The IDF's operation to conquer Gaza City, one of Hamas' last strongholds, is now fully underway, with IDF tanks reportedly in the city as the IDF works to destroy Hamas' terror infrastructure there.
The expanded operation began last night, marked by a wave of airstrikes targeting Hamas sites throughout the city.
Today, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir toured Gaza City with senior commanders and told them, "The maneuver in Gaza City is a significant step to carry out our highest moral and important duty — to return all the hostages home and to dismantle the military and governing capabilities of the Hamas terrorist organization."
IDF spokesperson Effie Defrin released a video laying out the need to root out Hamas from Gaza City and the IDF's extensive humanitarian efforts taken in conjunction with the operation.
"Gaza City is the central hub of Hamas’s military and governing power – their main stronghold. Hamas has turned Gaza City into the largest human shield in history."
"In recent weeks, the IDF expanded humanitarian efforts in Gaza, setting up a humanitarian area in the south. This area provides greater access to food, water, medical care, and shelter."
And while Israel is urging civilians to move to these safer humanitarian areas, Hamas is working to prevent them from leaving combat zones.
The Israeli Security Cabinet is set to convene Thursday night to discuss the operations in Gaza City.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Netanyahu said today that President Trump invited him to visit the White House for a meeting at the end of the month.
The United States must continue to stand with Israel for as long as it takes to defeat Hamas and free the hostages.
The United States must increase the pressure on Hamas and its sponsors in Qatar, Turkey and Iran to release all the hostages.
Israel strikes Iranian terror proxies in Lebanon and Yemen
Last night, the IDF struck a Hezbollah headquarters in the Nabatieh area of southern Lebanon as "Hezbollah continues attempts to rehabilitate its terrorist infrastructure, while endangering Lebanon’s civilians and using them as human shields."
Israel also eliminated three Hezbollah terrorists over the weekend. All of them were operating within two miles of the Israel-Lebanon border.
The United States must increase the pressure on Lebanon and Hezbollah to fully comply with the November 2024 ceasefire agreement.
Following Sunday’s Houthi missile attack on Israel, the IDF carried out airstrikes against the Houthis' military infrastructure at the Hodeida port in Yemen, a key hub of the Houthis’ weapons smuggling operation.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said, "The Houthi terror organization will continue to take blows and will pay painful prices for any attempt to attack the State of Israel."
In response, today, the Houthis launched a ballistic missile at Israeli civilians, which the IDF intercepted.
The United States must continue to ensure Israel has the resources and support needed to defend its families on multiple fronts and increase the pressure on Iran and its terror proxies.
Treasury sanctions Iranian financial network
The Treasury Department today issued new sanctions targeting over a dozen individuals and entities in Iran, Hong Kong and the UAE for their involvement in an illicit financial network benefiting the Iranian military.
Their activities help Iran fund its terror proxies and ballistic missile program, which pose a serious threat to the United States and our allies.
"Iranian entities rely on shadow banking networks to evade sanctions and move millions through the international financial system. Under President Trump's leadership, we will continue to disrupt these key financial streams that fund Iran’s weapons programs and malign activities in the Middle East and beyond," Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Assets John Hurley said.
Rubio speaks at City of David ceremony
While in Israel last night, Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave a speech at the opening ceremony of The Pilgrimage Road at the City of David in Jerusalem.
"The Pilgrimage Road is an enduring cultural and historical bond between the United States and Israel. It's a powerful reminder of the Judeo-Christian values that inspired America’s Founding Fathers," Rubio said.
Watch this 2-minute video recapping the event:
New op-ed: Israel’s Strike In Qatar Was Justified
In a new op-ed, legal expert Mark Goldfeder and urban warfare expert John Spencer explain that despite the condemnation of Israel at the United Nations, our ally's strike on Hamas terrorists in Qatar was justified:
"Far from being outlawed conduct, the justification for the operation rests on the very framework the international community itself created after the attacks on September 11, 2001. Ironically, that framework is enshrined in a binding U.N. Security Council Resolution.
"Here’s the point: Harboring a terrorist organization is an outright violation of binding international law, and any State that does so should expect an appropriate response...
"The right to self-defense includes the right to eliminate a threat, even when that threat is being illegally harbored by a so-called neutral party.
"If the United States lawfully struck and killed bin Laden in Pakistan, then Israel lawfully struck and killed Hamas leaders in Qatar. That is not bending international law. It is applying it correctly, even when it comes to Israel."
Yesterday was the third anniversary of Mahsa Amini's murder in Iran by the regime's "morality police," which triggered the #WomanLifeFreedom protests of 2022.
"Mahsa’s name will never be forgotten. Her murder, along with so many others, is a damning indictment of the Islamic Republic’s crimes against humanity," the State Department said.
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