According to senior Palestinian Authority officials, the Israeli army's operation in the occupied West Bank town of Jenin, which began on Tuesday, is politically motivated. It is said to be aimed at appeasing the far-right Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, as well as the Israeli far-right, who are both opposed to the cease-fire agreement in Gaza, reports Haaretz.
The resigning Israeli chief of staff stated that the military had killed about “20,000 Hamas operatives” during the 15 months of war in Gaza against the Palestinian Islamist movement.
“Hamas’s military wing has been severely impacted. Most of the organization’s leadership has been eliminated,” General Herzl Halevi said during a televised address, hours after announcing he would step down in early March.
A loud explosion caused by an Israeli army maneuver was heard west of Mais al-Jabal, in the district of Marjayoun, according to our correspondent in southern Lebanon. The blast was heard in nearby villages.
Another explosion was reported from Aita al-Shaab, in the district of Bint Jbeil. A similar incident occurred in Aitaroun, in the same district, our correspondent added.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Israeli security forces to exercise “maximum restraint” in the occupied West Bank.
“Deeply concerned” about the violence in the West Bank, “particularly the ongoing large-scale military operation in Jenin,” Guterres “calls on security forces to show maximum restraint and to use lethal force only when absolutely unavoidable to protect lives,” said Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for the U.N. chief.
In Naqoura, Sour district, civil defense teams, in coordination with the Lebanese Army, recovered the body remenants of two victims. The remains were transferred to Jabal Amel Hospital for identification.
The Israeli military chief of staff, Herzl Halevi, stated that a military investigation alone would not address all the failures related to Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack, according to Haaretz.
“The military investigation pertains solely to [the Israeli army] and does not encompass all the reasons and areas that could prevent such events from recurring,” he said in a statement to the media, just hours after announcing his resignation.
“A commission of inquiry or any other external body (...) will have the full transparency of the military,” he added.
Halevi defended the armed forces against accusations that Israeli authorities allowed the Hamas attack to occur as justification for the subsequent offensive on Gaza. “No one knew what was going to happen. No one aided the enemy in executing its brutality. These claims are not only false but also harm the loyal soldiers who have done and continue to do their work to ensure the country’s security,” he said.
Addressing his resignation, Halevi stated, “I do not wish to cling to my position. It is not appropriate for my tenure to be extended (...) the time has come,” citing the military’s strong position on the ground and the agreement for hostage releases.
Hamas’s health ministry announced a new death toll of at least 47,107 in the Gaza war, as more bodies are discovered under the rubble.
“The bodies of 72 individuals were brought to hospitals (...) over the past 24 hours,” the ministry said. “Many victims remain under the rubble and on roads, and civil defense teams and ambulances cannot reach them.”
A total of 111,147 injuries have also been recorded in the Palestinian territory since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced that he would begin interviewing candidates for the next chief of staff position in the Israeli army in the coming days. “I intend to carry out a swift and organized process and select the best candidate for this mission,” he said in a statement cited by Haaretz.
Qatar’s prime minister said Israel and Hamas should show “good faith” for a lasting peace in Gaza, AFP reported.
“If they engage in this path with good faith, it will last and, hopefully, lead to phase two, to a permanent ceasefire,” said Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, that the peace process following the Gaza cease-fire “must lead” to a Palestinian state, according to Downing Street.
Starmer said, “The U.K. stands ready to do everything in its power to support a political process that must also lead to a viable and sovereign Palestinian state,” according to a summary of the phone exchange between the two leaders.
Israel's opposition leader called for the resignation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, minutes after that of the army chief of staff.
“I salute the Chief of Staff, General Herzi Halevi. Now it's time for them to face up to their responsibilities and resign - the Prime Minister and his entire catastrophic government,” said Yair Lapid on social network X.
The European Union has announced 60 million euros in aid for the Lebanese armed forces, reports AFP. This support comes “at a critical time for the implementation of the cease-fire agreement between Lebanon and Israel,” said Kaja Kallas, the head of European diplomacy.
The Lebanese armed forces “are essential to regional and national stability, and deserve our full support in carrying out their crucial mission,” added the Estonian official.
Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi has announced that his resignation will be effective as of March 6, Haaretz reports.
“Under my command, the Israeli army failed in its mission to protect Israeli citizens,” General Halevi wrote in his resignation letter to Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz. “The responsibility for this terrible failure lives with me every day, every hour, and will live with me for the rest of my life,” he added.
Israel's Finance Minister and leader of the far-right Religious Zionism party, Bezalel Smotrich, had heavily criticized the Israeli Chief of Staff, claiming that the Hebrew state “could not win as long as he remained in charge.”
