DAY 319 OF THE WAR: Six Hostage Bodies Recovered in Khan Younis, Netanyahu Possibly Backtracks, Intensive Rocket Fire in the North, Economic Troubles
Tel Aviv Diary, August 20, 2024
DAY 319 OF THE WAR: Six Hostage Bodies Recovered in Khan Younis, Netanyahu Possibly Backtracks, Intensive Rocket Fire in the North, Economic Troubles
Last night in the dog park, one of the regulars asked me, "Can we just have one day without more bad news?" Well, unfortunately, today, I’m afraid, was not that day. This morning, it was first announced that the remains of Avraham Munder, a 78-year-old hostage previously believed to be alive, had been located and recovered. Then, it was revealed that, in addition to Munder, the IDF had retrieved the bodies of five other hostages—all initially taken alive but later confirmed to have died in captivity. They were Alex Dancyg (75), Yagev Buchshtav (35), Chaim Peri (79), Yoram Metzger (80), and Nadav Popplewel (51).
The hostage bodies were recovered from a specific tunnel in Khan Younis, which intelligence services had identified as containing the captives’ remains. Found alongside the bodies of the hostages were the remains their terrorist guards, leading to the speculation that they might have all been killed inadvertently by a nearby Israeli air attack. It should be noted that during the November truce Hamas was willing to continue releasing at least the elderly hostages.
Here is the account of the events as released by the IDF Spokesperson:
In a joint operation by the IDF and the Shin Bet, the bodies of the hostages Yagav Buchstab, Alexander Dantzig, Avraham Munder, Yoram Metzger, Nadav Poplowell, and Chaim Peri were rescued last night (Monday) from Khan Younis.
The rescue operation was carried out under the command of Division 98, by paratroopers, the Yahalom unit, and Battalion 75, along with Shin Bet operatives. The operation was made possible thanks to precise intelligence from the Shin Bet, intelligence units, and the Hostage Command Center in the Intelligence Directorate.
During the operation, the forces located a tunnel entrance about 10 meters deep that led to an underground route where the hostages' bodies were found. Yahalom unit forces and Shin Bet operatives investigated the tunnel's path, neutralized the obstacles, blast doors, and discovered weapons, explosives, and other equipment used by the terrorists.
The rescue was conducted after prolonged fighting in built-up areas and high-rise buildings, during which the forces conducted raids and searches that led to the elimination of terrorists and the destruction of terror infrastructure.
After the identification process carried out at the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, together with the Israel Police, the Hostage Team in the Personnel Directorate, which is responsible for supporting the families of the hostages, delivered the notifications to the families and communities. The IDF and the Shin Bet express their condolences to the families and kibbutz communities in this difficult time.
The IDF and the Shin Bet continue, even now, to apply all operational and intelligence efforts to fulfill the supreme national mission of returning all the hostages."
IS NETANYAHU SABOTAGING A DEAL AGAIN?
Today, Netanyahu may have jeopardized the prospects of any further hostage release agreements when he addressed a gathering of the more hawkish hostage families alongside representatives of fallen soldiers’ families. Netanyahu shared that under no circumstances would Israel relinquish control of the Philadelphi or the Netzarim corridors. The PM went on to say
:
The first thing is to eliminate Hamas and achieve victory. We are getting closer to this step by step. If three months ago, before we entered Rafah, people said there was nothing to be done—there is a lot to be done. In the meantime, we have eliminated Deif and other commanders. We have taken control of the Philadelphi Corridor, we have taken control of the Rafah crossing. We are using all our strength to dismantle Hamas's rule and eliminate their military capabilities, and this is progressing.
The second thing—we are simultaneously making an effort to bring back the hostages, under conditions that will allow us to maximize the number of hostages released in the first phase of the deal. I am saying this clearly—this is a goal I have set. But the other thing is to maintain our strategic security assets against significant pressures from within and from outside, and we are succeeding in this.
