Israel-Hamas Conflict: Israeli Troops Reportedly Nearing Gaza Hospital Alleged To Have Underground Hamas Base

Withdraw government companies' dividends for war expenses: state comptroller

Israeli state comptroller Mantayahu Englman had advised the Netayahu administration to withdraw 2 billion shekels (approximately $519.6 million) from the dividends of government companies to cover war expenses.

Englman's comments came after the Israeli central bank said the war has cost the country more than $560 million weekly in the first three weeks since the war started.

Gaza residents say Israeli troops getting closer to Al Shifa hospital: report

Gaza residents said that Israeli ground forces were getting closer to the Al Shifa Hospital, the enclave's biggest health facility, Reuters reported. Israel claims the said hospital has an underground complex that houses Hamas terrorists.

The IDF said earlier this week that its troops have encircled Gaza City, where Al Shifa is located in.

Democrats urge Biden to grant Palestinians deportation relief

More than 100 Democratic lawmakers led by Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois wrote a letter Wednesday to President Joe Biden, urging him to "designate the Palestinian territories for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and/or authorize Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Palestinians present in the United States."

They said Palestinians who are already in the U.S. "should not be forced to return" to their hometowns as this was "consistent with President Biden's stated commitment to protecting Palestinian civilians."

It is unclear how many Palestinians in the U.S. will be covered if Biden grants the group's requests.

Israel took $596 million hit weekly in the first three weeks of the war: central bank

Israel's central bank said Thursday in a Google-translated report that the Israeli economy lost 2.3 billion shekels ($596) million weekly in the three weeks after the Oct. 7 attacks.

The economy took a huge hit from the absence of workers, which then resulted in a decline in demand. The bank noted that the numbers do not reflect the total economic impact of the war.

Israel demands action over photojournalists' coverage of Oct. 7 massacre

Netanyahu's office said Thursday in a series of posts on X that it has written an "urgent letter to the bureau chiefs of the media organizations that employed" several photojournalists mentioned in an exposé by non-profit HonestReporting. The said photographers Oct. 7 coverage pictures were used by some of the biggest mainstream media outlets, including CNN.

"These journalists were accomplices in crimes against humanity; their actions were contrary to professional ethics," Netanyahu's office said.

"The National Public Diplomacy Directorate demands that immediate action be taken."

Israeli drone strike eliminates Jenin terror cell: local media

The IDF on Thursday conducted a "rare daytime operation" that eliminated a terror cell in Jenin, a city in the occupied West Bank, local media reported.

Palestinian reports revealed that at least one terrorist was killed in the drone strike. Other terrorists were reportedly critically wounded in armed confrontations with Israeli ground troops.

Israel struck southern Syria military sites: Syrian state media

Israeli air strikes targeted military assets in Syria on Wednesday, Syrian state media reported, citing a military source. Israeli missiles reportedly flew over Lebanon's Baalbek region and attacked several military sites in southern Syria, leading to "some material losses."

Also on Wednesday, the U.S. carried out air strikes against Syria in response to attacks on American personnel.

Israel releases #PleaseGoSouth video to urge Gazans to leave the north

The Israeli government released a new video to urge northern Gaza residents to move to the southern tip of the enclave. According to the video, 100 humanitarian trucks enter southern Gaza "every day" and there is "constant supply of water, food and medical aid" in the area.

The government also said Hamas terrorists have been setting up "roadblocks to maliciously stop the migration" of civilians trying to flee the north.

Hamas head of Central Camps Brigade anti-tank missile unit killed: IDF

Israeli air strikes killed Ibrahim Abu Ma'zib, the head of Hamas' Central Camps Brigade anti-tank missile unit, the IDF said Thursday. Ma'zib allegedly "directed and carried out many anti-tank attacks" towards Israelis and IDF troops.

IDF reopens evacuation corridor for Gaza residents

The Israeli army on Thursday reopened a humanitarian corridor for evacuating northern Gaza civilians at the Salah Al-Din Road, which is the Gaza Strip's main highway, IDF spokesperson for Arab media Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee said on X.

As was facilitated in the past five days, the corridor will be open from 10 a.m. IST (11:30 p.m. ET Wednesday) through 2 p.m. IST (3:30 a.m. ET Thursday).

"The northern Gaza Strip area is considered a fierce combat zone and time is running out to evacuate it," Adraee said in a Google-translated message to Gaza residents. He said about 50,000 Gazans passed through the corridor into the south on Wednesday.

Rocket sirens sound in Ashdod

Rocket sires are sounding in Ashdod, Israel's sixth-largest city, according to local media and posts on X. Residents are running toward shelters, local media reported.

