War Day 227: Arabic “Mein Kampf” Found, Arrest Warrant ordered for Netanyahu

War Summary, Day Two Hundred and Twenty Seven: Weapons, terrorist funds in the hundred thousands, and incendiary materials such as volumes of Mein Kampf in Arabic were confiscated in the Shomron, the International Criminal Court issued an application for arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity, and Biden asserts that Israel is not committing genocide.

By Mrs. Bruria Efune

War Summary, Day Two Hundred and Twenty Seven:

128 held captive in Gaza.
41 hostages confirmed murdered in Gaza.
112 hostages freed.
16 hostage bodies rescued.
1,520 Israelis killed.
282 fallen soldiers in the battle in Gaza.
14 fallen soldiers in Northern Israel.
5 fallen soldiers in Judea & Samaria.
13,950 estimated rockets fired at Israel.
90,000 Israelis displaced from their homes.
1 Jewish nation united in prayer, charity, and good deeds.

Hostage Updates:

There are no ongoing negotiations for the release of the hostages.

Gaza Front Updates:

Hamas fired a barrage of rockets at Sderot and communities in the area today. These communities, which are filled with children, have 15 seconds to run to safety from the warning sound until impact.

Thank G-d, the IDF did not announce any fallen soldiers today!

Three divisions of IDF troops are currently operating in Gaza: the 98th in Northern Gaza’s Jabaliya, the 99th along the Netzarim Corridor and Central Gaza, and the 162nd in Rafah. Over the last day, the Israeli Air Force struck 80 Hamas targets across Gaza to take out cells of terrorists, rocket launchers, Hamas firing sites, and other terror infrastructure.

The IDF released new information on Friday’s finding of the bodies of four hostages. The four, who had been killed on October 7th, were kept in a tunnel in the Jabaliya “camp.” The tunnel, which the IDF did not reach during the first maneuver in Jabaliya, was used by Hamas as a command center, and was surrounded by explosive traps. The explosives were safely disarmed by troops, but sadly Maj. Gal Shabbat was killed in the battle to reach the tunnel. There were no battles inside the tunnel.

IDF troops are still operating in Jabaliya, with intense close-quarters combat, and today located a weapons cache inside an UNRWA complex.

In Central Gaza, troops continue to operate along the Netzarim Corridor, and have been shelling buildings used by Hamas to fire at troops or store weapons.

The IDF released further information about the terrorist commanders who were eliminated in airstrikes in Central Gaza yesterday. The two were both senior police officers, and Hamas commanders who directed attacks against Israel.

An estimated 950,000 people have evacuated from Rafah, leaving between 3-400,000, primarily in areas which the IDF did not call to evacuate yet. Most civilians evacuated to the al-Mawasi humanitarian zone, but it’s estimated that a large number of Hamas terrorists may have escaped to the camp as well. The camp is fully equipped with running water, food, and hospitals. Others fled to areas in Central Gaza where the IDF has not yet entered at a large scale to defeat Hamas, and two Hamas battalions continue to operate.

IDF troops have not yet advanced deep into Rafah, and are operating primarily in the Eastern part, and along the Philadelphi Corridor, which stretches along the border with Egypt. The IDF is still holding the Rafah Crossing, and Egypt is still not pleased, and not allowing the transfer of aid through it. 130 terrorists are confirmed to have been eliminated in Rafah since the start of the ground entry, including a Palestinian Islamic Jihad commander who was eliminated with a few of his subordinates today.

Troops have been using small drones to locate terrorists and traps all over Gaza. Today the IDF released an image of a terrorist popping out of a tunnel, as spotted by a drone. The terrorist and tunnel were promptly destroyed in an airstrike.

A thorough operation in Rafah is crucial for cutting off Hamas’s supply. The IDF says that troops have located dozens of tunnels shafts in recent days, and “significant underground routes,” but falls short of saying how many and if they enter Egypt. The only official record of this comes from Israeli Justice Ministry official Gilad Noam’s remarks at the ICJ. It’s likely that Israel is refraining from addressing it in an official statement to the press, so as not to further deteriorate relations with Egypt.

