Operation Iron Swords (Updated to 1 p.m., November 16, 2023)

Overview^[1]

• The southern arena: The IDF forces operated simultaneously in Gaza City and in the northern Gaza Strip. In Gaza City, the operation focused on Shifa Hospital, where evidence of terrorist activity was found. Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) tried to cast doubt on the evidence, and they and several Arab countries criticized the IDF’s activity. In the northern Gaza Strip, the forces operated in the Palestine post of the Shati refugee camp. The forces also took control of Hamas’ central anchorage, which was a focal point for Hamas and PIJ terrorist activity.
• Rocket fire: The daily number of rocket fire attacks continues to decrease and there were about ten during the past day.
• According to an unofficial estimate, since October 7 approximately 1,200 Israeli civilians and security personnel have been killed, 371 of them soldiers and officers; 239 civilian and military abductees are held by the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip. Hamas and the PIJ continue to accuse Israel of delaying a prisoner exchange deal. The PIJ claimed it holds 30 hostages.
• The Gaza Strip: The World Food Organization warned of food shortages. The fuel situation is deteriorating and according to UNRWA, the entry of one truck with fuel for the agency’s use contributed very little to improving the situation. The Palestinian Communications Company announced the generators were no longer operative. An association based in Turkey announced it was organizing an aid flotilla to the Gaza Strip.
• The northern arena: Hezbollah continued attacking IDF posts. The IDF responded by attacking Hezbollah military-terrorist targets. Hezbollah threatened to intensify its attacks in response to IDF activity in the Gaza Strip.
• Judea and Samaria: Palestinian terrorists carried out a shooting attack at at the Tunnel Crossing in Jerusalem. Seven people were injured, one of them fatally. The terrorists were shot and killed by Israeli security forces. The terrorists apparently planned to carry out a much larger attack in Jerusalem. Mahmoud Abbas met with the White House coordinator for Middle East and North African affairs, and with the United States assistant secretary of state.
• Iran: Hamas vigorously denied the Reuters report that Ali Khamenei, the leader of Iran, meeting with Ismail Haniyeh, head of the political bureau of Hamas, said that since Hamas had not given Tehran advance notice about the October 7 attack, Iran would not enter the war on its behalf.
• The international arena: The UN Security Council voted on a resolution calling for immediate action for prolonged pauses in the fighting and the establishment of humanitarian corridors in the Gaza Strip.

The Combat Arena

IDF activity on the ground

• The integrated ground maneuver: In the past day, IDF forces continued operating in Shifa Hospital in Gaza City and in the northern Gaza Strip:
  • Shifa Hospital: A targeted operation was carried out based on intelligence information, during which the forces located operational headquarters, weapons and technological equipment in the hospital’s MRI building. Specialized technological equipment, and combat and military equipment were also found. During the activity, IDF forces brought large amounts of medical and other equipment into the hospital (IDF spokesman, November 15, 2023).

   
IDF forces bring humanitarian aid to Shifa Hospital (IDF Spokesman website, November 15, 2023)

• • The “Palestine” post in the northern Gaza Strip: IDF forces took control of the Izz al-Din Qassam Brigades’ “Palestine: post, which was used as a training base, and by the operatives of military-terrorist wing as a base from which to launch terrorist attacks. IDF forces exposed terrorist tunnels, IEDs and mines. The forces attacked terrorists and found weapons, including explosive belts, barrels of explosives, RPGs and RPG launchers, anti-tank missiles and intelligence material (IDF spokesman, November 15, 2023).

     
IDF forces at the Palestine post (IDF spokesman website, November 15, 2023)

• • The Shati refugee camp: IDF forces located and destroyed a naval weapons stockpile which included diving systems, IEDs and weapons (IDF spokesman, November 16, 2023).

     
Some of the weapons found in the Shati refugee camp
(IDF spokesman’s website, November 16, 2023)

• The central anchorage: In a combined operation with Shayetet 13 fighters, the forces gained control over the Hamas’ central anchorage of Gaza. They cleared all its buildings and destroyed approximately ten tunnel shafts and four buildings used for terrorist activity; ten terrorists were killed. Under civilian cover, using civilian vessels and the vessels of the maritime police forces, Hamas used the anchorage as a training facility for the naval forces and for directing and carrying out naval attacks (IDF spokesman, November 16, 2023).