The Israeli army set fire to vehicles, equipment and installations belonging to the private drilling company Ward, used as part of the Litani project (“Canal 800 project”), aimed at supplying southern Lebanon with drinking and irrigation water, report residents quoted by our correspondent Mountasser Abdallah.
The incident occurred in the Tal al-Nahas area, near the northern entrance to the border village of Kfar Kila (Marjayoun) in South Lebanon, where the Israeli army advanced and deployed today.
Israel's far-right Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, said in a statement that the military operation launched by the Israeli army in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, was linked to the addition of “strengthening security in the West Bank” to the Israeli government's list of “war aims”, according to Haaretz.
“After Gaza and Lebanon, we have begun to implement a change in security policy in the West Bank and a campaign to eradicate terrorism in the region,” said Smotrich, who said this was done "at the request of his party."
“The Iron Wall will be a long-term and sustained operation against terrorists and their instigators, to protect settlements and settlers and ensure Israel's security,” he continued, adding that the settlements would serve as a "security belt" for Israel.
Hamas has called on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank to “step up the fighting” against Israeli forces in response to the military offensive launched this morning in Jenin, the Palestinian movement said in a statement.
At least six people have been killed and 35 wounded since the start of the Israeli army's military operation on Tuesday in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, announces the Palestinian Health Ministry, quoted by Al Jazeera.
“The security forces launched a large-scale military operation today to eradicate terrorism in Jenin,” commented Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Israeli military operation launched in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, aims to “eradicate terrorism,” according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, quoted by AFP.
The Palestinian Health Ministry has reported that two Palestinians have been killed and at least 25 wounded since the launch of the Israeli military operation in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
The operation launched by the Israeli army in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, is code-named “The Iron Wall,” announced its Arab-speaking Israeli spokesman Avichay Adraee in a message on X.
Israeli forces withdrew from the area around Bint Jbeil, South Lebanon, where they were searching homes this morning, reports our correspondent in South Lebanon. Near Mais al-Jabal (Marjayoun), the Israeli army combed the Qrayneh and Debesh areas.
In addition, a Lebanese Army armored unit was deployed near Kfar Hammam (Marjeyoun), in the Arkoub region, in coordination with UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon).
Qatar, which plays the role of mediator between Israel and Hamas, said it was “confident” in the cease-fire agreement in the Gaza Strip, on the third of the truce in the Palestinian territory, reports AFP.
“We are confident in the agreement in terms of its content and the fact that we have settled all the important issues on the table,” said Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari, while acknowledging that the slightest ‘violation or political decision’ could lead to its collapse.
⚡ Israeli troops have begun an operation in the city of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, the army said without providing further details, Reuters reports.
Before the Israeli operation, Palestinian security forces had been conducting an operation for several weeks to regain control of the city, a hotbed of armed militant groups.
Citing local sources, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israeli soldiers had stormed the town from the Jalame military checkpoint, after an Israeli special forces unit had infiltrated the al-Jabariyat neighborhood, killing one Palestinian according to initial reports.
The Israeli army has arrested at least 20 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since yesterday evening, according to the Committee for the Affairs of Detainees and Ex-Detainees and the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS).
A journalist from Hebron and a woman from Ramallah are among those arrested in the Hebron, Qalqilya, Ramallah and Nablus governorates, according to a statement relayed by Al Jazeera.
The Israeli army's Arabic-speaking spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, issued a warning message to residents of the Gaza Strip, similar to the one sent to residents of southern Lebanon after the cease-fire came into effect in Lebanon:
“Do not approach Israeli forces in this area until further notice, or you will be exposed to danger,” he wrote in a message accompanied by a map showing exclusion zones including the entire perimeter of the enclave, described as a ‘buffer zone,’ as well as large swathes of its northern part bounded by the Netzarim corridor.
“If Hamas complies with all the details of the agreement, the inhabitants of the Gaza Strip will be able to return to the northern part of the Strip from next week, and directives will be issued in this regard,” he said.
Despite the cease-fire, two Palestinians have been wounded in Gaza by Israeli army fire, reports the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
A fisherman was first wounded by gunfire while on a boat off the coast of Gaza City, and another person fell victim to drone fire in the Sabra neighborhood, also in Gaza City.
These attacks add to a series of casualties in the Gaza Strip since the cease-fire came into effect on Sunday, adds the agency, which reports that three Palestinians, including a child, were killed yesterday in Rafah, in the south of the enclave.
The cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas in Gaza reduces risks to Israel's public finances and “could improve its sovereign credit rating,” Moody's Ratings reported on Tuesday.
