Hamas resumes rocket fire from Gaza on southern Israel

An anti-tank missile was fired at the northern Israeli moshav Shtula, near the Lebanese border, the IDF said.

Hezbollah took responsibility for the launch. IDF said artillery forces targeted the source of the fire.

The IDF was also striking targets in southern Lebanon after another anti-tank missile was fired at an Israeli military position in the North, it said.

At least four civilians were reportedly wounded in the incident, with one man in his 40s murdered following failed resuscitation attempts, Magen David Adom said. MDA added it rushed the other wounded civilians to the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya for further treatment.

Two more men in their 40s are considered in moderate condition, MDA added.

Israel to evacuate northern border towns

The IDF announced the evacuation of towns four kilometers or less away from the northern border on Sunday morning, saying that entry to this area is strictly forbidden.

Residents of the northern moshav were told to seek shelter immediately. Later, the Kiryat Shmona municipality also told the border city's residents to seek shelter following exchanges of fire on the border

Residents of the nearby kibbutzim of Yiftach, Menara, Maayan Baruch, Misgav Am, Yeron, Bar'am, Tzivon, Dan, Daphna, Snir and Kfar HaGiladi were all told to seek shelter later on Sunday morning. 

This is a developing story.

Following the initial report of several missiles fired from Lebanese territory towards the Mount Dov area, the IDF engaged the source of the gunfire.

Hezbollah took responsibility for the launches, according to Israeli media, which added that the Hezbollah attack included  anti-tank guided missiles and mortar shells fired at five IDF positions.

According to an Al Jazeera report, nine prisoners, including four foreign nationals, were executed today by Hamas. Hamas claims that this is revenge for the Israeli bombings of Hamas military buildings.

Hamas' armed wing had originally said on Saturday that nine captives including four foreigners, were killed due to Israeli air strikes in Gaza over the past 24 hours.

A statement from Al Qassam Brigades on its Telegram channel said the captives were killed "because of the Zionist bombardment on the areas they were staying in."

The US State Department said on Saturday that it has authorized the departure of non-emergency US government personnel and eligible family members from the US Embassy Jerusalem and the US Branch Office Tel Aviv "due to the unpredictable security situation in Israel".

An embassy spokesperson said that "The Department of State has no higher priority than the safety and security of US citizens overseas, including US government personnel serving abroad.

Decision to close the embassy 

 "On October 13, 2023, the Department of State authorized the departure of Eligible Family Members (EFMs) and non-emergency US Direct Hires, as determined by the Chief of Mission, from the US Embassy in Israel as a precautionary measure for those who wish to depart Israel.  
 
"The Embassy remains open. We remain diplomatically engaged at the highest levels and that will continue."

THE US EMBASSY in Jerusalem: Israel’s inclusion in the US Visa Waiver Program will benefit individual Israelis, not the prime minister or any other Israeli government official, the writer notes. (credit: NOAM REVKIN FENTON/FLASH90)

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society received an order from Israeli forces on Saturday with a new deadline to evacuate its Al-Quds hospital in Gaza City by 1300 GMT (16:00 pm local), according to a statement.

An initial deadline was given for 0300 GMT (06:00 am local) but was later extended.

However, the association said they cannot evacuate the hospital and it is obliged under a humanitarian mandate to continue providing services to the sick and wounded, the statement added.

Police cordoned off Warsaw's Pilsudski Square and the surrounding area of the Polish capital on Saturday, with local media reporting that a man had climbed onto a monument in the square and threatened to blow himself up.

Private broadcaster Polsat News reported that at around 1130 GMT the man surrendered to police. Its footage showed him climbing down from the monument, taking off his jacket and walking away with his hands in the air.

The incident came a day before Poland holds a high-stakes parliamentary election.

Bomb threat in Warsaw

A police officer at the scene had told a Reuters reporter: "No entrance, there is a bomb," but a police spokesperson quoted by the state-run PAP news agency did not confirm the reports that the man was threatening to blow himself up.

The historic center of Warsaw, Poland. (credit: FLICKR)

Footage posted on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, had showed a man standing on top of the Smolensk monument, which commemorates the victims of a 2010 air disaster that killed 96 people including President Lech Kaczynski and his wife, Maria.

PAP said several hundred officers were involved in an operation around the square. A Reuters video journalist saw armed officers arriving nearby.

A guest at the Sofitel hotel, which faces the square, said they had been told to only leave the building by the back exit.

The IDF and the Shin Bet eliminated Ali Qadi, the commander of the "Nakba Force" who led the Hamas massacre last week that killed more than 1,300 Israelis, the IDF announced Saturday afternoon.

IDF aircraft, with the intelligence guidance of the Shin Bet and AMAN (Military Intelligence Directorate), targeted the terrorist. In 2005, Qadi was arrested following the kidnapping and murder of Israelis and was later released as part of the Gilad Shalit exchange deal.

Ali Qadi led the inhumane, barbaric October 7 massacre of civilians in Israel.