   
IDF forces at the Hamas central anchorage (IDF spokesman’s website, November 16, 2023)

     
The destruction of the monument at the anchorage commemorating the Mavi Marmara incident (May 2010). Right: The monument before it was destroyed. Left: The monument after it was destroyed (IDF spokesman’s website, November 16, 2023)

• Aerial activity: While assisting the ground forces, Israeli Air Force aircraft also continued to attack Hamas targets. During the night, the house of Isma’il Haniyeh, head of Hamas’ political bureau, was attacked. It had been used as a meeting place for senior Hamas terrorists (IDF spokesman, November 16, 2023). Haniyeh and his immediate family live in Qatar.

   
Right: Israeli Air Force attacks in western Gaza City (QudsN X account, November 16, 2023). Left: Israeli Air Force attack near the Indonesian Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip
(Wafa YouTube channel, November 16, 2023)

Reactions to the IDF operations in Shifa Hospital

• In response to the exposure of the military-terrorist evident found at Shifa Hospital, Izzat al-Rishq, a member of Hamas’ political bureau, claimed that after Israel attacked the hospital it was lying about what it found there. He called for the establishment of a UN commission, the World Health Organization and the Red Cross to disprove Israel’s lies (Hamas Telegram channel, November 15, 2023).
• Ahmed Abd al-Hadi, Hamas representative in Lebanon, claimed Israel recently tried to present Shifa Hospital in a “false light” and “invented lies” to distort Hamas’ image and score fake points. He claimed what the IDF presented regarding the evidence in the hospital was a fabrication that would fool no one. He also claimed that the “Palestinian resistance” [Palestinian terrorist organizations] was prepared for a long war in the Gaza Strip and had not lost its strength despite Israel’s heavy attacks. He also noted that the “axis of resistance”^[2] participated in the campaign and was not neutral (al-Jazeera Mubasher Telegram channel, November 15, 2023).
• Senior Hamas terrorist Bassem Na’im called Israel’s claims regarding Shifa Hospital “farcical and expected.” He claimed the evidence presented by the IDF was ridiculous and worthless and he did not rule out that the IDF forces had brought the weapons into the hospital themselves, and it was possible that the Kalashnikov assault rifle displayed belonged to a security guard who had been working at the hospital for years. He claimed Israel had once again failed to prove what it has been claiming for weeks. He said that Israel’s goal was to damage the civilian infrastructure and exert pressure on the hospitals and medical teams to uproot the population. He said 25 of the hospitals in the Gaza Strip were no longer functioning because of Israeli attacks, blockades and the [alleged] “withholding of medicine and fuel” (al-Jazeera TV YouTube channel, November 15, 2023).
• PIJ spokesman Daoud Shehab called the Israeli claims regarding Shifa Hospital “ridiculous and do not deserve a response.” He claimed there was no documentation of shooting by the “resistance” from the hospital or its surroundings, adding that as far as the “resistance” was concerned, all areas in the west of Gaza City were combat zones except for access to Shifa Hospital to allow it to continue to provide services (al-Jazeera TV YouTube channel, November 16, 2023). Muhammad al-Hindi, deputy PIJ secretary general, claims Israel’s reports of a weapon found in the Shifa Hospital compound were “absolute lies” (Filastin al-Yawm, November 15, 2023).
• The Palestinian condemnations of the IDF’s operation at Shifa Hospital were joined by the condemnations of the foreign ministries of Arab countries:
  • The Jordanian foreign ministry condemned the “occupation forces’ invasion of Shifa Hospital,” claiming it was a violation of international law and the Geneva Conventions, adding that the “aggression” against the Gazans, the continued systematic destruction of civilian facilities and the collective punishment were “war crimes.” The ministry called on the UN Security Council and the international community to put pressure on Israel to stop its operations (Jordanian foreign ministry X account, November 15, 2023).
  • The Qatari foreign ministry condemned the “Israeli occupation forces’ invasion of the Shifa Hospital compound, which [allegedly] led to the death of the wounded, including children.” The ministry claimed it was “a crime violating international law and a continuation of Israel’s attacks on hospitals and schools in the Gaza Strip,” and called for an urgent international UN investigation (Qatari foreign ministry X account, November 15, 2023).
  • The Saudi Arabian foreign ministry condemned the “Israeli’s forces’ assault” on Shifa Hospital and the Jordanian Hospital, claiming it was a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law (Saudi Arabian foreign ministry X account, November 16, 2023).
  • The Kuwaiti foreign ministry condemned risking human life in the hospital and “raiding” the hospital while “exploiting the Palestinian people’s lack of defense” (Kuwaiti foreign ministry X account, November 16, 2023).

