🎗️Lonny's War Update- October 576, 2023 - May 4, 2025 🎗️
🎗️Day 576 that 59 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
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
*8:15pm yesterday - IDF says drone ‘from the east’ shot down by Air Force
A drone launched at Israel “from the east,” was shot down by the Israeli Air Force a short while ago, the military says. The drone, apparently launched from Yemen, was intercepted over the Egypt border area. Sirens were not activated in any towns.
*9:20am - Central Israel and Jerusalem areas - balllistic missile from Yemen - The missile was not intercepted and fell in a parking lot at Ben Gurion Airport. 6 wounded in airport missile attack — one in good-to-moderate condition and 5 lightly hurt. They include a man in his 50s in good-to-moderate condition with trauma to his limbs and two women, aged 54 and 38, in good condition who were hit by the shockwave.
A man, 64, was lightly hurt after he was hit by an object that flew from the impact site, and two more women, aged 22 and 34, were lightly hurt while running for shelter, MDA says.
Another two people were treated for acute anxiety.
The wounded were taken to hospitals in central Israel.
Now the big question is how our multifaceted air defenses didn't succeed to intercept this missile which made its way to one of the most important and protected spaces in the country?
Ben Gurion Airport reopens its airspace after temporarily halting takeoffs and landings following the firing of a ballistic missile from Yemen that impacted an area at the country’s main airport.
The airspace was closed for around an hour.
“Ben Gurion Airport is open for operations,” Israel Airport Authority says in a statement. “Takeoffs and landings have returned to normal.”
Staff Sgt. Yaly Seror (L) and Cpt. Noam Ravid (R), who were killed in a tunnel blast in Rafah, Gaza on May 3, 2025 (IDF)
Two IDF soldiers were killed and two were wounded in an explosion in a booby-trapped tunnel shaft in southern Gaza’s Rafah Saturday, the military announced.
The slain troops were named as Cpt. Noam Ravid, 23 from Sha’arei Tikva and Staff Sgt. Yaly Seror, 20, from Omer. Both served in the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit, the military said Sunday.
According to an initial IDF probe, the Yahalom soldiers, operating under the Golani Brigade, were scanning the entrance to a tunnel inside a building when they were suddenly hit by an explosion.
The deaths brought Israel’s toll in the ground offensive against Hamas in Gaza and in military operations along the border with the Strip to 416.
One of the wounded soldiers was listed in serious condition, while the other was moderately hurt.
In a separate incident on Saturday, a reservist with the Jerusalem Brigade’s 7007th Battalion was seriously wounded in northern Gaza. The circumstances of his injury are still under investigation, the military said.
Also on Saturday, two soldiers of the 401st Armored Brigade’s 46th Battalion were wounded, one moderately and one lightly, in a blast in an army encampment in the area of Gaza City’s eastern Daraj and Tuffah neighborhoods.
According to an initial IDF investigation, the blast was apparently caused by a tank shell that detonated prematurely when it was being fired. Another possibility being looked into was that a mortar struck the area.
In a separate incident on Saturday, a reservist with the Jerusalem Brigade’s 7007th Battalion was seriously wounded in northern Gaza. The circumstances of his injury are still under investigation, the military said.
Hamas releases new video of hostage Maxim Herkin after 575 days in captivity
Less than a month since his last sign of life, terror group releases new footage of Herkin—this time appearing alone, without Bar Kupershtein, who was seen beside him in the previous video
Hamas on Saturday released a new video showing Israeli hostage Maxim Herkin, offering another sign of life more than 575 days after his abduction during the October 7, 2023, attacks.The video was made public by the terrorist group but will only be released in full or in part with the family’s consent, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
Maxim HerkinLast month, Hamas released a previous video showing Herkin alongside fellow hostage Bar Kupershtein. That marked the first visual confirmation of their status in captivity. Prior to that release, the group had issued a brief preview clip in which Herkin’s family confirmed hearing his voice—his first sign of life since the attack.In February, Russian news agency TASS reported that Hamas had told Moscow it would consider a Russian request to release Herkin, who has family members holding Russian citizenship.About two weeks earlier, senior Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk had visited Moscow amid negotiations over a potential hostage deal. At the time, he said that Herkin’s release would be prioritized in the second phase of talks—negotiations that ultimately collapsed with the breakdown of a ceasefire.In Gaza, 59 hostages are still being held by Hamas, according to Israeli officials. Of those, 24 are believed to be alive.- Former hostage says ‘evil’ government ‘led us like sheep to the slaughter’
Former hostage Gadi Mozes calls on the government to end the war in Gaza in order to save the remaining captives in Gaza.
Mozes spoke earlier tonight at a protest calling for a hostage deal in Kiryat Gat.
“For the first time in my life, I could not say ‘Glory of the State of Israel,’… on Independence Day,” Mozes laments.
He blasts the “evil” government that did not protect Israelis on October 7, “led us like sheep to the slaughter” and does not take responsibility for what was allowed to unfold on October 7.
He says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has managed to dent all state institutions, from the High Court of Justice, to the Attorney General’s Office, to the IDF.
“This war is pointless and wastes the state’s resources,” Mozes says. “The two million Gazans will not disappear.”
He says the IDF must pursue any hostile actor, but at the same time, Israel must prioritize the hostages.
“The military conflict must end and everyone must be brought home,” Mozes says.
- Weekly nationwide rallies begin, with dozens calling for hostages’ release in Rehovot
Protesters begin to gather for weekly, nationwide protests against the government and in support of a deal to return hostages held captive by Hamas in Gaza.
Dozens rally at Rehovot’s Technology Park, waving Israeli flags and yellow hostage flags.
One of the signs displayed reads, “What have you done this week to support the families of the hostages.”
- Tens of thousands gathering for anti-government protest in Tel Aviv
Anti-government protesters gather at Habima Square, Tel Aviv, May 3, 2025. (Zohar Bar-Yehuda/Pro-Democracy Protest Movement)
Anti-government protesters gather at Habima Square, Tel Aviv, May 3, 2025. (Zohar Bar-Yehuda/Pro-Democracy Protest Movement)
Tens of thousands of people are attending that weekly anti-government protest at Habima Square in Tel Aviv, according to a count by the Ynet news site.
