News Digest — 10/25/24
Israeli Defenses Intercept Hezbollah Missile, Rocket Fire Continues
Israeli air defenses intercepted a surface-to-surface missile launched from Lebanon on Friday (25th), off the coast, south of Haifa. No injuries were reported. Hezbollah targeted the Upper Galilee region with rocket fire in the early morning hours.
The IDF said in a statement that its forces killed a commander of Hezbollah’s Radwan force in the fighting in South Lebanon.
“Abbas Adnan Moslem, the Commander of the Aitaroun area in Hezbollah’s Radwan unit was responsible for carrying out numerous terror attacks against communities against northern Israel and IDF troops,” the military said, adding that over 200 Hezbollah targets were hit in the past day.
Lebanese media reported on Friday (25th) that three journalists working for the Hezbollah-affiliated al-Mayadeen network were killed in an Israeli strike on a building in southern Lebanon overnight.
According to a report on Saudi Arabia’s al-Hadath channel, the IDF conducted over 13 airstrikes on Beirut’s Dahieh quarter, the Hezbollah stronghold in the Lebanese capital.
Four Reservists, One Soldier killed in Combat, Five Soldiers Wounded, IDF Announces
Four IDF reservists fell in combat in northern Israel and southern Lebanon, the military announced on Thursday evening (24th).
The fallen soldiers were Command Sergeant Major (res.) Mordechai Haim Amoyal, Sergeant Major (res.) Shmuel Harari, Master Sergeant (res.) Mordechai Aviad Nayman, and Sergeant First Class (res.) Shuvael Ben-Natal, the military said.
In the same incident, an officer and two reservists in the 222nd battalion of the second “Carmeli” brigade were severely wounded.
Sergeant First Class Gai Ben-Haroosh, from Pardes Hanna-Karkur, a commander in the Oketz Unit, also fell during combat in southern Lebanon, the IDF announced later on Thursday evening (24th).
Additionally, a combat officer in the 75th Battalion of the Seventh Armored Brigade was severely wounded on Thursday (24th) during combat in southern Lebanon. A reservist combat officer in the 6226th Reconnaissance Battalion, 226th Paratroopers Brigade was also severely wounded on Thursday (24th) during combat in southern Lebanon.
The wounded soldiers were evacuated to hospitals, and their families were informed.
National Unity Party leader Benny Gantz eulogized the fallen soldiers. “They are all reservists,” he said in a statement. “All of them are painful reminders of our duty to cherish reservists. Always and certainly now.”
“I wish to send my condolences to the families of Command Sgt.-Maj. Mordechai Haim Amoyal, Sgt.-Maj. Shmuel Harari, Master Sergeant Mordechai Aviad Nayman, and Sergeant First Class Shuvael Ben-Natal in their painful hour.”
“Best wishes for a complete and speedy recovery to the wounded,” Gantz concluded.
IDF Implements New Real-Time Intelligence System In Lebanon – Yoav Zitun
IDF Military Intelligence has observed how hundreds of Hezbollah operatives near the border are operating in small cells, alongside anti-tank, rocket and mortar fire. It is keeping most of its tens of thousands of armed operatives in areas safe from a ground invasion in southern and central Lebanon, conserving its forces and capabilities for a protracted war.
A new IDF operational intelligence tool is being used for the first time in Lebanon – FIU (Field Intelligence Units), which focuses on real-time, hourly intelligence tracking, targeting terror cells and organizations to support the forces on the ground. The FIUs, manned mostly by reservists, are stationed in Israel but maintain an open line with commanders at the front.
They receive round-the-clock information from thousands of IDF sensors, rapidly process this information using advanced technologies and intelligence analysts, and quickly generate alerts for the troops on the ground. The FIUs have led to the daily elimination of dozens of Hezbollah operatives, mainly through airstrikes.
“We can now identify an ambush against an IDF force in southern Lebanon, which includes an anti-tank cell preparing to fire from 6 km. Away, followed by a barrage of rockets being set up 12 km. away and possibly even an explosive they’ll try to detonate remotely,” military sources explained.
(ynetnew.com)
‘Possibility To Achieve A Decisive Outcome In The North’ IDF Chief Says
IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi held a situation assessment at the Jabaliya area in the Gaza Strip, stating that “in the north, there’s a possibility of achieving a decisive outcome. We have thoroughly dismantled Hezbollah’s senior command structure.”
Halevi added “The elimination of Sinwar was not planned, either by the troops from the 450th Brigade or the tank commander course; they didn’t know who they were targeting. While it wasn’t planned, it was not random either.”
“This methodical approach results from the pressure on Rafah and the dismantling of the Rafah Brigade,” he continued. “It reflects the regional command’s insistence on deploying more troops during this holiday month, pushing forward, maintaining operational control, and confronting the problem directly. It’s a systematic effort, not a coincidence. Determination and persistence are the key.”