Accusing Israel of attacking medical staff at the Jordanian Hospital

• The Jordanian Army spokesman claimed that seven members of the staff of the Jordanian Hospital in Tel al-Haw, in the southwest of Gaza City, were injured at the entrance to the emergency room while trying to provide aid to Palestinian civilians who had been wounded in an Israeli attack. According to the spokesman, the army initiated an investigation of the incident and emphasized Israel’s responsibility to provide the necessary protection for the hospital and its staff (Jordan Army website, November 15, 2023).
• The Jordanian establishment news agency quoted an “official source” that claimed Israel had attacked the Jordanian Hospital to make Jordan stop providing the Gazans with health service. Ayman al-Safadi, the Jordanian foreign minister, stated that Israel could not claim there was a tunnel under the Jordanian Hospital (Petra, November 15, 2023). Sufyan Qudah, spokesman for the Jordanian foreign ministry, said Jordan condemned the Israeli attack in the area of the Jordanian Hospital that injured seven staff members. He claimed Israel was endangering the hospital and its medical teams and called it a “crime that violates international law.” He said Jordan placed full responsibility on Israel for endangering the Jordanian medical teams and condemned “Israel’s [alleged] war crimes” against Palestinian hospitals in general (Jordanian foreign ministry X account, November 15, 2023).
• The Egyptian foreign ministry condemned the attack by “the Israeli occupation” on the Jordanian Hospital, claiming it was another in the series of attacks carried out by Israel in violation of international laws (Egyptian foreign ministry Facebook page, November 15, 2023).
• The Qatari foreign minister condemned the attack and expressed Qatar’s solidarity with Jordan in all its political and legal measures to deal with the “brutal crime” (Qatari foreign ministry X account, November 15, 2023). The PA foreign ministry condemned the IDF’s activities and called for clear international positions of condemnation and to implement the necessary steps to force Israel to comply with international law (PA foreign ministry X account, November 15, 2023).

Rocket fire attacking Israel from the Gaza Strip

• Since the ground forces entered the Strip, there has been a decrease in the number of rocket launches. During the past day about ten rockets were launched, all of them at the area surrounding Gaza.
• A total of 9,500 rockets and mortar shells have been launched at Israel from the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the war. On the first day of the war, over 3,000 rockets were fired. About 12% of them were failed launches that fell in the Gaza Strip and the sea. The Iron Dome aerial defense system intercepted approximately 2,000 launches and dozens of unmanned aircraft that tried to penetrate Israeli airspace (IDF spokesman, November 10 and 11, 2023).

Israeli casualties

• According to an unofficial estimate, since October 7, approximately 1,200 Israeli civilians and security personnel have been killed, 371 of them soldiers and officers; 239 civilian and military abductees are being held by the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, 35 children and adolescents under the age of 18, 32 over the age of 65. Five abductees were released.

The issue of the abductees

• Izzat al-Rishq, a member of Hamas’ political bureau and head of the central media information bureau, claimed Israel continued to “evade, procrastinate and buy time,” without demonstrating the will and seriousness necessary to reach an agreement for a pause in the fighting. He claimed Israel was procrastinating and making false statements regarding the proposal to release fifty women and children from among the abductees in exchange for the release of a number of Palestinian women and children from prisons in Israel, the introduction of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, and a “genuine humanitarian pause in the fighting” that would create a suitable security environment for its implementation (Hamas in Judea and Samaria Telegram channel, November 15, 2023).
• Haitham Abu Ghazlan, in charge of PIJ relations in Lebanon, was asked about the secretary general’s claim that they were on the verge of withdrawing from the negotiations. He claimed the PIJ and the “resistance” [terrorist organizations] in general were open to initiatives to complete the deal, but Israel continued to procrastinate. Since, he claimed, the “resistance” was not “weak,” it should not submit to procrastination attempts, and that was what prompted the statement of the organization’s secretary general. However, he claimed they continue to be open to various initiatives which he hoped would lead to the completion of the transaction as soon as possible. He also claimed that they were continuing to give the negotiations a chance and were in favor of a unified Palestinian position on the issue. He stated that the organization had announced “several times” that it was holding 30 Israelis (al-Ghad TV YouTube channel, November 14, 2023).

