🎗️Lonny's War Update- October 306, 2023 - August 7 2024 🎗️

  

🎗️Day 306 that 115 of our hostages in Hamas captivity
**There is nothing more important than getting them home! NOTHING!**

“I’ve never met them,

But I miss them. 

I’ve never met them,

but I think of them every second. 

I’ve never met them,

but they are my family. 

BRING THEM HOME NOW!!!”

We’re waiting for you, all of you.
A deal is the only way to bring
all the hostages home- the murdered for burial and the living for rehabilitation.

#BringThemHomeNow #TurnTheHorrorIntoHope

There is no victory until all of the hostages are home!

‎אין נצחון עד שכל החטופים בבית

Today is 10 months since the massacre of October 7 and the same government, the same Prime Minister who are responsible for the greatest tragedy, the worst day in the history of Israel and the worst day for the Jewish People since the Holocaust are still in their same positions. They refuse to take responsibility for the abandonment of the south and the north or for any actions and non actions. They allow 115 hostages to remain in captivity by the barbarous Hamas terrorists, suffering daily torture, rapes and killing.

Netanyahu has no exit strategy for this war which is par for the course as he hasn't had any strategy whatsoever since October 7 or even before. His only strategy is all around how he remains in power and to hell with the country. 

Red Alerts - Missile, Rocket, Drone (UAV - unmanned aerial vehicles), and Terror Attacks and Death Announcements

*9:00pm yesterday - south - rockets - Ashkelon, Sderot, Ibim, Nir Am, Zikim

*10:30pm- north- hostile aircraft-Ajar, Kela, Sha’al, Golan Heights, Dafna
*12:40pm - north - rockets Shtula
*1:45pm - north - rockets Shlomi
*6:00pm - north - hostile aircraft - Metulla, Kela, Snir, Sha'al, Ajar, Kraf Szold, Sha'ar Hayeshuv
*7:00pm - north - rockets, Kadita, Kerem Ben Zimra, Rihania, Biriya, Safed, Or Haganoz, Dalton - at least 10 rockets, some shot down, others fell in open areas

Hostage Updates 

• White House says hostage talks in 'final stage'
  

  The White House said that negotiations to release the 115 hostages in Gaza were in their “final stage” on Tuesday as it sought to avoid reprisal attacks by Hezbollah and Iran against Israel.

  US President Joe Biden on Tuesday spoke with leaders from the two mediating countries for a deal: Qatari Amir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad al Thani and Egyptian President Fattah El-Sisi.

  Biden in the calls addressed “efforts to de-escalate regional tensions, including through an immediate ceasefire and hostage release deal,” the White House said.
  

  The president and those two leaders agreed on “the urgency of bringing the process to closure as soon as possible.”

  Biden described the negotiations “as being in their final stage.” Fear has been high that the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh last week in Tehran would scuttle the talks. Israel has not claimed responsibility for the killing.

  Hamas announced on Tuesday that it would replace Haniyeh with its leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar.

  Israel has blamed Hamas for the absence of a deal as it has doubled down on its redlines for an agreement, including the IDF’s retention of the strategic Phliadelphi and Netzarim corridors.

  Netanyahu’s opponents have accused him of inserting new conditions into the deal. Security officials have said he can afford to ease up on some of his demands and others have said he made them knowing that they would scuttle the agreement.

  The Prime Minister’s Office has pushed back at such charges, insisting that Netanyahu wants to make a deal and that every principled point he has spoken falls within the framework of the three-phased proposal Biden first unveiled on May 31. 
  
  Netanyahu accused of sabotaging Gaza deal 
  White House Press Secretary Katherine Jean-Pierre said Biden “wants to get this done.
  “He wants the war to end. He wants hostages to come home and to go home to their loved ones and families. And so we believe this, this war, the end of this war, would significantly lower tensions in the region, and so we have been certainly laser-focused on getting that done,” he said. link

• Final unaccounted for October 7 victim died in onslaught, IDF confirms

  

The Israel Defense Forces confirmed on Tuesday that Bilha Inon, 75, who had officially been considered missing since the October 7 Hamas onslaught, was in fact killed that day alongside her husband, Yakov Inon, 78.

