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International Business Times
International Business Times
World
Marvie Basilan

Israel-Hamas Conflict Live: Ceasefire Talks Have 'Stopped'; Israeli Army Reportedly Cuts Gaza Into 3

Hamas Israel United States IDF Gaza The Red Sea Yemen

KEY POINTS

  • The U.K. is set to start surveillance in Gaza to help locate remaining hostages
  • Top Hamas battalion commander was assassinated, as per IDF
  • Shin Bet chief references 'Munich' in recording
Live Updates
Pictured: Israeli troops on the ground in the northern Gaza Strip, after the truce expired. (Credit: AFP)

Nearly two months into the Israel-Hamas war, hostage-ceasefire talks have stalled as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Hamas militants ramp up fighting. The international community and loved ones of more than a hundred hostages still being held in Gaza continue to call for the abductees' immediate release.

  • Qatari PM tells U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that Doha is still committed to truce efforts
  • Britain to start Gaza surveillance in efforts to find remaining hostages
  • Mossad team ordered to leave Doha after ceasefire talks collapse
  • Hezbollah has been "part of the fighting" in the past month and a half: IDF spokesperson
  • U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris discusses "day after" ideas with Palestinian president
  • Israeli soldiers uncover booby-trapped tunnel opening in Beit Hanoun school: IDF
  • The Gaza Strip has been cut into three: report

The Pentagon said Yemen's Houthi rebels attacked a U.S. Navy warship and a few other commercial ships in the Red Sea. The Houthis previously said any Israeli or Israel-linked ship would be a "target" for the Yemeni rebel army.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with new army recruits Sunday as IDF forces continued to hunt down Hamas operatives across the Gaza Strip.

The Maccabi Tel Aviv football team on Sunday night joined Israel supporters around the world to call for the release of the remaining hostages being held by Hamas and other Palestinian factions in Gaza.

Hamas operatives launched a surprise attack in Israel on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,200 people and abducting over 200 Israelis and foreigners.

U.S. President Joe Biden has said that a two-state solution would resolve longstanding Israel-Palestine tensions that led to the Oct. 7 massacre and has drawn attacks targeting Israel and its allies.

6 freed Thai hostages back in Thailand

Six Thai hostages that Hamas released during the seven-day truce have returned home to Thailand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) announced Monday. The freed hostages will be assisted accordingly so they can travel back to their specific hometowns.

5 Hamas members arrested overnight: IDF

In arrests made overnight across Judea, Samaria and Beqaa, a total of 29 wanted persons were arrested, the IDF said Monday. Five of the arrested individuals are Hamas members, the IDF said, as per a Google-translated post on X.

Hostage's cousin talks 'hardest thing' about the case of remaining hostages

Udi Goren, the cousin of Tal Chaimi, one of the hostages who remains in Gaza, said the family is aware of the danger abductees face as they spend more time in Hamas captivity in the enclave.

"The hardest thing for us to hear is that the State of Israel has run out of tools to bring our people over except the war," Goren said as per a translation by Israel's national broadcaster Kan.

Goren's comments came as the world waits for news regarding more than 100 other hostages who remain held by Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza. Most of them are men and Israeli soldiers – some of them are the fathers, siblings, or family members of other women and children who were freed in the past seven-day ceasefire.

Mortar bombs injure 3 IDF soldiers

Several mortar bombs detected Sunday night from Lebanese territory slightly injured three Israeli soldiers at an IDF post in the Shtula area, a moshav located near Israel's northern border with Lebanon.

The wounded soldiers have been evacuated for treatment, the IDF said Monday.

IDF cuts Gaza Strip into three: Report

The Israeli army has divided the Gaza Strip into three sections after IDF tanks cut off the road between Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza and Khan Yunis in the south, Reuters reported Monday. The IDF previously cut the enclave into two when it surrounded Gaza City.

News of the development came as Israeli troops continue to clash with Hamas militants on the ground. The IDF has published a map that it said should help Gaza civilians move to safer places in the strip.

200 Hamas targets attacked overnight: IDF

Israeli troops attacked about 200 Hamas targets Sunday night, IDF spokesperson for Arab media Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee said in a Google-translated post on X.

Among the assets destroyed were infrastructure positioned "inside a school in Beit Hanoun," vehicles containing missiles, and infrastructure that the terror group used to ambush Israeli forces.