The Gaza Strip

Palestinian casualties

• The Hamas government media information bureau in Gaza reported that as of 8:30 p.m., November 15, 2023, the number of dead stood at 11,500 and the number of wounded at 29,800 (Facebook page of the Hamas government media information bureau in Gaza, November 15, 2023).

The situation in Gaza

• The UN World Food Program (WFP) claimed that the food systems in the Gaza Strip were collapsing and the aid that entered the Gaza Strip through the Rafah Crossing met only 10% of the need. According to the organization, there was almost no food on the shelves in stores and what was left was often sold at exorbitant prices. In addition, the war had forced many bakeries to close. The organization’s experts were currently trying to coordinate a special food basket for the Gazans (al-Quds, November 16, 2023).
• Following the delivery of fuel for UNRWA trucks, Adnan Abu Hasna, UNRWAs communications consultant in the Gaza Strip, was interviewed and claimed that the amount of fuel that was brought in was only 23,000 liters (about 6075 gallons), i.e. half a truckload. He claimed it was “a tiny amount” that met only 9% of the agency’s needs for the operation of its trucks. He stated that in order for UNRWA to be able to provide all its services in the Gaza Strip, 150 fuel trucks had to be brought in every day (Wafa YouTube channel,  November 15, 2023).

   
Right: Bringing in the fuel truck at the Rafah crossing. Left: Adnan Abu Hasna at the Rafah Crossing (Wafa YouTube channel, November 15, 2023)

• The Palestinian Communications Company reported that the generators at the main telephone exchanges in the Gaza Strip had stopped working due to a lack of fuel, and therefore, all communication services would stop in the coming hours (Shehab, November 15, 2023).
• The Palestinian media continues to report on the shortage of fuel and cooking gas and publishes photos of residents in Deir al-Balah forced to cook food for the masses using scraps of wood and cardboard (QudsN X account, November 16, 2023).

Aid to the Gaza Strip

• The Turkish Mavi Marmara Association^[3] announced the organization of a flotilla to the Gaza Strip of vessels from various countries “following Israel’s crimes.” No details were specified regarding the date or route of the flotilla, but the website stressed that their actions against the “naval blockade of Gaza” were always subject to the principle of “refraining from violence and carrying out non-violent resistance.” The flotilla organizers launched a crowdfunding campaign to purchase ships and humanitarian supplies for the flotilla (flotilla website, November 16, 2023). Based in Istanbul, the association is a member of the international Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), an international organization organizing flotillas to break the siege on Gaza, whose main branch is in Washington (the association’s website and Blue Marmara X account, November 15, 2023; freedomflotilla.org, nonviolenceinternational.net).
• According to an initial examination, Zaher Birawi, a Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood activist from Britain^[4] who was one of the leaders of the Mavi Marmara flotilla, is organizing the flotilla (mavimarmara.org, November 8, 2023). The International Committee to Break the Siege on Gaza, one of the founding bodies of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition headed by Zaher Birawi, announced the beginning of preparations, together with members of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, on February 14, 2023, to “sail again soon to break the siege on Gaza and bring urgent humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip,” but it appears that preparations have taken place over the past month (ARABI21 website, November 14, 2023).

