassified footage on Thursday showing a raid that IDF commandos carried out on September 8th, 2024, deep inside Syrian territory on an underground Iranian missile manufacturing plant.
The raid from the Israeli Air Force&#8217;s (IAF) Shaldag Unit was the result of years worth of &#8220;extensive intelligence gathering and monitoring,&#8221; the IDF said in a statement.
&#8220;The soldiers landed using helicopters, with fire and intelligence-gathering support from aircraft, fighter jets, and naval vessels of the Israeli Navy,&#8221; the IDF said. &#8220;The compound was a flagship project for Iran&#8217;s efforts to arm its terror proxies on Israel’s northern border. The compound included advanced assembly lines designed to manufacture precision-guided missiles and long-range rockets, significantly increasing the supply of missiles to Hezbollah and other Iranian terror proxies in the region.&#8221;
&#8220;During the operation, the forces reached critical machinery for manufacturing precision missiles, including a planetary mixer, numerous weapons, and intelligence documents, which were transferred for investigation,&#8221; the statement continued. &#8220;The soldiers destroyed the compound and safely returned to Israeli territory.&#8221;
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that he was proud of the commandos for the &#8220;bold and successful operation deep inside Syria.&#8221;
&#8220;This is one of the important countermeasures we have taken against the Iranian axis&#8217; attempts to arm itself to harm us, and it testifies to our determination and courage to act everywhere to protect ourselves,&#8221; he added.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The Israeli military declassified intelligence on a commando raid that destroyed an Iranian-funded and supported underground compound for manufacturing precision missiles in Syria:
On September 8, 2024, over 100 Shaldag commandos raided an underground compound in Masyaf, Syria.… <a href="https://t.co/IacE7zQrt2">pic.twitter.com/IacE7zQrt2</a>
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeTruzman/status/1874848162453893500?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 2, 2025</a></blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
A video from the day of the operation, showing the sequence of events on the ground: <a href="https://t.co/a1bAS9Q2nr">pic.twitter.com/a1bAS9Q2nr</a>
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeTruzman/status/1874848169366024451?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 2, 2025</a></blockquote>
The operation marked <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/israel-destroys-underground-iranian-built-missile-factory-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the first known ground operation</a> by Israel inside of Syria in years.
The raid happened in the western part of Syria, near the border of Lebanon, while the IAF conducted an intense bombing campaign to stop the Syrian military from being able to send reinforcements to respond to Israel’s operation at the factory.
Israel notified the U.S. of the raid in advance and received no opposition to launching the operation.
The Syrian guards who were protecting the terrorist manufacturing facility were caught off guard by the raid and were killed in the Israeli commandos’ surprise attack.
U.S. and Israeli sources confirmed to Axios that Iran started building the underground facility in 2018 in coordination with Hezbollah and the Syrians after Israel “destroyed most of the Iranian missile production infrastructure” inside the country.
Israeli intelligence services reportedly monitored the site, built inside of a mountain, for five years. Israel previously considered launching an operation to destroy the site, but deemed the project too “high-risk.”
The raid could foreshadow how Israel might deal with Iran’s nuclear facilities as the country gets closer to obtaining nuclear weapons, partly due to a lack of deterrence from the Biden administration, some experts say.

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