The IDF (Israel Defense Forces)

Israeli Military Hits Back At Hezbollah Bases In Lebanon

The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) reported that its air force jets attacked bases of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in Lebanon Friday afternoon in the area of Wadi Hamool. The targets that were attacked included positions for the launching of rockets at Israel, what was described by the IDF as a military compound and other terrorist infrastructures.

In addition, IDF forces attacked a Hezbollah anti-tank squad in the Itatron region and a launcher from which rocket fire was carried out towards the Baram region in Israel earlier Friday.

Also, Friday evening there were a number of launches of rockets from Lebanese territory towards Israel, three of which crossed into Israeli territory. The IDF attacked the sources of the fire with artillery. (ANI/TPS)

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Netanyahu Briefs Modi On Recent Developments In Israel-Hamas Conflict

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday had a telephonic conversation with Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu. Israeli PM briefed PM Modi on the recent developments in the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.

The two leaders shared concerns regarding the safety of maritime traffic. PM Modi reiterated the need for continued humanitarian aid for the impacted people. He stressed for an early and peaceful resolution of the conflict, including the release of all hostages, through dialogue and diplomacy.

In the press release, Prime Minister’s Office said, “Prime Minister reiterated the need for continued humanitarian aid for the affected population and emphasized an early and peaceful resolution of the conflict, including the release of all hostages, through dialogue and diplomacy. The two leaders agreed to remain in touch.”

In a post shared on X, PM Modi stated, “Had a productive exchange of views with PM @netanyahu on the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, including shared concerns on the safety of maritime traffic. Highlighted India’s consistent stand in favour of early restoration of peace & stability in the region with continued humanitarian assistance for the affected.”

PM Modi and Netanyahu also discussed the importance of securing freedom of navigation in the Bab-el-Mandeb, according to statement released by Israel The two leaders discussed the global interest in preventing attacks on the global economy, trade as welll as the Indian and Israeli economies.

In a post on X, Israel Prime Minister’s Office stated, “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke today with Indian Prime Minister @NarendraModi. The two leaders discussed the importance of securing freedom of navigation in the Bab-el-Mandeb, which is threatened by the aggression of the Houthis, instigated by Iran.”

It further stated, “They also discussed the global interest in preventing attacks on the global economy and trade, as well as the Indian and Israeli economies. Indian Prime Minister Modi noted that freedom of navigation is an essential global necessity that must be ensured.”

According to statement released by Israel Prime Minister’s Office on X, PM Modi and Netanyahu discussed advancing the arrival of foreign workers from India to Israel.

In a post on X, Israel Prime Minister’s Office stated, “The two leaders also discussed advancing the arrival of foreign workers from India to the State of Israel. Prime Minister Netanyahu thanked Indian Prime Minister Modi for India’s support of Israel’s just war to eliminate the Hamas terrorist organization.”

Notably, the war between Israel and Hamas started after the terror group invaded southern Israel, killing more than 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and taking over 200 hostages. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas.

Meanwhile, the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said that at least 19,667 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza since Hamas launched an attack on Israel on October 7, The Times of Israel reported.

The health ministry said 52,586 people in Gaza have been injured in more than two months of fighting, according to The Times of Israel report. The figures cannot be verified as Hamas does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. (ANI)

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Hamas Israel

Israeli Forces Seize Key Hamas Harbor Base

Israeli forces seized control over a Hamas harbor base in central Gaza, the Israeli Defense Forces announced on Thursday.

In the combined raid of the navy, armour and engineering forces, along with air force support, about ten tunnel shafts were destroyed, and four buildings of associated terrorist infrastructure were destroyed, the IDF said.

Hamas used the facility to train its naval forces and to direct and carry out naval attacks, the IDF said. Under the cover of a civilian naval anchorage, Hamas took advantage of the place for the purpose of training and carrying out attacks, using civilian vessels and Gaza’s naval police boats.

Israeli forces eliminated ten terrorists and cleared all the buildings in the area of the anchorage.

In addition, a monument glorifying the events of the Mavi Marmara raid of 2010 was toppled. Some of the fighters of the Israeli Navy’s 13th flotilla who were involved in capturing the harbor also fought aboard the Mavi Marmara.