The Inon children decided for themselves shortly after the attack that there was no possibility Bilha had survived, and chose to sit shiva — the traditional Jewish mourning period — for them both.

Until Tuesday, Bilha was considered by the government to be the only Israeli still missing following the attack. Separately, 111 people, including at least 39 bodies, are believed to still be held captive by Hamas in Gaza.

Bilha and Yakov’s house was completely burned down during the Hamas infiltration of the community of Netiv Ha’asara on that Saturday morning. Bilha was initially listed as dead along with her husband, but a lack of DNA evidence led the IDF to retract that conclusion.

She was never believed to have been abducted by Hamas to Gaza, since there were no other kidnappings from Netiv Ha’asara on October 7. The small community of less than 1,000 people just a few hundred meters from the border with Gaza was among the first to be infiltrated that Saturday morning, by several terrorists who flew in via paragliders. 

The IDF said Tuesday that “after a complex examination and investigation procedure,” following recently located findings at the Inons’ home, it was able to confirm that she was killed on October 7. Her death was declared by a panel of health experts, IDF officials, police officials and the chief rabbi. 

Members of the media tour the devastated Moshav Netiv Ha’asara in southern Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip on November 17, 2023. (RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP)

Bilha and Yakov were survived by their five children, Mor, Maayan, Maoz, Magal and Magen, and 11 grandchildren.

The Inon family sat shiva for both of them the week after the attack, without holding a funeral. More than a week later, Yakov’s remains were identified, but officials told the family that no trace of Bilha could be found, and that therefore they could not officially confirm her death.

In media interviews, the family has said that while they accepted that Bilha and Yakov were gone, the lack of official confirmation meant that it was impossible to deal with settling their parent’s estate, closing their accounts and implementing their will.

In an interview with Channel 12 news in February, Maayan Inon said that “Dad sent us a WhatsApp message at 7:30 a.m. that they’re sitting in the safe room, the house is locked, and they’re hearing a lot of shooting and rockets.”

“By 7:45 a.m. they were already disconnected and not answering,” she said. “The house got a direct hit [likely from an RPG] and was on fire within minutes. This was a house built with light materials like plaster and plywood.”

Mor Inon said at the time that “there’s a disagreement between the fire services — who say that the fire was at a very high temperature and that it’s certainly possible that DNA can’t be recovered — and the [forensic scientists] who say that that can’t be, that something can always be recovered.”

 The daughters of Bilha and Yakov Inon, Mor (right) and Maayan (center), and the couple’s grandson, Eitan. (Channel 12 screenshot used in accordance with article 27a of the Copyright Law.)

Writing in the Guardian in October, the couple’s son Magen Inon said that “the pain is unbearable. My parents were a stable rock in my and my family’s life, and the only consolation I have is that they died together. Inseparable in life and death.”

Magen said that his parents “lived fulfilling and happy lives and touched many people.” Yakov, he said, was a professional agronomist while Bilha was an early childhood education teacher as well as an artist. Bilha and Yakov requested in their will that their bodies be cremated and spread out over the grounds of Netiv Ha’asara because they did not want their bodies to take up land.

The couple’s children have emphasized in interviews about the October7  atrocities that their parents were lifelong peace activists who believed in reaching out and building bridges.

Maoz Inon told The New York Times that even in unthinkable times, he is continuing to pursue peace as part of “my mom’s legacy. And I’m taking it for my mom. I’m taking it for my father. We will always have the reasons to hate. But I’m saying, one day, we’ll have to start using the power of reconciliation, the power of forgiveness.”

Speaking to Haaretz, Maayan said that despite her parents’ location just meters from the Gaza border, “they felt safe.”

