Live updates day 511: What happened in Israel, Lebanon, and Gaza?
IDF carried out Hannibal Directive, new 'Sword of Damocles' operation on October 7 • IDF intel missed three potential Hamas invasions before October 7
October 7 probes: IDF's slow response on day of Hamas attack due to chaos, commanders' denial
IDF sources: It was like we had no legs or eyes and were just trying to figure out where to run.
While there are a near limitless number of failures which led to the inability to stop and mitigate Hamas’s invasion of southern Israel on October 7, including the extreme delay in sending reinforcements, two key stunning reasons clarified by the IDF probes on Thursday were denial by commanders that they had been beaten - and utter chaos at IDF headquarters.
Go to the full article >>'I was fortunate to return alive,' released hostage Gadi Moses makes first public statement
"I appeal to you, Mr. Prime Minister—every day is critical for the survival of our hostages, critical for our ability to bring our fallen back to burial in Israel."
Released hostage Gadi Moses said he was "fortunate to return alive" from Gaza captivity in his first public statement following his return to Israel on Thursday, sent via the Forum for Life: Saving Israeli Hostages.
Moses, who spent 482 days in captivity, spoke via a recorded video on Thursday in which he touched on his experiences in captivity and urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure the release of the remaining hostages and the bodies of fallen soldiers.
"I was there, and I suffered immensely—mental hardships, psychological and physical abuse," said Moses. "I saw all the horrors that our people endure in captivity."
"I was fortunate to return alive."
Go to the full article >>Israel's A-G orders probe into alleged ties between Qatar, Netanyahu's office
Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara ordered Israel Police and the Shin Bet to launch an investigation into officials within Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office over their alleged ties to Qatar, it was announced on Thursday.
This is a developing story.
Go to the full article >>How did IDF Chief Herzi Halevi grapple with Oct. 7 failure? - analysis
What will historians say about Halevi 50 years from now, and will another IDF chief cite him as an example?
The story of IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi and October 7 is an independent tragedy in and of itself.
Until October 7, Halevi was viewed not only as a highly successful IDF intelligence chief and southern command chief but as a special forces star who had risked his life countless times in several different enemy territory areas.
One former superior commander, former IDF intelligence chief Aharon Zeevi Farkash, had called Halevi innovative, daring, and willing to challenge his commanders to accomplish dangerous and complex missions.
Go to the full article >>IDF chief of staff: 'The responsibility for October 7 failings is mine'
"I believe that an organization or a person who cannot stand up and face failure will find it very difficult to improve," he said.
"The responsibility is mine. I was the commander of the army on October 7, and I also bear the full weight of your responsibility," said IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, following the publication of the IDF probes into the October 7 failures on Thursday.
"I see every mistake my subordinates made as partly my own."
Halevi added that "every day since October 7, 2023, multiple times a day, I have forced myself to look failure in the eye. And I tell you, do not try to forget, do not try to look away—not from a place of weakness, but with great strength."
"I believe that an organization or a person who cannot stand up and face failure will find it very difficult to improve," he said.
"At the start of the investigation process, I outlined five guiding values for our inquiries: truth, transparency, objectivity, responsibility, and camaraderie. The order matters."
Go to the full article >>Netanyahu meets with freed hostages Keith and Aviva Siegal in Jerusalem
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Thursday with Keith Siegal, who was released from Hamas captivity earlier this month, and his wife Aviva, who was freed from captivity in November of 2023.
"Along with the entire Israeli people, we were very excited to see Keith home," Netanyahu, who also met their daughter Shir, said in a statement following the meeting. "I had promised Aviva and Shir that Keith would come home, and I am happy this promise was fulfilled."
Go to the full article >>Netanyahu meets with freed hostages Keith and Aviva Siegal in Jerusalem
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Thursday with Keith Siegal, who was released from Hamas captivity earlier this month, and his wife Aviva, who was freed from captivity in November of 2023.
"Along with the entire Israeli people, we were very excited to see Keith home," Netanyahu, who also met their daughter Shir, said in a statement following the meeting. "I had promised Aviva and Shir that Keith would come home, and I am happy this promise was fulfilled."
Go to the full article >>INFOGRAPHICS: How night of October 6, day of October 7 transpired
IDF Chief of Staff: 'The responsibility for October 7 failings is mine'
"The responsibility is mine. I was the commander of the army on October 7, and I also bear the full weight of your responsibility," said IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, following the publication of the IDF probes into the October 7 failures on Thursday.
Go to the full article >>October 7 probes: IDF intel missed three potential Hamas invasion before Oct. 7
intelligence only learned of the instances during the current war by a combination of capturing Hamas documents and interrogating Hamas prisoners.
IDF intelligence failed to notice or detect three near mass invasions by Hamas before October 7, 2023, according to the military’s probes issued on Thursday.
Go to the full article >>Israel at war: What you need to know
- Hamas launched a massive attack on October 7, with thousands of terrorists infiltrating from the Gaza border and taking some 240 hostages into Gaza.
- Over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals were murdered, including over 350 at the Re'im music festival and hundreds of Israeli civilians across Gaza border communities.
- 59 hostages remain in Gaza.
- 49 hostages in total have been killed in captivity, IDF says.
- The IDF launched a ground invasion of Lebanon on September 30.
- The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire came into effect on November 27 at 4:00 a.m.
- Netanyahu confirmed the first phase of the Israel-Hamas Ceasefire on January 17, 2025
- 735 terrorists will be released as part of the hostage deal