By Richard Kemp

Tehran claims that the air strikes which killed Iranian military commanders in Damascus on Monday were “Israel’s latest war crime against a foreign mission with diplomatic immunity”. They were nothing of the sort.

The target was, in fact, widely reported to have been an Iranian command centre coordinating military action against Israel, adjacent to the Iranian consulate. This would not, then, make the strikes a breach of the Vienna Convention, as those ever eager to condemn Jerusalem have suggested. Israel is perfectly entitled to hit military facilities in another country that is engaged in active hostilities.

Nor was this a major escalation by Israel, however, as many others have argued. It was merely the latest move in a war that Tehran itself has launched against Israel and the West.

Indeed, it may well turn out to be the most significant strategic setback for Iran since the US took out Qasem Soleimani, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force commander, in 2020. The main target of Monday’s attack, IRGC brigadier general Mohammad Reza Zahedi, was believed to be the principal interlocutor between Syria, Tehran and its terrorist proxy Hezbollah. With decades of experience in this clandestine world, he will not be easily replaced.

The flow of arms to Hezbollah could well now be further impeded. Since October 7, that terror group has launched regular missile strikes against Israelis near the Lebanese border, as a consequence of which nearly 100,000 civilians have been evacuated. Do Jerusalem’s critics really expect it to sit back and let those attacks continue?

But the real question is why it only seems to be the Israelis who are taking the Iranian threat seriously. It’s not as if Iran has only been targeting Israel. Iranian proxies have attacked international shipping in the Red Sea and Iranian-backed militias have launched more than 150 strikes against US forces in Syria, Iraq and Jordan since October 7 alone.

Beyond the region, Tehran is a major weapons supplier to Russia in its war against Ukraine. Since the Iranian revolution in 1979, Tehran has ordered hundreds of terrorist attacks and assassinations in more than 40 countries. Most recently, the finger of suspicion points to the IRGC for the attempted murder of an exiled Iranian journalist in London last Friday.

Meanwhile, Tehran is on the verge of acquiring a nuclear capability that would allow it to threaten not just the whole Middle East, but perhaps the West itself.

The response by the US and its allies to all of this has been nothing other than pitiful. Indeed, they have actively encouraged Iranian aggression by failing to respond in kind – the only language the Islamic Republic understands.

Britain has refused even to proscribe the IRGC, fearful of offending Tehran. The US has run scared of “provoking” Iran by too often turning a blind eye to its outrages and even unfreezing billions of dollars that will have been used to fund regional violence.

Joe Biden’s weakness was on display again on Monday when he couldn’t wait to send a spineless message to Tehran denying involvement or advanced knowledge of the Damascus strikes. Instead of appeasing Iran, our countries should stand by our Israeli ally in its vital defensive action, and maybe even consider taking a leaf out of its book.

Key Takeaways:

Gaza Strip
Palestinian militias continued attacks targeting Israeli forces near Gaza City.  The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades said its fighters fired small arms targeting an Israeli soldier in a house near al Shifa Hospital after returning “from the battle lines.”

The IDF withdrew from al Shifa Hospital on April 1 after concluding a two-week long operation in the area.  Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) fighters mortared Israeli forces in an unspecified area southwest of Gaza City.

Israeli forces continued clearing operations in western and northern Khan Younis.  The IDF 7th Brigade (36th Division) directed an airstrike targeting Palestinian fighters and weapons depots in Qarara, northern Khan Younis.

The IDF 89th Commando Brigade (98th Division) killed Palestinian fighters and confiscated weapons during ”raids“ in al Amal neighborhood, western Khan Younis. The IDF Egoz Unit detained ”dozens” of Palestinian fighters near Nasser Hospital.  Israeli forces also conducted searches near the Nasser Hospital and al Amal Hospital to ”ensure Hamas has not established infrastructure there again.”

Palestinian militias did not conduct any indirect fire attacks from the Gaza Strip into Israel on April 2.

West Bank
Israeli forces conducted raids in the West Bank and engaged Palestinian fighters in at least two locations.  Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades fighters engaged Israeli forces with small arms during an Israeli ”counterterrorism” raid in Qalandia refugee camp.

The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade Nablus Battalion said that it targeted Israeli special operations forces with small arms and improvised explosive devices in Balata refugee camp.  Israeli forces detained a total of 22 wanted people during raids in the West Bank.  

The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades separately targeted two Israeli checkpoints and an Israeli settlement near Tulkarm where Israeli forces are permanently stationed.

Southern Lebanon and Golan Heights (Detailed discussion of strike in Damascus in spoiler below)
Lebanese Hezbollah has conducted at least six attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel.  Hezbollah that reportedly fired at least 30 rockets targeting Israeli civilians in Gesher HaZiv, near Nahariya.

Hezbollah condemned the Israeli airstrike in Syria that killed a senior Iranian military commander and some of his top subordinates.  Hezbollah said that the commander, Brig. Gen. Mohammad Reza Zahedi, ”developed and advanced the work of the resistance in Lebanon."

Zahedi most recently commanded the IRGC Quds Force unit responsible for overseeing operations in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, and the Palestinian Territories.  Hezbollah threatened that it would retaliate against Israel for conducting the strike.

Syria
Israeli air defenses shot down several projectiles that likely Iranian-backed militias fired from Syria.  An Israeli military correspondent said that Israel shot down a cruise missile approaching the Golan Heights from Syria.

No group has taken responsibility for the attack at the time of writing. Syrian sources reported that the IDF conducted an airstrike in Daraa, southern Syria, in response to the attack.  Axios also reported Israeli air defenses shot down several drones fired from Syria.

Yemen
US CENTCOM reported that it destroyed a Houthi unmanned surface vessel that posed a threat to US ships and merchant vessels in the Red Sea.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations reported that an unspecified entity claiming to be the “Yemeni Navy” threatened a commercial vessel to turn on its automatic identification system.

The commercial vessel reported hearing “suspected gunshots” after it declined to reveal its location.

Jordan (Detailed discussion of possible militant expansion into Jordan)
A prominent Iranian-backed Iraqi militia threatened to create and arm a new Iranian proxy militia in Jordan, which may reflect a greater, more confrontational, shift in the Iranian strategy vis-a-vis Jordan.

Recent domestic unrest and large sustained demonstrations against Jordan’s Israel policy may be causing Iran and the Islamic Resistance in Iraq to approach Jordanian infiltration differently and more overtly.

Iran
The Iranian regime may target US forces or Israeli diplomatic facilities in retaliation for the Israeli airstrike in Damascus that killed seven IRGC officials.

Iraq
Russian Ambassador to Iraq Elbrus Kutrashev claimed that the United States would resort to “blackmailing” the Iraqi government to maintain its presence in Iraq. Kutrashev’s comments are likely part of the Russian effort to supplant the United States as a security partner in Iraq.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq—a coalition of Iranian-backed Iraqi militias—claimed a drone attack targeting the Tel Nof Airbase in central Israel.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
The IDF says troops have detained dozens of terror operatives who attempted to leave Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza's Khan Younis in recent days.

According to the IDF, troops of the Commando Brigade searched the Nasser and al-Amal hospitals "to make sure that the Hamas terror organization does not establish its infrastructure there again."

The dozens suspects have been handed over to the Shin Bet security agency and Military Intelligence Directorate's Unit 504 for further interrogation, the army says.

Also amid the operations in the al-Amal neighborhood, the IDF says the commandos captured weapons and killed dozens of gunmen.

Israel conducted one of its most audacious attacks against Iran’s armed entrenchment in years on Monday, killing Mohammad Reza Zahedi and his deputy and destroying what Iran said was its consular building in Damascus. Zahedi was commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force’s Department 2000, which oversees operations in the Levant.

Iran will feel pressure to respond more aggressively as this strike, unlike previous targeted killings, took place in an alleged Iranian diplomatic compound. Zahedi’s seniority is another factor. While he was not a major general like Suleimani, he still had a significant stature in Tehran.

Further, voices within the Islamic Republic’s establishment have complained about a loss of deterrence against Israel after a series of assassinations. However, any Iranian response is still likely to be carefully calibrated to avoid a direct conflict with Israel and the United States at a time when the Iranian leadership is unpopular at home and succession questions loom large, with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei turning 85 this year.

Israel conducted one of its most audacious attacks against Iran’s armed entrenchment in years on Monday, killing Mohammad Reza Zahedi and his deputy and destroying what Iran said was its consular building in Damascus. Zahedi was commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force’s Department 2000, which oversees operations in the Levant.

While the IRGC has a sprawling apparatus and can find a successor for Zahedi, he will not be easily replaced. The nature of the strike likely portends an Iranian response, but the regime will still tread carefully to avoid a direct armed conflict with Israel and the United States.

Who was Mohammad Reza Zahedi?

Mohammad Reza Zahedi was born on November 2, 1960, in Isfahan. In 1980, he joined the IRGC, where he was the commander of influential divisions like the 14th Imam Hossein Division during the Iran-Iraq War. Hossein Salami, the commander-in-chief of the IRGC, also commanded the 14th Imam Hossein Division, and like Zahedi, he hailed from Isfahan. The relationships Zahedi forged during these years were pivotal in his rise through the ranks.

Zahedi later held a series of positions, including as deputy commander and then commander of the IRGC’s ground force and commander of the IRGC’s air force. He had significant career overlaps with the late Ahmad Kazemi, who was killed in a mysterious plane crash in 2006. Kazemi commanded both the IRGC’s ground force and air force, and Zahedi succeeded him in both positions. Like Zahedi, Kazemi hailed from Isfahan and commanded the 14th Imam Hossein Division at one point during the Iran-Iraq War.

Zahedi also had experience with domestic security in Iran as operational commander of the IRGC’s Sarallah Headquarters, a key command responsible for Tehran. Separately, he was the IRGC’s overall deputy commander for operations for a period of time.

Zahedi likewise served tours as the commander of the IRGC Quds Force’s Lebanon Corps and Department 2000, which was his most recent posting. This is one of the most important commands of the Quds Force, given its proximity to and liaising with Hezbollah, the crown jewel of the Islamic Republic’s proxies. Zahedi was on the radar of the United States and Israel for a long time and was sanctioned as a specially designated global terrorist by the U.S. government in 2010.

The Treasury Department reported he played “a key role in Iran’s support to Hezbollah” and “acted as a liaison to Hezbollah and Syrian intelligence services and is reportedly charged with guaranteeing weapons shipments to Hezbollah.” In this capacity, Zahedi had a longstanding and close relationship with its secretary-general, Hassan Nasrallah. This report from Amwaj Media illustrates this intimate dynamic between Zahedi and Hezbollah and places him as having been a member of Hezbollah’s Shura Council and an IRGC delegate to its Jihad Council at one point. These are two critical decision-making bodies for Hezbollah.

Zahedi held the rank of brigadier general. His experience in the IRGC ground force, air force, and Quds Force, not to mention his stint at the Sarallah Headquarters, demonstrates how the Quds Force often draws on expertise from other IRGC branches in service of its regional command structure because of its significance to Tehran. Mohammad Hejazi, who died under mysterious circumstances in April 2021, came to the helm of the IRGC’s Lebanon Corps with a similar skillset. He first served as commander of the Basij, chairman of the IRGC’s joint staff, deputy commander-in-chief of the IRGC in its entirety, and only thereafter deployed to Lebanon. He died as deputy commander of the Quds Force.

Zahedi had a comparable pedigree—occupying a wide range of senior posts throughout the IRGC before assuming the Lebanon Corps commandership, with Hezbollah and other actors playing an increasingly active role in its supervision to compensate. A replacement for Zahedi will eventually be found, but the killing of his deputy, who previously served as the Quds Force deputy coordinator, its third-most senior position, further hollows out the Quds Force and Department 2000’s top brass. Zahedi likely played an integral role in the IRGC’s joint operations rooms with members of its Axis of Resistance and his loss will be felt there at the coordination level.

