News Digest — 2/10/25
IDF Hits Sites In Lebanon, Including Smuggling Tunnel On Syrian Border
Israeli fighter jets carried out several Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon on Sunday evening (9th), including against a tunnel between Lebanon and Syria used by the Hezbollah terror group to smuggle arms, the Israeli Defense Forces said.
The IDF said the tunnel, in the Beqaa valley, had also been struck in the past. “The IDF is determined to prevent restoration and use of this tunnel,” it said in a statement.
The Beqaa Valley area, a Hezbollah stronghold, is north of the Litani River, beyond which the Iran- backed group is required to withdraw under the ceasefire agreement reached in November 2024 after more than a year of hostilities, including two months of all-out war.
Additionally, the military said Sunday (9th) that the Israeli Air Force targeted several Hezbollah sites in other areas of Lebanon, which included weapons and rockets launchers that “posed an immediate threat” to Israel.
According to the IDF, the targeted sites were “a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon..”
Lebanese media reported a series of strikes in the Nabatieh area some 12 miles from the border with Israel, and in the Baalbek area in the Beqaa Valley nearly 62 miles from Israel.
The strikes came a day after the IAF struck what the IDF said were Hezbollah operatives at a weapons manufacturing site in eastern Lebanon’s Beqaa Valley on Saturday (8th). Lebanon’s state news agency reported six dead and two wounded in that strike.
The ongoing conflict began with Hezbollah’s cross-border rocket and drone attacks on October 8, 2023, the day after the Palestinian terror group Hamas led thousands of terrorists in a devastating invasion of southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and triggering war in the Gaza Strip.
The Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group said its attacks were in support of Gaza. By the time the ceasefire came into effect, Israel had decimated Hezbollah’s leadership and depleted its fighting capabilities.
Under the deal, Hezbollah must pull back north of the Litani River – some 18 miles from Israel’s border – while Israel is entitled to strike threats it considers imminent, and can forward less imminent threats to a monitoring committee comprising representatives of Lebanon, Israel, France, the United States and UNIFIL.
Under the truce deal, Lebanon’s military was to deploy in the south alongside UN peacekeepers as the Israeli army withdrew over 60 days.
The withdrawal period for Israeli forces was delayed to February 18 after Jerusalem requested an extension from the original January 26 deadline. Israel said that it needed to stay longer because the Lebanese Army had not deployed to all areas of southern Lebanon, as agreed.
In addition to pulling back its forces north of the Litani River, Hezbollah is also committed to dismantling any remaining military infrastructure in the south.
Israel’s military says its forces have continued to uncover and seize Hezbollah weapons in prohibited areas and that the Lebanese Army is not keeping to its part of the deal.
IDF Fires At Palestinians Who Approached Northern Gaza Border, Three Said Killed
IDF troops opened fire on a group of dozens of Palestinians who approached the border in the northern Gaza Strip, near the community of Nahal Oz, on Sunday (9th) as Israel warned there would be zero tolerance for Palestinians approaching troops who pulled back to a buffer zone along the frontier.
The suspects reached just a few hundred meters from troops, who were stationed in the buffer zone. The IDF said the forces moved forward with military vehicles and fired warning shots.
As a result, several of the suspects were hit, and the group withdrew, the military said.
Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for Gaza’s Hamas-run civil defense agency, said there were “three martyrs and several injured as a result of Israeli occupation forces opening fire in the eastern areas of Gaza City.”
Defense Minister Israel Katz, responding to the incident, said there would be zero tolerance for Gazans approaching the border with Israel.
“Israel’s defense policy with Gaza is clear: Anyone who enters the buffer zone puts their life at risk.” Katz said in a statement.
“There will be zero tolerance for anyone who poses a threat to IDF troops or the border fence and communities. We will not return to the reality of October 7,” he added.
Speaking later at the start of a cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would rebuff any advance on the security perimeter granted Israel in Gaza under the terms of the ceasefire there.