In 2010, the Israeli Navy intercepted a six-ship flotilla trying to symbolically break the Gaza blockade. Violent clashes broke out aboard the Mavi Marmara, the flotilla’s largest ship. Ten Turkish Islamists, many of whom were armed, were killed. Turkey severed its ties with Israel over the affair.

On a number of occasions since Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007, the Israeli Navy disrupted attempts to smuggle Iranian weapons by sea to the Strip. (ANI/TPS)

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Israeli Min Thank India

Israeli Min Thank India For Standing With Them

Israel’s Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli has thanked the Indian leadership, and the people of India for standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel in its fight against Hamas.

“I want to thank the leadership of India, the people of India for being with us shoulder-to-shoulder in this fight against brutal jihadist barbaric Islamist. This is not just our war, this is your war too and we will win it together with your support,” he said.

He further said: “I want to tell the people of India – we share the same values, we cherish life, we cherish good…We believe in human values.”

He said that there are more than 120 confirmed hostages. “We will make every effort to bring them back home. It won’t be simple. As you know, Hamas has absolutely zero mercy, zero human values…So, we have no expectations from Hamas. Still, we believe we might, with intelligence, with efforts, maybe we can rescue some of them,” he said.

“My recommendation for Hamas militants – lay down your weapon, raise up your hands, come from your tunnel and maybe there will be mercy,” he added.

One of the towns that bore the brunt of the Hamas’ attack is Sderot in the South of Israel. Sderot Mayor Alon Davidi says Hamas must be destroyed.

“I have six children. All of them live in this situation. More than 50,000 people live in this situation. All of this time, I have asked the government to destroy Hamas” said the Sderot Mayor while speaking to ANI.

“We now see that the Hamas is the new ISIS of the world. Now, it’s not just Israel’s but everybody’s role to destroy the Hamas. It is like the Hezbollah, the ISIS,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Coordinator for the Captives and Missing Brigadier-General (Ret.) Gal Hirsch in his Second Meeting with Deputy US Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Steven Gillen, said: “I thank you for standing alongside Israel and greatly appreciate the assistance.”

US State Secretary Antony Blinken has said the US stands with Israel as it defends itself. “The United States is also actively working to ensure the people of Gaza can get out of harm’s way and the assistance they need — food, water, medicine — can get in. Hamas does not care if Palestinians suffer,” he said.

Blinken arrived in Israel on Monday, the second time within a few days, to pledge support for the country as it prepares a major military offensive in Gaza, the Washington Post reported.

Blinken who was in Israel on Thursday returned to the country after a tour in which he met with Egyptian President Abdel Fatah El-Sisi, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and King Abdullah II of Jordan.

The visit comes amid reports in Israeli media that during a phone call on Saturday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu invited Biden to Israel, the US daily reported.

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) meanwhile continues to attack the Gaza Strip.

In the last few hours, dozens of operational headquarters and mortar bomb launching positions were destroyed. In addition, the military headquarters of Ali Kachi, one of the commanders in the Najaba force of the terrorist organization Hamas, who was eliminated a few days ago, was destroyed.

Earlier, Israel President Isaac Herzog revealed a disturbing Hamas booklet found on the body of a Palestinian terrorist killed in one of the Gaza-area communities on Sunday.

“This booklet is an operating manual, how to enter citizens’ yards, kibbutz, city, moshav, how to break in there. And first – and what do you do when you find the citizens? You torture them. This is the booklet that says exactly how to torture them, how to kidnap them,” Herzog told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.

In a copy of the guide provided for the press, the manual — titled “The Warrior’s Guide: Jihadi Version” — outlines tactics, which include creating chaos, intimidating captives, and using tactics such as electric shocks and even live executions.

The eight-page guide instructs the kidnappers to utilize captives as human shields if attacked, regardless of their religion, race, or gender. The hostages should be “killed when necessary,” especially if there is any sign of revolt among them, it said, while instructed terrorists to document their actions live.

Many of the terrorists wore GoPro cameras and their footage was uploaded to social media. (ANI)

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Israeli Hostages

Images Of Israeli Hostages Projected At UN HQ In New York

Massive images of Israeli hostages, including of babies, elderly men and women were projected at the side of the United Nations headquarters in New York, demanding the release of the hostages in Gaza.

