Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 107?

Among extensive operation activity in Gaza, IDF troops killed 15 terrorists in Daraj Tuffah, in northern Gaza, the IDF spokesperson’s unit announced on Sunday morning.

The troops also raided a Hamas structure in the area, where they found uniforms and weapons, the IDF added.

Separately, Israeli naval forces operated to assist ground troops by striking a building from which terrorists had launched an ambush.

The naval strikes on the infrastructure came after it had identified the building as the source of the ambush.

Threat eliminated

As a result of the naval strikes, the threat was neutralized, the IDF noted.

IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip, January 20, 2024 (credit: IDF Spokesperson’s Unit)

Additionally, in Khan Yunis, IDF snipers, in conjunction with IAF aircraft, targeted and eliminated a number of terrorists in southern Gaza. 

Troops in the area also found large quantities of weapons inside a Hamas structure, the IDF added.

Foreign Minister Israel Katz is set to depart for Brussels, Belgium, on Sunday evening, where he will address the European Union’s Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) to highlight the need to defeat Hamas and secure the freedom of all the hostages still being held by the terrorist organization, the Foreign Affairs Ministry announced. 

According to the ministry’s statement, FM Katz will participate in the FAC along with the 27 foreign ministers of the European Union. 

He will additionally have meetings with the foreign ministers of the European Union, France, Greece, Austria, Croatia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, and the Czech Republic, as well as with other senior European Union officials.

Katz will also present his European counterparts with strategic plans and projects to promote the region, including the "Tracks for Regional Peace" initiative, connecting the Middle East and Europe.

"Railways for Regional Peace"

Minister Katz will present strategic plans and projects to promote the region to his counterparts, including the "Tracks for Regional Peace" project, an initiative that will connect the Middle East and Europe.

Israel Katz attends the Special Committee for Oversight of the Israeli Citizens' Fund at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, July 4, 2023. (credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)

"We are continuing a diplomatic campaign to support the heroic IDF soldiers and defeat Hamas, said Katz. “At the meetings, I will work to mobilize the European Union to exert pressure to secure the return of the hostages, take action against Hamas, and advance economic projects that will transform the region and counter Iran."

Sergeant-Major (Res.) Uriel Aviad Silberman, 23, was killed in the southern Gaza Strip over the weekend, the IDF announced early Sunday. His family has been notified.

Silverman, from Moshav Nahalim, served as a reserve combat officer in Battalion 7421, Kirithi Brigade.

Another soldier in his battalion was seriously injured.

Britain's Defense Ministry said on Sunday it would spend 405 million pounds ($514 million) to upgrade a missile system now being used by the Royal Navy to shoot down hostile drones over the Red Sea.

The Sea Viper Air Defense system will be upgraded with missiles featuring a new warhead and software enabling it to counter ballistic missile threats, the MoD said in a statement.

The contracts were awarded to the British division of MBDA, a missiles joint venture owned by Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo, the MoD said.

Escalating regional tensions

"As the situation in the Middle East worsens, it is vital that we adapt to keep the UK, our allies and partners safe," Defense Minister Grant Shapps said in the statement.

"Sea Viper has been at the forefront of this, being the Navy's weapon of choice in the first shooting down of an aerial threat in more than 30 years."

The United Kingdom's DragonFire laser. (credit: UK Defense Ministry)

US and British naval forces in the Red Sea have shot drones and missiles fired by Yemen's Houthi movement this month as the conflict between Israel and Hamas spilled out into the broader region.

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Israel Air Force fighter jets attacked Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure and launch sites in southern Lebanon, the IDF reported Saturday night.

A missile detected in Israeli territory from Lebanon was launched toward the Mount Dov area and fell in open space.

The IDF carried out two airstrikes on targets belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organization in southern Lebanon in the Markaba and al-Adisa on Saturday night, Maariv reported.

This is a developing story.

A tunnel in Khan Yunis where hostages were held was discovered by Israeli security forces after finding intelligence information in the house of a Hamas terrorist, Israeli media outlets reported Saturday.

IDF Spokesman R.-Adm. Daniel Hagari published photos of the tunnel Saturday evening. The tunnel had security doors and explosives designed to protect the terrorists.

Room in a Hamas tunnel under Gaza where hostages were held. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)

“About 20 hostages were held at different times in difficult conditions, without fresh air,” Hagari said. “There were no hostages in the tunnel, but they had stayed there in the past. After about a meter of walking into the 20-meter-deep tunnel, Israeli forces found a space where, according to their testimony, the hostages stayed most of the time.

“In this space, we found evidence of the hostages having stayed there, including paintings of Emilia Aloni along with other hostages [Aloni was released in late November]. We also located prison cells with toilets and a mattress, and they were closed with bars, where 20 hostages were held at different times in harsh conditions without daylight in dense air with little oxygen and terrible humidity that makes it difficult to breathe.”

Children's drawings found in Hamas tunnel under Gaza where hostages were held. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

“Some of them were released about 50 days ago, and some of them are still being held in Gaza and possibly in even more difficult conditions, among them very old people who need medicine and help,” he said. “[On Friday], before we destroyed the tunnel, we documented the place and brought in journalists from international media so that the world remembers this, and it must not be forgotten. Hamas commits crimes against humanity, children, the elderly, the sick, [who] are kept in inhumane conditions.”

“The return of the hostages is of the utmost importance, and we are working in all ways to bring them home,” Hagari said. “Our activity combines technology and intelligence. We do not attack places where we know and even suspect that hostages are there. At the same time as the fighting underground, our forces continue to fight above ground in Khan Yunis, continuing to dismantle the military framework of Hamas.”

The IDF's 99th Division forces dismantled weapon production sites, including a long-range rocket launcher, in northern Gaza on Saturday, the IDF stated.

The weapons production site was found in the Zeitoun neighborhood and other adjacent areas in the northern part of the Strip. The site was located by the 646th Brigade and the 179th Brigade.

Israeli forces located dozens of weapons and production lines for rockets. This reportedly included warheads, rocket launching pits, and explosive devices - all of which were subsequently dismantled.

Weapons found at the scene were also confiscated by Israeli forces. The combined gear and chemical materials confiscated could potentially manufacture more than 800 rockets.

Weapons production process under several stages under Hamas

The IDF stated that Hamas's rocket production process consists of several stages and that they're divided by the terrorist organization to carry them out in different locations - so dismantling them would be more difficult.

Hamas's weapons production lines found in northern Gaza. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

The raids on these sites reportedly had a significant impact on the weapons production process of both Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.