Will Iran respond?

Iran will feel pressure to respond more aggressively as this strike, unlike previous targeted killings, took place in an alleged Iranian diplomatic compound. Zahedi’s seniority is another factor. While he was not a major general like Suleimani, he still had a significant stature in Tehran. Further, voices within the Islamic Republic’s establishment have complained about a loss of deterrence against Israel after a series of assassinations. However, any Iranian response is still likely to be carefully calibrated to avoid a direct conflict with Israel and the United States at a time when the Iranian leadership is unpopular at home and succession questions loom large, with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei turning 85 this year.

Some observers interpreted Khamenei’s condolence note on Tuesday that punishment will be undertaken “by the hands of our brave men” as meaning Iran will retaliate directly rather than use its proxies. But the wording was vague, and Khamenei considers himself the leader of the Islamic Revolution, including its proxies, and not just Iran. An indirect answer to Israel’s strike would preserve the regime’s signature plausible deniability while avoiding escalation. If Khamenei decides to respond via Iranian forces, such an operation could mirror what took place after the killing of Razi Mousavi in December, with a strike on what Iran claimed were Mossad facilities in a third country where it does not fear a response, like Erbil, Iraq.

Lastly, Khamenei has lately been focused on the importance of maintaining supremacy in the media war with Washington and its allies like Israel. This is critical amid the hostilities in Gaza after the October 7 massacre. Iranian leaders will factor this into their decision-making. Israel’s actions have generated sympathy for the Palestinian cause—insulating Iran and isolating the United States and Israel, and Iran is unlikely to want to detract attention from that.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
At around 1 a.m., a suspected drone flying from the eastern direction entered Israeli airspace in the Arabah region, just north of Eilat, according to the IDF.

The "suspicious aerial target" set off sirens at a popular roadside store in the area.

The IDF says it fired an interceptor missile at the target, although it is not clear if it was shot down.

The incident is under further investigation, the IDF says.

It comes a day after a drone struck an open area in Jordan, near southern Israel's Ramon Airport. Earlier this week, a drone launched from Iraq hit a hangar at the Israeli Navy's base in Eilat.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
The IDF says it carried out airstrikes against Hezbollah positions and infrastructure in southern Lebanon's Kfarhamam a short while ago.

One of the posts was used to launch projectiles at the Mount Dov area earlier. The IDF says it targeted the position and the operatives behind the fire, minutes after the attack.

The IDF says it also hit buildings used by Hezbollah in Blida and Aynata last night, and shelled areas near Ayta ash-Shab earlier today to "remove threats."

The testimony of freed Israeli hostage Amit Sousanna, who was taken hostage by Hamas on October 7 and released 55 days later, is featured in the documentary 'Screams Before Silence' by director Anat Stalinsky.

The documentary presents testimonials and further information concerning Hamas sexual violence and is scheduled for release later this month.

In a section of the documentary released Wednesday, Sousanna recounts the moments of her abduction. "There were ten men around me," she says. "I had the feeling that they were carrying me like I was some kind of object."

"I just couldn't stand it, so my instinct was to fight them, to do what I could. I was terrified that they would rape me there on the spot, and that they would drag me through the streets of Gaza, displaying by body. I was more afraid of that than being killed," she says.

"I was chained for three weeks in Gaza," she continues. "They kept me in a dark room with no ability to move. Every time I had to go to the bathroom, I had to ask for permission. His name was Muhammad, and he kept asking me if I liked sex…"

"Every time he said something like that, I just laughed and said 'come on, stop' and tried to change the subject. I knew he was up to something. I knew something bad was going to happen."

Last week, Sousanna recounted being raped and tortured by Hamas to the New York Times. The first freed hostage to publicly discuss being subjected to sexual violence, Soussana told the newspaper she was speaking out to raise awareness of the conditions faced by the hostages who are still in Hamas captivity in Gaza.

The New York Times noted that her detailed account was consistent with what she had told two doctors and a social worker less than a day after her release – two of them just hours later. She also spoke to the United Nations staff, who authored a report finding "clear and convincing information" that hostages had experienced sexual violence.

Translation:  Salute to courage: from the chilling documentary with the participation of Amit Sosna

The IDF's Spokesperson's Unit says that a force of the army's paratrooper brigade seized many Hamas munition in a raid on the Al-Amal neighborhood of the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis.

According to the army's statement, Hamas' weapons, cartridges, grenades, radios and computers were seized.

■ U.S. President Joe Biden says he is "outraged and heartbroken by the deaths of seven humanitarian workers from World Central Kitchen, including one American, in Gaza yesterday."

■ Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry says 32,975 Palestinians killed in Gaza since Oct. 7.

■ Four police officers wounded, one seriously, in terror attack in central Israel; assailant killed.

■ IDF says Hezbollah explosive device caused the wounding of UN Staff in Lebanon on Saturday.

■ Polish prime minister says Gaza aid worker deaths caused "understandable anger." The Canadian Foreign Minister says "Israel needs to respect international law and Canada will make sure it does."

■ Hamas sources say that the new Israeli proposal that was conveyed to the group by the mediators does not provide a breakthrough in any of the cardinal issued that halt negotiations in the previous round of talks.

■ Shin Bet security service chief labels hostage, mass protest outside Netanyahu's residence "concerning trend."

■ IDF chief apologizes for 'unintentional killing' of World Central Kitchen aid workers.

Israeli security services are at the scene of a terrorist attack near the central town of Kochav Yair, which is located adjacent to the Green Line separating Israel from the West Bank. Police say that the assailant, a 26-year-old man from Tira, was killed at the scene.

According to police, four police officers were wounded, one of them seriously, when a car rammed into them near the entrance to the community. The vehicle then continued to nearby Eliyahu junction, where the occupant got out of the vehicle and reportedly tried to stab security guards before being neutralized. After searching the area, police confirmed that the assailant was acting alone.

Police later said that officers raided the home of the assailant in Tira.

Any Iranian response is still likely to be carefully calibrated to avoid a direct conflict with Israel and the United States at a time when the Iranian leadership is unpopular at home and succession questions loom large, with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei turning 85 this year.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
Two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip at the southern city of Sderot a short while ago, the municipality says.

One of the rockets was shot down by the Iron Dome, while the second hit an open area outside the city, a spokesperson for Sderot says.

There are no reports of damage or injuries.

It marks the first time in more than a week that Sderot has come under rocket fire.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
The Defense Ministry publishes footage of the overnight attack at a West Bank checkpoint near the town of Kochav Yair.

The footage shows Waheb Sabita, a 26-year-old resident of the neighboring Arab Israeli town of Tira, rushing at security guards at the Eliyahu Crossing with a knife.

Sabita had moments earlier rammed his car into four police officers. One of the cops was seriously hurt.

The assailant was shot dead by the checkpoint's guards.

Yahya Sinwar's story: From deterred Hamas leader to gambling mass murderer

On Tuesday, former IDF intelligence chief and INSS Director Tamir Hayman gave the fullest account yet of what most likely shifted Gaza Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar from an apparent state of deterrence to risking everything on a one-day rampage of mass murder and kidnapping.

Hayman noted...although Sinwar was extremely “successful” at the first stage of the current war, he made a “huge strategic mistake” since he did not...anticipate that his attack would lead to a sustained six-month and running Israeli invasion of Gaza.

After the death of [Quds Force commander] Soleimani, Nasrallah [secretary general of Hezbollah] worked on “bringing Iran to Gaza” – meaning investing more of the Islamic Republic’s anti-Israel attention on Hamas, and moving Hezbollah and Syria into more of a backup threat.

This empowered Sinwar in terms of resources, weapons, and gave him the feeling that he could rely on other Iranian proxies to step in big time if he started a larger conflict with Israel.

Sinwar viewed the 2021 war as a warm-up and made him believe a large enough operation against Israel would inflame all of these fronts against Israel.

Sinwar suspected that the IDF itself might be preparing various operations against its adversaries after the high holidays, so a preemptive attack would give him the element of surprise.

Sinwar saw an opportunity to disrupt the Israeli normalization process with the Saudis, even if he was not given a specific Iranian order to do what he did on that front.

Sinwar concluded that all of his rockets, tunnels, and other cards he held would not free the thousands of Palestinian security prisoners whose release could elevate him to truly new levels in the pantheon of Palestinian leaders.  Sinwar would have to take hostages to trade to free Palestinian prisoners.

Sinwar thought Israel itself was unusually weak due to the very public protests over the government’s judicial overhaul which led thousands of IDF reservists to say they had quit.

Sinwar felt that Israel’s two far-right ministers threatened to change the status of the Temple Mount in a permanent way which would cause the Palestinian national project to lose face in the Islamic world.

In addition to many of the past problems that others have listed which led to Israel misjudging Sinwar, Hayman said that Israel’s MABAM strategy, its ‘war between the wars’ in Syria and in Lebanon, inflated Israel’s confidence.

Most top IDF officials believed that Israel’s MABAM strategy intimidated Sinwar and showed that Israel was still strong, whereas Sinwar seemed to have concluded that Jerusalem was not prepared for a real ground war, only limited air strikes.

Key Takeaways:

Gaza Strip
Palestinian militias continued to conduct attacks targeting Israeli forces around Gaza City.  Hamas fired mortars targeting Israeli forces in Tuffah, northeast of Gaza City.  Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and the al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades separately conducted a combined mortar attack targeting Israeli forces south of Gaza City.

Israeli forces have engaged Palestinian fighters around Deir al Balah in the central Gaza Strip in recent days, suggesting that Israeli forces are advancing into the area.  Hamas fired a thermobaric rocket targeting Israeli forces east of Deir al Balah.

Israeli forces continued to conduct clearing operations in western and northern Khan Younis.  The IDF 89th Commando Brigade (98th Division) and IDF Givati Brigade are operating in al Amal neighborhood, western Khan Younis.

Israeli forces detained and killed Palestinian fighters.  The IDF 7th Brigade (36th Division) located unspecified weapons.  Israeli engineering forces and the IDF Air Force destroyed weapons depots and militia infrastructure in the area.  

The IDF reported its 7th Brigade has been operating in Qarara in northern Khan Younis.  Israeli forces located and destroyed a rocket launcher in an olive grove and engaged Palestinian fighters in the area.

The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades fired anti-tank shells targeting Israeli forces in al Amal neighborhood.  The group also mortared Israeli forces.

Israeli Army Radio reported that the IDF Nahal Brigade (162nd Division) was responsible for mistakenly directing the airstrike that killed seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen (WCK) in the Gaza Strip on April 1.

PIJ launched rockets from the Gaza Strip targeting Kissufim in southern Israel.

West Bank
Israeli forces have conducted raids in the West Bank and engaged Palestinian fighters in at least two locations.  The IDF conducted a “divisional operation” in al Faraa camp, south of Tubas.

Hamas, PIJ, and al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades claimed separate shooting attacks.  The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades also targeted Israeli forces with unspecified IEDs.

Palestinian media cited local sources claiming that Palestinian fighters targeted the Qalandia checkpoint north of Jerusalem with an IED.

A 26-year-old Arab Israeli conducted separate car ramming and stabbing attacks in central Israel.  The individual targeted four Israeli police officers at a temporary checkpoint in Kochav Yair, which borders the West Bank.  He then drove south to the Eliyahu crossing, where he attempted to stab security guards.  Israeli security forces at the Eliyahu crossing shot and killed him.

Southern Lebanon and Golan Heights
Lebanese Hezbollah conducted at least four attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq—a coalition of Iranian-backed Iraqi militias—claimed on April 2 to have conducted a drone attack targeting Haifa Airport in Israel.