The images of the hostages projected at the UN headquarters, by a group of Israelis living in the US, included 4-year-old Ariel, 85-year-old Yaffa among others. A message projected at the UN headquarters reads, “Abducting Israelis civilians is a crime against humanity,” “Hamas is ISIS,” “Bring them home now.”

The Command Centre in the US for the families of the hostages called for the release of all hostages, whose captivity they noted is against international law.

It demanded for immediate facilitation of humanitarian corridor to provide medicine and essential provisions. In addition, the Command Centre called for the intervention of world leaders, particularly Arab World.

Command Centre activists in New York said, “The world must know. The world needs to wake up. We will not rest until our brothers and sisters, who were violently and murderously kidnapped, will come home to their families.”

Earlier on Thursday, locals held a demonstration in Tel Aviv and urged the Israeli government to exchange hostages/prisoners with terrorist group Hamas. The demonstrators have called on the Israeli government to talk to Hamas and ensure that the women and children who are held captive are released. They used placards and raised slogans to raise the demands.

“The government of Israel should talk to Hamas to ensure that the women, children and civilians who have been taken hostage should be released,” a local protesting in Tel Aviv amid Hamas attack on Israel told ANI.

Another protesting local said that the government should pull out all stops to make sure the kidnapped hostages are released.

On Monday, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations said that Hamas terrorists were holding as many as 150 people hostage in regions across Gaza after their raids on southern Israel on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Israeli Defence Forces spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus, on Friday said that the death toll from the Hamas terror attacks on Israel has jumped to 1,300 and more than 3000 have been injured.

He also touched on the ongoing efforts to collect the bodies and bring them to Tel Aviv for identification before handing them over to their loved ones. Calling it a “tedious and detailed process”, he noted that Israel has never in history faced such a situation.

“Unfortunately the number of Israeli casualties has risen to 1,300 Israeli civilians and soldiers and more than 3000 wounded. There is a massive national effort involving almost all of the security organisations and many of the ministries of the Israeli state, which is focused on taking the bodies from the same communities that we spoke about yesterday, like for instance … and other communities and the entire southern area, collecting the bodies, bringing them to a centre in Tel Aviv, identifying them and then making sure they are next to their kin. Their loved ones are able to take them and to provide them with a final and respectable burial that’s ongoing,” Lt. Col. Conricus said.

“It is a tedious and long and detailed process, taking lots of resources. We have never, ever in our history been forced to deal with such a situation and it is ongoing. It will take days and as we match and identify more and more of the Israeli bodies that are uncovered in the communities, we will have more information about missing persons,” he added. (ANI)

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Israeli Worshippers near Al-Aqsa Mosque

Israeli Forces Break Up Worshippers Near Al-Aqsa Mosque

Amid a fresh upward spiral of violence after Israeli forces struck Gaza and Lebanon on Thursday night, the tensions in the region continue to escalate. In the latest incident, Israel’s military broke up a group of Palestinian worshippers near Al Aqsa Mosque today, Al Jazeera reported.

The worshippers apparently wanted to visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem, to perform morning prayers on the third Friday of Ramadan.
However, the military intervention led to panic among people, who left the area as the incident occurred right after Israel’s military launched air attacks on southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip following a spate of reported rocket attacks on the country, reported Al Jazeera.

Israeli forces stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem on separate days this week, using stun grenades and attacking Palestinians as they gathered for Ramadan prayers. This sparked an uptick in tensions.

Israel struck two targets in the Gaza Strip on Thursday night after a day of series of rockets fired from the Palestinian territory and Lebanon, according to The Times of Israel.

According to Israel Defence Force, it struck two tunnels — one located in the northern Gaza city of Beit Hanoun and the second near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.

The strikes were carried out in the response to “Hamas’ security violations” in recent days, IDF said referring to the rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip and a major rocket barrage from Lebanon on Thursday.

“The two tunnels did not cross into Israeli territory and did not pose a threat to Israeli civilians,” the military said.

