Following several attacks on US personnel in the area, the US claimed to have carried out “self-defense strikes” against two locations in eastern Syria that it believed were utilised by the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other organisations. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a warning, stating that if “attacks by Iran’s proxies” persist, more measures may be used.
Israel’s military claimed to have assassinated the deputy chief of intelligence for Hamas, whom it held accountable for aiding in the planning of the bombings that claimed the lives of almost 1,400 people on October 7. Using tanks and troops, the army conducted a small ground attack into northern Gaza during night.
A few trucks carrying humanitarian supplies arrived in Gaza on Thursday, but there have been no reports of gasoline deliveries. According to the UN, the lack of gasoline poses a risk to the continuation of humanitarian efforts. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated in Washington that the Biden administration is considering imposing further sanctions on Hamas in an effort to limit its financial access.
President Joe Biden allegedly gave the order for “precision self-defense strikes” on two locations in eastern Syria that were utilised by the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its allies, according to Defence Secretary Austin. According to Austin, the action was taken in reaction to strikes that have been made against US forces in Iraq and Syria since October 17.
Austin stated, “These Iranian-backed attacks against U.S. forces are unacceptable and must stop. The United States does not seek conflict and has no intention nor desire to engage in further hostilities.” “We are still pleading with all states and non-state actors to refrain from acting in a way that could spark a wider regional conflict.”
Several reports in local media state that a missile struck the Egyptian town of Taba, which borders Israel on the Gulf of Aqaba, inflicting several injuries. The launch location of the rocket was not immediately apparent. Al Arabiya reported, using regional media, that Egyptian authorities have launched an inquiry.
As regional tensions increase due to the Israel-Hamas conflict, the US is sending 900 troops to the Middle East. A Pentagon spokeswoman, Brigadier General Pat Ryder, stated that the staff consists of Patriot and Thaad air defence operators. According to Ryder, none of the troops—either those now on duty or those on order—are headed to Israel.
Additionally, he revealed that there were no deaths from what he described as a failed attack on US personnel on Thursday at the Erbil air base in Iraq. Between October 17 and October 26, the US and its allies were targeted twelve times in Iraq and four times in Syria, he added. According to him, US soldiers “received minor injuries due to drone attacks at Al-Tanf and Al-Asad air base in Iraq.”
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated that in an effort to limit the terrorist organization’s financial access, the US is considering imposing further sanctions on Hamas.
At a Thursday event held at Bloomberg’s Washington headquarters, Yellen stated, “We are certainly looking at further opportunities we see.” We’re all over this and will probably take further action.
Yellen stated that the US had taken a number of actions in the last year to reduce Hamas’s financial access, but she declined to elaborate on particular actions. According to her, Treasury officials are heading to Europe and the Middle East this week to collaborate with friends and find fresh approaches to take down the group, which has been subject to harsh sanctions ever since the US classified it as a terrorist organisation in 1997.
Hossein Amirabdollahian, Iran’s foreign minister, stated that Hamas is willing to exchange Palestinian captives for civilian hostages.
“Our conversations indicate that Hamas is prepared to free civilian detainees. However, at a speech to the UN in New York, he stated that “the world should support the release of 6,000 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.”
In Gaza, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency is attempting to extend its current fuel supplies. According to UN Relief and Works Agency spokesperson Adnan Abu Hassna, “we are rationing the outgoing amounts and prioritising hospitals, bakeries, and water filtering stations,” Bloomberg was informed.
“Gaza will run out of fuel and out of life if fuel doesn’t enter in the next few hours or days,” he declared. He also mentioned that UNRWA’s vehicles won’t be able to deliver assistance supplies that smuggle in from the Egyptian border, on top of the essential services being stopped. The UN secretary general’s spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, stated in a briefing on Thursday that UNWRA’s fuel supplies are anticipated to last for a “very short amount of time.”
Separately, Israel Defence Forces spokesperson Richard Hecht stated in a briefing that gasoline is there in Gaza and that Hamas is free to decide whether to utilise it for internal operations or donate it to medical facilities.
Israel says it killed the attack’s chief planner at 6:28 p.m. on October 7.
Shadi Barud, the deputy chief of the Hamas intelligence directorate, was reportedly killed by an Israeli airstrike on Thursday, according to the Israeli military. In a statement, it claimed that he was in charge of organising the strikes on October 7 alongside Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas in Gaza. Hamas has not responded to the allegation in public.
Additionally, Israel claimed to have killed three leaders who were important players in the October 7 attacks and belonged to Hamas’ Gaza City Brigade’s Daraj Tuffah Battalion.
Israel Tracks Hostages with Spyware (3:45 p.m.)
According to those acquainted with the situation, Israel is requesting assistance from spyware firms, such as the one that created the contentious Pegasus programme, in order to locate down captives in the Gaza Strip.
The US has placed NSO Group and Candiru on a blacklist, and the company is one of several tasked with rapidly enhancing its spyware capabilities to suit the demands of the nation’s security agencies. They are working on the demands with a few other software companies.
In an address on Thursday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attacked Israel for “carrying out a cruel massacre” of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. He also took aim at the European Union and the UN Security Council.
How many more children must perish before the EU Commission calls for an end to hostilities? What is the minimum number of bombs thrown on Gaza before the UN Security Council takes action?
Erdogan also chastised Israel on Wednesday, announcing that he was postponing his intended visit to the nation later in the year and ending energy cooperation. Additionally, he has criticised the US, an ally of NATO, for sending warships to the eastern Mediterranean.
The leaders of the EU are getting closer to proposing a humanitarian pause that would let more supplies into Gaza. People acquainted with the matter claim that member nations argued over the language of a joint statement that was about to be approved by the leaders.
“Continuous, rapid, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access and aid to reach those in need through all necessary measures including humanitarian corridors and pauses,” is what the most recent version of the document demands.
A post on X said that more than sixty people were arrested in the West Bank yesterday night by Israeli defence troops. It further stated that 46 of those arrested were Hamas operatives, raising the total number of arrests made in the Palestinian Authority-governed region since the beginning of the conflict to over 1,000.
According to a post on X, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said that it has received 12 trucks of supplies from its equivalent in Egypt. The trucks carried food, medicine, and water as they crossed the border into Gaza through Rafah. No fuel has been permitted to enter as of yet.
In addition, the UN has issued a warning, stating that almost 600,000 Palestinians are overflowing its shelters and that in the event that fuel is not supplied, it may have to suspend humanitarian efforts. Since October 7, just 74 relief trucks have been permitted entry into the Gaza Strip; this is less than the approximately 100 trucks of humanitarian goods per day that a UN official estimated was required last week.
In a televised speech, Israel Defence Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari announced that the families of 309 soldiers have been informed that their loved ones had been slain during Hamas’s Oct. 7 invasion. The military also said that there are currently 224 hostages thought to be being held in Gaza.