Protesters wave Israeli flags, yellow hostage flags, and banners reading anti-government slogans, such as “Netanyahu is a danger to Israel.”
Some banners reference Independence Day earlier in the week, saying that there can be no “independence” as long as hostages are held in Gaza.
- Einav Tzangaukar: Calling up reserves for another round will only result in hostages' deaths
- Kidnapped Soldier Nimrod Cohen's Brother: Netanyahu's Peace War is a War to Kill the Hostages
- IDF: Forces operating in Shuja'iyya eliminated dozens of militants in the area
US and Israel near agreement to resume Gaza aid deliveries, report
Two countries reportedly finalizing a deal to resume aid to Gaza via a new distribution system, as Israel’s Security Cabinet prepares to approve expanded military operations in the Strip
The U.S. and Israel are close to finalizing a new agreement that would resume humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza, American outlet Axios reported early Saturday, citing two Israeli officials and a U.S. source familiar with the matter.The deal would outline a new distribution mechanism designed to prevent Hamas from seizing the aid, with the IDF having no direct involvement. Officials said the goal is to get this mechanism in place before the IDF expands its ground operations in the Strip.According to the report, the aid will be delivered through an internationally backed trust fund supported by donor countries and philanthropic organizations. Aid would be delivered to designated hubs inside Gaza, where Palestinian families could collect one aid package per week, enough to last seven days.An informed source said Israel has committed to funding and executing the engineering work needed to build the infrastructure for these distribution sites.The developing agreement also includes a provision for a private American company to handle logistics and provide security at and around the aid centers. Israeli officials stressed that the IDF will not be involved in the distribution process or present at the sites but will offer indirect security in other areas of Gaza.Israel halted humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza roughly two months ago, following the end of the first phase of the hostage deal and the collapse of talks for a second phase. Defense Minister Israel Katz said two weeks ago that Israel is preparing to resume aid deliveries but only through a new civilian-operated infrastructure.On Sunday, the Security Cabinet is expected to approve expanded combat plans for Gaza, including a broader reserve call-up. Reservists will be divided into two groups: combat battalions for offensive operations deep in the Strip and full brigades to replace compulsory service units entering Gaza as the spearhead of the new operation.The planned escalation does not appear to include a full-scale invasion or complete reoccupation of the Strip but rather another significant step up in operations. Israeli officials said Friday that hostage deal negotiations are nearing exhaustion and Israel will intensify its military efforts if Hamas continues to reject a deal.- Unidentified groups looting north Gaza supply warehouses, shops
Palestinian children and women struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, May 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)Armed groups and others have looted warehouses of supplies in northern Gaza as desperation spikes after more than two months of Israel’s blockade of the territory, locals and aid workers say, as Israel’s latest airstrikes continued into Saturday, killing over a dozen people.
Messages circulated among security officials for aid groups and seen by The Associated Press, and witnesses and organizations in Gaza, say looting has occurred since Wednesday by unidentified people, armed and unarmed. They’ve broken into warehouses held by the UN and aid groups as well as commercial warehouses, bakeries, stores, and shops, they say.
Israel has blocked humanitarian aid from entering Gaza since the latest ceasefire with Hamas in March ended.
Israel has said the blockade and its renewed military campaign are intended to pressure Hamas to release the remaining 59 hostages it still holds, and to disarm the Palestinian terror group.
- IDF says it struck over 100 targets in Gaza over the weekend
The IDF says it struck over 100 targets in the Gaza Strip over the weekend.
The targets hit by Israeli Air Force aircraft included cells of operatives, tunnel infrastructure, and buildings used by terror groups, the military says.
The strikes come as ground troops continue to operate across the Strip.
In northern Gaza, the IDF says the 252nd Division located a cache of weapons and killed several operatives; in southern Gaza’s Morag Corridor, the 36th Division located additional weapons and killed operatives by directing airstrikes; and in Rafah, the Gaza Division destroyed dozens of “terror infrastructures” and killed several operatives.
Hamas-run authorities said dozens were killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza on Friday and Saturday. The numbers cannot be verified and do not differentiate between combatants and civilians.
- 7 Palestinians killed in Gaza strikes, Hamas-run authorities say
Hamas-run authorities say at least seven Palestinians including two parents and their two children, ages 2 and 4, were killed in Israeli airstrikes in southern and central Gaza Strip.
Asked about the strikes, the Israeli military has no direct comment.
There is no verification of the toll and Hamas-run authorities do not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
Gaza and the South
PFLP terror chief detained in Syria, officials from the group say
Officials from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command say Syrian authorities detained the head of the terror faction, which was close to the ousted ruler Bashar al-Assad’s government.An official from the Damascus-based terror group, requesting anonymity as the matter is sensitive, tells AFP that “secretary-general Talal Naji was arrested” in the capital. A second official confirms the arrest, while a third source from the faction says “Naji was asked… to report to one of the security branches and has not returned. Most likely, he was arrested.”
IAF sends aid to Druze in southern Syria, 70 km from Israel — report
An Israeli Air Force helicopter ferried unspecified equipment and humanitarian aid to Syrian Druze in the Sweida area of southern Syria, some 70 kilometers from Israel, Army Radio reports, citing sources with knowledge of the matter.Syrian media reported that an IAF helicopter had landed in the Sweida area last night, but reportedly to pick up several wounded Druze who were brought to Ziv Hospital in Safed.
The IDF has not commented on the claims that it delivered aid to Syrian Druze overnight, but did confirm that five wounded were evacuated to Israel for treatment.
- IDF footage shows last night’s airstrikes in Syria
The IDF releases footage from last night’s airstrikes in Syria.
According to the military, 12 Israeli Air Force fighter jets struck dozens of targets in Syria, including anti-aircraft artillery and surface-to-air missile infrastructure.
“The IDF will continue to work to preserve freedom of aerial action to carry out its tasks and remove any threat in the area,” the military adds. Video
Syrian Druze man in Israeli hospital says he fell 12 meters to flee violence
A Syrian Druze man, 37, who was evacuated from Syria, says his back was injured when he jumped from a height of 12 meters to escape violence.
“It’s a full circle for me to be in the hospital in Israel. My grandfather grew up here, and I have family in Rameh,” he tells the Ynet news site, referencing the northern Arab town.
