News Digest — 2/7/25
IAF Conducts Precise Strike On Two Hezbollah Sites In Lebanese Territory
The IAF early Friday morning (7th), with the direction of the Intelligence Directorate, conducted a precise strike in Lebanese territory on two military sites that contained Hezbollah weapons, which were in violation of the ceasefire agreement, said the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit.
It added, “The IDF continues to operate to remove any threat to the State of Israel and will prevent any attempt by the Hezbollah terrorist organization to rebuild its forces, in accordance with the ceasefire understandings.”
The IDF confirmation followed reports in Lebanese media that the IDF conducted strikes in areas in the south and east of the country, including Baalbek.
An Israeli official confirmed that Israel struck targets deep inside Lebanon in response to attempts to transfer weapons from Syria and to establish new outposts for Hezbollah.
Last week, the IAF, with the direction of IDF intelligence, struck multiple Hezbollah terrorist targets in the Beqaa Valley in Lebanon that posed a threat to the Israeli Home Front and IDF troops.
According to the IDF, the targets that were struck include a Hezbollah terrorist site containing underground infrastructure, used to develop and manufacture weaponry and additional terrorist infrastructure sites on the Syrian-Lebanese border used by Hezbollah to smuggle weapons into Lebanon.
Under the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon, the IDF was supposed to transfer control of the territories it had captured to Lebanon on January 26. However, due to the fact that Lebanon did not have enough forces, thus breaching the agreement, the White House announced that the ceasefire would be extended until January 18.
Syrian Army Advances Into Lebanese Territory, Clashes With Hezbollah
For the first time since the fall of the Assad regime and the deadline of Hezbollah’s influence in Syria, Syrian Army Forces aligned with the new Syrian administration have entered areas of Hermel, Lebanon sparking fierce clashes with Hezbollah fighters.
The fighting which began early Thursday (6th), escalated as Syrian forces repelled Hezbollah’s attempted advances near the Syrian town of Al Qusayr, a longtime stronghold of the Iran-backed group.
A field source told The Media Line that Hezbollah fighters launched multiple attempts to push into Al Qusayr but were met with heavy resistance from the Syrian Army, which forced them back into Lebanon. As the situation escalated, Syrian forces crossed into Hawik, a Lebanese town in the Hermel region, where intense combat forced Hezbollah elements to retreat.
Lebanese political activist Omar Salloum, speaking to The Media Line, described Hawik as a border town frequently used for Hezbollah-run smuggling operations. The fighting, he said, lasted throughout the day, involving exchanges of gunfire with light and medium weapons. Mortar shells were also deployed by the Syrian Army to prevent further Hezbollah incursions near Al Qusayr, a strategic hub for smuggling weapons and drugs.
Amid the escalating violence, The Media Line obtained footage from Damascus showing Syrian Army personnel captured by Hezbollah in Lebanon. Reports suggest that these prisoners were being treated in violation of International detention standards. Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports indicate that the Syrian Army had also captured Hezbollah fighters.
Since the December 8, 2024 collapse of Bashar Assad’s regime, the new Syrian administration has worked to secure its porous border with Lebanon, aiming to curb arms and drug smuggling. Several large-scale smuggling operations have been intercepted in recent weeks, reflecting Syria’s renewed effort to assert control over its territory.
Historically, Hezbollah has relied on these smuggling routes to transport weapons, narcotics, and other supplies vital to its operations. However, as Hezbollah remains engaged in a prolonged conflict with Israel, its ability to operate freely along the border has been severely weakened. Despite these setbacks, Thursday’s (6th) clashes suggest Hezbollah is attempting to reassert its presence in border regions it once controlled.
While the extent of the conflict remains unclear, the confrontation between the Syrian Army and Hezbollah on Lebanese soil marks a major shift in regional dynamics. The new Syrian government’s willingness to engage Hezbollah militarily signals a break from past alliances, adding another layer of instability to the region.
Defense Minister: ‘Countries That Criticized Israel Must Accept Gazan Immigrants’
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Thursday evening (6th) that the IDF will prepare a detailed plan that will enable the implementation of President Trump’s vision for the immigration of Gazans.
“I have instructed the IDF to prepare a plan to assist them in leaving Gaza, which will help any resident of Gaza who is interested in leaving for anywhere in the world that agrees to accept him/her. I welcome US President Donald Trump’s bold plan that will include exit options at land crossings and special arrangements for travel by sea and air,” Katz said at the end of a security assessment on the issue.
