Press Briefing by IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari October 31st, 20:15

The live will begin at 20:15

Good Evening. Our forces are currently fighting deep inside the Gaza Strip. They are killing terrorists in close range combat, conducting coordinated strikes on terror targets from land, air and sea. During the afternoon hours, infantry and armored forces secured a central Hamas stronghold in the West part of Jabaliya. This stronghold served as a training center for the October 7th massacre and as a passage to the coastline from where additional terrorists set off to perpetrate the October 7th massacre. 

In the course of the fighting, we eliminated many terrorists and destroyed terror infrastructure. This is complicated combat, some of which is face-to-face combat. During the combat, we lost soldiers. Today, we notified the families of two IDF soldiers who fell in battle. This evening, we killed the murderous terrorist, Ibrahim Biari, the central leader of terror activity in the Northern Gaza Strip since the entrance of IDF forces into Gaza. He also played a part in the massacres of October 7th. In the strike to eliminate him, many terrorists were killed - terrorists that were with him in the building and in the underground area beneath the building. Striking Biari caused the collapse of adjacent buildings because of the expansive infrastructure there whose purpose was to launch terror attacks against our forces. During the battle, the entire infrastructure collapsed and many terrorists were killed. 

The Hamas terrorists continue to use civilian population as protective armor. This is intentional and devastatingly barbaric. Yahya Sinwar does not care about the residents of Gaza, he built the Hamas terror infrastructure intentionally underneath the homes of civilians, and he is behind the massacre of Israeli citizens on the 7th of October. Therefore, once again, today, we call on the citizens of Northern Gaza to move Southward. We will enable it through corridors. Beyond Wadi Aza, Southward, to a safer area. We will act forcefully in the city of Gaza and in the Northern Gaza Strip. We will continue to act against any terrorist in every part of the Gaza Strip. 

Red Sea:

In the area of the Red Sea, we intercepted a surface-to-surface missile which was launched toward the State of Israel. We intercepted it using a long range air defense system, the “Arrow System”. This was the first operational use of the system during this war and was successful. 

IDF planes also intercepted two additional hostile targets in the area. All the targets were intercepted outside Israeli airspace, thanks to the advanced capabilities of the Israeli Air Force.

We re-enforced the area with Israeli Navy ships with defense capabilities and we are currently in multi-dimensional defense - sea, air, and aerial defense. All this to protect the citizens of the State of Israel, with an emphasis on the residence of the South of Israel. There are many actors who are acting at the behest of Iran, including the Huthis who are trying to challenge us and to distract us from the war in Gaza. We remain focused. We are focused on the war in Gaza. We will know how to defend ourselves wherever we need to. We are working in coordination with the US Military, with CENTCOM. Israel’s transition to CENTCOM two years ago has significantly proven itself. We have developed an infrastructure base for transfer of data, intelligence, joint  aerial operations with CENTCOM and operations with the 5th fleet. As one unit, to prevent threats in the region and threats to Israel in particular. The IDF is capable of protecting the security interests of the State of Israel on its own, and it will be able to respond in the place and time of our choosing. 

The North:

In the North, there are continued attempts to fire at IDF positions along the Lebanese border. There were no casualties to our forces. The IDF returned fire to the sources and struck Hezbollah terror infrastructure in Southern Lebanon. We continue to respond immediately, with determination to every attempted fire and to eliminate every terror cell that will try to reach us through the fence or is preparing to fire at us. 

Hostages and Fallen Soldiers:

So far, we have notified the families of 317 IDF fallen soldiers. We continue to make every effort to return the hostages home. 

In the last hours, rumors have spread in Israel. I recommend everyone stick to our official reports. We will continue to notify the public truthfully and precisely. That is our obligation, in order to guarantee the safety of our forces. This is our request to the public - don’t spread rumors.