Hamas site for drone production discovered in Sheikh Radwan neighborhood: IDF

Israeli ground troops discovered a "site for the production and storage of remotely manned aircraft and a weapon" belonging to Hamas, the IDF said Thursday.

The site was within "a building in the heart of Sheikh Radwan," a residential neighborhood in northern Gaza. The building is located near schools, the IDF said.

Israeli troops seize Hamas stronghold in Jabaliya: IDF

Israeli soldiers under the Nahal Brigade's combat team have taken control of Hamas' Outpost 17 in western Jabaliya, northern Gaza Strip, the IDF said Thursday.

The Nahal Brigade is one of the IDF's main infantry brigades and includes a reconnaissance battalion.

Talks underway to reach 3-day humanitarian ceasefire: Report

Discussions are ongoing to reach a three-day humanitarian ceasefire, the Associated Press reported, citing a Western diplomat and two officials from Egypt, one being a United Nations official.

The deal will include the release of about a dozen hostages being held by Hamas, and the entry of limited amounts of fuel into the besieged strip. More than 700 humanitarian trucks carrying food and medical supplies have entered the enclave, but no fuel has been allowed to reach the strip.

Israeli troops destroy 130 tunnel entrances: IDF

Israeli combat engineers destroyed a total of 130 tunnel entryways since ground operations started in the Gaza Strip, the IDF said early Thursday.

The IDF added that water and oxygen storage were found in tunnels built by Hamas, indicating that the terror group made the necessary "preparations for prolonged stays underground."

106 humanitarian trucks enter Gaza

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) received 106 humanitarian trucks carrying food, water, relief aid, medical supplies and medicine on Wednesday. Five ambulance vehicles also arrived from Kuwait through the Rafah border crossing, but no fuel has been allowed entry so far.

Since the war started, a total of 756 humanitarian trucks from Egypt have entered the besieged enclave, the PRCS said.

Photojournalists accused of being 'embedded with Hamas' on Oct. 7

Several photographers and journalists whose Oct. 7 photos were used by mainstream outlets Associated Press, CNN, New York Times and Reuters have been questioned about why they were on the scene when Hamas terrorists infiltrated Israel.

"AP, CNN, NY Times, and Reuters had journalists embedded with Hamas terrorists on October 7^th massacre," the Israeli government posted on X, citing an article by non-profit HonestReporting.

"Is it conceivable to assume that 'journalists' just happened to appear early in the morning at the border without prior coordination with the terrorists? Or were they part of the plan?" the article reads.

One of the photographers, Hassan Eslaiah, has been pictured beside Hamas' Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar. It is unclear where and when the photo was taken.

IDF strikes Hezbollah assets in Lebanon

Israeli fighter jets struck military infrastructures of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group on Wednesday, the IDF said in a Google-translated post Thursday. Military posts and buildings were targeted, as well as "a number of technological means" that the Lebanese terror group used "to direct terrorism" against Israel, the IDF added.

IDF moving to 'secure' Beit Hanoun

Israeli troops are "conducting ground operations in Gaza, securing the area of Beit Hanoun," the IDF said late Wednesday.

Beit Hanoun lies on the northeast edge of the strip and was the target of IDF bombardment on Nov. 8, 2006 wherein at least 18 Palestinians were killed.

US strikes Iran-linked asset in eastern Syria

U.S. fighter jets conducted a strike on an Iran-linked weapons storage facility in eastern Syria Wednesday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. The attack was carried out in response to the targeting of American personnel in Iraq, he said.

"U.S. military forces conducted a self-defense strike on a facility in eastern Syria used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated groups. This strike was conducted by two U.S. F-15s," he revealed.

The latest strike is the second that the U.S. carried out in the past two weeks as Washington moves to deter Iran and its allied proxies in efforts to prevent a regional spillover from the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Houthis shoot down U.S. Reaper drone

An unmanned MQ-9 Reaper drone operating in international airspace was shot down off the coast of Yemen by Houthi forces Wednesday, CNN reported, citing an unidentified U.S. official. The U.S. Central Command is currently investigating the incident, the official added.

Yemen's Houthi rebel movement, which is backed by Iran, has also since claimed responsibility for the said attack.

Tensions have been escalating between the United States and Iran-backed militia in Yemen, Syria and Iraq amid the raging Israel-Hamas war. A U.S. Navy warship operating in the northern Red Sea shot down more than two dozen drones launched from Yemen on Oct. 19.

At the time, the Pentagon said the launches may have been targeted at Israel.