“My dad always said: We can’t live in fear,” she said. “He claimed that fear is a subjective thing and he didn’t really feel it. My mom had some bouts of fear and anxiety. But they still chose to stay because they loved the area and the people, they were pillars of their community, and they lived well.” link

• My brother's column in The Times of Israel: Bring the hostages home and ending
  the war in 6 weeks
  

  From what I know and from what I understand, if I was one of the heads of the Israeli negotiating team, I would submit my resignation to Netanyahu. My integrity would not allow me to continue to play the game of negotiating when I know that there is no chance of reaching an agreement, because the Prime Minister has put conditions that will never be accepted by Hamas, and he knows it. Under those conditions, without a mandate to succeed, I would stop playing the game according to Netanyahu’s rules.

  If I were the mediators, Egypt and Qatar, I would put a draft agreement on the table, taking into account some of Hamas’s demands and some of Israel’s demands and then tell Israel and Hamas: TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT! Should they decide not to take it, I would publish the draft for the world to see, mostly for the Israeli and Palestinian people to see, and I would notify Israel and Hamas that we have finished playing the game according to their rules. The rules have changed – this is the agreement, negotiations are over.

  Neither side gets all of what they want. That is not possible. The basis of my proposal is that the whole thing is completed in six weeks. The war ends. Israel withdraws from Gaza. 115 Israeli hostages come home. A large number of Palestinian prisoners are released, but Israel selects them and they include prisoners who have killed Israelis. The prisoners are all sent to their homes, which is a Hamas demand, but enables Israel to have greater ability to monitor them and assess if they are a danger to Israel’s security.

  It is clear that this does not end the story. It should be clear that as long as Hamas remains in control of Gaza, not a single dollar will be invested on reconstruction. Until there is a legitimate and responsible different government in Gaza, no Arab country will send troops there in a peacekeeping mission. The Gaza-Egypt border will be sealed hermetically on the Egyptian side of the border with US inspection, technology and monitoring. As long as Hamas continues to be a threat to Israel, the chances of renewed war are always there.

  Once the war is over, Israel must go to elections (hopefully before then) and the international community must help to create the regional framework for bringing the two states solution and the end of the Israeli occupation to fruition. There are a lot of preconditions for that to happen, but nothing begins until the war in Gaza is over and the Israeli hostages come home.

  PROPOSAL FOR MEDIATORS’ ULTIMATUM TO ISRAEL AND HAMAS

  TIME FRAME: 6 WEEKS

  ISRAELI HOSTAGES: ALL 115, ALIVE AND DEAD, WILL BE RELEASED AND RETURNED TO ISRAEL VIA THE ICRC ON A SCHEDULE TO BE DETAILED BY THE MEDIATORS IN CONSULTATIONS WITH HAMAS.

  PALESTINIAN PRISONERS: 35 PRISONERS TO BE RELEASED TO THEIR HOMES FOR EACH HOSTAGE – A TOTAL OF 4,025 PALESTINIAN PRISONERS, INCLUDING AT LEAST 50% OF THOSE SERVING LIFE SENTENCES. ISRAEL WILL SELECT THE LIST OF PRISONERS AND AN AGREED SCHEDULE OF THEIR RELEASE WILL BE DETAILED BY THE MEDIATORS IN CONSULTATION WITH ISRAEL. THE RELEASE OF PRISONERS WILL BE COORDINATED WITH THE RELEASE OF ISRAELI HOSTAGES.

  ISRAELI WITHDRAWAL FROM GAZA: FULL ISRAEL WITHDRAWAL FROM GAZA BY THE END OF 6 WEEKS. THE FULL ISRAELI PLAN ON THE WITHDRAWAL WILL BE SUBMITTED TO THE MEDIATORS BY ISRAEL WITHIN 2 WEEKS OF SUBMITTING THIS PLAN.

  THE ISRAELI WITHDRAWAL WILL INCLUDE THE PHILIDELPHI CORRIDOR WHICH WILL BE SECURED AGAINST ANY SMUGGLING FROM THE EGYPTIAN SIDE OF THE WALL WITH USA MILITARY OVERSIGHT. QATAR AND THE USA WILL PROVIDE FUNDING AND TECHNOLOGY (IF NEEDED) TO EGYPT TO LOCATE AND DESTROY ANY EXISTING SMUGGLING TUNNELS ALONG THE CORRIDOR.

