War Day 296: Retaliation Planned Against Hezbollah, Beirut Flights Canceled

War Summary, Day 296: Netanyahu toughens stance in negotiations, Telegraph makes horrific claim but IDF denies it, IDF calls for evacuation in Al-Bureij and parts of Nuseirat for the first time, Netanyahu and Gallant received the go-ahead to decide on retaliation against Hezbollah, Beirut flights canceled, and Erdogan threatens to invade Israel.

By Mrs. Bruria Efune

115 held captive in Gaza.
41 hostages confirmed murdered in Gaza.
116 living hostages rescued.
24 hostage bodies rescued.
1,612 Israelis killed.
331 fallen soldiers and police in the battle in Gaza.
19 fallen soldiers in Northern Israel.
9 fallen soldiers in Judea & Samaria.
20,100 estimated rockets fired at Israel.
90,000 Israelis displaced from their homes.
1 Jewish nation united in prayer, charity, and good deeds.

Top Headlines:

• Netanyahu toughens stance in negotiations
• Telegraph makes horrific claim, IDF denies it
• IDF calls for evacuation in Al-Bureij and parts of Nuseirat for the first time
• Names of the 12 murdered children were released
• Netanyahu and Gallant received the go-ahead to decide on retaliation against Hezbollah
• Beirut flights cancelled
• Erdogan threatens to invade Israel

Hostage Updates:

Negotiations for a hostage deal are ongoing, with discussions revolving around Israel’s most recent updated offer. Prime Minister Netanyahu has reportedly toughened his demands from Hamas, taking advantage of Hamas’s desperation. However, the Prime Minister is receiving heavy criticism at home, from campaigners who want the deal to close already, and worry that the toughened stance will sabotage all possibilities. In response, a member of Netanyahu’s negotiation team told Channel 12 news on Sunday that “the pressure from the Israeli news outlets goes in one direction, and is directed only at the Prime Minister. This makes a deal less likely because it plants false hope in Hamas. The more unity there is in our positions and those of the Americans, the greater the chances are to free hostages.”

The Telegraph reported that Hamas sent videos to Internal Security Minister Ben Gvir, of hostages being tortured, with threats demanding better conditions for Hamas terrorists in prison. Ben Gvir and the IDF deny that he ever received such videos.

Levi Noishtat wrote on Twitter/X: At the hotel where the Prime Minister stayed on Shabbat in Washington, prayer services and a Shabbat meal were organized by Chabad emissary Rabbi Levi Shemtov – in reading the Torah, Netanyahu asked to recite the “mi sheberach”, and read name by name, all 115 names of the hostages who remain in captivity, for salvation and rescue.”

Gaza Front Updates:

Hamas fired a rocket at Netiv HaAsarah, an Israeli community bordering Northern Gaza. No physical injuries were reported.

The IDF announced the name of a hero who passed after being critically injured in battle in Gaza:

Sgt. Yonatan Aharon Greenblatt, 21, of the Givati Brigade Shaked Battalion, from Beit Shemesh.

Yonatan was injured in Rafah on July 20, when an anti-tank missile fired by Hamas hit the building he was in.

Four divisions of IDF troops are currently operating in Gaza: the 98th Division in Khan Younis; the 99th Division along the Netzarim Corridor, and on pinpoint operations in parts of Northern Gaza and neighborhoods of Gaza City; the Gaza Division in the buffer zone; and the 162nd Division in Rafah and along the Philadelphi Corridor. Over the last day, the IDF struck more than 50 terror targets in Gaza.

For the first time, the IDF has issued an evacuation warning for Al-Bureij and parts of Nuseirat in Central Gaza, urging civilians to move into the designated humanitarian zone. The IDF says that this comes after several rocket attacks were launched by Hamas from Al-Bureij, and that the IDF will now need to “forcefully operate” against the terror groups in the area.

Gaza Humanitarian Efforts Updates:

219 trucks carrying humanitarian goods were transferred to Gaza.

6 tankers of cooking gas designated for the operation of essential infrastructure were transferred.

6 forklifts purchased by the UN aid agencies designated to boost UN logistics capacity were transferred to Gaza.

64 aid trucks were collected today from Kerem Shalom, 62 by the private sector, and 2 by the UN.
Currently, there are over 500 trucks worth of aid waiting on the Gazan side of Kerem Shalom to be collected by UN aid agencies.

Northern Front Updates:

Hezbollah continued with light fire on Israel’s far north today, including a rocket that made a direct hit on a home in Shtula. No physical injuries were reported, but the house was completely destroyed.

The IDF also did some of the “routine” retaliatory airstrikes against Hezbollah targets in Southern Lebanon, but nothing in response to the deadly attack yet.

The names of the 12 Druze children killed by a Hezbollah rocket while playing soccer in Majdal Shams were released:

Alma Ayman Fakher Eldin, 11,
Milad Muadad Alsha’ar, 10,
Vinees Adham Alsafadi, 11,
Iseel Nasha’at Ayoub, 12,
Nathem Fakher Saeb, 16
Naji Taher Alhalabi, 11,
Fajer Laith Abu Saleh, 16,
Ameer Rabeea Abu Saleh, 16,
Hazem Akram Abu Saleh, 15,
Yazan Nayeif Abu Saleh, 12,
Johnny Wadeea Ibrahim, 13,
Guevara Ibrahim, 11

The IDF released photo evidence of the shrapnel found at the scene of the attack, which matched the markings of the Iranian-made Falaq-1 rocket, which is used by Hezbollah. The IDF also published the flight path of the rocket, which had a 50kg warhead, and 10km range.

The Israeli security cabinet convened today at the IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv. Later, the Prime Minister’s office announced that members of the cabinet have “authorized the prime minister and defense minister to decide on the manner of the response against Hezbollah, and the timing.” The cabinet was likely not involved in the decision for several reasons, including so that details will not be leaked, risking the suspense and element of surprise.

While no details are yet known about Israel’s expected response, all speculation and rumors point to a strong attack that won’t escalate to an “all out war.” Instead there may be a few days, or weeks, of significant escalation, and then back to the current status quo of limited retaliatory strikes, with diplomatic efforts for a ceasefire which has Hezbollah pushed behind the Litany River.

Earlier today, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said that Hezbollah “will bear the price and will pay a heavy price for its actions.”

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said that the IDF is preparing for “the next stage in the fighting in the north,” and that “when required we will act strongly. Our duty is to return the residents to the north safely to their homes, in the entire north, the Galilee and the Golan Heights.”

Residents who remained in the communities under evacuation orders were warned today to stay near bomb shelters.

According to reports, Hezbollah has already cleared out key sites in Lebanon, in anticipation of Israeli airstrikes. All flights to and from Beirut International Airport have been cancelled Sunday night, amid reports that there are UAVs flying over Beirut and the airport (although it is unclear who the UAVs belong to). There is also widespread GPS disruption in Lebanon.

Druze-Lebanese politician, Walid Jounblat told Al Jazeera: “The American envoy, [Amos] Hochstein said that Israel will carry out an extensive operation. I remind him that he is a mediator and not a tool for transmitting threats from Israel.” On BBC Arabic, Abbas Ibrahim of Hezbollah, claimed that ever since beginning his role under President Obama, whenever Hochstein received information about an imminent Israeli attack on a Hezbollah target, he would warn Hezbollah first.

International Updates:

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey (a NATO member state) threatened to invade Israel, saying “Just as we entered Karabakh, just as we entered Libya, we might do the same to them.”