Day 61 of Gaza War: Intense Fighting in Gaza as Israel Approves More Humanitarian Aid, Houtis Fire Again
Tel Aviv Diary December 6, 2023
I will be giving another Zoom Briefing on Sunday (Dec 10) 6 PM Israel time 11 AM New York Time.(invitations will be sent out Sunday morning)
Usually, I love watching airplanes and helicopters. Perhaps my passion for planes stems from my time in the Israeli Air Force, or the fact I have been the external expert regarding aviation matters for i24News. However, these days, I deeply dread hearing a helicopter over my house. Today, I heard those propellers zealously whirring twice; the alarming sound which means a soldier has been so gravely wounded that they are being airlifted to Ichilov Hospital, in a steadfast attempt to save their life.
The combat in Gaza remained intense across three locations in which the IDF has been fighting. The advance in the city of Khan Younis has progressed more quickly than anticipated, and today, soldiers moved past the house of Yahya Sinwar. Heavy fighting continued in both Shuja’iyya and Jabaliya, with Israeli troops making steady progress, often in face-to-face combat. Tremendous amounts of arms including long range rockets have been found in schools and mosques
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IDF’s Division 508, comprised of paratroopers and other elite forces, including commando units, has now moved into Khan Younis. Combat in Khan Younis is both easier and more complicated than in Gaza City. On one hand, there is an absence of high towers. The smaller houses spread throughout Khan Younis, coupled with a great deal of open land, facilitates easier troop operation. On the other hand, unlike Gaza City, which was largely devoid of civilians by the time Israeli troops entered, Khan Younis still has a significant civilian presence, which necessitates a very different type of fighting.
Israel has deployed its most elite ground forces to Khan Younis for this reason. The IDF troops now in Khan Younis include units that will hopefully be tasked with attempting to rescue hostages, as well as finding and eliminating the leadership of Hamas (if Hamas’s leaders are indeed still in the area).
Hamas managed to fire a significant number of rockets at the Gaza border area today, along with a substantial volley of rockets towards Be’ersheva. Minor damage was caused by a rocket that landed near Beersheba. Fortunately, there were no casualties.
Netanyahu directly threatened Yahya Sinwar in a video he posted today, in which the PM boasted that Israeli troops were at his house in Khan Younis, and that Sinwar would not be able to hide forever.
ADDITIONAL HUMANITARIAN AID
The Security Cabinet met tonight to discuss and approve an increase in humanitarian aid and fuel — which continues to be an American demand. Israel, being too dependent on American support, cannot say no. Moreover, it’s unclear to me how increasing humanitarian aid into Gaza could hurt Israel at this point — given that soon we will occupy 3/4 of Gaza. It is in our best interest to provide as much aid as we can to the civilian population. The cabinet is expected to approve a phased increase in fuel supply, and to condition the provision of a portion of the aid Hamas allowing the Red Cross to visit the hostages— a request that is unlikely to be honored.
GALANT REGARDING HEZBOLLAH
Exchanges of fire with Hezbollah in Lebanon continued today on our northern border. Defense Minister Galant, at a meeting with regional council heads in the North, promised to move Hezbollah back to the north of the Litani, hopefully by diplomatic means. However, Galant stated “if diplomacy fails, after we complete our work in Gaza, we will turn to the North.” The regional council heads expressed skepticism regarding Galant’s answer and wanted to know when and how their citizens would be able to move back home from the hotels in which they now reside. Unfortunately, there is currently no answer to that question
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HOUTHIS CONTINUE TO FIRE ON ISRAEL
The Houthis from Yemen fired a ballistic missile at Eilat again today. It was intercepted by an Arrow interceptor over the Red Sea. Yesterday, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan stated that the United States was working with its allies to create a Maritime Patrol to ensure freedom of passage in areas near Yemen. While important, a maritime patrol does not provide a solution for the missile attacks by the Houthis. Israel hopes for a more vigorous US response, however, there are reports Saudi Arabia has asked the US to move carefully, fearing that the Houthis would retaliate by attacking Saudi Arabia.
IMPACT OF THE GAZA WAR ON HEALTH
In a survey conducted by Maccabi Health Services, it's clear that the war is affecting everyone. Since the war began:
63% of the respondents said they had trouble sleeping.
33% of the respondents disclosed they have gained weight.
33% of the respondents reported their overall health has deteriorated.
50% of the respondents feel the war has impacted their mental state.
COLLEGE PRESIDENT, AN EMBARRASSMENT
I am sure you have all seen the distressing testimony of Harvard’s President yesterday, stating that calls for an intifada against Jews and chants of “From the River to the Sea" would only violate university policy depending on the context of the statement. By today, Harvard President Gray was forced to issue a clarification in which she said,
Let me be clear: Calls for violence or genocide against the Jewish community or any religious or ethnic group are vile. They have no place at Harvard, and those who threaten our Jewish students will be held to account.
Here is what I had to say about the Harvard President’s statements on i24News this morning.
WHAT RIVER? WHICH SEA?
There was an interesting article in today’s Wall Street Journal, by Prof. Ron Hassler of UC Berkeley, titled "Which River to Which Sea.” Hassler’s survey underscores the absolute lack of knowledge among college students today regarding the Middle East. In a small poll Hassler commissioned, most supported the slogan “From the River to the Sea,” — with 32.8% enthusiastically backing the rallying cry and 53.2% supporting the motto to a lesser extent. However, Hassler revealed that most students had no idea what river and sea were being referred to in the trendy phrase. When questioned, most students believed there should be two states — one Palestine, and one Israel. When they were informed of some basic facts regarding the conflict, 67% of those who previously supported the slogan changed their minds.
HILLARY CLINTON, IN ISRAEL’S DEFENSE
Also, an interesting article in the Washington Post discusses Hillary Clinton's continuous support of Israel in "In Praise of Hillary Clinton’s Defense of Israel."
ECONOMY
According to statistics released today, 19% of Israel’s workforce is not currently working — either due to serving in the Army Reserves, or having been evacuated from their homes. In addition, credit card charges are down 20% since the war began, compared to the same period last year.
The value of Israeli exits (being acquired) dropped to $7.5 billion, a 56% drop from last year. The only reason the decline was not more drastic was due to the exits achieved by cyber companies: 19 of the 45 deals were for cyber companies in 2023.
BUSINESS
The Israeli cybersecurity company Sentinel One reported sales of $164 million in the last quarter, a 42% increase from last year. The company lost $8 million, but that is down from $42 million.
VAST Data, a developer of storage solutions, is raising hundreds of millions of dollars at a valuation of $9 billion. In the previous round in 2021, the Israeli storage company raised $83 million in Series D led by Tiger Global Management, at a valuation of $3.7 billion – more than triple the company's previous valuation in April 2020. The company's investors include Next47, 83North, Dell Technologies Capital, Goldman Sachs, Greenfield Partners, Mellanox, and Norwest Venture Partners. Vast Data, established in 2016, developed new technologies that enable storage purely on flash memory. In this way, the company obviates the need for a hard disk and layered data storage management, as is customary today.
The Israeli startup Mine, which develops solutions in the field of privacy and data protection, raised $30 million. The fundraising was led by Battery Ventures and the investment arm of the payment giant PayPal, along with a new investor, the investment arm of the American insurance giant Nationwide. So far, the company has raised $12.5 million, and all investors from the previous rounds joined the current round, including Google's AI fund Gradient Ventures, Headline Ventures, MassMutual Ventures, and Saban Ventures.