- International Fellowship: 1,500 humanitarian aid packages delivered to Druze in Syria
- Syrians, including child with head injury, treated at northern Israel hospital since Thursday
Ziv Medical Center in Safed says that 21 wounded Syrians, with varying degrees of injury, have been treated at the hospital since Thursday, including two women in advanced stages of pregnancy and an 8-year-old girl with a head injury.
Six patients have since been discharged and returned to Syria after receiving treatment, and 15 patients remain hospitalized.
The hospital says that 12 of the wounded are men with gunshot and shrapnel injuries to various parts of their bodies. They are in stable condition and are being hospitalized in the surgical and orthopedic departments.
At the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya, a 37-year-old Druze man from a village in Syria was brought in on Friday night in moderate condition, after being injured during an attempt to escape violence by jumping from a height of 12 meters.
The injured man is being hospitalized in the Spinal Surgery Unit and is expected to undergo spinal surgery in the coming hours.
- Top IDF general, officials visited Syria to meet Druze leaders – report
Maj. Gen. Ghassan Alian, who heads the Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories, was in Syrian territory recently to meet leaders of the Druze community, Army Radio reports.
He was joined by other officials and IDF officers to discuss the community’s humanitarian and security needs, according to the report.
On Friday night, an Israeli Air Force helicopter ferried humanitarian aid to the Sweida area of southern Syria. The delivery came amid Israeli warnings to Syria’s new Islamist rulers not to harm their country’s Druze minority following deadly sectarian clashes.
- IDF to raze some 90 homes in refugee camps near Tulkarm in 1st large-scale demolition in the area
The Israeli military is set to demolish approximately 90 homes in the Tulkarm and Nur Shams refugee camps near the city of Tulkarm in the northern West Bank.
According to a notice delivered by the IDF to Palestinian residents, the demolitions are being carried out for “clear security needs.”
This marks the first significant wave of home demolitions in the area as part of the ongoing IDF counter-terror operation in Tulkarm, which has been underway for three months. According to Palestinian media reports, some 25,000 people have been displaced from their homes in the two camps amid the operation.
While the military has previously operated in the refugee camps, demolitions on this scale have not occurred until now.
Roughly a month ago, the IDF demolished around 100 homes in the Jenin refugee camp, as part of the ongoing IDF operation there, also citing operational necessity. link This is clearly bringing Gaza to the West Bank. Tulkarem is in Area A which is supposed to be under the full authority (civilian and security) of the Palestinian Authority. A majority of Palestinians see the PA as a collaborator with the Israeli Military Occupation and in many ways, it has been. Since Oslo, the PA has closely collaborated with our security forces in preventing terror attacks within Israel and throughout the West Bank. Even at low periods when Abu Mazen, President of the PA has threatened to cut off the security coordination, he hasn't done so. What is not known to most of the Israeli public is that this coordination has literally prevented thousands of potential terror attacks. Netanyahu has spent his career purposely weakening the PA, while strengthening Hamas to show that there is no partner for peace. This weakening of the PA has also weakened their security apparatus which then lost control in major cities such as Jenin and Tulkarem which then enabled Hamas and other terror organizations to thrive and build up their terror infrastructures (tunnels, weapons manufacturing, weapons smuggling, money transfers and smuggling, terror training, etc) and recruitments of more terrorists as these are the organizations that have money to pay good salaries and help people support their families. Netanyahu's multi faceted ignoring of the situation in Gaza and the West Bank, while solely focuses on Iran has allowed the major build up of terrorist forces which led to October 7 and the growth of the terror organizations under our noses. The right thing should have been to strengthen the PA and enable it to reign in the terror organizations, which they also have declared as their enemies. It is not too late for that to happen and then allow the terror groups throughout the West Bank to truly be the problem of the PA and the Palestinian public and not Israel's. It would be much more affective and have better impact for the future of the Palestinians and for Israel and lead the way to peaceful negotiations for the end of the Israel/Palestine conflict. But that will never happen with Netanyahu and his extremist government. Instead, they look to destroy and to drive out as many Palestinians as possible in what the world defines as ethnic cleansing, an international war crime. And instead of looking to make peace and build friendship (in the long term) and partnership, we just keep creating more and more people who hate us and want to destroy us. This is not the way of true leadership. It is the way of cowards and narrow thinkers who can't get out of their own way.
IDF calls up tens of thousands of reservists ahead of expanded Gaza offensive
The IDF says it is sending out tens of thousands of call-up orders to reservists this evening, as the military is set to significantly expand its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
On Friday, during a security consultation, the military presented Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with its planned offensive in Gaza, which will require substantial mobilization.
Israel’s security cabinet is slated to convene tomorrow so ministers can vote to approve the military plans authorized by Netanyahu.
Currently, three IDF divisions are operating in Gaza, in an offensive that the military has said is aimed at pressuring Hamas back into a hostage deal, and not destroying the terror group.
Israeli officials have repeatedly warned that if no hostage deal is reached soon, the military would launch a major offensive aimed at defeating Hamas. The intensified offensive will see the IDF operating in new areas of the Strip.
The tens of thousands of reservists being called up tonight will begin to show up in the military this coming week, according to the IDF. The reservists have likely been called up multiple times already during the war.
The IDF has said that it sees the return of the 59 hostages still held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip as the most important goal of the war, with defeating the terror group in second place.
- Hitting back, Qatar says PM portraying Gaza op as ‘defense of civilization’ echoes dark regimes of old
After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declares in a statement on his official X account that it’s time for Qatar to “decide if it’s on the side of civilization or… Hamas barbarism,” Doha hits back that the premier’s portrayal of the IDF’s ongoing military operation in Gaza “as a defense of ‘civilization'” echoes the justifications of dark regimes throughout history.
“Portraying the ongoing aggression against Gaza as a defense of ‘civilization’ echoes the rhetoric of regimes throughout history that have used false narratives to justify crimes against innocent civilians,” Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari says.
Recalling Qatar’s extensive role in hostage deal negotiations, the spokesperson, Majed Al Ansari, says that “a legitimate question must be raised.”
“Were the releases of no fewer than 138 hostages achieved through so-called ‘just’ military operations, or through the very mediation that is now being unjustly criticized and undermined?” he asks.