  RAFAH CROSSING: THE RAFAH CROSSING WILL BE CONTROLLED FOR A PERIOD OF NOT LESS THAN ONE YEAR BY A MULTI-NATIONAL TEAM INCLUDING EUCOPPS. HAMAS WILL NOT RETURN TO CONTROL THE RAFAH CROSSING EVER.

  HUMANITARIAN AID: HUMANITARIAN AID INTO GAZA WILL BE INCREASED TO NO LESS THAN 600 TRUCKS PER DAY. ENTRY INTO GAZA WILL BE FROM RAFAH, KEREM SHALOM, AND EREZ CROSSINGS. HUMANITARIAN AID WILL BE ALLOWED TO ENTER VIA THE PORT OF ASHDOD AS WELL AS FROM THE EGYPTIAN SIDE. AN AGREED INTERNATIONAL INSPECTION MECHANISM WILL BE ESTABLISHED TO BE DETAILED BY THE MEDIATIORS.

  END OF WAR: AT THE END OF 6 WEEKS, THE WAR IN GAZA WILL COME TO AN END.

  GAZA ADMINSTRATION: NO LATER THAN BY THE END OF WEEK THREE, A REGIONAL-INTERNATIONAL MEETING WILL TAKE PLACE IN CAIRO TO DETERMINE THE NATURE OF A PALESTINIAN-LED TERMPORARY ADMINISTRATION FOR GAZA. THE CONFERENCE WILL INCLUDE AT LEAST: THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY, EGYPT, JORDAN, QATAR, UAE, SAUDI ARABIA, BAHRAIN, THE USA, THE EU, CHINA, THE UN. THE CONFERENCE WILL LAST NO LONGER THAN FIVE DAYS DURING WHICH TIME A FULL PLAN WILL BE DETERMINED.

  MEDIATORS END NOTE: THIS PROPOSAL DOES NOT REPRESENT A NEGOTIATION. THIS IS THE AGREED PLAN OF THE MEDIATORS AND IT IS NON-NEGOTIATABLE. SHOULD THE PARTIES (ISRAEL AND HAMAS) NOT AGREE TO THIS PLAN, THE MEDIATORS WILL CEASE THE ROLE AS MEDIATORS AND THE PARTIES WILL BE ON THEIR OWN TO REACH AN AGREEMENT.

  About the Author

  The writer is the Middle East Director of ICO - International Communities Organization - a UK based NGO working in Conflict zones with failed peace processes. Baskin is a political and social entrepreneur who has dedicated his life to peace between Israel and her neighbors. He is also a founding member of “Kol Ezraheiha - Kol Muwanteneiha” (All of the Citizens) political party in Israel.

Gaza 

•  Hamas officially announces that Yahya Sinwar will be the terror group’s new politburo chief, its highest-ranking figure, following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last week.

  Sinwar, who is Hamas’s leader in Gaza, is widely considered the architect of the October 7 invasion and massacre in southern Israel, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage, sparking the ongoing war in Gaza.

  Sinwar has been hiding out in Gaza since the slaughter in Israel. The IDF in February published a video, filmed on October 10, said to show him walking through a Gaza tunnel with several of his family members.

  Israel has repeatedly said that it will hunt down Sinwar and other Hamas leaders. On August 1, the IDF confirmed that it had killed Muhammad Deif, the commander of Hamas’s military wing, in an airstrike in southern Gaza last month.

• A senior Hamas official tells AFP that Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar’s selection as Hamas’s new political leader sends a “strong message… of resistance” to Israel.

  The choice is “a strong message to the occupation (Israel) that Hamas continues its path of resistance,” the official says on condition of anonymity as he’s not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.

• Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia have rebuffed US requests to contribute troops to a post-war peacekeeping force in Gaza, an Arab official and a second source familiar with the matter tells The Times of Israel.

  The dispatched troops would be seen to be “protecting Israel from the Palestinians,” the Arab official says, explaining the opposition of Amman, Doha and Riyadh to the effort being advanced by the US to secure Gaza after the war.

  Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, on the other hand, have expressed willingness to participate in the effort, three officials told The Times of Israel in June. However, they clarified that Cairo and Abu Dhabi have a series of conditions, including that the peacekeeping force be part of an initiative leading to an eventual two-state solution — a framework rejected by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Link as stated, this is easily rectified. If the reformed PA were to be the new governing body in Gaza and they invited those same Arab countries and others to be part of the post war peacekeeping forces, it would be answered in the affirmative 

• Whoever Stands in Sinwar's Way Has One Fate: Death

  Hamas is effectively becoming a one-man movement. Quite dangerous. Sinwar has proven through his actions even before the war, and certainly since October 7th, that he is more extreme than the most extreme among Hamas members, more cruel and sophisticated than most of them.

  Hamas's choice of Yahya Sinwar to head the political bureau of the movement, replacing the "martyr" Ismail Haniyeh, symbolizes the path Hamas has chosen to take at the beginning of the war: This is a movement of one man, with one vision, or in other words, Sinwar is telling all other senior Hamas officials: I will lead, I will guide, and I will navigate. And whoever doesn't find favor in his eyes will meet the same fate as Mahmoud al-Shtiwi.

  Mahmoud al-Shtiwi was a senior member of Hamas's military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades. He was the battalion commander of Zeitoun and even responsible for training in Hamas's southern brigade. His entire family was considered very close to the military wing and Hamas leadership. But in February 2016, Hamas announced that he had been executed for moral offenses. However, al-Shtiwi was apparently executed by Yahya Sinwar and his men on suspicion of collaborating with Israel and providing information during Operation "Protective Edge" that led to the attempted assassination of Mohammed Deif, which failed then, while his wife and two children were killed.

  A few months after the end of the fighting, a force of Hamas gunmen, led by none other than Yahya Sinwar himself, broke into al-Shtiwi's home. He pulled Mahmoud al-Shtiwi out of his house in front of his stunned family members. All the pleas from family members to senior Hamas officials to release him from prison and their claims of severe torture he underwent went unanswered. Almost a year after his arrest, he was executed.

  **"Abu Tanash"**

  Al-Shtiwi wasn't the first Palestinian executed by Sinwar. In Israeli prison, he earned the nickname "Abu Tanash," meaning the father of the 12, suspected of murdering 12 suspected collaborators (convicted of murdering five of them). Sinwar has proven through his actions even before the war, and certainly since October 7th, that he is a dangerous man, more extreme than the most extreme among Hamas members, more cruel and sophisticated than most of them. He led Hamas into the most cruel and difficult war Gaza has ever known and understood well that he was going to sacrifice thousands of Palestinians on the altar of his vision - to be the Palestinian Saladin.

  He understood that 2.2 million Palestinians would pay a terrible price for his delusions, but this didn't delay him or stop him from carrying out such a dangerous terror plan that would cost the lives of over 1,200 Israelis, the kidnapping of 242, but also the lives of tens of thousands of Palestinians whose exact number is not even known. Gaza is in ruins, Hamas's military wing is in ruins, and now also the organization's political wing has fallen in line with the man who led the Gazans to the greatest disaster they've known since the "Nakba," their disaster in 1948.

  The choice of Sinwar essentially marks the subordination of the entire political bureau to Sinwar. If until this evening, there was some separation, or decentralization of powers, division of roles between the seniors abroad (Haniyeh and others) and those in Gaza, now the entire movement is subject to Sinwar's authority in Gaza, also politically.

  Haniyeh has become the symbolic leader of the political bureau in recent years since he left for Qatar, and still had some political say and influence. Now there will be no one who will dare even to disagree with the all-powerful leader, who sees himself as the savior, perhaps even the messiah of the Palestinians. He will do everything to consolidate his position as long as he's alive and will neutralize any threat without hesitation. In many ways, Hamas, by choosing such an extreme person, is ideologically rushing towards an even more extreme direction compared to what it has advocated until now.

