War Day 579: Preps for Operation Gideon’s Chariot, Soldiers Injured

War Summary, Day 579: Serious hostage negotiations ongoing, four soldiers injured in Gaza, IDF says they won’t leave the new security buffer zone, operations underway for for Operation Gideon’s Chariot, two terror attacks in Yehuda and Shomron, talks ongoing with Syria and Turkey, Israel is ready to face Houthis and Iran alone (if necessary), and Trump shows indecisiveness on issue of enriching uranium in Iran.

By Mrs. Bruria Efune

59 held captive in Gaza.
35 hostages confirmed murdered held in Gaza.
147 living hostages rescued.
49 hostage bodies rescued.
1,836 Israelis killed.
420 fallen soldiers and police in the battle in Gaza.
88 fallen soldiers in Northern Israel.
18 fallen soldiers and police in Judea & Samaria.
30,720 estimated projectiles fired at Israel.
10,000 Israelis estimated remain displaced from their homes.
1 Jewish nation united in prayer, charity, and good deeds.

Top Headlines:

– Serious hostage negotiations ongoing
– Three hostages whose statuses are unknown
– Four soldiers injured in Gaza
– IDF will not leave the new security buffer zone
– Preps for Operation Gideon’s Chariot
– Two terror attacks in Judea and Samaria
– Terrorist eliminated in Lebanon
– Talks ongoing with Syria and Turkey
– Israel ready to face Houthis and Iran alone, if necessary
– Trump shows indecisiveness on issue of enriching uranium in Iran.

Hostages:

There are renewed negotiations for a ceasefire agreement which would release hostages, with some, including Defense Minister Katz, believing that U.S. President Trump’s Middle East visit will give a window of opportunity. Trump himself hinted that something is in the works.

An Israeli official told JPost that after the public display of tension between Israel and Qatar, the Qataris turned around. The official said that the Qataris stopped obstructing efforts to reach a deal, and became helpful. (Read this with healthy skepticism. It may be a diplomatic cleanup effort.)

If an agreement is in the works, there are still huge hurdles to overcome, particularly Hamas’s refusal to disarm.

In a statement, Prime Minister Netanyahu clarified Trump’s statement about there being only 21 living hostages.

“We know for sure that there are 21 lives, there is no debate about that,” Netanyahu said. “There are three more who, unfortunately, there is doubt whether they are alive, and therefore, we say: We are not giving up on anyone, not even the remaining three, not even all the others. We want to bring everyone home.”

The families of the hostages are constantly kept up to date with any information about their loved ones. The families of the three around who there is uncertainty were informed a while ago.

These are four hostages who aren’t known to have given a sign of life:

– Bipin Joshi (24), an agriculture student from Nepal.
– Tamir Nimrudi (20) an IDF soldier taken from his post.
– Ariel Kunio (26), from Kibbutz Nir Oz (his wife Arbel Yehud, who was recently released, was kept alone in Gaza and did not see him).
– Pintha Nathapong (35), the last Thai hostage held captive. Thailand says they are still searching for him.

Gaza:

Four soldiers were injured by an explosive trap in Rafah. One is in serious condition, three moderate.

During the ceasefire, Hamas laid many hidden explosive devices, and installed cameras everywhere they could. The explosive devices can be controlled remotely, and terrorists pull the trigger when they see soldiers around. These explosives have become a significant danger.

Defense Minister Israel Katz held an assessment today with the 162nd Division, which is preparing to enter Gaza and play a major role in the new “Operation Gideon’s Chariots.”

Following the assessment, Katz told the soldiers that the operation is intended to defeat Hamas and bring about the release of all the hostages.

He emphasized that “unlike in the past, the IDF will remain in every area [it conquers,] to prevent the return of terrorism and to clear and thwart any threat.”

Katz added that IDF troops will remain stationed in the buffer zone inside Gaza in any situation, whether in a deal or not, since the buffer zone is intended to protect Israeli communities and prevent Hamas from smuggling weapons into Gaza.

Another important note in Katz’s words—from the moment the operation begins, the IDF will work with full force, and will not stop until all the objectives are achieved. In other words, there will be no more pauses for temporary ceasefires or negotiations.

Judea & Samaria:

Two IDF reservists were seriously injured in a shooting attack today, near the Reihan checkpoint. The injured are not combat soldiers—one is from the Home Front Command Search and Rescue Battalion, while the second served in the Technology and Maintenance Corps.

The terrorist fled the scene, and a manhunt is ongoing.

Another soldier was injured in a car-ramming and stabbing attack in the Mount Hebron area. In this incident the terrorist was shot, and taken to the hospital in serious condition.

The soldiers were taken to hospitals for treatment.

Lebanon:

An IAF airstrike in the Sidon area eliminated terrorist Khaled Ahmed Ahmed, who served as the head of operations for the Western Brigade of Hamas in Lebanon. During the war, Ahmed promoted numerous terrorist plots against IDF soldiers, Israel, and Israelis. In a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement, he has worked to transfer weapons and carry out attacks against Israel.

The Israeli Air Force has re-established the 946th Air Defense Battalion to counter the growing drone threat, especially from Hezbollah. The unit, disbanded in 2003, now operates advanced mobile systems adapted to intercept UAVs along the northern border.

Syria:

Reuters reported that the UAE is facilitating secret talks between Israel and Syria.

At the same time, Azerbaijan is hosting Israel and Turkey for negotiations over Syria. Turkey has been operating in the new Syria, and Israel wants them to stay far away from the Israeli border.

Yemen:

Another UAV was intercepted before entering Israel. No sirens were activated, as per policy, since there was no direct threat.

Reports estimate that the damage to Sana’a Airport are worth around half a billion dollars.

Following yesterday’s shocking statement, Trump gave more details today, “We had a very good outcome with the Houthis, and we honor their word.. They took tremendous punishment. You could say there’s a lot of bravery there. But we honor their commitment and their word. They gave us their word that they wouldn’t be shooting ships anymore, and we honor that.”

Meanwhile, a Houthi spokesman told Al Jazeera that they’ll continue attacking Israeli ships until aid is let into Gaza (if they count the aid that Israel will deliver directly to civillians in the new security zone, this will soon be a great excuse for the Houthis to bow out.)

The spokesman also claimed that the agreement with the U.S. supports the Palestinian cause and “embarrasses” Israel.

In an initial response to the American ceasefire announcement, Netanyahu stated that Israel knows how to deal with the threat on its own. In another video the Prime Minister said: “We are dealing with it. And the rule I have set – Israel will defend itself on its own. We are doing it in Yemen, in other places, over very long distances, Israel has a long arm and we will use it. If others join us, our American friends, that’s great. If they don’t join, we will defend ourselves on our own.”

Some are concerned that the agreement with the Houthis sends a strong isolationist “America First” signal to Iran. Iran may take this as a negotiation advantage, knowing that America’s interest is not in Israel or the MidEast, but only in US security

Iran:

Some raise concern that the Houthi ceasefire against American ships was a goodwill gesture from Iran in order to open more negotiations avenues.

Trump continues to show a tiny openness to allowing the Iranian regime to enrich uranium for civilian power usage, while stressing that he prefers not. After commenting that he would much prefer a strong deal, Trump added that he would prefer to completely destroy all of Iran’s nuclear facilities.

“There are only two choices,” Trump stated. “Blow ’em up nicely or blow ’em up viciously.”

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