The cease-fire, if respected, “also reduces the risk of escalation” of the conflict involving Iran, which would impact energy prices and global supply chains due to the disruption of shipping in the Red Sea, the agency said in its report.
The Israeli army entered and searched homes on the outskirts of Bint Jbeil, reports our correspondent in South Lebanon.
Four Israeli hostages are to be released on Saturday as part of the prisoner exchange, according to a Hamas leader quoted by AFP.
Emergency services in the Gaza Strip report that the remains of 50 bodies were found near the town of Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave, and transferred to the town's Nasser hospital, Haaretz reports.
The text adds that dozens of bodies were also found yesterday in Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip. According to Gaza's Information Office, at least 11,000 people are still missing in the Gaza Strip.
Turkey could resume trade with Israel “if peace is permanent,” said Nail Olpak, director of the Turkish Council for Foreign Economic Relations (DEIK), quoted by Reuters.
Turkey broke off trade relations with Israel last year because of its war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli forces operating in the localities of Wadi Slouki, Bani Hayyan and Tallousseh (Marjayoun) in southern Lebanon have withdrawn towards Markaba, our correspondent reports, citing eyewitnesses.
The Palestinian Authority accuses Trump of inciting “extremist settlers” to violence, reports AFP.
No sooner had the new U.S. president arrived at the White House yesterday than he revoked an executive order issued by his predecessor Joe Biden, which had sanctioned Israeli settlers accused of violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has thanked Donald Trump's “unwavering support,” following the latter's decision to lift U.S. sanctions on Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.
“Mr. President, your unwavering and uncompromising support for the State of Israel is a testament to your intense relationship with the Jewish people and our historic right to our land,” the minister wrote on social network X. “These sanctions constituted a serious and flagrant intervention in Israel's internal affairs and an unjustified violation of democratic principles and mutual respect” between the two countries, he added.
In southern Lebanon, the Israeli army carried out heavy explosions this morning in Bani Hayyan (Marjayoun). An Israeli tank stationed in Maroun al-Ras (Bint Jbeil) also targeted a house near Bint Jbeil.
Yesterday had been a particularly tense day, and after 10 p.m., Israel blew up houses in Houla and near Wadi Slouki, in the same district.
A total of 915 trucks of humanitarian aid entered the Palestinian territory yesterday, more than the number set by the ceasefire agreement, announced the U.N.
The initial 42-day truce between Israel and Hamas is supposed to allow an influx of humanitarian aid into the Palestinian territory and provide for the entry of 600 trucks a day.
During the first phase, 33 hostages held in Gaza are to be released in exchange for some 1,900 Palestinians detained by Israel, and the Israeli army is to withdraw from part of the territory.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Donald Trump yesterday, promising him “the best days” for relations between the two countries in the years to come.
“I believe that working together again will take the U.S.-Israel alliance to even greater heights,” he added at the time. Netanyahu also declared that he wanted to ensure that the Gaza Strip “never again presents a threat to Israel,” having previously said that he reserved the right to resume the war against Hamas.
The cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip is still holding on Tuesday, three days after it came into force, with U.S. President Donald Trump expressing doubts about its solidity.
“It's not our war, it's theirs. But I'm not confident,” Trump replied to a reporter who asked him if he thought the guns would be silenced for long between the two belligerents in the devastated Palestinian territory.
Donald Trump has exerted intense pressure on both sides to reach an agreement before his inauguration. As soon as he arrived in the White House on Monday, the Republican revoked an executive order issued by his predecessor Joe Biden, which had made it possible to punish Israeli settlers accused of violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa awaits the arrival of the Spanish Foreign Minister at the presidential palace in Damascus on Jan. 16, 2025. (Credit: AFP)
Syria's new leadership congratulated U.S. President Donald Trump after his inauguration yesterday, seeing him as “the leader who will bring peace to the Middle East.”
“I congratulate Donald J. Trump,” Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa wrote in a statement, saying his election "testifies to the confidence placed by the American people in his leadership." “We are convinced that he will be the leader who will bring peace to the Middle East and restore stability to the region,” he added.
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of events in the Middle East, including the third day of the truce in Gaza, which came into effect on Sunday, at least temporarily pausing a war that has lasted 471 days and claimed tens of thousands of lives.
We'll also be following the latest developments in Lebanon, Yemen and Syria, more than a month after the fall of the Assad regime.
You have reached your article limit
Your trusted source about Lebanon and the Middle East
Stay informed for $1 only!
This article is only available to L’Orient Today subscribers.
Already have an account? Login here