- Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed during an IDF operation in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, October 17. “He died on the run as someone who only cared for himself,” defense minister Gallant said.
- Footage shows wounded Sinwar hurling stick at IDF drone moments before he was killed; Sinwar was found with cash, Mentos and ID cards among other materials. https://lnk.sk/lvaf ; https://lnk.sk/jlg9
- Benjamin Netanyahu: He says that anyone holding hostages will be allowed to live if they lay down their weapons and release their captives. https://lnk.sk/flwv ; full text of PM’s speech https://lnk.sk/kuu1
- Netanyahu in English: “To the people of Gaza, I have a simple message,” he continues. “This war can end tomorrow. It can end if Hamas lays down its arms and returns our hostages.” https://lnk.sk/jjt1
- U.S. President Biden called Netanyahu and congratulated him on the elimination of Sinwar. According to both there is an opportunity to advance the release of the hostages. https://lnk.sk/rsdq
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken phoned President Isaac Herzog to congratulate him on the killing of Hamas leader Sinwar. https://lnk.sk/4679
- Saudi newspaper “Asharq Al-Awsat” said that the elimination of Sinwar is “the hardest blow” to the Hamas terror organization since its founding. It marks an extraordinary success for Netanyahu.
- The IDF found Sinwar’s DNA in a Rafah tunnel which was in the same complex as a separate tunnel where six Israeli hostages were murdered in late August. https://lnk.sk/vn35
- Sinwar was known for his brutality receiving nickname „the butcher of Khan Yunis.” His cruel philosophy was that all means leading to the destruction of Israel are justified, even if they harm his own people.
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IRAN 🇮🇷
- Teheran issued a statement saying, that ”The spirit of resistance will increase.” Sinwar ‚will become a role model for youth, children‘ in fight for ‚Palestinian liberation’. https://lnk.sk/lrgo
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LEBANON 🇱🇧
- 15 rockets were fired from Lebanon in the direction of Akko, Kirya Bialik and some other settlements in northern Israel. There were no casualties. https://lnk.sk/jzsu
- Hezbollah terror group says it is launching a new phase in its war against Israel, saying it has used precision-guided missiles to target troops. https://lnk.sk/sekx
- French President Emmanuel Macron urges Israel to halt military operations in Lebanon, respect its sovereignty, and avoid expanding the conflict.
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SAMARIA & JUDEA (tzv. Západný breh), GAZA
- Po Sinwarovej smrti muž z Gazy natočil seba a svoje deti, kde hovorí od radosti hebrejsky, svoj stan nazýva „sukka“ (čo je hlavná symbolika Sviatku stánkov / Sukotu) a volá „shalom“ (pokoj, mier).
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USA 🇺🇸 EU 🇪🇺
- “This is a good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world,” US President Joe Biden says in a statement reacting to Israel’s killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
- vice-president Kamala Harris: It’s time for the ‘day after’ to begin without Hamas in power.
- The fact that Washington was wrong about nearly everything in the ME will again change nothing in Washington, said Hussein Aboubakr, senior fellow of Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs
- The US military says its forces had no role in the Israeli operation that killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, even if US intelligence has contributed to Israel’s understanding of Hamas leaders who took hostages last year. https://lnk.sk/xwqt
- US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller says Washington hopes that Hamas’s next leader will pursue a different path than Yahya Sinwar. https://lnk.sk/knf9
Source: Israel Realtime, Jewish Breaking News, The Jerusalem Post, The Times of Israel and the sources cited in each report
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