🎗️Lonny's War Update- October 502, 2023 - February 19, 2025 🎗️

  

🎗️Day 502 that 76 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

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

*

Hostage Updates 

Tomorrow will be one of the most difficult days of the hostage crisis for everyone. Until now, the return of the hostages has been the only joy we have truly known as a nation since October 7. Even in the most sorrowful situations of hostages returning to learn of the deaths of their family members and friends, even when we saw them coming home looking like holocaust survivors. They were coming home to a loving nation, to the members of their families who are still here, to start the healing of the horrors they went through for too long. Tomorrow and next week, we will be receiving 8 bodies of hostages (4 each time) including some who were killed on October 7 and others who were killed in captivity. The most painful aspect is the the loss of hope of those we hoped and yearn to see return alive and the deepest pain of the survivors who will have to go on without them, but with a loving nation who have embraced them and will continue to do so even though our government, our prime minister have abandoned them multiple times since October 7.

• Families of Omer Wenkert, Omer Shem Tov, Eliya Cohen, Tal Shoham, Avera Mengistu, Hisham al-Sayed say they’ll be released Saturday
  

  

  Row 1 (L-R): Omer Wenkert, Eliya Cohen, Tal Shoham; Row 2: Omer Shem-Tov, Avera Mengistu, Hisham al-Sayed. (All photos courtesy)

  The families of Omer Wenkert, Omer Shem Tov, Eliya Cohen, Tal Shoham, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed announce that they have been informed by Israeli authorities that their loved ones are slated to be released by Hamas on Saturday.

  Al-Sayed and Mengistu have been captive in Gaza for over a decade, after entering the Strip of their own accord. All the others were abducted on October 7, 2023.

• Bibas family ‘in turmoil’ over Hamas announcement loved ones’ bodies to be returned; has not had Israeli confirmation
  

  
  Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir Bibas (Courtesy)

  The Bibas family says it is “in turmoil” after Hamas’s announcement that the bodies of Shiri, Ariel and Kfir will be returned to Israel on Thursday.

  However, the family stresses that it has not yet received an official update from Israeli authorities confirming that their loved ones are no longer alive.

  “Until we receive definitive confirmation, our journey is not over,” the family says.

  “We ask the media and the public to respect our privacy and refrain from contacting us about this matter,” the family adds.

  Hamas claimed in November 2023 that Shiri, Ariel and Kfir were killed in an IDF strike. Israel called the claim cruel propaganda and did not confirm it. It said last month, however, that it has “grave concerns” for their fate. Husband and father Yarden Bibas was freed from Gaza on February 1.

  Hamas’s Khalil al Hayya said earlier today that the Bibas family would be among four bodies to be handed over on Thursday.

  The Bibas family responded to the reports: "Until we receive certainty, our journey will not end."

  

  "We are in turmoil following the statement by the Hamas spokesperson," the family shared. Yarden Bibas, the father of the family, told his relatives in recent days that until proven otherwise, he believes Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir are alive, and he awaits their return to Israel. Four abducted victims will be returned to Israel the day after tomorrow.

  The Bibas family said today (Tuesday), amid rumors about the condition of Shiri and her children Ariel and Kfir: "We are in turmoil after the Hamas spokesperson announced the return of our Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir this coming Thursday." The family noted that they have not yet received official confirmation on the matter and stated: "Until we receive certainty, our journey will not end." Yarden said this week that he does not believe Hamas's statements—and until proven otherwise, as far as he is concerned, Shiri and the boys are alive.

  In the Bibas family's statement, it was written: "In recent hours, we have been in turmoil following the announcement by the Hamas spokesperson about the return of our Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir this coming Thursday as part of the release of abducted victims. It is important for us to say that we are aware of the reports but have not yet received official confirmation on the matter. Until we receive certainty, our journey will not end." The family requested that their privacy be respected during these days.

  
  Kfir Bibas  

  Yarden Bibas, who was released in the fourth phase of the current hostage deal, told his family in recent days that until proven otherwise, he believes Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir are alive, and he awaits their return to Israel. Yarden, who returned from Hamas captivity in recent weeks, told his relatives that he refuses to believe Hamas's statements and that it may be "despicable propaganda." He intends to fight until Shiri and the boys return to Israel.

  The Bibas family said they are aligning with Yarden. For them, the situation changed with Yarden's return, and he is now bringing new hope and strength to the struggle. The Bibas family intends to fight for Shiri and the children, even if the signs are not good at the moment.

  
  Yarden Bibas and Shiri Bibas (Archive) | Photo: Yarden Bibas: From the news | Shiri Bibas: Private  
  
  

  The abduction of the Bibas family to the Gaza Strip occurred on October 7 in Nir Oz, during the Black Sabbath. Terrorists abducted the mother, Shiri, along with her children Ariel, who was 4 years old on the day of the abduction, and Kfir, who was 9 months old. Kfir is the youngest abductee taken by Hamas. The father of the family, Yarden, was abducted separately from his wife and children and returned to Israel as part of the hostage release phases—along with Ofer Calderon and Keith Siegel.  link

  
  Skynews Australia cries on air while reporting the announcement by Hamas that they will be returning the bodies of Shiri, Ariel and Kfir on Thursday video
  
  
  

• Released hostage Iair Horn struggling to walk and see, but he’s completely focused on freeing his brother, relative says

  

  Iair Horn gives a video statement on February 17, 2025. (Screen capture/ Channel 12)

  
  

  Released hostage Iair Horn is struggling with walking and with vision problems after being kept in tunnels for 498 days, but all he cares about right now is getting his younger brother Eitan Horn home, says Dalia Cusnir, the sister-in-law of the Horn brothers, in a meeting with journalists.

