Israel-Hamas War: Israel 'committed to getting all the hostages back home', says Netanyahu

Benjamin Netanyahu says the Israeli military and security forces have reached a common assessment that Hamas will not release hostages “unless they are under pressure”.

The Israeli prime minister says ground action “actually creates the possibility” of getting hostages out because Hamas “will only do it under pressure. This creates pressure.” He adds:

We’re committed to getting all the hostages back home. We think that this method stands a chance. It’s a goal that we’re committed to.

A female Israeli soldier was released from captivity in the Gaza Strip, the army said Monday, following an operation in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory.

"Last night, soldier Ori Megidish was released during a ground operation after being kidnapped by Hamas on October 7," the army said in a statement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described a video released by Hamas showing three hostages thought to be in Gaza as "cruel psychological propaganda".

In a statement, Netanyahu also names the hostages, saying: "I turn to Elena Trupanov, Daniel Aloni and Rimon Kirsht who were kidnapped by Hamas who commits war crimes. I hug you.".

Israel Defense Forces’ troops have killed four important Hamas operatives in Gaza, the army press service wrote on its Telegram channel.

"IDF troops killed four prominent Hamas operatives in the last few hours. Among the operatives killed were:

• Jamil Baba, commander of Hamas’ naval forces in its Central Brigade
• Muhammad Safadi, commander of the anti-tank missile unit in the Tuffah Battalion
• Muwaman Hijazi, a prominent operative in Hamas' anti-tank missile unit
• Muhammad Awdallah, a senior operative in Hamas’ production department," the IDF wrote.

AP reports that the Lebanese Army says its troops have discovered 21 launchers on its side of the blue line near northern Israel, and dismantled them. It said one of them was equipped with a rocket ready to be fired.

The army’s statement came as the militant Hezbollah group said its gunmen had attacked two Israeli posts on Monday, including one on the edge of the town of Metula, destroying “technical equipment”.

The Israel Defence Forces earlier said they were again returning fire into Lebanon after coming under attack.

The blue line has marked the boundary between Israel and Lebanon since it was drawn by the UN in 2000.

The United States has reportedly warned Tel Aviv that it would not send American-made rifles after the Israeli national security minister was seen handing out equipment to civilians amidst the war with the Hamas terrorist group.

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Lebanon's caretaker prime minister said Monday he was working to ensure his country does not enter the Hamas-Israel war, even as Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging cross-border fire.

Najib Mikati said he feared an escalation, with the border skirmishes stoking concerns that Lebanon's powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah movement could open a new front with Israel.

"I am doing my duty to prevent Lebanon from entering the war" raging further south, Mikati told AFP in an interview.

A German-born Israeli woman who was captured by Hamas terrorists and paraded on the streets following the October 7 attacks was found dead, the Israeli government announced on Monday (Oct 30).

Shani Louk, 23, was captured from the Supernova music festival in southern Israel near the Gaza border—from where the militant organisation launched their all-front attack.

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AFP reported that rocket alert sirens were in Jerusalem and several blasts were heard from within the city.

The sirens sounded at around 2:29 pm (12:29 GMT) and were followed by at least five blasts, as the war in Gaza raged for the 24th day since the October 7 attacks by Hamas in southern Israel.

Hundreds of patients are stuck in hospitals in the north of Gaza and are unable to move south, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees in the territory has said, according to BBC.

"Many people in the north are seeking shelter in UNRWA schools, they're seeking shelter in hospitals," said White. "I was up and one of the hospitals this week and there are hundreds and hundreds of patients that can't be moved."
 

Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry said Monday that at least 8,306 people have been killed in the Palestinian territory since the start of the war with Israel on October 7.

The ministry said at least 3,457 children were among the dead, as Israel continued to pound the Gaza Strip with air and artillery strikes

The head of the Hamas government office in Gaza has claimed that the Israeli tanks approaching the outskirts of Gaza City have been forced to retreat.

“There’s absolutely no ground advance inside the residential neighborhoods in the Gaza Strip. What happened on Salah al-Din Street was the incursion of a few occupation army tanks and a bulldozer,” Salama Maarouf said in a statement, according to Al Jazeera.

“These vehicles targeted two civilian cars on Salah al-Din Street and bulldozed the street before the resistance forced them to retreat. There is currently no presence of occupation army vehicles on Salah al-Din Road, and citizen movement has returned to normal on the road.”

Israeli tanks on Monday entered the edge of Gaza City and cut a key road from the north to the south of the war-torn Palestinian territory, witnesses told AFP. 