     
Right: Poster announcing the flotilla (website of the association and Blue Marmara X account, November 15, 2023). Left: Gathering of the flotilla organizers; Zaher Birawi is seen in the center making a V sign (mavimarmara.org, November 8, 2023)

Hamas

• Hamas issued a statement saying that in light of the continuation of the “aggression, the war of mass extermination and the crimes of attacking hospitals” perpetrated by the “Nazi Zionist occupation” in the Gaza Strip, they renewed their call on the masses of the Palestinian people and the Arab and Islamic countries to continue their protests in popular actions against Israel. Hamas called for an escalation of the protests these coming Friday, Saturday and Sunday (November 17-19, 2023) in all cities, capitals and squares, under the slogan “Save Gaza’s hospitals, save Gaza’s children” (Hamas Telegram channel, November 16, 2023).

The Northern Arena

Lebanon

• During the past day, Hezbollah’s activity against Israel continued. During the day, anti-tank missiles and mortar shells were fired at IDF posts along the Lebanese border. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for 13 incidents (as of November 16 at 2:30 p.m.) (Hezbollah’s combat information Telegram channel, November 15 and 16, 2023). In the afternoon, several launches into Israeli territory were identified, with no casualties.
• IDF forces responded with artillery fire. IDF tanks attacked a Hezbollah observation post in Lebanese territory. Israeli Air Force aircraft attacked Hezbollah targets in Lebanese territory, including a weapons storehouse, military infrastructure, observation posts and launching positions. Anti-tank missiles were fired at the northern Israeli town of Shlomi from one of the positions (IDF spokesman, November 15 and 16, 2023).

     
Hezbollah targets being attacked (IDF spokesman’s website, November 16, 2023)

Hezbollah

• Interviewed by Western media and quoted by al-Manar, Hezbollah deputy secretary general Na’im Qassem said Hezbollah was not afraid of Israel’s threats and if Israel decided to start a war, the organization’s fighters would fight it with all their might. He claimed Israel had caused the events of October 7, 2023, which constituted a response and resistance to its actions. He noted tens and hundreds and thousands of Palestinians had been killed, wounded or imprisoned during Israel’s 75 years of existence, compared with the number of Israelis killed in Operation al-Aqsa Storm, which he called a “dignified operation.” He also noted that Israel was weak militarily, morally and politically, and the overwhelming proof of this was what happened on October 7, 2023. The United States assisted Israel with an airlift of weapons and ammunition and managed Israel, otherwise, Israel might have fallen within a few days (al-Manar, November 15, 2023).
• “Knowledgeable sources” said Hezbollah’s activities against Israel would continue at an increasing pace as long as Israel’s aggression against the Gaza Strip continued. The “sources” noted that recently, the organization had even stepped up the pace of its activities with the understanding that any delay would lead Israel to intensify its aggression. They also noted that Israel had recently appeared to have broken the rules of the conflict and tried to impose new rules by carrying out attacks deep inside Lebanon, which, they claimed, reached a distance of about 40 kilometers from the border. The “resistance” (Hezbollah) sent a clear message that Israel understood about determining the equation: an attack on a civilian would lead to an attack on a civilian, a house would lead to an attack on a house, a military target would lead to an attack on a military target, and an attack deep inside would trigger a response deep inside (Al-Joumhouria, November 16, 2023).

Population of South Lebanon

• Given reports in Lebanon about the evacuation of thousands of people from villages and towns near the Israeli border in south Lebanon for fear of war, and claims that Lebanon is not prepared for war, the Hezbollah-affiliated al-Mayadeen network broadcast a report describing “the determination of the residents of south Lebanon to remain on the line of confrontation without fear of war” (al-Mayadeen, November 15, 2023).

The Lebanese government

• Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib met with the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon to discuss regional issues and the situation in the Gaza Strip (Lebanese foreign ministry X account, November 15, 2023).

