The IDF has now removed 48-60% of Hamas terrorists from the battlefield, according to a new report by the Israeli military. 9,000 have been killed by Israeli soldiers, while another 8,000 have been wounded to the extent that they cannot return to fighting. 2,300 Hamas operatives have been arrested.
Fierce battles continued in Khan Yunis today, where the IDF said is it "increasing the pressure" on Hamas while eliminating "many terror cells" as it operates to destroy the terror group and free the hostages.
In central Gaza, the IDF identified and demolished a Hamas terror tunnel that was located less than a mile from the border with Israel. Israeli troops located rockets, anti-aircraft missiles, and other military equipment inside the passageway. See footage of the tunnel here.
This is "a war that Israel did not seek," writes David Horovitz in The Times of Israel. "A war being fought in a territory from which Israel had unilaterally departed and where it had no territorial ambitions; a war that Israel had no choice but to wage, in order to prevent Hamas carrying out more October 7 massacres, to free our hostages, to deter our other enemies, and to enable the surviving residents of the Western Negev to return to their homes."
New Poll: Americans standing with Israel
A new poll this week found U.S. voters overwhelmingly support Israel in its war against Hamas. 80% said they backed Israel over the terror group, while 67% said a ceasefire should only happen if the hostages are released and Hamas is removed from power. Read more about the poll here, and share the graphic below on Facebook,
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Hamas leader doubles down on "From The River To The Sea"
Khaled Mashal, the leader of Hamas abroad, reiterated the terror group’s commitment to destroying Israel.
"Obviously, the position of Hamas, and the position of the vast majority of the Palestinian people, especially following October 7, I believe that the dream and the hope for Palestine from the River to the Sea, and from the north to the south, has been renewed. This has also become a slogan chanted in the U.S., and in western capital cities, by the American and Western public.
Mashal went on to praise the slogan being used on American and European college campuses. Watch the clip below.
"In the face of despair, I choose hope."
Those were the words Lishay Lavi wrote in a letter to her husband Omri, who has now endured 110 days as a hostage in Hamas captivity. Lishay’s letter, published this week by CNN, describes the unimaginable task of trying to raise her two young daughters amid the agony of their family being torn apart. "The not-knowing is a torment that wraps around my heart and squeezes it," she writes.
Lishay – who writes daily messages to her husband – describes feeling abandoned by the international community, whose "corridors of power and palaces of justice resonate with a silence that is deafening." Read and share her powerful letter here.
Sincerely,
Adam Harris
Director of Communications
136 Israelis are still held hostage by Hamas. Join us in sharing their stories.
Every hostage is a life interrupted and a family in pain. We encourage you to join us in making each of their stories known by sharing a graphic on social media and using the hashtag #BringThemHomeNow.
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