“Meanwhile, the Palestinian people in Gaza are enduring one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes of modern times—marked by a suffocating blockade, systematic starvation, denial of medicine and shelter, and the use of humanitarian aid as a tool of political coercion,” Ansari continues. “Is this truly the model of ‘civilization’ being promoted?
He stresses that Qatar will continue to work with both Egypt and the US to secure a long-lasting ceasefire and hostage release deal, and to “advance a just and lasting peace — one grounded in justice and humanity, not violence and double standards.” link Netanyahu's attacks on Qatar are so transparent. They are entirely his ways of deflection, again. He wants to deflect and divert the news and people's attention away from Qatargate and the hostages.
- The Failed Operation, The Upcoming Operation Operation "Strength and Sword" in Gaza did not secure the release of a single hostage, and there are concerns the fighting endangered hostages' lives. Now, as the IDF announces a transition to a new, broader, more intense operation, the military owes us answers:
- Ex-security chiefs, Nobel laureates urge IDF to reverse dismissal of reservists who called to free hostages by ending war
Roughly 180 former senior officials from the security establishment and current academics have signed a letter to IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miarai and Military Advocate General Brig. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi urging them to reverse the IDF’s decision to dismiss the reservists who joined a public call for the government to free the remaining hostages by ending the war in Gaza.
“The IDF is not permitted to censor the statements of civilians, even if they are members of the reserve forces, when those statements are not made during active service,” the letter reads.
“It is also not permitted to demand that they refrain from a moral call to make the issue [of the hostages] a priority. Whether it is a formal decision to dismiss them or a ‘quiet dismissal’ in the form of a policy of not calling up those who signed such letters for reserve duty, this is an invalid sanction that violates the basic civil right to freedom of expression.”
Signatories of the letter include former IDF chiefs of staff Dan Halutz and Moshe Ya’alon; former Mossad chief Danny Yatom, former Shin Bet chief Carmi Gillon; retired IDF generals Nimrod Shefer and Guy Tzur; former deputy national security adviser Eran Etzion; and former Nobel Prize winners Aaron Ciechanover, Ada Yonath and Dan Shechtman.
- Wizz Air suspends Israel flights for 48 hours after Houthi missile attack on airport
Hungarian low-cost airline giant Wizz Air announces it is canceling its flights to Israel for the next 48 hours after a ballistic missile from Yemen struck an area of Ben Gurion Airport.
Wizz Air says it is suspending its flights until May 6 in the morning and is “closely monitoring the situation.”
Wizz Air joins major airlines, including German carrier Lufthansa, Air France, Air Europa, Austrian, and Swiss Airlines in halting flight services to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport.
Earlier on Sunday, Ben Gurion Airport temporarily halted takeoffs and landings following the launch of a ballistic missile from Yemen, a number of minutes before the projectile entered Israeli airspace. The IDF failed to intercept the missile. The airport was fully reopened an hour later.
Why should this operation succeed where the last one failed?
"And sometimes the celebration ends," wrote Naomi Shemer in one of her seminal songs. For many, this year's Independence Day celebration ended before it even began. It's hard to enjoy a bombastic spectacle at Mount Herzl when just a hundred meters downhill, there are so many fresh graves. The grief and rage refuse to subside—because not one of the systemic failures that led to the October 7 disaster has been resolved, neither during the holiday nor before it.
"To wake tomorrow and start anew," Shemer continued. Not this time. This time, we wake to a post-holiday morning knowing nothing today will guarantee a fresh start: no tidings, no vision, no leadership. Israel’s 77th Independence Year ended with firefighting helicopters grounded because one man—the delinquent Itamar Ben-Gvir—wanted to spite his police commissioner, and another—Benjamin Netanyahu, who’d been warned in writing—once again fell asleep at the wheel. This is no promising start to Year 78.
What Awaits Us? Listen to the Leaders’ Speeches
We must heed the holiday speeches by the Prime Minister and IDF Chief of Staff. Both promised to escalate Gaza fighting in coming days. Netanyahu vowed to "crush," Zamir pledged to "decisively defeat." "We will do this soon," said the Chief of Staff. "We will increase the pace and intensity of operations. We will deploy all available force. We will act with determination: The IDF is ready to deliver a knockout blow."
Fine words—this is how chiefs of staff should speak: resolute, forceful. The problem is, this time it’s not ceremonial rhetoric. This is the operational plan about to unfold. Speeches deserve applause; operational plans demand scrutiny.
First Question: Why Did "Strength and Sword" Fail?
Operation "Strength and Sword," launched by the IDF and Shin Bet in mid-March, aimed to pressure Hamas into flexibility on hostage releases. Most hostage families opposed it, fearing renewed combat would get their loved ones killed—by IDF bombs or terrorist executions. They suspected political motives: prolonging the war at any cost to preserve the coalition.
"This isn’t the government’s plan—it’s ours," the IDF insisted. "This is how we’ll free the hostages." A month and a half later—a long time by Israel’s wartime standards—terrorists were eliminated, soldiers killed and wounded, civilians dead.
By outcome, the operation failed: Not one hostage was freed. The Hamas-government deadlock persists. Were fears about endangering hostages justified? I don’t know. But the hints dropped by Netanyahu and his wife, downplaying the hostage issue, bode ill.
Now, as the IDF effectively declares "Strength and Sword" over and transitions to a new, expanded, more intense operation , the military owes answers:
- Why did the operation fail?
- How will the new operation differ?
- Why believe this one will succeed?
"What Force Can’t Achieve, More Force Will"
As we said in childhood: "What force can’t achieve, more force will." I fear this is the strategic thinking behind the new operation. Alternatively, perhaps the IDF leadership, like the government’s, has chosen to abandon the hostages. The war on Hamas is again becoming Gaza’s primary, real objective. At best, hostages are a secondary goal; at worst, a pretext.
Expanding Gaza operations will likely require renewed reserve brigade call-ups. The orders won’t be welcomed in many homes:
- Wives will ask husbands: Why again? What’s the goal—is it worth the cost?
- Employers will ask.
If the army expects Netanyahu and Katz to do its persuasion, it hopes in vain. Reservists don’t look to them for answers. Believers will believe; the rest will turn their eyes to the Chief of Staff.