Syria
The Russian Defense Ministry announced that Russian forces have deployed to a new observation post along Syria-Golan Heights border.

Lebanese Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah gave a speech emphasizing Syria’s role in Iran’s Axis of Resistance.

Iran
Iranian leaders are continuing to hold Israel and the United States responsible for the April 1 airstrike targeting Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) officials in Syria and vowing to exact revenge.

UK-based Amwaj media, citing an unspecified political source in Iran, outlined three potential Iranian responses to the April 1 Israeli airstrike targeting IRGC officials in Syria.  

The source stated that Iran will not likely target Israel directly but may target an Israeli diplomatic target abroad. Iranian officials and state media similarly suggested that Iran may attack Israeli diplomatic facilities in response.  The source alternatively said that Iran may respond in a way that is unclear to others but clear to Iran and Israel. This approach could include targeting a Mossad center, such as those the regime alleges are in Azerbaijan and Iraqi Kurdistan.  The source lastly said that Iran may avoid a quick response for the time being.

The Iranian Intelligence and Security Ministry arrested two alleged members of the Afghan branch of the Islamic State—named Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP)—in Qom.  Iranian state media reported that the two suspected ISKP members were attempting to conduct an unspecified attack on the Fatima Masumeh Shrine in Qom, which is considered the second holiest site in Iran for Shias.  These arrests follow an uptick in Salafji-jihadi activity across several Iranian provinces in recent months and years.

Yemen
US Special Envoy to Yemen Tim Lenderking said that the United States is trying to negotiate a diplomatic solution to stop Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.  Lenderking said that the Biden administration would consider—but not guarantee—revoking the Houthi’s terrorist designation if the Houthis stopped attacks into the Red Sea.

Iraq
Several Iranian-backed Iraqi militias have signaled their desire to disrupt the “land bridge” connecting Israel to the Persian Gulf.
Social media users have alleged that Lebanese Hezbollah’s representative to Iraq, Mohammad Hossein al Kawtharani, traveled to Najaf, Iraq, possibly to coordinate the Axis of Resistance’s response to Israel killing IRGC Brig Gen. Mohammad Reza Zahedi on April 1

Political Negotiations
The Qatari prime minister said that the main point of dispute in Israel-Hamas ceasefire negotiations is over the return of displaced people to different parts of the Gaza Strip.

U.S. Central Command @CENTCOM April 3 Red Sea Update

Between approximately 3:49 to 10:00 a.m. (Sanaa time) on April 3, USS Gravely (DDG 107) and United States Central Command (CENTCOM) forces successfully engaged and destroyed one inbound anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) and two unmanned aerial systems (UAS) launched by Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists from Yemen towards USS Gravely in the Red Sea.

There were no injuries or damage reported by U.S., coalition, or commercial ships.

Additionally, during this timeframe CENTCOM forces destroyed a mobile surface-to-air missile system in Houthi controlled territory.

The US said it would consider revoking its recent designation of Yemen’s Houthis as terrorists if the Iran-backed militants cease their shipping attacks in and around the Red Sea.

“My hope is that we can find diplomatic off-ramps,” Tim Lenderking, President Joe Biden’s special envoy for Yemen, told reporters in an online press briefing on Wednesday.  “To find ways to deescalate and allow us to pull back, eventually, the designation and of course to end the military strikes on Houthis’ military capability.”

Mahmoud Ishtiwi was executed in 2016, and Hamas has tried to keep the affair quiet ever since. The Israeli military has found documents in a Gaza tunnel recording his ordeal and showing that Hamas continued to torture members believed to be gay

His death caused an uproar in Gaza and even disagreements within Hamas' leadership. The group has tried to silence speculation surrounding Ishtiwi's death for years.

He was married to two women, and his rank was equivalent to that of a brigadier general in the IDF (the third highest rank). Ishtiwi was also a member of an affluent, prominent family with close ties to the Hamas leadership.

However, Hamas' internal security received information that Ishtiwi was sexually involved with his male neighbor and working with Israel. Gay Palestinians are often suspected of being Israeli collaborators, in part because of an IDF practice that involved identifying them and pressuring them to provide intelligence lest they be exposed.

Ishtiwi was brought before the Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar. Sinwar told him that if he were brought before an Islamic religious court, his sentence would be an execution. On the other hand, Sinwar said, if Ishtiwi confessed to "security" offenses and collaboration with Israel, Sinwar would see to his safety.

Sinwar ultimately broke his promise, and Ishtiwi was executed, even though he was acquitted of collaboration with Israel.

Ishtiwi later described being whipped by senior Hamas officers, including Raad Saad, chief of Hamas operations, and Mohammed Sinwar. "They whipped me 400-500 times and my body became different colors," Ishtiwi wrote. "There was blood in my urine and the whipping lasted over four hours straight until I lost consciousness, and they finally sent me to the hospital and ordered me to confess to everything."

Ishtiwi also wrote, "Often, four men would stand around me while I was suspended in the air, and would swing me right and left, forward and backward, for hours. I was tied for an average of no less than 20 hours and sometimes more than 24 hours, and I received hundreds of lashes." He continued, "I was beaten, tied, stripped of my skin, humiliated, spat on, had a bag placed over my head, all this without them having even a shred of evidence."

Hamas leaders were divided about the affair. On one side was Khaled Meshal, then head of the Hamas political bureau, who sought to de-escalate the matter. On the other side was Yahya Sinwar and his associates, who wanted to sentence Ishtiwi to the most severe penalties.

Ishtiwi was brought before a religious court. The council sentenced him to death after finding him guilty of "sodomy." The sentence read, in part, "Just as prostitution is considered an abomination and evil in every way, lying with a man should be judged at least the same as prostitution; in other words, death by stoning, especially when committed by someone in a sensitive position in the leadership of the Al-Qassam Brigades."

Hamas files found by Israel in Gaza detail execution of senior member accused of being gay

Mahmoud Ishtiwi was executed in 2016, and Hamas has tried to keep the affair quiet ever since. The Israeli military has found documents in a Gaza tunnel recording his ordeal and showing that Hamas continued to torture members believed to be gay

Hamas documents that Israel recently found in Gaza reveal the details behind the execution of a senior official in the organization because he was believed to be gay.

"I went through torture that no one has gone through in Palestine, not by the Palestinian Authority, not even at the hands of the Jews, but by Hamas internal security," Mahmoud Ishtiwi wrote before his execution in February 2016.

His death caused an uproar in Gaza and even disagreements within Hamas' leadership. The group has tried to silence speculation surrounding Ishtiwi's death for years. In the past few weeks, an Israel Defense Forces operation in the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis uncovered the group's file on Ishtiwi inside a Hamas tunnel. The file includes records of Ishtiwi's interrogations and torture, notes he sent and received, and a diary he kept during his detention. The documents show that after Ishtiwi's death, Hamas continued to persecute and torture other men accused of gay sex.

Hamas first claimed Ishtiwi was gay for the first time in 2015. Then 33 years old, Ishtiwi was the commander of Hamas' Zeitoun battalion – one of the strongest in the group's military wing. He was married to two women, and his rank was equivalent to that of a brigadier general in the IDF (the third highest rank). Ishtiwi was also a member of an affluent, prominent family with close ties to the Hamas leadership.

However, Hamas' internal security received information that Ishtiwi was sexually involved with his male neighbor and working with Israel. Gay Palestinians are often suspected of being Israeli collaborators, in part because of an IDF practice that involved identifying them and pressuring them to provide intelligence lest they be exposed.

Two additional allegations were attributed to Ishtiwi: embezzlement of funds belonging to Hamas' military wing (which he allegedly used to pay hush money to avoid being revealed as gay) and prostituting his wife. Hamas also claimed that he used to arrive at social gatherings with his wife, where the two would have sex with several guests.

In his interrogations, according to the files, Ishtiwi admitted to sexual relations with his male neighbor, embezzling Hamas money, and stealing weapons. The files also say that Ishtiwi admitted to cooperating with Israel, but later state that it was a false confession given following severe torture.

According to the files, Ishtiwi said the tunnels for which he was responsible weren't damaged during the Israel-Gaza war of 2014 and that the organization's vital objectives had been preserved throughout the fighting.

In the investigations into his alleged collaboration with Israel, Ishtiwi was brought before the Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar. Sinwar told him that if he were brought before an Islamic religious court, his sentence would be an execution. On the other hand, Sinwar said, if Ishtiwi confessed to "security" offenses and collaboration with Israel, Sinwar would see to his safety.

Sinwar ultimately broke his promise, and Ishtiwi was executed, even though he was acquitted of collaboration with Israel. Before his execution, Ishtiwi also met another senior Hamas officer, Abu Khaled, aka Mohammed Deif, the commander of Hamas' military wing. Deif said that Ishtiwi had lied during his interrogations. Here, too, the documents describe cruel treatment of Ishtiwi, saying that Deif hit him in the face in the presence of other top Hamas members.

The documents collected by IDF soldiers also show that following Ishtiwi's execution, Hamas continued to locate, dismiss, interrogate, and torture any member thought to be gay. A secret internal Hamas document from December 2019 discusses the discovery of "un-Islamic" activity by members, including drug use, prohibited relations with young women, theft, and pedophilia.

The file suggests that the organization feared anyone engaging in such activities was exposed to blackmail by Israeli security forces. But it seems that the most severe measures were taken against gay men, who were automatically marked as collaborators with Israel – a capital crime punishable by death.

The papers cite examples from 2018, when five Hamas members were arrested and interrogated for "committing the abomination of lying with a man, having illegal relations by a man with young women, taking sleeping pills, watching pornographic films, illegal relations with a young woman online, relations with young children, adultery, lying with a man, and harassment." They also mention "rebellious" members who launched missiles without obtaining authorization from senior Hamas officers.

1,200 hours of torture

The extent of Ishtiwi's torture is indicated by the documents. One of them is a rough handwritten diary from his time in detention. Intelligence officers who examined the document believe that Ishtiwi decided to write it when he realized that he would not leave his interrogation alive. The diary describes how "angels of destruction" had led him to an open grave and told him, "This is your grave. You will be covered with concrete up to your mouth." Ishtiwi added that his interrogators told him, "This isn't the first time we've done this."

In the diary, Ishtiwi describes how he begged for his life several times, writing that he asked for a Quran to swear on it before his interrogators. He wrote that he wanted to quote the Quran to prove that his torture contravened Islam. "Allah forbids killing a person unjustly," he wrote. He blamed senior Hamas officials for his situation. "You, [Haniyeh] are the most responsible for this," he wrote. "I ask you to follow the matter in an independent committee on behalf of the [Al-Qassam] Brigades."

The documents further say that Ishtiwi tried to escape during one interrogation but then realized he was being held in a tunnel. He was caught by guards and then sent to Khan Yunis by Mohammed Sinwar, Yahya Sinwar's brother and right-hand man. "Mohammed Sinwar is a monster, the bad cop," Ishtiwi wrote. "Yahya Sinwar is the warm and embracing one, the good cop. [Former senior military wing member Ahmed Ghandour] is in between, sometimes like this and sometimes like that."

Ishtiwi later described being whipped by senior Hamas officers, including Raad Saad, chief of Hamas operations, and Mohammed Sinwar. "They whipped me 400-500 times and my body became different colors," Ishtiwi wrote. "There was blood in my urine and the whipping lasted over four hours straight until I lost consciousness, and they finally sent me to the hospital and ordered me to confess to everything."

Ishtiwi also wrote, "Often, four men would stand around me while I was suspended in the air, and would swing me right and left, forward and backward, for hours. I was tied for an average of no less than 20 hours and sometimes more than 24 hours, and I received hundreds of lashes." He continued, "I was beaten, tied, stripped of my skin, humiliated, spat on, had a bag placed over my head, all this without them having even a shred of evidence."

