Hamas releases propganda video of Matan Angrest • Trump says he sent letter to Iranian leader to negotiate deal
IDF told to prepare for ‘immediate’ return to Gaza fighting – report
The Jerusalem Post reported earlier this week Israel would return to fighting in Gaza in about a week and a half, barring a breakthrough in talks.
Israel’s political echelon, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has ordered the IDF to prepare for an “immediate” return to fighting in Gaza, KAN News reported on Friday evening.
The Jerusalem Post reported earlier this week that Israeli officials estimated that if no agreement was reached between Israel and Hamas, Israel would return to fighting in Gaza in about a week and a half.
“Hamas is currently rejecting [US Middle East envoy Steve] Witkoff’s proposal, so it is very difficult to make progress,” one official said.
IDF strikes Hezbollah weapons, rocket launchers across southern Lebanon
Israeli Air Force aircraft carried out targeted strikes across southern Lebanon on Friday evening, targeting military outposts belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organization, the IDF said.
The targeted outposts included warehouses storing weapons, as well as rocket launch sites. Hezbollah-affiliated outlet Al Mayadeen reported strikes were being carried out in the vicinity of Al-Aaishiyah.
“The IDF will continue to operate to remove any threat to the State of Israel and will prevent any attempt of Hezbollah to reestablish and rebuild itself,” the Israeli military said in a statement.
This is a developing story.
Dermer voices Israeli objection to US-Hamas talks in ‘tense’ call – report
Boehler met with senior Hamas officials in Doha, Qatar, on several occasions.
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer voiced Israel’s objection to direct talks between the United States and Hamas in a “tense” conversation with US Hostages’ Affairs Envoy Adam Boehler on Tuesday, a senior Israeli official told Walla’s Barak Ravid on Friday.
Boehler was leading the secret talks between the White House and Hamas over the release of hostages, as confirmed by The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday.
An Israeli source told the Post on Wednesday that Israel wasn’t too enthusiastic about the talks. The Prime Minister’s Office said, “Israel expressed its opinion to the United States regarding the direct talks with Hamas.”
IAF aircraft strikes several terrorists in northern Gaza
An Israeli air force aircraft struck several terrorists who were seen operating near IDF troops in northern Gaza and planting an explosive device in the ground near them, the IDF announced Friday evening.
Hamas releases propaganda video, giving sign of life of Matan Angrest
Angrest, who served in a tank unit, was captured alongside the bodies of his fellow soldiers Itai Chen, Daniel Peretz, and Tomer Leibovitz, all killed in battle.
Hamas’s Al-Qassam Brigades published a propaganda video on Friday, giving a sign of life of Matan Angrest, 22, who has been held in captivity in Gaza for 517 days, since October 7.
The Angrest family did not approve of the distribution of the video or any photos from the video published by Hamas, according to the Hostages and Missing Families’ Forum.
In the video, Angrest says that the only way to bring the hostages back is through the exchange deal and moving to the second stage of the deal.
Hezbollah claims to find Israeli ‘spy cameras’ in southern Lebanon
The report claimed that the cameras were ‘initially intended for espionage and surveillance,’ and operated with a sensor that detects movement and records it automatically.
A reporter claimed to have located Israeli ‘spy cameras’ in southern Lebanon according to Hezbollah-owned Al-Manar TV on Wednesday.
‘Our Voices Are Heard’: Honoring the slain female observers of October 7
The event positioned the female observers as a symbol of the unheard female voice and the importance of listening to the voices of women in society.
For International Women’s Day, an event called “Our Voices Are Heard” was held on Thursday in honor of the female observers murdered on October 7.
Breakdown in Gaza ceasefire talks could trigger IDF ‘high-level’ assassinations – report
Such assassinations and commando operations could lead to escalation and a gradual heating up of the situation, said sources.
The IDF could move toward carrying out “high-level assassinations against key [Palestinian terrorist] figures and commando operations in populated areas” if mediation efforts regarding the second phase or extension of the first phase fail, Palestinian sources and Lebanese-based Al-Akhbar reported on Friday morning.
Israel’s security cabinet to discuss ‘voluntary relocation’ of Gazans
Israel’s Security Cabinet will hold a meeting on Sunday to discuss and approve furthering the possibility of “voluntary relocation” of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to a different country.
The meeting is also slated to include the establishment of a dedicated directorate in the Defense Ministry to facilitate any such movements.
Knesset speaker apologizes to families of October 7 victims after violent altercation
Families were blocked from entering the visitors’ section of the plenum to observe a discussion regarding a state commission of inquiry into the October 7 massacre.
Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, on Friday, apologized to the families of the hostages for a violent altercation with Knesset guards after having been blocked from entering the plenum on Monday.
- Hamas launched a massive attack on October 7, with thousands of terrorists infiltrating from the Gaza border and taking some 240 hostages into Gaza.
- Over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals were murdered, including over 350 at the Supernova music festival and hundreds of Israeli civilians across Gaza border communities.
- 59 hostages remain in Gaza.
- 49 hostages in total have been killed in captivity, IDF says.
- The IDF launched a ground invasion of Lebanon on September 30.
- The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire came into effect on November 27 at 4 a.m.
- Netanyahu confirmed the first phase of the Israel-Hamas Ceasefire on January 17, 2025
- 735 terrorists will be released as part of the hostage deal