Press Briefing by IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari November 18th, 21:30

Good evening,

IDF forces continue to fight and deepen their gains in the northern Gaza Strip. We are focusing on combat with Hamas battalions in these areas. 

Israeli aircraft, along with reserve soldiers, killed the cell that launched rockets into Israel yesterday evening. The terrorists were killed within less than an hour, as our reservist forces on the ground identified the cell and directed aircraft to strike, killing the terrorists. This is a significant level of coordination between the air and land forces, along with precise and quality intelligence, that resulted in the targeting of terrorists that just launched a rocket to the center of Israel. This is the way we operate, all the time, in addition to our ongoing ground operation in Gaza.

Our forces also continue to deepen the operation and uncover terrorist infrastructure, including in hospitals. 

This morning, we responded to the request of the Shifa hospital management and opened a secure passage south for civilians in the hospital. We also brought in food and water into the hospital complex.

The forces continue to operate in the hospital with four main objectives:

One, gathering information on the hostages. That is a top priority.

Two, locating weapons and command and control rooms.

Three, finding terrorists in the hospital complex.

Four, a significant effort to uncover the underground area underneath the hospital and to destroy it.

Even at this hour, special forces are operating in the shaft that we discovered last night at the Shifa hospital. We will distribute the visual documentation from there, in the near future.

The efforts continue in other hospitals as well, in Rantisi and Al-Quds hospitals, and in other hospitals. I came back from the field, having met soldiers from various forces—armored, reservists, and special forces. I saw troops determined to accomplish these four objectives, which I mentioned, and to deliver results. 

In the north, aircraft struck a variety of Hezbollah terror targets in south Lebanon, including military compounds and terror posts. IDF fighter jets destroyed an advanced land-to-air missile system, in response to fire at a UAV used by our forces. The UAV made an emergency landing in Israeli territory. I want to emphasize that this UAV was not hit by Hezbollah fire.

We continue to return fire immediately every time, to sources of fire toward Israeli territory. We are maintaining high preparedness in the north. 

In Judea and Samaria, the ISA and the IDF killed last night several terrorists in a hideaway apartment in Nablus who were planning to carry out attacks against Israel. The IDF, along with the ISA and Israel Border Police, are deployed across the entire area, both defensively and offensively. We work together, day and night, to ensure the safety of the citizens of Israel.

On the home front, the instructions continue to be updated daily. Tomorrow, we will start the week with schools opening all across the country. Be sure to check the different websites and follow the instructions; they save lives. When there’s a siren, enter the safe room, wait 10 minutes until the threat is over and the shrapnel no longer poses a risk, and then exit.

To date, we have notified the families of 236 hostages, taken hostage on the 7th of October. The IDF continues at all times with a paramount effort to bring home the hostages being held in Gaza. We are working with a variety of means, overt and covert, to gather additional information and bring them home. This is a top national priority; it is important that the families know this. We are working around the clock to bring your loved ones—our loved ones—home.

To date, we have notified the families of 378 fallen IDF soldiers who fell defending the State of Israel. We embrace the families during these difficult times.