Ishtiwi described life in the detention cell in Khan Yunis. "The real atmosphere is dread, fear and being threatened by everyone, including the guards. My whole body has been taken over by fear. I know that I am lying to the head of the pyramid, and I know that Mohammed Sinward is known for his cruelty and that he almost buried me in Al-Shati in Gaza City."

The minutes of a meeting between Ishtiwi and his family during a visit state that he told them he had been severely tortured for 1,200 hours and that he appeared hurt and beaten all over.

Meshal vs. Sinwar

Throughout Ishtiwi's detention, his family waged an extraordinarily determined struggle against Hamas through an organization calling itself "The martyred Islamic warrior Mahmoud Ishtiwi." Its activity included conversations with Hamas commanders in an attempt to clarify matters, and its members wrote letters protesting his arrest. Unusually, the protest group was also active on social media. In one rare case, shortly after his arrest, relatives held a limited demonstration outside a police station in Gaza. But Hamas silenced the conversation and arrested some relatives, threatening that they must avoid any announcement or statement critical of the organization and its leaders.

Nonetheless, the discovered documents show that Hamas leaders were divided about the affair. On one side was Khaled Meshal, then head of the Hamas political bureau, who sought to de-escalate the matter. On the other side was Yahya Sinwar and his associates, who wanted to sentence Ishtiwi to the most severe penalties.

Ishtiwi's family even tried to contact Sinwar personally with a request to release him and clear his name. "Allah does not like the public mention of evil except by one who has been wronged, and ever is Allah hearing and knowing, Ishtiwi's brother, Hasem, wrote, quoting the Quran, in his letter to Sinwar, which was found among the documents.

He added, "Any doubt should be interpreted in favor of the accused. The burden of proof is placed wholly on the prosecutor. It is not the duty of the accused to prove his innocence, and the accused should not be forced to submit evidence that would incriminate him in any way. In particular, this should not be done by coercion, which often may be expressed in physical and mental torture."

The letter failed to convince Sinwar, and in April 2015, he sent a note to Ishtiwi's cell saying, "Believe me, you will speak the truth only when the concrete reaches your mouth." The threat was effective: shortly thereafter, Ishtiwi agreed to confess.

Ishtiwi's confession, which was also found in the tunnel, was written by his interrogators and states that the suspect had sexual relations with a neighbor, Saad, over many years. The interrogators claimed that Ishtiwi had initiated the relationship and seduced his neighbor. They claimed he would bribe the neighbor with benefits to pursue their sexual relationship. The interrogators added that the meetings were held in Ishtiwi's home, in rented apartments, and in an Al-Qassam Brigades jeep.

"When Saad began seeking relations with women, Ishtiwi persuaded his wife to join him in their sexual relations," states the interrogation summary. "She strongly objected, but ultimately became addicted to the group sex sessions and watching pornographic films, and even put on makeup and danced before the two men." The summary continues, "Ishtiwi confessed to stealing and selling weapons from the Al-Qassam Brigades, including the personal firearm of [former Hamas military chief of staff] Ahmed Al-Jabari."

Ishtiwi told his family that the allegations were false and that his confession had been coerced. In a note passed to relatives during a visit, he wrote, "My brother Hasem, I was severely tortured to the point that they almost killed me. I therefore confessed lies to them and admitted to them things that I have never done. My brother, I am innocent."

Ultimately, following his confession and in violation of Sinwar's promise, Ishtiwi was brought before a religious court. The council sentenced him to death after finding him guilty of "sodomy." The sentence read, in part, "Just as prostitution is considered an abomination and evil in every way, lying with a man should be judged at least the same as prostitution; in other words, death by stoning, especially when committed by someone in a sensitive position in the leadership of the Al-Qassam Brigades."

The religious court also convicted Ishtiwi of corruption for the offenses to which he confessed, including embezzlement of Hamas funds, extravagant behavior and a prideful lifestyle. "The most abominable act is soliciting his wife into an act of prostitution," ruled the court, adding that he should be executed. The court ruled that Ishtiwi would be executed as divine punishment, not as an apostate from Islam – that is, the suspicion of collaboration with Israeli security forces was not reflected in the sentence. For this reason, Ishtiwi kept the right to be buried as a Muslim, according to the group's rules. Had he been accused of collaborating with Israel – high treason – he would have been refused a Muslim burial, staining his and his family's honor.

Ishtiwi's final letter to his wife was in another notebook found by the IDF. "I ask to die at your feet as I kiss them," he wrote, referencing a quote attributed to the Prophet Mohammed, "Paradise is at the feet of the mother."

"I swear that I did not betray my brother's blood," he added. "I will settle accounts with those who abused me," he added, citing Raad Saad. "Allah will forgive me my sins and remember the good deeds in my life."

In February 2016, Hamas said in a short announcement that Mahmoud Ishtiwi had been executed pursuant to a verdict by the religious court of the Al-Qassam Brigades. His crime was declared to be serious "moral offenses to which he confessed."

In his will, included among the documents, Ishtiwi asked that his home be converted into a place of worship. "Praise be to Allah that I will die as a slave, so that I will have a double and redoubled atonement before my Lord", he wrote. "I will gather all those who abused me before my Lord," mentioning, among others, Yahya and Mohammed Sinwar and Raad Saad. He concluded by writing, "I accept Allah's sentence, and do not tell more lies about me beyond that. Enough! Enough! Enough!"

The GPS jamming that Israel has been operating since the outbreak of the war has intensified in the last week, and in recent days has expanded to central Israel, including the Tel Aviv and Jerusalem areas.

Last night, the IDF announced the mobilization of reserves in the air defense system, fearing an Iranian response to the assassination of a senior member of the Revolutionary Guards in Damascus. In recent days, drone threats have also increased, and several of them have infiltrated Israel from the direction of Jordan, hit the naval base in Eilat and crashed near the border with Jordan.

Haaretz reported that in October, the IDF increased GPS jamming in the region to try to thwart drone attacks by Hamas and Hezbollah. The IDF confirmed that Israel is disrupting satellite navigation systems "proactively for various operational needs. Citizens should be aware that the disruption can cause various and temporary effects on location-based applications."

Until now, the GPS disruptions were mainly felt in the north of the country, from the Haifa area to the Lebanese border, and the GPS map services showed users that they were in Beirut. A similar phenomenon was felt in the south of the country, according to which the GPS devices showed users in Cairo. In the last week, the phenomenon increased, and the devices in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv also show that the user is in Cairo or in Beirut, respectively.

IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Daniel Hagari responded to public concerns about Iranian threats of retaliation for the killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guards generals in Syria on Monday, saying there is "No need to buy generators, stockpile food, or withdraw cash."

■ According to The Guardian, 600 British lawyers, including three former Supreme Court justices, signed a letter "warning that the U.K. government is breaching international law" by continuing to export arms to Israel.

■ The GPS jamming that Israel has been operating since the outbreak of the war has intensified in the last week, and in recent days has expanded to central Israel, including the Tel Aviv and Jerusalem areas.

■ Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv announced that Lidor Levy, 34, who was wounded in Sunday's terror attack in Gan Yavne, died of his wounds.

■ IDF postpones leave of soldiers in combat units due to situation assessment.

■ Israeli security forces arrested seven Israelis and four Palestinians from the West Bank on the suspicion that they planned to carry out attacks on IDF bases, as well as to kidnap soldiers and assassinate National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, using an RPG.

■ IDF intelligence research division chief retires after cancer diagnosis, says intelligence agencies 'did not live up to' expectations on Oct. 7

■ According to a report published by NBC News, during a meeting between U.S. and Israeli officials, American officials 'pushed back' on Israel's plan to evacuate Rafah, leading to Israeli Minister Ron Dermer "yelling and waving his arms around."

■According to a New York Times report, U.S. President Joe Biden told guests at a meeting with Muslim community leaders at the White House that his wife was among those telling him that the mounting civilian death toll in Gaza has to 'stop now.'

■ Police and Shin Bet announced that they foiled a planned attack on Jerusalem's Teddy Stadium and an East Jerusalem police station, and arrested three suspects

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian

As the IDF is on high alert for a potential Iranian response to the alleged assassination by Israel of Iran's top IRGC commander in Syria, along with five other IRGC officers, the military says there is so far no change in instructions for civilians.

Instructions issued by the Home Front Command amid the war remain unchanged, and the IDF says it will update the public if any changes occur.

Amid the heightened alert, the IDF called up reservists to bolster its air defense array.

Possible scenarios that the IDF is preparing for include missile and drone attacks by Iran-backed groups in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen — all of which have been carried out amid the ongoing Gaza war — and ballistic missile attacks directly from Iran, a situation that Israel has not yet faced.

The IDF also has halted home leave for all combat troops over the weekend, as Friday is assessed to be a sensitive day amid Ramadan.

Regarding the military's new GPS disruptions in central Israel, the IDF recommends that Israelis manually set their location in the Home Front Command app to receive rocket alerts.

GPS disruptions have been happening for months in northern Israel or areas close to Gaza, but have been less common in central Israel.

The GPS signal disruptions have been part of the IDF's efforts to prevent attacks on Israel.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
Over the past week, the IDF says the Gaza Division's Northern Brigade and the Kfir Brigade's Netzah Yehuda Battalion operated in the Beit Hanoun area in the northern part of the Strip.

Amid the "targeted" operation, troops destroyed dozens of sites, including buildings, used by Hamas and other terror groups, according to the IDF.

The IDF says the Netzah Yehuda troops also encountered and killed a Hamas cell that came out of a tunnel in the Beit Hanoun area during the operation.

Among the gunmen that were killed was a Hamas company commander, the IDF says.

The Netzah Yehuda Battalion is made up of ultra-Orthodox and religious troops, and is normally deployed to the West Bank.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
The Shin Bet security agency says it has foiled plans by a cell of Palestinians and Arab Israelis who worked to carry out terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank, including against National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

Seven Arab Israelis and four West Bank Palestinians were arrested over the plot.

According to the Shin Bet, the cell planned attacks against IDF bases and other sensitive sites, including Ben Gurion Airport and the government complex in Jerusalem.

The cell also planned to carry out an attack in the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba. "Within this framework there was even an  intention to assassinate the National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, by obtaining an RPG missile in order to carry out the attack," the Shin Bet says.

The agency says the cell also sought to kidnap IDF soldiers.

According to the Shin Bet, the cell planned to rent a plot of land in southern Israel's Rahat or an area in the West Bank to establish a factory with an underground complex where they would manufacture weapons and train.

The agency says the cell members worked to contact Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip to receive funding and instructions. At least one of the Palestinians detainees was in contact with a Hamas operative in Gaza, who offered funding for attacks in Israel, the Shin Bet says.

The Arab Israeli suspects are named as Bilal Nassara, the head of the cell, from Rahat; Wissam Siwati, from Rahat; Hamza Ghaith, from Rahat; Saud Abu Laban, from Rahat; Sameh al-Obra, from Rahat; Yousef Abu Hawli, from Lod; and Fahmi Kathani, from Ma'ale Iron.

The Palestinian suspects are named as Akram Ammer, responsible for recruitment, from Tulkarem; Muhammad Sabheh, from Tulkarem; Ahmed Atiq, from Jenin; and Ahmed Saleh, from Jenin.

Indictments were filed today at the Beersheba District Court against ten of the suspects.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
The IDF publishes footage showing an airstrike on a cell of operatives in the central Gaza Strip, after they were spotted at a site known to be used by a terror group.

The site was located close to troops of the Nahal Brigade, who spotted the cell, the IDF says.

After tracking the gunmen for a short while, an airstrike was carried out against them. Minutes later, the structure where they had operated was struck by a fighter jet, the IDF says.

The IDF says fighting against Hamas also continues in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, in the al-Amal neighborhood and the Abasan area on the outskirts of the city.