In the school, IDF troops found a booby-trapped tunnel opening and "a yard of explosive devices and weapons."

Israeli hostage taken from music festival confirmed killed in captivity: Report

The family of Yonatan Samerano, 21, who was among the Israelis abducted by Hamas from the Re'im music festival on Oct. 7, was informed Sunday that Samerano was killed in captivity in Gaza, multiple local outlets reported.

During the massacre, Samerano escaped from the festival site, near Israel's southern border with Gaza, but he was shot and taken into Gaza, as per The Jerusalem Post.

Harris reaffirms US' 'strong support' for Israel's right to defense

During a call with Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Sunday, U.S. Vice President Harris reaffirmed Washington's strong support for Israel's right to self-defense, according to a White House press release.

The two leaders also discussed the latest developments in the Gaza Strip and Harris reiterated to Herzog "the importance of planning for the day after the fighting ends." She also emphasized the U.S. commitment to a two-state solution.

Harris talks 'day after' in Gaza with Palestinian leadership

Harris spoke with President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority on Sunday in a phone call to discuss "ideas for planning for the day after the fighting ends in Gaza," as per a press release from the White House.

As part of U.S. efforts toward pushing for a two-state solution, Harris' national security advisor Dr. Phil Gordon will travel to Israel and the West Bank.

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris (Credit: AFP)

Hezbollah has 'been part of the fighting' in the past weeks: IDF spokesperson

IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus said in a Q&A session on X Spaces early Monday that Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah has "been part of the fighting" in the past month and a half, adding that there has been an "up and down" escalation initiated by Hezbollah since the Israel-Hamas conflict started.

"Yesterday was quite escalatory," he said, as the Lebanon-based paramilitary group fired an anti-tank missile targeting an Israeli vehicle that carried soldiers. While the soldiers were able to leave the vehicle before the missile struck, 12 Israeli soldiers were lightly wounded in the attack.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah previously warned Israel against attacking Gaza further. He also called Hamas terrorists "heroic" for their Oct. 7 carnage in Israel.

Mossad team in Doha ordered to return to Israel

David Barnea, director of Israel's intelligence and special operations agency Mossad, has ordered his team in the Qatari capital to return to Israel "following the impasse in negotiations," Netanyahu's office announced Sunday in a series of posts on X.

The Prime Minister's office said Barnea thanks the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Egypt's intelligence minister and Qatar's prime minister for their joint mediation efforts that led to the seven-day ceasefire and the release of more than a hundred Israelis and foreign nationals.

Israel will launch another 'Munich' operation: Recording

Ronen Bar, the head of Israel's security services agency Shin Bet, vowed that the leaders of Hamas residing or hiding in different countries will be hunted down and eliminated, as per a recording of Bar's voice that Israel's national broadcaster Kan published Sunday night.

"The cabinet has set us a goal, in street talk, to eliminate Hamas. This is our Munich. We will do this everywhere, in Gaza, in the West Bank, in Lebanon, in Turkey, in Qatar. It will take a few years but we will be there to do it," Bar said, as per a Reuters translation.

It is unclear whom Bar was speaking with in the recording, but his reference to "Munich" was the vengeance operation that Israel launched against Palestinian group Black September, following the attack on Israeli Olympic team members in 1972.

During the said attack on the Munich games, 11 Israeli Olympians and coaches were killed. Israel responded by implementing a targeted assassination campaign, called Operation Wrath of God, against the Palestinian group. The campaign lasted for several years and in different countries.

Hamas' Shati Battalion commander assassinated: IDF

Israeli air defense forces on Sunday eliminated Haitham Khojari, the commander of Hamas' Shati Battalion, the IDF announced in a Google-translated post on X.

Khojari's battalion launched the surprise raid in Israel on Oct. 7, the Israeli army said. Khojari is just one among a growing number of Hamas commanders having been assassinated by IDF troops since the war started.

IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari also revealed during a press briefing that Khojari led the activities of Hamas inside the Al-Shifa Hospital, which the Israeli army repeatedly said was used by the terror group as a command center.

Britain to begin surveillance work in Gaza: Defense secretary

British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps announced Sunday that the U.K. will begin carrying out surveillance flights over the Gaza Strip as part of its efforts in helping locate and rescue the remaining hostages. He also said there are still British hostages being held by Hamas. "Their freedom is our utmost priority," he said.