  
  

  As Horn was meeting with doctors about his care, says Cusnir, “he stood up and stopped everyone. ‘You asked what I need,’ said Iair Horn. ‘The only thing I need is for you to bring me my brother.'”

  
  

  Cusnir says Horn was initially held with his brother Eitan and then separated but they don’t know how long ago they were separated. Eitan Horn was visiting Iair on Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7 when they were taken hostage by Hamas terrorists.

  
  

  “Being with Eitan was very significant,” says Cusnir of Iair’s captivity. “It gave him a reason, a purpose to fight and struggle and to wake up and stand up every morning. He had to keep going because of Eitan.”

  
  

  Eitan Horn has a severe skin disease that requires medication and has led to infections in the past, and the lack of hygiene in the tunnels is highly problematic with his disease and frightening to his family.

  
  

  As the eldest son in the family of three brothers, who used to sleep in the same bedroom growing up in Argentina and followed one another to Israel as teens, Iair Horn feels tremendous responsibility for his brothers, who Cusnir says are like triplets.

  
  

  Eitan Horn is not on the list of 33 hostages to be freed in the first stage of the current hostage deal.

  
  

  Iair Horn hasn’t shared many details about his captivity, says his sister-in-law. He has mentioned a little bit about physical and psychological torture and that the worst day was October 7, when they were abducted with severe violence.

  
  

  “They are counting the minutes and the seconds,” says Cusnir, “knowing that if they arrive at the end of the day and are still alive, that’s a miracle, and who knows what’s next.”

  
  

  Iair Horn was unaware of what was happening with the other hostages, and thought that all the women and children were released in November 2023. He also didn’t know what happened to Nir Oz, where one in four people were killed or taken hostage, nor of the vast destruction in the community that day.

  
  

  “He asked to see a list of all the hostages from the other kibbutz and the Nova festival,” says Cusnir. “He said that’s his task, and he wanted to go to the [hostage] rally yesterday [marking 500 days of captivity.] He said, ‘I’m going to be on the stage to talk to everyone,’ and we had to tell him the doctors wouldn’t allow it yet.”

  
  

  Cusnir adds, “He said that as long as there are hostages in Gaza, he is still a hostage.”

  
  
• The message that arrived from Gaza to the family of the abducted Nimrod Cohen: "I'm okay. Don't worry, love."

  

  
  
  The father of Nimrod, who was abducted on October 7 from the tank in which he served, spoke today on the news about the message the family received. "We received signs of life from him last week, from two hostages who were with him for 8 months in the tunnels," his father said.
  
  
  Yehuda Cohen, the father of the abducted soldier Nimrod Cohen, said today (Wednesday) on Channel 12 News that his son conveyed a message through two survivors of captivity. "I'm okay, don't worry about me. I love you," Nimrod conveyed to his parents through the returnees.
  
  
  "There are no question marks, he will return," said Yehuda Cohen. "He will return alive and well. We received signs of life from him last week. Two hostages who were with him for 8 months together, in reasonable conditions under the definition of tunnels. He is there, he is alive. I even asked through one of the family members of those who were released, he left some kind of message with a few words - 'He's okay, don't worry. He loves you.' That's the message we received from Nimrod."
  
  
  He added: "I understand that his condition is good, he knows - and we received through interrogations of the returnees - he knows how to manage a daily routine and therefore he knows how to hold himself during this time, he also knows that the end is very close."
  
  
  
  Yehuda Cohen, Nimrod's father during a statement by the families of the abductees
  
  
  Yehuda Cohen also attacked Netanyahu for the accusations against figures in the negotiations: "It's important to emphasize now that the Prime Minister spat on the heads of the Shin Bet and the Mossad, they can't respond to his spitting, only he can spit. Now he appointed Ron Dermer, who until three months ago was walking around Florida saying everyone is dead."
  
  
  "This is no longer in the hands of Netanyahu, nor Dermer, nor Smotrich with his percentage plan," he added. "It's in the hands of Trump and Whitkoff. They are currently representing us against the government that betrayed us, a government that according to the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, the controversial Nation-State Law that Netanyahu also conceived - which says that it is the duty of the state to protect the citizens of Israel and rescue them in times of trouble, they are not doing that."
  
  
  
• The Prime Minister's Office has officially confirmed: "The day after tomorrow, Israel will receive 4 deceased victims, and on Saturday, 6 living hostages."
  
  
  It was further announced by the Prime Minister's Office that next Thursday, four additional deceased hostages will be released. A senior Hamas official confirmed the details. In exchange for the release of the six living hostages, Israel will allow the entry of caravans and heavy engineering equipment into the Gaza Strip for clearing rubble.

  
  
  
  The Prime Minister's Office announced today (Tuesday): "In the negotiations in Cairo, understandings were reached under which six living hostages from Phase 1 will be released on Saturday. This coming Thursday, four deceased hostages will be handed over to Israel. According to the agreement, four additional deceased hostages are expected to be handed over to Israel next week."
  
  
  Shortly before, senior Israeli officials confirmed that "agreements have been reached for the release of six living hostages on Saturday." Simultaneously, senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya officially confirmed: "We have decided to hand over four deceased victims on Thursday and release the six living hostages on Saturday (including Hisham al-Sayed and Avra Mengistu), in exchange for the release of the terrorists included in the agreement."
  