He noted that “countries such as Spain, Ireland, Norway, and others, which have made false accusations against Israel because of its activities in Gaza, should be obligated by law to enable all Gazans to immigrate to their country. Their hypocrisy will be exposed if they refuse to do so.”
“Hamas used the residents of Gaza as human shields and built terror infrastructures in the heart of civilian populations. Hamas is now holding these people hostage, extorting money from them, while abusing humanitarian aid and preventing them from leaving Gaza. The residents of Gaza must be allowed to enjoy the freedom to exit and emigrate, as is customary everywhere in the world,” the Defense Minister said.
How Hamas Plans To Foil Trump’s Gaza Plan – Khaled Abu Toameh, Gatestone Institute
The Iran-backed Palestinian terrorist group Hamas has responded to US President Donald Trump’s plan to relocate the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip by threatening to resort to violence against Americans.
In a statement, Hamas said that the Palestinians will “confront the plan with resistance and necessary force.”
This threat is directed not only against the US, but also against Palestinians of the Gaza Strip, many of whom would be happy to move to another place where they could live in security and peace.
Hamas is basically saying that if the Trump administration dares to implement the relocation and reconstruction plan, the terrorist organization will unleash a wave of terrorism against Americans and Palestinians.
The Trump administration should not underestimate such threats by Hamas, which started the war in the Gaza Strip 15 months ago when its members, together with thousands of “ordinary” Palestinians attacked Israel, murdered more than 1,200 people and wounded thousands of others.
Another 250 Israelis, including children, women and the elderly, were kidnapped to the Gaza Strip, where 79 are still held in captivity.
Hamas already bears full responsibility for the death of thousands of Palestinians and the destruction of the Gaza Strip. Palestinian human rights activist Bassem Eid pointed out that many Palestinians living under Hamas wanted to leave the Gaza Strip long before the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, 2023.
“When I asked my Palestinian brothers and sisters in Gaza what their priorities were before the war, their answers were clear: a job to support their families, access to quality education, and reliable healthcare. Now, many are left jobless, homeless, and desperate for a future that seems impossible. With Gaza in ruins and Hamas holding its grip on the people, the situation is dire,”
Hamas does not want Palestinians to leave the Gaza Strip: it wants to continue using them as human shields in its jihad (holy war) against Israel.
Hamas leaders have proven over the years that they do not really care about the two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Most of the group’s political leaders left the Gaza Strip together with their families several years ago.
They have since been living comfortably in Qatar, Turkey, Lebanon, and other countries, The New York Post reported on November 7, 2023.
“The terror group’s three top leaders alone are worth a staggering total of $11 billion and enjoy a life of luxury in the sanctuary of the emirate of Qatar.”
Hamas wants the US and other countries to invest billions of dollars in rebuilding the Gaza Strip. The group however, is not prepared to cede control of the coastal enclave. It plans to maintain its rule over the Gaza Strip so that it can pursue its jihad against Israel.
As senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad vowed shortly after the October 7 massacre:
“We must teach Israel a lesson, and we will do this again and again. The Al-Aqsa flood (the name Hamas gave to the attack on Israel) is just the first time, and there will be a second, a third, and a fourth, because we have the determination, the resolve, and the capabilities to fight.”
Should the Trump administration proceed with its Gaza plan, the same Hamas that attacked Israel on October 7, is also capable of targeting US interests and personnel in the Middle East and beyond.
Hamas is likely to be joined by Iran’s other proxies, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah and the Houthis in Yemen.
For the Trump plan to succeed, the US must insist on the removal of Hamas from power and the disarming of all the terror groups in the Gaza Strip.
It will take several years to rebuild the Gaza Strip and make it habitable once again. The Trump administration will be gone by then. The biggest fear is that a future US administration will fail to block the return of terrorists to the rebuilt Gaza Strip.
If that happens, it will be a matter of time before the Gaza Strip once again becomes a large base for jihadists not only from Hamas, but other Islamist terror groups for whom Israel and the US are the Number 1 target.
Most Palestinian Families Come From Immigrants Over The Past Two Centuries – Dr. Harold Rhode
Prior to 1948, practically the only people who referred to themselves as Palestinians were the Jews. Modern Palestinian identity was largely invented in 1964 when the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was created.
Throughout history, family and tribal ties in the Middle East have often been defined by economic and trade networks rather than geographical borders. The concept of borders, as we understand them in the West, was irrelevant. Identity in the region has historically been fluid, shaped by social and economic relationships rather than by modern political boundaries. And they still are.