They (Hamas) are determined too, but we are much more so. We are better, more justified, and stronger. Another achievement is that Jabaliya is falling, marking a significant psychological blow—both physically and mentally. If we eliminate the Northern Gaza Brigade commander, it will be another significant collapse. I cannot predict what we will encounter tomorrow, but this pressure brings us closer to further achievements.”
Meanwhile, U.S. and Israel negotiators will gather in Doha in the coming days to try to restart talks toward a hostage deal and the release of hostages in Gaza, officials said on Thursday (24th).
Mossad head David Barnea will travel to Doha on Sunday (27th), said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Office, adding that CIA director William Burns would also be present for the talks.
IDF Reveals Close Ties Between Hamas And Al-Jazeera
After the IDF released the names of six journalists from Al-Jazeera who were also operatives for Hamas and Islamic Jihad, Lt. Col. Avichai Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson, revealed documents related to the issue.
Among the revelations, Lt. Col. Adraee disclosed documents indicating that Al-Jazeera was forbidden from criticizing Hamas, including hiding instances of failed rocket launches and establishing a secure communication line between Hamas and the Qatari channel.
Adraee added: “In a 2022 document, Hamas outlined how it provided Al-Jazeera with clear instructions for covering a failed rocket launch by Islamic Jihad in Jabaliya, which resulted in the deaths of several civilians. The directives included not using the word ‘massacre’ to describe the event, minimizing the display of images from the scene, and preventing panel members from criticizing Hamas.”
Another document from the same year reveals the guidance Hamas gave to journalist Tamer Almisshall while covering Islamic Jihad activities during Operation “Breaking Dawn” on his program “Much Remains Hidden.” He was instructed to support the ‘resistance’ in Gaza and to avoid criticizing the rocket capabilities of the terror organization despite the high number of failed launches.
A 2023 document shows that Hamas decided to establish the “Al-Jazeera Phone” – a secure line that would allow the organization to communicate with the channel in a classified manner and during emergencies.
The documents demonstrate how Hamas manipulates the channel’s media coverage to serve its own interests, preventing the public in Gaza and worldwide from discovering the truth about its crimes against the people of Gaza.
Qatar’s Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, responded to the revelation that six journalists from the Qatari channel “Al-Jazeera” are operatives for Hamas and Islamic Jihad. He stated that Qatar is proud of the channel and its coverage of global conflicts: “Al-Jazeera operates according to the highest international standards. There is no justification for attacking journalists, and the excuses for it are unacceptable.”
U.S. Senator Rubio Calls Intel Leak Of Israeli Strike Plans An ‘Act Of Treason’
Speaking alongside Sens. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Rick Scott (R.-Fla.) on Martha MacCallum’s Fox News program on Monday (21st), Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said of leaked U.S. intelligence documents about an impending Israeli attack on Iran that it is “both a federal crime to leak that information, and it is also an act of treason.”
“It’s aiding an enemy of the United States–a government in Iran that basically says ‘Death to America,’ and ‘Death to Israel’ every week,” Rubio said.
“We need to know who did this, and they need to be punished,” Rubio said.
Cotton told MacCallum that “without confirming or denying the information that was in this leak, we shouldn’t be surprised that we’ve seen from this administration more than a year’s worth of leaks hostile to Israel.”
“From the very top to the very bottom, they’re packed with people who are hostile to Israel and sympathetic to Iran and its terror networks,” he said.
Scott said of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that “We have to respect what he’s done, and we’ve got to do everything we can to help him.
“I agree with my colleagues,” Scott added. “Whoever did this leak has to be held accountable.”
Up To 1,000 Missiles: Iranian Officials Disclose Potential Retaliation Plans – NYT
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reportedly told Iran’s military to prepare response scenarios for a potential Israeli attack, according to a New York Times report.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has asked the Iranian military to prepare response scenarios to a future Israeli attack, according to Thursday’s (24th) NYTs report, citing four Iranian officials.
Iran’s response to an Israeli strike would be contingent on the extent of Israel’s attack, the officials, two of whom were from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed.
According to them, the Islamic Republic may choose not to respond if Israel reduces the scope of its strike to solely military warehouses and bases.
However, if the strike were to cause major casualties and destruction, or were Israel to attack nuclear, oil, or energy infrastructure or carry out targeted eliminations, Iran would hit back, the officials noted.
In such a case, Iran’s response scenario would include a potential barrage of up to 1,000 ballistic missiles, further attacks by Iranian proxies, and interference in energy supplies and shipping in the Persian Gulf.
Israel has vowed to respond to Iran’s October 1 attack, which saw the Islamic Republic fire some 180 ballistic missiles at Israel in what the IRGC said was a response to the killing of Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Prior to October 1, Iran last attacked Israel on April 14, launching some 300 aerial threats at the Jewish state.