  
  Earlier today, Palestinian sources told the Hamas-affiliated Quds Network that six living hostages are expected to be released this coming Saturday, thus merging the two remaining phases—in exchange for allowing the entry of heavy engineering equipment for clearing rubble and caravans into the Gaza Strip, as well as entering negotiations for Phase 2.
  
  
  No decisions were made last night in the Cabinet regarding Phase 2 of the hostage release deal. This means the delegation does not yet have a mandate to discuss Phase 2, as the parameters have not been determined. The negotiating delegation was instructed to focus on securing the release of six living hostages this coming Saturday in a single phase. Several hostage families were updated on progress in the talks to release all six living hostages from Phase 1 this coming Saturday.
  
  
  **Engineering Equipment and Caravans at Rafah Crossing**  
  
  
  Hamas signaled in recent days that it is interested in releasing six living hostages this coming Saturday, and it is estimated that the reason for this is that Hamas wants all the terrorists scheduled for release in Phase 1 to be released, preferring not to risk their release by splitting it into two phases.
  
  
  A political source stated earlier today: "Prime Minister Netanyahu is making tremendous efforts to release all six remaining living hostages from Phase 1, as well as four hostages who are no longer alive. As part of the framework for releasing the hostages, Israel has committed to allowing the entry of caravans and heavy engineering equipment into the Gaza Strip after strict inspection. As part of the negotiations, and subject to Hamas upholding the agreement, Israel will begin allowing this in a controlled and gradual manner."
  
  
  In exchange for the release of the six living hostages this coming Saturday, terrorists will be released according to the ratio set in the agreement, including the remaining convicts serving life sentences out of the 110 agreed upon. Additionally, 47 Shalit Deal prisoners who were rearrested are expected to be released after the release of Avra Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed. Israel will also fulfill its commitment to allow the entry of caravans and heavy engineering equipment for clearing rubble.
  
  
  **Engineering Equipment and Caravans at Rafah Crossing**  
  

  Caravans and engineering equipment waiting at the Gaza border  
  
  
  Last night, we reported that Israel is preparing for the return of four deceased hostages who were killed in Hamas captivity this coming Thursday. The names of the deceased will be transferred on Thursday morning, with efforts to transfer the names earlier. Later on Thursday, the deceased will be transferred to IDF ambulances waiting at a meeting point to be determined between the parties, from where they will be taken for identification at the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute. The political echelon and the IDF are preparing both operationally and in terms of how this will be communicated to the public.
  
  
  Channel 12 News decided, after discussions with hostage families, not to broadcast images disseminated by Hamas from Gaza of the deceased victims' coffers on Thursday. Instead, only images approved by the Hostage Families Headquarters and official statements from the headquarters and Israeli officials will be broadcast, in order to respect the dignity of the families and their loved ones.
  
  
  The transfer of the four deceased victims was set for the 33rd day in the secret annex of the agreement, which was not published for public view. The four additional deceased victims expected to be returned in this phase of the deal will be transferred next week. The compensation Israel will provide is the release of all women and minors under the age of 19 detained in Gaza after October 8. Half will be returned this week, and the other half next week, along with the return of the four additional bodies.  link
  
  
  
  
• **Israel's Preparations for Receiving the Dead Hostage Bodies, and What Concerns the Forensics Experts the Most**
  
  
  Israel will receive four abducted victims on Thursday, with four more to be returned next week. Identification teams are preparing for a complex and precise process, involving the use of fingerprints, dental records, and DNA. The security establishment and police are gearing up for a swift procedure: "There will be no delays here—every answer will be provided as quickly as possible."
  
  
  **Preparing for the Next Phases:**
  According to the confidential annex of the agreement revealed yesterday, Israel will receive four abducted victims this coming Thursday, and the remaining four victims of the first phase will be returned next Thursday. In exchange, Israel will release all women and children detained since October 8—half of them in each phase. The transfer of the four victims was set for the 33rd day in the confidential annex of the agreement, which was not made public. The four additional victims expected to be returned in this phase of the deal will be transferred next week.
  
  
  According to the agreed timeline, the names of the victims will be transmitted on Thursday morning, and Israel is making efforts to receive these names earlier. After receiving the names, the victims will be transferred to IDF ambulances waiting at a rendezvous point to be determined between the parties. From there, they will be taken for identification at the Abu Kabir Institute of Forensic Medicine. At the political and military levels, preparations are being made both operationally and in terms of how this will be communicated to the public.
  
  
  The Police's Forensic Identification Division is also preparing for a process that is as complex, precise, and swift as possible. Deputy Commissioner Aliza Raziel, head of the Forensic Identification Division (Mazap) of the Israel Police, spoke in an interview with N12 about the preparations for identifying the bodies, the expected challenges, and the commitment to provide families with unequivocal answers as early as possible.
  
  
  Deputy Commissioner Raziel described a system that has been working non-stop since the beginning of the war, focusing on identifying bodies in the most complex cases. "We are also on high alert and prepared," she said. "Together with the Institute of Forensic Medicine and the IDF, we are ready to receive the bodies and apply all available scientific identification methods. From the beginning of the war, we collected biometric data of the abductees—dental records, fingerprints, and DNA—so that when the time comes, we can compare and identify them accurately."
  
  
  **The Next Phases in the First Stage of the Deal**
  
  
  According to Raziel, when the victims arrive for examination, rapid and accurate identification is primarily possible through dental records. "We have volunteer dentists ready to identify based on dental structures. If the condition allows, fingerprints can also be used for identification, but this depends on the state of the tissues. In cases where these options are not viable, DNA testing remains, for which we have prepared all the data in advance."
  
