IDF rushed to Kibbutz Kissufim as Hamas invaded, but some attackers stayed for days https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-rushed-to-kibbutz-kissufim-as-hamas-invaded-but-some-attackers-stayed-for-days/

The IDF issues an unusual warning to Palestinians in the Deir al-Balah area of central Gaza, telling them to stay away from several locations where the military claims Hamas operatives are.

The IDF also names three prominent Hamas operatives in its announcement.

"To the residents of Deir al-Balah, this is a warning about Hamas elements hiding among you!" says Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF's Arabic-language spokesman.

"The attached image shows how Hamas terrorist elements operate in your area, using your civilian infrastructure and positioning themselves in your vicinity," he says.

The map lists Deir al-Balah's municipality building, an educational institution, a hospital, and a tent camp.

"Hamas exploits your civilian infrastructure and resources for its terror activities. We call upon you to expel the terrorist elements from among you and to stay away from the Hamas structures that are near you," Adraee adds.

The IDF's 98th Division has returned to operating in the Gaza Strip, the military announces.

The elite formation of paratrooper and commando units -- made up of thousands of soldiers -- is operating in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, as part of the IDF's new offensive against Hamas.

The military says the division is working to establish "operational control" and destroy Hamas's infrastructure in Khan Younis, both above and below ground.

So far, the IDF says the division's troops killed dozens of terror operatives, including in close-quarters combat and by directing airstrikes. Some 200 infrastructures were demolished, including tunnels, the army adds.

According to the IDF, five divisions are currently operating in Gaza.

A tank commander in the 401st Armored Brigade's 52nd Battalion was seriously wounded during fighting in the northern Gaza Strip earlier today, the military announces.

The soldier was taken to a hospital and his family was notified.

In a separate incident today, a soldier was lightly hurt after a grenade exploded during operations in southern Gaza, the military says.

The IDF issues an evacuation warning for a building and the surrounding area in the southern Lebanese village of Toul, near Nabatieh, ahead of an airstrike on a Hezbollah asset.

In a post on X, the IDF's Arabic-language spokesman, Col. Avichay Adraee, publishes a map showing the location of the building.

"To everyone present in the building marked in red, as shown on the map, and the buildings near it: You are located near facilities belonging to Hezbollah," he says.

The statement calls on civilians to evacuate at least 500 meters from the building for their safety.

The IDF says it killed a Hezbollah operative in a drone strike in southern Lebanon's Rab Thalathin earlier today.

More than 150 Hezbollah operatives have been killed in Israeli strikes since the start of the November 2024 ceasefire in Lebanon.

Following the IDF evacuation warning in the southern Lebanese village of Toul, Lebanese media report an Israeli strike in the area.

The IDF says its fighter jets bombed a Hezbollah facility in Lebanon's eastern Beqaa Valley a short while ago.

The site contained rocket launchers and other weapons, according to the military. Hezbollah activity was identified at the facility, and therefore it was struck, the IDF says.

Additionally, the IDF says it struck Hezbollah rocket launchers in southern Lebanon.

The military says the presence of weapons and activity by Hezbollah "constitute a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he has appointed Maj. Gen. David Zini as the next Shin Bet chief.

Zini currently serves as the head of the IDF Training Command and General Staff Corps. He has also been responsible for advancing the draft of Haredi soldiers to the military.

Just yesterday, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara informed Netanyahu that he is barred from appointing a new Shin Bet chief while she works out the implications of a High Court ruling which stated that a cabinet decision to fire Bar was made “improperly” and that the premier has a conflict of interest due to the ongoing Shin Bet investigations into his close aides.

A ballistic missile launched at Israel by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen was successfully intercepted by air defenses overnight, the military says.

Sirens had sounded in central Israel. Preceding the sirens by some three minutes, an early warning was issued to residents, alerting civilians of the long-range missile attack via a push notification on their phones.

Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen have launched 38 ballistic missiles and at least 10 drones at Israel. Several of the missiles have fallen short.

