Hostages:
This evening, Hamas and the PIJ returned (what they say are) the remains of a hostage to Israel. The body was brought to the Abu Kabir forensic institute in Israel for identification, a process which can take up to two days.
If the remains do belong to a hostage, it would be either police Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, or Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak.
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Yesterday, Hamas transferred to Israel what they claimed was the remains of a hostage. After identification, Israel found that the remains were not connected to any of the hostages.
Gaza:
Five IDF soldiers were injured in Israeli-controlled Rafah, after Hamas terrorists violated the ceasefire agreement with a surprise ambush.
The incident occurred when three terrorists emerged from a hidden tunnel. Two lunged towards IDF troops, and were promptly eliminated, while a third placed a bomb on an armored vehicle, and then fled. The vehicle went up in flames, leaving five soldiers injured—including one seriously. The third terrorist has not yet been found.
The IDF responded to the incident by shelling the area, and then carrying out a targeted airstrike in Khan Younis, to eliminate a specific (unnamed) terrorist.
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IDF troops in the Israeli-controlled parts of Gaza continue to search for and destroy tunnels (yes, there are so many, it seems impossibly endless), and weapons. Today, troops in northern Gaza found a rocket launcher aimed at Israel, and loaded with long-range rockets. The launcher was buried and slightly damaged, but still could have been used by Hamas.
The IDF still reports 2-3 terrorists per day, who cross the Yellow Line and approach IDF soldiers “in a way that posed an immediate threat.” The terrorists are either eliminated in an airstrike, or by gunfire. According to IDF officers on ground, around 20 suspects cross the Yellow Line per day, despite it being very clearly marked.
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Today, U.S. President Trump told media that Hamas lost 58,000 members during the war. He did not say where the number came from, but it does reflect data from Hamas’s “Ministry of Health,” when counting deaths of men of military age (which for Hamas’s army, is 16-45).
Hamas reports 70,000 deaths since October 7th. This includes *all* deaths, including of terrorists, of civilians who died of natural causes, or people killed by Hamas.
At the lowest estimate, before the war, an average of 7,000 Gazans died of natural causes each year, which means that around 14,000 would have died in the two years since October 7th.
Clearly there is still too much fog of war for exact numbers, but what’s for sure, and what will eventually be seen, is that this war had the lowest militant to civilian death toll in the history of urban warfare.
Humanitarian Aid:
The IDF’s COGAT division announced that the Rafah crossing will soon be opened exclusively for the exit of residents from the Gaza Strip to Egypt.
The residents’ exit through the Rafah Crossing will be facilitated through coordination with Egypt, following security approval by Israel and under the supervision of the European Union mission, similar to the mechanism that operated in January 2025.
Entry will not be allowed at this point.
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Internal documents from Gaza’s Hamas-run Ministry of Interior, analyzed by NGO Monitor, reveal a deeply entrenched system in which Hamas has full coercive control over nearly every NGO operating in Gaza, including Doctors Without Borders, Oxfam, Save the Children, and the Norwegian Refugee Council.
For years, including throughout the current war, Hamas has dictated who may work, which projects may proceed, and where foreign aid may be delivered. Every international NGO is assigned a Hamas-approved “guarantor,” always someone with direct ties to Hamas, who reports activities back to Hamas security.
Hamas conducts background checks on all staff, demands access to financial records, installs surveillance cameras in NGO offices, and enforces strict oversight under threat of shutting down projects. Aid organizations that resist Hamas’s monitoring, auditing, or political conditions are prevented from operating in Gaza through intimidation or violent punishment.
International organizations have largely remained silent about the extent of this coercion, resulting in billions of dollars in aid being funneled through a system controlled by a terrorist organization. The report warns that unless this reality is confronted, post-war reconstruction will again empower Hamas and allow it to exploit humanitarian frameworks for military and political gain.
Lebanon:
Prime Minister Netanyahu sent a foreign policy representative to Lebanon Wednesday morning, for a meeting with the U.S. President’s adviser on Lebanese affairs, Ms. Morgan Ortagus, and relevant Lebanese civilian representatives.
The meeting, which was reported to be conducted in a positive atmosphere, discussed ideas to promote potential economic cooperation between Israel and Lebanon.
Israel clarified that the disarmament of Hezbollah is an imperative entirely unrelated to the advancement of economic cooperation.
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Reports continue to circulate that Israel may strike Hezbollah in Lebanon with heavier strikes within days or weeks. (Anything is possible, but I think it’s more characteristic of Israel to wait until January or even March, unless there is a unique window of opportunity, or emergency reason unknown to the public.)
There are still attempts at mediation to prevent a war, and somehow get Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah. News 14 reports that even Egypt has stepped in to try and negotiate an agreement (Egypt usually stays out of the north’s business).
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In an interesting comment, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News that Venezuela is one of the anchors of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah in Latin America, and that it is not talked about enough.
Iranian television reports that the Iranian Foreign Ministry evacuated all diplomats from Venezuela in fear of an American attack.
Judea & Samaria:
Israeli security forces carried out a rare overnight (Tuesday – Wednesday) operation in Surif (near Jerusalem) with coordinated support from the Air Force.
During the operation, the Israeli forces arrested three anted terrorists — including one who planned to carry out an attack. An additional 40 suspects were summoned for questioning.
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On Tuesday, IDF forces carried out an operation in Ramallah and Hebron against UAWC, a local NGO connected to the PFLP, a designated terrorist organization. Soldiers seized incitement materials, confiscated 700,000 shekels in terror-linked funds, and arrested or detained more than 20 suspects. The offices were then sealed shut.
Although UAWC claims to focus on agricultural assistance, it has long acted as an operational arm of the PFLP—promoting incitement, helping recruit members, and transferring money to support terror activity. Senior figures in the organization have previously been involved in attacks and expressed open support for terrorism. In 2021, UAWC was officially designated as a terrorist organization due to its cooperation with the PFLP.
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On Monday two IDF soldiers were lightly wounded in a stabbing attack near Ateret. The terrorists was eliminated.
On Sunday an IDF soldier was lightly wounded in a car-ramming attack near Hebron. The terrorist drove off, and was later located in Hebron, still in the car. While soldiers attempted to arrest the terrorist, he tried to escape in a way which the IDF says endangered the soldiers. The soldiers responded with gunfire and the attacker was eliminated.
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A bizarre campaign to free Marwan Barghouti was signed by 200 celebrities, including the likes of Mark Ruffalo, Ian McKellen, Benedict Cumberbatch, Sting, and author Margaret Atwood.
Barghouti was one of the leaders of the Second Intifada. He directly coordinated terror attacks that killed 14 people, and was convicted in the deaths of 5 civilians, in three different attacks.
The blood-thirsty murderer targeted people at a wedding, at restaurants, at a gas station and on the road. He never gave any indication that he would not continue to direct terror attacks once released—on the contrary, Marwan Barghouti remains an icon and inspiration to Palestinian terrorists who refuse peace with Israel.
Other:
The Iron Beam is expected to be handed over to the IDF to begin rolling out operations on December 30th. That’s what Danny Gold, the Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Defense R&D announced at the DefenseTech Summit.
This means that at the start of 2026 the IDF will be able to shoot down small rockets, drones, and mortars with laser beams on all borders. This will increase defense capabilities, and save hundreds of millions of dollars.
(This is one reason why I don’t expect the IDF to start a new war with Hezbollah until January — unless there is an urgent reason unknown to the public.)
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On Wednesday, Israel delivered the Arrow 3 long-range missile defense system to the German Air Force. These completes the largest defense export deal in Israel’s history, with a 4 billion euro ($4.6 billion) sale.