  
  **The Main Challenge: The Condition of the Bodies**
  
  
  The question of the condition of the bodies to be handed over remains open. "We do not know what the bodies have gone through over the past year and a half," Raziel said. "Their preservation depends on the conditions in which they were held. The more intact the bodies we receive, the faster the identification will be. Teeth, for example, are preserved over time and can provide accurate biometric data. If we have to rely solely on DNA, the process may take longer—but we are prepared to provide unequivocal scientific answers as quickly as possible."
  
  
  Israel's identification system is considered one of the most advanced in the world, and Raziel emphasized the full commitment of all involved parties. "The State of Israel has high capabilities and dedicated professionals like no other. We are working in full cooperation with the IDF, the Institute of Forensic Medicine, and the Ministry of Health. Every required resource is already prepared, and no one will delay anything. The moment there is an opportunity to provide an unequivocal and scientific answer—it will be given." Regarding the extent of intelligence involvement in the process, Raziel clarified that Mazap personnel operate based on science, unrelated to other aspects. "We do not deal with intelligence information. Our role is to identify—and we know how to do this accurately, professionally, and quickly."
  
  
  As the arrival of the bodies approaches, the sense of anticipation within the system is palpable. "All of us, together with the entire nation of Israel, are under pressure and anticipation to see what we will receive, so that we can provide answers to the families and help them achieve closure," Raziel said.
  
  
  The security establishment and the police understand that the upcoming phase is expected to be emotionally charged, but they are also committed to carrying it out in the most professional manner. "We are prepared, we know how to work, and we are committed to providing the most accurate answers, quickly and responsibly. This is our commitment to the families and to the people of Israel."
  
  
  **Channel 12 News Decision:**
  Following discussions with the families of the abductees, it was decided not to broadcast on Thursday any images disseminated by Hamas from Gaza of the victims' coffins, but only images approved by the headquarters of the families of the abductees and official statements from the headquarters and Israeli officials. This is to preserve the dignity of the families and their loved ones.  link
  
  
  

• Netanyahu confidant Dermer to replace Mossad chief as head of Israeli hostage negotiating team

  Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer will lead talks on phase 2 of the hostage release-ceasefire deal with Hamas, according to Channel 12.

  Mossad chief David Barnea has led previous rounds.

  An Israeli official tells The Times of Israel that there has not yet been approval for an Israeli negotiating team to head to Qatar for the talks. link Dermer is Netanyahu's closest confidant and is known to want to go back to fighting in Gaza. Netanyahu removed both the heads of the Mossad and the Shin Bet (the security people) who have been pushing him to give them the full mandate to make a deal and get our hostages back since the beginning of negotiations and Netanyahu has refused including now with discussions for phase 2. Both Barnea and Bar have pushed the return of the hostages as the most important goal of the war. With Dermer, he will now have the head of the negotiations who will do exactly as Netanyahu wants without any issue and the main one is the destruction of Hamas before the lives of the hostages. This is good for Netanyahu but not for the hostages.
  In addition, the cabinet made a decision not to go forward with Phase 2 at this time and that the negotiators are to work on extending Phase1, whatever that means. Phase 2 specifies that the war will end (with different wording). Throughout the war, whenever Netanyahu didn't want to do something that the American administration was demanding, he decided to make it a cabinet decision knowing which way the cabinet would vote and working behind the scenes to make sure that the cabinet, in fact voted against whatever the Americans wanted. Netanyahu did exactly the same thing now with Phase 2. Steve Witcoff, Trump's emissary for the hostage deal has been very forceful in pushing Netanyahu to go forward with Phase 2. It is a known 'secret' that it is Witcoff's pressure that didn't leave Netanyahu with any choice but to approve Phase1. With Phase 2, Netanyahu played the cabinet card so he can hold this up to Witcoff so the pressure will be reduced. It has already had its effect with Trump who said that Netanyahu will do whatever he wants to do but with consulting with him. This is horrible news for the hostages. 
  

  Some hostage families reportedly worried about Dermer heading negotiating team

  Channel 12 reports that some of the hostage families are concerned about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to place Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer at the head of Israel’s hostage negotiating team.

  
  

  The families point to remarks Dermer has made in recent meetings with them during which he said he would not support any hostage deal that brings about an end to the war before Hamas has been fully dismantled.

  
  
• Netanyahu: Israeli conditions for phase two are Hamas disarmament and removal from Gaza, no PA rule
  

  Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told cabinet ministers during a recent meeting that Israel’s conditions in upcoming negotiations on the terms of the hostage deal’s second phase are for Hamas to disarm, for the terror group to have no presence in Gaza and for the Palestinian Authority to be barred from the the post-war management of Gaza, Channel 12 reports.

  It’s unclear whether those demands can coalesce with the effort to release all remaining Israeli hostages, with some analysts speculating that the only way to accomplish the latter goal will be to end the war with Hamas still in Gaza in some form.

  Netanyahu told cabinet ministers that there would be a separate meeting held regarding the phase two negotiations before the Israeli delegation departs for Doha.

  The delegation will be headed by Netanyahu confidant and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer after the premier pushed aside the heads of the Shin Bet, Mossad and IDF hostage point man Nitzan Alon with whom he sparred throughout the negotiations. The security chiefs have long felt that a deal could and should have been reached earlier but that political considerations in Israel hampered those efforts.

  Netanyahu asked ministers not to leak what was being discussed in the meeting, explaining that doing so risks the lives of the hostages.

  Fifty-nine Israelis remain will remain in captivity after the completion of phase one. Twenty-four of them are believed to be alive, while 35 of them have been confirmed dead by Israeli authorities.