The Unanswered "Day After" Question
The IDF may have concluded that only mass starvation and reoccupation can end Hamas’s era. There’s no alternative. But this doesn’t absolve the military of the question plaguing it since the ground maneuver began over a year ago: What’s Gaza’s "day after" solution?
- Is Israel aiming for occupation, transfer, and settlement ?
- Does it have enough brigades to sustain occupation?
- Is it praying for a new Hamas to emerge?
The Chief of Staff surely knows the line from Alice in Wonderland :
"If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you nowhere." link
- The Region and the World
The Muslim Brotherhood Suffers Another Blow
The war in Gaza has amplified the power of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, who organized protests against Israel and called for the annulment of the peace agreement. The resumption of hostilities in March 2025 further radicalized their activity, until the King decided to outlaw them. For Israel, this move is an important achievement that strengthens the stability of the Jordanian regime. Commentary follows.
The announcement by Jordanian Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya regarding the closure of Muslim Brotherhood offices, their outlawing, and the confiscation of their assets was seemingly expected and necessary following the exposure of a terror network of Muslim Brotherhood members suspected of planning terrorist attacks. With this, Jordan joined Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and other countries that have outlawed the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas.
Since the establishment of the Muslim Brotherhood’s branch in Jordan in 1945, its relationship with the regime has experienced ups and downs. The movement’s leader, Sheikh Abd al-Latif Abu Qura, was close to King Abdullah I, and thus the movement received permission to operate. Since then, the movement flourished and prospered, and its members participated in public roles. Members of the movement were appointed as heads of the Waqf and as preachers in mosques across Jordan. In the 1960s and 1970s, one of the Brotherhood’s leaders served as Minister of Education and actively revised textbooks.
With the lifting of the state of emergency imposed in 1967, parliamentary elections were held in 1989, bringing the Brotherhood to play a significant role in Jordanian politics. One member of the organization even served as Speaker of the Parliament between 1990–1993. The Brotherhood also joined King Hussein’s policy of supporting Iraqi ruler Saddam Hussein when he invaded Kuwait in 1990. To blur the association between the organization and its parliamentary representatives, in 1992 the "Islamic Action Front" was established.
End of an Era in Jordan
The peace agreement with Israel in October 1994 brought about the first crisis between the regime and the Brotherhood due to condemnations and religious rulings they issued against the agreement. The organization of Hamas operatives also influenced a radicalization among the Brotherhood, which was directed not only against Israel but also against the regime. Accordingly, one of King Abdullah II’s first decisions in 1999 was to close Hamas offices and expel several of its operatives, including head of the political bureau Khaled Mashal, who survived an Israeli assassination attempt two years earlier.
The Arab Spring protests caused another crisis between the regime and the Muslim Brotherhood as they supported political reforms and the reduction of the King’s powers. Moreover, the rise of the Brotherhood in Egypt strengthened the movement in Jordan, creating an Islamic coalition between the countries that threatened the Jordanian regime. In January 2013, the Muslim Brotherhood even declared that Jordan would become an "Islamic Caliphate," thus escalating the crisis.
The violent protests against the Israeli embassy in Amman in March 2014 and the intelligence provided by Israel led to the arrest of 31 members of the organization on charges of smuggling weapons to the West Bank.
While the Sisi regime in Egypt outlawed the Brotherhood, the King preferred to handle the issue differently by fostering and encouraging a more moderate stream within the Muslim Brotherhood, which did not advocate involvement in the Israeli-Arab conflict but focused on promoting domestic issues. At the same time, the authorities restricted the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood. In 2020, the court even ordered the dissolution of the movement and the confiscation of its property, thereby strengthening the parallel movement supported by the regime. However, the regime did not harm the Islamic Action Front – the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood – which continued to participate in elections.
King Abdullah Declares War
Since the war in Gaza in October 2023, the movement's influence on the Jordanian public, which already identified with the Palestinians, increased. While the Jordanian regime was portrayed in the media as cooperating with Israel and helping it behind the scenes to thwart Iranian attacks, the Muslim Brotherhood figures were perceived by the public as the true defenders of the Palestinians. They organized weekly protests in front of the Israeli embassy, called for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and for the cancellation of the peace agreement. They also announced a boycott of international companies that maintained ties with Israel, held solidarity strikes with the Palestinians, and raised funds for them.
The broad public sympathy the movement received was reflected in the results of the parliamentary elections in September 2024, in which the Islamic Action Front won 31 seats (out of 138). This was one of the greatest achievements in the history of the movement and proof of its power among the Jordanian public, encompassing not only the periphery – the movement’s stronghold – but also urban centers.
The resumption of the war in Gaza in March 2025 renewed protests in front of the Israeli embassy and further radicalized the Brotherhood's position. Security forces now acted more decisively, and harsh criticism was heard against them on social media. In this respect, the exposure of the terror network played into the hands of the regime and gave it legitimacy to deal with the Muslim Brotherhood movement and restore calm to the streets.
The statement from the Interior Minister indicates that the regime's intent is actually to enforce the court ruling from five years ago – a decision that had not been fully implemented until now. It seems the King realized that all his attempts at containment – rather than direct confrontation like in Egypt – had failed and that he had no choice left. It is also possible that the rise of a new regime in Syria headed by an extremist Islamic figure served as an additional trigger, out of fear that the existence of such a regime at Jordan’s doorstep might encourage extremist Islamic elements and thus threaten the stability of the kingdom.
As it currently appears, the regime does not intend to outlaw the Islamic Action Front – the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood. If indeed the regime takes an additional step and also declares the Front an illegal organization, it will prove that it is truly headed for a full-scale war against radical political Islam in the country. In such a case, the House of Representatives would be dissolved and new elections would likely be held.
In any case, the Muslim Brotherhood movement has suffered a severe blow that will make it difficult for it to continue operating in Jordan. From the perspective of Israel and the West in general, any blow to the Muslim Brotherhood aligns with their interests, namely – strengthening the stability of the regime and preserving the peace agreement.