Netanyahu's declarations might be a negotiating tactic, but I fear they are not. The Hostage Families Forum seems to share this concern—as evidenced by the following statement they issued this afternoon:
The Prime Minister's remarks effectively sabotage the hostage deal. Netanyahu has not understood that abandoning the hostages leads to their murder in captivity. They are not just suffering; they are also dying. There is no hope and no heroism in 'steadfastness' that will result in the continued deaths of all the hostages. The Israeli government abandoned the hostages on October 7, and now it is finally deserting them.
This pattern of behavior—typical of Netanyahu—is a pattern that the people of this country can no longer afford, especially for those being held captive by Hamas, facing dire conditions and slowly perishing.
I listened to a heartbreaking podcast featuring a prominent Israeli business journalist who grew up on Kibbutz Nir Oz. She detailed these tragic statistics: On October 7th, Nir Oz had about 400 residents, of whom 117 were either killed or kidnapped. Seventy of the overall 234 hostages were from the kibbutz. Forty of these hostages were returned during the first ceasefire, leaving 29 still held in Hamas captivity, with 20 believed to still be alive. Today, four of the returned bodies were members of Nir Oz.
This raises a poignant question: What does it mean for the country when its leader appears more focused on political survival than on rescuing its citizens? Sixty-two percent of Israelis support the current ceasefire proposal without Netanyahu's new conditions, while only 18% oppose it. Yet, this government continues to invoke "the will of the people" based on an election held long before the catastrophic, life-altering events of October 7th—a disaster that, in any normal administration, would have prompted resignations long ago. Nevertheless, here we are.
Gershon Baskin is an Israeli journalist, social and political activist whom I respect. Prior to this war, Baskin’s political views were probably somewhat to the left mine and I don't always agree with his positions. At the beginning of the war, even Baskin, who had been closely involved in the negotiations with Hamas for the release of Gilad Shalit, asserted that Hamas must be eliminated. This morning, Baskin wrote the following:
Rescuing 6 bodies is not success - it is shameful!
Shame on those who call the recovery of six bodies of Israeli hostages a success. Shame on those who think that military pressure saves hostages—military pressure kills them. Shame on those who praise the flattening of Gaza—and the killing of tens of thousands of Gazans. To be clear—the first deal in November 2023 was not done thanks to the military pressure—the real fact is that the military pressure delayed this deal by at least two weeks—I say this with 100% certainty.
It was possible to save dozens of additional hostages back in November, but Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Army chiefs wanted to renew the war—to exert more military pressure which only resulted in the killing of more hostages and many innocent Palestinians. Netanyahu is committing crimes against the State of Israel and against the people of Israel and of course against the Palestinian people.
There are another 109 abductees in Gaza, a large number of them are probably not among the living. This war must end already. It is possible to reach security arrangements that will protect the State of Israel. Let's not forget that what happened on October 7th would not have happened if there were 10-15 tanks on the border and three attack helicopters in the air.
What happened was the result of criminal negligence, arrogance, and political decisions that turned the Israel Defense Forces into the police force of the occupation and settlements. The IDF can protect the borders of Israel from Israel's borders. But remember this—Israel will never have security if the Palestinians do not have freedom and dignity. The Palestinians will not have freedom and dignity if Israel does not have security. To achieve this—freedom, dignity and security for both peoples—we must—all of us—remove our failed leaders—on both sides and as quickly as possible.
IN THE NORTH
The day began with a barrage of 55 rockets from Lebanon aimed at the Golan Heights and the Hula Valley. The barrage was anticipated, following Israel’s strikes on three major Hezbollah targets last night, including one of their storage facilities for long-range rockets. The attacks, which triggered numerous secondary explosions, were carried out in retaliation for the death of an Israeli soldier yesterday by a suicide drone. These sites had long been marked as targets by the Israeli Air Force (IAF). Our ongoing war of attrition in the North continues to be a tragedy, both for those displaced from their homes and those living under the constant threat of attack. However, this conflict has been far from one-sided. The IAF has been consistently hitting Hezbollah positions in Lebanon day after day. Unlike our previous strikes on Gaza, before the war, where we often targeted empty buildings, we have also been steadily eliminating Hezbollah members.
Tonight, additional barrages of Hezbollah rockets on the North continued.