  As Israel readies for negotiations regarding phase two, it is also preparing for the potential resumption of the war, with large amounts of troops and equipment being amassed along the Gaza border, Channel 12 says, acknowledging that a return to fighting will be substantial but complex, given that roughly two dozen hostages are still being held throughout Gaza.

• Rescued hostage: Ceasefire must continue to ‘make sure all our loved ones return to us’

  

  Rescued captive Noa Argamani addresses an event to mark over 500 days since the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, at Washington Hebrew Congregation in Washington, DC. (Leigh Vogel)

  Speaking at a Washington synagogue to mark 500 days since the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, rescued captive Noa Argamani calls for the current hostage release and captive deal to continue to its second phase, during which all the hostages are expected to be freed in return for an end to the war in Gaza.

  “This deal right now is so important. It brings our loved ones back to us. My partner Avinatan Or is part of the second stage of this deal. We have to continue to the second stage and make sure all our loved ones return to us,” Argamani says.

  Also addressing the event is former hostage Ilana Gritzewsky, who was freed during the weeklong ceasefire in November 2023. Her boyfriend Matan Zangauker remains in Hamas captivity and is not slated to be released until the deal’s second phase.

  “Despite everything I have been through, I am more Zionist today than I have ever been,” she said. “Israel is where I want to build my family, to raise my kids. But in order for me to see my future in Israel, all of the hostages must come back. There is nothing more aligned with being a Zionist than fighting for our people, it is at the core of our Jewish identity.”

  “In order for me to heal, in order for all of the released hostages to heal and for the country to start recovering — we need to bring them all home. Now.”

  
  

• Hostage families demand clarification from PM over ‘failure’ to hold phase 2 talks: ‘A clear danger to those held’
  

  

  Demonstrators protest for the release of the hostages held in the Gaza Strip, outside the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv, February 18, 2025.(Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

  The families of hostages say that the lack of talks on a second stage of the Gaza hostage-ceasefire deal is a “clear and tangible” danger to their loved ones, as they demand “urgent clarifications” from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the apparent lack of progress in negotiations.

  “The failure to hold phase two [talks] represents a clear and tangible danger to the dozens of live abductees, and the ability to bury the dead on Israeli soil,” the forum says in a statement.

  “The news of the advance return of hostages on Saturday is clear proof that it is possible to expedite the timetables and return everyone in a much shorter period of time,” the statement to Netanyahu reads.

  “The families of the hostages demand urgent clarifications regarding the continuity of the agreement and the clear path to returning our loved ones from captivity. The decisions you will make in the coming moments are fateful,” they say to the premier.

  All six remaining living hostages slated to be released in the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal will be freed Saturday, Israeli and Hamas officials said yesterday, in a surprise move apparently linked to growing worries that the ceasefire and captive release deal in the Gaza Strip could collapse.

  The terror group also said that it would also transfer the bodies of mother Shiri Silberman Bibas and her two young children Ariel and Kfir to Israel tomorrow, as well as that of a fourth unnamed hostage. Israel has confirmed it is expecting to receive four bodies, without identifying them.

  Israel has said it will begin negotiations on the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal in the coming days.

  Fifty-nine Israelis taken during the October 7, 2023 onslaught by Hamas-led terrorists will remain in captivity after the completion of phase one of the deal, of whom 35 have been confirmed dead by Israeli authorities.

  
  

Gaza and the South

• Gaza Arab plan may involve up to $20 billion regional contribution, sources say

  Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is expected to travel to Riyadh on Thursday, two Egyptian security sources say, where he is due to discuss an Arab plan for Gaza that may include up to $20 billion from the region for reconstruction.

  
  

  The Arab proposal, mostly based on an Egyptian plan, involves forming a national Palestinian committee to govern Gaza without Hamas involvement and international participation in reconstruction without displacing Palestinians abroad.

  
  

  A $20 billion contribution from Arab and Gulf states towards the fund, cited by two sources as being a likely figure, may be a good incentive for Trump to accept the plan, Emirati academic Abdulkhaleq Abdullah says.

  
  

  “Trump is transactional so $20 billion would resonate well with him,” Abdullah says. “This would benefit a lot of US and Israeli companies.”

  
  

  Egyptian sources tell Reuters discussions are still under way as to the size of the financial contribution by the region.

  
  

  The plan sees reconstruction taking place over a three-year timeframe, sources say.

  
  

  “My conversations with Arab leaders, most recently King Abdullah, have convinced me they have a really realistic appraisal of what their role should be,” Senator Richard Blumenthal told reporters in Tel Aviv during a visit to Israel on Monday.

  
  

  Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Tel Aviv was waiting to evaluate the plan as it comes together but warned that any plan in which Hamas continued to have presence in Gaza was not acceptable.

  
  

  “When we hear it we will know how to address it,” he said.

  
   
• Qatar says Palestinians must decide future of Gaza and Hamas, not Israel or US

  Qatar, a key mediator in the Gaza conflict, says that Palestinians — not outsiders — must decide the territory’s future after the Israel-Hamas war.

  
  

  Foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari tells a Doha news conference that the issue was “a Palestinian question,” after Israel insisted on removing Hamas and the United States proposed taking over the territory.

  
  

  “From our perspective, this is a Palestinian question on what happens post this conflict,” says Ansari when asked about Israel’s stated objective to eliminate Hamas.

