Israeli air defenses intercepted an anti-aircraft missile that was fired from Lebanese territory toward an Israeli drone, the IDF said late on Wednesday. The army said “In response, IDF aircraft struck the source of the launch.”
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Earlier, air raid warning sirens sounded in the central cities of Rishon LeZion, Ness Ziona, Petah Tikva and other neighboring communities, as well as in the southern city of Ashkelon, which has borne the brunt of rocket attacks since the hostilities began. A rocket scored a direct hit on a home in Rishon LeZion. The Magen David Adom ambulance service reported that four people sustained minor injuries in the attack - two in Rishon LeZion and two in Petah Tikva.
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Lebanon anti-aircraft missile intercepted over northern Israel
(Photo: Maayan Borzikovsky)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised Wednesday evening that Israel’s ground offensive in the Gaza Strip is coming soon despite several delays.
Speaking to the media, Netanyahu said “we are preparing for a ground incursion into Gaza," adding that the timing of the offensive will be determined by the war Cabinet.
"All members of Hamas are marked for death, above ground and below, both inside and outside of Gaza. Together with Defense Minister Gallant, Minister Benny Gantz, the Cabinet, the IDF chief of staff, and the heads of the security agencies, we are working around the clock to achieve our war objectives until victory, without political considerations," he further added.
He also listed the war's objectives, placing the return of the captives held by Hamas at the top of the list. "We set two goals for this war: to cripple Hamas's political and military capabilities and to do everything possible to bring the captives home," he said.
The Israeli leader said that once the war is over, everyone, including him, will have to answer for the series of military and intelligence blunders that allowed Hamas to launch its attack.
“Everyone will need to provide answers, including me,” he said. “As prime minister, I’m responsible for the country’s future – and it’s now my duty to lead Israel to a decisive victory."
Shortly before Netanyahu's speech, another rocket volley was fired into central Israel, which according to Palestinian reports, was preceded by a series of intense Israeli air strikes in the heart of Gaza City.
Earlier, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing U.S. and Israeli officials, that Israel has agreed to a U.S. request to postpone its ground incursion into the Gaza Strip as Washington rushes air defenses to protect its troops in the region,
According to the report, the Pentagon is "scrambling to deploy nearly a dozen air-defense systems to the region, including for U.S. troops serving in Iraq, Syria, Kuwait, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, to protect them from missiles and rockets."
The report comes a day after a Pentagon spokesperson confirmed that U.S. forces have been attacked more than a dozen times in Iraq and Syria in the past week as the Israel-Hamas war ratchets up tensions across the region.
Rocket sirens sounded in the northern city of Kiryat Shmona and the neighboring communities along the Lebanon border Wednesday afternoon. The IDF said that four rocket launches were detected, with all the projectiles landing in unpopulated areas. The military responded with artillery fire toward the source of the rockets.
The army later reported targeting three terrorist cells along the Lebanon border. One of these cells had previously fired an anti-tank missile into Israeli territory. The IDF's statement noted that the last strike was conducted by an IDF aircraft, targeting a cell suspected of attempting to launch attacks from Lebanon into the Dovev area. Furthermore, a terrorist cell was spotted near Arab al-Aramshe on the Lebanese border, which was subsequently attacked by IDF tanks.
A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Wednesday said the UK government did not agree with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres's remarks during a United Nations Security Council hearing on the Israel-Hamas war, in which he said that the Palestinian terrorist group's October 7 attack on Israeli border communities "did not happen in a vacuum," comments that sparked outrage in Israel and prompted calls for his resignation. "We are clear there is and can be no justification for Hamas' barbaric terrorist attack," he said, adding that a cease-fire in Gaza would serve to benefit Hamas.
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Foreign Minister Eli Cohen at a UN Security Council on Tuesday
(Photo: Lev Radin for Israeli Consulate in New York)
The UN Security Council will vote later on Wednesday on a resolution proposal by the U.S. on the ongoing war in Gaza.
Meanwhile, a law under consideration by the German parliament would mean that people who have committed antisemitic acts can never be granted citizenship, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said on Wednesday.
"Our draft for the new citizenship law, which we will now discuss in the Bundestag, provides a clear exclusion of anti-Semites," Faeser said in a statement issued after she met with Israeli Ambassador to Germany Ron Prosor.
She added that German authorities were "extremely vigilant" with regard to supporters of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Germany, saying that any such person would be "prosecuted with the full force of the law."
Hamas on Wednesday said they fired rockets on the southern Israeli city of Eilat. Explosions were heard in the area. Earlier, the Gaza-ruling terror group said it fired a rocket from Gaza targeting communities near Haifa for the second time since the start of the war. Despite earlier reports, the rocket was intercepted by Israeli air defenses, the IDF later reported the rocket exploded mid-air.
Meanwhile, the IDF attacked Hezbollah targets in Southern Lebanon after two terrorist cells were detected attempting to fire anti-tank missiles into Israel.
The IDF on Wednesday revealed a note, recovered from the body of a Hamas terrorist who took part in the October 7 massacre, with instructions from the terrorist group's commanders to behead Israelis.
"You must sharpen the blades of your swords and be pure in your intentions before Allah. Know that the enemy is a disease that has no cure, except beheading and removing the hearts and livers. Attack them!" read a note presented by IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari in an interview with CBS.
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A note found on the body of a terrorist instructing him to behead Israelis and tear their hearts out
(Photo: IDF)
In an interview with CNN, Jordanian Queen Rania denied reports of Hamas terrorists beheading Israeli civilians, claiming the reports have not been confirmed. "Even on CNN, at the beginning of the conflict, there was a headline that reported on Israeli children found slaughtered in an Israeli kibbutz. It was not independently verified. Would you publish something that was not verified that came from the Palestinians?" Rania said.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani indicated progress was being made to secure the release of more Israeli hostages from Hamas captivity. In a joint press conference with visiting Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, the Qatari leader said he was hopeful a breakthrough could be achieved soon. Fidan said countries supporting Israel's actions in Gaza were "complicit" in its "crimes."
Turkish President Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Wednesday that Hamas was not a terrorist organization but a liberation movement fighting a war to protect its land. Erdogan said he is scrapping plans to visit Israel, which he said abused Turkey's good intentions. Speaking to the Turkish parliament Erdogan said, "Western tears shed for Israel are a manifestation of fraud."
The UK-based Arabic language news outlet Asharq Al-Awsat reported on Wednesday that despite Turkish denial that it ousted Hamas officials after the October 7 attack on Israeli civilians, the relations between Ankara and the Gaza-ruling terror group have soured. The paper quotes Turkish officials saying this is based on the country's long-standing position opposing the killing of civilians under any circumstances.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said the United States was complicit in the "crimes" perpetrated by Israel in Gaza. "Israel is taking revenge against civilians because it has failed and will fail against the resistance, he said, adding that the visits of leaders from the U.S., Germany, Britain and France show their concern over Israel's collapse.
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Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah meets PIJ leader Ziyad al-Nakhalah and Hamas politburo head Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut
In his first public statement since the beginning of hostilities, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah declared in a letter the group's fatalities since October 7 as martyrs. Lebanon's Al Manar network, linked to Hezbollah, stated that Nasrallah met with Salah al Arouri, the leader of the Hamas politburo, to strategize on their campaign against Israel.
First published: 14:37, 10.25.23