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Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2025-09-30 at 03:06
HEADLINES
Iran threat lingers as ceasefire holds
Hamas deputy commander killed, hostages central
Eight Arab states back Trump's Gaza plan
The time is now 11:00 PM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.
Good evening. Here is the latest update on the Middle East and related developments as of this hour.
An uneasy ceasefire topology between Israel and Iran persists, with senior Israeli security officials warning that Tehran remains a persistent and dangerous threat even as it has absorbed a significant setback from Israel’s military actions. Officials emphasize that Iran understands the scope of the damage it has suffered and the limits of its current capabilities, while stressing that the risk of renewed escalation remains real and requires vigilance from Israel and its partners.
On the ground in Gaza, Israeli Defense Forces and security services say they have neutralized a Hamas deputy commander who took part in hostage-release parades and who had a long history of attacks on Israeli troops in Gaza, including sniper and anti-tank incidents. The operation is part of broader efforts to degrade Hamas’ leadership and capabilities while the fate of hostages remains a central, unresolved thread in the conflict. In parallel, international diplomacy around Gaza continues to unfold, with the White House and regional partners pursuing a path to secure hostages’ freedom and a broader settlement framework, even as the day-to-day realities of war and civilian suffering persist in Gaza’s war-torn neighborhoods.
In Washington and allied capitals, a major international conversation has taken shape around a 20-point plan to end the Gaza conflict. The plan envisions the return of hostages, an international security presence to supervise a transition, a pathway to democratic governance in the Strip, and conditions for Palestinian self-determination that would depend on reforms and security guarantees. Support from a group of Arab and Muslim-majority states has grown, with several ministers welcoming the plan and pledging to engage constructively to bring it to fruition. At the same time, Hamas has yet to publicly endorse the proposal, and observers note that the plan’s success depends on commitments from all sides, including convincing capabilities on security, humanitarian assistance, and political reform within Palestinian leadership.
Within Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other leaders have publicly framed the plan as a potential route to ending the war and restoring regional balance, while clarifying that any future Palestinian state would be a result of agreed terms and reforms. In a complementary development, Israel has signaled willingness to review compensation for the family of a Qatari security officer killed in a strike tied to Hamas leadership targeted abroad, a gesture that aims to manage bolstered regional ties and casualties with a view toward stabilizing broader relations. Separately, an Israeli man was killed in a border incident tied to attempts to smuggle contraband across the Egyptian border, with authorities saying the culprits used drones and that a vehicle collision ended one suspect’s life. The incident underscores ongoing cross-border security challenges in the region.
Internationally, a notable diplomatic development has taken shape as eight Arab and Muslim-majority states issued a joint statement welcoming President Trump’s Gaza plan. The statement emphasizes a shared commitment to a path that would ensure humanitarian aid to Gaza, the release of hostages, and a comprehensive framework for security, withdrawal, and eventual path to a two-state solution—subject to reform and credible progress by Palestinian leadership. The Palestinian Authority expressed cautious optimism, highlighting reforms, elections, and a roadmap toward a modern, non-militarized state, while Palestini
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