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Sunday (Oct 29) that Israel has "crossed the red lines" in Gaza, which "may force everyone to take action". What does this mean? Will Israel-Hamas war escalate further? 

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The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Monday that dozens of Hamas operatives who had barricaded themselves in buildings and tunnels were killed overnight. 

The Israeli military claimed on Monday (October 30) that strikes were carried out on military infrastructure inside Syria. They also released footage of the airstrikes. 

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On Monday, Asian share markets were mixed as Israel-Hamas war stirred fears of a wider conflict ahead of central bank meetings in the United States, Britain and Japan, the latter of which might see a policy tightening.

The earnings season also continues with Apple, Airbnb, McDonald's, Moderna and Eli Lilly & Co among the many reporting this week. Results so far have been underwhelming, contributing to the S&P 500's retreat into correction territory.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has predicted that Israel’s economy may contract by 11 per cent during the last three months of the year, Bloomberg reported on Sunday.  

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Sixty people have been arrested after a mob looking for Israelis and Jews overran an airport in Russia's Caucasus republic of Dagestan, the interior ministry said Monday.

"More than 150 active participants in the unrest have been identified, 60 of them have been arrested," the ministry said in a statement.

Hezbollah, the armed group based in southern Lebanon, claimed to have downed an Israeli drone - the first such assertion made during the recent conflict. 

The incident reportedly took place on Sunday in the vicinity of Khiam, approximately 5 kilometres (3 miles) from the Israeli border, with the drone crashing into Israeli territory, according to a report by BBC.

Hezbollah reported that 46 of its fighters have been killed and 43 were injured since the Hamas attack on October 7. Additionally, it stated that it initiated 84 attacks at 42 locations along the border in daily confrontations with Israeli forces. Israel, on the other hand, confirmed the death of at least seven of its soldiers during the ongoing conflict.

According to the United Nations humanitarian organization OCHA, more than 30 aid trucks reached Gaza on Sunday, marking the biggest convoy to the war-torn Palestinian territory since the resumption of deliveries over a week ago.

The convoy, consisting of 33 trucks carrying essential supplies such as water, food, and medical provisions, entered Gaza through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.

"This is the largest delivery of humanitarian aid since 21 October, when limited deliveries resumed," it said.

Since the resumption of deliveries, 117 trucks have entered Gaza through the crossing. The territory, home to 2.4 million people, is grappling with a severe blockade and persistent Israeli airstrikes.

On Sunday, in Russia's predominantly Muslim Dagestan region, a mob of anti-Israel demonstrators stormed into Makhachkala airport shortly after an Israeli plane's arrival, prompting security forces to shut down the airport and disperse the protesters.

Local authorities reported that twenty individuals sustained injuries before the situation was brought under control. According to Reuters, security forces have confirmed that the plane's passengers were unharmed.

The Russian Aviation Authority temporarily closed the airport for security assessments. While no immediate arrests were reported, Russia's federal investigations agency has initiated a criminal investigation into the event.

Thousands in Gaza broke into aid depots to take supplies on Sunday. Calling this a "worrying sign of civil order starting to break down" the UN relief agency for Palestinians (Unrwa) as per BBC said the warehouses held basics like flour and soap.

Israel's military announced on Monday that it had conducted attacks on military facilities in Syria, raising concerns about potential broader regional conflict as its war with Hamas in Gaza continues to escalate.

The military stated, "A short time ago, an IDF fighter jet attacked the launchers from which the launches were made last night from Syrian territory towards Israeli territory," adding that an Israeli jet "struck military infrastructure in Syrian territory".

While specific details were not provided, reports from the Israeli public broadcaster Kan News suggested that the strikes occurred near Daraa.

As per the Israeli military, at least 239 individuals, including young children and elderly individuals, were taken captive by the Hamas on October 7.

More than three weeks after startling cross-border assaults on Israeli kibbutz communities, towns, and army bases near the Gaza border, families of the hostages have once again voiced the demand for the return of their loved ones.

Some of them back an Israeli incursion of Gaza, while others advocate for a prisoner exchange. 

Families of the individuals captured by Hamas, as per AFP, feel they are only just starting to be taken seriously by the authorities. This comes as relatives of 80 hostages met with President Isaac Herzog on Sunday.

In northern Gaza, Palestinian residents reported intense air and artillery bombardments on Monday morning as Israeli forces, backed by tanks, stepped up a ground incursion into the region. 

The Israeli military, as per Reuters, conducted air strikes near Gaza City's Shifa and Al-Quds hospitals. 

Meanwhile, Palestinian militants engaged in clashes with Israeli forces in a border region located east of Khan Younis, a city in the southern part of the enclave, as reported by Palestinian media.