On February 20, Hamas released four caskets ostensibly carrying the remains of four Israeli hostages to the Red Cross, but one contained the body of a Palestinian woman. Israel has condemned this as a violation of the ceasefire that began in January. Separately, the IDF redeployed an experienced division that served in Gaza and carried out airstrikes against Hezbollah on the Syria-Lebanon border.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem delivered a speech on February 16 addressing regional and domestic developments, Beirut banning Iranian flights from landing at Hariri International Airport, and Nasrallah’s upcoming funeral. Qassem called for massive participation in the funeral to deter Hezbollah’s domestic political opponents from targeting the group or its weapons.
Iran’s intelligence network is not a monolithic entity but a web of competing and cooperating factions that execute the regime’s global ambitions. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Quds Force, and Ministry of Intelligence each play distinct yet overlapping roles in conducting assassinations, abductions, and sabotage operations worldwide. While institutional rivalries persist, their shared objective—suppressing dissent and expanding Iran’s geopolitical reach—ensures continued collaboration.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem gave a speech to mark the onset of the month of Shaban, in which he announced the date of Hassan Nasrallah’s funeral, sought to counter the group’s domestic detractors, and condemned provocative behaviors by Hezbollah’s supporters.
After many months of keeping silent on the matter, Hamas announced the death of seven of the organization’s senior leaders, including longtime military commander Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al Masri, commonly known as Mohammad Deif.
West Bank terrorist groups have issued statements, videos, and death notices following the start of a broad operation by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the West Bank.
On January 27, Naim Qassem insisted Hezbollah had emerged from the fight with Israel victorious, despite painful and unprecedented setbacks, and was unwilling to concede the group’s domestic position. Qassem also expressed Hezbollah’s satisfaction with Lebanon’s post-war political direction and said his group had a productive and positive relationship with Lebanon’s new president and prime minister-designate.
After mostly maintaining silence about the deaths of its members, Hamas has started to acknowledge their fate.
Israeli forces located and killed Muhammad Nazzal and Katiba Shalabi, both of whom were affiliated with Palestinian Islamic Jihad and wanted for the murder of three Israelis in the West Bank on January 6.
The Biden administration removed the Houthis from the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations in 2021 and didn’t re-list the group despite over 15 months of missile and drone attacks on US naval forces, international shipping, and Israel. The Trump administration ordered re-listing the Houthis after two days in office.
Bill is joined by show regular Edmund Fitton-Brown to discuss Edmund’s latest analysis for FDD’s Long War Journal: The role of Iraqi Shia militias as proxies in Iran’s Axis of Resistance.
West Bank terrorist groups are a persistent and evolving security challenge for Israel and the Palestinian Authority. These groups’ numbers, arsenals, and capabilities have expanded dramatically since an initial surge of terrorist activity in June 2021.
Bill is joined by his FDD colleagues David Daoud and Jon Schanzer — who literally wrote the book on conflict in Gaza — to discuss the ceasefire and hostage deal that has just been reached between Israel and Hamas.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is preparing for a hostage deal to be implemented with Hamas on January 19. It has set aside three sites where hostages may arrive when they leave Gaza, from which they will be transported to hospitals. The IDF is also preparing to redeploy units in Gaza to border areas and defensive positions. The 162nd Division in northern Gaza will withdraw from urban areas and secure the north, while the 99th Division is expected to withdraw from the Netzarim Corridor, according to Israeli media reports.
Israel is preparing for a deal that will see the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas and a cessation of fighting in Gaza. Assuming the agreement goes into effect, it will occur in phases, with the first phase taking place over 42 days, in which 33 hostages will be released. In exchange, Israel will release more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. In subsequent phases, all the hostages held in Gaza, of which there are almost 100, some of whom are deceased, will be freed, and the Israel Defense Forces will withdraw from Gaza in stages.
Israel faces continued threats in Lebanon despite the recent ceasefire, which approaches the important milestone of its first 60 days. On January 13, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out strikes on several Hezbollah targets, “including a rocket launcher site, a military site, and routes along the Syria-Lebanon border used to smuggle weapons to Hezbollah.” Israeli troops also continued searching for weapons and dismantling terrorist infrastructure in southern Lebanon.