The Israeli Air Force struck over 75 targets in the Gaza Strip over the past day, the military says.

The IDF says the targets included terror operatives, rocket launchers, buildings used by terror groups, weapon depots, and other infrastructure.

Meanwhile, the military says ground troops killed several operatives across Gaza and destroyed other Hamas sites.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir met this morning with Maj. Gen. David Zini, who Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appointed as the next Shin Bet head yesterday.

In a statement, the military says that Zamir decided that Zini would end his service in the IDF in the coming days.

"The chief of staff expressed appreciation to Maj. Gen. Zini for a significant and long combat service," the IDF says.

"The chief of staff clarifies that any dialogue between IDF servicemembers and the political echelon must be with approval of the chief of staff!" the statement adds, after Zamir was caught off guard by Netanyahu's appointment and he was not consulted ahead of the announcement.

Zini is currently the head of the IDF Training Command and General Staff Corps. Normally, appointing an active duty general to a role outside the military would have required the chief of staff's input.

Rocket sirens sound in the Gaza border community of Mefalsim.

The IDF says it is investigating.

One rocket launched from the Gaza Strip at southern Israel a short while ago was intercepted by air defenses, the military says.

The IDF says it struck 15 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon last night, including in the south of the country and the eastern Beqaa Valley.

Ahead of one of the strikes, in the village of Toul, the military issued an evacuation warning.

The IDF completed a multi-front war simulation exercise this week, the military says.

The IDF says it practiced the continuous functioning of the military and actions to defend "critical components" during military activity.

"The exercise was intended to make coordination between the various arms and bodies in an emergency more accurate, with the aim of improving the rate and quality of rapid responses to the various scenarios during sudden events," a statement says.

Several armed Palestinians, some of them Hamas operatives, who were spotted next to humanitarian aid trucks in the central Gaza Strip early this morning were targeted in a drone strike, the military says.

In response to a query by The Times of Israel, the IDF says that it targeted the gunmen after identifying them near the trucks, adding that "we emphasize that the aid was not hit as a result of the strike."

Hamas claimed that the targeted gunmen were "members of the aid security and protection teams... who were performing purely humanitarian tasks," and that six were killed in the strike.

A military source denies Hamas's allegation that the targets were local security, saying "this is a false and unfounded claim."

"This is another example of the risk and the cynical use by terror organizations in the Gaza Strip of civilians and humanitarian aid infrastructure that enters the area. The IDF will allow humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip, while making every effort to ensure that the humanitarian aid does not reach terror organizations," the IDF adds in its response.

A Palestinian attempted to stab troops at a checkpoint in the West Bank city of Hebron a short while ago, the military says.

Troops "neutralized" the assailant, the army adds.

The Israeli Air Force struck over 100 targets in the Gaza Strip over the past day, the military says.

The targets included a launcher used to fire a rocket at southern Israel yesterday afternoon. Other targets included terror operatives, buildings used by terror groups, tunnels, and other infrastructure, the IDF says.

Additionally, the military says ground forces killed several operatives and destroyed booby-trapped buildings, tunnel infrastructure, anti-tank launch posts, and other sites used by terror groups.

The IDF says it is investigating after a drone strike it carried out last night in southern Gaza's Khan Younis reportedly killed nine children.

According to Palestinian media, the strike hit a home in Khan Younis, killing nine children of the same family, all under the age of 12. The father of the family and one of the children, 11, were seriously wounded. The mother Alaa Najjar, a pediatrician at Nasser Hospital, was on duty at the time of the strike.

In response to the reports, the IDF confirms it carried out a strike in Khan Younis, saying it targeted several suspects identified at a building close to where ground troops were operating.

"The Khan Younis area is a dangerous combat zone which the IDF ordered civilians to evacuate for their safety before the start of the troops' operation," the military says, referring to its warning on Monday,

"The claims about harm to uninvolved [civilians] are being looked into," the IDF adds.