Prof. Eli Podeh teaches in the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at the Hebrew University and is a member of the executive board of Mitvim; Prof. Ronen Yitzhak is head of the Middle East Studies Division at the Western Galilee Academic College and a researcher at the Dayan Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Tel Aviv University. link
Waltz’s ‘intense coordination’ with Netanyahu on Iran strike contributed to firing — report
US President Donald Trump was angered by his recently ousted national security adviser Mike Waltz’s hawkish position on Iran and coordination with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on military options to destroy Tehran’s nuclear program, The Washington Post reports, citing senior officials and Trump advisers.
Waltz faced criticism inside the White House when, in March, he was blamed for accidentally adding the editor of The Atlantic to a group chat in the Signal messaging app describing details of an imminent US bombing campaign in Yemen.
According to the report, Trump’s frustration with Waltz grew over time ahead of his firing. Two of the people who speak to The Post say that Waltz upset the president when he held “intense coordination” with Netanyahu on possible military options for Iran before their White House meeting in February.
Waltz “wanted to take US policy in a direction Trump wasn’t comfortable with because the US hadn’t attempted a diplomatic solution,” one of the sources says.
“It got back to Trump and the president wasn’t happy with it,” the person says.
Earlier in the week, Trump announced Waltz would be the next US ambassador to the United Nations, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio was named as his interim replacement
- Pro-Gaza activists say Malta, Greece, Turkey threatened to confiscate drone-hit boat if it comes to port
A ship apparently carrying humanitarian aid and activists bound for Gaza that was said to have been hit by drones in international waters off Malta, remains stranded as a number of countries say they will confiscate the vessel if it comes to port.
The Saudi Al Arabiya news channel, citing a Western security source, reported that the convoy was organized by Hamas and that those onboard planned to engage with IDF troops as they approached the Gaza shore.
Video apparently taken after the explosions Thursday-Friday showed two large holes in the ship’s deck, with thick smoke surrounding the vessel. The person recording the footage said the ship had been hit twice.
The ship’s generator was badly damaged and will need to be repaired before continuing, says Charlie Andreasson, who has been involved with the so-called Freedom Flotilla for more than a decade.
It’s unclear where the ship will be able to stop for repairs, says Tighe Barry, a Codepink member who was among a group of activists who took speedboats to the Conscience after the attack.
The boats were turned away by Maltese authorities, he says, but one person made it aboard and spoke to the captain.
Barry says the nation of Palau revoked its flag from the Conscience prior to the attack, and authorities in Malta, Greece and Turkey have threatened to confiscate the ship if it comes to port.
“To get a new flag will take months, so they’re just stuck out there,” Barry says of the crew.
For the first time – a military confrontation between Israel and Turkey in the skies of Syria
A media outlet affiliated with the opposition in Turkey reported that Turkish fighter jets crossed the border over the weekend and delivered strong messages to the Israeli fighter jets • In the widespread wave of Israeli strikes, according to the report, targets of pro-Turkish militias operating in Syria were attacked • The IDF denies the reportThe air forces of Israel and Turkey came, over the weekend, for the first time, to a direct confrontation between them in the skies of Syria, as was reported this morning (Sunday) on the SOGEZHU website, which is affiliated with the opposition in Turkey. According to the report, Turkish fighter jets crossed the border into Syria during the wide-scale Israeli strike – and conveyed “warning messages” to the Israeli jets, which attacked, among others, forces affiliated with Turkey. The IDF denies the report.
According to the report, Turkish fighter jets of the F-16 type crossed the border into the airspace of Syria during the intense Israeli strikes in the country on the night between Friday and Saturday, and appeared “face to face” with the Israeli fighter jets. The Turkish fighter pilots, so according to the report, transmitted messages to the Israeli pilots via the aircrafts’ electronic warfare systems and communication equipment.
In the wave of attacks, which according to the reports was one of the broadest and largest by Israel since the fall of the Assad regime, Israeli Air Force jets also attacked targets of the Syrian pro-Turkish militias “Sultan Murad” and “Suleiman Shah.” These are local Syrian forces affiliated with Turkey and subject to its authority, and it is possible that they even receive direct support in weapons, logistics, and training from Ankara and the government of Erdogan.
Joulani and Erdogan (Photo: AP)Erdogan at the NATO summit in Washington 2024 | Photo: APAccording to a series of reports published in recent weeks, including by Reuters and by several Turkish sources, the Turkish army is acting to gain a military foothold in Syria in the era after the fall of Assad. According to the reports, Turkish army forces and its air force units are working to establish themselves, among other locations, at the T4 base in Homs and the air force base in Hama. The goal, according to the reports – is the placement of Turkish UAV arrays in the location and air defense systems that could limit the freedom of operation of Israeli Air Force aircraft in Syrian skies.
T4 base in Syria that Israel attacked before the arrival of Turkish forces | Photo: from Iranian media, NewsRecently it was reported by Reuters that at the end of March, Israeli Air Force jets attacked the T4 base in Syria, which for years had been used by Russian military forces in the country during the Assad regime. According to the report, the strike was carried out during the night hours, just a few hours before a professional technical delegation from the Turkish army was supposed to arrive at the site and examine the possibility of making it operational again. Over the course of a series of strikes in the past two months, the Air Force, according to the reports, destroyed all the infrastructure at the site, including the control tower and the runways.
Last week, Turkish President Erdogan again criticized Israel's attacks in Syria, and said that they were intended to harm the “good atmosphere” that had formed in the country after the fall of Assad. Over the weekend, a day before the major airstrike in the country, including in the provinces of Hama and Latakia and in the capital Damascus, the Air Force carried out a strike near the presidential palace in Damascus of President Ahmad al-Sharaa, a friend of Turkey, as a message about the ongoing harm to the Druze. link
- Personal Stories
"In the middle of the night he knocked on the door and said he came back for me, like in a movie"
Hundreds of thousands of Israelis were forced to leave their homes during the war overnight. No one imagined that precisely within this chaos emotional stories would grow. The connection that started thanks to the grandmother who schemed behind the scenes, the couple who live five minutes’ walk from each other but only met when they left home – and the boyfriend who broke up and surprised: "He left his family just to be with me – and since then we are together."
Dates, war, and love in the evacuated hotels
"From this black thing came out something good and joyful," says Danny Artovsky from Kibbutz Dan, who met his beloved Noa Tzhori, also from the same kibbutz, specifically at an evacuee hotel in Haifa. Danny and Noa are not the only couple whom the war and the bizarre situation it created brought together and gave birth to their special love story.
