War Day 338: IDF Strikes Iranian Site in Syria, Three Israelis Killed

War Summary, Day 338: New details of conditions of the 6 hostages, Biden administration stumped on hostage deal as Hamas increases demands, sirens in Ashkelon, senior Hamas rocket commander eliminated, Hezbollah continues to escalate fire, IDF heavily attacks Iranian site in Syria, and three Israelis killed in terror attack at Allenby Bridge crossing.

By Mrs. Bruria Efune

101 held captive in Gaza.
35 hostages confirmed murdered held in Gaza.
117 living hostages rescued.
37 hostage bodies rescued.
1,643 Israelis killed.
344 fallen soldiers and police in the battle in Gaza.
21 fallen soldiers in Northern Israel.
13 fallen soldiers and police in Judea & Samaria.
24,000 estimated rockets fired at Israel.
88,000 Israelis displaced from their homes.
1 Jewish nation united in prayer, charity, and good deeds.

Top Headlines:

• New details of conditions of the 6 hostages
• Biden administration stumped on hostage deal as Hamas increases demands
• Sirens in Ashkelon
• Senior Hamas rocket commander eliminated
• Hezbollah continues to escalate fire
• IDF heavily attacks Iranian site in Syria
• Three Israelis killed in terror attack at Allenby Bridge crossing

Hostage Updates:

An IDF investigation revealed details of the horrific conditions in which the 6 executed hostages were kept prior to their brutal murder. The 6 were held in a small and narrow tunnel, where they could hardly stand up straight, and only two hostages could lie down at a time. The tunnel had no air ventilation, which caused the hostages to have difficulty breathing. There were no showers or toilets, instead, the hostages had to use water bottles to wash themselves, from their low supply of drinking water. The hostages all suffered from severe starvation.

The positions of the gunshot wounds on the hostages indicate that the hostages fought with their captors before being executed, and the male hostages tried to protect the two females. Notebooks were found alongside the hostages in the tunnel, and were given to the families today.

Reports from various Israeli news outlets and Axios describe intense frustration in the Biden administration’s mediation team. While Biden is pushing for a deal, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and CIA director Bill Burns have said that the U.S. could present a new and updated proposal in the coming days, advisors think that the proposal will go nowhere.

This comes after Hamas added an additional demand—the release of 100 more terrorists who are serving life sentences in Israeli prisons for murder. Originally, such terrorists would only be released in exchange for IDF soldiers, now Hamas wants them regardless, and added this demand after murdering 6 hostages.

Reportedly, Biden is worried that adding this to the proposal would be seen as rewarding Hamas for murdering the hostages. Really the murder of the hostages should mean less terrorists freed, not more, since there are less hostages being freed.

The administration also doesn’t see a possible compromise on the Philadelphi Corridor issue. U.S. officials say that the focus has now shifted to seeing if the Egyptians and Qataris can pressure Sinwar to lessen his demands, but there hasn’t been much progress in this. Biden’s team is now trying to rethink the entire strategy.

Ahead of a government cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Netanyahu referenced the Hamas document leaked by Bild, which he said shows Hamas wants to “tear us apart from the inside and to continue the war until further notice.” However, Netanyahu continued, “the vast majority of Israeli citizens aren’t falling for this trap. When we stand together, our enemies cannot overcome us, so their main goal is to divide us, to sow division within us.”

Netanyahu reemphasized the wars goals, and that most Israelis are committed to “eliminate Hamas, to return all our hostages, to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel and to safely return our residents in the north and south to their homes.”

Gaza Front Updates:

Sirens at the Kerem Shalom Crossing were a false alarm. Later in the day, Hamas fired two rockets towards Southern Ashkelon for the first time in a month. One landed in the sea, and the other was intercepted by the Iron Dome.

Thank G-d, the IDF did not announce any fallen heroes today.

Three divisions of IDF troops are currently operating in Gaza: the 252nd Division along the Netzarim Corridor, and pinpoint operations in Central Gaza and Gaza City; the 162nd Division in Rafah and along the Philadelphi Corridor; and the Gaza Division in the buffer zone.

