The Gaza War: Day 43 . . . The War in the North

Yom Shabbat

Saturday

5 Kislev 5784

November 18 2023

UPDATE 10:00 PM

Six more IDF soldiers have fallen in battle defending this country bringing to 57 the number who have died in the ground operation in Gaza. 378 soldiers, police, and first responders have fallen since October 7.

The six today:

Maj. David (Dudi) Digmi, 43, Rishon Lezion, a paramedic in the Southern Brigade, in the Gaza Division

Sgt. Shlomo Gurtovnik, 21, Modi’in-Maccabim-Reut, a combat medic in the 46th Battalion, 401st Brigade

Capt. Eden Provisor, 21, Alfe Menashe, a platoon commander in the 52nd Battalion, 401st Brigade

Sgt. Adi Malik Harb, 19, Beit Jen, Nahal Patrol in the Nahal Brigade

Sgt. Shachar Fridman, 21, Jerusalem, a fighter in the 101st Battalion, Parachute Brigade

Maj. Jamal Abbas, 23, from Peki’in, company commander in the 101st Battalion, Parachute Brigade

May the memories of these soldiers be for a blessing.

In the same announcement, the IDF said that 8 more soldiers have been “seriously wounded.”

This is a translation of PM Netanyahu’s remarks 20 minutes ago at the nightly press conference with Defense Minister Galant and Benny Gantz:

“I would like to open my heartfelt condolences to the families of our heroic fighters who fell in the Gaza Strip. We all embrace the families with endless love, and we all salute the heroism of the fallen. They fought for all of us, for the defense of the home, and thanks to them our lives are guaranteed. May their memory be blessed, and may God resurrect their blood.

I also saw the march of the kidnapped families today. I would like to say to the relatives of the abductees: we are marching with you. I march with you, the whole nation of Israel marches with you. Your loved ones are in our hearts and in front of our eyes all the time.

On the topic of the abductees there are many unfounded rumors, many incorrect publications. I want to clarify – until this moment there was no deal. But I want to promise: when we have something to say – we will report it to you.

We know the terrible suffering, the nightmare in which the families are. We look at the pictures, and we think: this is my son, this is my daughter, this is my husband, my wife, my parents. Tonight I invited the representatives of the families to a meeting with the War Cabinet later this week, to clarify how important this issue is to all of us – to me and my friends here. for all of us

Citizens of Israel, so far we have achieved very important achievements in the war: we have eliminated thousands of terrorists, we have eliminated senior commanders, we have destroyed centers of government, we have destroyed tunnels – and more. We continue forward with all our strength.

These achievements were achieved thanks to three main things: the first – the bravery and sacrifice of our sons and daughters. I meet with the men and women from all the forces – at sea, on land, in the air and from all the security arms. I met Karakal and Armored fighters, who eliminated dozens of terrorists in a masterful battle. I met the Bedouin Gdesar where Jews, Bedouins and Christians fought from Nablus to Nablus, to protect the home of all of us. I met female observers, whose friends fell on the first day of the war and with tears in their eyes they continue to watch over us all. Thanks to the brave men and women of the IDF, the Shin Bet and the police, thanks to the fighters and commanders of the divisions, who break forward inside Gaza with supreme bravery, and who cannot be stopped – we are winning.

The second thing that brings about the achievements is the unity and determination of the people. I met the mayors of the cities in the north and the south, who give their full backing to the IDF, the Shin Bet, the security forces and the government in their name and in the name of their residents. Everyone tells me: ‘Go on. Don’t stop’. I heard it from the evacuees, the wounded and also from the family members of our fallen heroes, who say exactly the same things with a heavy heart but with a strong spirit. This spirit, the Israeli spirit that pulsates in all of us, civilians and soldiers alike, is the second condition for achieving victory.

And the third thing that brings the achievement is a ‘political iron dome’, which allows us to continue fighting until victory. I would like to tell you, citizens of Israel, after 43 days of hard fighting, this is not a matter of course. I greatly appreciate that the USA, under the leadership of our friend President Joe Biden, sees the common interest eye to eye with Israel. It has sent aircraft carriers with an escort fleet and a special submarine to the Middle East, and it is constantly sending us vital armaments.