L., who lost his brother in the war, went to visit his grandmother at an evacuee hotel – and met his future wife there. Danny and Noa lived for two years just a few meters from each other, but only at the hotel did they meet for the first time, and Oriya and Yinon met by the hotel pool – and could not believe where this friendship would lead them.
The connection that was woven – thanks to the grandmother
"On the morning of October 7 we woke up to gunfire and shouting in Arabic, a lot of booms and Qassams from every direction," recounts Shahar Mina, 28 years old from Kibbutz Sa’ad. "Already on Sunday the next day, they evacuated the entire kibbutz to the Nevo Hotel at the Dead Sea." Being an early childhood educator, she found herself in charge of the baby nursery that was opened at the hotel to provide a framework for the evacuated children.
Shahar Mina and Gal Shnir
"From the mourning and deep pain there is growth." Shahar and Gal
"That same day I was called up to reserves and reported to my unit in the north," recalls Gal Shnir, 32 years old from Ofra. "My brother Liron, of blessed memory, was 25 and a regular officer in the Golani Reconnaissance Unit. On October 7 he was called up to staging areas before entering Gaza. His team wasn’t supposed to enter the fighting, they were nearing release, but Liron insisted on fighting. He had a sense of mission."
On November 21, 2023, Liron fell in battle in the Zaytun neighborhood of the Gaza Strip. "Liron was the commander of one of the Namer APCs, and when he emerged with half his body out of the Namer to check the area, there was an explosion and he was shot by a sniper. He was critically wounded and killed. They notified me while I was in reserves and I completely broke down, the whole platoon saw it from the side and everyone ran to hug me, it was a very tough moment," Gal tells with pain.
Sarah Belles, Gal’s grandmother, also from Kibbutz Sa’ad, decided to volunteer with the children in the kindergarten at the hotel together with Shahar, whom she knew from the kibbutz paths. "One day they sent a message that Sarah’s grandson was killed in Gaza, and we went to the funeral and the Shiva in Ofra, for Sarah," Shahar recounts. About a month later, Gal came with his brother Alon, Liron’s twin brother, to a breakfast at the hotel with his grandparents.
Grandma Sarah, who already saw the potential back then, schemed behind the scenes and invited Shahar to join the breakfast with the grandchildren. "Sarah called me from afar and said, 'Shahar, Shahar, come meet Liron’s brothers,'" Shahar recalls with a smile. "Following Liron’s fall, Gal’s family would often come to our hotel. And there, from one Shabbat to another, the connection between us began."
Some time passed until the acquaintance ripened. "I wasn’t available then, it was hard for me in the hotel as an evacuee," explains Shahar, "and also Gal, in retrospect, wasn’t ready for it. He was grieving his brother’s death." In May, a few months after the initial acquaintance, Alon called Shahar and suggested she go out with his brother. "At the hotel there was a good connection with Gal, but I didn’t feel he wanted to, so I didn’t push. Suddenly, when Alon called and said Gal is interested, I agreed. We went on a date at the beach – and the rest is history," she laughs.
Shahar Mina and Gal Shnir
"This is our victory, to continue life." Gal and Shaha
After nine months together, Gal decided it was time and organized an emotional marriage proposal on Tu Bishvat – a symbol of renewal and blossoming. "We walked hand in hand, I hugged her and said that I love her," Gal recalls excitedly. "Together with her friend we designed a beautiful spot in the kibbutz, I knelt with excitement and she said yes."
"The joy and the sorrow are part of us"
Shahar and Gal believe a higher power connected them. "Grandma Sarah introduced us at the hotel, but we have no doubt that Liron guided it and arranged us for each other," says Shahar. "Also my mother, who died of illness when I was 10, is connected to this. We joked that probably when Liron got to heaven, my mom was waiting for him and together they arranged the match. They really shot Cupid’s arrow at us. Even when we got engaged, the difficulty and loss were not set aside. The joy and the sorrow are part of us and will walk with us everywhere. My mother and Liron are accompanying us and will be with us all our lives."
Before entering Gaza, Liron wrote a letter in which the sentence appeared: "It is a commandment for all of Israel to be good and do good." This sentence became the family’s motto and of the organization they established in his memory – to live in greatness. "I said I must raise my head, live life and do good, this is Liron’s commandment," says Gal. "Liron fell so that I could live better. It’s very hard to lose a brother, but I’m very happy that I had such a brother and I’m proud of him and want everyone to know what kind of person he was."
Gal and his brother Liron, of blessed memory
"He fell so I could live better." Gal with his brother Liron, of blessed memory
Despite the loss and the war, which has been going on for more than a year and a half, Gal and Shahar remain optimistic. "We’re all inside this horrible thing, but from the mourning and the deep pain there’s a kind of growth here. We need to grow, love life and do good, like Liron said, help people and bring as much joy as possible," says Gal. "From the darkness will come the light," adds Shahar. "From the war and mourning and loss, we will plant roots in this land, we will grow and build another home for the people of Israel and bring children – and this is our victory, to continue the people of Israel, to continue life, to rejoice and bring joy."
The neighbors who met dozens of kilometers from home
Noa Tzhori is a puppeteer, creator and theater teacher aged 37, and Danny Artovsky is a carpenter and social worker aged 32. Both residents of Kibbutz Dan in the Upper Galilee. Yet despite the geographical closeness, their paths never crossed until the war broke out. "We lived in Kibbutz Dan for two years and never met, five minutes’ walk from each other and we never bumped into each other," says Noa with a smile.
When the evacuations began, Noa wandered with her puppets across the country, until she decided to settle at the Dan Carmel Hotel in Haifa, where the kibbutz members were evacuated. "I decided to help with the education at the hotel," she explains. "I taught the children theater, we created an alternative school for the evacuated kibbutz children at a school in Haifa."
Danny, in contrast, evacuated independently and moved between five different sublets in the north. "In the first three months of the war I moved between apartments and worked as a social worker with evacuees from Kiryat Shmona at a hotel in Tiberias. At the same time, I also engaged in fundraising for reservists and building shelter door stoppers from planks in my community carpentry shop in Kiryat Shmona, which I had to close during the war," he recounts.