Additionally, two sites allegedly used by Hamas to manufacture weapons were targeted in the strikes.

Following a day of rocket fire from the Palestinian territories and Lebanon in retaliation for Israel’s back-to-back military incursions into the Al Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam, the Israeli military has attacked besieged Gaza and southern Lebanon.

The tiny coastal region of Gaza is governed by Hamas, which claimed early on Friday that the blockaded territory had been subject to three airstrikes. (ANI)

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Israelis Protest Against Bibi Judicial

Israelis Hold Massive Protest Against Bibi Judicial Overhaul

Half a million Israelis took to the streets in the tenth consecutive week of protests against plans by the government of Benjamin Netanyahu to overhaul the country’s judicial system, organizers claimed, as reported by CNN.

Israel has a population of just over 9 million, so if organizers’ estimates are correct, about 5 percent of Israelis came out to voice their opposition to the proposed reforms.

Nearly half of the protesters, about 240,000, gathered in Tel Aviv, the organizers said. In Jerusalem, several hundred demonstrators gathered in front of President Isaac Herzog’s house. They carried Israeli flags and chanted slogans including “Israel will not be a dictatorship.”

On Thursday, Herzog, whose role is largely ceremonial, urged the Netanyahu government to take the judicial overhaul legislation off the table, the CNN reported.

CNN reported that the protesters and critics of Netanyahu’s plan say it would weaken the country’s courts and erode the judiciary’s ability to check the power of the country’s other branches of government.

The package of legislation would give Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, the power to overrule Supreme Court decisions with a simple majority. It would also give the government the power to nominate judges, which currently rests with a committee composed of judges, legal experts and politicians.

It would remove power and independence from government ministries’ legal advisers, and take away the power of the courts to invalidate “unreasonable” government appointments, as the High Court did in January, forcing Netanyahu to fire Interior and Health Minister Aryeh Deri.

Critics accuse Netanyahu of pushing the legislation in order to get out of corruption trials he is currently facing. Netanyahu denies that, saying the trials are collapsing on their own, and that the changes are necessary after judicial overreach by unelected judges.

Israel does not have a written constitution, but a set of what are called Basic Laws.

“We are done being polite,” said Shikma Bressler, an Israeli protest leader. “If the laws being suggested will pass, Israel will no longer be a democracy.”

About two out of three (66%) Israelis believe the Supreme Court should have the power to strike down laws incompatible with Israel’s Basic Laws, and about the same proportion (63%) say they support the current system of nominating judges, according to a poll last month for the Israel Democracy Institute.

“The only thing this government cares about is crushing Israeli democracy,” opposition leader and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid said. (ANI)

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Anurag Thakur

Pegasus In His Mind: Anurag On Rahul’s Fresh Snooping Charge At Centre

Lashing out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his claim of being snooped on through Israeli spyware Pegasus, Union Minister Anurag Thakur on Friday said it is his habit to raise unfounded allegations and ‘defame’ India on foreign shores.

The Union minister’s statement comes in the wake of Rahul Gandhi claiming, in a lecture at Cambridge University, that his phone was being spied on through Pegasus, and that he was warned by Intelligence officers to be “careful” about what he says on the calls.
“I had Pegasus on my phone. A large number of politicians had Pegasus on their phones. I have been called by Intelligence officers who told me, ‘Please be careful about what you are saying on the phone because we are sort of recording the stuff’. So this is the constant pressure that we feel. Cases on the Opposition. I have got a number of criminal liable cases for things that should under no circumstances be criminal liable cases. That’s what we are trying to defend,” the Congress leader said in his address.

Hitting back at Rahul, Thakur asked why he did not submit his phone for examination before the Supreme Court-appointed committee, which was set up to look into the snooping allegations against the government.

“What was his compulsion that he could not submit his mobile phone (before the committee) to have it checked for Pegasus spyware? He is already on bail in a (National Herald) corruption case. What was there in his phone that he needed to hide? Why did he and other leaders (who Rahul claims were allegedly spied on) not submit their phones? It has become his habit to defame India on foreign shores,” Thakur said.

