Israel allowed the 200 humanitarian aid trucks to enter Gaza through the Rafah Crossing, bound for international aid agencies operating in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, according to the Coordinator of Government Operations in the Territories. The approval to enter came after they underwent a security check at the Nitsana crossing. Dozens of aid trucks, along with six ambulances, are being transported to the northern region of the Gaza Strip and to shelters that have not yet been vacated. The trucks contain food, water, equipment for shelters and medical supplies only.
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The aid was allowed to enter even though a senior member of the International Committee for the Red Cross, Pascal Hundt, told the British Sky News network Sunday that he is "not sure that more hostages will be released today." According to him, even Saturday it was not certain that the hostages would return due to the delay, but nevertheless the Red Cross had a team on standby. He further added that "it is important for the Israeli hostages and the Palestinian prisoners to be reunited with their families. The intense situation is so desperate that the truce must continue."
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Residents of the northern Gaza Strip were recorded returning to the Jabaliya neighborhood
At the same time on the third day of the cease-fire, the IDF spokesman in Arabic, Lt. Col. Avihai Adrei once again warned the residents of the Gaza Strip: "Move to the south of Wadi Gaza, do not try to move to the north of the Gaza Strip, you are not allowed to enter the sea, you are not allowed to come within a kilometer of the border. For your safety - Obey these instructions."
Meanwhile, according to Israeli officials, Hamas has provided to Israel a list of 13 hostages to be released on Sunday. According to the sources, this time the terrorist organization did not separate family members as it did in the second group. Most of those set to be released come from one community and there is an expectation that the current list will also include American citizens.
The armed wing of Hamas announced on Sunday morning the killing of four of its military commanders in the Gaza Strip, including the commander of the North Gaza brigade, Ahmad Al Ghandour. "Al Ghandour (Abu Anas) is the member of the military council and the commander of the North Brigade," Al Qassam Brigades said in a statement published on its Telegram channel.
Since the beginning of the IDF ground operation in Gaza, the IDF has seized 5 million shekels, which were then transferred to the state coffers through the Defense Ministry. The money was confiscated by an IDF unit which specializes in collecting spoils in the Technology and Logistics Directorate. The money was found in Hamas strongholds and the homes of Hamas officials. In addition to the shekels, the troops also found Iraqi dinar, Jordanian dinar and dollars, according to the IDF.
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Foreign Minister Eli Cohen met with foreign workers from Thailand who were released from Hamas captivity
(Photo: EPA/THAI MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS / HANDOUT)
Meanwhile, following the Thai government's announcement that five of its citizens who were released from Hamas captivity in recent days did not appear on the original lists of the kidnapped, the estimate in Israel is that the number of kidnapped is still more than 200. The possible explanation for this is that some of the kidnapped workers were illegal residents that Israel did not know about.
Overnight between Saturday and Sunday, Israel Defense Forces soldiers killed six terrorists during a counter-terrorism operation in the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank, which lasted more than 12 hours. During an exchange of fire, another 10 terrorists were injured, including by IDF aircraft strikes from the air. In addition, the troops arrested nine wanted persons and confiscated weapons, ammunition, charges and military equipment, and destroyed a munitions laboratory they located.
During the operation, the Palestinian terrorist who killed Aviad Nir, 28, and his father Shai Silas Nigreker, 60, from Ashdod, in the West Bank town of Huwara where they had stopped to get their car fixed, was arrested by Israeli forces operating in the Jenin refugee camp was arrested overnight. He was one of nine wanted persons arrested duing the Jenin operation. The forces also confiscated weapons, ammunition, charges and military equipment, and destroyed a munitions laboratory they located.
It was port of the overnight operation, during which the IDF, Shin Bet, and Border Police forces arrested 29 wanted persons throughout the West Bank, 21 of them in the extensive anti-terrorism operation in the Jenin refugee camp. Since the beginning of the war, approximately 2,000 wanted persons have been arrested throughout the West Bank, approximately 1,100 of them are associated with Hamas.
Meanwhile, Israelis on Sunday, attempted to block entry of West Bank Palestinian farmers who intended to reach their olive groves inside Israel for the harvest.
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Dr. Boaz Lev of the Health MInistry answers questions about the hostages at Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer
(צילום: שמוליק דודפור)
Professor Itai Pessach, the director of the Safra children's hospital at the Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, where the 12 hostages who were released Saturday night were taken, reported on Sunday morning that "the days of captivity are evident on them, but none of them will need medical intervention." He added: "We will continue to support them physically and mentally. The intensity of the emotion and the sense of mission that accompanied me and all the staff members is great. Despite the joy, we join all the people of Israel and wish for the return of all the hostages."
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Defense Minister Yoav Gallant spoke early Sunday morning with US Defense Minister Lloyd Austin
(Photo: Chad McNeeley/Office of the Secretary of Defense Public Affairs/Handout via REUTERS)
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant spoke early Sunday morning with US Defense Minister Lloyd Austin, who welcomed the return of the hostages to Israel and acknowledged its role in increasing humanitarian aid and the transfer of fuel to Gaza.
According to the U.S. Pentagon, Austin told Gallant that humanitarian aid must expand, and that citizens in Gaza must be guaranteed protected spaces for receiving aid, something he said will lead to the resolution of the crisis with the United States, foreign governments and international organizations that coordinate the transfer of aid.
Austin also condemned the continued attacks against Israel from the Lebanese border, and expressed his support for the return of Israeli citizens to their homes in the north.
Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid Al-Ansari told CNN that Doha hopes that the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas will be extended beyond four days. "We hope that the momentum of the release of the hostages and the four-day cease-fire will allow us to extend the cease-fire beyond those four days, and as a result enter into more serious discussions regarding the rest of the hostages," he said.
Al-Ansari added that he continues to work with senior officials in Qatar to address the concerns of Israel and Hamas regarding the implementation of the blueprint for the release of the hostages. "In this type of mediation, you will always see that both sides say that the other side did not comply with the agreement," he said.
Al-Ansari also stated that he cannot confirm that American citizens will be released from Hamas captivity during the third day of the cease-fire.
The Qatari spokesman further said that Doha is working with Egypt, the US and both sides in the conflict to ensure that the agreed amount of trucks with humanitarian aid are allowed to enter the Gaza Strip.
Government spokesman Eylon Levy responded to a tweet by Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, writing on X that "Emily Hand was not 'lost.' She was brutally kidnapped by the death squads that massacred her neighbors." Levy added: "Emily was not 'found.' Hamas knew where she was all along, and cynically held her hostage. And Hamas did not respond to your prayers. It responded to Israel's military pressure." Earlier, Vardakar wrote, among other things, that Emily is "an innocent girl who was lost, now found and returned."
First published: 09:42, 11.26.23