January 15, 2025 | Israel at War Situation Report

Israel SitRep: January 15, 2025

January 15, 2025 Israel at War Situation Report

Israel SitRep: January 15, 2025

Today’s Issue: | Israel Prepares for Return of Hostages, Social Workers Briefed on How to Assist Them | IAF Strikes Some 50 Terror Targets in Gaza | IDF Troops in Syria Seize More Than 3,300 Weapons and Other Items | COGAT: 240 Aid Trucks Entered Gaza Tuesday; World Central Kitchen Bakery Operating in Khan Younis | Latest FDD Analysis  

Israel Prepares for Return of Hostages, Social Workers Briefed on How to Assist Them: Israeli news website Ynet published a report on Tuesday about preparations being made to receive the hostages who will be released if the deal under discussion goes through. The hostages will first be met by members of the security forces and then sent to hospitals. They will receive medical examinations, and each one will be assigned a social worker. The Ministry of Welfare and Social Affairs has been holding briefings for the social workers who will be assisting the released hostages, and they are being provided with detailed information on their clients, including information on their backgrounds prior to abduction, the location of their abduction, and whether they lost close family members in the October 7 massacre. They have also been briefed on addressing cases of sexual assault among the hostages. Dr. Sharon Alroy-Preis, who heads the Health Ministry’s Public Health Division, noted that the healthcare system in Israel learned a great deal from working with the hostages released previously, including that they must be “surrounded by support, shielded from the media and curious individuals seeking to approach them.” She added, however, that the current situation is different because the hostages scheduled for release have been in captivity for far longer.

IAF Strikes Some 50 Terror Targets in Gaza: In the past day, the Israeli Air Force and Shin Bet struck some 50 terrorist targets throughout the Gaza Strip, including terrorist squads, tunnels, anti-tank launching positions, weapons depots, and Hamas military buildings. Overnight, the IDF and Shin Bet conducted airstrikes against dozens of targets throughout Gaza, including groups of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad operatives. In a precision airstrike, the IAF hit a prominent terrorist operating from a command-and-control center in the Daraj Tufah area that previously served as a school. The IDF says that the man was using the school to plan and carry out attacks against IDF troops and against Israel. According to Times of Israel military correspondent Emanuel Fabian, the school was being used as a shelter for displaced Gazans. Other targets struck by the IAF overnight include Hamas operatives in Khan Younis and Deir al-Balah. The IDF says that it took many steps prior to the attacks to minimize harm to civilians.

IDF Troops in Syria Seize More Than 3,300 Weapons and Other Items: The IDF reported on Wednesday that troops from the 210th (Bashan) Regional Division are continuing their forward defense operation in Syria. These troops, along with soldiers from the IDF’s enemy weapons collection unit, have seized more than 3,300 items, including guns, mortar bombs, Syrian army tanks, anti-tank missiles, RPGs, surveillance equipment, and other weapons. More than 170,000 items have been seized so far from Syria, Lebanon, and Gaza. Times of Israel military correspondent Emanuel Fabian states that the troops in Syria have also seized 570 electronic items, including communication devices and computers, and adds that according to the IDF, the soldiers operating in the buffer zone on the Syrian side of the border, as well as troops deployed beyond the zone, are there temporarily.

COGAT: 240 Aid Trucks Entered Gaza Tuesday; World Central Kitchen Bakery Operating in Khan Younis: On Wednesday, COGAT, the Israeli entity coordinating humanitarian aid for Gaza, announced that 240 humanitarian aid trucks entered Gaza yesterday, 183 through the Kerem Shalom crossing, and 57 through the Erez crossing. International organizations collected the contents of 127 trucks from the Gazan side of Kerem Shalom, and some 800 truckloads are still awaiting collection by UN agencies. COGAT stated yesterday that it has been working to expedite the entry of fuel into Gaza for humanitarian purposes and noted that 23 fuel tankers entered Gaza in the previous four days. Yesterday, three tankers with fuel for bakeries entered northern Gaza, and six cooking gas tankers for operating essential infrastructure entered Gaza. In addition, a World Central Kitchen mobile bakery has begun operating in the Khan Younis area in southern Gaza, which can produce more than 3,000 loaves of bread an hour.

Latest FDD Analysis:

Today at 8:30am (ET): “FDD Morning Brief,” featuring Mariam Wahba and Samuel Tadros, FDD Event

Video, audio, and transcript: “Tunnel Vision: U.S.-Israel Cooperation and the Future of Underground Warfare,” featuring MAJ (Ret.) John Spencer, Daphné Richemond-Barak, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan Conricus, moderated by Bradley Bowman with introductory remarks by Jonathan Schanzer, FDD Event

“Israel Is Overhauling Its Defense Ideology; Will Arab States Finally Support It?” Hussain Abdul-Hussain, The Algemeiner

“Trump Needs Timely Congressional Action to Support His Ukraine Agenda,” John Hardie, FDD Policy Brief

“Lebanon Chooses Nawaf Salam, an Adversary of Israel, as New Prime Minister,” FDD Experts, FDD Flash Brief

“Fatah Says It Won’t Let Hamas, Iran Sacrifice Palestinians,” FDD Experts, FDD Flash Brief

“‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’: Russia and Iran Set to Sign Pact After Presidential Visit,” FDD Experts, FDD Flash Brief

Issues:

Issues:

Israel Israel at War

Topics:

Topics:

Iran Israel Syria Hamas Russia Lebanon United Nations Gaza Strip Israel Defense Forces Jonathan Schanzer Palestinian Islamic Jihad Fatah Israeli Air Force Shin Bet Khan Yunis The Times of Israel Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Ynet Kerem Shalom Deir al-Balah Jonathan Conricus World Central Kitchen