Meanwhile, airstrikes were carried out against several targets across the Gaza Strip over the past day, including rocket launchers used in an attack last night on Sderot, the IDF adds.

United States President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a phone call Thursday evening widely expected to be difficult, with the president fuming over the Israeli attack that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers in Gaza, US media reported.

The two leaders began speaking around 7 p.m. and talked for some 45 minutes.

The White House has described Biden, who has a close personal relationship with WCK founder Jose Andres, as heartbroken by the attack. Israel has called the incident a “grave mistake” and vowed an in-depth investigation into how it occurred. But Netanyahu also said that “these things happen in war.”

“Biden is pissed. The temperature regarding Bibi is very high,” a US official told the Axios news site before the call, using Netanyahu’s nickname. A second official confirmed the tense atmosphere.

Another official told the site that Biden’s call to Andres after the strike was a “difficult moment” for the president.

US and Israeli officials told Axios they are concerned progress on securing increases in humanitarian aid to the Strip will be reversed due to the incident.

The latest incident appeared on track to force a shift in the war — similar to the one sparked by a mass casualty incident involving another aid convoy, which desperate Palestinians swarmed in northern Gaza on February 29. The dozens killed in the ensuing stampede and gunfire, including by the Israeli army, led to furious international reactions and an announcement by Biden that he was done waiting for Israel to facilitate the delivery of more aid and was instead establishing a new maritime corridor to flood the Strip with food.

The Monday incident, in which three British nationals, an Australian, a Pole, an American-Canadian dual citizen and a Palestinian aid worker were killed in a convoy that had been closely coordinated with the army triggered even fiercer reactions from world leaders, with Biden saying it wasn’t an isolated incident, and that Israel had long failed to protect aid workers and Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also “expressed his outrage” over the attack in a phone call with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, urging him “to immediately take concrete steps to protect aid workers and Palestinian civilians in Gaza after repeated coordination failures with foreign aid groups.”

White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters Wednesday that the Biden administration continues to support Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas. But Kirby said Israel must do more to prevent the killing and wounding of innocent civilians and aid workers as it carries out its operations in Gaza.

“As a modern military and a democracy, they have obligations to the innocent people of Gaza and they have not always met those obligations,” Kirby said. “We are concerned about the methods too.”

The Israeli investigation into the deadly IDF strike on the WCK convoy is progressing, Israeli officials told The Times of Israel on Wednesday night. The Southern Command has completed its probe, which it presented to IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, who will add to it and then pass it up the chain to the political leadership.

The war cabinet convened virtually on Wednesday to hear an update on the IDF investigation, said one of the officials.

Halevi apologized for the incident on Tuesday: “It was a mistake that followed a misidentification, at night, during a war, in very complex conditions. It shouldn’t have happened,” he clarified, adding that there was no “intention of harming WCK aid workers.

Key Takeaways:

Gaza Strip
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) 7643rd Gefen Brigade (Gaza Division) and Netzah Yehuda Battalion (900th Kfir Brigade, 99th Reserve Division) continued to conduct clearing operations in Beit Hanoun.

The IDF reported that Israeli forces killed a Hamas company commander for the area during clashes with Hamas fighters.

Hamas mortared Israeli forces in Tuffah in eastern Gaza City.  PIJ and the National Resistance Brigades conducted a combined mortar attack on April 4 targeting Israeli forces west of Gaza City in Sheikh Ijlin.  The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, which is the self-proclaimed military wing of Fatah, also fired a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) at an Israeli bulldozer west of Gaza City.

Israeli forces continued to engage Palestinian fighters in the central Gaza Strip.  The IDF Nahal Brigade identified a group of nearby Palestinian fighters and directed an airstrike killing the fighters.  Hamas fighters fired an RPG at an Israeli Merkava tank east of Deir al Balah.

Israeli forces continued to conduct clearing operations in Khan Younis on April 4. The 89th Commando Brigade (98th Division) killed Palestinian fighters and seized weapons in al Amal.  PIJ fighters mortared Israeli forces near al Amal Hospital and al Arishya neighborhood.  

The IDF 7th Brigade (36th Division) continued to conduct clearing operations in eastern Khan Younis.  PIJ targeted Israeli forces operating in a building in an unspecified area of Khan Younis with an anti-bunker bomb.  PIJ also targeted an Israeli tank in the same location with a mine.

Palestinian militias conducted five indirect fire attacks from the Gaza Strip into Israel.  This is the highest number of attacks launched from the Gaza Strip since February 8 and may be in anticipation of Iran’s annual, anti-Israel holiday, Quds Day, on April 5.

The IDF Air Force struck a PIJ launch site shortly after fighters conducted indirect fire attacks into Israel.

West Bank
Israeli forces have engaged Palestinian fighters in at least nine locations.

The Shin Bet announced on April 4 that it had detained and indicted eleven individuals, who had planned attacks against high-value targets in Israel.[67] The cell included seven Arab Israelis and four Palestinians from the West Bank, who plotted attacks against targets, including the Israeli national security minister, Ben Gurion Airport, and an unspecified government complex in Jerusalem.

Four of the individuals in the cell were from Jenin and Tulkarm in the West Bank, where Israeli forces have repeatedly conducted operations targeting Palestinian fighters.  The individuals planned to rent land in Rahat, Israel, or in the West Bank to use for military training and weapons manufacturing.

At least one member of the cell was in contact with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which offered funding for attacks in Israel.  It is unclear when and where Shin Bet detained these individuals.

The indictments come amid several Palestinian attacks targeting Israeli civilians in recent months.  Palestinian militias have repeatedly praised these attacks and called for further attacks on Israeli civilians.

Israeli forces detained three individuals on April 4 who had plotted attacks in Jerusalem.  The individuals are from east Jerusalem and planned small arms and IED attacks targeting a sports stadium and an unspecified police station.

Southern Lebanon and Golan Heights
Iranian-backed militias, including Lebanese Hezbollah, have conducted at least seven attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel.

Iraq
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has claimed two drone attacks against Israeli civilian and military targets.

Yemen
CENTCOM reported that it intercepted an anti-ship ballistic missile and two drones launched by the Houthis from Yemen toward the USS Gravely.  CENTCOM separately reported that it destroyed a Houthi mobile surface-to-air missile system.

US AFCENT Commander Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich said on April 3 that the Houthis may be running low on their stockpiles of drones and anti-ship ballistic missiles due to persistent US airstrikes degrading Houthi munitions stockpiles.  Grynkewich further stated that US airstrikes have reduced the pace of Houthi operations but did not provide further details..

Iran (Detailed discussion on Iranian internal security below)
Jaish al Adl, which is a Baloch, Salafi-jihadi militia, conducted unprecedentedly complex and sophisticated attacks targeting Iranian security forces in southeastern Iran.

Jordan
PIJ military spokesperson “Abu Hamza” expressed support on April 4 for the anti-Israel protest movement in Jordan.

The State of Israel failed in the Second Lebanon War because it targeted the wrong enemy: Israel fought against Hizbollah instead of fighting against the Republic of Lebanon. This article argues that pitted against Hizbollah, a terrorist organization benefiting from state sponsorship, Israel must change its strategy and fight the sponsoring state if and when the next war erupts. Serious damage to the Republic of Lebanon can influence Hizbollah’s behavior more than anything else. Israel must convey this message and its intention both clearly and immediately.

In recent years, the northern arena has emerged as Israel’s primary military challenge. The entrenchment of the Iranian-led Shi’ite axis in Syria and Lebanon, attempts by Iran and its proxies to make inroads toward Israel’s border with Syria, and Hezbollah’s growing strength in Lebanon are all factors contributing to increased friction and cause for concern regarding the next war in the north. One thing is certain: a war on the northern front will be unlike all previous wars. as the conflict is likely to include the Lebanese arena, Syria, and possibly even western Iraq.

This analysis of the war includes examination of IDF and Hezbollah doctrine, as well as an overview of the operational and tactical problems encountered by the IDF. The author argues that the Israeli reliance on poorly understood and controversial Effects-Based Operations (EBO) and Systemic Operational Design (SOD) warfighting theories, and a nearly singular dependence on air power, were root causes of Israeli problems.

Additionally, after years of counterinsurgency (COIN) operations in the Gaza Strip and West Bank territories, IDF ground forces were tactically unprepared and untrained to fight against a determined Hezbollah force that conducted what was, in many ways, a conventional, fixed-position defense. In researching this study, Mr. Matthews interviewed several prominent IDF officers and other experts in the field. Originally published by the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center.

In response to a surprise incursion by Hezbollah combatants into northern Israel and their abduction of two Israeli soldiers, Israel launched a campaign that included the most complex air offensive to have taken place in the history of the Israeli Air Force (IAF). Many believe that the inconclusive results of this war represent a "failure of air power." The author demonstrates that this conclusion is an oversimplification of a more complex reality. He assesses the main details associated with the Israeli Defense Forces' (IDF's) campaign against Hezbollah to correct the record regarding what Israeli air power did and did not accomplish (and promise to accomplish) in the course of contributing to that campaign. He considers IAF operations in the larger context of the numerous premises, constraints, and ultimate errors in both military and civilian leadership strategy choice that drove the Israeli government's decisionmaking throughout the counteroffensive. He also examines the IDF's more successful operation against the terrorist organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip in December 2008 and January 2009, to provide points of comparison and contrast in the IDF's conduct of the latter campaign based on lessons learned and assimilated from its earlier combat experience in Lebanon.

Emanuel (Mannie)Fabian @manniefabian

The IDF says troops in an army vehicle came under fire on the Jordan border overnight, at the Jordan River Crossing near the northern town of Beit Shean.

According to the IDF's initial probe, the gunman crossed into the border crossing and opened fire at the troops carrying out a routine patrol in the area. He then fled back to Jordan.

The IDF says the gunman did not infiltrate through Israel's border fence, and there were no injuries in the attack

Key Takeaways:

Gaza Strip
Israeli forces continued to conduct clearing operations around Khan Younis. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) 7th Brigade (36th Division), which has been operating in eastern Khan Younis, directed artillery to destroy a house that Palestinian fighters had rigged to explode.  The IDF Air Force similarly destroyed over 30 explosively rigged buildings across the Gaza Strip in support of Israeli infantry operations.

These reports are consistent with the fact that Hamas and other Palestinian militias have claimed house-borne IED attacks throughout the war.  The IDF Givati Brigade located grenades and IEDs while re-clearing al Amal neighborhood in western Khan Younis.

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) reported that it mortared Israeli forces in central Khan Younis.  The group claimed that the attack supported the al Qassem Brigades, which is Hamas’ military wing, in some unspecified fashion. PIJ has been aligned with Hamas throughout the war.

Palestinian fighters have conducted at least three indirect fire attacks from the Gaza Strip into Israel

Israel approved on April 5 a series of measures to increase the humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip. The Israeli War Cabinet approved the reopening of its Erez crossing with the northern Gaza Strip, which has been closed since the beginning of the war.  The Israeli War Cabinet separately approved the use of the Port of Ashdod in Israel to facilitate the movement of aid into the Gaza Strip.

Israel released on April 5 its internal inquiry into the IDF strikes that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers in the central Gaza Strip.  The investigation found that the strike on three vehicles was conducted in “serious violation” of its rules and operating procedures.

West Bank
Israeli forces have engaged Palestinian fighters in at least four locations in the West Bank. The IDF said that it conducted raids in six locations and detained thirteen wanted Palestinians across.  The IDF reported that Palestinian fighters threw an IED at Israeli forces in Tulkarm.

PIJ and the al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades engaged Israeli forces in the Nour Shams refugee camp in Tulkarm.  Israeli forces also encountered armed Palestinian fighters in Fahma, southwest of Jenin, where the al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades claimed an attack.  The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades also claimed an attack in Kafr Rai, which neighbors Fahma.