Judea, Samaria, and the Palestinian Authority

Terrorist attacks

• Three Palestinian terrorists who drove to the Tunnel Crossing in Jerusalem opened fire at security forces operating at the checkpoint. The forces returned fire, killing three terrorists. Seven people were wounded, one critically. Two M-16 rifles, two pistols, hundreds of bullets, ten magazines filled with bullets, two axes and clothing resembling IDF uniforms were found in their possession (Israel Police Force spokesman’s unit, November 16, 2023).
• According to an initial report, the attack was carried out by three Hamas operatives from Hebron (Ma’an, November 16, 2023; khalelnews Telegram channel, November 16, 2023):
  • Abd al-Qader al-Qawasmeh, son of Abdullah al-Qawasmeh, one of the most prominent commanders of the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, who was eliminated in a targeted killing in 2003.
  • Nasr Allah al-Qawasmeh, brother of al-Qassam Brigades operative Ahmad Abd al-Afu al-Qawasmeh, who carried out an attack together with Nassim al-Ja’abari in Beersheba in 2004.
  • Hassan Mamun Qafisha.
• The PIJ in Judea and Samaria praised the heroic attack as a natural response to Israel’s “crimes” against the Palestinians. They announced that suicide bombing attacks and other “resistance” activities in Judea and Samaria would continue and called for marches on November 17, 2023, to support the Gaza Strip and defend the Palestinians wherever they were (Safa Twitter account, November 16, 2023).

Palestinian Authority

• Mahmoud Abbas, chairman of the Palestinian Authority, met with Brett McGurk, White House coordinator for Middle East and North African affairs, and Barbara Leaf, assistant secretary of state, to discuss the escalation in the region. Abbas stressed the need for the American administration to exert pressure on Israel to stop its “aggression against the Palestinian people” and bring humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip (Wafa, November 15, 2023).

• In a speech given on the occasion of the Palestinian Declaration of Independence Day,^[5] Mahmoud Abbas said that “there is a mark of shame on the forehead of those who support the aggression in the Gaza Strip and provide it with political and military cover.” Abbas said the Palestinian Authority had strongly rejected and would always reject all plans to uproot and expel the Palestinians, since the Gaza Strip was an integral part of the territory of “Palestine.” He said they were working with all their might to stop the [alleged] “barbaric” aggression against the Palestinian people and to protect them from further bloodshed (Wafa, November 15, 2023).

Iran

• Reuters reported (November 15, 2023) that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in his recent meeting with Ismail Haniyeh, head of Hamas’ political bureau, expressed that Iran had not been informed in advance of the intention to carry out the attack on October 7. According to the report, whose reliability is unclear, Khamenei told Haniyeh that since Hamas had not informed Tehran in advance of the expected attack, Iran would not enter the war on its behalf. He stressed Iran would continue to support Hamas , but would not intervene directly in the campaign. Khamenei also pressured Haniyeh to silence the voices in Hamas publicly calling on Hezbollah to fully join the campaign against Israel.
• Hamas denied the report, saying it regretted the publication of the “baseless news” and called on Reuters to be precise (Hamas Telegram channel, November 15, 2023). Kamil Baqer, cultural attaché at the Iranian embassy in Beirut, denied the Reuters report on Khamenei’s meeting with Haniyeh, saying it was “false news from the depths of imagination” intended to “drive a wedge between brothers and friends” (Kamil Baqer’s X account, November 15, 2023).
• Senior Hamas figure Osama Hamdan said the report was a complete lie. He claimed everyone knew the nature of relations between Hamas and Iran, and everyone knew Iran’s position in support of the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian “resistance” [terrorist organizations], especially Hamas, and Ali Khamenei’s position in support of the Palestinian “resistance.” He added, “We did not reveal or talk about this positive and good meeting, but we say that this meeting was a continuation of the good and unique relationship with Iran” (IRNA in Arabic, November 16, 2023).
• Hossein-Amir Abdollahian, Iranian foreign minister, met in Geneva with Volker Türk, the UN high commissioner for human rights. Abdollahian proposed convening an emergency meeting of the UN Human Rights Council to discuss the situation in the Gaza Strip and to establish a team of experts to document the [alleged] “crimes of the Zionist regime.” Abdollahian also met with Red Cross President Mirjana Spoljaric Egger (Mehr, November 15, 2023).
• Vahid Jalalzadeh, chairman of the Majles national security and foreign policy committee, told a conference in Tehran that Iran’s historic support for the “resistance” was undeniable, but the “resistance” groups operated independently and did not receive instructions from Iran. He said Hamas and the Palestinians had no choice but to choose the struggle because their wives and children had been imprisoned in Zionist prisons and the siege on the Gaza Strip made it difficult for them to breathe (Tabnak, November 16, 2023).