We just eliminated him.
All Hamas terrorists will meet the same fate.

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 14, 2023

The announcement came shortly after a briefing by IDF Brigadier General Daniel Hagari, who told the press that the IDF has struck down 1,000 strategic Hamas locations in Gaza since Operation Swords of Iron started.

It also eliminated dozens of Hamas terrorists, including many from Qadi's Nakba Force.

In addition, the IDF assassinated Merad Abu Merad, who was the head of the Hamas aerial system, it said Saturday morning. He was primarily responsible for directing terrorists during the massacre. 

IDF to step up air strikes

Hagari stressed that some 600,000 Palestinians in Gaza should relocate to the enclave's south.

"The IDF calls on all residents of Gaza City to evacuate their homes, move south for their protection, and settle in the area south of the Gaza River," an IDF statement read Thursday. "This evacuation is for your safety. Returning to Gaza City after a notification confirming [safety] will be possible. Do not approach the border fence with the State of Israel."

Hagari reiterated that call and stressed that the IDF needed the residents to leave because it planned to target strategic Hamas targets in the area. Hamas uses the residents as human shields, putting tunnels and bunkers under houses in Gaza City and inside civilian buildings. 

"We didn't put those civilians there," IDF spokesperson Jonathan Conricus said in an English briefing on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday morning. "They are not our enemy. We are not trying to kill or injure any civilians. We are fighting against Hamas. That needs to be abundantly clear. We are targeting their infrastructure - wherever it is."

Smoke is seen behind Ashkelon near Israel's border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, October 13, 2023 (credit: REUTERS/AMIR COHEN)

Listen in as an IDF Spokesperson @jconricus provides a situational update as the war against Hamas continues. https://t.co/UeIUKgRJGu

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 14, 2023

"We appreciate the tens of thousands who have left in the last hours," Hagari said. "Anyone who chooses not to leave puts their family in danger."

"We didn't put those civilians there. They are not our enemy. We are not trying to kill or injure any civilians. We are fighting against Hamas. That needs to be abundantly clear. We are targeting their infrastructure - wherever it is."

Jonathan Conricus

However, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement in New York on Thursday that "this amounts to approximately 1.1 million people," or nearly half of Gaza's 2.3 million population, a task that the UN "considers impossible for such a movement to take place without devastating humanitarian consequences."

Hagari stressed that any movement of Gazans out of the enclave, even through Egypt, would be coordinated with Israel.

Multi-front escalation

At the same time as Israel is attacking Gaza, the army will also protect Israel on other fronts, Hagari added.

He stressed that the army was strong and would be able to manage Hezbollah in the north and terrorism emanating from the West Bank.

On Saturday morning, Hezbollah fighters fired an anti-tank missile at Israeli troops. It also sent drones into Israel and fired surface-to-air missiles at an Israeli aircraft, which the IDF quickly intercepted. Later, the organization launched 30 mortar shells toward Israeli territory, with some crossing into Israel. The IDF responded in that incident, too, targeting the source of the firing and by late afternoon, the army was continuing to operate within Lebanese territory. 

During the later attack, a group of militants was detected, suspected of intending to launch an anti-tank missile towards Israel, the IDF said. An aircraft targeted the group.

The IDF also foiled a cell of Palestinian terrorists that operated under Hezbollah's direction and tried to infiltrate Israel via Lebanon, an army spokesperson said.

מצורף תיעוד מחיסול חוליית המחבלים שניסתה לחדור לשטח ישראל מלבנון הבוקר pic.twitter.com/bNtE0khDxT

— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) October 14, 2023

Conricus stressed that as of Saturday morning, the situation at Israel's northern border remains extremely tense, and Hezbollah's activities are being monitored.

In the West Bank, the IDF has arrested more than 230 Hamas operatives since Operation Swords of Iron started, the military updated on Saturday morning.

The focus of the arrests has been on Hamas operatives, as well as instigators of terrorism. 

Reuters contributed to this report.

Hamas has claimed that Israeli air strikes in Gaza have caused the death of nine hostages, four of whom are foreign nationals, in a statement released on Saturday.

The statement was shared by international media. It has not been confirmed by the IDF.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society received an order from Israeli forces on Saturday with a new deadline to evacuate its Al-Quds hospital in Gaza City by 1300 GMT (16:00 pm local), according to a statement.

An initial deadline was given for 0300 GMT (06:00 am local) but was later extended.

However, the association said they cannot evacuate the hospital and it is obliged under a humanitarian mandate to continue providing services to the sick and wounded, the statement added.

A resident of Kfar Qasem was arrested by Israel Police on Saturday under suspicion of supporting Hamas and inciting terrorism.

An investigation was opened upon receiving a report about a resident of the city who published posts supporting the actions of the terrorist organization Hamas while calling on the city's residents to go out and imitate the actions of the terrorist group.

The suspect - a 19-year-old resident of the city - was arrested and imprisoned.