Unspecified actors shot from Jordan at an IDF vehicle near the Israel-Jordan border.  The IDF said that the suspects did not cross the border fence and that there were no Israeli casualties.

PIJ military spokesperson for the West Bank Abu Ahmed published a statement to celebrate Quds Day.  Ahmed said that PIJ fighters in the West Bank are “preparing” for an unspecified event and that Israeli forces are not expecting “what awaits” them.  Ahmed also affirmed PIJ’s support for the Axis of Resistance leadership in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen.

Southern Lebanon and Golan Heights
Lebanese Hezbollah conducted at least seven attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel.

Yemen
US CENTCOM conducted a preemptive strike targeting a Houthi-operated, anti-ship missile in Yemen.  Houthi attacks have decreased in frequency which might mean they are running out of missiles and drones.

Iran (Detailed discussion of Iranian retaliation in spoiler below)
Iranian officials have signaled that they want to avoid involving the United States in their retaliation against Israel for killing senior IRGC commanders in Syria.

Several Friday prayer leaders endorsed ”strategic patience”—a long-standing regime policy that involves not conducting a full response to Israeli attacks immediately—in their weekly sermon on April 5.  The Office of the Supreme Leader issues guidance to Friday prayer leaders for the content of their sermons, which suggests that their promotions of strategic patience are part of a broader messaging effort from Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Two unspecified Iranian officials told Reuters on April 4 that the immediate Iranian response would be “limited and aimed at deterrence.”  Tehran is also signaling that it wants to avoid involving the United States in its retaliation against Israel. An official in Raisi’s Presidential office claimed that Iran has warned the United States to “step aside, so you don’t get hit,” suggesting that Iran seeks to retaliate against Israeli targets.

CBS separately reported that US intelligence indicates that Iran’s response will include ”a swarm of Shahed loitering drones and cruise missiles,” likely before the end of Ramadan on April 10.  Israel has reportedly evacuated several of its diplomatic facilities around the region in anticipation of a possible Iranian retaliation, although the Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry has denied such reports.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will reportedly meet with Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif in Islamabad in the near future, likely to discuss the recent Jaish al Adl attack in Iran.

A Jaish al Adl—a Baloch, Salafi-jihadi militia—conducted unprecedentedly complex and sophisticated attacks targeting Iranian security forces in multiple locations in southeastern Iran

Iraq
An Iranian-backed Iraqi militia leader threatened to increase attacks into Israel if the IDF conducted a clearing operation into Rafah.

Kataib Seyyed al Shuhada (KSS) Secretary General Abu Alaa al Walai threatened on April 5 to increase attacks targeting Israel if the IDF conducts a clearing operation into Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has conducted regular attacks into Israel since pausing its near-daily attacks on US forces in February 2024.

U.S. Central Command. @CENTCOM

Defeat ISIS Mission in Iraq and Syria for January through March 2024

United States Central Command, along with our Defeat ISIS partners, Iraqi Security Forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces, conducted 94 Defeat ISIS Missions resulting in 18 ISIS operatives killed and 63 detained from January through March. In Iraq, 66 partnered operations resulted in 11 ISIS operatives killed and 36 ISIS operatives detained. In Syria, 28 partnered operations resulted in 7 ISIS operatives killed and 27 ISIS operatives detained.

The continued pursuit of the approximately 2,500 ISIS fighters at large across Iraq and Syria is a critical component to the enduring defeat of ISIS.  Equally vital are the ongoing international efforts to repatriate more than 9,000 ISIS detainees in detention facilities in Syria, and the repatriation, rehabilitation, and reintegration of more than 45,000 individuals and families from the Al Hol and Al Roj camps. CENTCOM supports United States efforts to maintain sustained pressure to address the persistent ISIS threat.

"We are committed to the enduring defeat of ISIS because of the threat they pose both regionally and globally. We continue to focus our efforts on specifically targeting those members of ISIS who are seeking to conduct external operations outside of Iraq and Syria and those ISIS members attempting to break out ISIS members in detention in an attempt to reconstitute their forces," said Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, commander of U.S. Central Command. "Defeating this threat requires continued pressure from our partners and the Coalition."

A Hamas delegation led by political bureu chief Ismail Haniyeh is expected to leave for Cairo on Sunday, with the intention of continuing talks toward a deal with Israel.

The decision to dispatch the delegation was made after a telephone conversation between Haniyeh and Abbas Kamel, the Egyptian intelligence chief. Senior Hamas sources said the group insists on the demand for a cease-fire before the release of any hostages.

The Israeli army reported in a joint statement with the Shin Bet security service that its forces killed Akram Abed Alrahman Hasin Salame, a senior Hamas security official who also acted as deputy municipal leader in Gaza's Khan Yunis.

According to the statement, he was killed in an aerial strike in southern Gaza.

The Israeli army reported that it retrieved the body of Elad Katzir, who was kidnapped during Hamas' October 7 attack, and returned it to Israel. According to the army's statement, intel shows he was killed in January in captivity by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and his body was found buried in Gaza's city of Khan Yunis.

Elad Katzir, 47, was kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Nir Oz in Israel's south during Hamas' attack on October 7. His mother, Hanna was also kidnapped and later released, and his father, Rami, was killed. Katzir was seen in videos release by the Islamic Jihad in December and in January.

A Facebook post by his sister, Carmit Palty Katzir, blames the Israeli government for abandoning him. "He could have been rescued if a deal happened on time. Our leadership is cowardly and is driven by political considerations so it didn't happen," she wrote.

Police officers arrested a 17-year-old Palestinian boy armed with a knife that he had stuck to his body, near the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem.

According to police, the boy, a resident of Birzeit in the West Bank, was in Israel without a permit and was arrested after arousing the suspicion of police. Posts the boy had made on social media also contributed to further suspicion.

33,137 Palestinians killed in Gaza, Hamas-run health ministry says
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza has reported that 33,137 Palestinians have been killed and 75,815 wounded since the start of the war.

■ The Israeli army reported in a joint statement with the Shin Bet security service that its forces killed Akram Abed Alrahman Hasin Salame, a senior Hamas security official who also acted as deputy municipal leader in Gaza's Khan Yunis.

■ Sister of Israeli hostage Elad Katzir says her brother was murdered in captivity, and his body was recovered in Gaza during a military rescue operation.

■ Activist groups protesting against Netanyahu's government will hold demonstrations in Tel Aviv's Kaplan Junction on Saturday night calling for elections. Some relatives of Israeli hostages held in Gaza will protest outside the city's defense headquarters.

■ According to the ISNA news agency, thousands of people attended the state-organized funeral of Iranian Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, who was killed in a rocket attack in Damascus, and was buried on Saturday in his birthplace of Isfahan in central Iran.

■ U.S. President Joe Biden threatened to withhold support for Israel if it doesn't act to reduce civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip during a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the New York Times reports, after which Israel said it will increase the humanitarian aid entering Gaza.

■ Australia's government said on Saturday it would appoint a special adviser to work with Israel to ensure "full confidence" in investigations into an airstrike in Gaza that killed seven aid workers, including an Australian.

■ UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says he is 'deeply troubled' by reports of IDF bombing campaign using AI to identify targets

■ Iran has placed its armed forces on "full high alert" and "a decision has been made that Iran must respond directly to the Damascus attack to create deterrence," according to two Iranian officials cited in a report by the New York Times.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
The IDF says it carried out airstrikes on Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon's Ayta ash-Shab, Arnoun, and Tayr Harfa a short while ago, amid repeated attacks by the terror group on norther Israel.

Troops also shelled areas near Aalma ash-Shab with artillery to "remove threats," the IDF adds.

Five rockets were fired overnight from Lebanon at the Shtula area, and over the past few hours, more projectiles were launched at other areas in northern Israel, with no reports of injuries.

The IDF says it also shelled the launch sites.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
A senior Hamas operative in the terror group's internal security was killed in an airstrike in the Gaza Strip earlier this week, the IDF and Shin Bet announce.

Akram Abd al-Rahman Husein Salama, who the IDF and Shin Bet say held "several key positions" in Hamas, including the deputy head of internal security in Khan Younis, was killed in a fighter jet strike in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday.

The joint announcement says Salama "was involved in the advancing major terror operations in the Gaza Strip, with the aim of harming the activities of the IDF, and was responsible for the planning and execution of significant terror attacks in Israel.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
The IDF says it located and destroyed three major Hamas attack tunnels in the Khan Younis area of southern Gaza, including one that entered Israeli territory, that it says had been under Israeli surveillance in recent years.

One of the tunnels was first uncovered a decade ago, and during the 2021 Gaza war, it was targeted in an airstrike, killing several Hamas operatives, the IDF says. At the beginning of the ongoing war, the same tunnel was struck at a number of locations, preventing it from being used. It was blown up within the past few weeks, according to the IDF.

The second tunnel was first uncovered in 2014, and at the time it had crossed into Israeli territory and was later destroyed. The IDF says Hamas did not work to fix the tunnel, and in recent weeks, another section of the underground passage, deeper inside Gaza, was blown up.

The third tunnel was first found in 2019, before the underground Gaza border barrier was constructed, according to the IDF. One branch of the tunnel entered Israeli territory by several meters, and it remained under surveillance and control since, the IDF says.

"Sensors and explosives were placed in [the tunnel] in order to be used by the IDF if needed, as part of a special operation against the underground network of the Hamas terror organization," the military says.

The IDF says that the tunnel was struck numerous times amid the war, along side other operations to render the section that entered Israeli territory inoperable.

The rest of the tunnel was blown up in recent weeks.

According to the IDF, the tunnel was not used by Hamas during the October 7 onslaught, and remained under heavy surveillance amid the war.

Key Takeaways:

Gaza Strip
Palestinian fighters claimed several attacks targeting Israeli forces near Deir al Balah in the central Gaza Strip in recent days. Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) claimed its forces returned from the front lines east of Deir al Balah and reported attacking an Israeli tank with an explosively formed penetrator.  The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, which is the self-proclaimed militant wing of Fatah, separately mortared Israeli forces in the same area.

Commercially available satellite imagery shows flattened terrain southeast of Deir al Balah, indicating that Israeli bulldozers and/or bulldozers are operating in the area.

Israeli forces continued to conduct clearing operations in al Amal neighborhood in western Khan Younis.  The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Givati Brigade (162nd Division) destroyed a weapons depot and found over 40 improvised explosive devices and other explosives in al Amal.

Israeli forces engaged Palestinian fighters in close combat and destroyed a four-man Palestinian squad in one attack.

Hamas claimed that it conducted three attacks targeting Israeli forces in al Amal after Hamas fighters returned from the front lines.  Hamas fighters fired anti-tank rocket-propelled grenades (RPG), tandem-charge anti-tank rockets, and detonated a mine targeting Israeli forces.

Hamas claimed to conduct a multi-stage attack targeting Israeli forces in eastern Khan Younis. Hamas fighters targeted three IDF tanks with anti-tank RPGs in al Zana. Hamas fighters then detonated a mine field, preventing the Israeli quick reaction force from responding. Hamas later claimed that its fighters attacked other Israeli forces that responding to the attack.  

The IDF Air Force killed a senior official in Hamas’ internal security apparatus in Khan Younis, who was also responsible for managing some militia activity.  The IDF said that the figure was the deputy head of internal security and responsible for significant attacks against Israel targets.

Israeli forces recovered the body of a hostage in Khan Younis.  Israeli Army Radio reported that that PIJ killed the hostage, named in January 2024.

The IDF 89th Commando Brigade (98th Division), with support from Shin Bet and Military Intelligence, recovered and returned to Israel the remains of Elad Katzir, believed to have been killed by his PIJ kidnappers in January.  Israeli authorities say that Palestinian militias still hold around 133 hostages and that 99 of them are believed to still be alive.