  
  

  “It is a Palestinian question on who represents the Palestinians in an official capacity and also the political groups and parties in the political sphere,” he says.   Link under other circumstances, that is the normal and acceptable idea, but October 7 changed every equation and normal thought. No matter what anyone says, Hamas cannot continue to rule Gaza in any fashion. Israel will not allow that to happen and the Arab countries will not finance the rebuilding of Gaza if Hamas is still part of the governing body. They have been very clear. If Hamas stays, anything built in Gaza can be considered temporary as Israel can and will return and destroy the building. The Gulf States have said that their funding will be for permanent reconstruction and housing and not something to be destroyed in this war of the next.

  
  
• Sissi to travel to Saudi Arabia for talks on Arab plan for Gaza, summit postponed until March 4
  

  Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi is expected to travel to Riyadh on Thursday for discussions on an Arab plan for Gaza, two Egyptian security sources say.

  
  

  Arab states are expected to discuss a postwar plan for Gaza reconstruction, possibly to counter US President Donald Trump’s proposal to redevelop the Strip under US control.

  
  

  The summit, however, has been postponed until March 4, Egypt’s foreign ministry says.

  
  

  
  
• More than $50 billion needed to rebuild Gaza, World Bank joint assessment says

  
  

  More than $50 billion will be required to rebuild Gaza and the West Bank after the 15-month Israel-Hamas conflict, according to an assessment released by the United Nations, European Union and World Bank.

  
  

  The Interim Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment says that $53.2 billion is needed for recovery and reconstruction over the next ten years, with $20 billion needed in the first three

  
  
• IDF says it fired warning shots at Palestinian suspects who approached troops in Gaza

  The IDF says it fired warning shots at Palestinian suspects who approached troops and “posed a threat” in several areas in the Gaza Strip today.

  
  

  In one incident in southern Gaza, the IDF says forces opened fire directly on a suspect who did not withdraw after warning shots.

  
  

  Additionally, a drone strike was carried out as a warning in central Gaza today to prevent a vehicle from driving to the Strip’s north via an unapproved route, the military says.

  
  

  Vehicular traffic is only permitted on the Salah a-Din road, where a private company is inspecting Palestinian cars heading north.

  
  

  “The IDF calls the residents of Gaza to follow its instructions and avoid approaching the troops deployed in the area,” the military adds.

  
  
• Watchdog says Gazan medical personnel detained by Israel since Oct. 7 subjected to widespread abuse
  

  A new report by the Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) organization, which advocates for Palestinian rights, finds that Gazan medical personnel detained and held in Israeli detention facilities during the war with Hamas were subjected to widespread abuse, including beatings, torture, psychological abuse, medical neglect and the provision of insufficient rations.

  The report is based on testimony provided by 24 detainees to PHRI lawyers during visits to the military detention centers or Israel Prison Service facilities where they were being held.

  One detainee, a 38-year-old nurse whose name was given as A.MQ since she is still being held by Israel, said that while interrogated “I was suspended by my wrists from the ceiling, my legs forced backward, and left in that position for hours. They humiliated me and spat on me… During the interrogation in Ofer Prison, they extinguished cigarettes on my head and poured coffee over me. I was brutally beaten.”

  Dr. Khaled Alser, a 32-year-old surgeon who worked at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, stated that during his transfer from Gaza, where he was detained, to holding facilities the soldiers transporting him and other detainees “humiliated and beat us, sitting on us, kicking us with their boots, and striking us with their rifle barrels. We begged them to stop, but they continued.”

  Alser was released from detention without charge in October 2024, after seven months of incarceration.

  Similar claims have been made by other Palestinian detainees in testimony seen by The Times of Israel taken by a separate human rights organization.

  “This deliberate disregard for ensuring humane treatment and legal protections – as mandated by both national and international law – along with the severe lack of oversight, demonstrates Israeli authorities’ unwillingness to end the abuses and confirms their complicity in these unlawful acts,” conclude the report’s authors, Maha Loulou and Oneg Ben Dror.

  The IDF and the Israel Prison Service did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

  Earlier today, five IDF reservist soldiers were indicted on charges of assault for severely beating and injuring a Palestinian security prisoner in the Sde Teiman military detention center.

  
  

Northern Israel - Lebanon/Hizbollah/Syria

• Lebanese search for dead in devastated villages as Israel withdraws

  

  Residents walk amid the rubble of destroyed buldings as they return to the southern Lebanese village of Meis al-Jabal on February 18, 2025. (Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)

  
  

  Residents of south Lebanon have returned to devastated villages, searching for the bodies of relatives killed in last year’s war between Israel and Hezbollah, as Israeli troops withdrew from most of the territory.

  In the frontline village of Kfar Kila, barely a building was left standing. “I reached my neighborhood and I couldn’t tell where my house had been,” says one resident, Noha Hammoud.

  “The entire neighborhood is destroyed.”

  Rescue workers had pulled several bodies from the rubble, and had even found two people still alive, she says. Local sources say those found dead and alive were fighters from Hezbollah, thousands of whom were killed in the war.

  Senior Lebanese politician Ali Hassan Khalil, who hails from the south, says hundreds of residents have gone to inspect more than a half dozen villages that became accessible, adding that the Lebanese army was still working to clear roads.

  However, Israel’s continued presence in five south Lebanon posts left “an open wound,” he adds.

  The conflict, which began when Hezbollah opened fire on October 8, 2023 in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas, displaced tens of thousands of Israelis from northern Israel and more than a million people in Lebanon.

  At the Israeli Kibbutz Misgav Am, next to the border with Lebanon, some residents visited and planted trees.

  “Although we had to evacuate, our hearts stayed here,” says one of the kibbutz members, Daniel Malik. “We really want to come back but there is big uncertainty because we don’t know when it will be safe.”

