Podcast Episode Details

Israel Today: Ongoing War Report - Update from 2025-10-19 at 23:04

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HEADLINES
- Fragile Gaza ceasefire holds amid renewed strikes
- Twenty hostages freed, sixteen bodies missing
- Disarm Hamas, technocrat led Gaza governance planned

The time is now 7:00 PM in New York, I'm Noa Levi and this is the latest Israel Today: Ongoing War Report.

This is the seven o’clock hourly update. A fragile ceasefire in Gaza remains in effect after a day that saw renewed fighting and heavy Israeli strikes following a deadly attack on Israeli troops in the Rafah area. Palestinian militants opened fire on a unit in southern Gaza with anti tank missiles and small arms, killing two Israeli soldiers and wounding several others. In response, the Israel Defense Forces conducted a broad wave of retaliatory air and ground strikes across Gaza, targeting more than a hundred sites tied to Hamas and other militant groups. The military said it would continue to enforce the ceasefire while making clear it would respond forcefully to any further violations. The Palestinian health and civil defense services reported casualties, though independent verification of numbers remained difficult amid the destruction in the area.

In the diplomatic arena, Washington and Jerusalem intervened to prevent the ceasefire from unraveling. US officials said they were pressing for restraint by Israel while insisting on a robust response to violations by Hamas. United States officials also signaled a willingness to sustain humanitarian aid flows to Gaza, even as Israel initially paused deliveries in the immediate aftermath of the Rafah violence. By Monday, discussions were underway about resuming aid shipments, though Israeli officials cautioned that security conditions and the situation on the ground would guide any decisions. The Rafah crossing remained closed for the moment, and Israeli officials suggested that aid could resume only once security conditions allowed.

The hostage situation remains a central element of the ceasefire framework. Hamas has released twenty living hostages within the first headline window of the agreement, fulfilling part of the expected exchange. Yet the remains of sixteen deceased hostages have not been handed over, and Hamas has said it cannot locate them amid extensive destruction in Gaza. Israeli officials accuse Hamas of withholding bodies and lying about the status of the remains. The second phase of the ceasefire, as outlined in public proposals associated with the broader peace plan being publicly discussed in Washington, envisions Hamas disarming and ceding governance of Gaza to a technocratic, internationally overseen body. Former President Donald Trump has promoted a twenty point plan that envisions disarmament and a broader political framework, while suggesting that the United States could disarm Hamas with a proxy force if necessary without deploying American troops on the ground. In a recent interview, he indicated there would be no “boots on the ground,” and he highlighted the role of regional partners, especially Qatar, in pressing Hamas to accept terms. He praised Qatar’s leadership as courageous but cautious, acknowledging the country’s proximity to Iran and the delicate balance it must maintain.

US special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner continued to work with Israeli officials to sustain momentum on the ceasefire, including discussions about the next phase and how to handle violations moving forward. Washington’s approach has been to preserve the ceasefire while ensuring humanitarian needs are met and that any violations are met with a firm but proportionate response. The administration has said it expects further consultations with Israeli leadership and with regional mediators to shape the path ahead, including possible adjustments to humanitarian arrangements and security mechanisms.

In Israel, security officials have voiced concern about the equation between maintaining the truce and the

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Published on 2 weeks, 2 days ago