AN EXCELLENT READ
This is an insightful article by seasoned political writer Jonath Chait, discussing how the demonstrators outside the DNC Convention in Chicago are not peace activists but rather proponents of Hamas’s Antisemitic Eliminationist ideology.
A BRITISH MILITARY OFFICER’S VIEW OF THE GAZA
Today, Andrew Fox, a former British Army officer and a military correspondent, posted the following remarks on “X”:
One reply I get time and time again is: “Of course there’s a genocide in Gaza, I’ve seen it with my own eyes.”
This sums up the problem in a nutshell. Let’s unpack. Firstly, this is untrue unless they’ve actually been to Gaza recently (like I have). What they’ve “seen with their own eyes” is stuff on social media.
There are problems here.
There’s no way to easily verify anything you see on social media, but especially not from a war zone, and doubly especially not from a war zone where media is tightly controlled by Hamas. You don’t know what happened before or after the clip or photo you’re seeing. You have no context at all and no way to gain any.
There are no “journalists” in Gaza. A constant complaint is that the IDF won’t let journalists in. So who, then, do you think the “journalists” we see on social media are? That’s right! They’re Hamas’ PR team. They are not reliable. Al-Majd are Hamas’ Stasi: enforcers against opposition to Hamas. They make sure no dissent is allowed.
War zones are terrible places. Terrible things happen to innocent people in war zones. It’s the tragedy of war. There will be legitimate footage of terrible things having happened to innocent people. This does not mean that anyone can draw any conclusions about intent, legality or context of the terrible thing that happened, or even that any adults (and even some children—Hamas uses child fighters) killed were innocent (no matter what they say). Hamas famously suppresses fighter fatalities (I’ll drop the evidence in the replies).
Some of the terrible things people have seen actually happened in Syria or elsewhere, or aren’t even the results of war, and sometimes aren’t even real. I’ve seen footage of dead children killed by Assad’s forces; children with disabilities in Gaza presented as victims of war; and some appalling fake injuries using either dolls, make up or computer editing. Now ask yourself: if it’s as bad in Gaza as they say, why are Hamas faking images?
Also ask yourself how so many incidents are able to have cameras on the spot at the time of air strikes? It’s because Israel gives warnings. They warn civilians to evacuate from areas before they strike. They make phone calls and send texts warning civilians to get out in a hurry. This means Hamas knows exactly where the bombs are going to fall and can be ready to collect the footage they need to make the results look as bad as possible.
Conclusion: It’s a disinformation campaign designed to generate emotional reactions at the most appalling footage of what war really looks like. War is not something most people are familiar with. Of course they’re going to be appalled at the results, and once an emotional reaction has been achieved, it’s very easy to attach a desired narrative as strong trauma responses suppress rational thinking in the brain.
People haven’t seen the war “live-streamed on their phones”. For the overwhelming most part, they’ve seen the curated and staged footage that Hamas wants them to see.
TRAVEL
The good news is that Tarom, the Romanian airline, is resuming flights to Ben Gurion Airport. However, the bad news is that Delta has canceled its flights through September, following American Airlines’ to cancel its flights to Israel through March 15, 2025.
ECONOMY
Prime Minister Netanyahu met with Finance Minister Smotritch to discuss the already delayed budget, notably without any financial professionals from the Ministry of Finance present. Also absent was the Governor of the Bank of Israel, the government's official economic policy advisor, who today urged the government to start addressing the budget in a serious manner.
Meanwhile, JP Morgan has revised its growth forecast for Israel in 2024 downward to just 1.4%. Only one week ago, the bank had lowered its forecast from 1.7% to 1.6%, and now it has further reduced by an additional 0.2%. In their report, economists from the American investment bank noted that GDP growth in the second quarter ‘disappointing,’ as it increased by only 1.2%, compared to an expected 6%.
Reports tonight indicate that Finance Minister Smotritch has demanded the resignation of the Head of the Budget Division, the most senior professional in Finance Ministry— should the Division head continue to resist implementing Smotrich’s policies.