But both within the US and around the world, heavy pressures are being exerted and are increasing against us in recent weeks. I would like to share with you some of the pressures that we resisted, and we continue to resist: many in the world demanded that we not enter the Gaza Strip – we did. They pressured us not to enter Gaza City – we entered. They warned us not to enter Shifa, even though Shifa served as a major terror base for Hamas – we entered. They pressured us to agree to a full ceasefire – we refused, and I made it clear: we will only agree to a temporary ceasefire, and only in exchange for the return of our hostages. Together with my friends I repel the pressures and tell the world: we will continue to fight until victory – until we destroy Hamas and until we return our abductees home.

I am a student of my father, Prof. Benzion Netanyahu, and I am also a student of Ze’ev Jabotinsky. From both of them I learned a fundamental rule for managing a military-political campaign: you cannot establish a military victory without political backing, and you cannot establish political backing without appealing to both the leaders and public opinion in their countries. This is exactly the effort I have been leading with my friends since the outbreak of the war. We insist on our vital security and political interests, and I must tell you, in the face of stiff resistance. When our adversaries as well as our friends see this insistence, when they hear it in interviews in the international media and in conversations with leaders, we gain the necessary space to continue the action.

And I say again, this is not obvious, from day one I have been leading an intense political effort with my friends to preserve the support of the USA and many other countries. I keep in constant contact with President Biden. The staff in my office talk to the White House every day. I appear in the American media almost every day to convince the American public of the rightness of our way, and so do others. We are in regular contact with the members of Congress and the Senate, and with those of them, and they are many, who come to Israel, I meet personally.

These efforts bear important fruit. American bipartisan support for Israel was manifested just a few days ago in a huge demonstration of support in Washington in favor of Israel, the largest demonstration of support for Israel since the founding of the state. I continue to speak every day with the leaders of the countries, including today with the Chancellor of Germany. All of these are essential actions to ensure the continued supply of armaments from the USA as well as to curb international initiatives that would endanger the continuation of the fighting.

In this context, I would like to address the issue of humanitarian aid. First of all, and above all else, Israel acts according to the laws of war. This is how our army works – the most moral army in the world. The humanitarian aid is also essential for the continued guarantee of international support. Without humanitarian aid, even our best friends will find it difficult to support us for a long time, and it will be very difficult for us to continue the war until the end.

Therefore, when the IDF and the Shin Bet jointly recommended to the Cabinet to accept the American request, to allow a limited entry of two fuel tanks per day into the southern Gaza Strip – the War Cabinet unanimously agreed. This is a minimum emergency amount of fuel. Fuel for running water and sewage pumps, without which we are expected to have an immediate outbreak of epidemics. And it should be understood: an outbreak of epidemics will harm both the residents of the Gaza Strip and the IDF soldiers in the Gaza Strip.

I want to emphasize: this is not a policy change, but a limited one-point response to prevent the spread of epidemics. These are some of the things that my friends and I in the cabinet are doing to ensure the continuation of Israel’s political maneuvering space, a space that we need to achieve the goals of the war.

But I want to make it clear: even if the pressure increases, I will not stop sticking to the three tasks I set and we must all stick to them.

The first task – to achieve a complete victory, to destroy Hamas. The people, the government and the fighting forces show that we have the will, the ability and the unity to achieve this goal. The second task – to return our abductees. We did not relent from this sacred mission. She guides us all the time. And the third task – to ensure that after the victory, Gaza will never again threaten the citizens of Israel. I will not allow any party to enter it that supports terrorism, pays terrorists and terrorist families, and educates its children to murder Jews and eliminate the State of Israel. Without such a transformation in the civil administration in Gaza, it is only a matter of time until Gaza returns to terrorism and I am not ready to agree to that. And there is another condition that I set for the day after: the IDF will have complete freedom of action in the Gaza Strip against any threat. Only in this way will we guarantee the denuclearization of Gaza.

