Israel SitRep: September 9, 2024

Today’s Issue: | Hezbollah Drone Lands Direct Hit on Nahariya Apartment Building; Airstrikes in Syria Kill 16 | IDF Makes Arrests in Overnight West Bank Counterterror Operation; Allenby Bridge Reopened to Pedestrian Traffic | CENTCOM Commander Visits Israel, Discusses Current Threats, Especially in the North| COGAT: Polio Vaccination in Southern Gaza Completed, Vaccination in Northern Gaza Begins Tomorrow | Latest FDD Analysis

Hezbollah Drone Lands Direct Hit on Nahariya Apartment Building; Airstrikes in Syria Kill 16: On Monday morning, a Hezbollah drone struck a direct hit on an apartment building in the northern Israeli city of Nahariya, which has not been evacuated. Several hours later, a rocket barrage was launched from Lebanon in the direction of the Galilee panhandle and western Galilee, with all 15 rockets landing in open areas. On Sunday, Israeli Air Force fighter jets struck a Hezbollah military building in the Khirbet Selm area of southern Lebanon, and overnight, the IAF struck a Hezbollah launcher and military buildings in the areas of Taybeh, Hanin, Yarine, and Kafr Kila in southern Lebanon. Also overnight, airstrikes in the area of Masyaf in northwestern Syria killed 16, wounded 36, and caused “material damage,” according to Syria’s state-run news agency SANA, which attributed the strikes to Israel. The target was apparently CERS, the Scientific Studies and Research Center, which Israel says Iran uses to produce precision surface-to-surface missiles and the United States says has been used to develop sarin gas. Recent years have seen repeated attacks on the Masyaf area, which is believed to be a base for pro-Iranian militias and Iranian forces.

IDF Makes Arrests in Overnight West Bank Counterterror Operation; Allenby Bridge Reopened to Pedestrian Traffic: In an overnight West Bank counterterrorism operation, the IDF, Border Police, and Shin Bet arrested a wanted man during activity in Kalandiya and Abu Shukheidim, also seizing weapons including an M-16, ammunition, weapons parts, and other military equipment. In Hebron, troops arrested a wanted man and found ammunition, while in Baka and in Deir Abu Mash’al, soldiers arrested two wanted men. Meanwhile, the Allenby Bridge crossing between Israel and Jordan has been reopened to pedestrian traffic after yesterday’s terrorist attack in which a Jordanian truck driver shot and killed three Israelis before being killed by security guards. The crossing is still closed to trucks, which normally enter Israel every day from Jordan, with which Israel has had a peace treaty since 1994. Celebrations took place last night in the Jordanian capital of Amman to honor the killer, with fireworks and a sign in Hebrew saying “death to Israel.”

CENTCOM Commander Visits Israel, Discusses Current Threats, Especially in the North: On Sunday, CENTCOM Commander Michael Kurilla met with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi during a visit to Israel focusing on “current threats” and in particular, “threats from Lebanon and Iran in the northern arena,” according to the IDF. Kurilla was also briefed by Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin, head of Northern Command, including on the military’s plans for Lebanon. In addition, the CENTCOM commander met with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who said that the two “discussed the operational and strategic situation in the region.” Gallant stated that the discussion included “ways to further strengthen interoperability to achieve our common objectives,” adding that “Israeli and American troops work closely together to deter common threats posed by Iran and its proxies.”

COGAT: Polio Vaccination in Southern Gaza Completed, Vaccination in Northern Gaza Begins Tomorrow: On Monday, COGAT, the Israeli entity coordinating humanitarian aid for Gaza, published its latest humanitarian update, noting that on Sunday, 208 aid trucks entered Gaza, 175 through the Kerem Shalom crossing and 33 through the Erez crossing. On the Gazan side of Kerem Shalom, private sector entities collected the contents of 114 trucks, while the UN collected the contents of 18 trucks. In addition, five fuel tankers and six cooking gas tankers entered Gaza. The announcement adds that the second stage of the polio vaccination campaign in Gaza ended yesterday, with a total of 251,417 children vaccinated in southern Gaza. Previously, 189,033 were vaccinated in central Gaza. The campaign’s next phase will begin tomorrow in northern Gaza.

Latest FDD Analysis:

Today at 8:30am (ET): “FDD Morning Brief,” featuring Jonathan Schanzer and Nick Stewart, FDD Event

“The Long War: 23 Years After 9/11,” Clifford D. May, Jonathan Schanzer, and Hussain Abdul-Hussain, FDD’s Foreign Podicy

“Polio vaccination campaign gives lie to claims of Israeli ‘genocide’,” Ben Cohen, Jewish News Syndicate

“Biden Administration Foreign Policy Tracker: September,” John Hardie, et al., FDD Tracker

“FDD Identifies 19 Websites as Part of an Iranian Global Influence Operation,” Max Lesser and Ari Ben Am, FDD Policy Brief

“ICC Prosecutor Defends Seeking Arrest Warrants for Israeli Leaders,” FDD Experts, FDD Flash Brief

“Israel Completes Anti-Terror Operation in West Bank City of Jenin,” FDD Experts, FDD Flash Brief

“Documents Detail Hamas Plan to Use Hostages to Remain Military Threat,” FDD Experts, FDD Flash Brief

“Maersk Reports Houthi Attacks Cause 66 Percent Drop in Suez Canal Traffic,” FDD Experts, FDD Flash Brief

“Jordanian Terrorist Kills Three Israelis in Attack at West Bank Border Crossing,” FDD Experts, FDD Flash Brief

“Israel SitRep: September 6, 2024,” FDD Experts, FDD Israel at War Situation Report