It’s estimated that Hamas’s last major stockpiles of missiles are in Rafah, including missiles that can reach as far as the Tel Aviv area. According to some IDF sources, Hamas can be expected to launch those missiles when the IDF advances further into Rafah.

Another crucial result of taking over Rafah, is removing Hamas’s control over the humanitarian aid which entered via Egypt. The aid was a significant source of control over the population for Hamas. Now that the IDF is controlling more of the aid entries, via the Erez and Kerem Shalom crossings, Gazans have less need to obey Hamas or stay where Hamas tells them to. Hamas is losing its governing power in Gaza.

Gaza Humanitarian Efforts Updates:

On Sunday, May 19:

422 aid trucks were inspected and transferred to the Gaza Strip.

17 trucks of aid were transferred into Gaza, through the JLOTS temporary floating pier, which was built in partnership with the US.

45 pallets containing tens of thousands of packages of aid were airdropped into Gaza.

2 tankers of fuel designated for the operation of essential infrastructure in Gaza, entered Gaza.

There are currently 8 operational field hospitals in Gaza.

26 bakeries are currently operational in Gaza, providing close to 5 million breads, rolls, and pita breads daily.

According to a Reuters report, most of the aid entering Gaza via the U.S.’s JLOTS pier since Shabbat has been stolen by Gazans, including Hamas, before reaching the UN warehouse in Deir Al-Balah. 11 out of 16 trucks were looted and completely emptied on Shabbat alone.

Northern Front Updates:

Hezbollah continued with heavy firing on Israeli communities and IDF bases in Israel’s far north. One soldier was lightly injured in an attack on the Biranit base. In addition to rocket, anti-tank, and drone attacks, today Hezbollah threw a number of grenades onto civilian and IDF positions in Metula. The grenades caused damage, several fires, and a power outage, but thankfully no physical injuries.

The IDF retaliated with airstrikes against Hezbollah positions in Southern Lebanon, including a building in which Hezbollah terrorists were known to be gathering. After one airstrike, the IDF identified secondary blasts, indicating that a munitions warehouse had been destroyed. Hezbollah announced the death of five of their ilk today, bringing their total to 309. The IDF estimated the number of eliminated Hezbollah terrorists to be higher.

Houthi & Iraqi War Front Updates

The Iranian-backed Islamic Resistance in Iraq launched two attack drones towards Israel. The IDF intercepted them before they entered Israeli airspace, using fighter jets and a missile ship off the coast of Eilat. No sirens were sounded in Eilat.

Judea and Samaria Updates:

Overnight, the IDF, Shin Bet and border police forces arrested 15 people wanted for terrorist activity. Found with the terrorists were weapons, terrorist funds in the hundred thousands, and incendiary materials such as volumes of Mein Kempf in Arabic.

Since the beginning of the war, about 4,000 wanted persons have been arrested throughout Judea and Samaria, of which about 1,700 are associated with Hamas, and the remainder are associated with other terror groups.

International Updates:

Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, issued an application for arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity, detailing “starvation, genocide, and the withholding of humanitarian aid.” In a horrific equivalence, he also issued warrants for chief Hamas terrorists Muhammad Daf and Yahya Sinwar.

The application still needs to be approved by an ICC panel. Israel is not an ICC member.

In a response statement, Netanyahu wrote, “The outrageous decision by the ICC prosecutor, Karim Khan, to seek arrest warrants against the democratically elected leaders of Israel is a moral outrage of historic proportions. It will cast an everlasting mark of shame on the international court.”

Backing Israel, and confirming reports that the ICC deceived Israel, the State Department issued a statement that “The prosecutor’s team was supposed to land in Israel today to coordinate the visit. Israel was informed that they did not board their flight at about the same time that the prosecutor went on television to announce the charges. These and other circumstances call into question the legitimacy and credibility of this investigation.”

At a White House event marking Jewish Heritage Month, US President Biden told guests: “My commitment to Israel is unquestionable, what Israel is doing is not genocide. We stand by their side in their efforts to eliminate Yahya Sinwar.” He added: “I am constantly working to free the hostages.”