Israel News for 3-7-2024
News Update
Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar is reporting that Israel has set a March 15 deadline for reaching a political settlement with Hezbollah. Rockets continue to be fired at towns and cities in northern Israel. The air force is responding.
IDF soldiers killed in Gaza:
Staff Sgt. David Sasson, 21, of the Oketz canine unit, from Ganot Hadar.
Another 12 soldiers were wounded in the same incident, five of them seriously.
For a complete list of the soldiers killed in the ground offensive, click here.
Hamas is hardening their stance in the negotiations in Cairo, demanding a permanent ceasefire and a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. US optimism that a deal could be reached before Ramadan is fading. At this point, Hamas probably believes that it is to their benefit to keep the fighting going on during Ramadan, raising tensions in the region. According to one report, the US is considering pressuring Qatar to deport Hamas representatives from the country if efforts fail to persuade their Gazan counterparts to agree to the deal.
US media is reporting that the Biden administration is considering prohibiting the use of American weapons by Israel in Rafah. US officials have been clarifying for weeks that they won’t support an operation in Rafah without a clear plan for evacuating its civilian population. For more, click here.
Italy refused to confirm the appointment of Israel’s new ambassador to the country because he served as mayor of Ma’ale Adumim, a city in Judea considered to be a settlement. Irael’s Foreign Ministry officially canceled the appointment and switched the ambassador to Hungary, which is unlikely to have a problem with it.
The state commission responsible for investigating the 2021 Lag B’omer stampede on Mount Meron, in which 45 men and boys were killed, attributed personal responsibility for the disaster to senior officials and indirect blame on Prime Minister Netanyahu. The report said, “based on all the materials and evidence presented to us and our direct impressions from them, our conclusion is that there is a reasonable basis to determine that Netanyahu knew that the gravesite of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai had been treated with inadequate maintenance for years and that this could pose a risk to the thousands of visitors, especially on Lag B’Omer. Even if, for the sake of caution, we assume that Netanyahu did not have actual knowledge of the matter, under the circumstances, he should have known.” For more, click here.
To read an article I published in the Times of Israel titled, “The UN Continues to Exceed Expectations”, click here.