DAY 163 OF THE GAZA WAR: Hostage Negotiations, Netanyahu Answers American Critics, IDF Chief Speaks Out

Tel Aviv Diary, March 17, 2024

HOSTAGES

The IDF announced tonight that Captain Daniel Peretz (22), who was believed to be held hostage in Gaza, was actually killed on October 7th, and Hamas is holding his body.

The Security Cabinet convened this evening and authorized the departure of the Israeli negotiating team to Qatar tomorrow. Prior to the meeting, Finance Minister Smotrich, in an interview to Channel 13, voiced his objection to dispatching negotiators to Qatar. Smotrich proposed that the Mossad Chief should focus on strategizing how to assassinate Yahya Sinwar, instead of preparing to negotiate with him.

Smotrich further asserted that the only viable way to secure the release of the hostages is through military action. He argued that sufficient pressure on Hamas would compel them to free the hostages without Israel having to release prisoners. I am not certain what reality Smotrich is referring to, but the strategy he advocates has been in practice for the last five months — regrettably, without success.

A PLEA FOR CONCESSIONS TO FREE HOSTAGES

Former MK Yizhar Shai, whose son, IDF Sgt. Yaron Shai, was killed fighting terrorists near the border with the Gaza Strip on October 7th, made the following statement regarding concessions Israel should make to facilitate the release of our hostages:

I am writing these words with trembling hands. If the abhorrent terrorist who killed my son is currently sitting in an Israeli prison, I would be pleased to watch his execution. As is customary in the United States, where family members are invited to watch the execution of their loved ones' murderers. I would like to watch him take his last breaths, preferably in terrible agony and great suffering.

However, if it's possible to bring home Israeli captives from Gaza in exchange for the miserable soul of this scum and his associates from the human sewage called Hamas, I call on the Prime Minister and the cabinet ministers: Release these detestable murderers and bring our captives home. The life of one Israeli is worth no less than countless subhumans, these scum of the human species. Therefore, take the one who took my son from me and my life along the way, and bring our people home. Because they deserve to live, and it is your duty to realize this right.

My hands tremble as I write these words, but my heart is completely whole.

NETANYAHU UNDER FIRE

Prime Minister Netanyahu responded to the escalating criticism directed at him, particularly the demands for new elections raised by American politicians, by appearing on Fox News and CNN. During his CNN interview, despite being persistently questioned about whether he would consent to early elections; Netanyahu falsely claimed that the majority of the Israeli public opposes holding early elections.

Here is the interview:

If Netanyahu is counting on more favorable prospects under a Trump administration, he should take note of Trump's statements. Trump stated on Fox News today: “I would tell Netanyahu to finish the war quickly and return to a world of peace. We need peace in the world.”

GAZA

Combat continues in Gaza, albeit on a lower flame. Here’s how the IDF Spokesman described the warfare today:

The combat team of the Nahal Brigade continues to operate in the center of the Gaza Strip and has eliminated approximately 18 terrorists in the last day, through sniper fire, artillery, and successful collaborations with the Air Force.

In one of the attacks, the Brigade's fire complex identified a cell of four terrorists close to our forces. The Air Force encircled them and eliminated the cell through an aerial assault.

In another attack, the forces identified three terrorists entering a building. Upon the terrorists' exit from the structure, an aircraft attacked and eliminated the cell. Moreover, forces identified a terrorist exiting a military building in their sector; within minutes, an aircraft attacked and eliminated the terrorist.

The combat team fighters of the Givati Brigade continue to operate in the Khan Younis area. During the last day, the forces identified two terrorists loading military equipment onto a motorcycle and, in collaboration with the Air Force, eliminated them using an aircraft.

In addition, the forces identified and eliminated two terrorists who approached the troops.

The combat team of Brigade 7 continues to operate, and in the last day, they eliminated terrorists and located weapons in Khan Younis. In one of the operations, the Air Force, in collaboration with the Brigade's fire complex, attacked a building from which an anti-tank missile was fired at the forces without causing any injuries. Additionally, a terrorist close to the forces was eliminated by an aircraft.

One of today's achievements was the destruction of Hamas's 2.5-kilometer tunnel in Northern Gaza. Currently, most of the IDF’s efforts are focused on locating additional tunnels and dismantling them.

IDF CHIEF OF STAFF SPEAKS

The IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi spoke this afternoon, reporting on the state of the war and acknowledged his own responsibility in the current conflict.

Here’s a full transcript of Halevi’s address:

One hundred and sixty-three days to the war.

We are fighting a just, multi-arena and complex war. We’ve had many achievements, which continue to increase. We still have a long way to go until the goals of the war are achieved. IDF forces are fighting in many arena — in Gaza, in the center and the north, in arenas near and far — non-stop.