“My directive tonight: Nobody approaches the perimeter, nobody infiltrates the perimeter,” he said, hours after returning from Washington. “That’s part of the agreement and we will enforce it – enforce it forcefully. We expect Hamas to stand by all its commitments, and this is one of them.”
The IDF has warned Palestinians against approaching the Israeli border and a buffer zone inside Gaza where troops are deployed.
In a separate incident on Sunday (9th), a Palestinian woman was reportedly killed east of the Khan Younis suburb of Al Qarara in southern Gaza.
The events on Sunday (9th) came after Israeli forces withdrew from the entire Netzarim Corridor in the central Gaza Strip overnight Saturday (8th), in accordance with the recent ceasefire hostage-deal with the Hamas terror group.
According to the outline of the agreement, on day 21 of the ceasefire, Israel was required to withdraw from the entire corridor and only maintain a presence in a buffer zone of up to around one kilometer along Gaza’s border with Israel.
Israeli forces are still deployed to the Philadelphi Corridor in the Egypt-Gaza border area. Under the deal, on day 50 of the ceasefire, Israel will need to complete its withdrawal from Philadelphi.
The terrorist group has so far released 16 hostages – civilians. Soldiers, and five Thai nationals – during the ceasefire, which began in January, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including many terror convicts.
Hamas freed 105 civilians during a weeklong truce in late November 2023, and four hostages were released before that. Eight hostages were rescued alive by troops and the bodies of 40 hostages have also been recovered.
Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the body of an IDF soldier who was killed in 2014. The body of another IDF soldier also killed in 2014, was recovered from Gaza in January.
Hamas Releases 3 Frail-Looking Israeli Hostages for 183 Palestinian Prisoners Under Gaza Ceasefire – Wafaa Shurafa
Hamas released three gaunt, frail-looking Israeli hostages and Israel freed 183 Palestinian prisoners Saturday (8th) in the latest exchange of a ceasefire agreement that has paused the war in Gaza. The hostages’ condition and scenes of Hamas forcing them to speak in a handover ceremony sparked outrage in Israel.
Eli Sharabi, 52; Ohad Ben Ami, 56; and Or Levy, 34,appeared in poorer condition than the 18 hostages previously set free. Sharabi’s wife and two teenage daughters were killed in the Oct. 7 attack. His brother Yossi was abducted and died in captivity. Levy’s wife was killed in the attack. Ben Ami’s wife was released during a ceasefire in November 2023.
The Palestinian prisoners released include 18 serving life sentences for deadly attacks on Israelis, 54 serving long-term sentences and 111 Palestinians from Gaza detained after the Oct. 7 attack. (AP)
Israel Calls On UN To Condemn Hamas’ “Cruel, Inhumane” Treatment Of Hostages – Keshet Neev
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon wrote an official appeal to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Feb. 8, calling on him to condemn Hamas’ “cruel and inhumane treatment” of hostages following the release of three Israelis on Saturday (8th). “Kidnapped, tortured and starved, they emerge from captivity thin, traumatized, exhausted, and in pain – victims of a brutal and cynical spectacle orchestrated by Hamas.”
“All three were held in isolation… denied humanitarian visits by the Red Cross – a blatant violation of international humanitarian law. For over a year, the international community has been manipulated by a jihadist terrorist group, shielded and protected even within the halls of the UN, spreading false propaganda about so-called ‘starvation’ in Gaza.”
“But the images tell the truth: Hamas terrorists and the Gaza crowd gathered there to humiliate them appeared in very ‘healthy condition,’ while the Israeli hostages alone bear the unmistakable signs of starvation. This is clear evidence of war crimes and blatant violations of international law by Hamas, evoking haunting images from not-so-distant history – moments when the world remained silent.”
“Hamas has committed crimes against humanity. I urge you to unequivocally and publicly condemn the inhumane treatment of these hostages and demand the immediate and unconditional release of all those still held in Gaza. The world has now seen the brutality firsthand. Silence is no longer an option.”