Activity of pro-Iranian militias

Iraq and Syria

• The Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for firing rockets at the Ayn al-Assad base in western Iraq (Islamic Resistance Telegram channel, November 15, 2023).
• The Iraqi Kata’ib Hezbollah (Hezbollah Brigades) militia said the “crimes” in the Gaza Strip jointly committed by Israel and the United States would not go unnoticed and demanded a response. According to the announcement, they intend to strike “unprecedented blows wherever our hands reach” (Kata’ib Hezbollah Telegram channel, November 16, 2023).

Yemen

• American officials said an American ship had shot down a drone launched from Yemen over the Red Sea. It was not reported whether the aircraft was armed or booby-trapped (Reuters, November 15, 2023). Mohammad Ali al-Houthi, a member of the Houthi political bureau, said in response that they reserved the right to respond to the downing of the UAV by the United States (Mohammad Ali al-Houthi’s X account, November 15, 2023).
• The Houthi movement issued another poster threatening to attack Israeli ships in the Red Sea. The poster shows a ship with the inscription “We’ll track you down and hunt you” (Ansar Allah’s Information Center Telegram account, November 15, 2023).

The International Arena

UN Security Council

• The UN Security Council voted on a draft resolution calling for immediate action to declare prolonged pauses and establish humanitarian corridors in the Gaza Strip for several days to allow bringing in aid (Reuters, November 15, 2023). The draft resolution was passed by a majority of 12 countries. The United States, Britain and Russia abstained. The Security Council also called for the “immediate and unconditional” release of all prisoners held in the Gaza Strip by Hamas and other organizations (Reuters, November 15, 2023).
• Riyadh Mansur, PA representative to the UN, sent a communiqué to the president of the Security Council calling for an end to the Israeli aggression in the Gaza Strip and on hospitals in particular (the Palestinian mission to the UN X account, November 16, 2023).

United States

• American President Joe Biden noted regarding the attempts to reach a deal to return the hostages that they had received good cooperation from Qatar and there was cautious optimism about reaching a deal. He said he had asked Israel to be cautious in its military operations, especially in the area of the hospitals in the Gaza Strip. Regarding his meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Jinping, President Biden said his conversations with the Chinese president were “the most constructive he has ever had with him” and that the two agreed to talk to each other in times of crisis between the two countries. During his meeting with the Chinese president, Biden reportedly asked his counterpart to consider persuading Iran to refrain from taking steps in the Middle East that could be interpreted as provocative (Agence France-Presse, November 16, 2023).

Germany

• The German ministry of the interior announced that authorities had searched 54 sites linked to Hamburg’s Islamic Center on suspicion of “activity contrary to constitutional order and in support for Hezbollah.” It was noted that no arrests were made during the raids and that the German intelligence services believed that the center was considered an extension of the Iranian regime in Germany and had great influence or control over certain mosques and organizations (Die Welt, November 14, 2023).

^[1] Click https://www.terrorism-info.org.il/en to subscribe and receive the ITIC's daily updates as well as its other publications. ↑
^[2] Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, the Palestinian terrorist organizations, the Houthis in Yemen and the pro-Iranian militias in Iraq. ↑
^[3] The Turkish ship Mavi Marmara headed a flotilla of six ships bound for the Gaza Strip in 2010, organized by the Turkish organization IHH. Their entry into the Gaza Strip was prevented by the IDF, which led to violent clashes and the deaths of ten of the ship's crew. See the ITIC's Information Bulletin from January 23, 2011, "Detailed testimony from IDF officers and soldiers, supported by documentation, reveals for the first time the aggressive, brutal fighting carried out by IHH operatives and their accomplices against Israeli forces aboard the Mavi Marmara.” ↑
^[4] For further details, see the ITIC's Information Bulletin from September 19, 2017, "A Hamas-affiliated Palestinian in Britain admitted the flotilla project to the Gaza Strip was not intended to "break the siege" and bring humanitarian aid, but rather to promote the battle for hearts and minds against Israel." ↑
^[5] On November 15, 1988, Yasser Arafat proclaimed the Declaration of Independence of Palestine at a meeting of the Palestinian National Council in Algiers, at the end of which he was given the title of president. ↑

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