Deserve Victory

IDF troops are deep inside of Gaza. The things they find are shocking...but sadly not surprising.

In a British WWII poster that hangs in my office, Winston Churchill points his finger at me and tells me to “Deserve Victory”.

Churchill famously pushed hard work (as well as an afternoon nap, which I sadly have yet to adopt and large glass of whisky, which doesn’t go well with a uniform).

And the IDF is working hard.

IDF forces continue to advance inside of Gaza, closing the encirclement on Hamas in northern Gaza. But this is not an open and shut war. Hamas has spent over 15 years entrenching itself within the Gaza Strip, investing in a sprawling network of tunnels, amassing massive quantities of weapons, and training for this moment.

Every single day, as the troops advance, they find more weapons, hidden in the most horrific places. Numbers lose meaning though. So here’s just a few that I’ve come across.

Weapons in the most tragic places.

Yesterday, during a skirmish with Hamas terrorists, IDF forces discovered concealed rocket launchers and other weapons inside a school in the northern Gaza Strip. This wasn’t just for storage - the school was being used as a base for mortar and rocket launches.

Here’s another example above.

In the video, you can see a terrorist tunnel - the type used for ambushes and for transferring weapons - smack in the middle of a children’s amusement park.

And then there’s this one - weapons, including Claymore mines, rocket propelled grenades, handguns and magazines - discovered by Armored Corps 7th Brigade in a weapons cache near a university. We call Hamas terrorists (and so do others, including the United States, the European Union, Canada, Australia, Japan and others). But they combine their horrific terrorism with the sophistication of a modern military.

Then there’s this one, where IDF troops located weapons and intelligence materials in a residence in Beit Hanoun.

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Fighting in these conditions is grueling. Homes and universities have been weaponized, at the expense of the people of Gaza. In many cases, literally taking funding or supplies that could have supported the people of Gaza and investing in terrorism instead.

My point here is that the IDF will continue to do everything in its power to “Deserve Victory”.

It does not come easily.

While pursuing victory, in a war that Hamas started by attacking Israeli communities, we are paying the price. Since the ground operation started, over thirty IDF soldiers have been killed in action. And yet, we continue to invest heavily in urging the people of Gaza to evacuate to southern Gaza and in carefully assessing when we need to call off strikes (video example here). We continue to deserve victory.

But while we do that, there can be no question that terrorists who choose the targets that they choose, who choose the tactics that they choose, and who have transformed Gaza into a bastion of terror…deserve nothing but defeat.

Operational Updates

An expanded version of today’s daily events is available on our website here.

• As Defense Minister Gallant said last night, IDF forces are now operating in the heart of Gaza City, pressuring Hamas terrorists in the area.

• Since the beginning of the war, the IDF has struck over 14,000 terror targets and discovered and seized over 4,000 weapons. Much of this arsenal has been discovered in schools, mosques, and other civilian buildings (as you now know, if you’ve read this far)

• Working closely with the Israeli Security Agency (Shabak), we eliminated Hamas’ Head of Weapons and Industries, Mohsen Abu Zina. Abu Zina was one of Hamas’ leading weapon developers, specializing in strategic weapons and rockets.

• Humanitarian aid continues to flow into south Gaza, with 96 trucks entering Gaza just yesterday and over 650 trucks so far.

• Today the humanitarian corridor facilitated the evacuation of civilians from Gaza City. The route was secured by the IDF.

• In the north, the IDF struck Hezbollah targets in response to rockets fired toward Israeli communities

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Daily Quote

We are fighting at this very hour in significant centers of the Gaza Strip. I have just returned from there. For the first time in a decade, the IDF is fighting in the heart of Gaza City. In the heart of terror. This is a complex and difficult war, and unfortunately, it has costs… The fighting spirit that gives us strength comes from the people of Israel. We will not rest, we will not stop and we will not be silent until our mission is complete. Until we are victorious.

Statement of the Commanding Officer of the Southern Command, MG Yaron Finkelman, November 7th, 2023

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What I’m Reading

Israel-Gaza war: 'I couldn't believe it was possible to kidnap an 85-year-old woman' - BBC

Tragic interview with Adva Adar, whose 85 year old grandmother Yafa was last seen being driven by Hamas terrorists into Gaza on October 7th.

When war goes underground: Understanding Hamas's tunnel network - France24

Interview with an Israeli academic, explaining the history and purpose of Hamas attack tunnels.