In the 19th century, much of what is now the West Bank and Gaza was sparsely populated and underdeveloped. The Ottoman Empire sought to repopulate and develop the region by bringing in Muslim migrants from Albania, Bosnia and the Caucasus. In the 1840s, Egyptian forces occupied the region, prompting many Egyptians to settle there.
Construction of the Haifa branch of the Ottoman railway linking southern Turkey to Mecca attracted laborers from Jordan and Syria, many of whom remained in the area. During the British Mandate period, as Jewish immigration increased, Arab workers from across the Jordan River streamed westward, drawn by employment opportunities and improved healthcare provided by the Jews. They did not perceive themselves as Palestinians.
The historical connections between the people of Gaza, the West Bank and British Mandate Palestine are shaped by centuries of migration. They are not one people, but a hodge-podge of peoples with no prior connection to pre-1948 Palestine, who settled there during the past two centuries.
In this context, Trump’s plan to resettle the people of Gaza in other parts of the Muslim world fits in perfectly with the normal patterns of migration in the region.
The writer, a fellow of the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, served as an adviser on the Islamic world for the US Department of Defense for 28 years, (JNS)
(jns.org)
Trump’s Plan To Make Gaza Great Again – Jake Wallis Simons
This morning I awoke to a WhatsApp message from my long-time friend in Gaza, whom I met during my time as a foreign correspondent: “Habibi, make Gaza great again 🙂 Gaza is uninhabitable, so this is a great idea,” referring to President Trump’s plan. When we spoke by phone, he told me from Gaza City, “We survived the war but we will die from the rubble. This is the best solution for the people. Would you want to wait two-five years just for the rubbish to be removed so your house can be rebuilt?”
“Everyone I know, the people around me, feel the same as me. At least half-a-million will accept to leave, be happy to leave. We suffered for one-year-and-a-half. Also another ten years? Hamas has no support anymore. Not like before. They destroyed us for nothing.”
Trump spoke of creating a “Riviera of the Middle East” and the tragedy is that the Palestinians could have done that for themselves. Gaza lies just 40 miles from Tel Aviv, the most liberal, innovative and wealthiest city in the region. If its citizens had not elected Hamas in 2006, and had chosen instead a path to peace, Gaza would be thriving today, with its extensive beaches and easy access to Israeli technology and support. But they selected the path of jihad and this is where it has left them.
At long last, the Middle East has been presented with a bold plan and a bold vision that speaks to the needs of ordinary people rather than the corrupt ideologues who so shamefully lead them and their cheerleaders in the democracies.
The writer is editor of the Jewish Chronicle – UK (Telegraph-UK)
Israel Prepares For Possible Tsunami Following Earthquakes In Greece
Israel’s National Security Council has warned of the risk of a tsunami following a series of earthquakes in Greece.
The National Security Council met on Wednesday (5th) with emergency agencies and government ministries to discuss preparations for a possible tsunami scenario.
Concerns were raised due to the high risk of tsunamis following the increased seismic activity recently observed in Greece.
Thousands of small earthquakes in the Santorini Islands in recent days have raised concerns about the potential for a larger earthquake in the region, which could lead to a tsunami in the Mediterranean.
Ariel Heimann, a senior geologist at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) described the concern over the seismic activity in Santorini and said, “Approximately 2,000 earthquakes have occurred in Santorini over the past week, with the strongest measuring between 4 and 5.3 in magnitude, including 24 in the last 24 hours.”
He added, “Such a cluster of earthquakes could precede a major earthquake that may occur soon. However, there is also a considerable possibility that after a period of such seismic activity, the phenomenon will subside, and calm will return.”
Santorini is 1,200 km (746 miles) from Israel, but since the earthquakes that generate tsunamis occur in the sea, powerful waves could reach Israel.
“A tsunami wave takes time to travel across the Mediterranean. Even if an earthquake triggers one, there could be enough time to issue a warning before it reaches the shore. Therefore we should remain vigilant but not panic. This serves as a reminder that a major earthquake in Israel is not a matter of if, but when – making it essential to prepare for this threat,” he said.
Israel is included in a tsunami warning system that issues alerts as soon as severe storms are detected in areas along Israel’s coast – sensors are installed to protect the public.
Tsunamis can last for hours with waves continuing to add strength as they hit the shore. Flooding can last for hours or even days. When a tsunami is detected, residents are alerted and warned to evacuate, with routes mapped out and made available to the public.
Officials often recommend that residents evacuate on foot, rather than in cars to leave the roads clear for emergency vehicles.
