GNITN - Special Edition

Israel At War – Day 214

No Deal Per Netanyahu

Key Rafah Crossing Captured

While hostage negotiations continue in an attempt to curtail the Rafah offensive and even end the current war, the Israel Defense Force (IDF) is consistently taking steps to prepare for it as we read in a report from The Times Of Israel:

Israeli tanks rolled into the southern Gaza Strip early Tuesday, capturing the Palestinian side of the Rafah Crossing on the Egypt border, in what the military called a “pinpoint operation” against the Hamas terror group.

The ground incursion in the eastern part of the city of Rafah came after Jerusalem said a truce offer from Hamas the previous day did not meet its demands, and announced that it had okayed moving ahead with the long-threatened offensive.

Such moves are considered putting more pressure on Hamas to actually agree to a deal that Israel can agree to, but not a major one, though:

An Israeli official told The Times of Israel that it was a “limited operation” aimed at pressuring Hamas to accept a deal.

It was not the broad Rafah offensive that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeatedly promised Israel would carry out, CNN reported, citing a source familiar with Israel’s plan.

Here are more details on just what the IDF accomplished:

The Israel Defense Forces said its 401st Armored Brigade captured the Gazan side of Rafah Crossing on Tuesday morning, apparently with little resistance. Israeli flags were raised by troops at the border crossing, footage showed.

The crossing, located some 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from the Israeli border, was captured amid a “pinpoint operation” against Hamas in “limited areas of eastern Rafah,” the IDF said. It is located along the so-called Philadelphi Corridor, separating Egypt and Gaza.

As of Tuesday morning, Israel controlled all of the known overground crossings with Gaza.

Since this is on the border of Egypt, Israel is keeping them in the loop on their operations:

An Egyptian official and Hamas’s Al-Aqsa TV said early Tuesday that Israeli officials informed the Egyptians that the troops would withdraw after completing the operation. No timeline was given.

The article notes that Hamas is using tunnels in the area and that Egypt has been trying to shut them down since terrorists are coming into the Sinai from them as well. If Hamas really wants to survive they will come up with a path to a deal sooner than later. In the meantime, Israel will keep showing them the alternative is moving forward.

No Deal – Netanyahu

As we now know from an article in The Jerusalem Post Israel is not accepting the response from Hamas:

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly rejected Hamas’s proposal for a deal — that delayed the return of the hostages and demanded an end to the war — even as he sent a team to Cairo to discuss it.

“The Hamas proposal is very far from [meeting] Israel’s requirements,” he stated in a video message he delivered on Tuesday night.

The PM said why:

“Israel cannot accept a proposal that endangers the security of our citizens and the future of our country,” Netanyahu stated.

Israel’s negotiating team, he explained, was instructed “to stand firm” on principled points regarding hostages and security.

As mentioned earlier, the IDF is already starting to take control of Rafah:

“Within hours, our forces raised the Israeli flags at the Rafah crossing and took down the Hamas flags,” he said.

Seizure of the passageway into Egypt places all the crossings into Gaza back under Israeli control.

It’s a step that both helps pressure Hamas to make a deal and advances Israel’s war aim of destroying the terror group, he stated.

“We have already proven” that military pressure on Hamas is a necessary condition for the return of our hostages,” he said.

The report notes that the opportunity for stopping the Rafah offensive is fading fast:

Hamas’s decision to put a new proposal on the table Monday night was intended to halt the IDF’s entry into Rafah, Netanyahu said, adding that, this “did not happen.”

Israel’s control of the Rafah crossing, he said, damages Hamas’s governmental capabilities and blocks their ability to travel.

Defense Minister Gallant echoed his boss’ sentiments:

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant entered the Rafah area, telling the soldiers there, “This operation will continue until we eliminate Hamas in the Rafah area and the entire Gaza strip, or until the first hostage returns."

"We are willing to make compromises to bring back hostages, but if that option is removed, we will go on and ‘deepen’ the operation- this will happen all over the [Gaza] strip - in the south, in the center, and in the north.

“Hamas only responds to force, so we will intensify our actions, and the military pressure will result in us crushing the Hamas [terrorist] organization,” Gallant stated.

Evidence Of Indoctrination

We know that Israel wants to demilitarize terrorist strongholds, but they also talk about deradicalizing these areas as well. Proof of what they are up against to change the hearts and minds of these people is see in Yemen as we read in an article from i24news.tv:

Yemen's Houthi militia has announced the commencement of their annual summer camps, aimed at occupying the country's children during the break and instilling ideas rooted in Yemen's "religious identity."

Abdul Malik Al-Houthi, the leader of the Houthis, declared the opening of these camps, asserting that they would shield children from foreign influences and galvanize them to confront perceived enemies.

Yemen does not approve:

These camps have been accused by Yemeni government officials, journalists, activists, and human rights organizations of exploiting educational and religious institutions to indoctrinate, recruit, and train children for military purposes against the government. Reports have surfaced of children being taught to handle weapons, visiting the graves of fallen Houthi fighters, chanting militant slogans, and engaging in mock military drills.

Even the United Nations see such brainwashing as a problem:

The UN Security Council's latest report, released late last year, attributed the majority of human rights violations in Yemen to the Houthi militia, including the recruitment of child soldiers. This revelation further underscores the concerns surrounding the summer camps and their potential long-term impact on the country's youth.

Critics argue that such camps not only perpetuate violence but also undermine efforts to foster peace and reconciliation in Yemen. By indoctrinating children with militant ideologies and exposing them to conflict from a young age, the camps risk perpetuating cycles of violence and instability in the region.

This is just a snapshot of the same indoctrination occurring all over the Middle East and actually being seen in protests on American campuses. Antisemitism is being taught and radicalizing even the youngest children in societies is not off limits. We need to pray and pray specifically against this if not only for the sake of our Jewish friends, but also for our children who are being taught ungodly views about more than Israel. The good news is that God can renew minds if people are open to Him. Really, that is our only hope.