News Roundup on Day 391 of the War

Heartbreaking Toll in Ongoing War as Truce Talks Stall, Knesset Reconvenes

Israel’s forces are engaged in heavy fighting and Israel is paying a high price, while the IDF endeavors to achieve its war aims. We note with sadness, the deaths of seven civilians just today, killed by Hezbollah missiles fired from Lebanon. Yesterday, we learned of the deaths of four soldiers in Gaza, where Hamas is still capable of lethal violence even after the collapse of their organization and the death of their senior leaders.

Four who fell on October 29 in Gaza: Top (L-R) Cpt. Yehonatan Joni Keren, Staff Sgt. Nisim Meytal; bottom (L-R): Staff Sgt. Aviv Gilboa, Staff Sgt. Naor Haimov. —————————-Image source: Times of Israel

Hamas is still sufficiently organized to reject, twice in two days, new ceasefire proposals advanced by the mediators, proposals that Israel seemed inclined to accept. The Hamas position remains unchanged from March: Israel can get some of the hostages back when it abandons all of its gains in Gaza and leaves Hamas free to reimpose its malevolent regime on the people there.

Today’s Times of Israel Daily Briefing described a leaked peace plan for Lebanon, full of high aspirations and fervent promises. Unfortunately, this peace plan, like the one Israel accepted in 2006, depends on the cooperation of Hezbollah.

Under the terms of the plan, the Lebanese army is to deploy in the south, replacing the Israelis, and Hezbollah is to withdraw from the area. UNIFIL, which utterly failed to prevent or even report on eighteen years of Hezbollah military preparations is to have a role in ensuring the implementation of the agreement.

In a new provision, Israel gains the right to report any violations it is aware of to an international panel which is to include the United States and other ostensibly friendly states, as well as Arab governments, and has the right to go back into Lebanon to enforce the terms of the agreement if international bodies fails to do so. Israel also retains a right to do surveillance over Lebanon.

American diplomats shuttled through the region trying to get support for some sort of agreement. Throwing more doubt on the feasibility of the plan, Hezbollah’s newly minted leader reasserted Hezbollah’s role as “defender of Lebanon” and “resistance movement” against the occupation of Palestine by the Zionists.

War News

On the ground, Israel has conquered a narrow buffer zone along the Lebanese border and uncovered the vast underground facilities Hezbollah built under the noses of UNIFIL. This was intended to be used to conceal troops who would have invaded the Galilee, much as Hamas did in the South.

Israel’s air campaign in Lebanon also continues to rapidly destroy Hezbollah facilities throughout the country. Yesterday and today, bombing in the city of Baalbek destroyed the facilities Hezbollah used to store oil supplied by Iran. Israeli leadership reported that they have destroyed 70% of Hezbollah’s missiles and drones.

This did not prevent Hezbollah from sending drones across the border day after day. Yesterday, much of the north was locked down as drones roamed the skies for several hours. Today a Hezbollah missile killed five people near Metullah and another one killed two more south of Haifa.

Heavy fighting continued in Norther Gaza, as Israel dismantles the Hamas command structure in the “refugee camp” of Jabalia. Israel has killed and captured dozens of Hamas fighters in the area. This article IDF says it hit terrorists hiding in Gaza hospital, claims Hamas crumbling in Jabalia describes the fighting. In an IDF interrogation video linked from the article, a former UNRWA employee reported how Hamas looted UNRWA supplies during the war.

Iran has also been rattling sabres, promising to strike Israel before next Tuesday’s American election. Israel warned that any further Iranian attack would result in severe consequences for Iran. These warnings seem credible, since last week’s Israeli air strikes on widespread targets in Iran, demonstrated that Israel can strike anywhere in the country.

Knesset Passes Bill Banning UNRWA from Operating in Israel

Israel’s Knesset reconvened this week after a long recess. Differences within the governing coalition over the need to draft ultra-orthodox youth continued to prevent the government from keeping a commitment it made to the ultraorthodox parties when they entered the government two years ago.

The Knesset did pass a bill restricting the activities of UNRWA, with support from both government and opposition members. The steady flow of news through the year about UNRWA involvement in terrorism, to say nothing of UNRWA’s seventy years exacerbating the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, makes this a very popular bill in Israel. Sadly, the Canadian foreign minister Melanie Joly did not seem to agree.

With much of the world’s attention on the election in the United States, it is important to remember that Israelis are still fighting for their lives on many different fronts. We continue to talk frequently with our family and friends in Israel. They are carrying on as best they can with their lives, while the war rages on and others are away serving in battle. The calamity of war is a very real factor in their lives. We keep them in our thoughts, praying for their safety and for victory against our enemies.

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