Danny Artovsky and Noa Tzhori
"We chose to deal with the war in the same way." Danny and Noa
Noa was very moved by the work Danny did with the evacuees. "It made me want to keep talking to him because it moved me that he chose to help evacuees," she explains. "We both chose to deal with the war in the same way, to be present and help with the difficulty, and that really connected us."
"Without a home, without the safe place"
After the meeting at the hotel, the two began texting on a dating app where they discovered they were a match. "We were shy and didn’t initiate at the hotel," Noa says with a smile. "After about two weeks of chatting on WhatsApp and calls, I got fed up and said: either we meet tomorrow or that’s it. The north was completely dead because of the war, so I came to him for a date at an apartment he sublet with two roommates, who over time also became friends."
The meeting in that apartment was completely different from any "regular" date. "We met each other in the cleanest place possible – without a home, without belongings, without the safe place. Simply in the most genuine place," explains Noa. "In first dates there’s always tension, but all the rules of meeting someone in dating got scrambled. There were no rules, everything was pure and from our desire for closeness and love. A very pure and very direct connection."
While Noa stayed at the hotel, she managed a unique project with the evacuated children, students from grades 1 to 6, and with them she wrote the story “The Evacuated Peas.”
“In the theater lessons we helped them tell stories and talk about what they had been through. We created a book and also a play about their evacuation experiences,” she says.
Danny was excited by the project and helped raise funds to print the book and distribute it to other schools.
The Evacuated Peas, Noa Tzhori
Noa created with the children a play and a book about their evacuation story. “The Evacuated Peas”
The project with the children gave Noa a sense of meaning during a dark period and kept her at the hotel, despite the loneliness.
“The experience of living in a hotel is so bizarre and absurd; someone who didn’t live it can’t understand. It’s very lonely. Working on the play made me feel vital, I was proud of myself, and Danny was very impressed by that.
Meeting Danny was truly a bright point for me. This is the greatest love I’ve had in my life – thanks to the evacuee hotel.”
Within a few months their relationship strengthened and deepened.
“Danny didn’t have a permanent home. But the fact that he had a home I could come to was, for me, a refuge from the hotel. A bit of normalcy,” explains Noa.
“I had a place to rest from this craziness – a place where I felt at home.”
“We needed each other”
After four months together, they decided to take a break from the turbulent Israeli reality and travel together in a van in Portugal for three months.
“The war gave perspective about what’s truly important and what’s nonsense,” says Noa.
“When we returned from Portugal it was already so clear that we would continue together, so we moved in together.”
“The last year and a half has been the craziest period of my life,” concludes Noa.
“I realized that love is the most important thing in the world. Everything else can be replaced – where you live and where you work.
But home is the people you’re with, not the walls. People create a home, love creates a home.
There’s something about war, about evacuation, that made this connection possible.
We needed each other, some kind of security, a makeshift home. Danny became my home very quickly. From total strangers, we became close quickly.”
And Danny says simply:
“Within this bizarre and terrible period, living in a hotel or a sublet, wandering between five different homes in four months – there were also two weeks when I had no home and had to survive that.
There was something in our relationship that held up and supported and was worth waking up for in the morning and being happy.”
Danny Artovsky and Noa Tzhori
“There were no rules, everything was pure and out of desire.” Danny and Noa
They studied together in Kiryat Shmona – and met in Eilat
Oriya Elgrasi, a 23-year-old physical education student, and Yinon Levi, a 21-year-old law student, both grew up in Kiryat Shmona, went to the same elementary school, and also the same high school, and even their kindergartens were across from each other.
But only when they arrived at the evacuee hotel in Eilat did they truly meet each other – and the rest is history.
About two weeks after the start of the war, Oriya and Yinon were evacuated with their families to a hotel in Eilat.
“There were evacuees there from the south, from the north, from many places, and that’s where we met,” recalls Oriya.
“I met a friend from the past, who happened to also be a very close friend of his. We sat together by the pool at the hotel and that’s how we started talking.”
“The war made us very spontaneous.” Yinon and Oriya | Photo: Courtesy of the subject
Oriya said that in the beginning she helped Yinon with another girl.
“Everywhere he went with her, he would bring me too and say that he ‘wants to consult’ with me about her,” she said with a smile.
“He didn’t really want her. He just wanted to talk to me.”
“He left everything and came”
The connection between Oriya and Yinon grew stronger, but then came a moment of crisis when his parents wanted to move to Tel Aviv.
“We had a dilemma about what to do, because we weren’t really officially together yet. He told me that he wants me, but I said that since he’s leaving the hotel anyway, why even try,” she recounted.
They couldn’t even stay apart for one day.
“He went with his parents, but we kept talking all day, and in the end I told him that I want us to be together, I was just afraid to tell him – so he left everything and came.
Even though we didn’t know what would happen or what we would do, a few hours after he arrived in Tel Aviv, he came back to me at the hotel in Eilat,” she recalled.
“In the middle of the night he knocked on the door and said he came back for me – it was a really emotional and romantic moment, like in a movie,” says Oriya.
“He left his family and everything just to be with me – and since then we are together.
The first time he told me he loves me was by the pool at the hotel, where we first met. The most romantic it could be.”
“Everything happened fast. It was intense and fun.” Yinon and Oriya | Photo: Courtesy of the subject
When Oriya had to return to her studies in Netanya, Yinon didn’t hesitate.
“He again left everything and came after me. Even though we had been together for barely three or four months, he just came with me,” she said.
They moved from the hotel in Eilat to another evacuee hotel in Netanya, a hotel that became their home.
“There we were already living together, without our families,” she added.
Today Oriya and Yinon live together in an apartment in Tel Mond and are planning their wedding, which is scheduled to take place in August.
“The war made us very spontaneous,” said Oriya.
“We don’t think too much anymore – if we feel like doing something, we just do it. We don’t know what will happen tomorrow in this country.”
About the upcoming wedding she said:
“Who even thought about that? Everything happened so fast. It was intense and fun.
In a year and a half our lives completely turned upside down, and alongside all the difficult things that happened in the war – we got something amazing out of it.” link
Acronyms and Glossary
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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