According to the military, Israeli attack helicopters attacked targets in Lebanon. Armed people are said to have crossed the border into Israel from there. Several people were apparently injured in Hamas rocket fire in the Jerusalem area.
The Israeli army claims to have attacked targets in Lebanon with combat helicopters. Soldiers had previously shot several armed suspects who had advanced into Israel from its northern neighbor. According to Israeli media reports, there were exchanges of fire. Israeli television reported that residents in the north of the country were forced to stay in shelters.
The Shiite organization Hezbollah, a close ally of Iran, denied involvement in the incident, to which Israel responded by bombing targets in the south of the neighboring country. Security circles in Lebanon suspect Palestinian militants are behind the attack on Israel. On Sunday, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for launching rockets from southeast Lebanon into the Israeli border area.
According to military reports, Israel attacked targets in Lebanon.
Attacks in Israel, counterattacks in the Gaza Strip
Meanwhile, the terrorist militia Hamas continued its attacks on Israel. Several people were reportedly injured in multiple rocket launches in towns surrounding Jerusalem. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz put the number of injured at ten, including two seriously injured.
Thus, a rocket hit Har Adar, 15 kilometers west of Jerusalem. Another hit the nearby Arab city of Abu Gosh and another in the Israeli settlement of Betar Illit, about six miles southwest of Jerusalem. “Haaretz” also reported another impact on the Israeli settlement bloc “Gush Etzion”, southwest of Jerusalem, with four people injured, one of them seriously.
Around the same time, Hamas said a rocket was fired at Jerusalem in response to the bombing of civilian homes in Gaza. Sirens also sounded in Tel Aviv.
Apparently there is no prisoner exchange for now
A possible prisoner exchange was rejected by both Israel and Hamas. An Israeli official told Portal there were no negotiations at this time.
A Hamas Politburo representative also initially ruled out a prisoner swap with Israel, following earlier reports to the contrary. “The military operation is ongoing, so there is currently no chance of negotiations on the issue of prisoners or anything else,” Doha-based Hamas representative Hossam Badran told AFP.
Israeli army: regained control of the sites
The Israeli army has now announced that it has regained control of areas in southern Israel that were attacked by Hamas. However, terrorists may still be in the region, according to army spokesman Daniel Hagari.
In the morning, the Israeli army initially reported “between seven and eight” open battle sites in the area bordering the Gaza Strip, where fighting continued. He said he could not rule out the possibility of more militants penetrating Israeli territory.
The military is currently trying to secure the border fence, which has been breached in several locations, reports ARD correspondent Sophie von der Tann from Tel Aviv. Between 800 and 1,000 Palestinian militants are presumed to have penetrated the border fence in recent days, von der Tann reports.
300,000 reservists mobilized
In response to Hamas attacks, the Israeli army is mobilizing around 300,000 reservists. This is the largest mobilization in Israel’s history in such a short period of time, an army spokesman confirmed.
During the night, a spokesman for the Israeli armed forces said that the aim was to ensure that, at the end of the war, Hamas would no longer be able to threaten the Israelis militarily. At the same time, it will be guaranteed that Hamas will not be able to continue to govern the Gaza Strip.
Air strikes in the Gaza Strip – many civilian casualties
In response to the attack, Israel continues to bomb Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip. According to the Israeli military, more than 1,000 targets in the Gaza Strip were hit as a result of the offensive, including the homes of Hamas terrorists. At the same time, several Hamas command centers were attacked, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.
According to ARD correspondent von der Tann, more and more civilians are dying due to the dense population in the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian Health Ministry said at least 560 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip. At least 78 children and 41 women were killed. Around 2,900 people were injured.
Closure of the Gaza Strip
Furthermore, the densely populated Palestinian area will be completely isolated until further notice. Israeli Defense Minister Joav Galant said he had given instructions to that effect. “There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel,” Galant said. We are dealing with barbarians and will act accordingly. The Israeli security cabinet had already decided on Sunday night to fundamentally stop the import of electricity, fuel and goods into the Gaza Strip.
More than 800 people killed in Israel
According to the government press office, around 800 people have died on the Israeli side so far. These included mainly civilians and more than 40 soldiers. At least 260 people died in an attack by Hamas terrorists on a music festival in the Negev desert alone. In total, more than 2,600 other people suffered injuries, the government said.
According to the Israeli government, Hamas has also abducted at least 150 people from Israel to the Gaza Strip since the attacks began, including women, children and the elderly. According to information from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, there are also German citizens among the hostages. According to Hamas, the hostages will be released if thousands of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel are released in exchange.
Evacuation of citizens, warnings against travel in the region
More and more countries are withdrawing their citizens from Israel. Romania evacuated 245 of its citizens from Tel Aviv. This also includes two groups of pilgrims. The announcement was made by the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Poland transported almost 300 citizens on three military planes that landed in Warsaw in the morning. “The first people evacuated from Israel are already in Poland,” said Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak on the X online service. Furthermore, an armed forces Boeing plane is on its way to Israel “to evacuate more people,” he added. Blaszczak.
Airlines such as Lufthansa, United Airlines and Air France have temporarily suspended all flights to and from Israel. Additionally, several countries have strengthened their travel warnings for Israel and the Palestinian territories.