Citizens of Israel, we continue until the end – until victory. We will defeat Hamas, return our abductees, restore security both in the south and in the north. We will restore the cities, the settlements, the kibbutzim. As the prophet Ezekiel said: “And I laid the cities and the swords were built.”

Together we will fight, and with God’s help, together we will win.”

UPDATE 6:00 PM

On the Ground in the South

The IDF Spokesman one hour ago (bolding mine):

“The Southern Command continues to expand its offensive activity to additional neighborhoods in Gaza and raided the areas of Zaytun and Jabalia.

IDF Division 36 is working to defeat the Hamas “Zaytun” battalion. At the same time as the activity in the neighborhood, the forces of the division are working to clean the neighborhoods on the outskirts of Zaytun, including the neighborhood of Sheikh Ajin and Rimal.

IDF Division 162 is operating on the outskirts of Jabaliya. The command and control center of the Hamas Northern Gaza Brigade is located in the Jabalia region and is one of the most significant terrorist strongholds in the northern Gaza Strip region, where four Hamas battalions are located. The infantry, armor and engineering fighters of the divisions, with the assistance of the Air Force and the divisional fire forces, have been engaged in intense combat with terrorists firing anti-tank missiles and IEDs from civilian areas.” 

Missile and mortar attacks in the South since 1:30 pm.

Rehovot, Nes Ziona, Givat Brenner (17:01); Sderot, Nir Am (14:59); Ashkelon (14:04); Nirim (14:01).

There was one direct hit on an empty house in Sderot. It is not known how many soldiers may have been wounded in the mortar attacks on Nir Am and Nirim.

UPDATE 1:30 PM

The terror squad that launched the missiles into central Israel from southern Gaza last night has been killed.

Intense fighting continues in all sectors of Gaza.

The Israeli War Cabinet has rejected the hostage “deal” offered by Qatar. That deal would have released 50 hostages but in doing so would have separated parents from children. For those 50 hostages Israel would have been required to release all female Palestinian prisoners, allow unlimited fuel into Gaza, and have a ceasefire for 5 days.

In the last two hours there have been more than 25 launches of missiles and mortars out of Lebanon at the Lebanese border communities: Sassa (09:53); Shtula (10:00); Kiryat Shmona, Margaliot (13:00); Kiryat Shmona (1:22) . There have been no Israeli casualties.

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Thank You For Your Patience

For reasons that are unclear, the city of Ashdod has been without electricity for the last 6 hours. Perhaps we should not complain since the Israeli communities along the Lebanese border have been without electricity the last 3 days.

UPDATE 10:00 AM

On the Ground

In the South

It was a long night here in Ashdod punctuated by continuous booms from heavy artillery fire into northern Gaza, and bombing in Khan Younis in southern Gaza. 

The IDF has apparently issued an order for all doctors, nurses, and patients to immediately vacate the Shifa Hospital.

Another dead hostage: the Tanzanian government announced last night that a Tanzanian worker who was taken captive on October 7 is dead. No explanation has been forthcoming about how the Tanzanians discovered this (perhaps the morgue in Shifa?).

The missile barrage on Tel Aviv last night came from southern Gaza.

The results of the police investigation: at the Peace Party on October 7th, 364 were murdered and 40 were kidnapped to Gaza.

In the North

IAF aircraft attacked an aluminum factory near Nabatia from which missiles had been fired at Tzfat (Safed) and Marom Ha Galil (01:50 am).

IDF forces carried out artillery attacks at Nakura in response to the missile fire yesterday.

In Judea and Samaria

The IDF Spokesman this morning: 

“IDF and Shin Bet forces eliminated 5 terrorists in the Balata neighborhood in the city of Shechem thereby preventing attacks against Israeli citizens.

An IAF aircraft attacked a hideout apartment used by terrorists involved in planning terrorist activity against Israeli citizens and military targets in the immediate range.

Alongside the terrorists who were eliminated in the activity, Muhammad Zahad a major terrorist in the city of Shechem, was killed. Zahad was involved in a series of shooting attacks in the area of the city of Shechem and planning attacks in Israel.”