This week the month of Ramadan began, and we are more alert, stronger and are prepared — everywhere, all the time, non-stop. Every development in one arena affects the other arenas of war. We operate first and foremost to maintain security, thwart and prevent terrorist attacks, alongside the desire to enable Ramadan.

Throughout the Gaza Strip we are surprising the enemy, initiating and further deepening the military achievements.

In the northern Gaza Strip — we are returning and initiating operational raids in areas where we previously operated, using new intelligence and different methods — expanding the damage to Hamas, killing operatives and destroying infrastructure in a targeted and high-quality manner.

In the southern Gaza Strip, in Khan Younis, we are concentrating our efforts dispatching quality forces to dismantle the Khan Younis Brigade. We have killed many terrorists and apprehended many senior terror operatives for the purpose of interrogation. Those who remain alive, are hiding, have difficulty operating — but we will reach them too.

Last week, on a complex and precise attack in the Nuseirat area, we struck senior Hamas commanders whose fate Hamas is trying very hard to hide.

We embarked on this operation after many days of complex planning, creating the operational conditions and gathering sufficient intelligence. This is an incredibly important achievement for the IDF. A capability we have built over the years together with the Shin Bet, a combination of high-quality intelligence and precise fire from the Air Force, which enable the elimination of senior officials underground. This strike is an expression of the IDF's ability to reach the most complex places – at the right time, and with high precision. We will continue the effort to eliminate the senior officials, this is a major goal in the war.

Alongside managing the combat, we continue to plan continued strikes in areas where we have not yet operated. The IDF is preparing for attacks in these additional areas and together with the political echelon we will decide on the timing and on the right conditions of the strikes. As soon as it is decided — the IDF will act with full force and determination. We are determined to operate wherever Hamas builds its force; it is wrong to leave Hamas with functioning battalions and brigades.

Hamas can lay down its weapons and surrender, otherwise, we will continue with great force, until Hamas is completely dismantled and until the hostages are returned to their homes. Their return is one of the goals of the war, and the IDF will do everything in order to achieve it. The details of the negotiations should be left for discussion in the correct forums. We are working with determination in every possible channel to bring about the release of the hostages. One thing is certain — the IDF will implement any decision that is made, and will know how to return to fighting at any stage. Hamas has chosen to escalate during Ramadan, and this will lead to increasing pressure.

On our northern border we continue to damage Hezbollah's operatives and its capabilities. Hezbollah began with aggression and is paying a heavy price for it that continues to grow.

I am alert and attentive to the great difficulty of the residents of the North, who have been evacuated from their homes for a very long time. We will return the residents only with full security. To that end, we will go through any means necessary — the IDF and its commanders are ready and determined to make this happen, this is our duty.

In Judea and Samaria we operate, protect [the communities] and thwart terrorism around the clock together with the Shin Bet and with the Israel Police - for the sake of the security of the communities, roads and the seam zone.

I want to say a few words about the IDF. The IDF commanders, both the younger and the more senior commanders, are commanding over a challenging and complex war, in several arenas at the same time, they have been doing so for over five months, bringing ever growing achievements. In war, it is very important to allow the commanders on the battlefield the freedom required to carry out their missions — I trust them and appreciate them very much. In the same breath I'll say the obvious — you cannot fight when the discipline and rules are not clear and are not strictly observed. The balance between them is the key to success. A commander cannot override an order without permission, without clear and urgent operational reasons. Commanders who violated the rules — were investigated, and dealt with accordingly. This is our duty.

We have quality commanders who fight bravely, in places where they made a mistake or deviated from the orders, there was learning, there was also disciplinary and command treatment during the fighting. That's what’s needed, that's how it will be. We, the IDF and its commanders — must now focus on only one thing — achieving the goals of the war. Our achievements on the battlefield are the result of the unity of our ranks, alongside the ability to act together in accordance with IDF values and orders.

To conclude, I would like to clarify - as we have said from day one, we failed on the 7th of October. We did not take responsibility — the responsibility is ours. Regarding what happened and what will happen from here and onward. And at the same time — it is important to emphasize, we quickly came to our senses, launched a powerful operation, and we are leading the army in this complex war, around the clock. (It has continued) for over five months and we have the strength to continue onwards. We are focused with a goal to bring the security that the citizens of Israel deserve. The hostages and their families are in the forefront of our minds all the time. So are the residents of the South and of the North who have not yet returned to their homes. This is a task that will continue for a long time, and I, as the commander of the Army, am responsible for it. I am very confident in our ability to meet this task together.

POLITICS

On Sunday, Labor Party MK Gilad Kariv and MK Naama Lazimi endorsed former Meretz MK Yair Golan as the next leader of the Labor Party. Although both Kariv and Lazimi were viewed potential contenders for the party’s leadership, they emphasized the importance of unity over division at this time. Yair Golan, a former IDF Deputy Chief of the Staff, has vowed to unite the Labor Party with Meretz and other liberal factions. Notably, Golan was among a handful of former generals who rushed to Gaza border and October 7th, and personally saved many from being killed or captured.