  In Yaroun, another frontline village in Lebanon, a woman holds a bouquet of spring flowers in one hand and Hezbollah’s yellow flag in another as she surveyed the destruction.

  Rescue workers pulled at least one body from the rubble.

  “Our feeling is a mix of joy and sadness because there are still martyrs we have yet to find,” says returning resident Suhaila Daher. “All the destruction can be replaced, thank God, but the martyrs will not return.”

  Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah, speaking to Reuters in Yaroun, says: “The Israeli enemy is still occupying Lebanese land and this Lebanese land must be liberated and now the primary responsibility falls on the Lebanese state.”

West Bank and Jerusalem and Terror attacks within Israel

• Tens of thousands of Palestinians living in refugee camps in the West Bank have left their homes as a weeks-long Israeli counter-terror offensive has demolished houses and torn up vital infrastructure in the heavily built up townships, Palestinian authorities say.

  
  Smoke billows after an explosion during an Israeli raid in the Nur Shams refugee camp near Tulkarem in the occupied West Bank on February 9, 2025. (Photo by Zain JAAFAR / AFP)

  Israeli forces began their operation in the refugee camp in the northern West Bank city of Jenin on January 21, deploying hundreds of troops and bulldozers that demolished houses and dug up roads, driving almost all of the camp’s residents out.

  The IDF says it carries out these demolitions because many of the roads and homes in these northern West Bank refugee camps are laced with IEDs set up by terror groups in order to deter Israeli operations.

  “We don’t know what’s going on in the camp but there is continuous demolition and roads being dug up,” says Mohammed al-Sabbagh, head of the Jenin camp services committee.

  The operation, which Israel says is aimed at thwarting Iranian-backed terror groups in the West Bank, has since been extended to other camps, notably the Tulkarem refugee camp and the nearby Nur Shams camp, both of which have also been devastated.

  The camps, built for descendants of Palestinian refugees who fled or were driven from their homes in Israel’s 1948 War of Independence, have long been major centers for armed terror groups.

  They have been raided repeatedly by the Israeli military but the current operation, which began as a ceasefire was agreed in Gaza, has been on an unusually large scale.

  According to figures from the Palestinian Authority, around 17,000 people have now left Jenin refugee camp, leaving the site almost completely deserted, while in Nur Shams 6,000 people, or about two-thirds of the total, have left, with another 10,000 leaving from Tulkarem camp.

  “The ones who are left are trapped,” says Nihad al-Shawish, head of the Nur Shams camp services committee. “The Civil Defense, the Red Crescent and the Palestinian security forces brought them some food yesterday but the army is still bulldozing and destroying the camp.”

  The Israeli raids have demolished dozens of houses and torn up large stretches of roadway as well as cutting off water and power, but the military has denied forcing residents to leave their homes.

  “People obviously have the possibility to move or go where they want, if they will. But if they don’t, they’re allowed to stay,” IDF Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani tells reporters.

• Abbas fires top official who pushed back on decree ending ‘pay-to-slay’ system
  
      PA President Mahmoud Abbas at the BRICS summit in Kazan on October 24, 2024. (Alexander Zemlianichenko / POOL / AFP)

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has fired an official who criticized his decision to end a system that paid stipends to the families of prisoners, including those convicted of deadly terror attacks against Israelis.

Abbas has announced the replacement of Qadura Fares as head of a prisoner affairs body, without providing an explanation.

Last week, Abbas put an end to what was known as the “martyrs’ fund,” acquiescing to longstanding demands by the United States and Israel. Many Palestinians viewed the payments as compensation for people harmed in the course of their struggle against Israel.

The United States and Israel had long criticized the practice, saying it incentivized violence.

Abbas is deeply unpopular among Palestinians, many of whom view his Palestinian Authority as corrupt and autocratic.

An undated photo of Qadura Fares, with a picture of jailed Fatah Tanzim leader Marwan Barghouti in the background. (Flash90)

The Hamas terror group, which drove Abbas’s forces from Gaza in 2007, criticized Fares’s firing, saying it reflects the “oppression and exclusion” practiced by the authority and its “submission to Zionist and American dictates.”

Last week, Fares gave a press conference urging the president to immediately withdraw his decree ending the conditioning of welfare payments to Palestinian security prisoners on the length of their sentences in Israeli jails.

While the government will likely continue to provide stipends to many families of prisoners and slain terrorists, it will do so based only on financial need.

Fares criticized Abbas’s decision to transfer the database of information on the families of prisoners and slain attackers from the Social Welfare Ministry to a new independent body called the Palestinian National Foundation for Economic Empowerment.

The Abbas decree went into effect today, and will see Raed Abu al-Humus take Fares’s place as minister.

Politics and the War (general news)

•  

The Region and the World

•    
  

Personal Stories

  

Now free, October 7 'shelter of death' survivor speaks out

After being held hostage for 491 days, Or Levy reunites with young son but confronted with the devastating truth that his wife Einav did not survive the massacre at the Nova festival; also learns fellow captives Hersh, Almog executed by Hamas in Gaza
Or Levy was abducted by terrorists from what has come to be known as the "shelter of death"—a roadside shelter in which dozens of revelers from the nearby Nova music festival, including Levy and his wife Einav, sought refuge as Hamas launched its October 7 terrorist attack.

The small reinforced concrete structure which was meant to save lives, ended up becoming a death trap—Einav was murdered in the shelter alongside 15 other victims.

Aner Shapira (R); Or Levy after being released from captivity

(Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit, AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

On Saturday, Levy finally returned home, reuniting with his 3-year-old son Almog, but also received the devastating news of his wife’s murder.

