Israel Latest: Netanyahu Vows to Stay On; Targets Hit in Lebanon
(Bloomberg) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed calls for him to resign over security failures in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack and ruled out a cease-fire with the militant group as the army intensifies ground operations in Gaza.
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A top Israeli official said aid flows to Gaza are poised to increase as concern mounts over the humanitarian situation. Authorities in Hamas-run Gaza said the death toll since the war erupted has surpassed 8,300.
Israeli forces also raided a West Bank city, exchanged fire with Hezbollah across the Lebanese border and conducted airstrikes on targets in Syria and Lebanon. The United Nations envoy for Syria warned the Israel-Hamas conflict is already spilling over into the neighboring country.
(All time stamps are Israeli time)
Israeli Warplanes Attack Sites in Lebanon (2:10 a.m.)
Israeli fighter jets struck infrastructure including “weapons, posts and sites” in Lebanon that were being used by Hezbollah, the Israeli military said in a post on X.
Earlier Monday, Hezbollah said it had fired guided missiles at an Israeli site near the Lebanese border, the Iran-backed militant group’s Al Manar TV reported.
US Treasury Official Discussed Gaza (2:09 a.m.)
Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo met officials from international non-governmental organizations in Brussels to discuss humanitarian aid to Gaza, according to an emailed readout from his office. Adeyemo reiterated a commitment to ensure that US sanctions do not stand in the way of legitimate humanitarian activities in Gaza.
House GOP Breaks With Biden on $14 Billion Israel Plan (11:00 p.m.)
House Republicans led by Speaker Mike Johnson unveiled a $14.3 billion Israel aid plan that breaks with the Biden administration on how to handle assistance for the conflict, complicating prospects for passage.
The package separates the Israel aid from a broader Biden emergency funding request that includes assistance for Ukraine and Taiwan. It also leaves out humanitarian assistance for civilians in Gaza and Israel that the White House requested.
Read: House GOP Breaks With Biden on $14 Billion Israeli Aid Plan
Mossad Chief Visited Qatar for Hostage Talks (8:30 p.m.)
David Barnea, head of Israel’s intelligence service Mossad, visited Qatar to meet with negotiators and discuss efforts to get hostages released, according to a person familiar with the talks.
Qatar, where key Hamas political leaders are based, has been a go-between in diplomacy aimed at freeing more than 200 captives held by the group in Gaza. It helped to mediate in the release of two US citizens this month. Hamas is considered a terrorist group by the US and European Union.
US Pushed Israel to Reopen Gaza Communications Networks (7:30 p.m.)
The Biden administration pushed Israel to reopen communications networks in the Gaza Strip after they had been shut down, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.
Internet and mobile-phone services in Gaza were cut off on Friday amid Israeli bombardment, according to the main telecom provider. Limited services were restored on Sunday.
Netanyahu Says He Won’t Quit, Rules Out Cease-Fire (7:45 p.m.)
Netanyahu dismissed calls for his resignation over his handling of the Hamas attacks and ruled out a cease-fire in the three-week-old conflict.
“The only thing I intend to have resign is Hamas,” Netanyahu said in a briefing for international media. The premier, who’s faced criticism over his unwillingness to accept responsibility for security lapses before and during the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, also said that “calls for a cease-fire are calls for Israel to surrender to Hamas.”
UN Warns Israel-Hamas War Is Spreading to Syria (7:20 p.m.)
The conflict between Israel and Hamas is spilling into Syria, where the situation is now “at its most dangerous for a long time” after more than a decade of civil war, the United Nations special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, told the Security Council.
Israel has carried out air strikes inside Syria, while US bases there have also been targeted in attacks blamed on Iran-backed militias. “Spillover into Syria is not just a risk. It has already begun,” Pedersen said. “Fuel is being added to a tinderbox that was already beginning to ignite.”
US Forces and Allies Hit 23 Times in Mideast (6:55 p.m.)
US and allied forces in the Middle East have been attacked by Iran-backed militias a total of 23 times since October 17, a senior US defense official told reporters. Fourteen of those incidents took place in Iraq and nine in Syria, the official said, adding the attacks have come from a mixture of one-way attack drones and rockets.
Most attacks failed to hit their targets, the official said, but they have prompted fears about a wider escalation of the Israel-Hamas war. Last week, the US conducted strikes on two facilities in Syria the administration says are used by groups affiliated with Iranian forces.
Israel Says Female Soldier Freed in Ground Operation (6: 35 p.m.)
The Israeli military said it freed a female soldier who’d been held captive in Gaza. The soldier, who was rescued during ground operations in the territory, is in good medical condition and has met with her family, the army said.
Israel Promises More Aid as It Steps Up Attacks (5:30 p.m.)
Aid shipments to Gaza are set to pick up somewhat as Israel steps up its offensive, a senior Israeli official said. “We are expecting 100 trucks a day of aid starting tomorrow or Wednesday,” Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer said in a telephone interview. That’s about one-fifth of the prewar level.
Dermer said the next several days “should see the lowest number of civilian casualties of the war,” though he acknowledged that unanticipated events may affect the outlook. He added Israel will continue to block supplies of fuel to Gaza out of concern it will fall into the hands of Hamas.
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