TIK TOK

The US House of Representatives has passed legislation to outlaw TikTok, unless the company ownership is divested from the Chinese Communist Party. I previously wrote about how various studies have shown that increased TikTok usage, correlates with growing anti-Israel sentiment. An excellent article on the subject is "Israel’s TikTok Problem" by Cole Aronson. The legislation is currently under Senate consideration, and its future remains uncertain. While some have opposed the legislation based on First Amendment rights, I contend that that argument is weak, since the legislation does not inhibit free speech, but merely mandates an ownership change for a platform. It is hoped that the bill, which enjoys overwhelming support from the US national security establishment, will prevail despite Former President Trump’s unexpected opposition to the bill.

HOUTHIS

The Red Sea and Indian Ocean continue to be hotspots of conflict. The Houthis are persistently attacking ships, while the US and British forces continue to target Houthi positions, with limited success. One of the interesting occurrences is the involvement of Navies that have not seen combat in a generation. A Danish warship shot down Houthi drones, marking the Danish Navy’s first use of live ammunition since World War II. Similarly, the German Navy deployed its anti-missile missiles for the first time, though their effectiveness was questionable. Meanwhile, the Indian Navy successfully rescued a ship overtaken by Somali pirates, and arrested over 30 pirates.

BUSINESS

The startup company IO River announced a seed funding round of $5.4 million. The round was led by S Capital and included private investors, such as: Arie Margi, founder of XtremIO, M-Systems, and Jeeng, and Roni Zahavi, co-founder of HiBob and Cotendo. IO River is launching the first-of-its-kind Multi-CDN-as-a-Service platform that allows online service companies to deliver content to users across multiple CDN platforms, achieving high performance reliably and efficiently without delay.

Internet companies use Content Delivery Networks (CDN) to ensure that users worldwide can access content quickly. The CDN market is dominated by a few major players, offering different pricing levels, capabilities, and performance. Relying on a single network poses a risk in case of failure, so some companies use multiple CDN networks instead of just one provider, which complicates their operations and requires them to manage each service separately. IO River is the first comprehensive platform for managing multiple CDN platforms, ensuring users receive content in the fastest and most cost-effective way through automatic management and dynamic selection of CDN networks anywhere, anytime, and for any type of traffic.

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A PIECE OF HISTORY

The Exodus

Illegal immigration were underway before World War II, with several ships attempting to transport Jews to Palestine during the war. One such attempt ended tragically in Istanbul Harbor, when the Struma, a ship carrying 800 Jewish refugees from Romania, was sunk by a Soviet submarine, resulting in the deaths of almost all its passengers.

Once the war ended, survivors in Europe, primarily those in Eastern Europe, began moving westward, crossing over to Allied lines. Most of the refugees were placed in Displaced Persons Camps, but many did their best to make their way to Palestine. The Yishuv organized a campaign of illegal immigration called “Aliyah Bet”. Old ships were purchased or chartered to make their way to Palestine in the hope of avoiding the British blockade. Most were stopped, and their passengers were sent to detention camps, first in Atlit, and then to Cyprus. However, a few succeeded in sneaking past the blockade and landing their passengers in Palestine.

The most famous transport ship was the Exodus. Originally named President Warfield, the Exodus had plied the waters of Chesapeake Bay before the war. During the war, the Exodus had been turned over to the British Royal Navy and was returned to the US at the end of the war. The Haganah purchased the Exodus in the US to use for running the blockade. It was hoped that the ship would be able to beach itself on the shore.

The Exodus traveled to Sete, France, where 4,000 Jews boarded the ship. On July 11th, the ship left the port, ostensibly bound for Istanbul. The British closely followed the Exodus. On July 18th, with the Exodus about 20 miles off the coast, the British tried to board the vessel, but the Haganah refugees and members aboard resisted. The battle was broadcast live on the ship's radio and relayed throughout Palestine. Finally, the British turned their machine guns on the boat, killing two passengers with gunfire. The British also clubbed the second officer, Bill Bernstein, an American Machal volunteer, to death

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Then, the Exodus was towed into Haifa Harbor. The British then made a decision to return the refugees to France. They offloaded the passengers onto three other ships, in a process observed by representatives of the United Nations Commission on Palestine. Although the ships made it back to France, the French government stated they would only accept the refugees if the refugees disembarked voluntarily. The refugees were unwilling to disembark, compelling the British to transport the 4,500 Holocaust survivors to the British Zone of occupation in Germany.

The ordeal of the Exodus received worldwide publicity and reportedly influenced some members of the United Nations Special Committee on Palestine (UNSCOP). The story of Exodus was later transformed into a best-selling book, and adapted into a major motion picture.

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