Qatar's PM reaffirms to Blinken his country's commitment to restoring truce

Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani early Monday local time that Qatar was committed to the restoration of the hostage-ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.

He told the U.S. Secretary of State that it was committed to working with its mediation partners in ongoing efforts to achieve another truce agreement, local media reported, citing Qatar's news agency.

U.S. Department of State spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement that Blinken and Al-Thani discussed "ongoing efforts to facilitate the safe return of all remaining hostages and increase aid to civilians in Gaza."

A seven-day ceasefire deal fell apart Friday after Hamas fired rockets toward Israeli territory a few minutes before the truce expired. Israel also revealed that Hamas failed to deliver a new list of hostages slated for release that day.

Supporters wave the Israeli flag as they wait for newly released hostages. (Credit: AFP)

Maccabi Tel Aviv players call for hostages' release

Players with the Maccabi Tel Aviv football team on Sunday night went out to the field to call for the release of the remaining hostages being held by Hamas and Palestinian militant groups.

The players stood in a line, holding up a sign that reads, "Bring Them Home Now!" The players were joined by Michael Idan, 9, whose parents were murdered by Hamas operatives on Oct. 7. The young boy and his sister, Amalia, 6, hid in a closet as they watched the militants kill their parents, the Israeli government said.

Michael's other younger sister, then 3-year-old Abigail, was abducted and held hostage by Hamas. Abigail turned 4 in captivity and was released after 50 days.

5 Israeli soldiers die after fighting resumes

Five soldiers died over the weekend after Israel and Hamas resumed fierce fighting when their seven-day ceasefire collapsed Friday. The IDF announced the news on its tribute page for fallen soldiers since the war started.

  • Maj. Neria Sha'ar, 36 – 6655th Battalion of the 55th Brigade
  • Maj. Or Brands, 25 – 82nd Battalion of the 7th Brigade
  • Maj. Ben Zussman, 22 – Combat Engineering Corps of the 401st Brigade
  • Sgt. Benjamin Yehoshua Needham, 19 – Combat Engineering Corps of the 401st Brigade
  • Sgt. Eschalo Sama, 20 – 932nd Battalion of the Nahal Brigade

Sgt. Sama died Saturday from wounds he sustained while fighting against Hamas on Nov. 14, the IDF said. The four other Israeli soldiers died in battle over the weekend in northern Gaza.

Netanyahu meets new IDF recruits

Netanyahu on Sunday met with new Israeli army recruits to be deployed in the IDF's Armored Corps and Givati Brigade, which is one of the two infantry brigades under the Southern Command.

The Israeli Prime Minister's meeting with new army recruits comes as the IDF ramps up attacks against Hamas in the Gaza Strip following the collapse of a fragile seven-day ceasefire.

Hostage-ceasefire talks 'have stopped': White House

Talks between Israel and Hamas to release the remaining hostages being held in Gaza "have stopped," the Wall Street Journal reported late Sunday, citing the White House.

The news comes as the international community continues to pressure the warring sides to get back to the negotiation table after a seven-day ceasefire last week collapsed following Hamas' alleged violation of the truce agreement.

Freed Israeli hostage Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, takes part in a protest outside the defense ministry in Tel Aviv to call for the immediate release of hostages still being held in Gaza. (Credit: AFP)

Yemen's Houthis attack US Navy warship, 3 commercial vessels: US CENTCOM

"Today, there were four attacks against three separate commercial vessels operating in international waters in the southern Red Sea" by Yemen's Houthi rebels, the United States' Central Command (CENTCOM) said on X late Sunday.

The attacked ships were linked to 14 different nations. The U.S. Navy's USS Carney was also targeted by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) "from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen," CENTCOM revealed.

"These attacks represent a direct threat to international commerce and maritime security," jeopardizing international crew members, the agency added. "We also have every reason to believe that these attacks, while launched by the Houthis in Yemen, are fully enabled by Iran." The U.S. said it will consider "all appropriate responses" in coordination with its allies and partners.

The attacks came after Houthis hijacked a Japanese-operated cargo ship in the Red Sea earlier this month and have been holding its crew hostage since then. Among the hostages are 17 Filipino seafarers.

Yahya Sare'e, spokesperson of the Houthi rebel army, said after the hijacking that "all ships belonging to or dealing with" Israel "will become a legitimate target" of the Houthis.

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