Iraq’s Shia militias play a unique part in Iran’s Axis of Resistance and present distinct challenges for the US, Israel, and the Iraqi state. Notably, a more direct conflict between the militias and the US and Israel would imperil the Iraqi government’s ability to balance its relationships with Iran and the US, along with the country’s essential stability.
Lebanon did not thoroughly inspect a Mahan Air Flight suspected of carrying funds for Hezbollah. It engaged in an act of theater to deny Israel justification to resume fighting the group in light of Beirut’s failure to implement its obligations under the November 27, 2024, ceasefire agreement.
The Tehran regime faces significant challenges, including the diminished influence of its regional proxies and the potential for an Israeli strike on its nuclear facilities. In response, the Islamic Republic has devised a three-pronged strategy: bolstering morale through propaganda, conducting extensive military drills as a deterrent, and amplifying support for its remaining proxies.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) published data on the number of soldiers killed and wounded in 2024 and since the war began on October 7, 2023. A total of 363 IDF soldiers were killed in 2024, most of them during combat operations and in terrorist attacks. Overall, 891 servicemembers have died, most of them in combat, and 5,569 have been wounded since the conflict started last year.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) continue to search for and uncover Hezbollah munitions and terrorist infrastructure in southern Lebanon. IDF forces found weapons, explosives, and a tunnel in the fourth week of December. Israel is aiming to fulfill its mission against these threats before troops withdraw from southern Lebanon over the next three weeks in compliance with the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire. Hezbollah has warned that it will respond to Israel if the ceasefire’s terms are violated.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) eliminated dozens of terrorists in ambushes in Jabaliya overnight between December 29 and December 30. It was a rare large clash in northern Gaza, as the IDF has continued to fight in this area since early October. An Israeli soldier was also killed and several others wounded in northern Gaza.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) detained more than 240 suspected terrorists during a raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza on December 28. It is at least the third time in a year that the IDF has found numerous terrorists near this hospital. The IDF also launched a new operation in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza, and terrorists fired several long-range rockets at Israel from the neighborhood as Israeli troops began the operation.
A recent declaration by the League of Arab States chastising Iran for “inciting strife among the Syrian people” and the weakened positions of or hedging by Tehran’s regional proxies signal Iran’s diminishing influence.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out airstrikes on the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on December 26. The daytime strikes targeted the port of Hudaydah and Sanaa International Airport, among other targets. The IDF said it was targeting military infrastructure linked to the Houthis and Iranian smuggling of weapons to the group. The Houthis conducted a ballistic missile attack on Israel in the early hours of December 27.
Three Israeli soldiers were killed in northern Gaza, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said on December 23. The soldiers were taking part in a raid against terrorists in Beit Hanoun when they were killed by an improvised explosive device. The IDF also carried out an airstrike on December 22, targeting a Hamas commander who was at a command-and-control center in a former school.
Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz went to southern Lebanon on December 22 and vowed that Hezbollah would not be permitted to return to the border area. He met with the commanders of the IDF’s 91st Division and 188th Armored Brigade. The 188th has continued to uncover terrorist infrastructure and weapons in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli Air Force carried out retaliatory strikes on the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on December 19, following a Houthi missile attack targeting the Tel Aviv area on December 19 and also another attack on December 16. The IDF intercepted both threats, though debris on December 19 fell on a school near Tel Aviv. Israel’s strikes in Yemen targeted ports and energy infrastructure.
In his first speech after Assad’s downfall, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem completely reversed the organization’s position on the Syrian dictator’s removal. Qassem extended an olive branch to groups that, the week prior, he described as takfiri agents of Israel. He also insisted Hezbollah’s position in Lebanon would remain unchanged.
The IDF’s 98th Division completed its mission in Lebanon after operating against Hezbollah for two months in October and November. The IDF said the division is preparing for its next mission in the Gaza Strip. Other Israeli units in southern Lebanon continue to uncover Hezbollah tunnels and munitions as the ceasefire continues between Israel and Lebanon.