While not naming billionaire investor George Soros, who was recently in the news over his statement against Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a security conference in Munich, Thakur said, “It could be Rahul Gandhi’s hatred towards the Prime Minister (that makes him raise such allegations). But it also raises larger questions on the Congress’ agenda to defame the country repeatedly from a foreign land, sometimes from a foreign friend. Has Congress lost its faith in our constitutional institutions? Will Congress continue to raise questions about India’s democracy? Rahul Gandhi left no stone unturned in defaming India on foreign land,” the Union minister added.

Thakur said the Congress MP has Pegasus in his mind and nowhere else.

“As the election results (in Meghalaya, Tripura and Nagaland) showed yesterday, the Congress has been wiped out again. Hence, this is just Rahul Gandhi ranting against our government in frustration. He knew how his party was going to fare in the elections. Pegasus is in his mind, nowhere else. World leaders are commending India’s growth and how the country’s image and position has been elevated on the global platform under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. If not someone else, Rahul Gandhi could have listened to the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (at the G20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting on Thursday). Maybe, Rahul Gandhi could not accept this (Meloni’s praise for PM Modi), and neither could he accept the mandate of the people,” the Union Sports minister said.

On Rahul allegations of rising attacks on minorities in India, Thakur said the Congress resorted to ‘Divide and Rule’ when in power, and while the country, under PM Modi, has shed its colonial baggage and mindset, the grand old party doesn’t seem to have done the same.

“The Congress has divided people on the basis of caste, religion and community which was born out of a mindset of ‘Divide and Rule’. However, the country has now shed this colonial mindset,” he said.

Meanwhile, dismissing the allegations raised by the Congress MP against the government on Friday, Union Telecom minister Ashwni Vaishnaw told ANI, “What can I say on his remarks? His needle seems to have got stuck somewhere. He needs to move on from this.”

Earlier, in his lecture, Rahul Gandhi had shared a picture of himself in the presentation slide in which he is seen being held by police personnel, claiming that the Opposition leaders were “locked up” for “just standing” in front of the Parliament House to raise some issues, while also alleging that such incidents have happened “relatively violently”.

“In the Constitution, India is described as a Union of States, and that Union requires negotiation and conversation. It is that negotiation that is under attack and threat. You can see the picture that was taken in front of our Parliament House. The Opposition leaders, including myself, were just standing there, talking about certain issues, when we were detained and put in jail. That’s happened 3 or 4 times. It has happened relatively violently. You have also heard of the attacks on minorities and the press. This does give you a sense of what’s going on (in India),” Rahul claimed.

In August last year, the Supreme Court-appointed committee to look into snooping allegations against the government concluded that the spyware was not found in the 29 mobile phones examined by it, but malware was found in five mobile phones.

Reading the report of the committee, the bench had said, “We are concerned about the technical committee report… 29 phones were given and in five phones some malware was found but the technical committee says it cannot be said to be Pegasus.” (ANI)

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Jerusalem Explosions

At Least 1 Killed, 18 Injured In Jerusalem Explosions

At least one person was killed and 18 others got injured due to twin explosions in Jerusalem on Wednesday morning.

“A horrific morning in Jerusalem. 1 killed and 18 hurt in two separate terrorist attacks in which two bombs went off at two bus stops. We mourn for the victim who was murdered and pray for the recovery of the injured,” the State of Israel’s official handle tweeted.
The first explosion occurred close to the main entrance of a bus stop in Givat Shaul, west Jerusalem around 7 am. Shortly after, a second blast took place at the Ramot junction, another entrance to the city, The Times of Israel (TOI) reported.

Israel Police forces said they are at both scenes, collecting evidence and testimonials, and taking action to locate the suspects.

“Israel Police forces are at both scenes, collecting evidence and testimonials, and taking action to locate the suspect,” Israel Police said in a tweet.

Media reports said that the causes of the explosions were not immediately determined. However, police said that one of the blasts appeared to have been caused by a bomb placed in a handbag left near the bus.

So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the blasts. Israeli security agencies were sweeping the area to find any suspects connected to the blasts.

The explosions came amid heightened tensions in the country, following a series of attacks that have left dozens of people in the country, TOI reported.

The blasts come as Israel prepares to usher in a new government. (ANI)

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