BUSINESS
V-Wave
Johnson & Johnson is acquiring the Israeli life sciences company V-Wave, which develops medical devices in the fields of heart failure and pulmonary hypertension. Johnson & Johnson was one of the investors in the Israeli company and is now purchasing it. In the first phase, the buyer will pay approximately $600 million, and depending on the achievement of milestones, the deal could reach around $1.1 billion. Johnson & Johnson estimates that the transaction will increase its business by about 24 cents this year and 6 cents in 2025.
At V-Wave, we are committed to achieving our vision of helping patients worldwide—and we know that Johnson & Johnson MedTech shares this mission,” said Dr. Neal Eigler, CEO of V-Wave.
We are confident that Johnson & Johnson MedTech is well-positioned to ensure that V-Wave's groundbreaking ideas and technology reach the patients in need as quickly and efficiently as possible. I could not be prouder of the V-Wave team and the commitment they have made to achieve this milestone. We look forward to continuing to build a world where cardiovascular diseases are prevented, treated, and cured.
DreaMed
The Israeli startup DreaMed has successfully raised $3 million in a new funding round led by the eHealth Ventures fund, bringing its total funding to approximately $29 million, including $20 million in grants from U.S. entities. DreaMed specializes in developing advanced systems to improve diabetes care. Their flagship product, endo.digital, integrates with electronic medical records and consolidates data from various diabetes-related devices. Using FDA-approved algorithms, the system provides personalized recommendations for adjusting insulin doses for patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. DreaMed has proven that its clinical recommendations are as effective as those of top diabetes specialists, while also improving the efficiency of medical staff and potentially increasing revenue for healthcare systems. Despite challenges, including the CEO's extended reserve military service, DreaMed continued to secure deals and maintain its business momentum.
Energix
The Israeli renewable energy company Energix is collaborating with tech giant Google, which will join as a tax partner in future projects in the U.S. with a capacity of 1.5 gigawatts by 2030. In addition to the tax partnership, Energix will sell Google green electricity and green certificates (green certificates are a mechanism that allows companies to meet renewable energy commitments through purchases without actually conducting an electricity transaction).
According to estimates, the value of the deal is around $1.3-1.5 billion by 2030 as a tax partner, with electricity and green certificate purchases amounting to approximately $150 million per year. The agreement pertains only to the new projects that Energix will establish in the region, while its existing assets (with a capacity of 636 megawatts) will continue under the current agreements. Morgan Stanley Bank accompanied the deal. Additionally, the company reports the signing of a PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) for two initial projects with Google as part of the agreement.
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A PIECE OF HISTORY
2001 PM Election: Barak vs. Sharon
When Prime Minister Barak called for new elections, many anticipated a rematch between him and former Prime Minister Netanyahu. However, Netanyahu insisted that the parliament also disband— a demand that many Knesset members (MKs), particularly the Shas MKs, were unwilling to meet since it would mean voting themselves out of office. Consequently, Netanyahu refused to run. As a result, Ariel Sharon, who many believed was merely the temporary chairman of Likud, entered the race.
Sharon enlisted the services of U.S. political consultant Arthur Finkelstein, who developed a campaign that portrayed Sharon playing with his grandson on his farm, depicting him as the “ideal Zaydeh” (grandfather) in everyone’s eyes. Throughout the campaign, Sharon frequently smiled and successfully projected the image of a happy, reassuring warrior.
Barak campaigned on a platform advocating for a unilateral withdrawal from significant parts of the West Bank, openly expressing his belief that peace with Arafat was unattainable. Moreover, Barak sought to maintain control over strategic points in the West Bank and supported the construction of a security fence between Israel and the West Bank. However, these positions were not well-received by the more dovish members of his government, leading to a lackluster campaign effort from the most committed Labor Party members. Arab Israeli voters also showed a similar lack of interest.
On February 6, 2001 Ariel Sharon won by a landslide—the largest margin in the history of Israeli elections—garnering an unprecedented 62.4% of the vote. However, it’s important to note that this was the first time there had ever been a separate election for prime minister, without electing a new Knesset, and the voter turnout was the lowest in Israel’s electoral history. Only 62.3% of eligible voters participated, compared to the nearly 80% turnout typically seen in previous elections.
Yesterday’s Radio Show