Gaza, tank hunting for Hamas leaders. Another Israeli hostage outside

The Israeli army has officially launched military operations in the south of the Gaza Strip. The first target is Khan Younis, where the civilian population is asked to abandon some parts of the city while the tanks advance. The impact of the attacks “will not be less powerful” than in the north of the Strip and “will not have inferior results”, warned the IDF Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi. The days of ceasefires and exchanges between Israeli prisoners and Palestinian detainees seem distant. Confirmation that “at this time” there are no “official negotiations” underway for a new humanitarian truce also came from the spokesman for the US National Security Council, John Kirby. Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu, in turn, explained that Israel “continues to talk to the enemy”, but “through fire”.

The Israeli army and intelligence announced that they killed a Hamas military officer in an attack. Haitham Khuwajari is introduced as commander of the Chati Battalion, named after a refugee camp located west of Jabaliya. According to the statement from the security forces of the Jewish State, Haitham Khuwajari “guarantees the terrorist activity of Hamas in the Al-Shifa hospital, commanded Hamas forces during the battles against Israeli soldiers in the Al-Shat area and was also responsible for a series of terrorist acts that targeted Israelis.”

Meanwhile, sad news adds to the discussion about the lives held hostage by the terrorist group. The family of another Israeli hostage, kidnapped during the Hamas attack on October 7, has been informed of his death. The young victim is Jonathan Samerano, 21, from Tel Aviv: he was at a rave near Re’im on the morning of the Hamas attack on October 7. He fled to nearby Kibbutz Be’eri, where he was shot and kidnapped. “Jonathan was a magical child, surrounded by friends, a DJ who just wanted to make music, grow, be happy and travel. He had many dreams,” said his family, as reported by the Times of Israel. Jonathan is survived by two parents, Kobi and Ayelet, and a brother, Yair.