A CNN team in Israel reported hearing gunfire and explosions near the Erez crossing connecting Israel with the northern Gaza Strip.

These reports come immediately after Israel decided to reopen the crossing, which has been closed since the war began, to facilitate humanitarian aid.  

Palestinian fighters did not conduct any indirect fire attacks from the Gaza Strip into Israel on April 6.

West Bank
Israeli forces engaged Palestinian fighters in at least five locations in the West Bank.

Southern Lebanon and Golan Heights
Lebanese Hezbollah conducted at least seven attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel.

Political Negotiations
A senior US official said that US President Joe Biden sent letters to the Egyptian president and Qatari emir, asking them to pressure Hamas to agree to a six-week ceasefire agreement.

Iraq
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed two drone attacks targeting an unspecified military facility in the Golan Heights and an oil refinery in Haifa, Israel.

Jonathan Schanzer @JSchanzer
The Qatari regime handles security for Hamas.

The Qatari regime protects Hamas.

Someone explain to me how Qatar is the honest broker between Hamas and Israel.

Someone explain to me how this terror sponsor is an American ally.

The army explained the move as the outcome of the exhaustion of all intelligence and combat operations in the region, denying it is the outcome of a U.S. demand from Netanyahu.

An army official said that "the logic that leads us today is mistaken… We are willing to operate whenever we're needed, but there's no need for us to remain in the sector without an [operational] need… The 98th division dismantled Hamas' Khan Yunis brigades and killed thousands of its members. We did everything we could there."

The official add that exiting Khan Yunis would allow the displaced Palestinians to return to their homes after sheltering in Rafah. He clarified, however, that the army "will continue to operate there according to the operational needs."

"Our mission was to dismantle Hamas' Khan Yunis Brigade, and we succeeded in that," he added. "Our second mission was to return the hostages, and we failed in doing so. The operation in the Al-Shifa hospital compound contributed to the decision to change our perception concerning the fighting in the southern Strip."

In the near future, the IDF plans to designate three divisions to the Gaza border, from which army forces will be able to deploy into the Strip whenever needed. Forces will also be stationed in the Gaza border Kibbutz of Kissufim

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum issued a statement concerning the IDF's announcement about the withdrawal of forces from the Strip.
"The government's decision to withdraw the forces from Gaza…proves that the IDF succeeded in providing Israel many military achievements and has hindered Hamas' capabilities," they said.

"The withdrawal of the forces should be the first step in the hostage deal," they added.

The Tikvah Forum, which brings together several families of hostages who push for a deepening of the army's operation in Gaza, has also issued a statement, saying that "the government did not keep its word."

"The slogans of 'until victory' or 'until total victory' are turned out to be empty words as of this morning. Unfortunately, our children are still held in Hamas' basements and instead of Hamas feeling the long arm of Israel's security forces,' we are now retreating."

"We demand that Israel's political leadership and the IDF will [give the order to] return to Gaza and complete the task," they added.

IDF says 14 soldiers wounded in last day, four in a serious condition
The IDF says that 14 soldiers were wounded in the last day, including four who are in a serious condition.

According to the army's statement, nine of the soldiers were wounded in the Gaza Strip.

A senior Iranian official said on Sunday that none of Israel's embassies were safe anymore, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.

The official, an adviser to Supreme Leader Yahya Rahim Safavi, was speaking following a suspected Israeli strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1 for which Tehran has vowed retaliation

■ IDF withdraws a division from Gaza, leaving no troops actively maneuvering in southern Gaza.

■ IDF says 30 rockets, launched from Lebanon into northern Israel, fell in open areas. No damage nor casualties reported.

■ British security firm Ambrey said it had received information indicating that a vessel was attacked on Sunday in the Gulf of Aden in Yemen.

■ Defense Minister Gallant says Israel's defense establishment "completed the preparation needed for an Iranian response."

■ Two people wounded, one in a very serious condition, in a West Bank shooting attack. Security forces search for the shooter.

■ IDF says air force strikes Hezbollah targets deep in Lebanese territory

■ British PM Rishi Sunak marked six months since October 7 early Sunday, saying that "We continue to stand by Israel's right to defeat the threat from Hamas … But the whole of the U.K. is shocked by the bloodshed."

■ British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said that the U.K.'s support for Israel is "not unconditional" in an article he wrote for The Sunday Times, published early Sunday morning.

British security firm Ambrey said it had received information indicating that a vessel was attacked on Sunday in the Gulf of Aden in Yemen.

"Vessels in the vicinity were advised to exercise caution and report any suspicious activity," the firm said. It did not say who was responsible for the attack or give further details.

Separately, a missile landed near a vessel in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday, but there was no damage to the ship or injuries to crew in the incident, 59 nautical miles southwest of the Yemeni port of Aden, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said.

"The Master of the vessel reports a missile impacted the water in close proximity to the vessel's port quarter," UKMTO said in an advisory note. "No damage to the vessel reported and crew reported safe," it added.

It did not say who fired the missile or give further details.

IDF says it blew up Hamas tunnel that stretched hundreds of meters into Israel

The Israel Defense Forces announced Saturday that it had destroyed three major Hamas attack tunnels in the Khan Younis area of southern Gaza — including one that entered several hundred meters into Israeli territory — which it said had been under Israeli surveillance in recent years.

The revelation came as a shock to residents of border communities and reporters, as the IDF has for years claimed that no tunnels from the Gaza Strip have crossed into Israel since the construction of Israel’s underground border barrier, completed in 2021 (some tunnels have been located on the Gaza side of the underground barrier, technically several meters into Israeli territory).

The tunnel that passed hundreds of meters into Israel was first found in 2019 during the construction work on the new border barrier, the IDF said.

The IDF said the passage that entered Israel had remained under “secret” surveillance and control since its discovery.

“Sensors and explosives were placed in [the tunnel] in order to be used by the IDF if needed, as part of a special operation against the underground network of the Hamas terror organization,” the military said.

The IDF said the tunnel was struck numerous times amid the war, alongside other operations to render the section that entered Israeli territory inoperable.

The rest of the tunnel was blown up in recent weeks, it said Saturday.

According to the IDF, the tunnel was not used by Hamas during the October 7 onslaught and remained under intense surveillance amid the war.

Another of the three tunnels was first uncovered a decade ago, and during the 2021 Gaza war it was targeted in an airstrike, killing several Hamas operatives, the IDF said.

At the beginning of the current war, the same tunnel was struck at several locations, preventing it from being used. It was blown up within the past few weeks, according to the IDF.

The third tunnel was first found in 2014, and at the time crossed into Israeli territory and was later destroyed. The IDF said Hamas did not work to fix the tunnel, and in recent weeks another section of the underground passage, deeper inside Gaza, was blown up.

In January, senior Israeli defense officials estimated to The New York Times that Hamas’s vast tunnel network within Gaza runs a total of 350-400 miles long, much more than previously believed. The tunnels are believed to be accessed by some 5,700 shafts.

The IDF said Hamas had used more than 6,000 tons of concrete and 1,800 tons of steel and likely invested tens of millions of dollars into the project.

Since launching a ground offensive in the wake of the October 7 massacres, in which Hamas-led terrorists killed some 1,200 people and took 253 hostages, Israeli forces have worked to destroy the tunnels, uncovering more and more of the underground network.

Following the destruction of a building the IDF suspected was being used by the terrorists, several gunmen emerged from a tunnel and began firing on the soldiers from short range.

Three of the soldiers were killed and the fourth was taken in critical condition to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

During that exchange of gunfire, additional terrorists fired an anti-tank missile at an IDF tank. Despite being hit, the tank continued to operate, and the crew managed to kill the terrorists.

The terrorists who killed the four soldiers, however, weren't hit, and they escaped back into the tunnel from which they emerged. Soldiers who began chasing after them discovered that the entrance to the tunnel was booby-trapped with explosives.

Hamas claimed to conduct a multi-stage attack targeting Israeli forces in eastern Khan Younis on April 6.  Hamas fighters targeted three IDF tanks with anti-tank RPGs in al Zana. Hamas fighters then claimed that they prevented an Israeli quick reaction force from responding to the situation by detonating a minefield that they set prior to the attack. Hamas later claimed that its fighters targeted Israeli forces that responded to the attack.

Four Israeli commandos killed in southern Gaza
The soldiers were killed while searching for terrorists in the Khan Yunis area, after gunmen emerged from a tunnel

The four soldiers were part of the IDF's Commando Brigade. They were identified by the army as Capt. Ido Baruch, 20, from Tel Mond; Sgt. Amitai Even Shoshan, 20, from Azriel; Sgt. Reef Harush, 20, from Ramat David; and Sgt. Ilai Zair, 20, from Kedar.

260 Israeli soldiers have been killed since the IDF began ground operations in Gaza on October 27, and 604 soldiers have been killed since October 7.

All four commandos were part of an IDF force operating in the Khan Yunis area. Among other objectives, the force's task was to locate the hiding places of terrorists. Following the destruction of a building the IDF suspected was being used by the terrorists, several gunmen emerged from a tunnel and began firing on the soldiers from short range.

Three of the soldiers were killed and the fourth was taken in critical condition to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

During that exchange of gunfire, additional terrorists fired an anti-tank missile at an IDF tank. Despite being hit, the tank continued to operate, and the crew managed to kill the terrorists.

The terrorists who killed the four soldiers, however, weren't hit, and they escaped back into the tunnel from which they emerged. Soldiers who began chasing after them discovered that the entrance to the tunnel was booby-trapped with explosives.

Yaron Rosenthal, the head of the Gush Etzion Council, said of Ilai that the latter was a "a brave warrior, a righteous and modest men." Rosenthal addressed Ilai, saying: "Gush Etzion salutes you and cherishes your dedication and enormous sacrifice that enables us to live here, on this land."

Sgt. Reef Harush, 20, from Kibbutz Ramat David in northern Israel, was the son of Avi and Sigal and brother to Zoey. He is a graduate of the Western Valley School in Kibbutz Yifat and the Sulam Tzur High School in Kibbutz Gesher HaZiv.

Sgt. Amitai Even Shushan lived in moshav Azriel in central Israel. He was a graduate of the Religious Zionist Bnei Akiva youth movement and studied at the high yeshiva in the Ali settlement. Amitai was the son of Meli and Efi. His funeral will take place Sunday at 12:00 p.m. in Tel Mond.

Captain Ido Baruch lived in the central Israeli moshav of Tel Mond. His funeral will be held in Tel Mond's cemetery on Sunday at 4:00 p.m.

The army's statement added that two soldiers from the 46th Battalion of the 401st Brigade were wounded overnight into Sunday in Gaza when a tank shell that caught fire.

IDF Chief of Staff Herzl Halevi visited the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis last week and told the troops that a deal with Hamas concerning the release of the hostages will only be achieved through "stronger [military] pressure."

"Another [Hamas] battalion destroyed, another of their commanders killed, another destroyed terror infrastructure – that's the way to pressure them into a deal that would bring about the release of the hostages," Halevi said.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
Five rockets were fired from the Khan Younis area in the southern Gaza Strip at communities near the border.

According to the IDF, some of the rockets were intercepted by the Iron Dome air defense system. There are no reports of injuries or damage.

The rocket fire comes hours after the IDF withdrew all troops from southern Gaza.

U.S. Central Command. @CENTCOM. April 6 Red Sea Update

Between approximately 10:00a.m. and 3:00 p.m. (Sanaa time) on April 6, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces successfully destroyed one mobile surface-to air missile system in Houthi controlled territory of Yemen. CENTCOM forces also shot down one unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) over the Red Sea.