Mike Huckabee: Trump Will Do Something Of Biblical Proportion In The Middle East
Mike Huckabee, the nominee for United States Ambassador to Israel, spoke to Fox News on Sunday (9th) and predicted that Donald Trump would do ‘something of Biblical proportion” in the Middle East.
Huckabee stressed that regardless of what happens in Gaza, Hamas cannot continue to exist.
“As long as Hamas exists, there is a threat of another October 7 which could happen to the Israelis… Hamas has said, even as recent as two weeks ago, that they would try to do another October 7. So let’s not be in any way fooled that they want peace. They don’t. They want the destruction of the Jewish State.”
“And America must help protect the people of Israel, the Jewish state and the Jewish people. As simple as that. And you can’t do it as long as Hamas is in play,” added Huckabee.
Asked about whether he thinks President Trump’s proposal will work, whereby the US will take over Gaza and relocate its residents while it is being rehabilitated, Huckabee replied, “I don’t think we know. The one thing we know is that Hamas is not going to be able to exist. That’s just a done deal.”
“It’s sort of like saying Iran can’t have a nuclear weapon and Hamas cannot continue to exist. They can never have anything to do with the governance of Gaza. A lot of people forget that Gaza was once a place inhabited by both Jews and Palestinians until 2005, when then-prime Minister Ariel Sharon decided to give it all away. He did. They militarily marched 10,000 Jewish people out of Gaza, turned it into a complete Palestinian state, and the result we saw October 7th. So something has to be rethought.”
On Trump’s plan for Gaza, Huckabee said, “President Trump did something bold. He looked into the future and said kind of a “what-if.” We don’t know exactly what would happen in Gaza, but here’s what could have happened in Gaza. Gaza could have been Singapore. Instead, Hamas turned it into Haiti, and in fact, maybe worse, far worse than that. So let’s hope that people will listen to President Trump.
He added, “The only time we had real significant peace in that region was the four years that Donald Trump was president, and I’m very optimistic that with his leadership, his bold and innovative thinking, he doesn’t think like the other politicians and diplomats have thought, and thank God he doesn’t because we get results. I heard somebody say that he is thinking outside the box. That’s ridiculous. He’s not thinking outside the box. He throws the box away and says, “Let’s start with a blank slate and see where this could go.” That’s leadership, and that’s what we have with Donald Trump, and I’m personally optimistic that we’re going to see something bold… I think we will see something of Biblical proportion happen with his leadership in the Middle East.”
US State Department Informs Congress Of $7.4 Billion Arms Sale To Israel
The US State Department on Friday (7th) formally told Congress that it plans to sell more than $7.4 billion in weapons to Israel, including thousands of bombs and missiles, days after President Donald Trump hosted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.
According to the State department, two separate sales were sent to Congress for approval. One is for $6.75 billion in an array of munitions, guidance kits, and other related equipment. It includes 166 small diameter bombs, 2,800 500-pound bombs, and thousands of guidance kits, fuzes, and other bomb components and support equipment. Those deliveries will begin this year.
The other arms package is for 3,000 hellfire missiles and related equipment for an estimated cost of $660 million. Deliveries of the missiles are expected to begin in 2028.
The proposed sale of the bombs “improves Israel’s capability to meet current and future threats, strengthen its homeland defense, and serves as a deterrent to regional threats,” the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement.
And the missile sale would “improve Israel’s capability to meet current and future threats by improving the ability of the Israeli Air Force to defend Israel’s borders, vital infrastructure and population centers,” it said.
The massive arms sale comes as a fragile hostage release and ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas holds, and follows Trump’s surprise announcement alongside Netanyahu earlier this week that he expects the Gaza Strip to be taken over by the United States.
The sale marks the latest step in Trump’s effort to bolster Israel’s weapons stocks. In late January, soon after he took office, he lifted the hold on sending 2,000 pound bombs to Israel. The Biden administration had paused a shipment of the bombs over concerns Israel would use them in densely populated areas of Gaza, particularly in the enclave’s southernmost city of Rafah.
Trump told reporters that he released them to Israel “because they bought them.”