The heroism displayed in that shelter has already been widely recounted. Among those who fought back against the grenades thrown inside by the terrorists was Aner Shapira, a soldier of the Nahal Brigade’s elite reconnaissance unit who had been on leave that day and was attending the Nova festival. With extraordinary courage, Shapira stood at the shelter’s entrance, repeatedly catching and throwing back the grenades. The eighth grenade exploded in his hands, killing him.

Levy’s mother Geula shared on Saturday with Army Radio that after his release, he said he knew Aner’s story and expressed a strong desire to meet his parents. "He’s a hero, and we all know he’s a hero. Thanks to him, my son is alive," she said. She added that Or recounted how he himself threw the last grenade tossed by the terrorists before he was abducted. "He said he didn’t even have a chance to turn around and see his wife."

From that same shelter, Hersh Goldberg-Polin was also abducted, and was murdered in captivity at the end of August. "Or knows what happened in the shelter; he knows about Polin’s injury. He thought Polin had been released. He asked me if we had heard the name," Geula said. She also revealed that Or mistakenly believed Almog Sarusi, who was murdered alongside Hersh and four other hostages in a tunnel, had been freed. "He was convinced that Hersh and Almog had returned," she said. She noted that Or "was held in a tunnel without communication and could only guess that his wife Einav had been murdered. On Saturday, he asked, and they told him."

Moshe Shapira, the father of Aner, expressed great joy about the release of the man his son had helped save in the shelter, saying he hopes to meet Or soon. "Blessed is He who has kept us alive, sustained us, and brought us to this moment. It’s incredibly moving and incredibly joyous. What Aner started has now come full circle. Or was saved and can now embrace his family and his son, and we pray for the release of all the others. There’s nothing greater than this."

Moshe added, "From the shelter, four people were abducted to Gaza; two of them remain in captivity: Elia Cohen and Alon Ohel. We are praying for their release, and may there be a complete group of survivors thanks to Aner," referring to the fact that seven people from the shelter survived the attack. He continued, "The shelter brought us a heavy blow when Hersh was killed, and we had hoped he would return. He is forever connected to Aner in our hearts. I’m glad we have a little light now. Whenever Or is ready, we’ll be very happy to embrace him and his entire family. We were moved by the return of every hostage, of course, but the hostages from the shelter especially touch our hearts. The state’s mission is to bring all the hostages home as quickly as possible and return to being a unified nation without divisions. This is a matter of saving lives—there is no debate here." Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Hersh’s mother, whose son was abducted from the same shelter along with Or, said: "We received the wonderful news that Eli, Or and Ohad were released today. We feel a deep connection to Or and his family because he and Hersh were abducted together from the same shelter, on the same truck, on October 7. In fact, Or's brother reached out to us immediately after the Sabbath to let us know that one of the first questions Or asked his brother that morning was how Hersh was doing. He assumed Hersh had been released long ago, and his brother had to explain to him that Hersh was murdered five months ago." Hersh’s father, John, added: "Seeing the condition of the three hostages, hearing that Or had no idea what happened to Hersh, that Eli wasn’t aware of the fate of his wife and daughters—it’s just a gut punch for all of us, and it reminds us that we need to do more. I’m speaking directly to President Trump and Steve Witkoff—you’ve shown that you’re the only ones who managed to move this situation forward. Let’s not think in terms of Phase A, Phase B, and Phase C over many months. Let’s think bigger and faster. Release all 76 hostages this week. End the war. Let’s get this done now." link

Dark Legacy - The Abandonment of October 7th Hostages

A Night on the Caesaria Coast

Ephraim Sidon

Author, playwright, and satirist.

We sit here together, us two

In our quiet home feeling the breeze 
We sit here there’s not much to do
 We are well, we are really at ease.

The boys, they are fine, touch wood

As Ben Gurion, who is long gone, said

We always do all that we humanly could

So all mothers (named Sara) sleep calmly in bed.

Peaceful and free of worry

There is no drafting order at the door
Nor three officers saying ‘we’re sorry’
We just rest and enjoy the boredom.

The polls may be quite pessimistic
But I am fighting for votes in all ways

I am told that at Gaza’s borders

There are fewer left-voters nowadays

There are hardly any Meretz supporters

Who’d have thought it, but I was right

Some in Gaza, some whose lives were made shorter Thank God for the rule of the Right.

A night in Caesaria the world is still turning It is all going well, in full force,

No danger, nothing is burning

except for half of the North.

But why be tight-assed, and negative always
I’ve heard it today for a fact

There are still two chicken coops left in Shtula
And one house in Metula intact.

Siren alarms, injured people and drones
But I am relaxed for once

Because the hotels are like homes

I am told they are really a blast.

(And I know all about hotels).

And nowadays everyone in the north

With my kind assistance can cram

For months in one room with the wife and kids, both Stop complaining already, be calm.

My motto:

Keep your head forever up high

No matter how big your debacle

I know Golda wanted to die

I just swim in my new pool and chuckle

Therefore, our sons must keep fighting
‘Ours’ means ‘yours’, that’s the brief

I shall not attend their funerals

Sorry, I’m allergic to grief.

(Photo-ops with rescued hostages, on the other hand...)
A night in Caesarea, no rattle

A lovely silent night

Full of bottles out to recycle

And security men on site.

And I ask with a tear in my eye

With full honesty, you can bet

What more could I do for my country

That I have not done yet?

(Well, there are those 120 hostages left...Big deal, really.)

 

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

IPS - Israel Prison System

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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