Additionally, at approximately 6:00 p.m. (Sanaa time), a Coalition vessel detected and successfully engaged and destroyed one inbound anti-ship missile

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian. @manniefabian
Border Police blew up the car of a terrorist who carried out a shooting attack in the West Bank this morning, after several dozen kilograms of explosives were found in it.

The Palestinian gunman had opened fire at a bus on Route 55, seriously wounding a soldier passenger, and at another car, lightly wounding a civilian.

The IDF says it is still searching for the terrorist.

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian @manniefabian

The IDF says fighter jets carried out strikes on a military compound belonging to Hezbollah's elite Radwan force in southern Lebanon's Khiam a short while ago.

The compound included seven buildings used by the terror group, according to the IDF.

The IDF says it also struck a Hezbollah command center in Toura.

Earlier, a barrage of rockets were fired from Lebanon at the Golan Heights and Manara area. The IDF says it shelled the launch sites in Kawkaba and Mays al-Jabal.

Key Takeaways:

Gaza Strip (In depth discussion in spoiler below)
Israel withdrew most of its forces from the Gaza Strip. Israeli officials and media sources have framed the withdrawals as part of their preparations for conducting a clearing operation into Rafah. Hamas and other Palestinian militias will likely try to exploit the Israeli withdrawal to reconstitute militarily and reassert Hamas governing authority around Khan Younis.

Israeli officials and media sources have framed the withdrawals as part of their transition toward a raid-based model around Khan Younis—similar to what the IDF has done in the northern Gaza Strip since December 2023.

Israeli military correspondents asserted that the IDF has destroyed Hamas’ Khan Younis Brigade and will accordingly transition to conducting raids to target the remaining militia forces and infrastructure there.  Hamas conducted a multi-stage attack that killed four Israeli soldiers in Khan Younis on April 6, however, demonstrating that Hamas retains some combat effectiveness there.

The Nahal Brigade, the only Israeli unit in Gaza, operates around the border of the central and northern Strip to secure Israeli-built highway Route 749, which bisects the northern and southern Gaza Strip and three nearby forward operating bases for future raids and operations in the Gaza Strip.

The role of the Nahal Brigade in securing the divide between the central and northern Gaza Strip is consistent with the IDF’s full transition to a raid-based model. Israeli military correspondents have reported that the IDF uses the road to quickly launch raids into the Gaza Strip,

The IDF 89th Commando Forces (98th Division) cleared al Amal neighborhood, western Khan Younis, before withdrawing on April 7. The 89th Commando forces located over 100 militia sites during operations in al Amal.  Israeli forces detonated and destroyed a 900-meter tunnel equipped with living rooms and weapons stores.  The IDF conducted raids to seize weapons and kill Palestinian fighters, including a Hamas squad commander.

Palestinian fighters conducted two indirect fire attacks from the Gaza Strip into Israel on April 7. PIJ targeted towns in southern Israel with a five-rocket barrage shortly after all Israeli forces withdrew from the southern Gaza Strip.  The Palestinian Mujahideen Movement separately targeted the IDF Gaza Division headquarters in Reim, southern Israel.

The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine mortared Israeli armor near the Israel-Gaza Strip border northeast of Qarara on April 7.

Palestinian militias did not claim additional attacks targeting Israeli forces on April 7, likely due to the IDF withdrawal from the southern Gaza Strip and a lack of target availability.

West Bank
Israeli forces have engaged Palestinian fighters in at least four locations in the West Bank.

A Palestinian fighter fired upon an Israeli bus and wounded two individuals, including an IDF soldier, near Nabi Elias.

Southern Lebanon and Golan Heights
Lebanese Hezbollah has conducted at least seven attacks from southern Lebanon into northern Israel since CTP-ISW's last data cutoff on April 6.[25]

The IDF conducted airstrikes targeting Hezbollah air defense systems in Baalbek, Lebanon, after Hezbollah intercepted an IDF drone over southern Lebanon on April 6.

Iraq
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq—a coalition of Iranian-backed Iraqi militias—claimed that it conducted a drone attack targeting an unspecified “vital target” in Eilat, Israel, on April 6.  Israel media reported on April 7 that “hostile aircraft intrusion sirens” went off in Eilat.  The IDF later announced that these sirens were a “false alarm.”

Yemen
The Houthis claimed it conducted five drone and missile attacks targeting civilian and military vessels over the previous 72 hours.  The Houthis claimed that they conducted anti-ship missile attacks targeting a Marshall Islands-flagged “British ship” in the Red Sea and two Panamanian-flagged “Israeli ships” in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that international coalition forces intercepted a missile and that a second missile fell into the water near a vessel approximately 60 nautical miles southwest of Hudaydah, Yemen.  US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed that a coalition vessel engaged and destroyed an anti-ship missile on April 6.  UKMTO separately reported that a missile impacted the water near a vessel approximately 59 nautical miles southwest of Aden, Yemen.

The Houthis also claimed they conducted two drone attacks targeting unspecified US “military frigates” in the Red Sea.  CENTCOM announced that it intercepted a Houthi drone over the Red Sea.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) destroyed a mobile, surface-to-air missile in Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen.

The IDF Spokesperson reported that an aerial strike carried out overnight into Monday in the village of Al Sultanya in southern Lebanon killed a senior Hezbollah commander.

According to the army, the commander, Ali Ahmad Hasin, operated as a brigade commander in Hezbollah's elite Radwan force, and helped carry out rocket attacks into Israel from the start of the war. The army adds that two other Hezbollah members were killed in the strike

he IDF eliminates the commander of the Hajir (Rumim Mountains) region in the Radwan Force affiliated with Hezbollah, who was involved in launching numerous missiles into Israeli territory and was planning to carry out terrorist attacks against the Israeli home front.

⭕️ Last night, warplanes raided and eliminated in the Sultaniyeh area in southern Lebanon the so-called Ali Ahmed Hussein, commander of the attack area of ​​Hajir (Rumim Mountains) in the Radwan Force affiliated with Hezbollah.

⭕️ The so-called Ali Hussein was considered a responsible and prominent element in Hezbollah, equivalent to the level of a brigade commander.

⭕️ Within the framework of his position, he was responsible for planning and implementing terrorist attacks on various tracks in the Rumim Mountains area against the Israeli home front. He was also responsible for numerous operations to launch rockets into Israeli territory.

⭕️ It is reported that two other Hezbollah members who were accompanied by the so-called Ali Ahmed Hussein were eliminated when he was targeted.

Following intelligence information and operational identifications compiled by the Southern Command, Air Force fighter jets completed several strikes in recent days that led to the destruction of three launch sites used by the terrorist organization Hamas.

The launch positions were located in the humanitarian area west of Khan Yunis and during the war, launches were made from them towards the south of the country >>

Before the attack, the IDF ensured the evacuation and exit of the citizens of the area and accurately attacked the launchers, without harming those not involved.

This is another clear example of the cynical and systematic exploitation that the terrorist organization Hamas makes of humanitarian facilities and spaces for terrorist purposes, while using the civilian population as a human shield >>

The IDF Spokesperson reported that a Palestinian woman tried to stab soldiers at the Tayasir checkpoint in the northern West Bank.

According to the statement, the woman refused to identify herself and then tried to attack the soldiers - who shot and killed her.

■ IDF reports Lebanese aircraft fell in open area in Israel's north; no casualties reported

■ Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant spoke on Monday amid reports of progress in negotiations with Hamas, saying that the government "has the highest obligation of bringing our hostages home." "The operational conditions that the army created using unrelenting military pressure on Hamas allow us flexibility, freedom of action and also to make difficult decisions to get the hostages back," Gallant added.

■ A joint European Union naval mission has repelled 11 attacks by Yemen's Houthi militants in the Red Sea, the bloc's foreign affairs chief said on Monday.

■ Opposition leader Lapid says he's prepared to grant Netanyahu support for a potential hostage deal.

■ The families of the hostages addressed the statements made by far-right ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich amid reports on progress in negotiations for a deal. They stated that "the absolute victory will be achieved in the deal now and not in Rafah."

■ Religious Zionism chairman Bezalel Smotrich sent an urgent letter addressed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling him to convene the security cabinet immediately, stressing that it is "the only forum authorized to make crucial decisions during war."

■ The IDF Spokesperson reported that a Palestinian woman tried to stab soldiers at the Tayasir checkpoint in the northern West Bank. According to the statement, the woman refused to identify herself and then tried to attack the soldiers - who shot and killed her.

■ Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said on Monday morning that "if Netanyahu decides to end the war without an expansive assault in Rafah, he won't have the mandate to serve as prime minister," amid reports of progress in negotiations between Israel and Hamas

■ Israel is yet to provide a satisfactory explanation for the death of seven aid workers last week, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday as Australia appointed a senior former military official to study Israel's inquiry into the incident.

■ A foreign diplomat familiar with negotiations between Israel and Hamas told Haaretz: "We'll know by tomorrow whether the deal can be advanced. There is cautious optimism, and there will be need for obvious concessions from both sides to advance."

■ The IDF reported it targeted rocket launchers placed in a humanitarian zone in Gaza's Khan Yunis. According to the army's statement, fighter jets struck and destroyed three rocket launchers used by Hamas, after receiving intel gathered by the southern command.

■ The IDF Spokesperson reported that an aerial strike carried out overnight into Monday in the village of Al Sultanya in southern Lebanon killed a senior Hezbollah commander. According to the army, the commander, Ali Ahmad Hasin, operated as a brigade commander in Hezbollah's elite Radwan force.

■ A senior Hamas source told Al-Jazeera that there is no progress in negotiations, and that Israel has "rejected" every demand of the originizaiton.

■ Talks on a truce in the Gaza conflict are making progress in Cairo and all parties have agreed on basic points, Egypt's Al-Qahera News state-affiliated TV channel said early on Monday, citing a senior Egyptian source.

A joint European Union naval mission has repelled 11 attacks by Yemen's Houthi militants in the Red Sea, the bloc's foreign affairs chief said on Monday.

"In less than two months since the operation was launched, the operation has escorted 68 vessels and has repelled 11 attacks," Josep Borrell told reporters in Brussels.

The operation was approved by EU member states' foreign ministers on February 19. Naval vessels participating in the mission are providing armed escorts to commercial ships navigating the Red Sea.

The operation commander, Rear Admiral Vasileios Gryparis, said at the same press conference: "Our ships have shot down nine unmanned aerial vehicles, one unmanned surface vessel, and four anti-ship ballistic missiles."

Gryparis cautioned against drawing premature conclusions about the mission's achievements. Nevertheless, "this is the way ahead," he said. "We have shown, at least with the number of assets that we have, what we can do."

Borrell said that because of the Houthi attacks, commercial shipping between Europe and Asia has been forced to take a longer route around South Africa's Cape of Good Hope.

"This is 10 to 14 days more of travelling. The cost of a container transported from China to Europe has doubled," he said.

"Before the crisis, 13% of world trade transited through the Red Sea… Today, only half of the 70 ships that were passing daily still use the Suez Canal. So it was necessary to intervene."

From an interview in 2022 with head of the former Prime Minister Naftali Bennet--Israel was “implementing the Octopus Doctrine… We no longer play with the tentacles, with Iran’s proxies: We’ve created a new equation by going for the head.”  Source article.

The spokesperson for the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs Majed Al Ansari told BBC that Qatar is "encouraged” by the hostage talks that took place in Cairo yesterday and the mediators are "waiting for the reply from both sides”. He added: "if you ask me if I'm more optimistic today than I was a couple of days ago, I would say yes"

The Israeli military says that is has successfully deployed the 'Naval Iron Dome' missile defense system for the first time since the war with Hamas broke out just over six months ago.

According to the IDF, the system was used to intercept a hostile aerial target over the Red Sea, after sirens were sounded in the southern city of Eilat and surrounding areas.

The military said that the target, which had been tracked, was intercepted before it entered Israeli airspace