Operations began to pick back up today, and the IAF struck more than 25 Hamas targets across Gaza. Amongst those eliminated was Raaif Abu Shab, the head of the rocket unit in Hamas’s East Khan Younis Battalion, who directed rocket fire on southern and central Israel throughout the war.

Troops in the Netzarim Corridor and Rafah continued methodical raids of Hamas sites, locating weapons, launchers, tunnel shafts, and eliminating terrorists. This is going to be the primary work at this stage of the war, to find all the small parts of Hamas’s network and prevent them from being able to attack again.

Reports in Gaza around 8pm that home internet services were cut off in the center and south of Gaza. Cellular service was still functional, so this may indicate an effort to cut off tunnel communications.

On a visit to the Netzarim Corridor, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant promised that the IDF will eliminate Yahya and Muhammad Sinwar (the head of Hamas, and his brother who is a senior commander in Hamas’s army), just like the IDF got Marwan Issa and Muhammad Deif.

Gaza Humanitarian Efforts Updates:

Today was the fourth and last day of the second stage of the polio vaccination campaign. 251,417 children were vaccinated in southern Gaza, 440,451 children were vaccinated in total. The next stage of the campaign will take place in northern Gaza and will begin on Tuesday.

Northern Front Updates:

Hezbollah fire from Lebanon continues to escalate. 50 rockets were fired into Israel’s far north in the nighttime alone, followed by more heavy attacks throughout the day, with both rocket fire and attack drones.

The IDF struck several Hezbollah targets in Southern Lebanon, including terrorist positions and rocket launchers.

Around 11 p.m., there were reports of three rounds of heavy “alleged” IDF airstrikes in Syria, targeting the Masyaf area, west of Hama, which is known to be used as a base for IRGC forces and Iranian-backed militia. This is a site which the IDF has attacked several times before over the last decade. The IDF has never confirmed attacking the site. The Syrian Center, a body affiliated with the opposition to Assad, reported several deaths in an attack. The exact number of dead was not specified.

Judea and Samaria Updates:

A 39-year-old Jordanian truck driver opened fire at the Allenby Bridge crossing into Israel, and killed three Israeli civilian workers, before he was eliminated by IDF soldiers. The terrorist truck driver is reportedly a former Jordanian soldier. The victims are named as:

Yohanan Shchori, 61, from Ma’ale Efraim
Yuri Birnbaum, 65, from Na’ama
Adrian Marcelo Podsmeser, from Ariel

Adrian’s son, Sebastian, is a Nova Festival survivor with a close friend who was murdered in Hamas captivity. “My Dad supported and encouraged me throughout all the months after the October 7th attack,” said Sebastian. “He was always there for me and helped me. He is truly an amazing man. The pain is unbearable. I still can’t believe what happened.”

Jordanians were seen celebrating the murderous attack, handing out sweets and enjoying fireworks.

All three crossings into Jordan were immediately closed for the day. Tomorrow they will open for passenger crossings only, and not cargo.

The Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized “Jordan’s firm position condemning and rejecting violence and harming civilians for any reason” and called for addressing “all the causes and the escalating measures that created it.” It was also noted that the Kingdom continues “regional and international efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and stop the escalation in the West Bank.”

There are reports of ongoing IDF activity in Shechem (Nablus).

Houthi & Iraqi War Front Updates:

The Houthi spokesman claimed that the Iranian-backed terror group shot down an American MQ9 UAV in Yemen’s Marev district, and claims that it is the eighth UAV they have shot down.

The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated that in the past 24 hours, forces successfully destroyed three Iranian-backed Houthi uncrewed aerial vehicles (attack drones) and two missile systems in a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen.

Iran & Proxies Attack Updates:

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met with CENTCOM chief Gen. Michael Kurilla who is visiting Israel again. Gallant wrote that they discussed the operational and strategic situation in the region and discussed ways to further strengthen cooperative operations to achieve common objective in the region.