  This is called in certain places, Qutbism. Named after one of the leaders of the "Muslim Brotherhood," Sayyid Qutb, who inherited from the founder of the "Brotherhood," Hassan al-Banna. Qutb led the "Brotherhood" to a much more extreme line than that of the founder (who was also extreme) and later served as an ideological inspiration for movements like al-Qaeda and ISIS. And this is probably how Hamas will look in the coming years under Sinwar (who we hope won't live much longer): unrestrained, who won't hesitate to harm Palestinians who dare to challenge him and certainly not Israelis.link

• My brother’s post: 
  The selection of Yehya Sinwar as the new head of the Hamas political bureau is a blow to those who thought that following the horror that Sinwar brought to Gaza, that Hamas might be prepared to stand aside and allow others to govern Gaza. The internal discussions in Hamas prior to the assassination of Haniyeh were focused on the struggle to force Hamas to lay down its weapons and be integrated in a new Palestinian security/police force. Sinwar, I understand, was opposed to any discussion of laying down their weapons. Sinwar was, apparently looking at Hezbollah as the model for Hamas in Gaza, running the place with no responsibility for governing it. Sinwar's appointment is also a blow to the moderate Sunni neighbors who thought that Hamas had learned the lesson of its military losses and from Israel's physical destruction of Gaza. They are now facing the reality that Hamas' fate must be that of ISIS - it cannot be a dominant legitimate political player on the field of the Middle East.  If not soon, in time Palestinians will view Sinwar as a criminal who has taken them back 76 years to relive the Nakba. Rather than trying to sideline Sinwar in selecting a new leader for Hamas, the Hamas Shura Council has elevated Sinwar, sending a message to the Palestinian people and to the world that they must fight to the death and make no compromises. This is nothing short of treason to the entire Palestinian people. If Sinwar has a death wish, which is deeply rooted in his distorted version of Islam, he has cursed the religion of Islam, which many Muslims believe is a religion of peace, he has cursed the Palestinian people in Gaza to ongoing, unending war, and he has cursed his Sunni neighbors who strive for a free Palestine living side-by-side in peace with Israel. Netanyahu has no end of war strategy that does not involve in the killing of Sinwar - now Netanyahu is even more motivated to achieve that goal than he was before and many around the neighborhood of the Middle East may understand that until that is done, there is no chance of rebuilding Gaza or of freeing Palestine from Israel's occupation.  (Gershon Baskin, August 7, 2024)

Northern Israel - Lebanon/Hizbollah/Syria

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West Bank and Jerusalem and Terror attacks within Israel

•     A Palestinian gunman who attempted to carry out a shooting attack near the West Bank settlement of Beka’ot in the Jordan Valley was shot dead by troops, the military says.

  According to the IDF, troops of the 636th Combat Intelligence Collection Unit stationed in the area ambushed the armed suspect and killed him.

  The troops had been ready to thwart the attack following previous shootings in the area.

  A second suspect managed to flee the scene in a car, according to a military source.

  No soldiers were hurt in the incident.

Politics and the War (general news)

• Israel informed the US immediately following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh that it was behind the killing, the Washington Post reports, citing sources familiar with the White House’s thought process.

  According to the newspaper, Biden administration officials were livid about the decision to take out Haniyeh, worrying it could upend months of careful negotiations toward a truce in Gaza.

  The newspaper reports that US officials are also outraged over Israel failing to inform them before launching other operations to assassinate Hezbollah or Iranian commanders.

  An anonymous Israeli official quoted by the Washington Post confirms that a phone call between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden last week was “tense.” link There is no question that Haniyeh and the rest of the leadership of Hamas should not be breathing but why now? Why when we are on the cusps of an agreement to get our hostages home, even with Netanyahu kicking and screaming to prevent it from happening? Of is that exactly the reason for the timing?

