Patriot missile intercepts drone over Safed
Hamas fires on IDF in Shifa emergency room
The IDF on Thursday said that one of its Patriot missile defense systems successfully shot down a “suspicious aerial target” sent to attack Israel from Lebanon.
The suspicious aerial target, usually IDF jargon for a Hezbollah attack drone, exploded over the Safed area, deeper into Israel than usual, leading the military to probe the incident even though the threat was shot down.
Rocket sirens went off in several nearby areas.
Besides that incident, rounds of Hezbollah rockets caused property damage near Shlomi and Moshav Goren, with the rocket hitting the moshav just missing the local regional council head.
An estimated 11 rockets were fired; many were shot down, but some got through.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi met with a Druze community in the North to show solidarity following the killing of a Druze Israeli earlier in the week.
In Gaza, Hamas terrorists opened fire on IDF soldiers from within the emergency room unit of the al-Shifa Hospital, the IDF announced on Thursday.
The firefight occurred amid the ongoing operational activity at Shifa in northern Gaza.
Soldiers from the 401st Brigade, Nahal Brigade, and Navy Seal Unit Shayetet 13 killed the terrorists while working to prevent harm to civilians, patients, medical teams and medical equipment in the hospital, the IDF said.
Amid the firefights, IDF troops evacuated civilians, patients, and medical teams to alternative medical facilities that the military set up in the area to enable what it called proper medical treatment to continue.
Approximately 200 terrorists have been eliminated in the area of the hospital over nearly two weeks, and more than 500 more have been arrested.
Separately, soldiers from the Commando Brigade struck terrorist infrastructure that contained weapons in the
Al-Amal and Al-Qarara areas of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza. The troops also found explosive devices and mortar shells.
Soldiers from the Givati Brigade detected two Hamas terrorists adjacent to their location. In response, an IDF aircraft struck and killed them.
Afterward, the soldiers scanned the area and discovered multiple additional
explosive devices.
Also, on Thursday, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich advanced a new initiative to create a fund to provide financial assistance to families of career soldiers who have served in Operation Swords of Iron and need assistance due to the economic hardships caused by the war.