• "Peak Readiness for Attack from Iran and Lebanon: The Document Israel Prepared - and Preparations for Counterattack

The security tension continues, and Israel is preparing for defense against a possible attack • Iran and Lebanon are planning a coordinated attack, and the defense establishment estimates there is still a dilemma about which targets to hit • Preparations in Israel also for a preemptive strike, and for a counterattack after the attack if it occurs • This is the "Ground Preparation" document for response distributed to ambassadors in Israel 

Israel continues to maintain peak readiness for a possible attack from Iran and Lebanon following the assassination of Shukri and Haniyeh. Yesterday  (Tuesday) we reported on the "Central Edition" that Israel is preparing to disrupt or thwart any preparation for an attack against it from Lebanon. Iran and Hezbollah continue to plan and coordinate the attack. According to estimates in the defense establishment, Iran and Lebanon are in a dilemma - which targets to hit and what will be the intensity of Israel's response.
Meanwhile, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant spoke with partners in the regional coalition - the United States, Britain, Germany and Italy, against the background of preparations for an attack. This is in addition to many defense alliance forces that continue to flow to the Middle East. However, the preparations are not only in defense, but also in offense: Discussions are currently taking place in Israel on how to respond to such an attack, which will be determined by the nature of the hit - but also by the need for deterrence. Israel is also preparing for a preemptive strike. If such preparations against Israel are identified - they will not wait for launches from Lebanon and Iran. 

**The Document Israel Prepared** 

In parallel, we published for the first time this evening also Israel's "Ground Preparation" document for response to an Iranian attack, which was distributed to ambassadors. In it, Iran is held responsible for the escalation, and its title is: "Building Legitimacy for the Possibility of Israeli Actions". The document was formulated after discussions held by Minister Katz with the ministry's top officials. The letter states: "You are requested to approach your counterparts, in order to build legitimacy for the possibility of expected Israeli actions in the campaign, whatever they may be, if and when Israel is attacked. This is true for possible Israeli actions in all sectors. Israel always prefers a diplomatic solution, but is determined to protect its citizens at all costs and acts as any responsible, democratic and law-abiding country would act if it were in its place."
Earlier this evening, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah spoke after the assassination of the organization's senior official Fouad Shukri in Beirut. "Hezbollah will respond, Iran will respond, Yemen will respond, and the enemy is waiting, expecting," he said. "Most importantly, the determination, decision and ability exist. We will respond, but carefully and cautiously, and the Israeli wait is part of the punishment." He added: "Israel's wait for the resistance's response for a week is part of the campaign, the punishment and the response. This is a psychological campaign. Our response will come and will be effective and strong - we will respond alone or we will respond as part of an overall response of the resistance axis."
Yesterday, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held a situation assessment at the Air Force's control post, with the participation of the Air Force commander, Major General Tomer Bar and the Air Force's senior command forum. "Our enemies are carefully considering their steps thanks to the capabilities you have demonstrated in the past year. However, we must prepare for all possibilities - including a rapid transition to attack," the minister said." link

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The Region and the World

•    About a dozen F/A-18 fighter jets from the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier have flown to a military base in the Middle East, as part of the Pentagon’s effort to help defend Israel from possible attacks by Iran and its proxies and to safeguard US troops, according to a US official.

  The F/A-18s and a E-2D Hawkeye surveillance aircraft took off from the carrier in the Gulf of Oman and arrived at the undisclosed base on Monday, the official says.

  US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the increased military presence in the region as officials worry about escalating violence in the Middle East in the wake of the killings last week of a senior Hezbollah commander in Lebanon and Hamas’ top political leader in Iran, in suspected Israeli strikes. Both groups are backed by Iran.

  The Navy jets’ land-based deployment is expected to be temporary, because a squadron of Air Force F-22 fighter jets is enroute to the same base from their home station in Alaska. The roughly dozen F-22s are expected to arrive in the Middle East in the coming days, says the official.

  It’s not clear how long all of the aircraft will remain together at the base, and that may depend on what — if anything — happens in the next few days.

Personal Stories

  

Acronyms and Glossary

COGAT - Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories

ICC - International Criminal Court in the Hague

IJC - International Court of Justice in the Hague

MDA - Magen David Adom - Israel Ambulance Corp

PA - Palestinian Authority - President Mahmud Abbas, aka Abu Mazen

PMO- Prime Minister's Office

UAV - Unmanned Aerial vehicle, Drone. Could be used for surveillance and reconnaissance, or be weaponized with missiles or contain explosives for 'suicide' explosion mission

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